From the Principal

Welcome back to Term 4. We hope you enjoyed the two week break and managed to recharge your batteries for the term ahead.

Term 4 is traditionally jam packed with exciting learning opportunities including: a swimming program and swimming carnival, the junior athletics carnival, the Art Show, end of year Christmas Carols and, of course, transitions. 

This is our last term with our current Year 6 cohort. It has been wonderful to watch them grow over the years. I can distinctly remember their first day of school in 2017, because it was also my first day at Galilee. I am looking forward to celebrating their final term at Galilee with them as they quickly approach their Graduation at the end of this term. 

This week we welcomed our 2024 Prep students to their third transition session. We look forward to seeing these students a number of times this term as they prepare to start their Primary School journey with us next year. We have 78 Prep students joining us next year. 

We are very fortunate to have healthy enrolment numbers at Galilee. We believe we are at optimal size where every student is known by name and has access to exceptional infrastructure and outstanding resources to support their learning and wellbeing. We have one of the best school communities, which is built through great partnerships between families and our school. Healthy enrolment numbers gives us the opportunity to continue delivering a high standard of education and a wonderful experience for our community. 

STEM MAD Student Showcase

Today a small group of Year 2 and Year 6 students represented Galilee at the STEM MAD Student Showcase at the Catholic Leadership Centre in East Melbourne. 

The STEM MAD Student Showcase is a celebration of student learning designed to acknowledge and promote STEM learning initiatives that address real-world problems and demonstrate the particularity of Catholic Schools; encouraging students to make a difference (MAD) in the world by acting for justice and the common good. This aligns with the papal call for action in Laudato Si': On Care for our Common Home. 

I had an opportunity to visit the Student Showcase today. It was wonderful to see our students in action, bursting with pride when they talked to others about their design, the problem they were aiming to solve and the process they used to produce their prototype. 

We would like to thank our two STEM Leaders, Adrian Webster and Dan Booth, who entered the students into the Showcase, supporting and preparing them for the Showcase. We would also like to thank the Year 6 Classroom Teachers, Richard Harding and Paddy Edwards, and the Year 2 classroom teachers, Mikalia Greenan and Shane Gethings, for involving the students in rich STEM learning and preparing them for the showcase. 

We would like to congratulate the students for Year 2, Luca, Robyn, Alexander and Haell, and our Year 6 students, Scarlette, Hattie and Chloe, for their outstanding work in STEM and their exceptional presentations today at the Showcase. Our Year 2 students were awarded a Communication Award this afternoon.

STEM MAD Teacher Conference

Tomorrow Dan Booth, our STEM Leader and Year 5 classroom teacher, has been invited to speak at the STEM MAD Teacher Conference. He has been selected for his outstanding contribution to STEM Learning and Teaching. He will be sharing his STEM teaching experience with Catholic Teachers from around Melbourne. We would like to congratualate Dan. 

Swimming Program at Galilee

Thank you to all students who have participated in the Swimming Program this week. The swimming program is an integral part of the Physical Education program and an important component of the National Curriculum. It is also a wonderful skill many of our students use at our upcoming Swimming Carnival and at the beach or pool over the summer. Tomorrow is the last day for our Prep, Year 1, Year 3, Year 4 and Year 5 students. Next week our Year 2 and Year 6 students will complete the Swimming Program. Thank you to Seb Greene for organising the program for our students and to the teachers and many parent volunteers who make the program possible.

Carmen Carnovale Masters of Educational Leadership Graduation

We would like to congratulate Carmen Carnovale on graduating with a Masters of Educational Leadership. This is an outstanding achievement. Carmen has been studying part time for the past two years at Australian Catholic University. It has been wonderful to hear about her study and assignments and the learning that she has been doing. Her mastery in this area is a real asset to our school community. Staff at Galilee have always been encouraged to pursue further study to support their own growth and development and to share their learning and wisdom with the school community. We have a number of staff who are currently engaged in study who are all looking forward to graduating soon.

Students are required to wear Summer Uniform starting next week

Starting next Monday 16th October, all students need to wear full summer uniform each day. Students are also required to wear the school hat at recess and lunch. We encourage students to apply sunscreen before school and bring along their own sunscreen to re-apply sunscreen themselves throughout the day. 

Cyber Safety at Galilee

Week 4 is Cyber Safety Week at Galilee.

Next week is Week 3 and students will be preparing for Cyber Safety Week by participating in digital safety and wellbeing live streamed incursions. In Week 4 students will participate in a variety of activites throughout the week focused on Cyber Safety. Many Cyber Safety resources that teachers will use can be found on the Inform and Empower website: https://www.informandempower.com.au/ . 

We understand the importance of cyber saftey and the power of education in this area. Please speak to your child’s classroom teacher if you have any cyber safety related questions. More information about Cyber Safety Week will be posted in Dojo next week. 

I would like to once again thank our incredible community for your continued support. We have lots of events planned this term. We look forward to seeing you as we celebrate sport, art, performing arts, student learning, graduation and transitions this term. 

I wish you every blessing in the coming weeks,

Amy Burns

Deputy Principal