Principal's Report

We have made it to the end of Term 1, and I think everyone is looking forward to a well earned rest. It has been a busy term...Year 6 camp, Athletics Carnival, Reconciliation just to name a few events and we conclude our term with our annual Colour Run, always a fun day. 

Easter is still two weeks away but as we approach the Easter break, we would like to extend our warmest wishes to all of our families, we hope that it is a time of reflection and celebration. At St Finbar's, we have been preparing for Easter with a series of events reenacting the events of Holy Week and encouraging our students to reflect upon the true meaning of Easter. There is more detail and photos of these events on the Religious Education page of this newsletter.

For those families that are heading away, stay safe, and enjoy your holiday.  I am heading to Vietnam for the holidays and can't wait to relax, explore and enjoy some delicious food. 

Parent Teacher Interviews

It was great to see so many parents take up the opportunity to meet with the teachers this week. End of Term 1 is a great time for these meetings; teachers have had the chance to get to know the students better and offered the opportunity for more meaningful conversations about each student's strengths and areas of development. 

Sick Bay/First Aid update

Starting from the beginning of next term, we will be making some changes to our Sick Bay/First Aid procedures. You will begin receiving email notifications if your child has visited the Sick Bay at any stage during the day. This change will serve two main purposes: improving communication with families and enhancing our record-keeping of Sick Bay visits.

School Winter Uniforms

From the beginning of Term 2 we transition to our Winter uniform, so the holidays might be a good time to do a bit of a stocktake  and get organised with new items before the start of Term 2. Just a reminder that we have navy socks and completely black shoes on school uniform days, and white socks and runners on sport days. 

Parents and Friends 

Our P&F Association has been incredibly busy these past few weeks, organising and supporting multiple events that have brought our community together. It’s been wonderful to see so much engagement and enthusiasm from both parents and students.

Last Saturday's Showdown was a fantastic event and a highlight of th eterm so far. The mechanical bull was undoubtedly the star of the night, providing plenty of entertainment and laughter. The effort put into costumes was impressive, and it was great to see so many people getting involved. A special thanks to the Year 5 representatives who worked tirelessly to plan and organize this event, making it such a memorable evening for our entire community.

Looking ahead, tomorrow is our much-anticipated Colour Run. This event also requires a lot of preparation behind the scenes, and we’re excited to see it come to life. It promises to be an incredibly fun and vibrant day for everyone involved. We’d like to express our gratitude to the Prep representatives who have put in so much effort to organise this year’s Colour Run – your hard work is greatly appreciated.

In addition to these exciting events, we would like to take a moment to acknowledge the ongoing fundraising efforts of the P&F and thank all of you who have supported these initiatives. Your contributions truly make a difference. As a result of your generosity, we have placed a bulk order for new decodable readers for our Prep and Year 1 classrooms. These books will be available to students in the first week or two of next term, helping to support their classroom learning. We are also in the process of obtaining quotes for a new shade cloth area to be installed over part of the Mary Clare playground. This addition will provide much-needed shade for our playground, offering a more comfortable and enjoyable space for our children to play during the warmer months.

Finally, we’d like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the parents who contributed to yesterday's staff morning tea. Your generosity in providing delicious treats and thoughtful gestures was greatly appreciated by our staff. It’s moments like these that remind us of the strength of our community and the impact we can have when we come together.

St Kilda footy club visit

It was great to have some players from St Kilda footy club join us on Tuesday afternoon afternoon. The players spoke to the students about life as an AFL player and were more than willing to sign some items. 

Year 1 Literacy

Our Year 1 students were hard at work this week working ont heir reading skills. We've been very happy with the InitialLit program so far and the students are making great progress with both their reading and writing. 

Enjoy your break,

Michelle Hill