PREP

What a fantastic start to the year we’ve had in Prep! The children have settled into school life beautifully and should be so proud of themselves. Throughout the week, we’ve been busy getting to know one another, exploring our classroom, learning our routines, and practising important skills such as lining up, unpacking bags, and looking after our belongings.

There have been lots of smiles, new friendships forming, and plenty of enthusiasm as the children begin their learning journey. We have loved playing and eating with our Year 6 buddies.

As part of our Literacy program, the children were introduced to Little Learners Love Literacy and had lots of fun meeting our first characters, Milo Monkey (/m/) and Sally Snake (/s/). The students loved learning the sounds and beginning to connect them to letters.

As the Preps continue to develop their independence, you might like to start talking with your child about what it will look like when you drop them off at the gate in the mornings and they walk into the classroom on their own. You may also like to begin developing an after-school routine. We have several options for Prep pick-up:

Loop: Parents can pull into the school car park and wait in the loop line. We ask that the loop moves quickly, so it is important for parents to remain in their cars. A staff member can assist with opening doors; however, students must be able to get into the car with their bags and buckle themselves in independently for this option.

Gate: Students line up at the Art Room doors and are walked to the front of the school by a staff member, then down towards Lake Oval. Parents can park along Calvert Street or on the grass at Lake Oval. A staff member will lead students down and assist them crossing at Fireman Street.

Bus: Please ensure that your child’s classroom teacher is aware of any weekly nights on/off the bus.

Yard: Parents may also continue to park in the school car park and walk into the yard to collect their child.

However you choose to organise your home routine, please let your classroom teacher know. We keep a list in the classroom, and having a clear end-of-day plan helps relieve worries during the school day.

Be sure to follow our posts on ClassDojo, as we will continue to share learning updates and important dates and events.

Thank you to our families for your wonderful support in making this transition to school such a positive experience. We are looking forward to many more weeks of learning, laughter, and growth together.

Beginning of Year Mass: 10:00am, Thursday 5th March

Please note this date in your calendar, as our Prep students will be involved in a special part of this Mass. They will be blessed and officially welcomed into the St Mary’s community by their Year 6 buddies. Parents/family are warmly invited along to share in this special celebration.

Thank you to our families for your wonderful support in making this transition to school such a positive experience. We are looking forward to many more weeks of learning, laughter, and growth together.

Dates to Remember

*Important school dates can also be accessed on PAM on the whole school calendar)

Parent–Teacher Meet & Greets: 16th & 17th February, 3:15pm–5:30pm (You will be able to book a time for this on PAM in the coming days)

Beginning of Year Mass: 10:00am, 5th March

Beginning of Year BBQ: 6:00pm, 5th March

Pupil Free Day: Thursday, 19th March

Elissa Rodger erodger@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Emma Roberts eroberts@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Liza Alexander lalexander@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

GRADE 1

We’ve had a great start to the year and it's been wonderful to see the students settling in so well.

We have spent some time practising our new routines, and getting to know each other in the classroom. In Math, the students have been exploring the topic Statistics and Data. We have been investigating our favourite foods and animals, learning how to use tally marks to track data and then use that information to create basic graphs. We have also been checking in on student counting in preparation for learning goals that will be sent home next week. In Literacy we have been learning and revising spelling choices and we have completed an About Me writing task. We are excited to finish the week by celebrating the start of the Winter Olympics where students will participate in some small events at school.

Leah & Abbey

Leah Martin lmartin@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Abbey Hayes ahayes@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

GRADE 2

Our Grade 2’s have had a fantastic start to school this year.

We have played lots of new games in numeracy time, as well as outside during brain breaks.

We have had a crack at our first writing task, ‘All About Me’, which gave us so much information about how our writing is coming along since Grade 1. We are also continuing to get to know each other by participating in get to know you activities each day.

In Literacy we have been enjoying introducing Deb to the ‘Little Learners Love Literacy’ program, as she has only ever taught senior students!

It has been wonderful to see how quickly we can adapt to a new environment and expectations as big Grade 2’s.

Next week we will begin more formal lessons, so please ensure your Grade 2’s get lots of rest and bring a fruit snack each day.

Deb & Matt

Matt O'Dowd modowd@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Deb Holland dholland@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

GRADE 3

Welcome back everyone!

We hope you had a great summer break. We have kept everyone in our thoughts who were and still are affected by the fires.

We are off to a fun and flying start in Year 3.

We brainstormed a class name and came up with ‘Year 3 GOATS’ and came up with a class phrase ‘Team up, GOATS’.

We have been busy completing our ‘all about me’ projects and after drafting it all up, we got to use our Chromebooks to type up our good copies. These will be displayed in our classroom soon to help us continue to get to know one another and stick to our greatest of all time motto.

Our PE day with Andre is on Thursdays, so please wear your sports uniform that day.

This coming Monday, we are off to Beeac.

We are heading there to show our support and appreciation to the Beeac CFA. We have been busy in Art with Lynne making posters. We look forward to presenting these to the members of the CFA on Monday. A big thank you to all the volunteers who were involved in fighting the fires and helping those in need, what a wonderful community we have.

We are looking forward to a great Term 1.

Matt Absalom mabsalom@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

GRADE 4

As we settle into the year our focus has been on Learning to Learn. During this time, we have been getting to know each child, settling into routines, and building positive learning habits together. It has been wonderful to hear about summer family adventures and to learn more about students’ interests, strengths, and what makes them who they are.

We have also enjoyed welcoming three new students to Year 4. Chloe has joined Bec’s class, and Kaisser and Lexi have joined the Amanda and Paula class. It has been lovely to see how warmly they have been welcomed by their peers.

A few reminders for families. AUSLAN takes place on Monday. Specialist lessons are on Tuesday and will be Music and Science this term and Physical Education is on Thursday. We will continue to share updates and reminders through Dojo.

Paula Parish pparish@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Amanda Delorenzo mdelorenzo@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Rebecca Gallagher rgallagher@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

GRADE 5

Back into it for Week 2 of school, we have really enjoyed setting up our classrooms and embracing the year ahead!

We have established our expectations for the year, and students are already getting very good at meeting them. The bar keeps rising for this group, just like a high jump bar!

This Friday, we will be handing out student diaries and discussing homework expectations. Information will be shared with both students and families via Dojo.

We have been learning all about our Year 5/6 theme, EMBRACE, and students have been doing a fantastic job engaging with this. One of our favourite lessons so far has been All the Ways to Be Smart by Davina Bell, which links to the ‘A’ for Appreciation in EMBRACE. This year, we will be using the EMBRACE values to hand out raffle tickets when students demonstrate these qualities.

We will also be using Learning Dollars to reward growth mindset, achieving learning goals, and putting in strong effort in class. Students can also earn dollars through weekly diary and homework check-ins. The students are very excited about this system and have been brainstorming possible rewards, such as choosing a brain break game.

In Literacy, we have begun our daily review and repeated reading routines, with students having a great go and showing strong growth mindsets.

In Numeracy, we have been revising multiplication, division and counting, as well as exploring data through bar graphs, mode and line graphs. We are looking forward to beginning our Place Value unit next week.

Next Monday, we are excited to be visiting the Beeac CFA. Students have prepared some thoughtful questions and will be presenting artwork they have been working on. We are really looking forward to this experience. A reminder to please complete the PAM permission if you haven’t already and attend to all the PAM beginning of permissions so we know for example, who has permission to be photographed etc.

With the start of a new year, new year level, new teachers and new expectations, some children are naturally experiencing a few big feelings as they settle into these changes. This is a really normal part of transitioning into Grade 5, and we are already seeing many students showing great resilience and growth as they adjust.

We welcome any check-ins from families, as working together helps us support each child in the best way possible. If there is anything happening at home or anything you think we should know to help your child settle confidently into the year, please don’t hesitate to reach out. The upcoming Meet and Greet sessions next week will be a lovely opportunity to touch base; keep an eye out for details on PAM.

We’ve also noticed a few tired faces in the mornings as students get back into school routines. The beginning of the year is a great time to reset healthy habits, including sleep routines. At this age, 10–11 year olds still need around 10–11 hours of sleep each night to feel their best, stay focused, and enjoy their learning days.

Thank you for your ongoing support as we work together to help our Grade 5s feel settled, confident and ready to learn.

We are looking forward to the year ahead and all the great learning and experiences that await.

Rachael & Rachel

Rachel Downard rdownard@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Rachael Cahill rcahill@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

GRADE 6

Welcome to Year 6!

We have had a fantastic start to the year, with our Grade 6 students coming in with great energy and excitement, especially as they begin their buddy program and step into their leadership roles. We are thrilled to announce our two School Captains for 2026: Congratulations to Anna Rongdit and Jack Hitchings!

Next week, students will vote for the remaining SRC positions. Speeches for Arts and Culture, Social Justice, and Sports and Sustainability will begin on Tuesday.

This term we are grounding our learning and classroom culture in our core EMBRACE values:

Empathy, Motivation, Belonging, Resilience, Appreciation, Community, and Engagement.

We have revisited the joy of picture books by reading a story focused on each of these values, followed by class discussions and activities. It has been wonderful to see a strong sense of community, support, and compassion already growing in Year 6.

In Numeracy, we have begun the year with Statistics. Students have learned how to calculate mean, median, mode, and range, and have represented data using side-by-side graphs.

In Literacy, students have been writing Our Own Unique Stories, an autobiography project where they reflect on their history, identity, and what makes them unique. Next week, we will begin our class novel Rivet Boy, which will link beautifully to our upcoming Persuasive Writing unit.

In Humanities, students are exploring Civics and Citizenship. They are learning how decisions are made in communities, how voting and majority rule work, why rules keep communities safe and fair, and what their rights and responsibilities are as active citizens. They will also investigate the many ways people and groups contribute to helping others.

In Religion this term, we are focusing on Commitment. Students will explore the Passover and Easter stories and connect this learning with Caritas Australia’s Project Compassion.

It is shaping up to be a very busy and exciting term!

A few reminders:

Students bringing mobile phones to school must hand them into the office. Please notify your child’s teacher if they are bringing a phone.
Headphones are needed as soon as possible.
Sports uniform is worn on Thursday.

Jess Downard jdownard@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Jodie Hassett jhassett@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Maegen Potter mpotter@smcolac.catholic.edu.au

Birthday Wishes