PRINCIPAL'S REPORT
Week 5, Term 1
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Early on the Monday morning of last week, our Year Five and Six students departed for Canberra on the biennial school camp to the ACT. Though some were a little nervous, there was an air of confidence and excitement as the bus left. A packed itinerary awaited them in the capital and unfortunately, so did some gastroenteritis. The week was cut short due to multiple cases occurring midweek, affecting around 10 of the 40 students and two of the five staff away. We made the difficult decision for them to return home on Thursday, instead of Friday. In the 15 years I’ve been involved in Canberra Camps, this is the first time such an event has happened and is certainly a bit of bad luck for all. The reason for sharing this in the newsletter isn’t to unsettle or upset anyone, but to celebrate the children and staff who were on the camp. As everyone knows, it is never a good feeling to be sick when you are away from home, but our students and staff were incredible in their resilience, positivity and teamwork. It is a bit of a cliche, but we do talk about it often, it’s the people that make this community a special place to learn and work. Despite multiple students suffering symptoms, everyone looked after each other and supported one another until they all returned home to their families. I am extremely grateful to our staff for their commitment to the students throughout the camp. Thank you also to the Year 5 and 6 families for supporting the school with the changes. It is greatly appreciated. As you can see from the photos below though, the children had an amazing time visiting many of the major sites Canberra has to offer including the Australian Institute of Sport, Parliament House, the Australian War Memorial and the Electoral Education Centre. It’s a wonderful experience for the students to be away together and I am sure they will take many happy memories from it.
Sacrament of Reconciliation Family Faith Night - Wednesday 26th February, 7.00pm
Tonight, all Year 3 children receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation are asked to attend the family faith night with at least one parent. This session connects school, home and parish around the preparation for this sacrament. It will be held in the children’s classroom from 7.00pm and will run for about an hour. As well as the faith formation component, we will also go through logistical information regarding the celebration of the sacrament on Thursday 27th March.
P&F Welcome Picnic
This Friday 28th February, the St Agnes’ Parents and Friends Committee is hosting our annual Welcome Picnic at Thomas Street Park in Hampton. This is a great tradition in our school and is always held on the last Friday in February. I strongly encourage all families, old and new, to get along to connect and have some fun together. Pack a picnic basket, a rug, some dinner and drinks and head to the park from 5.30pm onwards. The community is what makes this place special and this is another chance for us to share in each other’s company.
Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday
Next Wednesday 5th March, we will gather together to mark an important day in the church calendar - Ash Wednesday. Lent is a time when we prepare for Easter. It is a time when we can do good things for others and for our world. The three faith aspects we concentrate on with the children during Lent are prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Each year during Lent, our school community supports Caritas Australia. The children will be learning about the good work carried out by Caritas in Asia and the Pacific. There will be coin boxes in classrooms and also sent home with eldest children in an effort to financially support these initiatives. All donations, big and small are welcome. This will be collected at our Easter Liturgy on the final day of Term One. Traditionally during Lent, Christians would give up rich, tasty foods such as butter, eggs, sugar and fat. Shrove Tuesday was the last chance to eat them – and what better way to do so than with a delicious pancake! Shrove Tuesday will be marked at St Agnes’ next week, with some parent helpers coming in to cook pancakes for the children. Thank you to those who are helping out with this effort.
School Closure Days - Thursday 6th-Friday 7th March
A friendly reminder that the school is closed on Thursday 6th and Friday 7th March for staff professional learning. The staff will engage in Berry Street Education Model training which supports our approach to student wellbeing at St Agnes’. At this same time last year, the staff learnt about the Berry Street Domains of Body and Relationships. This year, the focus will be on Stamina, Engagement and Character.
NAPLAN Testing - Year 3 and 5
In the week following the Labour Day Long Weekend, our Year 3 and 5 students will sit NAPLAN Online. The children from these year levels have been preparing for test taking over the past few weeks/months, as we aim to set them up for success. All tests are completed using the school’s Chromebooks, with the exception of Year 3 Writing which is handwritten. The Year 3 and 5 students will complete the following tests:
- Writing - Wednesday 12th March
- Reading - Thursday 13th March
- Conventions of Language - Thursday 13th March
- Numeracy - Friday 14th March
It is expected that all students complete NAPLAN assessments, unless there is a valid reason for exemption. Results will be received mid-year and an individual report will be provided to families displaying your child’s achievement. All children require a set of corded headphones for the testing. Please click here, for parent information regarding NAPLAN in 2025.
Help Needed - 2026 St Agnes’ School Fete!
It seems like a long way away, but on Saturday 14th March 2026 we have our next St Agnes’ School Fete. This parent-run social, community and fundraising event has been a part of the school culture since the 1970s and it is amazing. In my time at the school, across three Fete’s, there has been over $100,000 worth of fundraising. This has led to a number of significant improvements in the school, most recently, the resurfacing of the central courtyard. We are asking for parent support in forming a subcommittee to drive this important event. If you are interested in supporting this school in this way, please contact me.
Finding Nemo Auditions - Friday 14th March
The excitement is well and truly alive, with the senior students particularly excited about the upcoming school production of Finding Nemo. All of the Year 5 and 6 students will form the main cast and will be auditioning for these roles on Friday 14th March. All children are expected to complete an audition and nominate their preferred roles. Our Performing Arts Teacher Mrs Anna Gugliucciello will provide audition kits to the children this week. Announcements around key roles will be made in the latter stage of the term, with rehearsals commencing in the last two weeks of Term One.
Preps Full Time - Monday 3rd March
Our Prep children have made an incredible start, settling into learning routines very quickly. The final ‘Prep rest day’ is today and we look forward to welcoming them every day, including Wednesdays, from next week onwards. Thank you to all of our Prep parents for supporting your child’s transition. Not only does the rest benefit the children significantly, but the opportunity to complete Literacy and Mathematics assessments is invalue for our staff.
Classroom Parent Helper Course
This year, we again welcome the support of parents to assist in our Prep and Year 1 classrooms during the morning literacy block. You will enjoy participating in your children’s education – we are in partnership with you and your support is invaluable. All parents are welcome to help. We require that all helpers assisting in the classrooms are fully trained and have a current Working with Children Check, which must be uploaded to your child's Operoo profile prior to the commencement of the training sessions. We need helpers from 9am to 11am each day. There is a compulsory training session (approximately 1 hour) for all new Prep parent helpers and any new helpers in Year 1. The training session will be run by Amanda Baker and Judith Barton in the Hall on Thursday 20th March at 8.45am. Please contact Judith (jbarton@sahighett.catholic.edu.au) to confirm your interest.
Sibling Enrolments - Prep 2026
We are asking those current families to complete the enrolment process for any siblings who will join our school in Prep in 2025. We need all families to enrol as soon as possible so we know how many places we have to offer new families. Please follow this link to access the digital enrolment form.
Vale Fr John O’Reilly
It is with sadness that we acknowledge the passing of former Parish Priest and Administrator Fr John O’Reilly. Fr John was the faith leader of the Highett Parish/School through 2019 and part of 2020. He was a great supporter of our school and parish community, as well as an incredible visionary for Catholic education more broadly. Fr John was known for his development of five Catholic Secondary Colleges and three Catholic Primary schools in the north-western suburbs of Melbourne. His funeral was attended by about 1000 people at Sacred Heart St Alban’s, such was the significance of his contribution.
St Agnes’ Snippets
Prep Welcome Drinks
The Prep Welcome Night was a great success, with the majority of Prep families able to make it along for an evening together. This social opportunity is in place to help families connect and establish relationships with the parents of your child’s peers. Thank you to our parent helpers - Peter Monahan, Bree Walsh and Sarah Gardner-Bibby for your assistance on the night.
Playgroup is off and running!
Our playgroup for kinder aged children kicked off a couple of weeks ago and we have session two coming up this Friday. Our Deputy Principal Amanda Baker runs these sessions for the children. We encourage all families with a child starting school next year to come along, as we have found it to greatly benefit the children in their transition.
9-10am, fortnightly on a Friday and you can register here. Spread the word!
Environment Leaders straight into action!
Our Environment Leaders haven’t wasted a minute and were spotted yesterday busily preparing for the Clean up Highett Day on Friday. It will cap off a busy week for these leaders, with their first iSea, iCare workshop happening tomorrow! Well done Luca, Alex, Lily and Josh.
District Swimmers
Last Friday, our Swimming Team consisting of Year 3 and 4 students headed to Oakleigh Pool to compete against the other schools in our sporting district. Many were successful and will go on to compete at the Beachside Division competition next Friday. Head across to our Sports page for specific results.
Debating in Year 5 and 6
The public speaking (debating) course has kicked off for our senior students and will run over the next four weeks. This annual course provides an excellent foundation for our senior students to present in front of groups of people, the benefits of which were on full display with the leadership speeches a couple of weeks ago.
Term 1 school fees
2025 school fee invoices have been sent out, both electronically and hard copy. Please ensure payment is made promptly to avoid late payment fees. We encourage all families to set up direct debits and forms have been sent out for establishing this. If you have any questions regarding your fees, please contact Shannon Shine in the office (sshine@sahighett.catholic.edu.au).
Canberra Rebate Information
Students from our school have recently undertaken an educational tour of the national capital, Canberra. Students have been given the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australian history, heritage and democracy. The Australian government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion, the Australian Government is contributing funding to St Agnes' in the amount of $45 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the school upon completion of the excursion.
Assembly
Assemblies are in the Hall on Wednesday afternoons. Parents are welcome to attend. At assembly, there will be presentations from classes, student awards, birthday acknowledgements and special announcements from student leaders.
Wed 26th Feb - Year 1
Wed 5th March - Year 2
Wed 12th March - Year 5/6 (Camp)
Wed 19th March - Year 3
Wed 26th March - Prep
Wed 2nd April - SRC
Have a great week and I hope to see you on Friday at the Welcome Picnic!
Kind regards,
Lachie.