Dear Parents and Friends,

It is hard to believe that I am writing the final newsletter for Term 2 — we are already halfway through the school year! The end of term is always a wonderful opportunity to reflect and celebrate the many highlights that Term 2 has brought us.

Look at all the activities we have enjoyed this term:

Cross Country Training, District and Division Cross Country
Enrolment Tours
ANZAC Day Prayer Service
Year 6 leaders and students at the Mentone RSL ANZAC Day Service
Foundation–Year 4 Swimming Lessons
Story Dogs program
Year 3 Camp at school experience
Year 4 Eucharist
Mother’s Day Breakfast and Stall
National Simultaneous Storytime — The Truck Cat
National Walk Safely to School Day
School Advisory Council Meeting
Year 6 Leadership Day at St Louis
Junior Mayor experience at City of Kingston for four Year 6 students
Various incursions
Year 5 Intergenerational Program with Mordialloc Preschool
Interschool Sports
Kilbreda College visit
Foundation Prayer in Pyjamas
National Sorry Day Assembly
F–4 School Disco
Year 3 Sacramental Activity Night
Year 1–6 Mass at St Mary of the Cross
Year 6 Confirmation Commitment Mass
Student Led Conferences
St Vincent de Paul Food Drive — what a generous community!
Running Club
Classroom Helpers — thank you to all the parents supporting our teachers and students
Lunchtime Clubs — thanks to staff for running these
Liturgies
Milo’s Birthday celebrations in Foundation
Library Opening by theCommunity Bank Parkdale
Whole-school excursion to Werribee Zoo
Class Assemblies

We cannot thank our parents enough for their commitment in supporting and participating in these events, and for the investment you make in your child’s education. Your presence and positivity show the value you place on your child’s learning and school experience.

I look forward to the many exciting activities we have planned for Term 3!

Athletics Carnival

Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate with us this week. Despite our best-laid plans, we had to cancel the Athletics Carnival at the last minute — in fact, the first bus had even arrived before we made the call to prioritise everyone’s safety. Thank you to all the parents who came down to help set up, and then pack away — it was very much appreciated.

A big thank you also to Hannah, who was at Dolomore from 7.00am setting up. While it was disappointing, the safety of our students, staff, and parents will always be our first priority.

We have rescheduled to Thursday 24th July, which is in the first week back. Fingers crossed for great weather so we can all enjoy a day of cheering and fun.

As a result of the date change, our Foundation 100 Days celebration will move to Term 3, Week 2 — details will follow early next term.

Werribee Zoo

The weather certainly turned in our favour for our Werribee Zoo excursion on Thursday, and we had a wonderful day. The children loved exploring the zoo, learning about the animals, and experiencing the Safari tour around the Pula Reserve Trail, where they saw rhinos, giraffes, zebras, and many more animals in the wild.

A huge thanks to Suzie and Cassie for all their work behind the scenes to make this day such a success.

Library Opening

What a wonderful celebration we had last Friday afternoon with the opening of our newly refurbished Library. We were so happy that Anna Worsnop and her great team from Community Bank Parkdale were there to enjoy the opening with us. Without Community Bank Parkdale and the fundraising efforts of our community this amazing refurbishment would not have been possible. The enthusiasm and excitement of our children was infectious. We can't wait for them all to enjoy our beautiful new library space!

Car Parking Reminders

I have received emails and had conversations with parents and neighbours regarding unsafe and inappropriate parking, especially in the Kiss and Go areas across the road at the oval. Please remember:

Kiss and Go is a stay with your vehicle zone. If you leave your car and go into school grounds, you may be fined.
There are only two spaces here for parents who need to quickly collect children, so please be mindful of others.
Some parents and children have been crossing from behind parked cars, which is extremely dangerous. Please use the crossing and stay visible.
When driving up Chute Street towards Ben Kavanagh, be aware that children have been stepping out between parked cars, which is very difficult for drivers to see.
Please only park in designated parking spaces, we have had numerous complaints from neighbours this term about cars being parked across driveways. City of Kingston regularly patrol at school drop off and pick up times and parking tickets will be issued.
No parents should be entering or using the staff car park - this includes for drop off and pickup.

We understand that with all the works currently going on in Mordialloc parking around the school is often difficult. However, safety must be our highest priority. Thank you for your cooperation.

Student Led Conferences & Reports

I hope the Student Led Conferences gave you insight into the learning your children have achieved over the last two terms. It is wonderful to hear how proud the children were to share their work and how confidently they could talk about their learning.

A massive thank you to our teachers for their incredible work in assessment and reporting. They have moderated, collaborated, and celebrated their students’ talents and interests, and identified next steps for learning.

Reading the student reflections shows how much they have learned this semester. Some highlights included:

Foundation: learning their sounds, “chitter chatters,” and celebrating Milo’s birthday
Year 1/2: writing information reports and enjoying Pip and Tim books
Year 3/4: developing addition and subtraction strategies (split, jump, vertical) and creating a pamphlet on the Three States of Matter
Year 5/6: learning signs and symbols for Confirmation, challenging but fun maths, and science experiments

What an amazing school community of learners! Well done, we are so proud of all of you.

Semester 1 reports will be available on Friday at 4pm. I hope you enjoy reading about your child’s successes.

School Diary Competition

We had some outstanding entries for the diary cover competition. It was extremely hard to narrow down the finalists. Congratulations to everyone who entered — winners will be announced later in the year once the diaries are printed.

Audiri Update

We have been advised by Audiri this morning that they have updated to version 9.6.0. Some users have been experiencing issues with the upgrade. If you are unable to access Audiri please delete the app, turn off your phone and reinstall the App. Families are reminded that the Audiri App is one of our main methods of communication with you.

Sad Farewell

We say a sad (for us) farewll to Sean (yr3), Cillian (F), Denise and Neil as they spend some time with family and friends in Ireland. We hope they have an amazing eperience. We look forward to hearing about your adventures and look forward to seeing you in mid 2026.

2025 & 2026 Enrolments

If you know anyone still considering enrolling, please encourage them to book a tour. We are aiming to finalise Foundation numbers early in Term 3.

Key Dates for Term 3

Week 1

Tuesday 22 July: 3:30 to 5:30pm - Staff First Aid Training
Wednesday 23 July: Year 6 Confirmation Practice at St Brigid's Church
Thursday 24th July: Athletics Carnival & Assembly 2.45pm
Friday 25th July: Bishop Tony visiting Year 6 Confirmation candidates
Saturday 26th July: Confirmation 2.00pm

Week 2

Monday 28th July: Year 1/2 Museum Excursion
Tuesday 29th July: 3:30pm to 5:30pm - Staff First Aid Training
Friday 1st August: Grandparents Day

Term 3 - School Closure Day

Friday 19 September - Staff Professional Development Day

Keep up to dates with what's going on via our Dates in the Diary page in our Newsletter and Student Newsletter each week. The School Calendar is also accessible via our Audiri App.

Introducing Baby Billie

The St Brigid's staff were all very excited on Monday morning to hear that we had a new member of the St Brigid's Family. Little Billie Mabel Finster made her entrance into the world on Sunday 29th June. Zoe, Craig, Cleo and Maisie are all so excited to have another beautiful little daughter and sister join their family. We can't wait to give Billie a cuddle!

School Closure Day - Friday 4 July

Staff will be undertaking professional development at School on Friday 4 of July. TheirCare will be open and bookings can now be made.

Happy and Safe Holidays!

After reading through everything our children have achieved, I feel exhausted on their behalf! They certainly deserve a well-earned break. Wishing everyone a restful and enjoyable holiday. Recharge, take care, and travel safely if you are heading away. We look forward to seeing you all on Monday 21st July, ready for a busy Term 3.

Warm regards,

Wendy Sullivan

Principal

St Brigid's News and Events

Congratulations!

Invitation from St Mary of the Cross Parish