Dear Families,

Open Day - Prep 2026

St Michael's Open Day is on Wednesday, March 19th. The focus of the day is on welcoming prospective Prep 2026 families to our school.

School tours will be held at 9.15am, 12.15pm and 6.45pm. Book your preferred time at Open Day Registration.

If you have a child coming to school in 2026, please complete and submit the Application Form. If you require any assistance, please speak to Michelle or Samantha in our office.

School Closure & Term Dates 2025

I can now confirm school term dates and closure days for 2025, as MACS has ratified them, I am aware that TheirCare sent out a notification about St Michael’s Closure Days before this one. I apologise for any inconvenience.

Term 1

Term End: Friday, April 4th - 2pm finish

Term 2

Term Start: Tuesday, April 22nd, 8.45am

Term End: Friday, July 4th - 2pm finish

Public Holidays Monday, April 21st Easter Monday

Friday, April 25th ANZAC Day

Monday, June 9th King’s Birthday

Closure Days Monday, May 5th Focus: Learning & Teaching - Explicit Teaching

Tuesday, May 6th Focus: Review 2025 Preparation

Term 3

Term Start: Monday, July 21st, 8.45am

Term End: Friday, September 19th, 2pm finish

Closure Days Tuesday, September 2nd Focus: Learning & Teaching - Explicit Teaching

Term 4

Term Start: Monday, October 6th, 8.45am

End of Year: Tuesday, December 16th, 1pm finish

Vacation Care available until Friday, December 19th

Public Holidays Tuesday, November 4th Melbourne Cup

Closure Days Monday, November 3rd Focus: Time In Lieu Day and Assessment & Reporting

Friday, November 28th Focus: Learning & Teaching 2026 Preparation

Parents & Friends

A very special thank you to the parents who attended our P&F meeting last week to discuss organising our special events for term 1. Although it was disappointing that more parents didn't attend or register their willingness to support the P&F, the few who attended were very keen and willing to assist.

The purpose of the P&F is to lead and organise events either for our children or our families. The events can have a fundraising focus or simply be an opportunity for our families to get together, have some fun, and build a strong sense of community.

When fundraising, there is usually a focus on this and a goal in mind. For example, in 2024, we raised money to construct new climbing equipment that all children could access. This was to be built last year but, due to our building program, its delivery has been delayed.

In 2025, we hope to raise much-needed funds to support the construction of more playground equipment directed at our senior children. We plan to build this once the building program has been completed. Photos of the proposed playground equipment will be placed on the school noticeboard.

So, when a fellow parent asks you to help, please think about supporting your child's school and our community before you say no! As the saying goes, many hands make light work!

Labour Day Holiday

The history of Labour Day in Australia spans over a century. It is an important annual event that remembers those who struggled and succeeded in ensuring decent and fair working conditions in Australia. Many Australians saw the need for better working conditions and, in the 1850s, there was a strong push for this. On April 21, 1856, stonemasons at the University of Melbourne marched to Parliament House to push for an eight-hour working day. An agreement with employers for a 48-hour week was eventually reached, and Australian workers welcomed the new eight-hour day. I hope that you and your family were able to take a break from work and spend some time together.

School Closure Day

On Tuesday, 11th March, all staff at St Michael's spent the day together, focussing their learning on Faith Development. As this is the Year of Jubilee in our Catholic church with a focus on pilgrimage, the morning was spent with Fr Nicholas exploring what pilgrimage means in our world, for us as a community and for us as individuals.

During our next session, we focussed on the meaning of Carism and delved into learning about Catherine McAuley, the foundress of the Mercy sisters. The Mercy sisters have had over 120 years of service in our community, and we aim to emulate their values and commitment to service.

We finished our day with Hang, our Catholic Identity and Mission Leader, leading us in breaking open scripture and modelling ways to engage our students in learning about Scripture. It was a very fruitful day of learning for all.

Sparking Curiosity

For the rest of Term 1, we’re embedding the Wellbeing focus CURIOSITY across all areas of learning, encouraging children to become more curious learners. Curiosity drives

exploration and deeper learning. We want this focus to be naturally integrated into our everyday teaching. Each week, children will engage in activities to spark curiosity, particularly during their Discovery/Make, Know, Do lessons. The key objective is to nurture curiosity in children to develop a love for learning, encouraging critical thinking, creativity, and a lifelong desire to explore the world around them.

Denise Hussey

(Principal)

'The most simple thing I can do is to be good today but better tomorrow'

Catherine McAuley - Mercy Sisters Foundress

All students attending St Michael's Primary School have the right to feel safe. The care, safety and wellbeing of children and young people is a fundamental responsibility of all within our school.

St Michael's Primary School Newsletter

"Where I'm Known"

Issue 3 · 14 Mar 2025

In this issue