Principal's Report

Dear Families,

I hope you managed to enjoy some time together over the long weekend. We wish our Year 4s all the best as they head off to Lady Northcote Camp next week. Our Year 5s have their final Speaking with Power presentations tomorrow, always a highlight of the Year 5 program. I continue to be impressed by the confidence and public speaking skills so many of our students already display.

Staffing news

At this time of year, I need to share a few staffing announcements.  At the end of this year, we will farewell Amanda Johnson and wish her every success as she begins an exciting new chapter at St Joseph’s in Elsternwick.

One of our wonderful LSOs, Tess Campigli, has now completed her primary teaching degree and has accepted a graduate position at St Patrick’s in Mentone for 2026. We congratulate Tess and thank her for her contribution to our school community.

Class groupings 2026

Soon, teachers will begin the process of assigning students to classes for 2026. When forming class groups, we consider a range of factors to support each student’s learning and wellbeing, including academic needs, gender balance, friendships, social–emotional factors and support requirements.  Students will be asked to name five friends they work well with and enjoy spending time with, and we make every effort to ensure that at least one of these friends is in their class next year.

As you can imagine, we want to set up every child for success in their new class and a great deal of thought and collaboration goes into this process each year. I appreciate your continued support and understanding.

Homework survey

Thank you to the 123 people that responded to our recent Homework Survey.   Most parents are generally happy with the amount and balance of homework currently provided, describing it as reasonable, achievable, and supportive of classroom learning. Many appreciate how it helps establish routines and provides insight into what their child is learning. However, several parents expressed that tasks can become repetitive and would like to see more variety, creativity, and alignment with class content. 

A number also noted that homework is not always reviewed or corrected, which can reduce its effectiveness. Some families find the workload, particularly in upper year levels, challenging alongside other commitments. Overall, parents value homework as a tool for reinforcing learning but would like greater consistency across year levels, clearer expectations, and more engaging, teacher-reviewed activities.

It is clear that parents believe that Reading, Spelling, Writing, Maths should make up the bulk of the homework, however many parents would also like to see some projects or oral presentations included. While we can't action all suggestion that have been made, I can assure you that they have all been read and your views taken into consideration as we revise our Homework Policy for 2026. I have included some graphs below for those of you who are interested in the data. 

MACSIS Data Parent Session

Thank you again to the 38 families who completed the recent MACSIS surveys. The data is now in, and we invite interested parents/carers to come and view our results and discuss the findings.

Two sessions will be held on Thursday, November 20, from 8:45–10:00am and again from 3:00–4:00pm in the staffroom. Coffee and refreshments will be provided.

It will be a great opportunity to reflect on our strengths as a school and discuss areas for continued improvement. I’ll also share some of the MACSIS data in upcoming newsletters.

School Advisory Council

We are still seeking one new member of our School Advisory Council for 2026 - 2029. Members generally join for a three-year term, and the time commitment is five meetings throughout the year (Tuesday evenings)

The School Advisory Council:

• Supports the principal with advice on school strategy, mission, and community matters, not on governance or daily operations.
• Works together to promote the school’s Catholic identity, improve the school and engage the community.
• Acts with integrity and in the best interests of the whole school community.

Please reach out to me directly if you would like to express your interest or just ask more about the role. 

Transition to nForma

We have now started our transition to nForma for the use of Permission Forms and Medical Forms. Thank you to those of you who have already given permission for your child to attend the upcoming Swimming Carnival .  Please see the attachment below for guidance on how to set up the Portal on your phone.

Christmas Carols

It's still a while away, but Christmas will be here before we know it. Our annual Christmas Carols will be held on Wednesday, 10th December, from 5pm. 

We're changing up the format for this year's carols and hope to have more of a Christmas fair feel to the evening. Most of the festivities will be on the Thomas Sherry playground so we

just need to hope the weather cooperates. More information will follow shortly. 

Take care and God Bless, 

Michelle Hill 

Principal