Ms Belinda's Message

Book Week: Both students and staff have continued chatting about “Nicky Johnston, the illustrator who came to Holy Spirit”. It was a memorable experience, with Nicky engaging students through her drawings and books and scaffolding them to create amazing illustrations of their own - including learning how to draw upside down! We are grateful that she shared her time and creativity with our school.

The Book Fair was a huge success, raising just over $2,000. Thank you to everyone who made a purchase. The commission raised will be used towards Literacy and Library resources for our students.

Please remember that the Book Week Parade will be held in the Hall on Monday morning from 9am. We look forward to seeing our students (and teachers) dressed in their wonderful costumes. Our ‘Final Chapter’ Assembly will be held on Friday at 2:45pm as we celebrate the end of Book Week together.

Step into Prep: We are offering sessions for any four-year-old children entering Kindergarten next year, providing them with an opportunity to experience school life and get a taste of what is to come! Please see the details in the following flyer and feel free to share it with family and friends. Children do not need to be enrolled at Holy Spirit to attend.

Registration is via the website: https://www.hsthornburyeast.catholic.edu.au/enrolment-information/book-a-tour/

Confirmation: On Saturday, 15th August, our Year 6 students celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation. It was a lovely experience shared with our Parish schools, and I would like to thank Loretta, Emily and Charlie for their preparation and support of our students. Please see the Class Learning section for more photos.

Esafety Webinars: The eSafety Commissioner is offering a range of free live webinars to help parents and carers support children to have safer and healthier online experiences. Topics this term include managing screen time, cyberbullying, online friendships and belonging, and the emerging risks of AI-generated images and videos. These short, practical sessions provide useful strategies and information that families can use at home.

https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents/webinars

Final note: Currently, all Catholic schools are working through planning and budgeting activities for 2027 to ensure we are well placed to support our staff, students and school communities in the coming year. This includes looking at how we can accommodate the changes likely to flow from a new Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA) with school staff. We recognise the significant financial pressures many households are facing, and we are making a conscious effort to ensure these costs are not passed on through significant fee increases. We will continue to keep our parent community informed throughout this process. As always, our focus remains on maintaining strong school communities and continuing to deliver a high-quality Catholic education for every student. 

Belinda Cheong

Principal