Principals Report

It is wonderful to welcome everyone back for Term 4. I hope our students and families had an enjoyable break and are feeling refreshed and ready for a fantastic final term of the year.

Our students have settled seamlessly back into their learning routines. As I walk through the hallways and visit classrooms, it has been great to see calm, predictable learning environments, with students engaged and ready to learn.

We are especially pleased to welcome Mrs Lawless back to Sacred Heart, along with the new students and families joining our school community this week. We hope you quickly feel at home at Sacred Heart.

In this coming Sunday's Gospel – Mt 22:1-14, Jesus reminds us that God invites each of us to be part of His kingdom. Like the invitation to the wedding feast, God’s invitation is open to everyone. What matters is how we choose to respond. At Sacred Heart, we teach our students to respond to God’s invitation through the way we live each day: welcoming others, showing kindness, including those who may feel left out, and using our gifts to make a difference. As we begin a new term, may we encourage our children to recognise that God is always inviting them to grow, to serve others and to follow the example of Jesus. This week, let us ask ourselves: How will we respond to God’s invitation?

Term 4 is always a busy and exciting time, and this year is certainly no exception! As you will see in our Term Ahead below, over the coming weeks students will have the opportunity to participate in Sacred Heart College Science Lab visits, cricket clinics, athletics and basketball competitions, Tennis Hot Shots, excursions to Bendigo, Mansfield and Albury, Day for Daniel, World Teachers’ Day and much more.

We also have the Melbourne Cup long weekend to enjoy in Week 5, before our Year 6 students head to Melbourne for camp in Week 6. There is certainly plenty happening across the school, and we look forward to sharing these experiences with our students and families throughout the term.

Planning for 2027 will also continue over the coming weeks. As this work progresses, I will keep our school community informed and provide updates when appropriate.

A huge thank you to our families for supporting our new morning arrangements by ensuring students arrive at school no earlier than 8:30am. Students are dropping their bags in their classrooms before heading straight outside.

This small change has provided our teachers with valuable preparation time before classes begin at 8:50am, while still allowing students time to enjoy the playground and catch up with friends before the school day begins.

School gates and doors will continue to open at 8:30am each morning, except on Fridays for students participating in Running Club. There will be NO Running club this week due to Divisional Athletics

Thank you, as always, for your ongoing support. We are looking forward to a busy, positive and rewarding Term 4 at Sacred Heart!

Kind regards and God bless, Jarrod

Term Ahead - Term 4 - 2026
Week	Dates & Items
1	Mon 5/10 - Term 4 begins Tues 6/10 - Girls cricket clinic (recess and lunchtime) Tues 6/10 - Yr6T SHC Science Lab visit Thurs 8/10 - Girls cricket clinic (recess and lunchtime) Fri 9/10 - Divisional Aths
2	Mon 12/10 - Yr5 Bendigo excursion (7:45am) Mon 12/10 - Yr6K SHC Science Lab visit Tues 13/10 - Yr12 SHC visiting Preps Thurs 15/10 - O&M Division Basketball Fri 16/10 - Classroom Mastery drop in Fri 16/10 - Regional Aths
3	Tues 20/10 - Learning Leaders Day Tues 20/10 - Yr1 Risky Kids Excursion Albury (9am-3pm) Tues 20/10 - Yr3 Mansfield Zoo excursion (8:30am-4:00pm) Tues 20/10 - Preps visit SHC End of Year Assembly with Yr12 buddies (10-11am) Fri 23/10 - Regional Basketball
4	Tues 27/10 - Child Safeguarding online – Jarrod, Bec, Meegan, Ana (11-12:30pm) Wed 28/10 - Prep Transition #1 (11:45am-1:15pm) Wed 28/10 - Tennis Hotshots Fri 30/10 - Day for Daniel (TBC) Fri 30/10 - World Teachers Day
5	Mon 2/11 - Pupil free day – report writing Tues 3/11 - Melbourne Cup Public Holiday Wed 4/11 - Prep Transition #2 (11:45am-1:15pm) Wed 4/11 - Senior Child Safe Officer training – Jarrod (10-11am) Wed 4/11 - Kanga 8s Cricket Fri 6/11 - Principal Network Day Bendigo - Jarrod
6	Mon 9/11 - Yr5 Leadership Day Tues 10/11 - Wellbeing Network Day – Tim Wed-Fri 11-13/11 - Yr6 Melbourne Camp
7	Wed 18/11 - Jindera and Bonegilla excursion 8:45am-5:00pm Wed 18/11 - Prep Transition #3 – 11:45am-1:15pm Wed 18/11 - Prep Information Night @ 5pm Fri 20/11 - Regional cricket Fri 20/11 - Pevan and Sarah Preps excursion
8	Mon 23/11 - Book Fair this week! Thurs 26/11 - CESL Sandhurst Awards Bendigo Thurs 26/11 - Girls Basketball Clinic by Basketball Victoria Fri 27/11 - End of Year School Concert
9	Mon – Fri 30-4/12 P-2 Swimming Program (TBC) Wed 2/12 - SAC Meeting @ 6:30pm
10	Mon 7/12 - Yr6 End of Year Excursion Tues 8/12 - Statewide Transition Day Tues 8/12 - Prep transition #4 (9:30-11:00am) Thurs 10/12 - End of Year/Graduation Mass (10am) Thurs 10/12 - Graduation ceremony and lunch @ Golf Club (12-3pm) Fri 11/12 - Yr5 Fun Planet Shepparton
11	Tues 15/12 - Students last day of the year

Term Dates for the Year:

TERM 1: January 27 to April 2

TERM 2: April 20 to June 26

TERM 3: July 13 to September 19

TERM 4: October 5 to December 18