Principal News 

LOCK’EM IN

CAMPS 2024

Dear Families and Friends,

As we wrap up Week 7, we end on yet another high note with our wonderful Father's Day & Special Friend Assembly. We extend our sincere thanks to the families and friends who attended this lovely gathering to celebrate the influential people in our children's lives. I think we can all agree that the turnout was our best to date. A special thank you goes to Miss Bulte & Mrs McGrath's Year 3s for their beautiful presentation at the packed assembly, followed by classroom visits. 

The impact of opening our classrooms to families and friends on these occasions cannot be underestimated—our students truly love these visits, even in their temporary learning spaces.

Despite the limited availability of space due to the ongoing refurbishment program, we sincerely thank the P&F, along with Erin, Adele, Ashlee, Louisa and Pam, for organising and making it happen with the Father’s Day stall on Wednesday for the students. Once again, these small, but significant efforts to keep these special moments active during this period have not been lost on the students or community. 

Yr.4 FIRST EUCHARIST

Congratulations to our Year 4 students who celebrated their First Holy Eucharist last Thursday. In a church filled with families and staff, this special occasion marked a significant milestone in their faith journey. We extend our sincere thanks to Mrs. Collins and Ms. Tench for their excellent preparation of the children for this sacrament and the memorable evening. We are also blessed to have Fr. Martin, who guided the children beautifully, making every effort to engage and connect with both the children and their families. Lastly, a big thank you to Zena for capturing stunning photos that will be shared with our families.

The Floss Rule

Have you ever heard of the 'Floss' spelling rule? It was new to me! Learning alongside our lovely Preps is such a joy. I found out that if a word has one syllable, one short vowel sound, and ends with 'f,' 'l,' 's,' or 'z,' you double the final letter. However, the Preps did discover an exception to this rule—the word 'bus.' This word originally comes from 'omnibus,' which is why it doesn't follow the Floss rule.

Dropping into Prep is always an uplifting experience, but watching them in "the flow" is something entirely different—it's an experience that can’t be captured in a newsletter. Seeing Prep W do the Floss Rule on Wednesday was another highlight of my week. They were completely in the zone (flow), oblivious to my presence in the room, as it should be. Our Preppies are doing some pretty amazing things, guided and supported by their wonderful teachers, Miss Maloney and Miss Wood.  

Meanwhile, in Miss Donnelly's Year 2, students have been learning to use commas in a list. As part of our daily best practices, which we've mentioned in previous newsletters, they use mini whiteboards to "chin" their work for immediate feedback from their teachers. Take a close look at the quality of work from our impressive junior students!

Junior Maths

This semester, the Junior School has been focusing on maths fluency, which is the ability to quickly and accurately recall basic math facts within 2-3 seconds. When students achieve this level of automaticity, it significantly reduces cognitive overload, allowing them to concentrate more effectively on procedural fluency—understanding and applying methods to solve problems. Check out our fabulous Preps in action with their daily 2 minute fluency exercise. 

By developing math fluency, students are better equipped to tackle complex problem-solving, reasoning, and critical thinking as they advance in mathematics. Without fluency, accessing higher-level math becomes challenging, which can impact their confidence and real world problem solving skills.

DENDY ATHLETICS CARNIVAL

Perhaps inspired by the size of the recent Australian Olympic Team, last Friday, we proudly sent our largest team yet to compete in the regional athletics carnival at Duncan McKinnon Reserve. With the unwavering support of our passionate and dedicated families, our students certainly rose to the occasion, securing a close third-place finish overall. We are thrilled to acknowledge that several students (20+) will be advancing to the next championships, with a handful sensationally setting new regional records—an incredible achievement!

NEW NETWORK RECORDS

Soccer Southern  Division🏆

Gallant to the end, we once again congratulate our soccer team for placing third in the Southern Division after successfully advancing through two previous regional tournaments. Well done to the students, and many thanks to our families for driving the team to the carnival, as well as to Paul Riddex for generously offering his time to coach our team over this extended period.

STAFFING NEWS

Welcome Iris Molly Sawers our latest precious member of our extended family at Sacred Heart. Message from Sarah: "I'm on Cloud 9, we are so in love." 

Missing all week due to illness, we wish Mrs Pennington a speedy recovery in hope she is back at school next week. We've definitely had a bout of illness sweeping through our community in recent weeks.

❤️LITTLE HEARTS PLAYGROUP💙

We had our biggest turnout yet for playgroup, with over 30 toddlers and preschoolers joining us. We’re so grateful to our families for spreading the word—just as one parent said, "Build it, and they will come." And indeed, they did. A big thank you to Carol (LSO) for entertaining the children all morning with her singing and musical talents. Carol remarked, "I couldn’t believe how many children were there today." We also extend our thanks to Karen for setting up this program for our families. It has been a wonderful addition to our community, especially for new and prospective families to start forging connections. 

🔨Building Update🔨

This week's progress:

Staffroom wall knocked down

Footings for the new exit stairs to the classroom.

A step closer to another sliding door.

P&F NEWS 

DAD'S FOOTY GAME

Unfortunately, the Dads' footy game scheduled against Sandringham East Primary will not proceed, as SEPS is unable to field a team.

The good news is that our dads have found an alternative opponent in Black Rock Primary.

As a result, the game will be played against Black Rock at Donald McDonald Reserve in Beaumaris on Saturday, 14th September at 1:30 p.m.

Organized by Black Rock, so there will be no fundraising associated with the event.

Looking ahead, the Dad's Club hope to turn this event into a community-style footy carnival in future years, involving at least four schools, with the possibility of inviting others—similar to the Mum's Netball Day, which has run so successfully over the past two years.

LITTLE GEMS💎

Thanks Xavier for sharing your fabulous work. One VERY proud boy. 

Check out these superstars from Prep—Milla, Ivy, Luca, and Jack—showcasing their stunning handwriting and letter formation. Their work was so impressive that Luca and Jack toured the school last Friday to share it with the older classes. Needless to say, everyone was suitably blown away by their efforts.

Congratulations Isabelle J who recently won

Sandringham Aths Club Cross Country Championships🏃. 

We’re just a wee bit proud of Grace for her recent achievement at the State Cheerleading Titles, where she placed 3rd overall. In her spare time, Grace is also a talented artist with a keen interest in dragons. Along with her piano and singing skills, we definitely have a triple threat in the making.

We have really enjoyed having Miss Moloney (not to be confused with Miss Maloney in Prep) in our community over the past few months. She has filled in across a range of specialist classes and grades as a casual relief teacher. Like Mrs. Beresford, a true "Jill of all trades," we’ve been so impressed by the quality, flexibility, and professionalism of our replacement staff. Needless to say, Miss Moloney fits in perfectly as another Irish blessing to hit our shores. In recent weeks, she has taken on all classes while Mrs. Hyslop enjoys some well-deserved long service leave.

Every square inch has become a treasured piece of real estate and learning space during our refurbishment. From the smallest nook in the hall and using the staffroom for Spelling Mastery groups to the walkway in our temporary tight corridor, our staff and students are adapting and making sure that learning continues. I couldn’t be more proud and in awe of how our team and students have responded, handling this revised building phase without any fuss.

Thanks for sharing Tom & Stevie, I can see why you love your dad so much with these beautiful sentiments. 

And finally...

With the wide range of celebratory events and activities across all aspects of school life at Sacred Heart, it’s clear to see why so many families in the Bayside area choose to be part of our community.

Feeling truly blessed,

Simon C