Principal's Message

Principal's Report

Dear Families & Carers,

FORTNIGHTLY NEWSLETTER

Welcome to the second edition of our now fortnightly newsletter.  With the move to fortnightly newsletter, we as a staff we are trying to utilise the Class DoJo platform on a more regular basis, providing real updates and examples of what the classes are learning. If you are not already joined up to DoJo, please make contact with your child's classroom teacher to join. Please note that the Class DoJo platform is free. Simply download the app from the app store and join. 

ASSEMBLY

Last week, our school joined together for our weekly Assembly. We were led by our confident Grade 4/5G class. 

Congratulations to our 'Student of the Week' recipients for this week. Awards are presented each week for academic achievements. 

Foundation: Kehleia

Grade 1/2BH: Evelyn

Grade 1/2NH: Ashe

Grade 3/4WY: Maddy

Grade 4/5G: Mckenzie

Grade 5/6G: JJ

Now in order to get your name into the Class Dojo Raffle, students have to be nominated by a staff member who observed them during our 'Behaviour Blitz.' This fortnight, we are looking at how we behave in the eating area. This includes picking up rubbish, walking to and from the eating area, taking care of those around us and many more things. Congratulations to Dylan (Foundation) for taking out the win last week.

Due to swimming, we will not be holding an Assembly for the next two weeks. Instead of holding off on our Class Dojo Raffle, we decided to hold that anyway. The behaviour blitz for last week was "Catching Kindness.' In order to be nominated for the raffle, a staff member must observe an act of kindness in the yard. Congratulations to Evelyn (1/2BH) for taking out the win this week.  

ATTENDANCE

Please make sure you check out the Attendance Matters page for an update on our school wide attendance competition! The lead has changed!

2024 GRADE 6 TOPS

Over several weeks I have been working with our 2024 Grade 6 students to come up with their chosen Grade 6 top. We are almost ready to go with our design locked in. Parents will receive shortly a link to our online shop - I am just waiting now on some sample sizes to be sent so we can provide the best possible guide to sizing. Here a sneak peak at the long awaited Grade 6 top for 2024...

STAFFING ANNOUNCEMENTS

We are currently in the processing of interviewing this week to welcome a new teacher to the Our Lady's Team. Along with this, staff are currently working on how we can best support our students in 2024 with a structure that suits the schools needs. We hope to announce this structure in our next newsletter. We were hoping to make that announcement today but unfortunately we have been delayed seeking feedback internally from staff. It is a busy and exciting time here at Our Lady's as I work on both 2023 & preparing for 2024. 

In other staffing news, Mrs. Corena Bennett has let me know that she will be taking 12 months leave without pay from her current position at Our Lady's. We don't have to say farewell to Mrs. Bennett however as she will be available for CRT work in 2024. We wish Corena all the best for 2024 and thankfully we will get to see her through casual teaching at school. 

SIMON EVERYWHERE

This term, in preparation for 2024, we will be rolling out a new feature to our families that is an extension of our internal SIMON system. As a staff we use a program called SIMON to communicate between staff, mark attendance and generate reports. We will be utilising the parent extension platform 'Simon Everywhere' to notify family of first aid incidents, provide permission for excursions and notify us of an absence. Parents will also then have access to our electronic calendar at school. We are doing this to streamline our communication platforms. Stay tuned for more information!

CES SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT SURVEY

Last fortnight, a letter went home to all families to invite you to participate in a school improvement survey. This letter contains an individual PIN in order to complete the survey. The survey is expected to take around 20 minutes, is completely confidential and needs to be completed by the 30th of October, 2024. If you haven't had a chance to complete this, please do so ASAP. 

Blessings,

Cassie Lynch

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION - REPEATED

Doxa Youth Foundation will be running holiday camps for children from 10 to 12 years old during the 2024 summer school holidays.

Doxa will be providing these camps FREE of charge for children from less affluent families. We are all about children having fun, learning, and creating special memories. In order to be eligible, the school will need to refer you. If you believe this would be of benefit, please come and see me to complete an application.

Malmsbury Camp, January 8th – 12th 2024, (5 days and 4 overnight) 

Our Malmsbury Camp is located in an idyllic bush setting in Central Victoria where campers will have exciting outdoor adventures. Onsite there are all sorts of facilities including a giant swing, climbing wall, archery, trampolines, and local native wildlife. During this program participants will also visit the local swimming pool and canoe in local areas. 

City Camp, January 15th – 19th 2024, (5 days and 4 overnight) 

Located in the heart of the CBD, our city camp will offer participants the opportunity to discover all the things that our vibrant city has to offer.  From seeing Melbourne’s iconic attractions such as the Eureka Skydeck and Melbourne Zoo, to attending major Australian sporting events such as The Australian Open and Big Bash League, the experience they will have will be like no other. 

A referral is required to attend - please reach out if you think this would be of benefit for your family.