From Mrs David's Desk
SCHOOL CLOSURE DAY
(King's Birthday)
Monday 10th June
Dear Families,
I am sure we are all looking forward to an extra sleep in this weekend!
I would like to acknowledge and thank our School Captains (Cecilia and Luca) and Liturgy Leaders (Naya and Harper) for leading each of our classes in prayer during National Reconciliation Week. These students along with Mrs Pejic (Religious Education Leader) and Amelia Younane (parent) represented our school at the Official FIRE Carrier Ceremony at the Aboriginal Catholic Ministry.
On this day our students presented the draft FIRE Carrier Covenant that they have been working on and were formally commissioned as FIRE Carriers for our school in 2024. This role of FIRE Carrier will now form part of our Year 6 Leadership positions moving forward.
First Eucharist
Thank you to our Year 3/4 teachers (Mrs Curtain, Miss Lark and Mrs Mase) and our Religious Education Leader (Mrs Pejic) for supporting our students as they received eucharist for the first time on Sunday. This was a prayerful celebration for our Holy Family community.
Congratulations to each of the candidates for being prayerful during this special occasion.
Altar Servers
Father Justel has been busy preparing 9 of our students to serve on the altar during some of our Masses. It was wonderful to see Harper and Spencer as Altar Servers at our First Eucharist Mass on Sunday.
Spelling Learning Walks
Parent/Carer Open Morning
You are invited to attend our Prep-Year 6 Open Morning on Thursday 20th June (9-10am).
On this morning you can spend time in your child's classroom and fid out about their learning this term.
Some classes will be at AUSLAN, Library, Performing Arts or Library so you can visit the students in these sessions as well.
Staff Professional Learning
Our staff are continuing their learning journey to support each of our students in all curriculum areas but especially in the key areas of Literacy and Mathematics.
Last Saturday two of our staff members attended Professional Learning 'The Why, What and How of Evidence-Based Reading'. They will now share this learning with our teaching staff through Professional Learning Meetings each week.
Our students are very fortunate to have such dedicated staff guiding and teaching them at Holy Family.
WHY
Emily Hanford - Why are we here? The current state of literacy (globally) and how we’ve got to be where we are in 2024.
Emily Hanford is a senior correspondent and producer for American Public Media. Her work has appeared on NPR and in The New York Times, Washington Monthly, The Los Angeles Times and other publications. Emily’s reporting on reading includes the 2018 podcast episode “Hard Words: Why aren’t kids being taught to read?” and “Sold a Story: How teaching kids to read went so wrong” that was released in 2022 (soldastory.org).
WHAT
Professor Pamela Snow - Bridging the knowledge translation gap in early reading instruction: It’s time for a conversation with balanced literacy.
Pamela Snow is a Professor of Cognitive Psychology in the School of Education at the Bendigo campus of La Trobe University, Australia. She is also Co-Director of the Science of Language and Reading (SOLAR) Lab. Pamela has over 170 publications and in addition to these academic outputs, Pamela writes a popular blog for teachers, parents, and clinicians: The Snow Report - https://pamelasnow.blogspot.com/.
WHAT
Professor Tanya Serry - What empirically validated models of reading say and how does this inform our practice: From lifting words off the page to proficient reading comprehension
Dr Tanya Serry has a background in Speech Pathology and Linguistics. She joined the School of Education at La Trobe University in 2020 and her research interests centre on the policy and practices of evidence-based reading instruction and intervention practices for students across the educational lifespan. Together with Professor Pamela Snow, Professor Serry (Literacy and Reading), is the co-director of the SOLAR Lab.
HOW
Associate Professor Lorraine Hammond AM - Teaching practices that lead to increased student outcomes in literacy. How can we raise the literacy rates of our most vulnerable students?
Dr Lorraine Hammond is an Associate Professor at Edith Cowan University. Lorraine teaches and researches reading and teacher-led instruction. Since 2010, Lorraine has provided professional learning on literacy and high impact instruction in tandem with fidelity focussed in situ coaching for systems across Australia in the government and Catholic sector.
Family Testimonials
I am currently updating our website and would like some new testimonials to add to content on the site.
If possible, I would also like to interview some parents/carers to use on our website and/or social media.
Please click on the QR Code to respond.
Prep Parent Teacher Conferences
Parents of Prep students are invited to book a time on the following dates to discuss your child's learning progression with their teacher-
Monday 17th June- 3:30-6pm
Thursday 20th June- 3:30-6pm
If your child has a Program Support Meeting (PSG) you do not need to book a time on one of these days.
To book go to-
https://www.schoolinterviews.com.au/code/dgw52
or
Thank you to our families, staff and Parish for your support during this busy time.
AFL Players Visit
On Wednesday we were lucky enough to have 3 players (Nick Daicos, Steele Sidebottom and Jeremy Howe) from Collingwood Football Club joining us. The players sat down for a question and answer session with our Year 3/4 classes.
Thank you to Mrs Michellson for organising this opportunity.
Important Information
Please remember not to do a right hand turn into our school after 8am or make a right hand turn onto Stephensons Road when exiting our school carpark.
Playground Update
The next stage of our playground is scheduled to be installed on 2nd July, 2024.
2025/2026 Enrolments Open
A reminder to our existing families that enrolments are now open for the 2025/2026 school year.
Please come into the office to receive an enrolment form from Tracey or Rana.
Open Days
Our Open Days are continuing throughout this term. Please let your friends and family know.
To book a tour all you need to do is phone our office and choose a date and time that suits your family.
Soft Plastics Recycling
Thank you to those families who have volunteered to pick up our soft plastics and drop them to Monash Waste Transfer Station. Please find the roster for this term below.
Term Two Dates
June
Wednesday 12th - Open Day
Thursday 13th - EMR Cross Country
Thursday 13th - Winter Sport Gala Day
Friday 14th - Pie Drive Delivery
Monday 17th - Prep Parent/Teacher Interviews
Thursday 20th - Prep Parent/Teacher Interviews
Friday 21st - Special Lunch Day
Monday 24th - Fire Education (Preps)
Thursday 27th - Semester One Written Reports sent home
Friday 28th - Term 2 finishes (1pm)
Term Three Dates
July
Sunday 7th - NAIDOC Week (Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud and Proud)
Monday 15th - Term 3 resumes
Friday 26th - District Soccer Round Robin
Wednesday 31st - Parents and Friends Meeting (6pm)
Wednesday 31st - Confirmation Information Evening (7pm)
August
Friday 2nd - Together We Walk in Action (FIRE Carriers)
Thursday 8th - Mary MacKillop Feast Day
Monday 12th - Principal's Day
Wednesday 14th - School Advisory Council Meeting (6pm)
Friday 16th - Bully No Way day
Friday 16th - School Closure Day (Religious Education Focus)
Saturday 17th/Sunday 18th - Confirmation Commitment Masses
Monday 19th - Book Week (Magic)
Thursday 22nd - Confirmation Reflection Day
Friday 23rd - Sacrament of Confirmation (5pm)
Monday 26th-Wednesday 28th - Year 5/6 Camp (Alexandra Adventure Resort)
Wednesday 28th - Parents and Friends Meeting (7pm)
Friday 30th - Father's Day Celebrations (TBC)
September
Sunday 1st - Happy Father's Day
Friday 6th - District Athletics
Thursday 19th/Friday 20th - Visual/Media Arts Expo
Friday 20th - Last day of Term 3 (1pm finish)
Enjoy your long weekend,
Mrs David (Principal)