From the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers

Please note that weekly Parish mass times will now be located each week on our School Hours / Timetable page in our newsletter. 

Prayer

Prayer for Reconciliation - last week our students who are receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation came together with their families for a Family Faith night. We prayed together and delved more deeply into the Sacrament and what it means for us. This is one of the prayers we shared together. It's a beautiful prayer that you can pray with your family during this season of Lent. We look forward to celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation with our families on Wednesday 13th March, at St Michael's Church, from 5.30-7.30pm

Operoo

Hopefully our new families are getting the hang of Operoo. I'm still learning myself so happy to always share knowledge when and if you need!!

A reminder to all our families that only one parent can actually register and be the main contact for this system. It means that you need to share the information with your partner / other parent so that they receive the information. This includes the notification sent out about the weekly newsletter. Should anyone wish to have their own access to the newsletter, you can subscribe to it separately with your current email address through this link: https://newsletters.naavi.com/p/75Zzp35/subscribe. Once it's published (weekly on Thursdays) you will be able to read it immediately.

St Michael's Cake Stall ~ Ashburton Festival

What an amazing day we celebrated on Sunday at the Ashburton Festival. The weather was superb, we had cakes and lollies galore to sell and everyone was in great spirits! Thank you to all our families for your contributions to the Cake stall, with both cakes and bags of lollies. There was a huge variety to sell and so many people stopped by to see what they could buy. The day was made even more special with two St Michael's students performing in Ashburton's Got Talent!! Vicky (Year 2) and Lucas (Yr 1) both braved the crowds on the day to sing songs they had been practising for the big event and they both did us proud!! Lucas' band, L2, in which his cousin, Lucas, plays the drums, made it to the end of the competition and were awarded equal first out of all competitors. Great job to you both!!

A note of thanks must go out to the many hands on the stall throughout the day, without whom it would not have been possible to run. A special thanks also goes to:

• Jess Deschepper and Lauren Prior for helping gather everything together into the garage on Friday after school, which made set up on Sunday so efficient.
• Rod Hine, Chris Place, Steve Molnar and Mark Porta for their support in the movement of all the equipment to and from school, as well as Peter Betros (and Ray, his Dad) for movement of items and collecting ice through the day.  
• Monica Porta for allowing her home to be the drop off for all the delicious baked goods and for bagging all the lollies
• Laura Sonego for helping to put together the cake kits.
• Jane Potter for making all the great jam.  
• Amanda Tran for making the cute jam jar labels
• and Therese Molnar for her amazing coordinating efforts, time and enthusiasm in bringing the event together for us all. Thank you!

Reconciliation Reflection Day

We had a busy day yesterday with students in the middle school gathering together to reflect and pray in their preparation for receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The students had the chance to listen to some of the readings about Reconciliation, pray together as a group and at mass, and engage in some activities to deepen their learning about the Sacrament. We wish all the students well in their preparation over these next few weeks. Thank you to Deacon Malcolm and Mr Ray Hickey for their preparation of the day.

Student personal devices

Recently many students have been coming to school with Smart Watches, a wonderful new device which we know the children are most excited about and will be so great to explore and learn new skills. 

As these devices have the capacity to connect to the internet, the same restrictions apply to these as mobile phones - Smart Watches may be worn to and from school, as determined by you (the parents), then will need to be placed in the student's school bag between 8.45-3.30pm. This will be the same procedure for all devices that connect to the internet. We understand that these devices can be placed on "school mode" however as there is still the possibility that this won't happen / someone forgets etc, we need to go with the safest option possible for everyone. 

Please be advised again that any personal items which students bring to school, are done so at the risk of the owner. The school cannot take responsibility for these devices. We appreciate your understanding in this matter.

Upcoming School Closure Day - Wednesday 20th March

Just a reminder to all our families that we will be having a school closure on this date so that the staff can focus their learning on Restorative Practices to use in the everyday classroom. We have invited an expert in this area, Glen Pearsall from Classroom Dynamics to speak with us on this day. Glen has a wealth of knowledge and experience in this area and will share practical ideas and strategies for our staff.

Please note, EXTEND is available on this date. Please see attached for booking.

Staff news

This week we congratulated Mrs Deanna Imbriano on her wonderful news that she will be having a baby later this year. Deanna teaches in Three / Four G and will be with us until later in Term 2, after which she will depart for parental leave. We wish and her husband, Josh, the very best at this happy time.

Student Representative Council ~ S.R.C.

At St Michael's we are fortunate to have an active S.R.C. who focuses on the daily needs of fellow students. Each member is elected by their classmates for the term of one semester and they represent the student body in school decision-making and organise ways for students to participate in and enjoy school life. This council gives students in our school a voice in matters pertaining to students. Some examples of this are:

• safety matters among students
• ways of enhancing the school environment
• school rules
• input into play equipment and new buildings
• lunchtime activities, and so much more!

Congratulations to the first group of S.R.C. members! You can see who they are in the Wellbeing News section of this newsletter.

 Boroondara Photograph Competition 2024

This exciting exhibition is taking place again in 2024. Students are encouraged to submit photos that celebrate people, places, spaces, and the natural environment in Boroondara. All young people who are of school age (up to age 18 on 1 January 2024) are eligible to enter if their photos are taken in Boroondara.  You may recall one of our Year 6 students from last year, Jasmine Place, entered this competition and was awarded "Highly Commended" for her photo, 'Guinea Pig Picnic'. To see Jasmine's entry and to find out how to enter, go to https://www.boroondara.vic.gov.au/boroondara-arts/whats/online-exhibitions/2023-exhibitions/celebrate-boroondara-online-exhibition Best of luck!

2024 Family Contact Lists

The 2024 Family Contact Lists were emailed to all who gave their consent for their details to be shared. If you were missed off the list accidentally, please let us know in the office and we will add to the list and re-send it to your class contacts. 

Specialist Classes - Term 1

Now that our Year Three to Six Swimming Program is complete, specialist classes for the remainder of Term 1 will be as follows. Whilst we try our best not to change these classes, any necessary changes will be communicated to you via the class teacher.

Seesaw

The Seesaw App is now ready for use by all classes. Seesaw is an online tool we use to engage our students in their learning and support their development in using and navigating online tools. Students are supported to think broadly and problem solve when required to complete online tasks through Seesaw. One of the major benefits of Seesaw is as a communication tool for parents. It allows teachers to share real time learning of the students with you. As we set goals for our students in developing their next steps in various areas of the curriculum, you will be able to see how your child is progressing, see the feedback given from teachers and give feedback to your child yourself through the App. The links to each class Seesaw are below. Please also see the Parent Guide to Seesaw on our Quick Links page. 

Prep B - https://app.seesaw.me/s/457-129-625

Prep G - https://app.seesaw.me/s/419-977-216 

1/2B - https://app.seesaw.me/s/845-614-807 

1/2G - https://app.seesaw.me/s/391-124-981

1/2R - https://app.seesaw.me/s/771-173-489 

3/4B - https://app.seesaw.me/s/026-719-747 

3/4G - https://app.seesaw.me/s/520-021-218 

3/4R -  https://app.seesaw.me/s/462-485-228

5/6B - https://app.seesaw.me/s/425-045-309 

5/6G - https://app.seesaw.me/s/269-005-834 

School Photo Day - 19th March

Just a reminder to all families that our school photo day is only a few weeks away. Classes are taken one by one so there are no set times for class or individual photos. We ask that you please ensure your children are dressed in their full Summer uniform on this day, with proper school shoes and long hair tied back. If your children have PE on this day, they may bring their runners to school for their lesson. There will be no running club held on this day. Please see attached below for online order instructions.

School Dates

Please check the Term Dates page as more dates for Term 2 have been added

PLEASE NOTE: Five/Six G and One/Two B - Assembly dates have swapped since last week. Please see changes here and make this change in your home calendars.

Hands on Music

Hands On Music is a company St Michael's has been using for some time.  If you wish for your child to learn an instrument this year, please make contact with Jen Capon via email: handsonmusic.j@gmail.com or phone: 0402 910 330