Classroom News
PREP
This week we have been celebrating Reconciliation Week. We wore casual clothes that represented the First Nations colours and brought a gold coin donation to support this initiative. We met on the courts for a liturgy to learn all about Reconciliation Week.
Unfortunately due to the weather we weren’t able to partake in our walk at the gardens.
Today we celebrated Catholic Education Week by attending a Mass at St Mary’s Church. All the other Catholic Primary Schools in Colac attended this Mass and it was a wonderful way to come together to recognise a very important part of our Catholic identity.
In numeracy, we started learning all about subtraction. We are learning how to take away from the biggest number. In literacy, we have started learning stage 3. Our focus sounds/letters are - y, r, qu, e, z and our heart words are - he, she, we, was, to do.
Kate is completing her final day of placement number 1 tomorrow. We have absolutely loved having her in our Prep classroom.
We look forward to welcoming her back at the end of term 2 to start her final placement.
Harper - ‘Catching the bus on a Wednesday, playing on the monkey bars and learning about sounds in words’.
Harry - ‘Playing in the sandpit, doing science and catching the bus.’
Michael - ‘Playing in the playground, playing with Sam and I also like doing soccer in the morning.’
Ingrid - ‘Playing on the slide and playing with my friends.’
Gemma Blake gblake@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Elissa Rodger erodger@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 1
This week, Year 1 students enjoyed a special visit from Steve Tevelin from the SES as part of our Inquiry unit on emergency services. They learned about how the SES helps people during storms and floods and loved seeing the equipment up close!
We also recognised Reconciliation Week by having thoughtful discussions and learning about the importance of showing respect to all cultures.
Today we went to Mass with all the children from St. Mary’s, Sacred Heart and St. Brendan’s to celebrate Catholic Education Week. This was such a special way to celebrate our Catholic identity and gather as a larger community. Our Yr 1s were so respectful during the Mass and engaged in the prayers and songs throughout in a prayerful manner.
We were very excited to finish reading our chapter book ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’. The children and teachers loved sharing this story. Next week we will watch the movie so that we can learn how to compare texts. It would be great if you could talk with your child about the story
As the weather gets colder, please remind your little one to bring their named jumper to school. Please also ensure coats and beanies are named.
Learning Conversations will be held on the 1st and 2nd of July. Bookings will open in the coming weeks on PAM, so keep an eye out for more information.
A reminder that Leah/Judy’s class will be leading Prayer Gathering on Friday, 6th June and Bec/Paula’s class will be the following week on June 13th.
Leah Martin lmartin@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Rebecca Murray rmurray@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Judy Carr jcarr@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Paula Parish pparish@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 2
It’s hard to believe we’ve already passed the halfway point of Term 2! The term is moving quickly, and we’re so proud of the effort and enthusiasm students are bringing into their learning each day.
This week, students have been engaged in 1:1 assessments as we begin preparations for reports and upcoming learning conversations. These assessments are such a valuable opportunity to work closely with each child, identifying their strengths and areas for both support and extension. Some students may have received additional support packs in their school bags, please feel free to use these in a way that best suits your family routine. We’ll continue working toward individual goals here at school as well.
Looking ahead, our learning conversations will take place towards the end of the term. These meetings are a fantastic opportunity to celebrate your child’s progress and discuss strategies to support their ongoing learning. Keep an eye out for booking information in the coming weeks.
Our Emergency Services unit has been a real highlight this term! This week, we welcomed Steve from our local SES, who gave students a wonderful insight into his important role. He was the final visitor in our exciting line-up, which has also included representatives from the police, ambulance, and CFA. To conclude the unit, students will soon be presenting on a chosen emergency service and participating in a mock emergency call. In preparation, we kindly ask families to help students practise reciting their home address. It’s also a great time to help them learn a parent or caregiver’s mobile phone number, as all of our visiting emergency service professionals strongly recommended this as an important life skill.
Next week, Mandy and Emma will be swapping their usual work days, but all regular programs will continue as usual.
Finally, we’ve had quite a few coughs and colds circulating through our Year 2 classrooms recently. As always, we appreciate your support in keeping unwell children at home to help protect the health of our whole school community.
Thank you for your ongoing support,
The Year 2 Team
Emma Roberts eroberts@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Matt O'Dowd modowd@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Amanda Delorenzo mdelorenzo@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 3
It’s hard to believe we’re already in Week 6!
Last week, our students thoroughly enjoyed taking part in National Simultaneous Story Time, a wonderful event that always brings books to life. Although our Sorry Day walk was rained out (with much-appreciated rain!), we were still able to mark the occasion with a special ceremony on the courts. The whole school joined in walking across a symbolic bridge, reflecting on this year’s theme: ‘Bridging Now to Next’.
We were also treated to a fantastic performance by the Trinity School Band, which had everyone clapping along.
Today, we joined Sacred Heart, St Brendan’s and Trinity student representatives to celebrate the Catholic Education Week Mass, a lovely moment of reflection and community.
In class, we’re busy with addition and subtraction in Numeracy, and in Literacy, students have just completed persuasive writing pieces on ‘What are the best rewards for good behaviour at school?’ We’re now diving deeper into our Identity unit in Religion/Inquiry, where students are exploring what makes them unique and identifying emotional triggers to help revise their Stress Management Plans.
Jade LoRicco jloricco@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Deb Holland dholland@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 4
It's been an exciting week in Grade 4, full of creativity, learning, and accomplishment!
In maths, we’ve been diving into the world of decimals—and what better way to explore this concept than by flying paper planes! Students measured the distances their planes travelled, then recorded and compared the results using decimal notation. This hands-on activity brought abstract numbers to life, with plenty of cheers (and some friendly competition) as students tested designs, refined their techniques, and practiced accurate measuring. It’s been a fantastic way to link maths with movement and real-world thinking.
Meanwhile, in literacy, we’ve been breaking down the structure of a great narrative. Using Leo and Ralph—our class novel—as inspiration, students identified and unpacked key literary devices like imagery, dialogue, metaphor, and similes. They're now applying these elements in their own writing, crafting stories that are rich, engaging, and uniquely their own. It’s been a joy to see their confidence grow as storytellers!
We also want to give a huge shoutout to Dan D, Clem G, Harrison A, and Finn H for proudly representing our school at the Regional Cross Country in Warrnambool on Monday. Your determination and sportsmanship are something to be proud of—well done!
Just a gentle reminder: students are responsible for bringing their diaries back each Monday—feel free to give them a nudge, but it’s up to students to remember!
Thank you ,
The Grade 4 Team
Important Dates for Term 4
Thursday 29th May - Catholic Education Week Mass 10 am
Friday 20th June - Open Classroom and Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea
Friday 27th June - Grade 4 Matt Prayer Gathering
Friday 4th July - Grade 4 Maegen and Susie Prayer Gathering
Matt Absalom mabsalom@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Maegen Potter mpotter@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Susie Scott sscott@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 5
This week in Literacy, students will be finishing off their Information Reports on the Victorian Goldfields. These will become good copies and form part of our Open Classroom in Week 9 (See below in Inquiry section for details).
In Numeracy we are wrapping up our work on Fractions. Over the last week, we have been practising addition and subtraction of fractions with the same denominator including working with improper fractions, mixed numbers and worded problems. We will be starting to work on Angles as our next unit.
Wishing the students good luck who are representing St. Mary’s for Netball and Football on Friday.
The students have been really engaged in our Australian History unit this term. Over the next couple of weeks the students will be completing a History Passion Project which will culminate in an open classroom morning on Friday the 20th of June. Pop this date in your diaries.
Camp is just around the corner next week so hopefully all preparations are in order at home. The weather is looking chilly with a few showers/sprinkles of rain so coats, some extra layers and maybe a spare towel etc will be essential: use the packing checklist to ensure that students have everything they need.
A few reminders as well:
Teachers will call/contact parents/guardians of students who require medication as new rules around this mean that this has to be handled and administered correctly
One bag of lollies per student is allowed.
NO devices of any kind are permitted and will be confiscated if found.
Just a reminder that diaries need to be signed each week please and if homework folders could come in on Fridays please for checking in. Thanks.
Rachel Downard rdownard@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Rachael Cahill rcahill@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 6
The year 6s have been busy mastering their fraction skills in Maths throughout the past fortnight and will be moving on to Angles next week. We are still working on the topic ‘Human Migration’ throughout Literacy and Inquiry. The students were given the task of finding someone within the community who has migrated to Australia and interview them to learn about their story. They will begin creating a visual display to showcase their learning on this topic. You can look forward to seeing this at our Open Classroom morning (see dates below).
Important Dates:
Friday 30th May - Lightning Premiership
Friday 6th June - Girls Footy/Boys Netball
Friday 13th June - Divisional Soccer Tournament
Friday 20th June - Year 6 Prayer Gathering
Open Classroom (after Prayer Gathering)
Biggest Morning Tea (for Year 5/6 parents)
Wed 15th Oct - Fri 17th Oct - Melbourne Camp
Jess Downard jdownard@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Jodie Hassett jhassett@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Katie Monaghan kmonaghan@smcolac.catholic.edu.au