From the Principal

Happy Holidays

A big thank you to all our staff for their sensational work  and dedication to our school this semester. It is amazing what wonderful learning opportunities our children have had and the great learning outcomes that have been achieved as a result of their commitment to supporting our children. We also congratulate our students for their great focus this term, embracing our school expected behaviours and for the growth and learning that has resulted. We are very proud of our school community and the support received by our parish, Fr Fabian, Parents and Friends Association, Maintenance Team and the School Advisory Council. The strong partnership continues to support our school flourish and thrive as positive community and excel as a place of learning and spiritual growth. Thank you all for playing a vital part in what has been a successful semester. I wish you all a very happy and restful mid year break.

Last Site Meeting - 22 June 2023!!

Our last site meeting was held on the shortest day of the year - winter solstice!!

We are now finally at the finish line. There are still a few minor defects to rectify however this will not delay our move into the space ready for Term 3. The first to move will be Kristy as she sets up her Music room. Music classes are scheduled to commence in the new space in Week 1. We have purchased some new keyboards and are excited to see this space set up and for the sounds of music to fill the space. 

Before & After Care have their cupboards in the new storage space off the hall. They will be unpacking and organising their resources as well over the holidays. We expect After Care sessions to commence in our new space by August once we have everything set to go. 

This week we have ordered chairs for the new hall ready for our school productions later in the year. Landscape plans have also been finalised and will commence by Week 3. We cannot wait to see the grounds around the sensational new facilities take shape. There will be temporary orange fencing around the space for a while longer while landscape work takes place. 

Badminton and Volley ball posts and nets arrived during the week and storage for PE equipment will be in place in July. The staff cannot wait to move in for PE, concert practice, assemblies, Mass and community gatherings.

How lucky is our school to have this amazing facility!! 

We are now planning for the opening and blessing of this space. This will be a whole community celebration. An opportunity to celebrate our 10th Anniversary that was during COVID and most importantly to celebrate our school community and what has been achieved over the past 13 years. We will let you know the details once a date is confirmed and we hope it will be in late August or early October. We want to make this a very special event, that involves everyone past, present and future members of our school community. 

It is CELEBRATION TIME!!

Staff News

We pray for Elisabetta who is still recovering and making progress each day. However unfortunately, Elisabetta is not well enough to return to work in Term 3. Rita Karamalis will continue to teach the EM Junior Home Group in LS1 in Term 3.

We are also delighted to announce that Andrea Gargano who has been working casually for us this year as a CRT has been appointed as the AP Senior Home Group Teacher in LS1 with Grace Larzabal.

We are extremely fortunate to have these three teachers who know our school so well available to take up these mid year positions. This week we also had Julie Wehner return to our school for two days to help Jasna with our school library. Julie was a regular staff member till she retired a few years ago. We are delighted to have Julie return on a casual basis.

Soccer Clinics by St John's Dandenong

This term, our school has had a new partnership with St John's with coaches running soccer clinics for our Year 3 and Year 4 students. They have run 3 clinics and our students have loved these sessions.

This week the highlight was a visit from the St John's Year 11 and 12 Sport and Recreation class!! The students ran some rotational soccer activities and our students got to apply all the skills they had learnt in the clinics with the coaches. Our Gr 3/4 students absolutely loved working with the St John's students. In fact one asked if they could come back tomorrow. When our students were asked what was the best part of their 4 soccer clinics they all said the session with the St John's senior students. 

Our staff were so impressed with both the students and staff that came out from St John's. They really did their College proud. We are very thankful for the opportunity to have these extra soccer clinics and if possible would love to continue this association and extend it further in 2024.

Jayden Fernandes returns to St Francis de Sales

This week Jayden Fernandes a past pupil from St Francis de Sales returned with two of his friends to visit our school and speak to our seniors. Jayden and his friends went to Salesian College and did very well, excelling in secondary school. Jayden's determination and perseverance enabled him to achieve an outstanding ATAR of 98.85. The boys from Salesian College, came to speak to our children about life at secondary school, what helped them transition from Primary School and how they went about achieving their goals. 

Jayden was feeling very nostalgic as he met some of his teachers and walking around our school evoked many special memories. Our children were delighted to speak with Jayden and his friends. Jayden acknowledged the strong foundation that was laid in his time at St Francis de Sales, in a community that fostered his academic, social and spiritual development. Our seniors asked lots of questions and enjoyed a basketball shoot off to conclude the visit. Jayden presented the school with a framed thank you message to St Francis de Sales. You can see this in our school foyer.

Salesian College has a partnership with Liverpool Football Club. They are offering after school  clinics to aspiring 6-16 year old boys and girls. The weekly sessions are held on Monday 4-5 pm under LFC academy accredited coaches and are designed to compliment club soccer. commitments. Places are limited register www.salesian.vic.edu.au/about-us/community-partnership

Enrol Now For 2024!! .....Start Spreading the News!!

Places for Prep are filling fast!

Go to our website Click to BOOK a tour and and ENROL NOW.

Places are available for children moving into the area.

To make things easy, parents can book a tour or complete an application to enrol via our website. Please continue to promote our school. Word of Mouth references is one of the key ways parents tell us they know about our school. So keep spreading the news of this wonderful learning community. 

Congratulations 

Girls Soccer team - Winners of the Lightning Premiership

Girls Cricket Team - Runners up 

Well done to all students who displayed great sportsmanship and tried their BEST.

See further details in Learning &Teaching

Attendance and Punctuality is Essential

It is so important to ensure your child attends school and is punctual. The learning day starts at 8:45 am. Children who are late miss vital teaching that commences with reading. A positive start and routine sets your child up for the best possible day. Your support in enhancing attendance is vital to improvement. 

Semester One School Reports

The Semester one School reports are now available electronically. 

NFORMA recommends that each semester ALL parents are cleared of ACCESS and then given access again where they receive a temporary password through an email and have to set up their details again. NFORMA believes this is an important security measure. Thus we will follow this for ALL families each year. You should have receive an email with access and a temporary password. Please change your password to one that is secure.

STEPS to access reports are as follow:

-Go to the school website 

-Click on Our Families

-Scroll down to School Reports 

-Click the link to go to NFORMA Parent Portal, login and then enter the parent portal (as seen below) where you can access your  child/ren's report.

Focus on the Positives and Celebrate Achievements

We are proud of all our children and congratulate our students on their great progress. The reports are one of many opportunities to get a window into your child's learning.  We encourage you to provide positive feedback to your child and focus of the positives. Make learning fun and work in partnership with your child's teachers. Remember to celebrate what you child can do and has achieved in Semester one 2023.

Please Note Key School dates:

• School commences on Monday 10th July for the start of Term 3.
• School finishes for 2023 on Friday 15th December at 1:30 pm.

We wish all our staff, students and families a great Mid-Year holiday. 

Go Australia in the Ashes and Go the Pies!! 

Regards,

Christine White

Principal