Principal's Message

Good afternoon parents and carers,

Winter has definitely arrived, providing us with some exceptionally cold weather this week. That being said, parents are asked to ensure their children adhere to our school uniform during this time.  Although warm, we are noticing a number of students wearing incorrect jumpers/jackets to school this week. Please contact Mrs Jane Clark in our uniform shop if you require replacement or additional cold weather (winter) uniform items.  

Congratulations to our twelve Year 6 students who have been participating in the Moree Primary School Illuminate Challenge throughout the week.  Andrew Ball, Sophie Boydell, Shae Brazel, Hugo Donaldson, Heidi Humphreys, Sarasi Maheepala, Hugh Makim, Jackson McDowall, Clare Montgomery, Harriet Poole, Mia Stokes and Alice Turner have all demonstrated high levels of collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, and communication skills as they completed a range of challenging activities. We are extremely proud of these young leaders.  Again, congratulations to you all!

Congratulations to Hamish Crittenden who represented St Philomena's (and the Diocese of Armidale) at the Polding Cross Country event in Sydney on Monday.  Hamish ran an incredible race (2km) finishing 29th in the 10yr boys.  Well done Hamish!

The year 8 students in Mrs Davison's Technology Mandatory class, continue to put our new laser cutter (Lawrence) through its paces as they explore its capabilities.  Their current unit 'Light of the World' will see students learning a new software application, Adobe Illustrator, as they design, cut and build a light shade/structure prototype for a usb led light.  Below is a sample prototype made from recycled cardboard.  Very exciting times for our Year 8 students in Mandatory Technology.

Finally, this week I had the privilege to be invited by the Catholic Schools Office to attend the  Learning Environments Australasia Conference in Adelaide.  The purpose of the conference was to visit, and explore a number of schools (my focus was on Middle and Senior Schools) to understand the current trends of Secondary Contemporary Learning Design and how we, as a professiional learning community, can begin to develop a plan/strategy for improving the physical learning conditions (and resources) for our secondary students (Years 7-10).  Below are a couple of photos taken from school visits, showcasing learning environments in secondary schools.

For all our families travelling over the long weekend, travel safe and have a wonderful time away.  

God bless,

Jamie McDowall

Principal