Principal's Report

2020 Preps

Dear Families,

It has been an exciting week meeting with potential Prep enrollments for 2020. Siblings were interviewed last term and all offered places. Siblings with 2020 Preps who are yet to pay the deposit and confirm attendance are at risk of losing their place/s. Offers will be sent out to non-sibling families next week. We have had about 100 applications for Prep 2020 and this week have met with approximately 54 families. 

The 4-5 year olds have been very impressive in their conduct and manners. During the meeting, myself and the Deputies talk to the families about: 

• why they are interested in Galilee;
• what do they know about Galilee;
• a preparedness to connect and contribute to our community;
• their child's interests and needs and
• our detailed transition process.

At the same time, we communicate with the student and make observations of their development to be viewed by the Prep teachers, if they attend Galilee.

While students develop at different rates to each other, it can be enhanced by parents/guardians empowering their children to speak and act for themselves which leads to increased independence, resilience and confidence. Among four year olds, children whose parents empower them generally show more developed academic and social skills even at such a young age.

Staffing 

Mrs Burns has been away on Maternity Leave following the birth of her son, Archie, last year.

She was intending returning in Semester Two of 2019 but recently received the exciting news of another pregnancy. Amy and her husband AJ are expecting another boy on September 25 with a sixteen month difference in age between their two children. She will not be returning to work in 2019 and we wish them good health during this time.

We have recently employed two new staff: Tanya Borg (Occupational Therapist) and a Speech Therapist (soon to be announced). This is exciting news for our students as visits to these specialists will be free. Ordinarily is it difficult and expensive to see both. Very few (if any) Victorian primary schools have these two specialists employed on site. It is a major achievement for our school and will greatly benefit our students.

Mother's Day

With the celebration of Mother’s Day next Sunday, it is a good opportunity to reflect on the role of mothers in our families in raising our children. Children treasure their families and feel they are special and irreplaceable. Families, including immediate and extended, provide children with a sense of belonging and identity. They are a source of emotional support and comfort, warmth and nurturing, protection and security.  There is among families a sense of reciprocity—a giving and taking of love and empathy by every family member. Sunday May 12 is a very important and special day for all mothers throughout the world. It is a time to acknowledge the great job that our mothers do in looking after us and guiding us through our lives.

At Galilee we will be celebrating our mothers and significant females with a morning tea,  Mass and luncheon. I know that the students of Galilee will be making sure they recognise their mothers and significant females.

On Friday May 10th in the morning we are hosting a Mother's Day Morning Tea in the Hall from 8-9:15am with a performance from the Preps at 9am. 

This will be followed by Mass at 9:30am hosted by Year One at St Peter and Paul's and all are welcome.

The Mother's Day Luncheon will be at the Railway Club Hotel http://www.railwayclubhotel.com.au/ from 12pm. I have eaten at the Railway Club Hotel and they are famous for their steaks. Thank you to Annalaise and John for their generosity.

First Eucharist Faith Night

On Wednesday we had an amazing participation in our Eucharist Faith Night, attended by Year Four students and their families. The purpose of the evening was to begin the conversation as we prepare for the Sacrament of the First Eucharist. Thank you to Mrs Rochecouste for organising the evening, supported by Mr Coaley, Miss Giles and Miss Hall (4C Student Teacher). A big thank you to the families who attended and for Father Dean for his contribution to the evening. 

Morning Assemblies

We strive to begin each school day in a calm and mindful manner to ensure that all students are happy and ready to learn. We also value our school community and endeavour to maintain family engagement.

After consulting with staff and the school community, we have come to realise that we have an opportunity to develop our morning routines. The Staff Consultative Committee has reviewed feedback  from parents, students and teachers and found that:

25% of parents wished to stay with the current model, 25% did not not mind how mornings started and 50% of parents were hoping to see a change to how we start the day here at Galilee.

76% of students surveyed (by Mrs Latto) were in favour of one morning assembly a week and walking to class independently for the rest of the week.

In light if this, we will be trialing a new morning routine from Monday of  Week 4 through to the end of the term.

Please see the changes below:

Monday - students will line up on the basketball court in their class lines as usual and we will have a morning assembly; sharing news for the upcoming week.  

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday - a ‘first bell’ will ring at 8:45am and classrooms will open, students may choose to go directly to their classroom or stay on the yard. At 8:50am a ‘second bell’ will ring indicating the start of lessons. Attendance will be taken at 8:50am and any student arriving after that time will be considered late and must be signed in via the Office. Music will play just before the second bell to remind students to start moving to their classes. Parents are permitted to walk their child into the classroom.

Friday: Open Morning as usual; families and students are welcome to enter the classroom at 8:35am. At 8:50am a bell will ring signifying the end of Open Morning and the start of lessons.

Building Update

Next week the Building Committee will be meeting to discuss our future plans. Last year we received a generous $5 million pledge from the Liberal & Labor Parties for our building project. With Labor winning the state election, we look forward to finding out news about the timing of us receiving the money. We thank our local member, Martin Foley for his significant efforts in looking after Galilee. Catholic Education has informed me that our $5 million pledge is the highest EVER given to a Victorian Catholic Primary School. This is a significant achievement and one that will benefit generations of students attending Galilee. Congratulations to the Building Committee for their dedication over the last three years. We will provide news shortly over the future commencement of our building program. We plan to consult with our current school community once an architect has been appointed. 

Achievements and Stories Of Students

On the holidays, Jaxson in Year 6 went to Adelaide to compete in a basketball tournament. He arrived at his first game and played with a team he had never played with before. It was a tough game and Jaxson’s team tried their best but sadly lost by 5 points. They dominated their 2nd game and that was the end of the first night. They had an early game the next day and even though it was a very hard game they won. Then, they had the rest of the day to rest up for the semi-finals the next day. Jaxson woke up nervous as he knew that this would be a tough game. During the game, his team was losing but near the end of the game, they pulled back and ended up winning by 10. Jaxson said, “ I thought I played well and I was happy that we won.” The next morning would be the grand final, where he would play the game in the Adelaide basketball team’s stadium (Adelaide 36ers). “ The stadium was massive!” he said. He started the game anxiously however by the 1st quarter, they were winning by 12. His team played well and just before the end of the 2nd quarter, one of his teammates made a half-court shot. This made them pumped up and they ended up winning the tournament! Jaxson said, “It was a great experience and I would love to do it next year!”

On the 26th of April Dylan L and Ayrton P went to the SSV trials.

Ayrton: As soon as I had put my boots on and had stepped onto the pitch it was pretty clear that some people had already been selected. Then the whistle blew for the first time, the head coach had ordered us to go for warm up run around the pitch twice, during the first lap around I started to gain my confidence, most of the other contenders played in my team and of course I had one of my best friends trialing with me. Then after the two laps were done we got split into 3 groups blue, orange and green I was in the blue team and Dylan was in the orange. Something didn’t seem right, I knew no one but the Goalkeeper. When the three teams were chosen they said they were going to assess us on Ball Control, Attacking and Defending transition, Passing, Small sided games and a full pitch game. My team was first assigned to the ball control assessment and Dylan's team was assigned to attacking and defending. The first drills were finished with the pain of the cold winds and few drops of rain. Then for the second drill I was sent to Attacking and Defending and Dylan was sent to Passing. This was the stage where Dylan caught the coaches eye and now it was my turn to shine. The second assessment was complete with the energy of the infinity gauntlet. I was so excited to go onto the next drill. I was sent to passing and Dylan was sent to ball control, Then before we knew it it was time for the small sided matches. They assessed us on two games of 5 vs 5, this time we were drained by the thick drops of rain and the icy wind. Before the game, they had told us that 8 people have already been chosen and I was positive that Dylan had already been selected...we were waiting for about 45 minutes, then they called all of us in, they reminded us that only 12 can get in out of 31 players.

Dylan and I were called up and were given a sheet and then sent home with a  big smile on our faces.

Dylan: From the moment I woke and had my breakfast I was determined to play my best at the trials. I was very nervous but when I arrived I realized that I knew most of the people their which made things a lot easier. When the coach called everyone in he explained what we would be doing for the next 3 hours. There was 3 different teams: orange,blue and green I was on the orange team.

First we did a warm up which was 2 laps around the pitch. Then we had drills Ball Control, Attacking and Defending transition, Passing, Small-sided games. After that we did a big match. Throughout the drills I thought I did alright. Next we had a 20 minute break where we had lunch and talked to each other. Then the coaches brought us in to tell us what was next, which was the big match. Out of the 3 teams my team had to sit out first and watch the blue and green team play. Ayrton was in the blue team and played really well. Suddenly it just got a whole lot colder either because we weren’t moving or the sun moved behind the clouds. At the end of the first game it ended up 0-0 but, by the way Ayrton played you could tell he was in. I played really well but I wasn’t sure if I it was enough. After waiting for 40 minutes for the coaches to select the team, I was relieved by the selections, Ayrton and I had been selected and we're going home with a form telling us everything we need for the next round. Thank You.

By Ayrton, Dylan, Jaxson, Ali and Alex

NAPLAN

What is NAPLAN? The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual national assessment for all students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. All students in these year levels are expected to participate in tests in Reading, Writing, Language Conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and Numeracy. All government, and non-government education authorities have contributed to the development of NAPLAN materials. Why do students do NAPLAN tests? NAPLAN tests are one aspect of the school’s assessment and reporting process, however they do not replace the extensive, ongoing assessments made by teachers about each student’s performance. If you do not wish your child to participate in the testing please speak to their teacher. We consider NAPLAN to be a useful tracking tool alongside the many other forms of assessment conducted weekly by teachers. Please read comments from the Geelong Advertiser below: “But it is imperative that schools, students and parents do not see it as the be-all and end-all measurement of success. Education is made up of so many components and performance in one test will not decide the future of any of these young children and the testing will not be the final say of just how good a school is. Education is so much more than just answers on an exam paper” (Geelong Advertiser, May 12, 2015). See below for the timetable for NAPLAN testing for Years 3, 5, 7 & 9 in 2019. All testing is online except Year 3 Writing. All students are required to have headphones for NAPLAN Online which has already been communicated to parents. 

Pre-Service Teachers

This term we have a number of Pre-Service teachers from various universities completing teaching rounds.  Dorothy Hall (4C) and Jake Ambrosic (6F) continue their final placement.  Gemma Rowland from Swinburne began in Prep E last week and Annmaree Pinner from La Trobe Uni commenced in 2B last Friday.  Next week we welcome from ACU, Charlotte working in 3L and Tayla working in Prep S, both completing 40 days.  In June, Scarlett Dunnell from ACU will work in 1F for two weeks.  We thank Mr Coaley, Mrs Ferguson, Miss Burke, Miss Evans, Mrs Latto, Miss Smith and Miss Fahy for guiding and supporting them throughout their practical experience.

Winter Uniform

From Monday 6th May, all students are to be in full winter uniform. 

A reminder the wind breaker should ONLY be worn with the Sport Uniform OR over the jumperif extra warmth is required.

Galilee Uniform Policy:

http://www.gsmelbournesth.catholic.edu.au/uploaded_files/media/1517278888uniform_policy.pdf

Uniform Review

Over the last three years we have conducted a review of the quality of our school uniform. This has led to a number of subtle changes and improvements such as: new hat (that doesn't fade), tracksuit pants that are made from better material with zips, rugby jumpers, improved quality of the windbreakers, winter socks and pants that are more slim-lined. This process has brought about a number of contacts with our supplier, P.S.W. During this time, we have had conversations about the suitability and presentation of our whole school uniform. Parents are being sought to join a Uniform Committee to provide ideas/feedback on our current uniform. There will be a limit (two parents required) to how many can join the committee with myself, Mr Martello/Mrs Gerecke with Irene Wilson (SEB). Among the parent reps there needs to be male and female students at Galilee below Year 4 (P-3) and available to meet during school hours. If you are interested, please contact Wendy by this Monday May 6th.

Simon Millar

(Principal of Galilee)