Principal's Message 

From the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

This week we celebrate and acknowledge Catholic Education Week.

This year is a significant year as Catholic Education celebrates 200 years in Australia, marking the bicentenary of the first Catholic school established in Parramatta in October 1820 (we couldn't celebrate in 2020 due to COVID)

First Catholic school

The first Catholic school in Australia was founded in October 1820 by Irish Catholic priest Fr John Therry and run by convict and lay person George Marley. The school, which Catholic historians believe was in Hunter Street, Parramatta, taught 31 students. By 1833, there were 10 Catholic schools in the colony.

Celebrating the legacy

Over 200 years, Catholic schools have grown to become the largest provider of schooling in Australia (outside government) with one in five school age students attending a Catholic school.

This represents some 768,000 students in 1,751 schools across the country and employing 98,000 teachers and staff.

Nearly 40 per cent of Catholic schools are located outside of metropolitan cities in regional, rural and remote communities.

St Patrick, patron saint of the Archdiocese of Melbourne, once said: ‘if I have any worth, it is to live my life for God so as to teach these peoples’. He recognised the value of education in evangelising children and young people, and spreading the gospel in our communities.

Throughout Catholic Education Week, we look forward to celebrating the great work we are doing to strengthen the Catholic identity of our schools, which continues St Patrick’s great legacy.

We hope and pray that here at Christ Our Holy Redeemer we can continue to offer a Catholic Education to families in our local community.

New surface for our courtyard

We are excited to announce that a new synthetic surface has been ordered for our courtyard area. This will add a great deal to the aesthetics of our courtyard, adding colour and appeal to this area. The area will be marked with a third of a basketball court, numerous four square courts as well as differently coloured markings to show the walkways and paths. This project was discussed at the Parents Association and School Board Meetings in 2020 and was due to be completed last year, however was postponed due to Covid. The new turf is now due to be installed in the June school holidays and will take two weeks to complete.

Ride to School Day

Christ Our Holy Redeemer is excited to be celebrating National Ride2School Day TOMORROW 19 March 2021. National Ride2School Day is the perfect opportunity to kick-start new healthy habits and promote the many benefits of active travel. We encourage all students and their families to leave the car at home and give riding, walking, scooting or skating to school a go. 

Tutor Learning Program

In October 2020, the Victorian Government announced the Tutor Learning Program, which provides funding for the recruitment of tutors to support students to accelerate their learning in 2021 to compensate for the disruptions they experienced last year.

Our school will use its regular quality assessment practices and knowledge of students to identify those whose learning has been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We will use data from a range of standardized/benchmarked assessments, together with teacher judgement. 

Our school has increased the working hours of both Franca Paduano (Intervention Leader and Literacy Leader) and Maria Falla (Reading Recovery and Intervention teacher) to act as Learning Tutors. We have already held discussions with staff, identifying those students who require additional support in 2021 and we look forward to being able to support these students through individualized instruction and small group work.

Lunchtime Clubs

Lunchtime clubs are offered to students interested in alternative activities to the regular playground games and activities. The following lunchtime clubs are open to all children and offered on a regular basis through the term.

Monday – Garden Club (2-3 lunchtimes each term on a needs basis)

Tuesday Italian Club (recess)

                  Pop-up Play (lunchtime)

Wednesday – Library Club (lunchtime)

Thursday - Choir (lunchtime)

Friday – Library Club (lunchtime)

Staff News

Next week Elise Rimington (3/4GR) will commence maternity leave as she prepares for the birth of her second child which is due in the coming weeks. I am sure you will join me in wishing Elise and her husband Nick all the very best for the weeks ahead.

Commencing next week Mrs Nicole Russell will be working in the 3/4GR classroom each Thursday and Friday.

School Hat Options

We are currently looking at possible school hat options to replace the current wide-brimmed hat. The options still have a wider brim and cover the ears but  are more flexible when placing them in tubs and bags. The three options will be on display in the reception area and we would be very happy to hear your feedback.

Gala Day

Tomorrow all of our Year 5 and 6 students will be participating in a sports Gala Day, competing against other local primary schools.

Kanga Cricket will be played at Princes Hwy Reserve.

Basketball will be played  at Waverley Basketball Stadium. (Corner Batesford Road &, Power Ave, Chadstone)

Rounders will be played at  Batesford Reserve. (94 Batesford Road, Chadstone)

Softball will be played at Jells Park.

Parents are welcome to come along. The only indoor venue is Basketball where parents will be required to sign in at the stadium.

Congratulations

Congratulations to one of our new Prep families, the Mora-Rind family, on the arrival of their new little boy, Attila.

Take care and enjoy your weekend!