Principal's News
'Human greatness does not lie in wealth or power, but in character and goodness.'
Anne Frank
Dear Families
It is wonderful to be back and thank you for the messages of care and compassion during my time away.
I hope you all had a lovely long weekend (for those who had one!) and didn't let the cold and wet weather deter you from making the most out of the extra lesiure time.
Key updates:
Dogs Connect - Buddy
Last week we announced that we would be welcoming Buddy to Fatima as our wellbeing dog and staff member. It has been proven that a well-trained dog can help students in a whole range of ways. Being near a dog can reduce stress and anxiety and decrease the heart rate. Dogs can also help us to feel more connected to our school, learn to understand ourselves better, and grow confidence in relating to others.
Buddy's first day will be tomorrow and his first job is to learn to relax at school. This takes a few weeks where he gets use to the stimulated environment. We have been discussing with students that:
- This is his place of learning and working too, so we need to respect his personal space and safety – just like we do with students, staff and visitors.
- Buddy is still a puppy and he needs to learn that he is not the school pet.
- It’s important that Buddy can walk around and get to know the school without distracted or feeling unsafe.
We also have a colouring competition running and the winners from each year level will get to have a special meeting with Buddy. We have some very excited students!
Last Day of the School Year
The students last day of school is Friday 16th December. This will include a whole a school Graduation/End of Year Mass,12.30 to 1.30pm. Families members are most welcome to join us at this celebration. Please know that school will finish at 1.30pm - straight after Mass. For those families who require the afterschool program, Camp Australia will commence from 1.30pm.
Shade Sails
Last week, we commenced the installation of our shade sails. This was through the Victorian School Building Authority grants program that supported schools in new shade sails over outdoor learning areas. Below you can see the posts installed and we await the arrival of the sails. Once completed we will then look at ways to make this an inviting outdoor learning area for our community. We also replaced our previous sail over the sand pit, which was showing a bit of wear and tear!
World Teachers' Day
Last week we celebrated World Teachers' Day. I would like to thank our teachers for all the work they do in educating, nurturing, protecting, supporting and growing the mind and spirit of each child and young person in our school.
Our Catholic vision is for all those in our care to be given the opportunity to develop to their full potential, and to be given opportunities to succeed and contribute in ways that deepen their faith and benefit humanity. This work is impossible without the expertise and skills that teachers offer every day, day after day.
Student Fundraiser
Jude Farrelly, one of our Year 5 students, is competing in the 12 Years and Under Team Vic Golf Team for the School Sport Australia Championship in Canberra this month. This involves 3 days of golf and one educational day. Jude recently came to discuss the possibility of fundraiser as a way to show responsibility for contributing in some way to the costs.
We are more than happy to support Jude with this and have decided that next Tuesday, 8th November we will offer ice-poles for a gold coin donation. Jude will also run a coin slide competition during playtimes. We look forward to supporting Jude in this fundraiser and the national event.
Netball - staff v students
To welcome me back to school, staff organised a netball match between staff and students. I am mad about netball and have been passionately involved in the sport since my own primary years - and still competitively playing! We all had loads of fun and laughs on the court. I must say Mrs Willcourt's umpiring is questionable though - haha!
School Camps
Over the next fortnight we have our Year 3/4s heading to Portsea camp and our Year 5/6s to Sovereign Hill. We wish all our students and staff attending a safe and memorable time with their experiences.
At this time of year, plans for 2023 are a key focus. I wish to let you know that our priority for the school with staffing is stability where possible. Also, performing arts has been highly missed in 2022 and we look forward to that learning area being a focus once again in 2023.
Go gently
Sarah McDermott
Principal