Good afternoon Families,
My apologies for this newsletter being sent a couple of days late. I simply ran out of time and thought instead of rushing it, l would leave it for today. I hope you are all enjoying some respite from the heat; l know the garden will.
A big shout out to Bianca Broccio and the P&F for organising our first fundraiser for the year. I can’t wait to see the tea towels and aprons with 150 plus portraits. It is such a great memento to have and handy too.
On Friday 28th February, your children enjoyed a pupil free day whilst all staff attended a fantastic professional learning day at Sacred Heart, Croydon. We are very fortunate to be part of an eastern zone Reading Collective; just ten to twelve schools are involved and St Luke’s is one of them. Together this collective is embracing the Science of Learning, the Vision for Instruction (MACS) and the changing educational focus on the need for knowledge rich curriculum. Listening to Nathaniel Swain was thought provoking, reassuring and rejuvenating and the staff have returned to school eager to continue their current journey on ensuring St Luke’s continues to build and maintain their reputation as a school of excellence. So as a side note… when you wonder why there are pupil free days, it’s because WE are enjoying the rigour of learning more about our craft.
This week we have our Snapshots of Learning on Thursday afternoon. As noted in the Audiri post: This is similar to Parent Teacher interviews where teachers can provide parents with a snapshot of how your child is settling into the new school year. We have been building a profile of your child's learning and this will be a great opportunity to celebrate your child's strengths and to discuss what the next growth points are for your child.
If you have attended a PSG meeting for your child this term, please DO NOT book another meeting here.
Use the following link: https://www.schoolinterviews.com.au/code/63ng6 if you have not booked your time yet.
Please note: This is NOT a pupil free afternoon. All children will be supervised until 3.25 pm whilst meetings are in progress.
The Sacrament of First Reconciliation will be upon us soon for the Year 3 children. This is for children who are baptised. Please pray for them as they prepare to deepen their connection to our loving and merciful God through the sacrament of reconciliation. Details will follow in the next couple of days for parents to book a time in Week 10.
We are feeling very excited about the upcoming Twilight Sports. An Operoo permission note went out last week. Please complete this as soon as possible. Please note the following:
We have an earlier start and finish this year. The fun and games will begin at 1.30pm and conclude at 4.30pm. Whilst we get your child to the venue, YOU will need to collect him/her/them at 4.30 pm.
WE NEED YOU! An army of parent helpers are needed to physically assist on the day please with set-up, supervising of events, scoring and pack up. Please volunteer now. If you didn’t do it on the Operoo permission, please email Emma Cooper at ecooper@slblackburnsth.catholic.edu.au or me at principal@slblackburnsth.catholic.edu.au and we’ll be in touch.
As mentioned after the past two exceptionally hot days when we had hoped to have our family Welcome Picnic, we will now be holding it immediately after the Twilight Sports afternoon. We will stay trackSIDE which is OFF the track and on the grassy patch that extends beyond the undercover seating. Please join us with a picnic rug and picnic tea. All child/ren need to be supervised by their parents please. Staff will not be available to do so.
Look out for the upcoming information about the annual Stations of the Cross that St Luke’s presents so beautifully. For those families new to our school, your child is working earnestly on creating a visual depiction of one or two stations of the cross. On Friday 4th April, our final day of Term One, you can visit each station with your child/ren before school. Make sure you invite grandparents or other family who might like to attend this reflective and beautiful presentation. Details will follow from our Faith and Mission leader, Nina Grieve.
On the staffing front, a couple of people will be taking Long Service Leave in the next couple of weeks. Marie Kennedy will be starting some leave in Week 8 and returning in Week 2 of Term 2. I wish her a wonderful time with her family and whilst her Junior class will miss her, we will look forward to her return. I will also be taking some leave beginning Friday 28th March to travel with my husband, Mark to Europe. We will return very early May and once again, l feel blessed to have this opportunity. Julie Inglese will step in as Acting Principal in my absence and will do a great job attending to all things school related. Please make sure you check in with her, should you need to at jinglese@slblackburnsth.catholic.edu.au I’ll look forward to sharing my adventures with you on my return.
Next term… heads up:
Week 1: Easter Monday- the school is closed and ANZAC Day (Friday)- the school is also closed
Week 1: WEDNESDAY 23rd April: Information sessions for Years 1-6 from 3.30pm to 4.15pm. We would love both parents to attend so you get a very clear picture of how the Science of Learning works, however we appreciate this isn’t always possible.
Have a lovely afternoon and l look forward to seeing you around the place, before l leave.
Clare
