St Luke the Evangelist School Newsletter

27 February 2025 - Issue # 03

DIARY DATES


School Term Dates 2024

Term 1       Tuesday 28 January - Friday 04 April 

Term 2       Tuesday 22 April  Friday 04 July 

Term 3       Monday 21 July Friday 19 September 

Term 4       Monday 06 October Friday 19 December -  Last day of term Wednesday 17 December 

Term 1
Monday 03 MarchPrep students commence full week
Wednesday 05 MarchAsh Wednesday - Whole School Mass 2.30pm
Monday 10 MarchPublic Holiday
Wednesday 12 to Monday 24 MarchNAPLAN - Year 3 & 5
Thursday 03 AprilTwilight Sports - Bill Sewart Reserve 12.30pm - 5.00pm PLUS Family Picnic
Friday 04 AprilLast Day of Term - 1pm finish
Term 2
Tuesday 22 AprilTerm 2 begins
Friday 25 AprilPublic Holiday - ANZAC Day
Wednesday 7 MayMother's Day Breakfast 7.45am
Friday 9 MayP&F Mother's Day Stall
Wednesday 14 MaySchool Photos
Wednesday 21 to Friday 23 MaySeniors Camp

STAFF PROFESSIONAL LEARNING DAY- PUPIL FREE DAY

TOMORROW IS A STUDENT FREE DAY!

Our staff are attending a professional learning day at Sacred Heart Primary School, Croydon. We'll be learning about Knowledge Rich Curriculum to help support our implementation of the MACS Vision for Instruction.

Foundational principles of the theory behind the Science of Learning such as cognitive load, retrieval practice, effective feedback, and knowledge-rich curricula help to contribute to more effective learning for all students. These key insights from the research point to the need for explicit instruction as the starting point for all learning, ensuring that all students, including those with dyslexia and other learning difficulties, have equitable access to high-quality teaching. 

We are very fortunate to be joining other schools in a combined Literacy Collective to listen to Dr Nathaniel Swain, a highly regarded researcher, teacher and professor in the field of education.

A message from Clare

Good afternoon Families,

As the seasons begin to change and we begin to see the beautiful changing colours of our beautiful local environment, l draw your attention to how even just five weeks in, we are seeing such change in our children. Their young minds are continuing to be opened to the wonders of learning and we are thrilled to see their willingness to build their own real growth mindsets. I have included a brief overview of Melbourne Archdiocese of Catholic Schools (MACS) Vision for Instruction which is an enlightening document that talks about our children becoming flourishing learners. This will begin a series of newsletter articles throughout the year that will outline the changes we are embracing as educators and learning to bring knowledge- rich teaching and direct instruction to motivate and enhance cognitive engagement. Ultimately, our two goals for instruction are:

  • EXCELLENCE: All MACS schools WILL deliver knowledge-rich, evidence based teaching and learning program and
  • EQUITY: where every student, regardless of background, achieves literacy and numeracy proficiency.

‘By 2030, we aim to become the benchmark for excellence in teaching and learning, through a coherently integrated, academically competitive and distinctively Catholic educational offering. We will provide an outstanding education, focused on formation of the whole person, that has the intellectual, practical and moral excellence of learners at its heart. We will aim to deliver the best educational outcome for every student. To achieve this, we are committed to evidence-based instruction and the active promotion of equity and excellence.

How students learn: All MACS educators benefit from knowing how students learn. The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers – Standard 1, requires teachers to know students and how they learn (AITSL n.d.). The evidence from cognitive science research offers important information on how this learning happens with practical implications for teaching. 

The research tells us: 

How students learn

Implications for instruction

Most students need formal teaching to learn biologically secondary knowledge

Teach what students won’t learn on their own

Thinking occurs when we combine information from our environment and from our long-term memory in new ways (Willingham 2009b)

Consider student prior knowledge

Working memory has limits (Sweller 2011)

Respect students’ cognitive load and teach new content explicitly, using modelling and worked examples (Barbieri et al. 2023)

Memory is the residue of thought (Willingham 2009a)

Ask questions to get students thinking in a structured way

Memory is prone to forgetting (Pashler et al. 2007)

Stories and mnemonics extensive independent practice and Review can strengthen previous learning and lead to more fluent recall

Knowledge builds on knowledge.

Teaching a knowledge-rich curriculum is essential 

Novices and experts learn differently

Introduce new ideas carefully and explicitly.

Vision for Instruction:

Coherent, knowledge-rich teaching and learning programs: Students need a broad range of knowledge and skills to have a strong foundation of information across the whole curriculum that will benefit them beyond their school years. Coherent and deliberate planning of knowledge taught and sequencing of tasks has been shown to positively impact student learning. Tasks that build upon each other and are deployed based on student prior learning are the most effective (Wexler 2020). 

Explicit instruction model: Effective teachers design lessons that begin with teacher-guided instruction and gradually shift responsibility for learning to the student with modelling and guided practice. This leads to student independent practice only after foundational knowledge is established (Clark, Kirschner & Sweller 2012).

Explicit instruction sequence: Starting with the introduction of new content and skills, effective teaching will generally follow this sequence:

  • Explicit instruction: Teachers fully explain the concepts and skills that students are required to learn. The most efficient way to teach knowledge is to teach it explicitly, and this is particularly true for the introduction of new concepts (Rosenshine 2012). However, this does not mean students are passively receiving information.
  • Modelling: Effective teachers break down what students need to learn into smaller learning outcomes and model each step so that students can see what is expected of them (Rosenshine 2012).
  • Guided practice: Teachers provide multiple opportunities for students to practise, and support is gradually removed as students develop understanding and can work more independently.
  • Independent practice: Once students have developed understanding, teachers ask students to complete tasks themselves while the teacher monitors and provides feedback. 

Formative assessment: Effective questioning is a core part of effective formative assessment. Instruction is most effective when it is highly interactive with frequent checks for understanding. Identifying where a student is in their learning by assessing what they know also helps teachers choose the right starting place before introducing a new unit of work (AERO 2021). 

Regular review: Rehearsing and reviewing information creates stronger connections and makes prior knowledge more readily available for use. As a part of a routine, use low- or no-stakes quizzes for frequent review. Material that is practised and discussed in review will be easier to recall. If students are struggling with a concept during review, teachers can do a quick re-teach lesson.

Principles of effective implementation:

  • Humans at the centre- Understand that human experience is at the heart of change. 

  • Building knowledge-   Knowledge is foundational to school improvement.

  • Rigorous adaptation-  Balance on-the-ground adaptations with ensuring fidelity to evidence-based practices.

  • Lean monitoring- Collect and respond to data at each stage.

WOW- that’s a lot of information but we are feeling very excited about embracing new learning, taking our knowledge and understanding to new levels and changing our pedagogy to ensure our learners here at St Luke's flourish. Please don’t skip or skim over this. Read it in small sections as there is so much we want to share with you. I totally agree with our Melbourne archbishop when he states, ‘Each student is important, each is wonderful ... because each is made in the image and likeness of God. In their hopes and their challenges, their imperfections, and their gifts ... every child is a blessing, to be nurtured, supported, and encouraged.’ (Comensoli 2022)

On Wednesday, 5th March Julianne Kelly and Brooke Madden will meet with our Prep 2025 families for an information session. They will talk to our Vision for Instruction and how that looks for your child in the classroom each day. 

With a lot of professional learning happening for our staff, we have decided to place Year 1-6 Information Sessions into Week One of Term Two on the Wednesday afternoon- 23rd April from 3.30pm to 4.15 pm. Please save the date and don’t miss out on learning about current research based, instructional best practices.

Excerpts taken from: Vision for Instruction Flourishing Learners position statement

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools Ltd James Goold House, 228 Victoria Parade East Melbourne VIC 3002 © Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools 2024

Now, l won’t write another word other than have a lovely LONG weekend.                

Clare Ryan

Photo and Recording Permissions

Recently families were requested to provide preferences for the publication of student names, photograph and recordings for School, MACS and CECV materials/purposes.  Families were asked to provide consent from BOTH PARENTS (where both parents reside at the same address).  Where the consent has been provided from only one parent it will be assumed that both parents have provided the stated consent.  In the event that a response has not been received, reference will be made to prior media and preference consent provided to the school until updated consent has been given 

TWILIGHT SPORTS

Look out for the Operoo notification about Twilight Sports.  We need an army of volunteers  to help us on the day please.  So if you are planning to be there and don't have toddlers to look after, maybe you can add your name to the list of volunteers required.   


Save the date:                        Thursday 3rd April



Thank you, in advance of your help.  

Some news from our Seniors

Leadership 2025  


Last Friday, our Year 6 students took part in the Year 6 Leadership Day, an enriching opportunity to reflect on and apply the leadership skills they are developing as future leaders of St Luke’s 2025. The day allowed them to collaborate within their groups, focusing on the impact they aim to have in their roles and how they can strengthen the student voice within our school community. Through a range of engaging activities, they honed their abilities in public speaking, leadership qualities, teamwork, and active listening.

Connection to the Community program


Starting on March 12, we are excited to launch the Connecting with the Community engagement program with our Year 5 students. This initiative fosters valuable connections within the local community when the children make reciprocal visit to some local kinders and child care centres- INDRA, AURORA and STARFISH. This gives students the chance to engage with their younger neighbors and make a tangible, positive impact on the lives of those around them.

Leadership Day

Connecting to the Community - Year 5's and Kinders/ELC

eSAFETY for Parents

Do you know what your children are viewing online?

Are you having conversations with them regarding cyber safety?

Where can you go for support and advice?

What advice can you give them?


The electronic device space is an ever changing, ever challenging space, for both children and parents.

There is a lot of advice out there but not all of it is useful or accurate.

The eSAFETY website set up by the Australian Government offers many resources for parents and is guaranteed to be safe, useful and accurate.

Visit https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents for information on:

    • Bullying online

    • Parental controls

    • Support for young people

    • Reporting online harm

There are also informative newsletter and webinars all designed for parents.

We hope you find it useful.

Gabrielle Carter

Wellbeing Leader

NOISE CANCELLING HEADPHONES

If your child requires noise cancelling headphones, please check out Amazon to purchase a pair. We would love you to send them to school for use during your child's school day. Please make sure they are clearly labelled with your child's name.

SOCIAL MEDIA

We would LOVE, LOVE, LOVE you to LOVE our social media posts... so please, if you are on social media, look out for us on Facebook and Instagram. Let's get our name out there!

WE need YOU- for a letterbox drop

Please drop in at the office over the next couple of weeks to collect some flyers to letter drop. We want to get as many people through our doors on tours for Prep 2026 or for other year levels in 2025 or next year.

Can you help?  Check in with Debbie:

schooloffice@slblackburnsth.catholic.edu.au OR phone: 9877 4023

Thanks!

Our Lady of Sion College - Open Day information

Community News

School Housekeeping

SMART WATCHES & MOBILE PHONES

If a child wears a smart watch to school, it must be de-activated so the child is not receiving or sending messages etc...

Mobile Phones and smart watches are requested to be left at the office in the morning and collected at the end of the day. 

FOOD ALLERGIES:

Allergic reactions to food… can be harmful to our children. For that reason we ask parents to think carefully about what they are packing in their child’s lunch boxes. Occasionally, something might slip through and once aware, we take precautions to ensure the safety of every child. As stated in the Family Handbook 2025:

We are an EGG and NUT free school due to the allergies of children within our community.  We ask that parents respect this request and the potential harm this could do to children if brought to school.

Thank you for your care and attention to this.

CHILDREN ARRIVING AFTER THE BELL OR LEAVING EARLY:

As part of our wellbeing care of children at St Luke's, every class engages in a morning routine at 8.50 am.  This quiet, calm time allows children to gather together in a circle, to greet each other by name, to pray and/or enter into some Christian meditation and get ready for the day.  Please make sure you allow enough time to get your child to school BEFORE 8.50 am.

If children arrive after the gate and student entry doors are locked, parents/carers are required to walk their child/ren to the school office and sign them in on the VPass iPad.

If leaving early (before the end of the day), parents/carers are required to sign their child/ren out on the VPASS iPad.

BUY/SELL SECONDHAND UNIFORM:

Join the St Luke's Primary School Blackburn South Buy/Sell Uniform group on Facebook to buy/sell uniform with other parents. 

School Uniform - Spartan School World

School Uniform is to be worn at all times.

Online orders placed by midday on a Monday will be included in the weekly Wednesday school delivery.
Any orders placed after this time will be delivered in the following weeks run.

Store opening hours Monday to Friday 9am - 5pm and the 1st Saturday of the month 9am - 12pm

Friday - School Lunches

Friday lunches are available to order from Classroom Cuisine. There are many options and varying prices. Orders are made and paid for on-line and delivered straight to school. 

For details on how it works, pricing and to create an account please visit www.classroomcuisine.com.au.

Kelly Club

Kelly Club run programmes before and after school that our children love.  If you have any enquiries regarding availability, booking and cost, please contact Elena

We are St Luke's.  A community of faith, learning and partnership.

Journeying together, we strive to live the gospel so that all may enjoy the fullness of life.

We look with wonder at our world and embrace learning through inquiry, through action, through reflection to realise our potential.

We celebrate diversity and we welcome the opportunity to live and work together.

We are companions on the journey, now 60 years on ... guided by the Holy Spirit, inviting the participation of everyone.

Thankyou to our wonderful sponsors of St Luke's