Week 6  Term 4 

Dear Parents,

I hope everyone had a safe and lovely long weekend.

I was saddened to hear of the tragedy at Daylesford and it is events such as these which remind us to cherish every moment with our loved ones. We remember those involved in the Daylesford tragedy, their loved ones and all those who assisted. We will keep all of those involved in our thoughts and prayers.

Reports have been built and Grade 6 Graduation plans are coming along nicely.

Our staffing for 2024 is still a work in progress and the background work for class lists has started. Staff put in a lot of work to ensure the class cohorts are the combination which looks to be the most successful based on all the knowledge we have collected form teachers, parents and our data.

It is quite normal for students to feel a little anxious about what the next year will bring. Our children often take their lead from the adults around them, so it is important to reassure your children and talk to them about the positives that come with the next year and the next step of their schooling life. It is also important that we remember that in the busy lead up to the end of the year and to Christmas that regardless of our religion, the example Jesus set is evident through our interactions with others and the dignity of all, is the core value and message of his teachings.

Staffing News
I would like to congratulate Mr Rian Prestwich on his appointment as Deputy Principal. He will continue to be Acting Deputy alongside Miss Jessica Ornsby for the remainder of the 2023 school year and will commence this role at the beginning of the 2024 school year. I am sure he will do an amazing job leading the school.
I would also like to congratulate Ms Jasmine Bentley on the safe arrival of baby Stevie Mary who was born on 31 October. Both Mum and bubs are doing well.

We continue to recruit for 2024, and are still interviewing for classroom teachers. We have made some appointments which we will be able to announce shortly once all paperwork is finalised.

As all positions are confirmed, they will be announced to the community.

Learning Buddies for 2024 classes
Students will be working through the process of choosing their five learning buddies to assist teachers with the 2024 class selections. Your child will be guaranteed 1 of the people on their list. If you know you are going on holidays please reach out to your child’s current classroom teacher so we can assist with getting this done prior to them going away.

Grandparents Morning November 10, 2023 - 9.00am - 10.30am
We have decided to make this a grandparents morning dedicated to grandparents and special others who play a similar role to our students on Friday 10 November. This is the Friday AFTER cup day.
Unfortunately, we will have to restrict this morning to 2 grandparents or special people per family for this year due to our limited spaces. A survey was sent out via the SIMON platform this morning to RSVP so we can cater accordingly.
We will start the morning with classroom prayer, followed by activities that the students can do with their grandparents or special people until 10.00am and the morning will finish up with coffee and biscuits for our visitors in The Vines area. We look forward to having these special visitors onsite.
There will also be student work on display for our visitors to look at.
Please make these special people aware so they can save the date for this year and the coming years.

Remembrance Day Service
As Remembrance Day falls on Saturday this year, we will be holding a Remembrance Day Service on Monday afternoon at 2.50pm in the courtyard (weather permitting). All parents are welcome to join us in honouring those who fought for us and our country.

Student attendance
We have a number of students coming after the bell most mornings. This impacts the
specialist subjects and also leads to missing vital instruction as our teaching starts at
8.50am. Students on scheduled out of classroom intervention programs may also miss their sessions which will also impact student learning.
Regular late arrivals trigger our attendance/absence processes which means parents and carers will be contacted by classroom teachers at first but may be escalated to other governing bodies.

Car Parking
Due to the restricted car parks, we have had to close off the very end of the driveway to all cars except our contractors, admin and DOSCEL staff. We have regular visits from these people and they need access if necessary as well as  emergency services's.
To allow this to happen and to keep our children safe, we have put bollards out to restrict access to allow the crossing near the chapel to be a safe zone for children to cross the driveway.
These Bollards will be moved each morning at 8.30am and each afternoon at 3.00pm to allow traffic through when the chapel gates are open.

Student access and child safety
We request all students accessing the administration Office and who may be coming in late do so via the SFX driveway footpath. Students are to walk down the SFX side of driveway on the footpath and cross at the Chapel crossing behind the bollards .
We remind parents that the driveways are limited to 5 kilometres an hour for the safety of our students. Staff are on hand to assist until just after the bell. All students who are late  should be walked into the office by an adult and be signed in for legal reasons.

Hats and Uniform
Hats need to be worn at all break times and must be worn properly by our students to ensure that we are remaining a safe smart school.
Summer uniform is to be worn for the remainder of the school year with sports uniform being worn on PE lesson days and SPECIAL sports days as notified by the office.

2024 Planning 
Thank you to all those parents who have put in the separation requests for students in preparation for our 2024 class planning. This process has started and the background work is in progress. We are blessed at St Catherine’s to have a very professional and committed staff that plan together to ensure that the same learning opportunities are afforded to the students regardless of what class they are in, so please do not request individual teachers. 

All requests will be given the appropriate consideration; however, it is not a guarantee. Your child/ren will be working with their classroom teacher to identify 5 learning buddies to assist with classroom placement for 2024. These are used to assist with selection but your child will be guaranteed 1 of these students to be in their class for 2024.

Students leaving St Catherine’s for the 2024 school year
If there are any students leaving St Catherine’s at the end of the 2023 year we ask that you notify the office as soon as possible by emailing enrolments@stcberwick.catholic.edu.au
This assists the school with planning and ensuring that all students are sent home with relevant documentation and belongings.

Warm Regards
Anna

In Term 4, students will be looking at the Life and Mission of Jesus through different lenses. They will use the scripture from Mark 1: 1-8 where John the Baptist prepares the way for Jesus.

Our whole school inquiry question is “Preparing and Waiting”. Students will engage with this question through dialogue and incorporate their experiences, perspectives, cultures and backgrounds. By relating this to their life, and the life within our community and world, they will be able to engage in rich and meaningful discourse.

The month of October is devoted to the Holy Rosary in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary. We are reminded to pay graditude for the protection she give's the Church in answering our prayers through the Rosary. We also recognise the important work of the lay people and missionaries who dedicate their lives to the calling of Jesus, much like Mary. We are called on the last Sunday of the Liturigical year to honour and recognise Jesus and respond to the world by emulating his total gift of self by serving others. Advent is the first week in the new Catholic Liturgical calendar and the four weeks before Christmas where we celebrate the birth of our infant Saviour, Jesus Christ. Its name comes from the Latin word adventus, which means "coming." Whilst it is easy to be distracted by the gifts and glamour at the shops, we are reminded to prepare and wait for the second coming of Christ and look inward on ourselves to be the best versions of ourselves.

The school community will integrate the following important days into lessons:

November

• Thursday 9 - The Dedication Of The Lateran Basilica
• Sunday 11 - Remembrance Day
• Sunday 26 - Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ

December

• Sunday 3  - First Sunday of Advent
• Friday 8 -  The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Monday 11 - Friday 15 - Christmas

Have a great final term for 2023.

Rian Prestwich

Acting Deputy Principal: Religious Education Leader and School Operations

State Athletics - Casey Fields

Friday 24 November

A huge congratulations to Jacob O in 4S5 who finished 4th in the 200m final for the 9/10 year old boys at the Victorian State Athletics Carnival last Wednesday! Jacob recorded the fantastic time of 29.64! What an outstanding achievement and we are all proud of him!