Term 4 Week 5 Monday 31st October

Acknowledgement of Country

St Colman’s acknowledges the Girai wurung people as the traditional owners of the land on which our school stands and we respectfully recognise elders both past and present.

Our Prayer this Week

Loving God,

We celebrate all the holy men and women who have died, both those recognised by the Church as saints and those known only to you. May we strive to follow their example in our own lives. 

Amen

All Saints Day is tomorrow, November 1st.

From the Principal

Dear Families,

The Grade 5/6 students are eagerly awaiting Wednesday when we set off on our camp to Dunkeld. Let's hope the weather is kind to us! During this time Shandell, Maddie and Steph will be supporting the Grade 4s.

Planning is ramping up for 2023. If you have any information that will change or impact your child's enrolment in 2023 please let us know as soon as possible. Thank you to those parents who have already informed us of their changing circumstances. 

A reminder that important updates are sent via the schoolzine app, so please be vigilant in checking these when they appear. 

Have a great week. 

Kind regards, 

Stacey

Staffing Update

Staffing for 2023 is coming together. 

As you are aware, Janet Cain has been recently appointed as principal and Olivia Glossop as our trainee. Bridget Van Den Broek will be returning from maternity leave for 4 days a week with her fifth day yet to be filled.

Our classroom structure for 2023 will be as follows:

Junior class: Foundation/1            Mrs Shandell Moloney

Middle class: Grade 2/3                  Mrs Rosie O'Connor

Senior class: Grade 4/5/6              Mrs Bridget Van Den Broek 

School Advisory Council

Please find linked here the report from our latest SAC meeting.  Items discussed included the end of year celebrations and ways to farewell Tim. Thanks to Rosie for preparing this document. 

 The AGM will be held on Wednesday 23rd November.

Melbourne Cup Day Tomorrow

To celebrate Melbourne Cup Day tomorrow, students are invited to add a 'touch of the races' to their school uniform. 

Perhaps a hat, fascinator or a tie.

We will be having sweeps at school and watching the race. Please feel free to come in and watch the race with your child's class. 

Do you need bitumen?

During December or January our current basketball court with be removed and replaced with a new surface. As part of this process, we will need to remove the bitumen. If there is anyone, perhaps a farmer or other organisation, that could benefit from this, the contractors are happy to deliver it. 

The bitumen breaks down and is ideal for filling holes or if you're looking for a product that will compact.

Please contact the school if you are interested. 

Let's Talk about Camp

School camp experiences are a wonderful opportunity for students to build independence and push their boundaries in a new and exciting environment. However, some students can be anxious about going to camp.

Help give students a sense of purpose by talking about why you are going on camp and the skills they will gain. Spend time discussing camp with students to help reduce worries before the big day. Begin by asking how they are feeling. Nervous? Excited? Do they have concerns over particular activities? This gives you an opening to discuss any misconceptions.

To engage students and alleviate anxiety:

• Expose students to the camp beforehand by visiting the website and viewing the images and activities.
• Discuss the camp schedule and what to expect day-to-day. This builds a sense of excitement as students begin to discuss the activities they will participate in.
• Tell students when information is sent home and why?
• Go through the packing list and answer any questions.

https://www.vic.gov.au/preparing-school-camp

Uniform reminders

At our most recent School Advisory Council meeting, the issue of uniforms was raised. It was agreed that the new rugby jumper was a great addition. 

Families are asked to be vigilent in the following areas:

* No jewellery except for studs or small sleepers.

* School sports shorts on sports day. 

* Black shoes.

Thanks for your support. 

Zooper Dooper Icy Poles

St Colman's Year 6 students will be selling Zooper Dooper Icy Poles at lunch time each day of the week. They will be 50c each with profits going towards charity. 

Your child can only have one icy pole per day and must put their rubbish in the red bin.  Any rubbish left in the yard may cause a ban on icy poles for a day or two. 

Icy poles will not be sold until after the eating bell has rung at 1.10pm. 

Thank you, from Ashlee, Indi, Layla and Zac. 

Out of School Care

Watch this space! More information about how St Colman's students can access out of school care will be coming in the next few weeks. 

Key Dates for the Diary

Term 4

2nd-4th November- Gr 5/6 Camp to Dunkeld

24th November- St Colman's Feast Day

5th and 6th December- Gr 3/4 Camp to Halls Gap

6th December- Global transition day (MRC and Mortlake College)

9th December- St Colman's Transition Day

13th December- Graduation and end of year celebrations

16th December- Last day for students. Mortlake Community Christmas Carols

Our Lady of Mercy Parish News

Cricket Blast

Bandari Project

Morton Cup- Tennis

Children's Art Colouring Competition on Saturday 19 November.

Pop this one in your diary. 

COVID Reminders

New settings are now in place. 

Most settings are changing from must to highly recommended.

For example, you must stay home when testing positive is changing to, it is highly recommended that you stay home.  

Changes to COVID-19 isolation requirements.

It is strongly recommended that students: 

• Who test positive for COVID-19 should stay home and isolate for five days.
• Should not attend school after five days if still symptomatic.
• Who are symptomatic but have not tested positive should not attend school.

Where students become symptomatic at school, they should: 

• Be collected by their parents/carers.
• Undergo testing for COVID-19. 

It is strongly recommended that staff: 

• Who test positive for COVID-19 should stay home and isolate for five days.
• Should not attend school after five days if still symptomatic.
• Who are symptomatic but have not tested positive should not attend school.

COVID-19 reporting requirements.

The Department of Health recommends that a person who tests positive for COVID-19 should inform those with whom they have recently been in contact, including their workplace, school and household. 

Schools no longer have to alert their school community of positive cases. 

Face masks.

Staff and students who wish to wear a face mask should be supported to do so, and schools should continue to make face masks available for staff, students and visitors. 

The Department of Health recommends that masks should be worn by a person who is a close contact of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 when leaving home. 

Additionally, the department recommends that masks should be worn by a person who has COVID-19 for 10 days after a positive test when they need to leave home.