St Brendan's Primary School Dunnstown eNewsletter

In the spirit of Reconciliation, we acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land in which we sit, the Wadawurrung people, who have cared for this country for thousands of years. We would like to pay our respects to the Aboriginal Elders past, present and future for they hold the traditions, memories and wisdom of Mother Earth on which we place our feet upon today.

Upcoming Dates

26^th October - Year 2 Sleepover and Junior Stay back

30^th October - 9.30 – 11.30 Grandparents’ day.

6th & 7th November - Pupil free days

7th November - Melbourne Cup Day

17th November - Color Run Combined Schools Day St Mary's

28th November - Secondary School Transition Day & Going Up Day

5th December - St Brendan's Graduation 6.30 pm

7th December - St Mary's Graduation 6.00 pm

13th December - End of year excursion for St Mary's and St Brendan's

14th Decemeber - End of an era Mass and celebrations 10.00 am

14th December - Last day of school for children St Brendan's

18th December - Last day of school for staff

Principal's News

As we move further into the term, the newsletter will probably contain some articles that are pertinent to only one school or the other however, I am going to continue to do one newsletter with news for both schools on it.

New Families at St. Mary’s

Last week we welcomed the Farrell family to St. Mary’s. Alexis started in Year 4 on Thursday. Mark and Nadia (Mum and Dad) have moved from Bacchus Marsh and are now living in Pootilla. They have already started meeting some of our current families and Nadia has already settled well and met the St. Brendan’s students on Friday.

This Thursday Leah and Emilia are beginning to transition to St. Mary’s. They will be full time in 2024. Welcome to both girls along with their mothers - Lisa (Leah’s Mum) and Tracy (Emilia’s Mum). They are very excited to be part of St. Mary’s and look forward to learning and making new friends.

Change of time table for SM next year

The year is moving along very quickly and we are beginning to plan for 2024. Next year at St. Mary’s our timetable will change slightly. School will begin at 8.50 am and finish at 3.20pm. There will be a staff member on duty from 8.40 however children can still arrive from 8.30 onwards. Staff will also be on duty after school until 3.30. As mentioned in previous newsletters the new award for staff working in schools will be in full affect next year and this means some adjustments need to be implemented so that we are making sure all terms and conditions are adhered to. Please come and talk to me if you need any questions answered or clarification about any of this.

Important dates

All important dates for the rest of the year are on the school calendar. Please check it regularly through the Schoolzine app or on the school website. There is a lot coming up and we do not want anyone to miss out on anything that is happening.

Take care everyone.

Inez

Grandparents Day

Next Monday is Grandparents Day at both schools from 9.30 – 11am. The children and staff love this day. The best part is seeing the smile on the children’s faces when they see their grandparents arrive at school. Please have the RSVPs in by Wednesday along with any dietary requirements. We are getting very excited about the day.

A reminder that if a child does not have a grandparent that can attend, another special person is very welcome to come along and join us.

Monday 6th November

A reminder that Monday the 6^th of November is a pupil free day for children of both school. Staff are doing reporting and assessing on that day. On Tuesday it is the Melbourne Cup and is a holiday for everyone.

Transitioning to St. Alipius

Our St. Brendan’s children have begun to transition to St. Alipius in the past few weeks. The teachers from both schools have organised a number of visits for the children so that the start of 2024 goes smoothly for the children and their families. Thank you to St. Alipius for being so welcoming and supportive of the St. Brendan’s children.

News from the Junior Room

TRANSITION TO ST ALIPIUS

Aiden and Lucy have been to St Alipius School for 3 visits now. They have already made new friends and participated in some different lessons - spelling, sport and maths. Aiden and Lucy commented that it’s fun playing games in maths with more than 2 people. Aiden enjoyed being the soccer goalie at playtime and Lucy said it was fun in the playground doing different things, like the climbing wall.

Last week Lucy and Aiden had some wonderings which they found the answers to when they visited St Alipius.

I wonder…… how many students are in the school? 242

I wonder…… how many children will be in the grade 3 class next year? Maybe 20 or 21

I wonder …… do they have a bell? They have an electric one that sounds like an alarm.

Transition to St Alipius

HOT ROD COMES TO ST BRENDAN’S

Last Wednesday we were very lucky to have Anthony Sarra and Mitch visit our school to show the kids Mitch’s dad’s 1936 Roadster. All the students were outside with their eyes closed as we listened to the sounds of nature, when we all heard a really old car. When we opened our eyes, there was Ahlia and Aiden coming to school in the Roadster. What a treat! We all got to walk around the car and have a good look. Clare couldn’t believe it even had a CD player!!!!!

Annual General Meetings

We have had our Annual General Meetings for each school. Thank you to those that were able to attend. It is a time to reflect on the year that has been and plan forward for the next year.

Uniforms

It is lovely to see the children in their summer uniforms. A reminder to check the policy for each school about what the requirements are. If there are concerns around any of this, please see your child’s teacher or myself.

Junior Stayback and Sleepover

The day is almost here – the Junior Stayback and Sleepover. Please refer to your child’s notes that are on PAM and have been sent home about drop off and pick up times for each year level along with what they will need for the night. A huge thanks that are staying overnight – Majella, Clare, Louise and Lyndal. Sadly, I will not be there this year as I am in Horsham at a Principal gathering. I am sure that everyone will have a fantastic time and I look forward to hearing all about it on Monday.

A reminder that we are all at St. Brendan’s on Friday as a CSD.

Memorabilia

If anyone has anything that could be of interest for the ‘End of an Era’ celebrations at St. Brendan’s and you are willing to lend it for the day, we would be very appreciative. We have lots of photos, but not a lot of anything else. I had heard that there were tea towels that were produced a while ago. Does anyone have anything else? I promise we will look after it and return it to you.

The event is on Friday, November the 25^th starting at 2pm. Please see the invitation for more details. All are welcome!!

St Brendan's Celebration 25th November

Congratulations

A huge congratulations to Bec Slater that graduated from the police academy last Thursday. It is an amazing achievement that is the result of a lot of hard work, sacrifices, time away from family and long hours. Bec received wonderful support from family and friends as she was studying and working. How proud does this family look!!

Child Safe – all on website

As is stated on our Vision and Mission, our schools ‘…are committed to the safety, wellbeing and inclusion of all children and young people.’ Our procedures and policies are now in line with the 11 child safe standards and can be found on our schools’ websites under the tab – child safe.