St. Michael's Primary School ~ Term 1 Week 8

IMPORTANT DATES

Principal's Message

Dear St Michael’s School Family,

As we come to the close of Term 1, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you for your warm welcome, support, collaboration and generosity over the past year. It has been an absolute blessing and privilege to be part of such a dedicated and caring school community. 

To our wonderful students: Your kindness, curiosity, enthusiasm and commitment to learning have been a source of inspiration. It’s a joy to witness their growth in both knowledge and as the amazing humans they are. I am so proud of all the strides they have made, and I encourage them all to continue nurturing your faith and striving for excellence in all that you do.

To our incredible educators and staff: Your hard work, passion, courage and dedication to the spiritual, academic, social, emotional and personal development of our students are truly inspiring. I am grateful for each of you and for the compassion, care and support you provide every day.

To our parents and families: Thank you for entrusting us with the education and formation of your children. Your ongoing involvement and encouragement make a significant impact on the success of your children and our school community, and I deeply appreciate all that you do.

I am delighted to share the exciting news of the appointment of our new principal, Mrs Marsha Ardern. On behalf of the entire school community, I offer my wholehearted congratulations to Marsha on this well-deserved role. We are truly blessed to have someone with such commitment to our students and the St Michael's community as our leader. Marsha will lead our school into the future with integrity, vision, dedication so all can achieve their full potential. 

Marsha's vast experience in education and her deep commitment to St Michael's will foster a welcoming, nurturing, inclusive, faith-filled environment where each student can flourish. I have no doubt that under her leadership, our school will continue to grow and strengthen its reputation as a place where excellence in education is paired with a deep sense of community and our Catholic faith.

As we prepare to celebrate the Easter season, I offer you all the blessings of this holy time. May the joy of Christ’s resurrection fill your hearts with renewed hope, peace, and love. I pray that the Easter season brings you closer to the grace and mercy of God, and that the spirit of renewal that Easter brings continues to inspire us all in the weeks ahead.

Thank you once again for your support and for the privilege of being part of the beautiful St Michael's school community. I look forward to hearing of the continued growth and success of our students and community and the deepening of shared faith as the St Michael's Family move into the future. 

Wishing you all a blessed Easter and a peaceful break with your loved ones.

With warmest regards and Easter blessings,

Lisa Hitchcock 

Principal 

Loving God,

Thank you for the gift of your Son, Jesus, and for his act of great love on the Cross. 

May we find renewed hope and peace in his resurrection, and may our hearts be filled with love, joy and gratitude as we continue our Lenten journey to Easter. 

We ask this through Jesus your Son and our salvation.

Amen 

Pupil Free Days - 22, 23 and 24 April

A reminder that the first three days of Term 2 are Professional Learning days for our staff.

We will be working with Dr Jared Cooney Horvath who is internationally renowned for his expertise in the science of learning, and how this can be translated into exemplary classroom practice. With his unique background as both an experienced educator and an Educational Neuroscientist, Jared differentiates the ‘critical to know’ from the ‘nice to know’, to the ‘don’t worry about’ when applying brain science.

These three days together promise to equip St Michael's staff with essential background knowledge, empowering informed decision-making to maximise learning opportunities for all those in our care.

Term 2 2025 will begin for students on Monday, 28 April. 

St Michael's Behaviour Curriculum

On Tuesday, our staff participated in a Classroom Mastery Master Class Professional Learning with the Knowledge Society. This gave us an opportunity finalise our behaviour curriculum and to work on our three routines - cue to start and classroom entry and exit. Teachers will implement these in Term 2 to our students, with some priming happening this term to prepare our students. 

The best curriculum in the world will not be impactful unless our classrooms and schools are calm, ordered and safe. As part of Magnify Sandhurst, CESL has prioritised the development and implementation of a common, evidence-informed Behaviour Curriculum throughout the diocese. 

Knowledge Society has worked with leaders to develop a comprehensive Sandhurst Behaviour Curriculum that is responsive to our school and system's needs. Knowledge Society centre their work on the research and experience of Dr Tim McDonald, who will work with us over the coming three years.

Dr Tim McDonald is a leading authority on student learning and engagement. He has partnered with program designers, Knowledge Society, to create Classroom Mastery. The program is informed by strong evidence bases in the Science of Learning, human behaviour and cognitive science, and aims to help schools and education systems reduce classroom disruption and create calm and ordered classrooms where learning takes priority.

If you would like any further information or have questions please contact Mrs Ardern. 

Caritas Project Compassion 

This Lent, we’re invited to Unite Against Poverty with Caritas Australia’s Project Compassion. This year is especially significant as we celebrate the Jubilee Year - a time of renewal and solidarity.

Project Compassion 2025 shares three stories from around the world. 

This week we meet Irene from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) who faced immense challenges after losing her father to war and raising her children in poverty. With support from Caritas Australia, Irene received vocational training in sewing and farming and can now support her whole family.

Irene lives in a remote village in the Kongolo Region in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Life hasn’t been easy for Irene. After losing her father in a war, Irene and her family were forced to flee their home. Life became even more challenging when her husband left, leaving Irene to raise her 2 children alone. Without finishing her education and with few job opportunities in her village, she struggled to provide even the basics for her family.

Things began to change when Irene joined the Youth Capacity Strengthening Program (YCSP), run by Caritas Kongolo with the support of Caritas Australia. Through the program, Irene learned sewing skills and was provided with a sewing machine and fabric. Irene also gained farming skills. Now, she grows enough food to feed her family and even shares her sewing knowledge by mentoring other women in her community.

“Before, women depended on men's income, but now, with our sewing skills, we can take care of ourselves,” Irene said.

Your support of Project Compassion helps women like Irene to create brighter futures for themselves and their families.

Thank you to our community for their generous donations and for standing with us, as we Unite Against Poverty this Lent.

Donations can still be made using the St Michael's QR Code below.

School Fee Accounts 

School fee accounts have been sent to all families. Please notify the school if you did not receive your account.

The following payment frequencies are available for your convenience:
● Fortnightly / Weekly – Direct deposit via bank account
● Monthly – from February to December
● Triannual – Due in March, June and September (3 payments)
● Annual – 31  March (1 payment)

Please note fee due dates above. If you have any questions about your school fees or would like to discuss school fee relief please contact Mrs Ardern. 

Thank you to all the families that have paid or are paying their school fee accounts. 

Student Pick-up Arrangements

Please phone the school if your child/ren are not going to be on the bus or have changed pick up arrangements. This is a part of our daily process and our commitment to Child Safety at St Michael's.

Please update ongoing changes when they begin or conclude e.g. sport training or guides. 

School Advisory Council and Parent Representative Group 

We are looking for new members!

If you would like to take the opportunity to nominate for our School Advisory Council or join our PRG we would certainly appreciate new members. They are both great ways to connect with other families and support your child/ren's education and make our school even better. 

If you have any questions about the council or PRG please contact the school. 

St Michael's Parish Sacramental Program

St Michael's will once again be supporting the Parish Sacramental Program. Please contact Mrs Moffat if you would like your child to participate in the preparation program for Reconciliation, Confirmation and First Eucharist, or if you are interested in Baptism for your child/ren or Rite of Christian Initiation of Children (RCIC) to prepare children over 6 years of age for Baptism. 

2025 Pupil Free Days

Term 2: 22-24 April Staff Professional Learning Days (The Neuroscience of Learning)

Term 3: 13  August CESL Staff Spirituality Day

Term 4: 20 October Dan Petro Behaviour Analyst Professional Learning, 28 November 2026 Planning day and  17 - 19 December Staff Professional Learning Day and Magnify Sandhurst Days

STUDENT ILLNESS & ABSENCES

A reminder that if your child has gastroenteritis or fever please notify the school and record on your child's absence notification. This will help keep our school safe and our students healthy.

Gastroenteritis exclusion from school - 48 hours from last symptom of vomiting and/or diarrhoea.  

St. Michael’s Primary School is committed to child safety and the inclusion of all children.

Birthday celebrations to the following student over the school holidays: Mackenzie, Leon, Axel and Claire.

Happy Birthday!! 

Grade 5 & 6 - Mrs Mez Moffat

St Michael’s students have been very lucky in Term 1 with many "Clubs” being provided for everyone to enjoy.

Here is an outline of those we have enjoyed in Term 1.

Dinosaur Club 

Dinosaur Club. Prepared and run by Xavier

Science Club

Science Club. Run by Luke Furze and Leon Turnbull.

History Club 

History Club. Prepare by Boyd Small

Gardening Club

Garden Club. Supported by Mrs Moffat.

Term 2

Mrs Moffat will be running a Singing Club so please let me know if you are interested as there will be limited numbers for this one.

Cooking Club is hopefully going to begin with our amazing LSO Holly Johnson so stay tuned for details.

Hope you have enjoyed learning all about our amazing students and staff willing to step up and help others through these wonderful examples of active service’for our school community.

If you have a skill or desire to help at St Michael’s. PLEASE get in touch with Mrs Moffat and we can chat about how we can continue to provide new learning opportunities.

Thank you.

M.Moffat

Grade 3 & 4 - Ms Sally Maguire & Ms Hannah Barker

Our Year 3/4 class has had a very productive Term 1. We have mastered our new routines using the English and Maths Ochre curriculum and can complete our Daily Review very quickly now!

English
In English, we completed our narrative unit using the text Matilda by Roald Dahl. We read the book and learned many new vocabulary words such as 'vast' and 'petrified,' which students have been experimenting with in their writing. We practiced our reading fluency through partner reading and choral reading, improving our speed, prosody, expression, and use of punctuation.

We also learned many new sounds and the different ways to spell them (e.g., the long 'i' sound can be made with 'i,' 'igh,' 'y,' etc.). We explored the three types of sentences (statement, question, exclamatory) and what a sentence needs to have (a subject and a verb). Applying this knowledge, we wrote our own narrative texts, ensuring they were well-structured, engaging, and made sense.

Following this, we learned about persuasive writing and made convincing arguments using emotive language to try and persuade our teachers to get us a classroom pet. The rich text of Matilda supported both our narrative and persuasive units, and we loved the descriptive language and engaging storyline.
Many students have also begun extra intervention with Minilit and MacqLit and are enjoying this time and are working very hard to improve their literacy.

Math
In Math, after completing our Place Value unit, we finished a long unit on addition and subtraction. We learned many different strategies to add and subtract numbers up to six digits, such as using materials (drawing them and adding/taking away), using a number line strategy, partitioning strategy, and the column method with and without regrouping.

We also started a new unit on 'Time,' where we estimated and discussed the duration of different events, how to read a digital stopwatch with hours, minutes, and seconds. We practiced calculating simple elapsed time (e.g., how much time has elapsed from 9 am until 3 pm). 

Religion
In Religion, we learned about Lent. Mrs. Moffat explained the importance of Lent and what it entails. As part of Lent, we planted our own seeds to watch them grow, symbolizing growth and renewal during this special time. We also enjoyed a special whole school Mass and a mini Liturgy at the end of the term for Holy Week.

Other Amazing Things…
We have continued our 4Rs Program, focusing on recognizing our feelings and developing social and emotional skills. In Unit 1, we explored how to identify and manage our emotions, build empathy and resolve conflicts effectively. This has supported us in creating a supportive and caring classroom environment (our class really is kind, supportive and amazing!)

We loved having parents come into the school for our Open Day. We also enjoyed a special visit from Elio the magician this term, who wowed us with some incredible magic tricks!

For P.E., we have been actively participating in various sports and physical activities, keeping us fit and healthy. We particularly loved our 'Ultimate Frisbee' unit where we learnt many new skills and how to play this fast-paced game.

It has been a huge term of learning for all of us! Have a safe and wonderful holiday and Easter. We look forward to seeing everyone back after the holidays.

Ms. Maguire & Ms. Baker

Wodonga Catholic Parish News

Hello everyone,

✍️please hit the link to our latest Parish Bulletin. included is the link to the prayer leaflet for the 5th Sunday in Lent.🙏 Pdf’s attached also

📬A reminder that daylight savings ends this weekend. don’t forget to turn your clocks back one hour before bed Saturday evening.

It's a full Bulletin again this week with lots going on in our combined parishes of Corryong, Tallangatta and Wodonga.

Enjoy the read and the lovely weather we are having. 📰

Don't forget to share you smile with a stranger or a friend. 🙃😉

Happy days to all! ☺️

Neighbourhood House - Tallangatta

What's On

Hockey in Tallangatta

Hockey Albury Wodonga are bringing a 4-week program to Tallangatta!

All skill levels are welcome to join in and the sessions will be perfect for 5-14 years old.  This will be a great way to learn new hockey skills or practice existing skills in a safe and social environment. 

Equipment will be provided including shin guards and hockey sticks.  Children are encouraged to wear a mouthguard if they have one. 

Click here to register your attendance or it can be done on arrival. 
Sessions have started but it’s not too late to join in!     Call 0475 450 406 for more information.

Auskick and Net Set Go

Tallangatta Secondary College - 2026 Year 7  Information Evening

Off-Grid Living Festival 

The festival will be staged for the second time at the old Chiltern Racecourse, and this year [April 12-13] it will for the first time include a special feature called 'Future Thinkers'.

In Future Thinkers, students will channel their creativity and STEM skills into their artwork with 2D drawings that envision a better tomorrow with unique solutions for a sustainable future such as: eco-friendly gadgets, green city designs, edible urban environments, new electric transport, or imaginative energy solutions. Refer to attached flier and https://www.offgridevent.com.au/futurethinkerscompgeared on our Off-Grid website for further detail. NB Competitions are still open for student entries.

On the same STEM theme our BREE group will also be running  Model Solar Car Construction workshops to challenge the skills and interest of our young festival goers, in solar technologies [Refer to attached poster]. Participants numbers will be limited ‘to first come, best dressed’, for this activity.