Issue 11, 27 June 2025

NAIDOC Week is celebrated annually during the first full week of July, and although it falls within our school holidays, it remains a significant occasion for our community. NAIDOC Week is dedicated to recognising the rich history, vibrant cultures, and remarkable achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

As a Catholic school, we are deeply committed to fostering understanding, respect, and reconciliation. Guided by our Catholic values and inspired by St Mary MacKillop’s legacy of education and service, we strive to embed First Nations histories and perspectives into our learning. This not only promotes cultural awareness but also empowers our students to become compassionate and informed members of society.

NAIDOC Week reminds us of the importance of engaging the next generation in meaningful conversations about Indigenous cultures and encouraging unity through education and respect.

I am pleased to announce that we have appointed Miss Emily Martin, who will teach our mid-year Reception class starting in Term 3. Emily has already visited our school to meet our newest students and is looking forward to guiding and supporting them as they begin their official schooling journey next term.

At the end of last week, we gave thanks for Briah Higgins who has worked as an Education Support Officer at our school for the last 4 years. Briah has been a committed staff member and wonderful helping hand for students. We wish Briah all the best with the next part of her journey.     

At times, you may notice changes in staffing around the school. It’s important to understand that, like employees in any other profession, our teachers and Education Support Officers (ESOs) are entitled to various types of leave under the Fair Work Act. This includes sick leave, personal leave, long service leave, and maternity or parenting leave. When staff are away, for whatever reason, our priority is always the continuity of learning for students. We work hard to ensure that routines, expectations, and learning experiences remain as consistent and familiar as possible. This helps students feel supported, even when their regular teacher or ESO is temporarily away from school.

We wish Michelle Antoniciello, Susy Rogers and Angela Fullerton all best as they take periods of long service leave towards the end of Term 2.

Our Year 11 students are busy preparing to engage in work experience in Week 10 of this term. This is an excellent opportunity for them to explore possible future pathways and acquire hands-on experience in a particular workplace or industry. Teachers are providing lots of guidance and support to the students to ensure that this is a positive and meaningful experience. Thank you to the many local businesses who will support our students to gain these valuable opportunities to learn and grow as they prepare to enter the workforce in the coming years.

• develop a sense of belonging
• develop and maintain friendships
• be more engaged at school
• progress with their learning
• be more aware of career and life options.

The below information highlights the importance of punctuality and attendance at school each day. 

 

Being late for class often means important instructions are missed and the class is interrupted. School is meant to be organised, scheduled and predictable for students. It prepares them for life beyond school, even from an early age. 

 

Frequent absences from school will also impact on the overall development and growth of a child’s learning and wellbeing at school. 

 

Of course, there are legitimate reasons for when students are absent or late. It is important that these reasons are communicated to the school in a timely manner. Parents/caregivers can do this by using the school SMS number or communicating directly with your child’s teacher or the front office. Thank you for working with us and ensuring that every day counts for your child’s education. 

The Witness is our Diocese’s bi-monthly publication that specifically targets Catholic faith adults and children. You can access the Witness online via this link. 

It is a great way to nurture your faith and stay up-to-date with what is happening around our Diocese.

As we approach the end of Term 2, parents/caregivers will be able to access their child’s Semester 1 Report via SEQTA Engage from the end of Week 10. These reports provide an overview of your child’s level of achievement and approach to learning in each subject. 

We encourage families to take time to read through the report together, celebrating the successes and identifying areas for growth. This is a valuable opportunity to acknowledge your child’s hard work and to support them in setting goals for the remainder of the year.

If you experience any difficulties accessing the report or have questions about the content, please don’t hesitate to contact the school.

As we approach the end of another busy and rewarding term, I want to take a moment to celebrate the many achievements of our students. During the week, I had the privilege of listening to our Year 10 students share their reflections of the term in an assembly. It was a comprehensive recap of everything that has occurred. From classroom learning to sporting events, and community involvement, it’s been inspiring to see our students grow, succeed, and support one another.

I would like to thank our families for your ongoing partnership and support. It makes a big difference.

Once the term concludes, I wish all of our families a safe, restful, and joyful term break. I look forward to welcoming everyone back refreshed and ready for Term 3.

This coming weekend, we celebrate the feast of Saints Peter and Paul. These two saints played an important role in Jesus’ story and how we understand the impacts of his teachings. 
Peter, originally named Simon Peter, was a fisherman called by Jesus and eventually became a leader. Peter stayed loyal to Jesus, even after denying him. Jesus forgave him and had faith in him as the “rock” on which our Church is built on, becoming the first bishop of Rome almost 2000 years ago. It is in the story in Luke’s Gospel of Peter fishing with Jesus and being amazed at the number of fish caught that we hear the well known verse, “Do not be afraid” as Jesus calls the first disciples to begin their missionary work.

Paul, originally named Saul, underwent a transformation when he encountered the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus. He then passionately preached the Gospel of Jesus throughout many countries in the first century, establishing the first Christian communities in many towns throughout modern day Turkey. The letters we read in the Bible – Romans, Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians, and Corinthians – have been attributed to Paul. Paul’s letter to the Romans has a significance to us here at Caritas College this year with its connection to our theme, Seeds of Hope.

The stories of both St Peter and St Paul are intertwined and complement each other to highlight humility, trust in God, forgiveness, and the transformative power of encountering Jesus.

Families with young people receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation are reminded that the second session of preparation will be held this weekend, Saturday 28 June at 6:30pm and Sunday 29 June at 10:30am.  Dates for preparation to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation are:

Session 1 – Saturday 21 June OR Sunday 22 June
Session 2 - Saturday 28 June OR Sunday 29 June
Spare Weekends - 5/6, 12/13, 19/20 July (School Holidays)
Session 3 - Saturday 26 OR Sunday 27 July
Session 4 - 2 OR Sunday 3 August
Spare Weekend - 9/10 August
Celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation – Sunday 17 August
Commissioning of Students and Youth Mass – Saturday 23 OR Sunday 24 August

If you need to make up Session 1, please contact the Parish Office on 8642 2847. There are spare weekends coming up throughout the July holiday period.

This sacrament has a wonderful connection with Pentecost, the moment when the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples, giving them the courage to spread God’s word to everyone.

Earlier this week, the Church celebrated the feast of the Nativity of St John the Baptist. John was Jesus’ cousin, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, who was related to Jesus’ mother Mary. Elizabeth had no children of her own, so they prayed to God to help them. The angel Gabriel visited Zechariah and Elizabeth one day telling them they would have a son and to name him John and that he would be “great in the sight of the Lord” (Luke 1:15). It was at the visitation when John leapt with great joy in the womb of Elizabeth and she knew that Mary was carrying Jesus, the Son of God.

John’s public ministry began in the early first century, attracting large crowds to be baptised in the River Jordan. John was the one who baptised Jesus, with the Holy Spirit coming down upon him, establishing Jesus as a priest, prophet and king. John only ever spoke of love and truth, calling all to forgiveness, and was always trying to bring about God’s Kingdom here on earth, providing us with a wonderful example of how to live a life in Christ.

Aligning with the school’s commitment to student achievement, and particularly numeracy skills, all teachers undertook a ‘learning sprint’ at the beginning of term 2. This was designed to focus on a fundamental skill which will support student’s further learning, but which required consolidation.  

Initially, teachers selected their target skill – with most classes having a maths focus. Students undertook a pre-assessment at the beginning of the learning sprint to give teachers an understanding of students’ prior/ current knowledge at the time.  

Example focus areas include: 

• Understanding place value 
• Writing our numbers correctly 
• Number facts (such as times tables) 
• Addition and subtraction 

Over the following four weeks, teachers implemented daily reviews of their chosen skill. These were short reviews that were facilitated frequently across each week, providing multiple opportunities for all students to practice the target concept. Whole-class participation tactics such as the use of student whiteboards enabled teachers to get rapid feedback on student understanding throughout the review. 

At the end of this period, students were assessed again on the same skill, measuring how each student had grown. This resulted in over 800 points of data on student’s skills, a huge effort across the school! Encouragingly, the vast majority of students saw growth in the targeted skill – many showed quite significant growth over this period. 

Whole-class supports and interventions such as these are one way we are working to reinforce key skills into long-term memory, narrowing achievement gaps for students.