Tomorrow we farewell our grade 6 students. They will enjoy a special lunch in the hall and at 3:10 pm we will gather under the shelter for the traditional grade six throwing of the hat on the final bell. Then at 6pm they will gather with their families for a Graduation Mass at St Michael’s Church. It is a lovely way to end their time at St Michael’s for the staff, students and parents. 

Today your child's school report will be available to be accessed via PAM at 3pm. Your child will also come home with a letter advising important information about 2024 and next year's booklist. 

You will see that the report shows your child’s achievements assessed against state-wide standards expected at this time of the year.  It divides the years of compulsory schooling into levels (Foundation to Year 6) and assesses your child’s level in relation to other children of similar age in Victoria.

Remember that a majority of the students in any group will achieve “At standard”. This is normal and correct. It indicates that the child, in the opinion of his or her teacher, is performing somewhere in the level expected for his or her age group as compared with the standard set for children of that age in Victoria. Please note that this report no longer provides six-month delineations for the position of the progression ‘dot’. Generally, a student may be six months ahead or six months behind and still receive “At standard”.

As you will be aware there are some staffing changes for 2024 and while we farewell some familiar faces from the team we look forward to welcoming some new faces.  We wish Mrs Katie Calabrese, Mrs Kerry Adams, Ms Shona Arber, Mrs Amy Smith and Mrs Ruth Buckley all the very best in the next chapter of their lives.  We welcome back Mrs Gemma Pizzi for 2024 and also welcome to the St Michael’s team Mrs Jayne Price. We are also excited to support Mrs Kelly Clegg as she progresses into her career as a teacher through the Permission to teach Program.

On behalf of the staff of St Michael’s, I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and New Year.  Have a safe holiday and we look forward to welcoming you all back at the end of January.

As this year ends, we must also sadly farewell some families who have had a long association with our school, as their youngest child completes grade six or they move to new places.  I thank you for the many and varied ways in which you have been supporters and participants in the life of St Michael’s school.  

May the blessing of God go before you.

May grace and peace abound.

May the Holy spirit live within you.

May love wrap you around.

May the blessing remain with you always.

May you walk on holy ground.

Amen

Kind regards

Jodie