Newsletter - Friday, 20th June, 2025
Prayer
We pray for the leaders of the warring nations, that they be guided by the Holy Spirit, and act with love, kindness, and peace, as they work towards the common good.
Lord, hear Us
We thank you for the recent rain and may it be followed by more blessings in the form of more rain that will bring growth and prosperity to our lands. We thank You for Your endless love, as we also pray for the victims of the floods.
Lord, hear us.
This week’s prayers have been taken from last Sunday’s Trinity Sunday Mass.
From the Principal
Dear Parents,
The students are managing well in the absence of some of their regular teachers this week while they attend the Sounds Write training in Ballarat.
It’s been a quieter week at school, which has been a nice change of pace. Illness, coughs and colds have caught up with some students this week and we thank all parents and guardians for keeping their children home to recover and this helps minimise the spread. If your child is absent, you can log in to P.A.M. and record the absence through there. Computer generated absence texts are sent out after the rolls are marked @ 9 a.m. and when there is no reason logged in; it is a requirement that a reason for the absence is logged in.
The crisp weather is perfect for a warm fire, hot soup and some quality family time in the evenings. As the nights grow colder, we encourage families to pick up a magazine, newspaper, or a good book, and enjoy some reading together. Modelling a love of reading at home helps build strong habits. Keep up the nightly reading, kids!
Warm regards,
- John
Principal vacancy
At the end of the year, with heavy heart and sad, happy tears, we will say goodbye to Mr. O as he hangs up the Principal hat, puts his feet up and says goodbye to us. Check out the Principal Information and Application Guide that's included in the job vacancy that showcases how wonderful our school is.
Winter Solstice Celebration - Friday, 20th June
The Winter Solstice is the shortest day and the longest night of the year. The Winter Solstice in Australia occurs when the Earth’s South Pole is tilted the furtherest away from the sun. The Winter Solstice marks the start of longer and brighter days to come!
The Year 5 & 6 class have planned a day to celebrate the Winter Solstice including games, delicious hot Milos, and the best part - students can wear pyjamas to school! Please make sure PJ’s are appropriate, warm (you could bring a dressing gown) or if PJ’s in public aren’t your thing, wear cosy clothes like tracksuits. Runners still need to be worn for outdoor play, but slippers can be worn inside. Pillows and sheets/blankets can be brought to school (totally optional).
Any questions? Please contact John or Anne-Maree.
Mini Vinnies
This weather is perfect soup weather!
Is there was a grandparent or (parent) who had some spare time on their hands that would like to come into the school and make some soup with a small group of two or three Mini Vinnies?
We plan to have a stall up the street in a couple of weeks time offering some hot soup. Please see John if you can help.
From Carine - Mental Health & Wellbeing
Next week we will provide some feedback on the survey’s results.
Another reminder:
A special event series of Parental Guidance will unpack four major issues facing our kids including screentime, peer pressure, body image and mental health. Parental Guidance will tackle these issues alongside eight new Aussie families over four powerful nights of TV, premiering Monday June 30 at 7:30pm on Channel 9 and 9Now.
See the link below for more information:
Parental Guidance premieres Monday June 30 on Channel 9 and 9Now.
(Dr. Justin Coulson, the co-host, has helped innumerable families with his nine books about raising children and is the founder of happyfamilies.com.au. With his wife, Kylie, Dr. Justin co-hosts Australia’s number one parenting podcast, The Happy Families Podcast.)
For more information on these topics, also visit https://smedenhope.catholic.schooltv.me/
The Aurora Structured Literacy Project
Our school is taking part in a research project called the Aurora Structured Literacy Project. This research project includes ten small and geographically isolated schools across the Diocese of Ballarat. It is a collaboration between researchers at the Diocese of Ballarat and La Trobe University to improve literacy knowledge and outcomes for our students.
We are fortunate to have Mel Fox working with us this year as a Literacy Coach as part of the research. Mel is working with our leaders and teachers to improve literacy knowledge and teaching for our students. Our staff have also undertaken a range of professional development on literacy teaching as part of the project.
The project will be analysing our students’ reading and include the reflections of our leaders and teachers about the supported introduction of structured literacy in our school. The project would also like to hear from parents / guardians about their child’s learning of reading and writing.
Earlier in the year, families received some information about this project. In the coming months, you will be invited to consider providing your consent for two specific aspects of the project. Firstly, the researchers will invite you to participate in an interview to hear about your views of your child’s literacy learning. Secondly, the researchers will ask you to consent for your child to be involved in a case study to look more closely at their learning.
All information will be securely stored and personal details (such as our school, your child’s details, etc) will never be shared.
You will receive more detailed information about these opportunities to be involved in the project in the coming months.
Child safety
The T.A.C. website has some great information on safety, whether it be on the road, walking, bikes, etc. Have a look at some of the facts and information below that was taken from
https://www.tac.vic.gov.au/road-safety/road-users/parents
The facts
- Road crashes are the major cause of accidental death for children aged 0-14.
- On average, around seven children aged 0-15 are killed and close to 300 are injured each year on Victorian roads
- Children can be more at risk due to not being visible, such as behind vehicles or driveways and intersections.
- Children over 7 years old can be at risk of injury if they are moved from a booster seat to an adult seatbelt too early.
Keeping kids safe
Learning about road safety starts from the time a child begins to walk. As children grow they start to use our road network in different ways, from riding scooters and bikes through to using public transport. Parents are not always going to be around to supervise so it’s important to teach kids about road safety from a young age so that they can be safe on and around our roads.
There are many practical ways that you can help – and you don’t have to be a road safety expert to do so.
- Children need to be taught how to:
- understand timing and speed
- cross roads safely
- see a dangerous situation and respond in an appropriate manner.
Why children are at risk
- They act on impulse and if this happens while walking, riding bicycles or playing near traffic there is a risk of injury or even death. While kids are vulnerable on their own, with the help of parents they can learn about safety on the roads and how to avoid dangerous situations from an early age.
- Children have difficulty judging speed and distance, seeing objects in side vision and identifying direction of speed, as well as estimating speed timing.
- Kids can be less visible to drivers - smaller children may be harder to see for drivers, especially in blindspots and when they’re behind a vehicle. Vehicles fitted with reversing cameras reduce the risk of collision, particularly when fitted to SUVs or 4WD vehicles.
Learning to be safe
There are lots of ways that kids use our roads. You can help teach them to be safe in the following ways
Walking
Before they are ten years old, children have not developed the skills and knowledge to handle risky situations on the road.
Parents or caregivers can help children by setting clear limits and guidance according to the age, personality and developmental stage of the child.
Pedestrian safety for children
- Set clear limits for places that they can walk safely. Find places away from streets, driveways or parking lots and choose locations such as fenced areas, parks and playgrounds.
- Practice how to cross the street safely in everyday situations such as going to the shops, visiting a friend or going to school. Always set a good example by crossing a street safely and using road crossings where available.
- Teach your child to get in and out of the car on the kerbside avoiding the dangers from passing cars.
- Teach kids not to play at the back of cars and to look before crossing driveways so they can see reversing vehicles.
- Teach them to follow the basic elements of crossing safely using the Stop, Look, Listen and Think approach to crossing the road. This is:
- Stop one step back from the curb
- Look and listen for traffic
- Decide if it is safe to cross the road
- Keep looking and listening while crossing.
Talk about road rules in simple terms so your child understands why you need to be careful and explain what can happen when rules are broken. For more detailed information see the RACV website walking safely with children section.
Mum's cuppa
The next Mum's cuppa will be held on the last week of the school term so Monday, 30th June @ 2.10 p.m. is pencilled in on the calendar. With these cold, frosty mornings, it's hard to get out of bed and be organised so the next one will be held in the afternoon and you can take your child/ren home at the end of the day if you want.
Feel free to bring a friend or someone who might be thinking about enrolling at St. Malachy's for 2026 and they can join us when we do Sneak a Peek.
What's coming up this Term?
- Friday, 20th June - Winter Solstice Celebration
- Friday, 27th June - Jump Off Day
- Monday, 30th June - Mum's Cuppa @ 2.10 p.m.
- Thursday, 3rd July - reports go home
- Friday, 4th July - end of Term 2 @ 2.20 p.m.