2024 Sacramental Program
We are pleased to invite all children in Year 3-6 to participate in our 2024 Sacramental program. This year, we will offer the Sacrament of Confirmation which will be held on Sunday 19th May at St Colman’s Church. The Sacrament of Confirmation is the second of the three Sacraments of initiation, beginning with Baptism and finishing with Holy Communion.
The Parish of Our Lady of Mercy is transitioning to a new structure for receiving the Sacraments. Therefore, going forward, children in Year 3 will receive the Sacrament of Confirmation and those in Year 4 will participate in First Reconciliation and will receive the Sacrament of First Communion.
Please note that Confirmation will be the only Sacrament that we will celebrate at St Colman's this year. Holy Communion and Reconciliation will take place for our students in Year 4 and above in 2025.
We ask that you make contact with either Janet or Rosie if you would like your child to take part. Participation in our Sacramental program is entirely voluntary, please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Greater Western Swimming Regional Championships
Congratulations to Charlotte and Imogen for representing St Colman’s at the Greater Western Primary Swimming Regional Championships held at Horsham on March 22nd. Imogen competed in the 11-year-old breaststroke finishing in second place. Imogen narrowly missed out, by just 1 second, on qualifying to compete at State Championships in April. What an amazing effort. Charlotte and Imogen combined with Annabelle and Matilda from St Thomas’ in the 4x 50m freestyle relay, finishing in third place. Super effort girls!
Although we are a small school, we are fortunate to utilise our strong connection with our nearest Catholic school in St Thomas’ Terang to ensure that all students who qualify to compete in these events do not miss out on experiencing these, and many other, fabulous events.
My New Gallery
Camperdown Theatre Company
District Athletics Carnival
Tomorrow, eight of our students will be representing our school at the District Athletics Carnival in Camperdown. Students need to find their own way there with the first event being the optional 1500m run. If your child has nominated to take part in the 1500m, they will need to be at Frederick Street oval before 9am. A note was sent home last week to all children who will be participating.
Best of luck to the students who made it through to this competition:
Will C, Phoebe D, Alex L, Imogen B, Gus C, Archie D, Eloise D and Zeke P.
End of Term/ Easter Celebrations
The end of Term One is only 4 school days away. We will finish the term on Thursday March 28th at 2:15pm. Throughout that day we will be holding several events of significance.
Children will need to bring back their Project Compassion boxes to use the coins in the Money line. The class with the longest line will be rewarded with hot chips for lunch on the first Friday back next term.
Children will be finalising this term’s RE Unit on HOPE with a visit from inspiring guest speaker Ben Harkin. Ben visited our school last year and inspired our students with his incredible story of resilience and message of never giving up HOPE.
After recess we will commence our Easter events, see flyer below. Everyone is welcome to attend. Children can wear casual clothes on this day.
Mortlake Community Market
Auskick and Net Set Go are back
School Photos
Scheduled for this Wednesday 27th March 2024
Your child has been given their personalised order form. Use this form to order your photo package. You can either place the money in the envelope or order and pay online. Please write the online order reference number on the envelope.
Family envelopes are available from the office if you wish to have siblings in a photo together.
The Easter Raffle is back!
we are still waiting on some families to drop off a donation for the Easter Raffle.
Please drop your donations off at the office ASAP.
Raffle tickets also need to be returned by Wednesday March 27th.
The raffle will be drawn this Thursday at approxiamtely 12:45pm.
Caritas Project Compassion
During the Lenten Season, we ask all our families to raise money for the Caritas Project Compassion. Each family will bring home a money box today and they are asked to fill the box with coins. These coins are then returned to school and used in the Class Money Line competition held on the last day of this term. The class with the longest coin line will win a hot chip lunch.
All the coins are then forwarded on to the Caritas Australia team, where they will use the money raised to support their charitable works.
The money line will be held this Thursday, March 28th, so it is time to start returning your Project Compassion boxes to school.
Enhancing Catholic School Identity (ECSI) Survey
Every five years all Catholic primary schools in our diocese complete the Enhancing Catholic School Identity (ECSI) Survey.
The Catholic University in Leuven was commissioned by the Catholic Education Commission of Victoria Ltd (CECV) to design a process and tools, based on sound research, to accomplish the goal of understanding our current Catholic identity and where the school community might like to see itself in the future.
The ECSI Survey is a key element of this process and I write to request your participation. The online survey gathers responses from students in Years 5 and 6, all staff and a representative sample of parents.
You are asked to complete the survey online; it may take up to an hour to do so. Attached is a letter of explanation and a set of instructions. Your child will also bring home a copy of this information today. In order to get an accurate picture of how our school community sees our school, it is essential that as many of you as possible complete the survey. Please find some time in your busy lives to sit and reflect upon our Catholic Identity and complete the survey.
Go to; http://www.ecsi.site/au/user/
Enter the password: Ghj654
Click on NEW USER
Our school Access code is: (case sensitive): mpUWYb
Many thanks in advance for taking the time to do so!
Toastie Tuesday
School Advisory Council (SAC)
We would like to introduce you to our SAC members for 2024.
Jo Wallis (Chair), Alison Greig, Michelle Lehmann, Zion Palmer, Sophie Allen, Rachel Baulch, Danielle Kenny, Rosie O’Connor (School rep), Janet Cain (Principal) and Fr. Gary Jones (Parish Rep)
These people are the voice of the parish and parents in the school. If you have any questions or anything that you would like raised please contact one of these people.
The SAC meets twice a term and we thank these people for agreeing to be a part of this group that provides an essential link between the school and its families.
This year we will hold our meetings Wednesday of week 3 and week 8 each term starting at 6:30pm.
The dates are;
Term 2: May 1st and June 5th
Term 3: July 31st and Sept 4th
Term 4: October 23rd and Nov 27th (AGM)
Important Dates:
TERM 1 2024
Tuesday 26th March – District Aths Carnival
Wednesday 27th March- School Photos
Thursday 28th March- Holy Week Prayer Service and Easter Raffle drawn from 11:45
Term 1 ends at 2:15
Term 2 2024
Monday 15th April- Term 2 commences- Jane Lee on LSL for 4 weeks
Wednesday 24th April St Colman's Cross Country
Thursday 25th April - ANZAC Day
Friday 26th April - Student Free Day- Staff Professional Learning in Wellbeing
Monday 29th April - Catholic Education Week
- GRIP Student Leadership Day
Tuesday 30th April- Open Day
2024 School Camps (with St Thomas’ Terang)
Sept 2nd-3rd: Year 3/4 Warra Gnan Coastal Camp, Warrnambool
Nov 13th-15th: Year 5/6 Dunkeld Adventure Camp
School Closure Days for 2024
Term 2: Friday 26th April- Wellbeing
Term 3: Monday 15th July- Religious Education; Re-contextualising the Scriptures.
Tuesday 16th July- Structured Literacy
Catholic Identity
SchoolTV Wellbeing Platform
This week's feature articles explain the importance of celebrating neurodivergence amongst our students.
Neurodiversity in children and adolescents is a concept celebrating the natural variation in how young minds work. It acknowledges that neurological differences, such as ADHD, autism, dyslexia, and giftedness, are not disabilities but unique aspects of human cognition. Embracing neurodiversity fosters acceptance, empathy, and inclusivity in society. Parents play a pivotal role in supporting their neurodiverse child by understanding their specific needs, advocating for appropriate educational accommodations, and seeking professional guidance when necessary. By appreciating and nurturing their child's strengths, parents can help them thrive and unlock their full potential, leading to a more compassionate and understanding future for all.
"We need to embrace neurodiversity as a tapestry of brilliance, for within each unique mind lies extraordinary potential waiting to be unleashed. By celebrating our differences we create a world of understanding and acceptance." Dr Michael Carr-Gregg
Specialist Timetable for Term 2
Below is the Specialist timetable for Term 2. All children need to wear their sports uniform and return their library books each Wednesday
Health/Phys Ed (Ms. Moulden) | STEAM (Ms. Moulden) | LOTE/Library (Ms. Cain and Miss Stape) | |
Juniors | Wed 11:30-1pm | Tues 1:45-3:15 | Wed 2:15- 3:15 |
Middles | Wed 9:30- 11am | Tues 11:30-1pm | Wed 12:30, 1:45-2:15 |
Seniors | Wed 1:45-3:15 | Tues 9:30- 11am | Wed 11:30-12:30 |
Community Engagement
School Wide Positive Behaviour Support
School Wide Positive Behaviour Support is: A multi-tiered framework for establishing the social culture and behavioural supports needed for a school to achieve behavioural and academic outcomes for all students. For the next two weeks at St Colman’s we are working with our students on developing effective learning habits that will set them up for success throughout the year ahead. During that time, all staff will be reinforcing the behaviour expectations as set out in our Behavior Matrix (below).
Our Lady of Mercy Parish News
WEEKEND MASS TIMES
ST THOMAS’ TERANG
Saturday 6.00 pm
Sunday 10.30 am
ST COLMAN’S MORTLAKE
Sunday 9.00 am
Learning and Teaching
Acknowledgement of Country
St Colman’s acknowledges the Girai wurung people as the traditional owners of the land on which our school stands and we respectfully recognise elders both past and present.
AngliCare Energy Assistance
As part of Anglicare Victoria’s FREE Energy Assistance Program, they provide assistance with energy bills to support Victorians to:
- Talk to their energy retailer and get help with debt
- Access extra financial support
- Check they are receiving eligible concessions on their bill
- Find and move to an affordable energy plan
- Understand bills and fix any possible errors
- Support your child's education with free internet at home
They can provide immediate assistance for clients who are struggling to pay for their gas or electricity bills to prevent disconnection to their property!
The follower two flyers provide further details.