St Luke the Evangelist School Newsletter

Hello Families and Friends,

We have had a great week of learning, fun, school tours, meetings and a good dose of Melbourne extreme weather conditions! 

The P&F meeting on Tuesday evening was full of planning for social events and school fundraising opportunities. Please look out for the many activities P&F promote and advertise and make sure you support what you can. A group of our Mums are off on a day trip to some wineries tomorrow- a P&F organised event to promote the great community we are part of. A Mother’s Day raffle has been organised- this is for our Dads and kids to get into as a possible pamper surprise for the incredible people who are Mums. Finally, please volunteer to help out at the Bunnings BBQ on Saturday 27th May. This is a huge day and giving one and a half hours of your time would be fantastic. 

We had twenty families attend the Cyber Safety evening on Wednesday. Inform & Empower always present an incredibly engaging, informative and thought provoking session lead by siblings- Marty and Carlie McGauran. Those present were able to ask numerous questions, learn about child friendly social platforms and that communication and supervision are vital to building cyber safe practices. Here are some comments from a couple of parents…

“I found the presenters to be very engaging and knowledgeable. They made a confronting and overwhelming issue feel much more manageable with their practical tips and tools. I learnt so much and would highly recommend the session to parents of all age groups.” and 

“ I learnt so much about the different technologies, how to create healthy digital habits and the importance of us actively helping our kids navigate a constantly changing digital landscape.

What parents present commented on was the need for all parents to attend as they felt it was something everyone should hear. Could be a good idea for next year.

An update on some staffing news… our lovely LSO, Clare Ryan will be farewelling St Luke’s to take up an LSO position at St Gregory the Great, Doncaster. Whilst we are very sad to see Clare go, we are excited that it will be a great opportunity for her. Clare has supported all of our children at St Luke's in such a beautiful, gentle way, always considerate of every child and what is best for them. We know you will join us in wishing her well. Clare will finish on Wednesday 31st May.

It is just two weeks until our Confirmation candidates celebrate the final sacrament of initiation. It was great seeing families attend the commitment masses last weekend. These young people, and their Senior School peers, are already showing signs of being wonderful Spirit-filled people. Please keep them in your prayers.

I will be taking leave from Friday, 12th May. I am blessed to have the opportunity of travelling overseas with my husband, Mark to the US, Spain and Birmingham, England. It will be a great opportunity to catch up with two brothers and explore unknown places.The Leadership Team led by Julie Inglese along with Nina Grieve, Pauline Answerth, Julianne Kelly and Nicole Swann will take great care of our community. 

Please take good care of you and your family. I’ll look forward to sharing a few adventures with you on my return and hearing all about yours.

Have a great weekend ahead. Stay warm.

Clare Ryan

principal@slblackburnsth.catholic.edu.au 

Thank you to everyone that contributed to funds raised for Project Compassion.  St Patrick's touch of GREEN day, raised $227.10 and donation boxes for Project Compassion $332.50. 

In total $559.60 was raised for people living in some of the most vulnerable communities across the world.  Your generous support will help change lives today - and For All Future Generations. 

Clare and I are thrilled to announce that St Luke’s received funding from the Australian Government to deliver Sporting Schools in Term 2.  This has allowed us to book an external provider to deliver expert coaching in the field of gymnastics.  Our entire school will participate in a four week PE program called ‘LaunchPad Gymnastics’ which will start on 30th May (Week 6).  We can’t wait to see our students in action!

I would also like to congratulate Luke, Lachie and Xavier in Year 6 who recently attended the School Sport Victoria Eastern Metro Region selection trials in two sports.  Luke and Lachie trialed for the U12 Vic Boys Basketball Team, and Luke has been invited to the next stage.  Lachie then joined Xavier at the U12 Vic Boys AFL Team trials.  Well done boys for challenging yourselves and chasing your goals, and thank you to their families for supporting their sporting dreams.

Micaela Debney

Physical Education Teacher, Sport and Camp Coordinator

If you have not completed an enrolment form for your child who is due to join our Prep 2024 intake, please do so immediately. You can visit the school office for a hard copy or contact Debbie via email:  schooloffice@slblackburnsth.catholic.edu.au for a digital copy.

If you know of family or friends who are looking to move into the area OR are considering moving schools for their child OR want to  commence their child at a great primary school, please encourage them to come by for a tour. A quick phone call to Debbie in the office or email via our website will get the ball rolling. 

St. Luke's P&F is presenting a Mother's Day Raffle.  A special hamper to make Mother's Day extra special.

Access the following link for tickets: https://www.raffletix.com.au/?ref=ct6wc

You need to be in it to win it!  

Children arriving after the bell or leaving early.

As part of our wellbeing care of children at St Luke's, every class engages in a morning routine at 8.50 am.  This quiet, calm time allows children to gather together in a circle, to greet each other by name, to pray and/or enter into some Christian meditation and get ready for the day.  Please make sure you allow enough time to get your child to school BEFORE the student entry doors close at 8.50 am.

If children arrive after the gate and student entry doors are locked, parents/carers are required to walk their child/ren to the school office and sign them in on the VPass iPad.

If leaving early (before the end of the day), parents/carers are required to sign their child/ren out on the VPASS iPad.

WINTER UNIFORMS:

With the colder weather coming on, please make sure your child has his/her school jumper EVERY day. Many children are choosing to wear a rain jacket instead of their jumpers. The rain jacket is for outside use only.