RAINBOWS FOR ROSE DAY

On Monday 18th November, we would like to remember and celebrate the beautiful life of Rose McMahon.

With the completion of the Grade 1 & 2 building and Renovated Art/Music room we are looking to have another permanent friendship chair positioned on the top playground for our students to use.

We would like all of our kids to dress loud and proud and show their support for this great cause. The cost of Rainbows for Rose is a gold coin donation.

We thank everyone in the St Ita’s community for your ongoing support of this special day on our calendar.

GRADE 6 GRADUATION

Our Graduation Mass and student presentation will be celebrated in St Ita’s Church at 6 pm on Thursday 5^th December.

Due to the significant growth of our Grade 6 population and school, we have elected to celebrate our Graduation dinner at the Drouin Football Club rooms. Our Graduation dinner will be catered by Alimentos Catering who will provide a sit-down, two-course dinner that includes a main meal and dessert. Soft drinks can be purchased over the bar and a reminder to all families that this is a school function and an alcohol-free event.

The cost of this event will be $32 for adults and $16 per child. The graduation event is for parents and Grade 6 students only, unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to host siblings or extended family at the dinner. All family members are welcome to attend our Graduation Mass. 

Closer to the event, we will advise parents to park on Victoria St or in the Church carpark and walk up entering the gate off Victoria St near the Scout Hall as car parking is limited at the ground due to the renovations.

2025 CLASS STRUCTURES

Each year when we begin the process of setting class lists for the following year we invite parents to let us know if there are any particular educational needs their child has which might impact class placement.

School is the formative place for young people to begin to explore a world beyond the home. They begin to discover the differences between being friends and being friendly, how to work with people that might have different views and skills, how to develop positive, respectful relationships with a broader range of people and how to deal with change.

The hope for all parents and educators is that we can best equip our young people for a world where they can be effective and affective, can work to bring change in the world and demonstrate a respect and care for all.

For a child changing classes the end of the year brings uncertainty, a little reluctance, a little excitement, a little nervousness and a little anxiety. It also brings opportunity to practice the skills they will need to enter a new workplace and form effective working relationships with co-workers.

As adults we are aware that a change of workplace means leaving those friendships we have developed in our work life. Some friendships are strong and continue outside of our work life and are nurtured and maintained in our social life. Others are replaced by new working friendships which support and engage us in our new workplace but may or may not last beyond that placement.

This is exactly what children have an opportunity to learn as they change class. Being kept with only the same group, or the same teacher robs them of the learning about how to experience change, to grow relationships, to become more quickly comfortable in new situations and to take control of what is possible in their environment.

We hope that our parents trust that we know our students well; both individually and collectively. We plan classes with great care and discuss balancing the wellbeing, learning and social aspects of each child and class. We consider teacher skills and styles, support requirements and opportunities as well as the requests of the children as to their preferences for people they can learn well with in their new class.

When the conversations in your house turn to next year, please look for the opportunity to discuss how changing workplaces is a reality and how we grow as people each time we form new working relationships. Talk to them about your experiences, about the things that worked well.

At St Ita’s we use a program called Class Solver to assist us with our grouping of children each year. It is a highly complex task sorting grades as we need a shared balance of academics, gender, emotional, and social needs. This week your child was asked by their teacher to nominate 3 children that they work well with (not 3 of their best friends). Best friends don’t always equate to the best learning.

Parents if you are making a request please ensure that you are not;

# Asking for a specific teacher

# Asking for your child to be placed with their best friends

IMPORTANT DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

1. Wednesday 13th - 15th Nov - Grade 5/6 Camp - The Summit
2. Tuesday 19th Nov - Parent Information Session for 2025 Foundation students & new families
3. Monday 18th Nov - Rainbows for Rose Dress Up Day
4. Thursday 28th Nov - Board and Parents & Friends Dinner
5. Wednesday 4th Dec - Foundation Excursion to Botanical Gardens
6. Thursday 5th Dec - Grade 6 Graduation
7. Friday 6th Dec - Grade 6 Celebration Day
8. Tuesday 10th Dec - State-Wide Transition Day
9. Friday 13th Dec - Kinect2Dance Concert
10. Tuesday 17th Dec - Last day of term 4