Term 2 Week 5 Newsletter- Monday May 19
- Acknowledgement of Country
- All Saints Parish School Vision
- Principal's Message
- Catholic School Culture
- School Information
- Students with Illness
- School Closure Days
- Important Dates
- Learning & Teaching
- Students of the Week
- SWPBS- School Wide Positive Behaviour Supports
- Leadership & Stewardship
- Community Engagement
- Child Safety & Wellbeing
- SchoolTV - Wellbeing Platform
- Happy Birthday
- Praying With Children
- COMMUNITY NEWS
Acknowledgement of Country
We acknowledge the traditional owners, the Gunditjmara people, on whose land we learn, work and play. We recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their elders- past, present and emerging believing that we can walk together for a better future.
All Saints Parish School Vision
All Saints Parish School Community is centered in Christ and as partners in Catholic education; we pursue fullness of life for all.
Principal's Message
This week we hit the halfway point of term 2 and we can surely say that we have achieved a lot so far.
Our debutante balls were held over the weekend and were very successful events. I would like to say a massive thank you to all our parents who came along to help out in preparation for the balls, during the events or for the dreaded pack up at the end. Special mention must go to Paula for her co-ordination of the debs, Matt & Kristy (and team) for the amazing catering and Leanne & Narelle (and team) for organising the stunning decorations. These events do not happen without the support of our volunteers and we are extremely grateful to everyone who helped in some way.
Well done to Jarvis, Layla, Isla, Hunter and Piper who were the page boys and flower girls for the two debutante balls. You all did a fantastic job!
Today and tomorrow we are filming a new promotional video for our school. This video will be shared far and wide to share our wonderful school with the wider community. We can't wait to see the finished product. Special thanks to Kevin Cummins for assisting us with this project.
Next week, May 26-30, is Catholic Education Week. This is a week where we celebrate everything special about Catholic education and our school. The theme for the 2025 school year across the Diocese of Ballarat is: ‘May the God of hope fill you with joy and peace.’ (Romans 15:13). The theme will also underpin Catholic Education Week 2025 celebrations from 26 – 30 May. We will share some more information throughout the week.
We have watched with great interest the appointing of the new Pope, Pope Leo XIV. We pray that Pope Leo will lead with wisdom, care and humility for all members of the Catholic church.
We keep Dolly, Penelope, Sonny, Hamish, Celeste and Sadie in our prayers as they prepare with their families to participate in the Sacrament of First Eucharist.
We are Respectful! We are Responsible! We are Safe! We are Nurturing!
Regards
Jamie
Flower girls and page boys from the debs.
Catholic School Culture
Laudato Si' Week May 17-24
Laudato Si' Week is an annual celebration in May that marks the anniversary of Pope Francis' encyclical "Laudato Si'," which focuses on the care of creation and our common home. It's a time for reflection, action, and advocacy, encouraging Catholics and others to listen to the "cry of the earth" and take steps towards a more sustainable and just world. The week is organized by the Laudato Si' Movement and sponsored by the Vatican's Dicastery for Integral Human Development.
The theme for Laudato Si’ Week this year is Raise Hope – inspired by the Jubilee Year and its theme – Pilgrims of Hope.
10 years ago, Pope Francis wrote Laudato Si’, setting out a bold vision for our common home.
Laudato Si’ Week unites thousands of people worldwide with a common goal: the protection of Creation. By participating, you become part of a global movement of faith and action. Your voice and actions have an impact when joined with those of many others.
Prayer for Laudato Si' Week
Loving God, You created all people to be equal.
Yet, throughout the world many are struggling to find even the most basic things they need:
food, water, safety and education.
Many poor countries owe enormous debts to wealthy countries and companies,
and millions of vulnerable people suffer as a result.
In this Year of Jubilee, when we are called to be pilgrims of hope,
we pray for greater justice.
We pray that we might do our part to challenge unjust situations that
cause harm to so many of your people around the world.
May we work to ensure that earth is truly a common home for everyone,
shared by all and enjoyed in security.
May we be instruments of your peace and builders of the kingdom
of which Jesus spoke in your name. Amen.
Caritas Australia & the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference Office for Justice, Ecology & Peace
Bishop Paul acknowledged the 10th anniversary with the following letter to parishes:
Dear Friends,
This year marks the 10th anniversary of Laudato Si’, Pope Francis’ groundbreaking encyclical on care for our common home. Since its release in 2015, Laudato Si’ has awakened the global Church to the urgent moral and spiritual call to care for God’s creation and to stand in solidarity with those most affected by environmental degradation.
We encourage every parish in our diocese to mark this milestone with prayer, education and community engagement. Here are a few suggested ways to commemorate the anniversary:
- Celebrate a special Mass or prayer service in thanksgiving for creation and to pray for ecological justice.
- Host a reading group or reflection series on Laudato Si’ or Pope Francis’ recent follow-up, Laudate Deum.
- Engage youth and families with stewardship projects, such as tree planting, clean-up days or energy audits.
- Collaborate with local partners to support sustainable initiatives and advocate for policies that protect the environment and vulnerable communities.
We also include a Catholic Earthcare Caritas Australia Laudato Si’ Card Set to acknowledge the anniversary. This resource aims to deepen understanding of integral ecology by reflecting on the Laudato Si’ Goals. Changing climate and recurring natural disasters have a significant impact on the lives and livelihoods of vulnerable communities around the world. Caritas Australia works with local partners to develop programs to assist vulnerable communities to adapt and to tackle the challenges of a changing climate.
Let this 10th anniversary be a moment of grace and renewal in our journey toward integral ecology. May our actions, big and small, bear witness to the Gospel and our responsibility as stewards of God’s creation.
With gratitude,
Bishop Paul Bird – Bishop of Ballarat
School Information
Assembly Timetable
Assemblies commence at 2:30pm every second Friday afternoon.
Assemblies for Term 2
Week 6: 5/6RV (May 30)
Week 8: 3/4AJ (June 13)
Week 10: 1/2DW (June 27)
Students with Illness
At the moment there seems to be lots of illness in the wider Portland community. As a result of this we are seeing more illness at school as well. We have been sending quite a few students home each day who are presenting to the sick bay with a variety of symptoms such as headaches, sore stomachs, nausea, cold and flu symptoms, sore throats and coughs.
As much as we love having children at school and we always stress how important it is that your children are at school, if they are unwell please keep them at home until they are feeling better. Some classes seem to be hit harder because children are coming to school unwell and sharing their germs.
If you are worried about your child missing too much school please contact your classroom teacher and they can organise some work if they are well enough to do it at home but still have symptoms and are not quite well enough to be at school.
Thank you to the families who have been keeping your children at home if they are unwell. Don't forget to let us know through PAM or contacting us at school to let us know if your child is away.
School Closure Days
Please add the following dates to your calendars. There will be no school for students on these days.
Term 1
Wednesday January 29 - SWPBS (completed)
Tuesday March 11 - Structured Literacy (completed)
Term 2
Thursday April 24 - Southern Zone Collaboration Day (DOBCEL determined date) (completed)
TBC- Curriculum Day- Maths
Term 3
Monday July 21 - Faith Formation & Religious Education: Laudato Si' Action Planning
Term 4
Monday October 6 - Structured Literacy
Monday November 3 - Report Writing & Assessments
Please note: We will notify families of the TBC dates as early as possible so that any arrangements for supervision of your children can be arranged.
Important Dates
Term 2
Week 5
Monday May 19 - Saturday May 24 - Laudato Si' Week
Monday May 19 & Tuesday May 20 - Promotional Video filming
Wednesday May 21 - National Simultaneous Storytime
Saturday May 24 - First Eucharist Dismissal @ All Saints Church 6:00pm
Week 6
Monday May 26 - Friday May 30 - Catholic Education Week
Monday May 26 - Regional Cross Country (for selected students)
Tuesday May 27 - SAC Meeting 7:00pm in the library
Wednesday May 28 - Glenelg Shire Council: National Reconciliation Event
Wednesday May 28 - Thursday May 29 - 3/4 and 5/6 Specialist day swap
Thursday May 29 - PHDSSA Winter Series
Friday May 30 - Maths Games Day at Heywood and District Secondary College
Friday May 30 - House Groups Activities Day
Saturday May 31 - First Eucharist Dismissal @ All Saints Church 6:00pm
Week 7
Monday June 2 - Thursday June 5 - Footsteps Dance Incursion
Saturday June 7 - First Eucharist Dismissal @ All Saints Church 6:00pm
Week 8
Monday June 9 - King's Birthday Weekend Public Holiday - No school for anyone
Saturday June 14 & Sunday June 15 - Sacrament of First Eucharist @ All Saints Church
Week 9
Tuesday June 17 - Division Winter Series (for selected teams)
Friday June 20 - All Saints Parish School Trivia Night 7:00pm @ school
Learning & Teaching
From the Indonesian Room
The Foundation students are beginning to feel more confident participating in songs and chants to support their learning. They are learning and consolidating Indonesian words for numbers 1-5 and colours, through songs, action rhymes and stories.
In Grade 1/2, students are learning vocabulary relating to domestic and farm animals. They are working on extending their sentences and using adjectives in the correct sentence structure. They are also becoming familiar with the word “Berapa?” (“How many?”) to describe groups of animals.
The Grade 3/4 students have been introduced to language surrounding school, school subjects, days of the week and classroom commands.
And in the 5/6 Pod, students are working towards acting out a short play about going to an Indonesian market and how to interact with questions and responses regarding buying fruit and vegetables. They will be exposed to bartering and numbers to ribu (thousands) using the Indonesian monetary currency, the Rupiah.
Students of the Week
Term 2 Week 4 Assembly
Class Awards:
FCL: Liam Crimmins
FYW: Skye Camilleri
1/2DW: Zimi Lyons
1/2ID: Letiyah Hewitt
1/2MS: Amelia May Fisher
3/4DL: Verah Budde
3/4JS: Isabella Camilleri
3/4KD: Max Lindsay
3/4MN: Bentley Johnstone
5/6AJ: Cassie Vecchio
5/6BS: Idrissa Charley
5/6DC: Addy Harrison
5/6RV: Darcy Webb
Specialist Awards:
Digi Tech: Izobel Oliver & Hailey Schlemmer
Indonesian: Hunter Jennings
The ARTS (Visual Arts): Leah Frost
SWPBS- School Wide Positive Behaviour Supports
School Wide Expectations
School Wide Positive Behaviour Support is: A multi-tiered framework for establishing the social culture and behaviour supports needed for a school to achieve behavioural and academic outcomes for all students.
Each newsletter we will share one aspect for each of our school wide expectations. We will focus on these at school and they may present an opportunity for some discussion with your children at home. You may ask them when they demonstrated one of the expectations or a time when someone displayed the expectation towards them.
We are RESPECTFUL! - Be a good sport and team mate.
We are RESPONSIBLE! - Ask for help when you need it.
We are SAFE! - Enter and leave spaces calmly.
We are NURTURING! - Include those without someone to play with.
Leadership & Stewardship
School Beanies
With the cold weather starting to present itself more regularly I would just like to remind families that we have school beanies available for sale at the office. Beanies are $15 each.
Beanies are an optional part of our school uniform. Children do not have to wear a beanie if they don't want to. However, if they are wearing a beanie at school it must be a school beanie.
2025 SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL
Our 2025 SAC members are: Bonita Silva, Cam McCallum, Tam Jennings, Shannon Thomas, Stacey Tait, Chris Watson and Alyssa Bicknell.
If you have anything you would like raised at a SAC meeting please contact one of the SAC members or the school office.
Community Engagement
United Way Glenelg Winter Mega Tin Food Raiser
United Way Glenelg have invited All Saints Parish School to be part of their Winter Mega Tin-Food Can-Raiser to help stock our local Little FREE Pantries, supporting families across the Glenelg Shire who will be doing it tough during this winter period.
They are asking schools and kinders to consider collecting donations of tinned food throughout May and early June. Students are warmly encouraged to take part in our public events by bringing their tins and adding to the food chain at: Woolworths Portland – Saturday 7 June 2025 from 8:00am
At All Saints we are going to have a competition between our HOUSE teams to see which team can create the longest line. Children are encouraged to bring in tins of food and place it in a box in the foyer for your team (BALMORAL, MINERVA, OTWAY or WANNON). We will measure the lines on Friday May 30 and the team with the longest line will receive a reward.
Thank you to all families who donated on our 'Wear your Winter Woolies' casual clothes day. We received an amazing amount of tinned food to donate to United way Glenelg. Any families still wishing to donate can send food into the foyer. Don't forget to put it in your House box to see who can create the longest line.
We would like to thank families for assisting us to support this community initiative.
Working With Children Checks
It is a legal requirement that any person wishing to volunteer in our school must have a valid WWCC. This includes volunteering in the canteen, helping in classrooms, assisting with garden club and going on school camps or excursions. You can obtain a WWCC by visiting the following website:
https://www.vic.gov.au/working-with-children-check
All you require is a 'volunteer' WWCC which is free.
Once you have received your confirmation and your WWCC card please bring it to the office so that we can take a copy and add it to our records.
We would love to see you involved in our school community.
Child Safety & Wellbeing
At All Saints Parish School we hold the care, safety and wellbeing of children and young people as a central and fundamental responsibility of our school.
Mental Health in Primary Schools (MHiPS)
Webinars for parents and carers
https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents/webinars
Join one of our free webinars for parents and carers.
These live webinars give parents and carers the knowledge, skills and tools to support their children to have safe online experiences.
SchoolTV - Wellbeing Platform
Because parenting doesn’t come with a set of instructions, SchoolTV is a wellbeing resource that can support you in the challenges relating to modern-day parenting.
This award-winning resource helps build relationships, foster connections, enable understanding and break down barriers to navigate a pathway towards better mental health and wellbeing for young people. It can assist in starting conversations on topics that are sometimes awkward or difficult to tackle.
Below is a URL link to the All Saints SchoolTV platform.
All Saints Parish School’s ‘School TV’ can be accessed using the following link: https://asportland.catholic.schooltv.me
A Special Report: Social Media & Comparison Culture
Young people today are growing up in a world where exposure to other people's lives is constant. Through social media and other platforms, they are regularly presented with curated highlights - from flawless holiday photos and academic milestones to the latest fashion trends and fitness achievements. This continuous stream of idealised content fuels what is known as comparison culture, where self-worth is often measured by how someone stacks up against others.
For children and adolescents, who are still figuring out who they are, this culture can be particularly damaging. Constantly comparing their appearance, achievements, or social standing to friends, influencers, and even strangers can lead to unrealistic expectations and a skewed sense of self-worth. This relentless need to measure up can contribute to feelings of inadequacy, self-doubt, and anxiety - undermining both confidence and emotional wellbeing.
It's vital that parents and caregivers understand how deeply comparison culture can influence a child's self-perception and sense of value. Left unchecked, it can foster perfectionism and a dependence on external validation, where a 'like' or comment becomes the measure of their worth.
The good news is, families have a powerful role to play in helping young people navigate these challenges. This Special Report will help you empower your child to build the resilience and confidence needed to navigate today's comparison-driven world and embrace their own unique path.
We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this Special Report, and as always, we welcome your feedback.
If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact the school for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Here is the link to your special report:
https://asportland.catholic.schooltv.me/wellbeing_news/special-report-social-media-comparison-culture-au
Happy Birthday
MAY BIRTHDAYS
STUDENTS: Maya D, Hunter J, Verah B, Eloise R, Nelly F, Izobel O, Isla S, Zaya C, Jireh G, Erin H-C, Ally C, Blake T, Ellie R, Oliver P, Tommy W, Darcy W, Manny S, Amelia F, Letiyah H, Jack L, Jakobi F, Callum M
STAFF: Janette, Kelly, Ms. Arnott
Praying With Children
Praying with Children resources offer an insight into the scripture readings from mass on the weekend. It is a wonderful opportunity for families to discuss the Gospel stories and complete some related activities if they wish.
Please click on each of the flyers below to access the activities.
COMMUNITY NEWS
