Dear Families and Friends, 

Confirmation

Last Thursday, I attended the Sacrament of Confirmation. Confirmation is one of the seven sacraments. Some are well known, such as Baptism, Marriage, and Anointing of the Sick.

Confirmation is like Baptism, but this time the students are the ones saying ‘yes’, whereas at Baptism it was their parents who said ‘yes’ on their behalf. In Baptism, children have Godparents. In Confirmation, it’s similar — students choose a Sponsor. Another special part of Confirmation is that students select a saint’s name. During the service, many students chose names like St Francis, St Mary MacKillop, and St Joseph, among others.

Archbishop Patrick O’Regan celebrated the liturgy and spoke to the students about the Holy Spirit being activated, as it was first received in Baptism. He used a great metaphor, comparing it to having a mobile phone and activating it with a SIM card!

Archbishop Patrick explained that the gifts and fruits received in Confirmation are not things that can be bought — gifts like patience, joy, wisdom, and understanding. He also reminded us that once we have these gifts, we should share them with others through our daily actions.

I take this opportunity to congratulate all those who made their Confirmation on Tuesday or Thursday.

Celebrating Music

I feel like I’ve been on a musical festival journey over the past two weeks!

Over five nights, we held our very successful instrumental performances. I was impressed with how accomplished and young some of our students are, and I felt proud and amazed by many who have been practicing for longer. They certainly loved the opportunity to perform – so brave!

At assembly, the Year 3/4 Choir performed a lovely and complex song featuring different parts, beautifully led by Mrs Pfitzner. It sounded amazing as they worked together in collaboration to produce a beautiful performance.

On Friday morning, the Year 3 Strings performance was a real highlight. With only six months of lessons, they put on a wonderful show! The students have learned many skills, and it’s clear they had a lot of fun along the way. Some Year 1 and 2 students came along to watch and were very excited about what’s ahead for them in Year 3! For many, this was a wonderful introduction to music.

“In terms of brain development, musical performance is every bit as important educationally as reading or writing.”
— Oliver Sacks, Neurologist and Author

SEQTA Engage – Online Academic Reports

We are very excited to launch SEQTA Engage for families as our new reporting platform. Thank you for following the instructions in the email to ensure you have access to your account.

We strongly encourage each parent who receives an email to create an account, as we will not be sending home a hard copy unless requested. This Wednesday, you will receive a digital copy of your child’s report on SEQTA Engage.

We are nearly at the end of a busy and rewarding Term 2. I thank our students, staff, and families for their ongoing support and commitment throughout the term.

I wish all families a restful, safe, and enjoyable break, filled with time to relax and recharge. I look forward to welcoming everyone back, refreshed and ready for an eventful Term 3, on Tuesday 22 July.

Kind regards,

Jodie Higgins

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

As we approach the end of Semester One, we take time to reflect on what we have achieved as a staff and community with immense pride and look forward to another busy Semester ahead.

Professional Learning: Teach Well

This year all leaders of learning across Catholic Education have been involved in a program focused on improving student learning and engagement by supporting teachers and school leaders through professional development and resources. It emphasizes evidence-based practices, continuous improvement, and fostering a collaborative culture within schools.  Last week, Bonnie Crofts, Joshua Bennet and I attended the third day of the program.  This was focussed on the benefits of building students’ knowledge of the world and how this can significantly impact their reading success. Research over the past 40 years has shown that the knowledge students bring to a text will have an impact on what is learnt and comprehended from the text.  The more you know, the better your comprehension tends to be.  This reinforces the importance of having rich conversations with our students, unpacking vocabulary with them across a range of disciplines and ensuring they are exposed to range of different genres and text types.  As a result, we will continue to build a consistent reading spine across our school to align with the Australian Curriculum and ensure knowledge and content are embedded in each subject area.  The following is an article that may be of some interest to you: Natalie Wexler: Importance of Building Knowledge

In addition to this, Bonnie Crofts recently delivered professional learning to our staff around participation principles which help students to remain engaged throughout lessons and ensure immediate feedback for teachers.  We are excited to continue to engage in professional learning to further support the work we have already engaged in over the past year.  It is affirming to know that we have been working towards aligns with current research and pedagogies to ensure the best possible outcomes for our students.

2025 NCCD Data Collection

Each year, all Australian schools take part in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). This is a national initiative that helps ensure students with disability receive the support they need at school.  As part of this process, schools record information about the types of support and adjustments being provided to students with disability. This is in line with the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, the Disability Standards for Education 2005, and the NCCD guidelines (2019).

The following information is provided to the Australian Government:

• The student’s year level
• The category of disability: physical, cognitive, sensory, or social/emotional
• The level of adjustment being provided: support within quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary, substantial, or extensive

Why is this information collected?  The NCCD helps schools:

• Recognise and document the supports being provided to students with disability
• Reflect on and improve how they support all learners
• Build consistent and shared practices across the school
• Strengthen learning programs and improve educational outcomes

The data also helps state and federal governments plan for the provision of resources and funding to support students with disability in all schools.

What does this mean for your child?
There is no impact on students. No testing is involved, and no student is identified in the data submission. All information is collected in a confidential and non-identifiable manner and is protected by privacy laws.

To learn more, you can visit:
? NCCD Portal

? Parent Information Sheet

If you have any questions about the NCCD or how we support students with disability at our school, please don’t hesitate to contact me.  Alternatively, this can be discussed in the Term 3 PPL Review Meetings which will occur in Week one and two.  Bianca will send out further information this week along with a link to book a meeting for those required.

Announcement RE: STRETCH Program

As always, we are looking to extend our STRETCH program as it has continued to build momentum and popularity this year. As a result, we are excited to share an opportunity for our students to participate in the National History Challenge 2025, a prestigious, nationwide competition that encourages young people to explore history in a creative and meaningful way.   

Theme for 2025: Conflict & Resolution

This year’s theme invites students to investigate the causes, events, and outcomes of historical conflicts and how they were resolved. It’s a chance for students to think critically, research deeply, and tell important stories from the past in ways that matter to them.

All students in Years 1 and above are invited to take part—either individually or as part of a team.  Keep an eye out for further information via SZapp on how to involve your child.  A huge thank you to Kate Mueller who will lead the coordination of this new initiative and as always shows immense passion and dedication in this space.  Stay tuned for more additions to this program soon!

Finally, I would like to wish all our families a safe and restful break.  We look forward to seeing our little learners returning in Semester 2 refreshed and excited to finish the year strong.  As always, we thank you for your ongoing support and partnership in your child’s learning journey.  Enjoy the break and keep warm

Until next time…

Vanessa Saccardo

Assistant Principal

Congratulations to all our Instrumental students who performed in their Instrumental concerts over the last two weeks. It was wonderful to hear their progress and see their confidence in performance growing. Keep up the great work and the practise at home! Special thanks to our Instrumental tutors for their expertise, dedication and enthusiasm.

Festival Choir travelled to St Thomas Goodwood for the Combined Schools Hub Assessment on June 17, in preparation for the upcoming Catholic Schools Music Festival. It was a great experience for our students to practise being part of a massed choir and get a taste of what’s to come for the performance in Term 3 at the Adelaide Convention Centre.

Our Year 3 cohort presented a String Learning Journey to their families and the Year 2s on Friday. It was fantastic to see the focus of these students and celebrate their learning. Thanks to our string tutors for their guidance over the past two terms.

Rebecca Pfitzner

Music teacher

Congratulations to our year 5/6 Soccer Knockout Team on winning the small school SAPSASA Soccer Carnival. The team was undefeated on the day winning all games convincingly, amassing an amazing 33 goals on the day and only conceding 3 !

The Carnival was held at Barrett Reserve, West Beach with team playing 5 games in throughout the day. The Team will now progress to the finals day which will be played in Term 3.

Special thanks to Don Iannicelli and Frank Perrone for their expert coaching on the team on the day and Oscar Brown for his assistance.

Mr De Giovanniello

Congratulations to Felix on being selected to represent City South in Division 1 Football. The team played nine games across three days, with three matches each day, proudly finishing in fourth place overall.