Newsletter 2025 Term 4 Week 2

PRINICPAL NEWS - MR PETER HUGHES

Open Classrooms

On Wednesday 5th November we will open our classrooms so parents, along with their children, can come and look at the work that has been taking place over the year. Parents can visit from 3.10pm - 5pm. I know that from previous Open Classrooms we have held the students get a buzz out of showing their parents what they have done.

While the classroom teacher will be present they will not have time for an in-depth conversation with individual parents but will be able to have a quick chat. If you feel you need a lengthier conversation I ask you to make an appointment. A reminder to parents that they can make an appointment to meet with their child's teacher whenever they wish.

Staffing 

Following interviews held for the Co-Ordinator's position on Tuesday, I am pleased to announce that Mrs Brigid O’Connor has been appointed to the role of coordinator in an on-going position commencing in 2026.

As Brigid is expecting her second child early in the new year, she will be taking maternity leave in 2026 which will mean she commences in the role in 2027.

Mrs Leonne Challen will take on the role for the 2026 school year.

I congratulate both ladies on their appointments and their willingness to take on such an important and crucial role on the school executive. 

AP NEWS - MRS KATIE THOMPSON

Term 4 - “No Hat No Play”

During Term 4 (and also Term 1) we require all students to be wearing hats when out on the playground at lunch, recess as well as during Sport and PE. Do not forget to make sure that your child comes to school each day. If they do not have a hat they will be unable to play outside.

Dance Curriculum in Weeks 3 and 4

All students in Kindergarten to Year 6 will be enjoying the Dance Curriculum every day over the next 2 weeks. Each class will have a 40 minute dance lesson over Week 3 and 4. Later in the term the students will showcase the new dancing skills they have acquired.

Safe-on-Social - Kirra Pendergast

From 10 December 2025, Australian law changes the rules for anyone under 16 using social media. The attached document is a short, student-friendly guide that explains exactly what’s happening, why it matters, and what you can do right now to protect your content and your digital rights. This guide helps students, parents, and educators understand the new national minimum-age requirements for platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, YouTube, and X (Twitter) and more. It breaks down the law in plain language, no jargon, no fear, just facts.

Your children will learn:

• Which platforms are affected and why accounts will be removed for under-16s.
• How age-verification and facial-age estimation work (and what their privacy options are).
• The difference between deletion and deactivation.
• How to download and keep photos, videos, and messages before accounts disappear. 
• How to challenge a wrong age decision or report a platform that isn’t following the rules. 
• Their ongoing rights to privacy, safety, and respect online.

It gives your children the knowledge and confidence to navigate the new law safely. We hope you find the guide useful and help make the online world fairer, safer, and easier to understand for your children. 

Access Guide here

RE NEWS - MS JILLIAN MURRAY

Sacrament of First Eucharist

The Sacrament of First Eucharist Mass will take place on Saturday November 22nd at 6 pm. 

To help the students prepare for this special celebration, a retreat day will be held on Friday November 21st, following our Whole School Mass. This will be a wonderful opportunity for the children to get ready to receive Jesus in the Eucharist for the first time. 

More details about our mass and retreat day will be shared soon. 

Whole School Mass 

Last Wednesday, we began the term with a school Mass in our hall. Our mass liturgy was led by Fr. Jiss and Deacon Joe. It was a wonderful way to come together in prayer and celebrate as a whole school community.

SPORTS NEWS - MRS LEONNE CHALLEN

Boorowa Touch & Netball Carnival

At the time of submitting this report all our teams were off to a fantastic start! Thank you so much to our attending staff - Mrs Collins, Mrs Rumble, Mrs Anderson, Miss O’Dwyer, Mrs Eastwood, Miss Moorby & Miss Levett. It is a big day and we are so grateful for you giving up your time to be with the students!! 

Thank you to our parents for transporting students and to those parents who helped manage teams on the day. We couldn’t do it without you! 

Thank you to Mrs Anderson and her trusty helpers who generously put our tent up yesterday afternoon, securing us a great spot. We really appreciate your help!

Thank you to Mr Brendan Croese and Mrs Mary Wright who very kindly lent us some amazing helpers to ref and umpire the games for our teams. We love having the Hennessy students helping us and you all do such an incredible job!

K-2 League Stars Gala Day

Our Gala Day for infants is coming up next week! Thank you to Lou Gibson and Sarah Sullivan for volunteering to help with teams. We still have 4 teams without a manager - if you can help us out we’d really appreciate it! The draw can be found on the Compass Event in the Resources section. The teams are now full.

The teams can be found below.

2026 Archdiocesan Cricket Trials

We wish Shiven Jhunjhunwala the very best of luck as he competes for selection in the Archdiocesan Cricket Team for 2026 next Friday in Canberra. We hope you have an amazing time and look forward to hearing about your experience!

COMMUNITY COUNCIL NEWS

Sand Pit Refresh

This week, the Community Council arranged for a truckload of beautiful beach sand to be delivered to our sand pit. A big thank you to Mr Williams and his helpers for their time and effort in filling the pit — it looks amazing!

We’re sure the children will have a wonderful time playing in the fresh sand. The Community Council is also in the process of purchasing new sand pit toys, so stay tuned for more exciting updates!

PARISH BULLETIN