MAY 29, 2025 NEWSLETTER
- CHILD SAFETY STATEMENT
- FROM THE PRINCIPAL
- SCHOOL CLOSURE DAYS - 2025
- FROM THE REL - MICHELLE MALONE
- CLASS AWARDS
- YEAR 4 NEWS - TRUTH WALK
- CROSS COUNTRY - CONGRATULATIONS
- SCHOOL DATES - 2025
- 2026 ENROLMENTS
- FEE RELIEF - FAMILIES AFFECT BY DROUGHT
- CAMPS, SPORTS & EXCURSION FUND
- SPECIAL LUNCH - TUESDAY JUNE 17
- DIGITAL LITERACY & SAFETY WEBINAR
- TRIVIA NIGHT - SAVE THE DATE
- FRIENDSHIP FIRST AID FOR PARENTS
- FRIENDSHIP AND BELONGING
- PRE LOVED CLOTHING SALE - JUNE 28
- SPORTING SCHOOLS - TERM 2
- COMMUNITY NEWS
CHILD SAFETY STATEMENT
FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Dear Parents and Carers,
As we celebrate Catholic Education Week, it's an optimal time to focus on all the wonderful gifts that Catholic Education has provided for children, families and staff over the past 176 years. Our motto, 'Give Yourself to Goodness', says it all. We welcome all who belong to our school community to walk with us in a spirit of goodness and acceptance.
Unfortunately, we had to postpone the kinder visits this week due to unwell staff. Hopefully we will be able to reschedule in the coming weeks.
The Year 3 & 4 classes joined Travis Lovett on the Walk for Truth on Wednesday. They carried the Walk for Truth banner proudly while chatting to Travis about what he was hoping to achieve on the walk. A group of our Year 4 students were interviewed about their understanding of the need for Truth Telling for a podcast called 'Hey History'.
15 children made their Confirmation on Tuesday evening, at the Infant Jesus Church in Koroit. Tomorrow, Friday, Fr Matt will say mass for the whole school to mark Catholic Education and Reconciliation Week at 12.30pm. All parents and extended family are welcome to join us.
I look forward to seeing you all in September after catching up with family and some sightseeing in WA followed by volunteering in schools in Lesotho, South Africa. Mr. Benson Steere will be the Acting Principal in my absence. While I'm away the Principal recruitment process for 2026 will be well underway.
Olga Lyons
SCHOOL CLOSURE DAYS - 2025
Term 2 - Tuesday June 10 - Wellbeing PD
Term 3 - Monday July 21 - Structured Literacy PD
Final Day for Students in Term 4 - Wednesday December 17
FROM THE REL - MICHELLE MALONE
CONFIRMATION CANDIDATES
CLASS AWARDS
The following children will receive awards at this Friday's assembly:
Year 1: Marli Coxall, Scout Hurley
Year 2: Tommy Fitzgerald, Laura Murrihy, Beau Moutray
Year 3: Poppy Ruiz, Frank Watty
Year 4: Violet Armstrong, Margot Oswin
Year 5: Nellie Bourke, Sully Hayes
Year 6: Maya Frost
YEAR 4 NEWS - TRUTH WALK
On Wednesday 28th May, Year 4 participated in the Walk for Truth with Commissioner Travis Lovett. Travis is walking from Portland to Parliament House sharing his knowledge of First Nation’s History and building connections in our Australian community. We walked with Travis from the church to Railway Place. It was a great experience and connected our learning to our current literacy and inquiry units. In Year 4 we are reading Uncle Xbox as our novel study. It is written by First Nations author Jared Thomas. Our current writing genre is a factual recount based around the colonisation of Australia.
A few comments from the Year 4 students:
“It was interesting to take part in the smoking ceremony.”
“We learned a lot by asking questions to Travis, the Commissioner.”
“It was fun to be part of the Walk for Truth.”
“It was really fun to carry the sign about the Walk for Truth.”
“It was really interesting to answer questions about the Walk for Truth.”
CROSS COUNTRY - CONGRATULATIONS
Congratulations to Billy McCorkell, Lewis MacKenzie, Sully Hayes and Will Versace for their participation in the Greater Western Region Primary School’s Cross Country held last Monday at Albert Park In Warrnambool. Lewis (9th), Will (7th) and Sully (5th) secured top 10 finishes and as a result will now compete in the School State Championships on the 24th July at the Yarra Valley Racing Club. They have now advanced through the District, Division and Regional competitions and now onto the State Championships!.
Three runners competing in the 2025 State Championships is an outstanding result for St.Patrtick’s Port Fairy.
SCHOOL DATES - 2025
| Friday May 30 | Moyne Winter Sports Assembly at 2.40pm |
| Tuesday June 3 | F- Yr 2 Warrnambool & Tower Hill Excursion Yr 6 - Social Innovatora at Koroit |
| Friday June 6 | Year 5 & 6 Winter Sports |
| Monday June 9 | Labour Day Public Holiday |
| Tuesday June 10 | School Closure Day - Staff PD |
| Thursday June 12 | Girls Division Football Year 3 & 4 History Walk Cheeseburger Special Lunch cut off for orders at 3pm |
| Friday June 13 | Division Football & Netball Assembly at 2.40pm |
| Monday June 16 | Dental Van Week - Day to be confirmed |
| Tuesday June 17 | Cheeseburger Special Lunch at first break |
| Thusday June 26 | Learning Showcases at 2.30pm |
| Friday June 27 | Assembly at 2.40pm |
| Saturday June 28 | St Pat's Pre Loved Clothing Sale in the School Hall from 9am-1pm |
| Tuesday July 1 | Parent Teacher Interviews - 2pm-6pm |
| Wednesday July 2 | Parent Teacher Interviews - 3.30pm-6pm |
| Friday July 4 | 2026 Enrolments Close Reports release on PAM Last Day of Term 2 at 2.20pm |
| Monday July 21 | Students return for Term 3 Closure Day - Structured Literacy |
| Tuesday July 29 | Book Fair Open First Eucharist Information Evening (Parent & Child) - St Joseph's Warrnambool at 7pm |
| Tuesday August 5 | First Eucharist Formation Day - St Pius Warrnambool |
| Sunday August 10 | Presentation of First Eucharist Candidates - St Patrick's Church Port Fairy at 10.30am |
| Sunday August 31 | Sacrament of Eucharist - St Patrick's Church Port Fairy at 10.30am |
2026 ENROLMENTS
FEE RELIEF - FAMILIES AFFECT BY DROUGHT
CAMPS, SPORTS & EXCURSION FUND
Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) is available to eligible families to help with the costs of camps, sporting activities and excursions/incursions. If you are a Healthcare Card holder or have a pension card and have not applied for CSEF, and you would like to apply for the funding, please fill in the attached form or collect one from the office.
Applications for 2026 CSEF support closes on June 26
Click on the link below for more information & application form.
SPECIAL LUNCH - TUESDAY JUNE 17
DIGITAL LITERACY & SAFETY WEBINAR
SchoolTV invites parents, carers, grandparents, educators and school leaders to attend an exclusive webinar supporting primary and secondary students.
WEBINAR: Digital Media Literacy & Safety (Part II)
DATE: Wednesday, 18 June 2025
TIME: 7:30 pm
This exclusive session with two of Australia's leading experts in youth wellbeing and cybersafety, Susan McLean and Dr Michael Carr-Gregg is a one-off event and will not be available to replay later.
Register using this link or via the QR code below.
TRIVIA NIGHT - SAVE THE DATE
FRIENDSHIP FIRST AID FOR PARENTS
Think of yourself as their guide, not their rescuer
According to Alfred Adler, the father of Individual Psychology, managing friendships is one of the three life tasks that everyone encounters. The other two are work/school and family.
Adler urged parents to recognise that a child’s friendship capacities are central to their (a child’s) wellbeing and a significant contributor to school (future work) success.
As a parent guide, you need tools to help your child resolve their friendship issues.
Here are ten time-tested tools to add to your parenting toolbox to help your kids become expert friendship problem-solvers.
1. Listen First, Judge Later (or Never!)
When your child comes to you with a friendship woe, your first instinct might be to offer solutions or take sides.
Resist this urge. Instead, create a safe space for them to vent.
Put down your phone, point your feet in their direction, make eye contact, and truly listen to their perspective.
You might hear about a playground squabble over a toy, feeling left out during recess, or a misunderstanding about a playdate.
Feeling heard and understood is the first step in them feeling empowered to tackle the issue.
2. Help Them Identify the Problem
Once they've shared their story, gently guide them to pinpoint the core issue. Sometimes, what seems like a huge drama is a simple misunderstanding. Ask open-ended questions like:
"What exactly made you feel upset/angry/left out?"
"What do you think the problem is here?"
"What did your friend say or do that bothered you the most?"
This process helps them move beyond just expressing their feelings to analysing the situation.
3. Brainstorm Solutions Together
Resist the urge to offer quick fixes, unless they are truly stuck. Instead, ask your child:
"What are some things you think you could do?"
"Have you seen other kids solve problems like this before?"
"What would happen if you tried talking to your friend about it?"
Encourage a range of ideas, no matter how silly they might initially sound.
This teaches them that there isn't always one "right" answer and that they have the ability to generate options.
4. Use Behaviour Rehearsal
Once you've brainstormed some potential solutions, it's time to implement them in a safe space.
Let your child practise what they’d say in different social situations and scenarios.
You can pretend to be a friend, and your child can practice what they want to say or do.
This builds their confidence and helps them feel more prepared when they face the real situation.
5. Focus on Things They Can Control
Kids must understand that they can only control their actions and reactions, not their friends'.
If a friend is consistently unkind, the solution might not be to change the friend, but to learn how to set boundaries or decide how much time they want to spend with that person.
Help them identify what they can do in the situation.
6. Discuss Different Friendship Levels
Help your child understand that not all friendships are the same. Friendships fit three different levels:
Close friends—typically, children have between one to three close friends at any one time.
Casual friends are children your child knows well, but don’t always form a tight group with.
Acquaintances are a broader circle of friends who may share similar interests, be in the same class, or know each other through after-school activities.
It's okay if some friendships have more bumps than others and if they change over time.
7. Emphasise Empathy
Friendship problems often arise from a lack of understanding of each other's perspectives.
Encourage your child to think about how their friend might be feeling. Ask questions like:
"How do you think your friend felt when that happened?"
"Why do you think your friend might have done that?"
“How did it affect your friend, do you think?”
Developing empathy is key to resolving conflicts and building stronger relationships.
8. Help Your Child Understand How Good Friends Act
Help your child understand what a good friend looks like and how they behave so they can be good friends and recognise unfriendly behaviour from others. For instance, good friends:
Share information, time and possessions. They give of themselves but understand the boundaries of disclosure.
Allow their friends to have other friends and don’t expect exclusivity.
Know how to keep secrets and will stick up for their friends.
Use this list to guide a conversation with your child around friendships.
9. Recognise Their Efforts, Not Just the Outcomes
Solving friendship problems is a learning process. Sometimes, despite their best efforts, things might not work out exactly as they hoped.
As the saying goes, you can’t win ‘em all! Acknowledge their courage in resolving the issue, regardless of the outcome.
Focus on the skills they used – communicating their feelings, brainstorming solutions, or standing up for themselves. This reinforces that the effort is valuable, even if the immediate problem isn't resolved.
10. Handle Friendship Changes
Best friends forever! Nice idea, but not practical for most children. Kids change. Friends drift apart.
They develop and mature at different stages and can leave each other behind.
That doesn’t excuse unfriendly or mean behaviour, but knowing that can help children understand why yesterday’s friend is no longer close.
Hurtful? Yes. But natural nonetheless. Resilient kids cope with this minor loss and form friendships with other children based on shared interests, hobbies, or school subjects.
Your role is to empower your child to navigate the social world. So you’re part guide, part emotional supporter and part teacher.
By listening, guiding, and encouraging their problem-solving skills, you're equipping them with essential life skills that will serve them far beyond the playground.
You're teaching them resilience, communication, and the ability to build and maintain healthy relationships—invaluable life skills.
FRIENDSHIP AND BELONGING
PRE LOVED CLOTHING SALE - JUNE 28
SPORTING SCHOOLS - TERM 2
Sporting Schools started on Tuesday May 6. The days will be Tuesdays and Thursdays. The last day will be Thursday June 19.
To sign your child/children up for Sporting Schools use the eForm on the Schoolzine App the night before or the morning of the session that they will be attending. Please do not sign up days/weeks in advance, plans often change and we will be expecting them to attend.
COMMUNITY NEWS
