Newsletter No. 9 | Term 2 Week 5 | Friday 23rd May 2025

Prayer

Loving God, 

We thank you for the gift of learning. 

We praise you for the beauty and wonder of the world around us, and the ability to understand it. 

We thank you for the role of Catholic schools in nurturing faith, knowledge, and service. 

As we celebrate Catholic Education Week, we pray for our students, teachers, and families. May they grow in wisdom, compassion, and a deeper love for you. 

Bless our schools with a vibrant spirit of learning, faith, and community. May we all be instruments of hope, love, and faith for one another. 

Amen.

Principal's Message

Dear Families and Friends,

This week marks Catholic Education Week - a special time to celebrate the rich, holistic learning experiences offered by Catholic Schools.
Having worked in the Ballarat Diocese for nearly eight years, I continue to be inspired by how genuinely the organisation lives out its vision: As partners in Catholic Education, and open to God's presence, we pursue fullness of life for all.

Catholic schools warmly welcome all families who seek an education grounded in these values- regardless of culture, religion, or background. Spread the word so that others can experience the difference an education at St. Brendan's can make.

This Thursday, we will come together at St.Mary's with the Colac Catholic schools to celebrate Mass. Following Mass, our Year 6 students will join their peers from St Mary's and Sacred Heart for a series of engaging activites led by Andre Delorenzo.

After the activites, the Year 6 students from all three schools will enjoy their lunch together at the Memorial Square. This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to connect with others, build new friendships, and begin forming relationships that will support their transition to secondary school next year.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend 

Leanne Eastman

Dry Conditions

While we are very much enjoying the beautiful sunshine, we know that our region is absolutely desperate for rain. Many farmers I have spoken to have never seen their land so dry. I know that some of  our families are directly impacted by this. Please reach out to us if paying school fees is a challenge - we are here to help.

School Camp

It was both a pleasure and a privilege to accompany the Year 5/6 students on camp to Warra Gnan in Warrnambool this week. They are a fantastic group, and the bond they share is something truly special. The way they support one another and interact with such ease speaks volumes about their character—and highlights one of the real strengths of being part of a small school community. When the staff enjoy camp nearly as much as the students, it says a lot about the students!

This was the first time we had gone to Warra Gnan. It was a terrific camp. The staff and the activities were excellent and the food was phenomenal. Much of the camp experience was centred around the beach and Lake Pertobe - two environments which offer so much; fresh air, natural beauty, and opportunities for fun and challenging play.

I would like to thank Gerard and Mel who took time away from their own families to enable our students to have this experience. We appreciate your willingness to support us with making this possible for our students. 

See below for some student reflections on Camp:

Jackson Scott - My favourite parts of camp were kayaking and the sound and light show. I liked them because they were both really fun. I had a great time at camp.

Kaitlyn Bourk - My favourite part of camp was definitely kayaking and I think the other kids would agree too. I loved how all of our activities were centred around being outdoors and using teamwork while still making it an enjoyable experience for all! Not to mention the food supply was amazing! I would definitely recommend for other schools to come out near the coastline and get to experience the fresh sea air.

Charlie Ferrari - On day one we were waiting for the train at 9am. On Monday when we got to the camp we went to our cabins, the cabins are so good. On day 2 we went kayaking it was so fun and we also did beach activities, they were also fun. The food was unreal. Lake Pertobe's park was fun, the big slide is really tall, you have to go to that park! On day three we packed our bags and then we got to the train station. We were all so tired when we got back. The End.

Principal Position

The St. Brendan’s Principal position has been advertised this week. Lee Schlooz, Education Consultant for the Ballarat Diocese Southern Zone, will be coordinating the interview process. We appreciated that Lee came to our School Advisory meeting last week to explain how it will all work. One point that Lee stressed is that the Principal position is the only position in the school that is not a school-based decision, the decision rests with the panel and then approval from the Bishop. 

Applications will close on Sunday 15th June, after which candidates will be shortlisted and then interviewed. All going well, we hope to make an announcement before the end of Term.

A video made as part of the application package can be found at https://dobcel.catholic.edu.au/

Thank you to staff and students who took part in the video and to Bianca for representing the parent community. You all did a fantastic job!

Sports Catch Up!

Cross Country:

On Monday, Kaitlyn Bourk (year 6) will be heading to Warrnambool to participate in the Greater Western Cross Country event. The Greater Western region includes areas such as Horsham, Ballarat, Hamilton and Colac. Kaitlyn will be participating in the 1500m. We wish Kaitlyn all the best for a great run. We are so proud of you Kaitlyn - run like the wind!

Trinity School Band

We look forward to welcoming the Trinity School Band on Monday. They will be performing for us from 1.15  - 2.00. 

If you would like to join us for the performance you are most welcome!

River Detectives

On Tuesday May 27th our Year 3/4 students are heading to Woady Yaloak River (Corangamite area) for a River Detectives student. Thank you to Alice for organising this valuable outdoor learning excursion for our students. We look forward to hearing all about it!

Radio Awareness for Kids

On Friday 30th May the Year 3-6 students will be participating in an incursion focusing on raising awareness about the media, and in particular, radio. We look forward to welcoming Radio Awareness for Kids to our school. This will be a an informative and interesting educational experience for our students.

Wide Smiles Dental Visit

On Monday 26th May Wide Smiles Dental Team from Colac Area Health will be visiting our school at 9:15am to see our Prep/one students. You will be given a dental screening report of your child's oral health following their visit.

Building Project

The start date for construction of the School Building Project has been delayed to the start of Term Three, with the view to being completed at the beginning of Term Two, 2026. The plans are currently awaiting approval from council, after which they will be put out to tender. We will keep you updated.

Little Learners

On Monday we had our final Little Learners session for the year. It was lots of fun! Look out for our Pre-Prep program which will be running in Term 4.

Reporting - Changes to the Reporting of Numeracy

This year we are reporting on the new Numeracy Curriculum. The staff have been teaching to this in 2025 and will be reporting on this too. One of the changes to our reporting is that instead of reporting to several strands - Number and Algebra, Measurement, Space etc - we will now report to 'Mathematics' which will include all of the strands. Look out for this when our new look reports come home later in the term.

Bike Wheels Wanted

In our ‘Bike Wheel Drive’ we have currently collected one bike wheel - thanks to Pat O’Shea! We need at least 20, so if you have any spare bike wheels it would be appreciated. A variety of sizes would be great!

As mentioned in the previous Newsletter we will be using them for an Art project. The painted bike wheels will be used to decorate the front of the sports shed. 

Please note: We do not need the whole bike, just the wheels.

However, if you happen to have any bikes in good working order, we are always looking for bikes for the children to ride.

School Uniforms

School uniforms are now available for purchase. The online platform is up and running so if you wish to place an order scan the QR code below or get onto the Borne Apparel website and search for ur school.

Please Note: The last order preview did not have the school beanie on it. They are adding it to the online platform. It may take four weeks to come in so if you would like to order one for Winter it might be a good idea to do it soon.

There will also be the option of a school dress (the same as what we have) and optional navy pants (dressier than a tracksuit).

A reminder that you are under no obligation to buy anything at this stage. The transition period is two years.

School Photos 4th June 2025

There is no need to return any forms or money to school. Unique image codes will be issued to all students on/after photo day so families can register online to view images when they become available in the webshop.

Social Media

A reminder that you can follow us on the following social media platforms to stay up to date with all of the happenings in our vibrant school community.

School Attendance and Absentee Notification

Please ensure you are logging onto PAM, calling or emailing the school to advise if your child will be away or late to school prior to 9:30am each morning. This is a very important matter and we wish to ensure each child arrives to school safe.
Please remember students are not permitted to leave school unless permission has been granted. In these circumstances, the student needs to be signed out in the register at the Office. Thank you for your support in all these school matters.

Prep/1 Classroom

Welcome to Week 5!
I hope everyone has been rugging up on these cold mornings! We have been very busy in Prep/1, and we hope the Year 5/6‘s enjoyed their time at camp! 

Religion: In Religion this term, our theme is Love. We started by discussing what love looks like, feels like and sounds like. We also unpacked the Parable of the Mustard Seed and are now reflecting how small actions/acts of kindness can make a big difference in someone’s life.

Integrated Curriculum: In Integrated Curriculum this term our focus is Science. We have begun by learning about Forces and moving objects. Students have been exploring how objects can push, pull, roll and slide and how their direction can change. 

I hope you have a lovely week,
Tahlia

Tahlia O'Keeffe
tokeeffe@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au

2/3/4 Classroom News

Welcome to Week 5!
We hope the Year 5/6's enjoyed their camp and time spent together. The Prep/Ones joined the 2/3/4's for a fun afternoon and we loved hosting them! They played together beautifully and it was lovely to see them interacting in such a positive and joyful way.
We look forward to Catholic Education Week Mass next week, where we get to celebrate at St.Mary's Church with out Catholic network schools.

Intergrated Curriculum: We are learning about continents and countries and investigating facts and features related to them. We are currently gathering information about places within our country Australia.

R.E: This term in RE we are exploring the concept of UNITY. A basic definition talks about 'togetherness', or 'oneness'; a way that people can overcome divisions and join in something together. Catholic Christians believe gathering together at Mass is extremely important. Catholics believe that when they gather, pray, reflect on the scriptures and break bread together, then god is with them in a special way. The eucharist brings them together in unity. We will also be unpacking the Pentecost story and what it means for us today in our world.

Respectful Relationships: We have been investigating why it is important to seek help from an adult for serious problems. We have been looking at how serious or small a problem is, because that will help us to know when it's important to seek help from others or not. The children discussed various problems and rated them 1-10 for their severity.

Behaviour Matrix: We have been having a behavious blitz at school and our focus at the moment is, 'keeping your hands and feet to yourself', which is an important part of our Behaviour Matrix. We have discussed the importance of respectig others and role modelled situations where people might be physical and practiced using our words to express how we feel.

The Star of the Week award goes to Finlay Pigdon. Congratulations on your excellent effort!

Warm Wishes,
Mandy Sutherland
msutherland@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au

5/6 Classroom News

What an amazing time we had at the Warra Gnan Coastal camp down at Warrnambool. We were so lucky to have the experience we did in the beautiful natural environment along the coastline and the river. So many fun and memorable experiences were packed into our 2 days away.

The beach activities were a huge hit. The students participated in competitive relays, a creative sandcastle competition and some general beach exploration. These activities were fantastic for team building and just letting the students burn off some energy in the fresh sea air was enjoyed by all. 

We also engaged in a range of activities and competitions at the Lake Pertobe precinct. Activities included a GPS challenge, Amazing Race and various running games. One of my personal favourite activities was Kayaking on the Merri river, and I believe all the students equally enjoyed the experience. 

One of the unique experiences of the camp was definitely the sound and light show on night 2. . This truly magical evening activity brought a different dimension to our coastal exploration. Seeing the stories and history of the area come alive with projections and music under the night sky was captivating for both the children and the adults. 

I hope all the students have recovered well and caught up on some sleep (there wasn’t much sleep on camp).

Gerard Douglas
gdouglas@sbcoragulac.catholic.edu.au

Birthday Corner

Wishing a very big Happy Birthday to everyone who is celebrating their special day! Especially:

25th May - Laura Christofileas (9)

25th May - Noah Balcombe (6)

Important Dates

Catholic Culture

St Brendan's Coragulac & St Joseph's Pirron Yallock Mass Times

Mass & Lay-Led Times.

1^st SUNDAY of Month             9.00am   Mass - St. Joseph’s, Pirron Yallock

                                                10.30am  Lay-Led - St. Brendan’s, Coragulac

2^nd & 3^rd SUNDAY of Month    9.30am    Lay-Led - St. Brendan’s, Coragulac

4^th & 5^th SUNDAY of Month     9.00am    Mass - St. Brendan’s, Coragulac

Community News & Events

Bluewater Sensory Quiet Time Pool Session
When: Every Saturday between 1-3pm
Please contact Bluewater Colac if you have any questions.