Newsletter August 21, 2025

From the Principal

Dear Parents, Staff, Students and Friends of the Our Lady of the Way Community,
This week I am fortunate enough to be participating in the Australian Catholic Education Conference in Cairns. The conference runs from Wednesday 20th August to Friday 22nd August with its theme being ‘Hope, Anchored in Faith’. This theme will be explored through engaging professional learning experiences, with a rich program of speakers, workshops and presentations exploring Catholic identity, learning, leadership and community.

As I write this, I am reflecting on Day 1 of the Conference. Wonderful Key note speakers, a beautiful, prayerful and spiritual celebration of the Eucharist, great panel discussions and personal choice workshops. The eucharist was celebrated by Bishop Joe Caddy and Concelebrated by many other Bishops and Priests. Many children from the Catholic Schools in the Cairns Diocese shared the experience with us as taking the congregation to in excess of 1600 people. A wonderful experience to begin the Conference.

The opening keynote address was given by Sr Nathalie Becquart who is a Xaviere sister, Missionary of Christ-Jesus, a French Ignatian inspired order. Her main work has been the evangelisation of youth and recently as the Undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops after being appointed by Pope Francis.

Her presentation spoke to the hope of a Synodal Vision for Catholic Education. Synodal vision, in the context of the Catholic Church and Catholic Education, refers to Pope Francis's emphasis on a Church that is more participatory and inclusive, where all members are encouraged to listen to one another and discern Gods will together. There is a fostering a sense of communal journey and participation in the church's life and mission. It is a church that “walks together” with the aim of evangelizing and bringing the good news to the world.

The presenter articulated the understanding that Catholic means universal, inclusive and world-wide. In the context of a Catholic School all members of the community, family members, parish members and school members, have a responsibility to support our young people develop and flourish to be the best versions of themselves. We are asked to consider how Catholic Schools can become places where the equal dignity of all is recognised, where diverse voices contribute to educational excellence rooted in Gospel values and where servant and collaborative leaders are committed to hope, anchored in faith.

From day 1 I am left with a couple of questions to share with you for your consideration…
When you think about Catholic education, what words or images come to mind?
Why choose a Catholic Education for your child?
I look forward to Day 2 and 3.

Thank you and Best Wishes
Terry Cooney, 

Principal

2026 ENROLMENTS
I am currently interviewing families with children from Year 1 to 6 who wish to join our school community. We have limited places available in some year levels and many families wishing to join our school. Therefore if your child is not going to be continuing at Our Lady of the Way in 2026, I ask that you let Mrs Jodie Barnes know via the admin email ASAP. We have a waiting list in many levels and this may give the opportunity for another family to join our school community.

IMPORTANT-SICK BAY

We have had an increase in students attending school while unwell. To help prevent the spread of illness and protect the health of our school community, we kindly ask that you keep your child at home if they are unwell.

Even mild symptoms such as a sore throat, cough, runny nose, or fever can spread easily to others.

Thank you for your support in keeping our students and staff safe and healthy.

SUPERVISION TIMES
A reminder to all parents and carers that supervision of children by Our Lady of the Way staff begins from 8:30 each morning. If you need to drop your child off before this time you will need to use the services offered by the OSHC. This also applies for after school supervision which concludes at 3:30pm.

FOOD ALLERGIES

A reminder to all families that we have students in the school with Anaphylaxis. To help keep all students safe, please avoid sending any nut products in your child’s lunchbox.

We appreciate your support and understanding.

LUNCH ORDERS!

All cancellations should come via the office. No contact should be made with the Cafe directly.

Students need a fruit snack and morning tea on days that lunch orders are placed. 

SMART WATCH REMINDER

Please ensure that any student who wears a smart watch to school has it set to School Mode. This means the device must not be used during school hours.

Thank you for your cooperation.

CHANGES OF CLOTHES

With the recent rain, there are some muddy patches throughout the yard, and several students have unfortunately slipped or fallen in these areas, requiring a change of clothes.

To help us manage this more smoothly, we kindly ask that you consider packing a spare pair of pants in your child’s school bag, just in case they need a change during the day. While we do have some spare uniform items available, we may not always have the correct size for your child.

Should we be able to supply a change of clothes for your child, we kindly ask that these items be washed and returned at your earliest convenience. If underwear is provided, please note that it is brand new and does not need to be returned, as it cannot be reused.

Thank you for your support.

LABELLING UNIFORMS

Please ensure all uniform items are clearly labelled with your child’s name. We’ve been receiving uniforms in the office daily without any identifying labels, and unfortunately, these items cannot be returned to the students without proper identification. Please also check to see if your child has come home with another child's uniform item, and return it to the office if this is the case.

Thank you for your cooperation in helping us keep track of all belongings!

Religious Education-Pilgrims of Hope

SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION

The Sacrament will take place on Friday 5th September at 6.00pm. Registration for the sacrament should have been made via the survey on PAM or by returning the letter to your child's yr 6 teacher.

To receive the Sacrament of Confirmation, students must; 

- Be baptised in the Catholic faith

- Have participated in Sacrament of First Reconciliation 

- Have received sacrament of First Eucharist 

- Be in Grade 6 or above. 

Should you require any further information please email 

Mrs Nicole Pegler, Faith & Mission Leader nicole.pegler@ourladywallan.catholic.edu.au

Wellbeing

Wellbeing Wonderings

Having difficult conversations with children.

There are many topics which traditionally, families or parents, have trouble discussing with their children. There may be many reasons for this, however, research has shown that when parents are able to discuss difficult topics with their children, the benefits for the child/ren are many.

These include:

-Building the child’s resilience when faced with problems both at school and home.

- Helping the child to build problem solving skills and think for themself.

- Providing parents with opportunities to remind and ensure their children that they are loved and will always be supported with any problem they wish to talk about.

- Where possible, always have the conversation yourself. This helps build a level of trust between you and the child and a greater sense of comfort.

The website below is best explored in age ranges and has many wonderful tips for navigating a tricky aspect of life in appropriate, developmental ways.

https://raisingchildren.net.au/toddlers/connecting-communicating/tough-topics/tough-topics

Wellbeing quote of the week: “When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.” – Paulo Coelho.

Have a great week,

Daniel Phelan

Mental Health Wellbeing Leader.

      Have Your Say – MACSIS Parent Survey Now Open        We invite all parents and carers to take part in the 2025 MACSIS (Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys). Your feedback plays a vital role in shaping the direction of our school.

The information you provide helps us build our next set of school improvement goals. The survey identifies what we are doing well and highlights areas where we can grow. In 2024, the data indicated that parent engagement was an area for further focus—your voice in this year’s survey is more important than ever.

The survey is completely anonymous and is accessed via an individual code that cannot be used to identify or trace responses. We strongly encourage you to take a  few moments to share your experiences and help us continue to grow together as a school community.

If you are interested in being involved, sharing your experience and having an important say in planning our annual goals for the school please email me to register your interest.
Surveys and the unique codes are available from September 1st .                   

Annette Moore ~ annette.moore@ourladywallan.catholic.edu.au

Father's Day Breakfast: Please RSVP via the link. 

https://forms.gle/453eWAGJQP1EooZz8

Teaching and Learning

A big thank you to everyone who came along and supported our Scholastic Book Fair! Together, we sold $8,100 worth of books and earned $2,500 in Scholastic Dollars, which will go towards purchasing new books and resources for our school library.

BOOK WEEK DRESS UP

Our students enjoyed dressing up and parading their costumes on Monday. Thank you to all the parents who supported them in finding such fantastic outfits!

Some of the amazing costumes!

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Celebrating an Emerging Writer Demonstrating Remarkable Growth

Drowned by Abigail (5B)

Beep, beep, beep…Beep went my alarm. “Yeah, time to go diving with Derik and Mr. Henderson!” I squealed running down the stairs with excitement. I ran to the kitchen and grabbed my toast mum made me, then scoffed my toast down and got dressed as fast as I could – still trying to swallow my toast. I packed my swim bag with my flippers and goggles as I ran to the door and unlocked it. I bolted to Derik’s house. Derik came running to the door and we both walked to the boat, with Mr.
Henderson already waiting for us to arrive.

“Hurry up, get in your gear!” said Mr. Henderson sternly. Derik and I put our gear on and walked into the cage. “Wait Derik, your oxygen tank is emp…” I started saying but Mr. Henderson already switched the lever to drop us down. As we were in
the cage, I saw Mr. Henderson rip a rubbery disguise off, revealing his true identity. Suddenly, the rope snapped. My friend, Derik, panicking as he ran out of oxygen: I saw the fake Mr. Henderson dive off leaving us in the abyss of the ocean.

The cage got deeper and deeper. As I was trying to open the cage door, I saw something lurking in the deep abyss that surrounded us, and as soon as I opened the door, Derik was already bloodshed leading the huge – and so I thought – shark towards the bloody cage.

Suddenly, I drifted on the roof of the cage. I saw my parents, my best friends – was this a dream? Then I woke to the sound of this irritating humming. I then saw a glimpse of yellowish purple scaler with a mushed icky face. Wondering what it was, I opened the door of the cage, still guessing if I was still dreaming, and swam out: there were millions of these unknown creatures.

Physical Education

JUMP ROPE FOR HEART-tomorrow!

On Friday, August 22 all students will participate in Jump Rope for Heart after lunch.  Please ensure your child brings a water bottle on the day. Students are welcome to bring their own skipping ropes in from home. 

All students can wear sports uniform tomorrow!cristian.stella@ourladywallan.catholic.edu.au

We have our trials next week for the Mitchell District Track and Field Championships.  (This is not the Annual school sport day)
Students will need to compete for a spot on the dates outlined below and if there is any reason why they can't make it to email Mr Cristian Stella cristian.stella@ourladywallan.catholic.edu.au
Trials dates and times are as follows:

Shot Put: 27th of August Session 2
Discus: 27th of August Session 2

Long Jump: 28th of August Recess
Triple Jump: 28th of August Recess

Sprints: 28th of August Lunch
Hurdles: 29th of August Lunch

Long Distance team members will be approached due to their performance in Cross Country.

National Science Week

Last week Our Lady of the Way students celebrated National Science Week. The 2025 theme for National Science Week is ‘Decoding the Universe – Exploring the unknown with nature’s hidden language.’ This theme invites us to delve into the mysteries of the Universe by exploring the fundamental languages of nature, including mathematics and the ground-breaking field of quantum science.

Students in their classes participate in Science week activities and experiments, all students doing a Science Week activity in their Makerspace classes throughout the week. The whole school celebrated Science Week on Thursday the 14th of August, with an incursion from Street Science which taught the students about chemical reactions, DNA codes and quantum science!

French Words

Art

Music Lessons

Community Events

Beveridge NetSetGo 
Calling all budding netballers aged 5–10!
Join us for a fun and active program where kids can learn new skills, make friends, and fall in love with netball—all in a safe, supportive environment.
 Sessions kick off at 6pm inside the sporting stadium at Beveridge Primary - Ambrosia Campus.
 Register via the link provided. Every sign-up includes a NetSetGo T-shirt and netball - yours to keep! 
We can't wait to see you there