Dear Parents and Carers

Catholic Education Schools Enrolment Period Closing this Friday 30 May

We have had a good enrolment period with quite a number of families attending each of the five open school enrolment sessions. Places are still available in Kindergarten for 2025 so please enrol soon to secure a place. 

Please contact the school if you have a younger sibling that is still to be enrolled for Kindergarten at Rosary for 2025.  Please spread the word to people outside the school that enrolments need to be in as soon as possible for 2025, if you know they may be considering enrolling their child at Rosary.

Enrolments will still be accepted after this Friday, pending the availability of a place in classes from Kindergarten to Year 6. Interviews with families enrolling their child at Rosary are underway, with offers being made before the end of Term 2.  

SSACT Cross Country and Netball Gala Day

On Monday, a team of almost 50 students represented Rosary at the North/Gungahlin SSACT Cross Country. They showed great determination and gave their best effort throughout the day. Ten of the students did so well they have been selected to represent the region at the ACT Cross Country Championship in a couple of weeks. We wish them the best of luck as they prepare to compete at the next level!

On Tuesday, we had two Year 3/4 netball teams participate in the Netball Gala Day. Both teams played with enthusiasm and worked well together, demonstrating excellent teamwork and skills. It was wonderful to see everyone participating so positively and enjoying the experience.

A big congratulations to all students who took part in these events — your hard work and team spirit make us proud! Keep up the great effort!

Kindergarten Assembly

Last Friday, our Kindergarten students proudly led the very first grade assembly of the year. They shared with everyone the exciting activities and new skills they have been learning so far. The children spoke confidently and did a wonderful job engaging their audience. It was great to see how much progress they have made and how enthusiastic they are about school. The assembly was a fantastic opportunity for our youngest students to build confidence and showcase their hard work. Thanks to the Kindergarten teachers, Mrs Hinds and Miss Rich, for their preparation and congratulations to all the Kindergarten students for their fantastic effort and bright smiles!

CLAIM THE DATE 

Rosary 2025 School Photos - Tuesday 10 June (Week 7)

Please be aware of this date coming up and if possible ensure that your child attends school on time for the series of class photos that will start at 9.00am this day.  Students will need to be in full winter school uniform on this day, regardless if this is one of their sports days. Teachers will adjust school sports days or lessons this week if needed. Thank you. 

Semester One (Mid-Year)  Reporting Period Approaching

Students are working hard in their classrooms and teachers are beginning to assess students on recent work prior to moderating and grading students for their Semester One Report. Reports will be available to view on Compass in Week 9 of this term, on Wednesday 25 June.   

Claim the Dates:

You will be invited to attend a parent teacher conference in Week 10, on either Monday 30 June or Tuesday 1 July. An online booking sheet for times will be released in advance of this time. 

Across our Catholic Primary Schools the 2024 Semester One report will have overall grades awarded for each subject as well as indicators of performance in each strand of some core subjects, like English, Mathematics and The Arts. There will be no written comments included in the report this Semester, but they will be included in the 2025 Semester Two Report.  This makes the upcoming parent teacher conferences very important to discuss your child’s progress in the first half of the year.      

Although the times mentioned above are our formal whole school meeting times, please remember that you can make an appointment with your child’s teacher at any time of the year to discuss their academic progress or social skills/development. 

Winter Uniform Reminder and Hats Not Compulsory

Just a reminder that all students should now be wearing their full winter uniform. 

In line with Sunsmart advice, our students at Rosary will not be required to wear a school hat in June or July, the main winter months when UV rates are at their lowest. Some students may have sensitive skin and are of course permitted to wear their hat through winter if they wish.

Students may wear a plain black or navy beanie with their school uniform to keep warm.  Please note, beanies with logos or of different colours are not to be worn. Plain black jackets are permitted to be worn in winter too.  

Wishing everyone a wonderful week ahead. 

God Bless

John O'Brien

Acting Principal

This week we are pleased to welcome Fr Renoir into our Year 4 classrooms! He will be coming to help our students learn about the importance of the Eucharist. Our Year 4s have been learning about this sacrament as they prepare for their First Eucharist! We are particularly fortunate to have Fr Renoir joining us as he is a member of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament!

This order, founded in 1856 by St Peter Julian Eymard, has a particular charism and devotion to the Eucharist, and we are very fortunate to share in this as our Year 4s prepare to receive Jesus for the first time!

The Eucharist is the ‘source and summit’ of all Christian life, and it is wonderful that our children are learning about it and the role it can play in making Christ a physical part of our lives. Our Year 4s have been exploring the long history of the Eucharist; they started this at Easter when they did a wonderful job sharing the Last Supper with the school. This most significant Passover Feast is celebrated as when Christ instituted the Eucharist, and since that holy night nearly 2000 years ago, people have been joining together in worship of God made present in the bread and wine!

If you are interested in learning more about the preparation that we are undertaking, please contact me by email, and I would be happy to discuss it with you, especially if your child is in Years 5 or 6 and has not made their First Holy Communion.

A wonderful opportunity to explore our faith and celebrate the Rucharist is our Parish Retreat, which is coming up on the 7th of June to Penrose Park in NSW.

Important Dates:

Year 1 Liturgy                       - Week 5 (Friday 30th of May, 10:00 am)

Jubilee Pilgrimage                 - Saturday 7th June

First Eucharist Retreat Day    - Week 8 (Friday 20th June)

First Eucharist                        - Saturday 21st June (5:00 pm)

                                             - Sunday 22nd June (time TBC)

Year 4 Mass                           - Week 9 (Friday 27th June)

I hope you and your family have a blessed week!

Kind regards,

 Christopher Evans

Religious Education Coordinator (Acting)

• Year 3 National Zoo and Aquarium Excursion - Friday 30th May
• Year 1 Liturgy - Friday 30th May - Holy Rosary Church 10.00am
• Reconciliation Day Public Holiday - Monday 2nd June
• Year 2 Assembly - Friday 6th June - 2.20pm Shool Hall
• Sovereigns Birthday Public Holiday - Monday 9th June 
• School Photos - Tuesday 10th June - Full Winter School Uniform to be worn
• ACT 12 & U Cross Country Championship (Mt Stromlo) - Friday 13th June
• Year 4 Assembly - Friday 13th June - 2.20pm School Hall

Catholic Education Canberra-Goulburn has communicated to schools regarding reporting to parents/guardians. CE has advised schools that general comments will not be required on Semester 1, 2025 reports, but to prioritise Parent/Teacher Conferences for every family. These meetings provide an opportunity to discuss your child’s progress, their strengths, challenges and future areas of focus. A Semester Report will be sent home as in previous Semesters, providing A-E grading, work habits and attendance information.

CE has advised schools that Semester 2, 2025 reports will have a general comment for all children as in previous years. This general comment will provide a summative comment for the year, areas of achievement and areas to focus on for the following year. A-E grading, work habits and attendance information will remain as normal.

We would encourage all parents/guardians to engage regularly with their child/ren’s learning, connecting with their class teacher/s regularly to discuss learning progress.

Rosary Reads launched last week as a way for children from Years 2-6 to recommend books to fellow students. Congratulations to our students who have already completed reviews. Reviews are displayed, fittingly, outside Mr Read’s office. As part of their book review, students share an idea or some words they could borrow (‘magpie’) for their own writing. A year 5 writes: I learnt that stories can be sad because life is sometimes really sad, so it sort of fits. Another Year 5 writes: I don’t want to spoil it, but in the first book when the twins are separated, it gives me so many ideas because twins have to find their way back to each other. It also has lots of interesting words to use in my writing like ‘mechanics, miniature and asylum’.

Rosary Reads is seeking student recommendations for narratives and information books. Students complete these in their own time. We can only display work that is easy to read. We recommend students write a rough copy before completing their Rosary Reads sheet in pen. Anyone whose work is displayed goes into the draw to win a $20 book voucher from The Book Cow. The first draw will be at the end of Week 6.

Rosary Reads sheets are available from Year 2-6 class teachers and the front office. This program will continue all year.

Happy reading!

Karen Green

English Lead

Whole Day Absences

If your child is absent from school for a whole day or longer, please submit details of the absence via the Parent Portal. This should be completed within 7 days of the absence.  There is no need to adjust times for whole day absences.

If your child will only be absent for a partial day, the absence will be recorded as your child is signed in or out via the kiosk at the front office. You do not need to add an early pick up or late drop off via the Parent Portal.

Unexplained absences for your child will be displayed on your homepage when you log in to Parent Portal.

If an unexplained absence appears that you believe to be incorrect, please send an email to the front office for investigation.

Access to the clothing pool will now be as follows:

Monday - Friday - Before and after school only

Thank you to our wonderful parent volunteers who maintain the space for our community.

Please note: All donations of preloved uniforms (in good wearable condition) are welcome at the front office.

There are many extracurricular activities available onsite for our Rosary Students.  Please note all of these activities attract a fee and are delivered by external providers.  Please see the timetable below for details:

• French Lessons - Wednesday 8.00am - 9.00am (beginner) from week 2
• Italian Lessons - Friday 8:00am - 9:00am (beginner) 
• Action Tae Kwon-Do - Monday 6.30pm Children class / 7:30pm Adult class
• Chess Club - Tuesday 3.10pm - 4.30pm (Weeks 1-9)
• Zanshin Martial Arts - Tuesday 6.30pm Junior class / 7:30pm Senior class
• Artkids - Thursday 3.10pm - 5.00pm
• Musicorp (various instruments) / Piano Lessons - Friday 8:20am and during class time throughout the day
• Block Crafters - Tuesday and Wednesday from Week 2 - 3.15pm - 5.00pm Coding and Robotics After School Programme for interested students aged 8-12 years 
• Dance Club - PLAY - The Dance Agency - Tuesdays at Lunchtime from Weeks 2-9 - Kinder to Year 4

Please contact the school if you require further information.

Just a few reminders about the car parking and drop off / pick up arrangements:

• The speed limit is 5 km/hr in the car park and all road rules apply.
  
  
•  Pedestrians always have the right of way. 

• Park only in the designated parking spaces, facing forwards towards the university. 

• The white markings relate to traffic flow and parking (coloured markings relate to the children’s playing spaces.) 

• The area closest to the Peace Gates is reserved for Set Down Only in the mornings. Parents can stop in the marked bays long enough for children to alight from the vehicle on the quadrangle side and then enter the school through the Peace Gates. 

• For pedestrian safety there is no parking or stopping against kerb near Peace Gates after school. 

• Please note that no reversing is allowed from the bays marked on the courts. 

• Please follow the white arrows and drive in and drive out again in a forward direction only. This is to reduce the risk to children who cannot be seen by reversing vehicles. 

• Due to the spacing of the bays, parallel parking is only available in the area adjacent to the shade shelter on the oval. This area should be used by larger vehicles and trucks wherever possible. 

• Parallel parking is not available adjacent to the university grounds as this space is needed for vehicles to exit the parking area in a forward direction. 

• Parking on the courts is not permitted between 9:15am and 2:45pm as they are used for play at recess and lunch and by classes for sport throughout the day. 

• There is ‘Long Stay’ parking available in front of the hall for parents who spend time at the school after 9:00am. (This is the only area in which reversing to exit is permitted.) This ensures that the courts area is free for classes to use for sports lessons. 

• After school, some parents may need to see teachers or the front office staff. If this is the case, please leave your cars outside in the bus bay or behind the hall on Higginbotham Street as the gates are locked at 3:30pm. 

• All students travelling home by car are to wait in the quad until collected by a parent/carer. 

• Parents waiting for their children after school are asked to move well into the quad to assist access. 

• When children arrive at school, they are to enter via the Peace Gates in the quadrangle. Children are not to enter through the front office foyer. Likewise, children are not to leave through the front office at the end of the day unless catching a route bus. 

• No child is to meet a parent/carer anywhere other than the quadrangle area at the end of school. 

• The children must be supervised in the car park – they are not permitted to go to a parked vehicle without a parent/carer with them.

Classes commence next Tuesday 6th May in the school hall after eating break. 

Use the link below to register.

2025 Term 2 - SCHOOL PROGRAM ROSARY PRIMARY SCHOOL • Play