From The Principal

Dear Parents, Students, Staff and Friends of Nativity School,

Last Friday our staff attended a retreat with the theme Leading with a Josephite Heart. This theme was created by our year 6 leaders and appears on our email signatures during 2025. We had an opportunity to reflect upon Mary MacKillop as a leader. She was definitely a woman who led by example and rolled up her sleeves and got involved wherever she saw a need. Mary also led others through companionship and walking with them on their journey. Throughout the day we were challenged to think about how we can all lead in our school and as a result of learning more about Mary MacKillop, what was the call in our own hearts about how and where we might do this.

Teachers are now finalising Semester 1 Reports, and these will be sent home during week 10. A reminder that the semester 1 A-E Report will reflect student progress towards the end-of-year Achievement Standard. Therefore, the Semester 1 grade reflects the level to which a student is ‘on-track’ in achieving their final grade. When reading your child’s report, it is important to remember that progress is different to performance – progress indicates the growth your child is making in their learning over time, regardless of their starting point and regardless of their grades. It is the difference in knowledge, skill, sophistication or proficiency a child could previously demonstrate versus what they can demonstrate now. As always if you have any questions about your child’s achievement, please speak with their class teacher.

As you know, at Nativity we partner with Cyber Safe Families to educate our parents, students and staff about online safety. On Thursday 26th June our students from years 3-6 will be participating in a cybersafe session which will include the following topics:

• Digital reputation
• Online Gaming
• Social Media dos and don’ts
• Cyber bullying
• AI and online safety
• Online Grooming
• Strategies for online wellbeing and screen time management
• Staying within the law
• Online security and privacy, protecting personal information.
• Ways to stay safe where to seek help

There are some great resources on the Cybersafe Families website, and you can also follow them on social media for updates. https://cybersafefamilies.com.au/

Mrs Ruddock has now posted the Kitchen Garden Recipes for term 2 on Seesaw, so you can try them at home. I have been particularly pleased to see our students trying a variety of foods through their cooking experience in this program as I visit the kitchen each week. The Kitchen Garden Program empowers young people to develop practical skills, an appreciation of seasonal produce, and a positive, confident and healthy relationship with food.
Here’s what some of our students said about the Kitchen Garden Program:
Georgie – I like that everyone gets a turn to cook. The roasted Beetroot Risotto was my favourite.
Elliot- I like the food we cook in the kitchen especially the broad bean bruschetta
Naksh – I’ve enjoyed all the cooking and I also like weeding and watering the garden.
Hazel – I really enjoyed eating all the food!

Finally, a reminder that Tuesday 17th June is our annual School Photo Day. Please ensure that your child/ren are wearing their formal winter uniform for this day and check your inbox for an email on how to order your photos.

God Bless,
Erika