Filter Content
Columba Catholic Primary School Acknowledges the Bunurong Peoples’ of the Kulin Nation as Traditional Owners and Custodians and pay respect to their Elders past, present, and emerging.
Columba acknowledges the Bunurong’s continuing relationship to the land and waterways and respects that their connection and spiritual identity are maintained through ancient ceremonies, songlines, dance, art, and living culture.
We pay tribute to the invaluable contributions of the Bunurong and other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Elders who have guided and continue to guide our work.
EASTER!
The Easter season, or Eastertide, is a 50-day liturgical season in Christianity that commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It begins on Easter Sunday and culminates with Pentecost Sunday. This period is a time of celebration and joy, with many traditional practices and customs observed worldwide.
Key aspects of the Easter season:
- Commemoration:
The Easter season is dedicated to celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. - Duration:
It lasts for 50 days, starting on Easter Sunday and ending on Pentecost Sunday. - Significance:
It is a time of profound religious significance for Christians, representing the triumph of life over death. - Traditional practices:
Various customs and traditions are observed during this time, including sunrise services, decorating Easter eggs, and enjoying special foods. - Liturgical colors:
The liturgical color for Eastertide is white, symbolizing joy, purity, and innocence. - Easter Sunday:
This day marks the beginning of Easter season and is the most important day of the Christian liturgical year. - Pentecost Sunday:
This marks the end of the Easter season and is a celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit.
Project Compassion
A big thank you to all of the Columba Community. Together we raised $1404 with our coins and bottle donations! This will help Caritas undertake important work around our world to help fight poverty.
Religious Education News
This term students will be inquiring about the year of Jubilee and being Pilgrims of Hope. The term started with a visit from the
Pilgrims of Hope Mascot, Luce.
Pope Francis asked us to be signs of hope for others, by putting Catholic Social Teaching into action through caring for our common home and supporting our sisters and brothers who are experiencing war, hunger or poverty. We know that the world is facing many of these challenges… but you are one of millions of people who are joining together in the Jubilee Year to bring the light of hope and the message of God’s love to every part of the world!
We can all be Pilgrims of Hope, so let’s start our journey right now! Pope Francis says: “By our actions, our words, the decisions we make each day, our patient efforts to sow seeds of beauty and kindness wherever we find ourselves, we want to sing of hope… and reawaken in every heart the joy and courage to embrace life to the full.”
This term we will come together in celebrate and prayer to make the following occasions;
Passing of Pope Francis: celebrated week one
Anzac Day service: celebrated week one
Mother’s Day: celebrated at school on Thursday 8th May
Catholic Education Week: celebrated on 22nd and 23rd May
Confirmation: Wednesday 4th June
Columba Day: celebrated on Friday 6th June
Level Masses throughout the term
Sacrament dates term 2
Confirmation
Commitment Mass:
3rd May St James NNG 5pm
4th May St John’s KWR 9:30am, St Joseph’s Iona 11am
Workshops: 14th May 5:30pm at Columba OR 15th May 5:30pm at St John’s
Sacrament Date Wednesday 4th June, 5pm at St John’s Koo Wee Rup
Religious Education and Sacramental Team
Dear Parents and Guardians,
A very warm welcome back to Term 2! I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable break, and that your children are feeling refreshed and ready for another exciting term of learning and growth here at Columba.
Holidays are always a wonderful opportunity to make new memories, regardless of whether you were able to travel or stay at home. Spending time with family is very precious, so I am hopeful most families had time to enjoy each other away from the routine and pressures of organised sports, activities, and school.
It was wonderful to see the students' smiling faces returning this week, full of enthusiasm for the term ahead. Term 2 promises to be a busy and engaging one, filled with a variety of academic, sporting, and cultural opportunities.
Here are some important dates and updates for the term:
- Cross Country: Get your running shoes ready! Our school cross country will be held next week on Wednesday, May 7th (NOTE change of date). We encourage all students to participate and show their school spirit. More information is included in this newsletter below.
- Grade 6 Confirmation: Some of our Grade 6 students will be taking a significant step in their faith journey as they celebrate their Confirmation. Commitment Masses will be starting this weekend. Please keep our candidates in your thoughts and prayers during this special time.
- Mother's Day Event: We are eagerly anticipating our annual Mother's Day event on Thursday, May 8th. To show our sincere appreciation for all the wonderful mothers and special women in our Columba community, we will have a coffee van on site, and all drinks will be on us! We look forward to celebrating with you.
- School Disco: Get ready to dance! DJ GJay will be making his return for our school disco later this term. More details regarding the date and time will be shared soon.
- St Columba's Day: We always look forward to celebrating our patron saint, St Columba, on June 9th. We will have special activities and celebrations planned for this week.
- Prayers for Pope Francis: We ask that you keep Pope Francis in your prayers following his passing. In this Jubilee Year, let us continue to hold onto the hope that he so often promoted.
Our teachers have been working hard to prepare engaging learning experiences across all year levels. The well-being of our students remains a top priority, and this term, we will be focusing on students standing up for each other and themselves. We will encourage students to make good choices and teach them what it means to be a good friend and peer. All Grade levels will be publishing a newsletter in the coming days to be sent home to families which will outline the learning priorities for the students in Term 2.
As always, we value the partnership between home and school, and we encourage you to stay connected with your child's learning and school life. Please don't hesitate to reach out to your child's teacher or the school office if you have any questions, positive feedback, or concerns.
We are looking forward to a productive and rewarding term together.
bit.ly/CommunityWebinarMay15
Sincerely,
Andrew Greco
Principal
ANZAC Day Commemoration
As part of the Victorian Curriculum, Columba students explore themes in Civics and Citizenship. They learn what it means to live in a democratic country and that all citizens have rights and responsibilities.
As part of this learning, we engage in important Australian celebrations and commemorations. This past fortnight students across the school learned about ANZAC day and what it means for our country.
As a school, we gathered for our own ANZAC service acknowledging the sacrifice of those who have served in our armed forces.
- Rescheduled Cross Country Event – Wednesday, 7 May
Due to unforeseen circumstances, our cross country event has been rescheduled to Wednesday, 7 May.
We are seeking parent volunteers to assist on the day. The event will run during the morning session, beginning with the Prep students and continuing through the year levels.
If you are available to help, please contact Danielle Sharpe, Sports Coordinator, at dsharpe@bunyip.catholic.
Your support is greatly appreciated and helps ensure the smooth running of the event.
The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) is a process used by all Australian schools to identify and support students with disability. It helps schools understand the adjustments they make to support students so they can learn and participate on the same basis as others. This information is collected each year in August and helps inform school planning, teaching, and funding to better meet student needs. Parents can be assured that the data is collected with care, and no names or personal details are shared. For more information about the NCCD, please refer to the attached parent fact sheet or contact Katelyn Sligar at learning@bunyip.catholic.edu.au
bit.ly/CommunityWebinarMay15
Closes Wednesday 7th May
The Columba Mother's Day Stall is now open for orders.
Presents are $5 each.
There is a limit of 2 presents per child.
The stall will be held at school on Thursday 8th May.
Orders are now open HERE
https://ordering.cdfpay.flexischools.com.au/m/columba-catholic-school-events-mothers-day-stall-2025
Or through the CDF PAY App
(same one as the lunch orders)
If you have not downloaded the CDF PAY APP, please do so asap as this will be where all school ordering will be done in the future
Register for the new CDFpay mobile app today!
The new CDFpay mobile app and website is now available for online canteen ordering, uniform shop, events, fundraising, and over-the-counter purchases at our school.
If you haven’t already, please register for a new CDFpay account today:
Download the CDFpay mobile app on
the Apple or Google store, then click ‘Sign up now’.
No app? Register here
Get yourself on Columba's Facebook Page!
News and up to date information regarding school life and events.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064239302919
The next time we gather will be on
Fri 16th May Senior assembly hosted by 5-6K in MPR
2:30pm start
Parents & families are welcome to join us!
Assemblies for Term 2
Fri 30th May Junior assembly hosted by 1H in MPR
Fri 13th June Senior assembly hosted by 3H in MPR
Fri 27th June Whole School assembly hosted by our Social Justice Leaders in the Learning Centre
'Pupil-free days, student-free days, school closures' are days of no school for students. These are scheduled days for either Professional Development (PD) for staff, Time In Lieu (TIL) days where staff have worked overtime, or school closures where no one is at school.
| Saturday | 3rd | May | - Commitment Mass Nar Nar Goon 5 PM |
| Sunday | 4th | May | - Commitment Mass Iona 11 AM |
| Monday | 5th | May | - Division Athletics |
| Thursday | 8th | May |
- Mother's Day Event 9:15am - Mother's Day Stall |
| Wednesday | 7th | May |
- Whole School Cross Country |
| 16th- | 23rd | May | - Catholic Education Week |
| 27th- | 3rd | June | - Reconciliation Week |
| Wednesday | 4th | June | - Confirmation Sacrament Grade 6 |
| Thursday | 5th | June |
- Disco (Prep, 1 & 2: 4 pm-5:30 pm Grade 3, 4, 5 & 6: 6 pm-7:30 pm) |
| Friday | 6th | June | - Columba Feast Day Celebration (actual feast day 9.5.25) |
| Monday | 9th | June | - King's Birthday Public Holiday |
| Friday | 4th | July | - Last Day Term 2 (2:30 PM finish) |
| 6th- | 13th | July | - NAIDOC Week |
| Tuesday | 22nd | July | - First Day of Term 3 for all students |
| Wednesday | 3rd | September | - Indigenous Literacy Day |
| Thursday | 4th | September |
- Father's Day Event - Father's Day Stall |
| Friday | 5th | August | - Book Week Dress Up Day |
| Thursday | 18th | September | - Last Day Term 3 (3:20 PM finish) |
| Monday | 6th | October | - First Day of Term 4 for all students |
| Wednesday | 15th | October | - Grandparent's Day |
| Tuesday | 21st | October | - Columba Expo Open Night |
| Monday | 3rd | November | - SCHOOL CLOSURE |
| Tuesday | 4th | November | - Melbourne Cup Public Holiday |
| Thursday | 13th | November | - Sacrament of Reconciliation - grade 3 |
| Friday | 21st | November | - Colour Run |
| Thursday | 4th | December | - Grade 6 Graduation 5pm-9pm |
| Wednesday | 10th | December | - End of Year Mass |
| Thursday | 11th | December | - Christmas Fundraiser - Movie Night |
| Friday | 12th | December | - Grade 6 Gumbya World (big day out) |
| Tuesday | 16th | December | - Grade 6 Guard of Honour |
| Thursday | 18th | December | - Last Day of Term 4 & 2025 (3:20 PM finish) |
HAVE YOU PAID YOUR TERM 1 School Fees?
2024 School Fees are Overdue
Please pay your fees as soon as you can, or contact the school to talk through your options.
finance@bunyip.catholic.edu.au
or contact Meg on 0356295933 (Tuesday, Wednesdays or Fridays)