Celebrating the Sacrament of Confirmation.

This weekend, our Year 6 students will celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation with Bishop Martin. This marks a significant milestone, as it is the final Sacrament of Initiation our students receive during their time at Clairvaux.

As a Catholic school, we come together with the broader parish community not only as an educational community, but as a vibrant faith community. It is in these sacred moments that faith and life meet in ways that are deeply meaningful and transformative for our young people.

Through Confirmation, the virtues and fruits of the Holy Spirit are bestowed upon our Year 6 students to strengthen their personal faith journey and contribute to the growth of the wider Church:

We keep our Year 6 candidates, their families, and sponsors in our prayers as they take this meaningful step in their Christian lives.

Loving God,

We pray for our Year 6 students as they receive the Sacrament of Confirmation with Bishop Martin this weekend.

Send your Holy Spirit upon them to be their guide and helper.

Fill their hearts with the gifts of Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-control  May the grace of this sacrament encourage them to live their faith with courage, to walk with kindness, and to be a light for others in our school, parish, and wider community. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

2026 School Review: Initial Insights & Looking Ahead to 2027

As we move through the term, our leadership team and staff are well underway with planning and budget preparations for 2027. Setting the right conditions to ensure Clairvaux continues to thrive, maintain high standards, and meet our growth targets is a complex and rewarding challenge, and our recent school review has provided valuable guidance for this journey.

This week, we reached a major milestone in our review process as we met with the Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) review panel, Marita Richardson and Chris Bence. This comprehensive review evaluated our progress across five key school spheres: Leadership and Management, Learning and Teaching, Religious Education, Student Engagement, and School Community.

While we await the final written report from MACS, we are proud to share some initial insights and key panel commendations presented during Wednesday’s final meeting:

• Religious Education & Faith: Clairvaux is building a coherent, collaborative approach to Religious Education. Through the MACS RE curriculum, sacramental programs, Scripture, liturgical experiences, Godly Play, and Catholic Social Teaching, our students are supported in developing a deep, meaningful connection to their faith.
• Learning & Teaching: We continue to demonstrate a strong commitment to evidence-informed, consistent teaching practices aligned with the MACS Vision for Instruction, ensuring high-quality classroom experiences for every child.
• Leadership & Professional Coaching: Our positive coaching culture reflects the MACS Vision for Leadership. Shared professional learning and collaborative priorities are building collective expertise across our teaching staff.
• Student Engagement & Wellbeing: We have established a welcoming foundation built on belonging, strong relationships, and positive environments. Consistent routines, restorative practices, social-emotional learning, and tiered supports ensure every student feels known, supported, and ready to succeed.
• School Community: We deeply value our respectful partnerships with families, recognizing the vital role you play in supporting your child’s faith, learning, and growth.

What’s Next? These initial insights validate the hard work of our staff and students while providing clear direction for our next phase of growth. Once MACS delivers the final formal report, leadership will use these findings to shape our next multi-year School Improvement Plan (SIP) and guide our strategic budget decisions for 2027 and beyond.

Next week we will gather with other Catholic schools in Werribee who were also under review to commence our 4 year Strategic School Improvement Plan and 2027 Annual Action Plan.

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Clairvaux Weekly Buzz: Community Highlights, Athletics & Excursions!

Dear Clairvaux Families,

There is so much happening at Clairvaux every week! Every week our Year 6 leaders  capture a wonderful snapshot of the energy, learning, and achievements across all year levels. 

Media Spotlights & Community Achievements

• Page Turners in the Press! Keep an eye out for the latest edition of the Geelong Advertiser! A huge shoutout to Jack Hammond (3MN), who was featured in the local paper for his outstanding book review.
• City to Surf Athletics Champions: On July 24th, a whopping 78 students represented Clairvaux with pride at the City to Surf Athletics Day! Everyone gave it their all on the track and field. Congratulations to the 19 students who have qualified to compete at the Bellarine Division Athletics Day coming up in September.

 Around the Classrooms

• Prep | Real-Life Heroes Visit: Our Preps enjoyed an extra special outdoor visit from Victorian paramedics! Sitting outside in the sunshine, students learned how paramedics keep us healthy. A highlight was having a Prep volunteer sit up on the bench while the paramedics demonstrated how gear like blood pressure cuffs and finger monitors check a patient's heart and pulse.
• Year 1 | Artifacts with Grandparents: Continuing their unit on Then and Now, Year 1 celebrated a special Mass followed by an artifact sharing session. Grandparents brought in wonderful items from the past to share. It was a beautiful opportunity to connect our history studies with our Clairvaux family community.
• Year 2 | Exploring Geelong’s Heritage: In CCed, Year 2 students have been studying local historical landmarks. They created artwork featuring St Mary’s Basilica, focusing on its history as the tallest spire in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Year 3 | AFL Clinics & Classic Tales: Students enjoyed a footy clinic run by SEDA College students, practicing core AFL skills and playing team games. In reading, they completed The Wind in the Willows and watched the film adaptation—with Mr. Toad being the clear crowd favorite!
• Year 4 | Perspectives in History: Year 4 has been studying the First Fleet, writing thoughtful diary entries from the perspective of Indigenous Australians to explore what life was like prior to settlement.
• Year 5 | Debating Showcase: The highlight of the week for Year 5 was participating in interschool debates against Drysdale Primary School, demonstrating fantastic critical thinking and public speaking skills.
• Year 6 | Melbourne City Walking Tour: Year 6 caught the train into the CBD for an exciting history tour led by guides Branda and Joy. Exploring landmarks like Federation Square and The Block Arcade, students examined the topic "Waves of Change" and how diverse cultures have shaped our capital city over time.

Thank you to our teachers, LSOs, children, and parent community for making Clairvaux such a vibrant place to learn!

Debating News from Year 5

Barwon Junior Debating Round 4 vs Bellaire Primary School

Round 4 was another unseen debate topic, which meant that teams weren’t made aware of the topic until 30 minutes prior to their debate.

Topic: Camping grounds in National Parks should be free of charge

Debate #1 Clairvaux B (Negative) vs Bellaire B (Affirmative)

A hotly contested debate, saw Clairvaux B lose in a close one. Tom, Matteo and Lewis should be commended for their carefully constructed arguments that were practical and some clear rebuttals to the other team also. A big thank you to Ignatius for his support also. The final score was 225-219.

Debate #2 Clairvaux A (Affirmative) vs Bellaire A (Negative)

In what was described by judges as a close and high level debate. Lachlan, Claire and Van came out ahead in a razor close victory with scores reading 229-227. Congratulations to Van who was awarded best speaker! Thank you to Ruby for her support on this one! 

A big thank you to Lauren for her dedication making sure the debaters were prepared!

Jake 

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With only three weeks to go until the end of term let’s all maintain the energy and passion and finish the term satisfied with all the learning that happens every day at Clairvaux.  

Brendan

Sacrament of Confirmation

Let us pray.

Dear God,
We pray for our Year 6 students
as they prepare to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation this Sunday.

Send your Holy Spirit upon them
and fill them with your gifts of wisdom, courage, understanding and love.

Help them to be confident in their faith,
to make good choices,
and to use their gifts to care for others.

May they always remember
that they are loved by you
and that your Spirit is with them,
guiding them each day.

Bless our Confirmation candidates,
their families, sponsors and teachers
as they celebrate this special moment in their faith journey.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Father’s Day Mass

Year 3 families, fathers, grandfathers and special ‘father figures’ are invited to join us in celebrating a special Father’s Day mass on Thursday 3rd September at 9.30 am in St. Bernard’s church.

St. Bernard’s Day Celebrations 

What a wonderful day of festivities we enjoyed last Friday as we celebrated St Bernard’s Day!

Our celebrations began with a beautiful Whole School Mass at St Bernard’s Church, where we gathered to celebrate the feast day of our patron saint and reflect on how we can continue to shine our light through our words and actions.

The excitement continued with our annual Lap-a-thon for Mannya. It was wonderful to see all our students enthusiastically getting involved, running, walking and cheering each other on as we raised funds for our sister school, St Aloysius Primary School in Mannya, Uganda. Thank you to everyone who participated and helped make the Lap-a-thon such a success.

Throughout the day, students also took part in a range of fun activities connected to our ‘Shining Our Light’ theme. Our classrooms and learning spaces were buzzing with creativity as students created ‘Bee’ displays, celebrating the ways we can all bee like St Bernard – being kind, helpful, caring and friendly.

Students who were spotted bee-ing like St Bernard were given a special token, with seven lucky students then drawn to receive a beautiful hand-crocheted bee. A very special thank you to our Performing Arts teacher, Sarah Ferguson, for generously creating these gorgeous bees for our students!

Our year levels were also busy designing and creating new stickers for our Touchstones. We loved seeing the creativity and thought that went into each design. The winning designs will be announced in the coming days, so stay tuned!

Don't Forget Our Lap-a-thon Sponsorship

Most importantly, our Lap-a-thon doesn’t finish with the running! We now need to follow up on sponsorships and collect donations so that we can continue to support the children and families of Mannya.

Donations can be made online through School 24 → Events → Lapathon for Mannya until Friday 28 August.

Thank you to our wonderful Clairvaux community for helping our students shine their light and make a difference to the children of Mannya. A special thank you to Cyndie Mumford and our Year 4 CSC representatives for their organisation and support in making this special day possible.

St Bernard's Day 2026

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A Visit from the Paramedics

Our Prep students were very excited to welcome some paramedics and an ambulance to our school!

During the visit, the children had the opportunity to learn all about the important job paramedics do and how they help people when they are sick or injured. The paramedics showed us their ambulance and explained some of the equipment they use to care for patients.

The children were able to explore inside the ambulance, see the stretcher and look at some of the medical equipment. They also had the chance to sit in the ambulance and learn about the different features.

The students were very excited to see the flashing lights and learn about how paramedics travel quickly to help people in an emergency. They asked lots of questions and shared what they already knew about ambulances and emergency services.

It was a wonderful hands-on learning experience that helped the children understand the important role paramedics play in keeping our community safe. A big thank you to the paramedics for taking the time to visit our Prep classroom! 

St Bernard's Parish is Looking for a Playgroup Leader!

St Bernard's Parish is seeking someone with a warm and welcoming heart to lead our Playgroup on Mondays from 9:00–10:30am.

This is a wonderful opportunity to support young families, build friendships, and help our parish community grow.

If you would like to know more, please contact the Parish Office at belmont@cam.org.au.

In week 6 2026 we recognise Bullying No Way Week at our school. This is an important opportunity for students to learn about the impact of bullying and how we can all play a part in creating a safe, caring and respectful school environment. Throughout the week, every class will take part in a range of activities designed to raise awareness about positive behaviour, inclusion and the importance of speaking up.

Students will explore what bullying is, how it can make others feel, and why it’s important to stand together against it. They will learn practical strategies for being an upstander, someone who supports others and helps stop bullying, rather than a bystander. These discussions and activities will help students understand that their words and actions matter, and that everyone has the right to feel safe and respected.

Sometimes you might have a fight or argument with someone. If it happens once or twice, it is not bullying even though it can be upsetting. It is also not bullying if you sometimes fight with a friend and you can sort it out.

Sometimes people can be rude - this is not bullying. Sometimes people are mean on purpose  - this is not bullying, but when this happens repeatedly it could be bullying

As a school, we are committed to building a culture where kindness and respect are at the heart of everything we do. Bullying No Way Week is a great chance to reinforce these values and empower our students to make positive choices, both in the classroom and the playground. Together, we can make a difference!

Hosted by Clarivaux Connect, this is your chance to enjoy an unforgettable night out with our school community.

Bring your partner, organise a girls' night, round up the guys, or come along solo – however you arrive, you're in for a fantastic night.

Catch up with familiar faces, make some new connections, and enjoy great food, music and plenty of laughs on the dance floor.

Book via: www.trybooking.com/DOQJX

Father’s Day Stall

 On Thursday 3 September, members of Clairvaux Connect will once again be running our Father’s Day Stall.

Good news – there is no need for students to bring money on the day, as the cost of gifts has already been covered through the 2026 fee structure.

We have a fantastic range of fun and thoughtful gifts for dads, and we would love some help preparing them for the stall.

We are seeking volunteers to assist with sorting, wrapping and packing gifts on Tuesday 1 September, straight after school until 5:00pm.

Please sign up using the link: https://signup.com/go/vWWfmfv

We are also looking for volunteers to help at the stall on Thursday 3 September. Shifts are one hour long, and volunteers will assist students in choosing the perfect gift for their dad.

If you are available to help, please sign up using the link below: https://signup.com/go/SgSEvbx

If you have any issues signing up or any other questions, please email canteenclairvaux@gmail.com.

Kind regards, Jamie and Caity

This free interactive video invites primary school students to ‘choose their own journey’ while navigating feelings and choices during R U OK? conversations. https://lifeed.org.au/ruok-day/

Produced in collaboration with Life Ed, the video journey features Healthy Harold, joined by two new characters, the ‘Thoughts’, who contemplate the different approaches to various peer-to-peer situations that may arise in the school day. Students will learn personal and social skills and increase their confidence to able to have an R U OK? conversation with a friend. 

Are you ready to bounce?!

Join us for an afternoon of fun where both the Grade 3's and 4's (and their siblings) can bounce around on an inflatable obstacle course and play arcade games.

Where: Inflatable World South Geelong

When: Sunday 13 September 3-5pm

Cost: $20 per child

Other: Arcade tokens can be purchased for $2 each. Food/drinks also available to purchase also.

Please book a ticket for each child attending, along with adult supervisors (free). Siblings are welcome.

Bookings: https://www.trybooking.com/DOQJP