Week 3, Term 3 2024 - 23rd July 2024
Principal's Reflection
This week we celebrate Catholic Education Week.
For nearly 200 years, Catholic schools in Australia have catered for the spiritual, academic and holistic needs of their students and communities. Currently in Australia, we have over 1750 Catholic schools, educating over 750,000 young people; 1 in 5 Australian students. From very humble beginnings and thanks to the immeasurable efforts of priests, religious brothers and sisters and the lay faithful, Catholic schools are quality educational institutions which now receive significant government funding, enjoy excellent facilities, have well-trained and professional staff and hold good standing in the community.
But what is the true purpose of Catholic schools? What is their reason for being? Why is there still a need for Catholic schools in today’s society, where there is a rapidly diverging values base?
For us at St Mary’s school, our reason for being is very clearly articulated in our school Mission and Vision statements.
These statements acknowledge that all at St Mary’s strive to provide a relevant, quality and holistic education that is framed by the teaching of Jesus Christ. I am very proud of our little school and know that together with the staff and parents, we can make a positive difference in the lives of our students. We all have a role to play. And, in this Centenary year when we celebrate Catholic Education, I invite you all to participate in the educative mission that we share. It is in this pursuit that we can achieve the very best for our students.
All the very best,
Wes Rose
Principal
From our Principal | Mr Wes Rose
School Satisfaction Survey
All parents, staff and Year 4-6 students would have received a link to complete our school satisfaction surveys. I ask that you take 10 minutes to complete this survey, as the feedback we receive helps us to celebrate what is working well and continue our school improvement journey. If you are having difficulty with accessing the survey, please contact the school office.
P&F Meeting
I advise that our next P&F meeting will be held tonight, Tuesday 23rd July, from 6pm in the staffroom. All families are most welcome to attend.
Staff News
- This Friday, we farewell Mrs Stella Rodrigues from St Mary’s School. Stella is commencing maternity leave. On behalf of the school community, I wish Stella and her husband Daniel all the best for the birth of their first baby.
- We welcome Miss Danah Gaske to St Mary’s, who will commence as the new Prep P teacher assistant next Monday. Danah is a dynamic young lady who is currently studying to be a primary school teacher and we look forward to having her on staff.
- We keep Mrs Denise Rokic in our prayers on the passing of her grandmother. Denise will be away until this Thursday. In her absence, Mrs Cassie Bourke will teach Prep R.
Acting Assistant Director Visit
This Friday, St Mary’s welcomes Mrs Alison Wales on her first visit as Acting AD: Northern Region. During her visit, Alison will attend our assembly, visit classes and meet with members of the school leadership team.
School Fee Advice #4
Please find below Advice #4, developed to inform our Catholic Education families of the school fee structure, from 2025 onwards. Previous Advice pieces outlined the new Federal Government Funding model (Gonski model), the impact on School Fees for Catholic Schools, and the need to align with the Federal Government’s means-tested Capacity to Contribute assessment of the school community. As outlined in Advice #4, CEDR School Fees will be presented as an “All-Inclusive Fee”, rather than the previous school fees model of Tuition Fees, plus several school-based levies and charges.
Quote of the Week
“Give every day the chance to become the most beautiful day of your life.”
- Mark Twain
Centenary Celebrations
Please find below some important information about our upcoming Centenary celebrations.
- Centenary Mass. Tuesday 6th August from 9am on the basketball court. This Mass will be celebrated by Bishop Michael McCarthy. All parents and relatives are invited to attend. Refreshments afterwards. RSVP here.
- Centenary Dinner. Friday 9th August from 6pm-11pm at the Pavilion 500 (Showgrounds). We welcome past and current families, students, parishioners and other guests to this celebration dinner. This is sure to be a lovely night, so if you would like to attend, please book here. We currently only have a few seats remaining, so book asap! Perhaps get a few fellow parents from your child’s year level and come along! Our special guest is Golden Guitar winning artist, Mr Graeme Connors, a past student of St Mary’s. Dress is smart casual.
- Centenary Open Day. Sunday 11th August from 9am-1pm. Our Open day will showcase St Mary’s school for current and past families and students. With free jumping castles, a memorabilia display, food/drink and student entertainment, it is sure to be a lovely morning for the whole family. I ask that children wear their centenary shirts on the Open Day. We do need several parent helpers to assist, so please register your availability here.
If you have any old school memorabilia that you could lend us for the Open Day, please let Mel McGuinness know at smm_centenary@rok.catholic.edu.au I look forward to celebrating this special milestone with you. If you have any queries, please let me know.
Centenary Commemorative Pin
All students have received a commemorative pin to celebrate our school’s centenary year. The cost of these pins has been generously donated by our P&F and can be worn by students either on their hat or shirt each day. I trust that families look after this keepsake of their child’s enrolment in our centenary year. Additional pins will be for sale for $5 in our school office and at our open day on Sun 11th August.
Parent Orbit App
This morning we sent an email to all parents with instructions on how to install our new Parent Orbit App.
The key features of the Parent Orbit App:
- Instantly links to your Parent Lounge, only need to enter your Parent Code and Password once, when setting up the App;
- Instant Notifications: Stay up to date with the latest announcements and important
alerts on your smartphone (be sure to enable Notifications); - Pay Fees: Easy fee payment from your phone;
- Events and Payments: Easily approve excursion attendance or make fee payments;
- Medical Details: Keep your student’s medical details up to date
- Attendance Tracking: Easily track attendance and notify the School of your student's
absence - Event Calendar: Stay informed about school events, meetings, and important dates
- Parent Teacher Interviews: Schedule parent-teacher interviews and receive
reminders - Academic Reports: View and download your student’s school reports
Please note: Our SZapp will be disabled next Friday 2nd August.
To download the app, scan the following QR code or follow the directions below (School Code is SMM):
If you are having any problems or require further information, please contact the school office.
Catholic Education Week
We will continue to celebrate Catholic Education Week for the remainder of the week with the following events;
Tuesday 23rd July
8 – 8:25am Parish Mass.
12 – 12:45pm Mercy Works Visit for Years 4-6 (School Hall).
2 – 2:45pm St Patrick's College Band Performance (School Hall).
Thursday 25th July
9:30 – 10am 1B present a Thank You gift to their St Patrick’s Reading Buddies
3:15pm Preparation for Communion Workshop (Year 4 Sacramental Students in School Hall).
Friday 26th July
8:35am Assembly, followed by Catholic Education Week Liturgy led by Year 2.
6pm Rock, Pop, Mime! performance (New Life Church)
Saturday 27th July
5pm-6pm Youth Mass and Pizza, followed by a Disco in the hall, 6:15-7:30pm.
Terri Leotta
Deputy Principal
Catholic Education Week - Year 1 Parish Office Visit
This Catholic Education Week we acknowledge the many people who assist in our schools and parishes. Yesterday morning, Year 1 visited the St Mary’s Parish Office to find out about all the people who work or volunteer in the parish and who assist with the Sacramental Program. Thank you Mrs Lisa Vassallo for answering all our questions and allowing us to take a tour of the office.
Youth Mass & Children's Liturgy
PLEASE JOIN US!
St Mary's School will join with St Patrick's College to celebrate our Youth Mass on Saturday 27th July, St Mary's Church at 5pm. This is also the Sacramental Program enrolment Mass for Communion and Children's Liturgy will be held.
Mass will be followed by a pizza outside the church. Everyone is most welcome to attend.
We look forward to seeing you there.
Terri Leotta
Deputy Principal/APRE
Sacramental Program
Tuesday Mass Cancelled
PLEASE NOTE
St Mary's Parish 8am weekday Mass is cancelled
on Tuesday 30 July and Tuesday 6 August.
Sport News
MDSS Athletics
Last Thursday and Friday, 15 students from St Mary’s competed in the Mackay District Athletics as part of the Southern Suburbs team. Some of these students competed in multiple events across the 2 days with all giving their best even in the chilly conditions.
Congratulations to Ava Corrigan (discus), Rylie Hanson (1500m), Flynn Pearce (1500m and 800m), Lexie Martin (long Jump and 100m), Oliver Standish (high jump) and Jaylah Breayley (shot put) who will compete in the coming weeks at the Capricornia trials in Mackay.
Auskick
Last Wednesday and Thursday, Alex Brooks from AFLQ came to St Mary’s to run some Auskick sessions during our PE lessons. Students were introduced to the kick and handball and were able to use these new skills in a variety of fun games which saw them earning points or trying to bomb the coaches/teacher for the title of ‘Best Kick’. Auskick sessions will commence at St Mary’s this Wednesday afternoon for 6 weeks with this week’s session being a free one. Students were given flyers to take home and a copy is available in the Community News section of this week's newsletter.
Simone Sibley
HPE Teacher
Skipping Club
At the start of week 3 here are St Mary’s JRFH statistics.
- 17 students online
- Raising $1326.10 to date
- Logging 8 hours of skipping!
- These are amazing figures, keep it up
The challenge of the week is ‘Tricky Criss Cross’ Tricky Criss Cross
Don’t forget Skipping Club is on Thursday morning from 8am -8.20am on the basketball court.
Simone Sibley
HPE Teacher
Library Thanks
A big thank you to the P&F for the new shelf dividers for the library. They look amazing and will be a great help for the students in finding books.
Lynne Camargo
Library Coordinator
Student of the Week
Week 2, Term 3 Student Award Winners
| Prep P | Edie | For wonderful work in maths rotations this week. You did a great job with telling the time and learning all about 3D shapes. Keep up the super work Edie! |
| Prep P | Vance | For being a super learner in maths this week. You found 3D shapes all around the classroom and did a great job when learning about o’clock and half past time. Keep up the wonderful work Vance! |
| Prep R | Mia | For the confidence you are showing during Literacy rotations. You have been working so hard and your reading and writing is on fire! What a super star! |
| Prep R | Blair | For the effort you put into our Maths sessions. Thank you for listening and trying hard every lesson. Your hard work is paying off. |
| 1B | Gianna | For being super enthusiastic when learning about the virtues of love and mercy. It is always lovely to see your little light shining brightly! |
| 1B | Thomas | For showing a more careful approach to writing tasks! You are improving so much and it is a great joy to read your work. Well done! |
| 1S | Luis | Wow Luis! You have been a superstar word searcher in BOOST this week. Well done! |
| 1S | Flynn | For your enthusiasm for learning this week. You have approached each task with confidence and a positive attitude. Keep it up Flynn! |
| 2A | Hayden | For your insightful comments and contributions to class discussions this week. I love to see you share your thoughts with the class. Keep up the great work, Hayden! |
| 2A | Havana | For being the happy and self-motivated student that you are. You make us smile each day with your hard-working attitude and sense of humour. Keep being you, Havana! |
| 2L | Hannah | Hannah, you are really working hard to improve your sound knowledge and get better at your reading. Your teacher loves your enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Keep up the fabulous work. |
| 2L | Bridie | Bridie your efforts in maths this week have been fabulous. When things get tough, you are finding the courage to conquer your fears and bounce back with the resilience of a warrior! Your teacher is super-proud of your efforts. |
| 3C | Matilda | For working conscientiously across all curriculum areas and for being a fabulous role model to your peers. Keep up the great work, Matilda! |
| 3C | Nicholas | Nicholas, your outstanding effort in all writing tasks this term has truly impressed your teacher. Your improved spelling and use of topic-specific vocabulary are to be commended. Well done! |
| 3P | Riley | For the outstanding effort and pride, you demonstrate in both your learning and bookwork. Thank you for always putting in 100% to your learning Riley! |
| 3P | Chet | For being such a helpful class member of 3P. Your kindness and willingness to help and support others in the classroom has been amazing to witness. Keep up the excellent work Chet, you are a superstar! |
| 4C | Charlie | For working exceptionally hard this week. It is impressive to see you focus on completing your work to a high standard! |
| 4C | Ruby | Your kindness is contagious! Thank you for always being a gentle friend, a compassionate listener and a very hard worker. Well done. |
| 4R | Joel | For your great start to the school term. We are so pleased to have you join our class, welcome to St. Mary’s Joel. |
| 4R | Cooper | For your contributions to class discussions and the great effort you always put into your learning and work in the classroom. Well done Cooper! |
| 5C | Hudson | For your hard work in mathematics this week. Your persistence and willingness to understand decimals to thousandths has enabled you to achieve great success. Keep up the great work. |
| 5C | Jayce | For your thoughtful and highly scientific responses in science this week. I am amazed at how much you know about the eye and the whole human body. |
| 5M | Makenna | For the disciplined and hard-working approach to take to all elements of your school work. Your results reflect your commitment to strive to achieve your very best. Congratulations Makenna! |
| 5M | Sam | For the energetic, enthusiastic and can-do approach you take to all elements of your education. You complete all tasks in record time and are ready for more! Great work Sam. |
| 6T | Aylee | For consistently demonstrating organisation and readiness to learn. Your commitment to giving 100% effort in all tasks is truly commendable. Well done Aylee! |
| 6T | Max | For your maturity and proactive approach this week. You've led by example and been an excellent role model in 6T. Well done! |
| 6T | Flynn | For your outstanding leadership skills showcased at the Challenge Cup. Your positive and encouraging demeanour towards all your teammates was truly inspiring. |
| 6V | Harper | For working diligently to complete your classwork this week. Keep up the great work Harper! |
| Weekly Sport Award | Ryker | You have certainly started the term with a ‘can do’ attitude. You watched the skipping demonstrations with great attentiveness and then displayed fantastic determination to achieve success with our weekly tricks. Keep up the hard work. |
| Weekly Sport Award | Class 3C | What a great start to term 3. You have shown amazing listening, fantastic positive attitudes and sportsmanship and such determination to master our new intermediate skipping skills. Keep working hard 3C. |
| Weekly Drama Award | Class 4C | Your beautiful manners, a positive attitude and fantastic bush dancing skills! Thank you and well done! |
Community News
