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Newsletter Term 3 Week 10

Principal's Message

Dear Parents and Families,

It is hard to believe that we have the end of another term. It has been a busy and rewarding term with many exciting things happening to provide rich, varied and enjoyable learning experiences for all our children. We hope everyone has a lovely break and comes back recharged and ready for lots of new learning.

This week we say farewell to Zoe Qiao and Milla Mirabito who are moving to new locations to live. We wish them all the best at their new schools and will miss them here at St Mary’s.

Foundation camp
Foundation students are about to head off on their first-ever school camp today! This year the Foundation students will be spending the day at the Pioneer Settlement followed by lunch at Riverside Park and then returning to school for some fun activities.

State Netball Team
All the very best to our girl's netball team who are off to the State finals in Melbourne on Wednesday. They have already won at Division and Regional levels to make it to the State Finals, which is a fantastic achievement. Thanks to Mrs Davies for coaching the team and also to all the parents and other supporters who are heading to Melbourne to support them.

Uniform survey
After discussion at the SAC level, St Mary’s is considering offering additional optional uniform items to our current school uniform. Parent feedback is important to ensure we meet the needs of our families. Please take 5 minutes to complete this survey.

https://forms.gle/CQxz2RxUHGfEFN2XA

Casual Dress -Friday 20th September
This Friday we are all donning the footy jumpers, beanies and scarves as we raise money to support Kids with Cancer with a gold coin donation. Mrs Quin and Mr Prockter are hoping to see lots of Collingwood jumpers on display! We have some special footy food at the canteen and the children will participate in some fun footy activities in their Community Groups. A flyer with all the details has been sent out to all families.

Finishing time for end of Term 3
Please note that the finishing time for this Friday is one hour earlier. Times are as follows:

2:15--Town bus travellers and children who walk or ride a bike
2:20--Country bus travellers
2:25--Children being picked up / Children going to OSHC

Transitioning to Summer Uniform
Towards the end of Term 3 the weather begins to warm up. Children can transition into summer uniform on these warmer days, keeping in mind that there will still be some colder days ahead. By the start of Term 4 all children should be in summer uniform with school hats to be worn at all times whilst outdoors.

Please make sure to locate those hats over the break and ensure all hats are clearly named.

Children are encouraged during hot weather to apply sunscreen before going out to play and to bring plenty of water to school each day.

Thanks to our volunteers
Throughout the term we have called on volunteers to help with camps, sport days, liturgies, Masses, in the canteen and at other school events. We really appreciate all the help from our school community to ensure our children have many and varied experiences. We look forward to more fun activities in Term 4.

Save the Date - Friday October 18th
The children have started to learn their dances with Mrs Gerakis in preparation for Grandparents & Friends Day in Week 2 of Term 4. The classrooms will be open to show families all the great learning and fun happening in our school and the fun will conclude with our Year Level dances. More information will be shared with families at the beginning of Term 4.

I hope you all have a fantastic week ahead and that many of you have the opportunity to join in the fun at the Foundation camp or can come along when 5D leads assembly on Friday. I wish you all a blessed and safe holiday break and commend our staff and students for a wonderful Term 3.

Kate

"Never See a Need Without Doing Something About It"
Mary MacKillop - Sisters of St Joseph Foundress

Key Dates

Monday September 16th
Division Athletics
Foundation Camp
Wednesday September 18th
State Netball
Friday September 20th
Casual Dress Day - Footy Colours Day
Assembly 12.25pm - 5D
End of Term 3 (1 hour earlier finish time)
Monday October 7th
Start of Term 4
Tuesday October 8th
Year 1 Camp

Wellbeing with Mr Prockter

Child Safe Standard 6: People working with children and young people are suitable and supported to reflect child safety and wellbeing values in practice.

Bored Children Doesn't Mean Bad Parenting and Encourages Creativity

Do you scrunch your face in frustration when your hear your child mutter the dreaded phrase, "I'm bored"?

Take a deep breath and unclench your fists — guess what? Being bored is actually good for children and not a sign of bad parenting. Psychologists report children are bombarded with constant entertainment through technology, bedrooms full of toys and a schedule of activities that would make the Prime Minister's head spin.

Where is the time to stare vacantly out of the window, daydream, or just sit and think clearly and calmly?

Research shows boredom, or the frustration that comes with not being engaged in anything at all, offers great benefits for children in particular. It allows the mind a moment to stop and rest, but ultimately boredom is the pathway to creative thinking and imaginative play. A bored mind, it is argued, will seek something more interesting to do. Dr Helen Street, a social psychologist and creator of the Positive Schools Initiative, which promotes mental health and wellbeing conferences in primary and secondary schools, says children need to experience boredom more than ever before.

"We are seeing a massive creativity deficit in kids. A child's school life is more structured than ever and from an earlier age than ever before," Dr Street says. "There is this idea that school is a race and the sooner you get started on it the better you'll be. Then of course there is the advent of technology, which has taken over our lives in the past decade. It allows children to spend an awful lot of downtime passively engaged with screens and leaves kids with very little time for unstructured play.

"As a result we are seeing a massive creativity deficit in kids. People often mistake creativity with having an artistic skill, but that is not what we are talking about here. "Creativity is important because it allows you to actively engage in life, to connect with people and pursue your passions. But to do that you have to learn to be self-directed. "This is difficult for a child who has grown up having every demand met by their parents and every moment filled in with scheduled, structured activity, with little or no choice or control over what happens next."

The value of boredom is not a new theory, famed philosopher Bertrand Russell pointed out the benefits as early as 1930 in his book The Conquest of Happiness, where he states "a child develops best when, like a young plant, he is left undisturbed in the same soil".

In 1999 a pair of German public health officers were so concerned with the amount of toys provided to children in preschools they introduced a bold plan. Called Der Spielzeugfreie Kindergarten, or the nursery without toys, they removed every toy from a preschool for three months of the year, leaving only tables, chairs and the odd blanket.

"One of the best things they can do for their child is allow time for regular free play every day." The observers noted that on the first day the children sat hesitantly staring at each other, but by the second day they were using the blankets and tables to create castles and cubbies, and the chairs to simulate trains. The teachers reported the children concentrated, socialised and communicated better following this period. Put simply, the theory shows that bored children will seek out a more satisfying activity because the actual act of being bored is so lacking, the mind will naturally start to seek out more enjoyment.

It's easy to blame technology for the zombie-like ways children sit for hours clutching their devices or staring at the television. But Dr Street says technology is not the sole culprit for a lack of self-directed play in homes and schools. "Self-directed play allows children to engage in an activity where they have choice and control over what they do," Dr Street says. "It allows a child to become so totally engrossed in their activity that time passes without them even noticing. It's called being 'in slow' or 'in the zone' and it's a wonderful feeling but, as parents, we don't allow enough of it."

Counsellor and psychotherapist Georgina Manning created the program Peaceful Kids, which instructs children on how to achieve mindfulness and meditation in schools, after she noticed a spike in stress and anxiety in children as young as five. The two-day program, taught in schools across Australia, teaches children to be fully present through a range of exercises.

"The program teaches kids simple activities like how to notice their breath when their mind wanders," the Wellbeing For Kids director says. "But it's also important for kids to engage in informal mindfulness, which is just free, creative play, things like playing with Lego, making robots from cardboard, building an ant farm, dressing up. This kind of informal mindfulness allows them to become fully immersed and it clears the mind.

"If a child never has the opportunity to rest their mind — and sleep alone doesn't do it — it can lead to anxiety, ongoing stress response, perfectionism, generally being unhappy and burning out." She says the main elements in society preventing boredom is too much technology, over-scheduling activities and having a stressed family life. "Parents often feel guilty if their child isn't constantly engaged in structured activities like sport, music, dance, drama and tutoring," she says. "But one of the best things they can do for their child is allow time for regular free play every day."

Doing Battle With Screens
Moorebank mum Kylie Reynolds remembers playing with friends, riding her bike and swimming in the backyard pool after coming home from school. But the mum to Jay, 12, Kayla, 10 and Lachlan, four months, says a lot has changed from one generation to the next. She says she does daily battle with her children to get them off their screens and play like kids used to. "I think parenting kids today is a lot more complicated and challenging than when I was a kid," she says. "And as far as I can see, the main reason is technology. "Kids have such a dependence of those screens and when I put the hammer down and say enough is enough, they really fight me on it. Kayla will find other things to do when I take the screens away, she'll colour or read a book or play with toys, but it's much tougher with Jay."

Reynolds says she worries this generation of children are losing their ability to use their imagination or to be creative because of the dependence on screens. "I remember being bored when I was little but I'd go to a friend's house to play or swim in the pool, I'd be out all afternoon with my friends, coming home only when dinner was ready.

"But I think parents are too scared to let their kids wander too far on their own these days, and I'll admit I'm guilty of that too. I'm sure the threats that are around now were around back then but it wasn't in your face like it is now. "The kids have plenty to do in the backyard, we have a netted trampoline, a pool and have had cubbies, slip 'n' slides and totem tennis, but they lose interest after a while. "I can see … how boredom can lead to kids finding more creative things to do. But I do think technology has reduced their interest in other simpler activities."

Georgina Manning interviewed for the Sydney Daily Telegraph.

Have a great final week of term everyone and I hope you enjoy a good 2 week break before the final stretch of the year.
Mr Prockter

RE with Mrs Davies

Sacrament of Confirmation 2024- Year 3 and above
Next term we are looking forward to our Year 3 Children (for baptised Catholics) who will be preparing and celebrating their Sacrament of Confirmation. Children above Year 3 who have not yet been Confirmed are also welcome to be part of the program. The program begins with attending one of the enrolment sessions in week 2 of next term.

Invitations will be sent directly to the families of baptised Catholics the school has a record of. If for whatever reason you miss this invitation, and want your child to be part of the program, please contact the Parish directly via email northeastmallee@ballarat.catholic.org.au or phone 50324144 and they can assist you.

Below are some other important dates to remember -

Enrolment Sessions- Monday 14th & Wednesday 16th October- (need to book in via trybooking)
Presentation Masses - Saturday Oct 19th 6pm or Sunday Oct 20th 10.30am
Retreat - Monday Nov 11th
Mass Celebration - Saturday Nov 16th 6pm or Sunday Nov 17th 10.30am

PE with Miss Clark

Division Athletics
Today, 73 St Mary’s children from Y3-6 will represent our school at the Division Athletics at Ken Harrison Reserve. They will be competing against students from nearby schools across Swan Hill. Students will participate in a range of field and track events. We wish all students the very best of luck and we are sure that you will make our school proud.

State Netball
This week on Wednesday the 18th of September, 9 St Mary’s girls will be heading to Melbourne to represent St Mary’s at the State Netball Carnival. To make it to state championships, the team won overall at the Division and Regional competition levels. The girls have been working extremely hard at training at lunchtimes to best prepare for the State competition. The whole St Mary’s community wishes you all the very best. Thank you very much to parents for transporting the students down to Melbourne and a very big thank you to Belinda Davies who is coaching the girls on the day. Go St Mary’s!

Renegade Cricket visit
Our lucky Year 3 students on Wednesday the 18th of September will participate in a Cricket clinic run by Cricket Victoria and the Melbourne Renegades. The Melbourne Renegades are looking to engage with school in Swan Hill and St Mary’s would love to be part of it!

They will deliver a 1 hour in-school cricket clinic with trained staff teaching fundamental movement skills within fun cricket activities. It is also an opportunity to promote some of our local cricket clubs as cricket season approaches!

@2 Murlong Before & After School Care

The Out of School Hours Care program, @ 2 Murlong, is operating out of the gym hub and provides before and after school care for school age children in the Swan Hill area. Please express your interest via the following link;

https://prodadmin.myxplor.com/enrollment/index/dHdBOThsSW9JeHUxYTEwaHNxZlMrdz0

News from the Office

Working with Children Check
A reminder to bring your Working with Children Check with you if you are coming on to the school grounds for volunteer purposes.

Student Absences
Just a reminder that if your child is absent from school, you need to let the office know, preferably via PAM, prior to 9.25am.

Country Bus Travel
Country Buses are to be used for registered travellers only. If Country Bus travel is required in an emergency, please contact the office so that the appropriate paperwork can be completed.

Breakfast Club
We kindly ask for donations of jam and vegemite for Breakfast Club. Donations can be dropped in to the office.
Thank-you to those families who have donated fresh fruit, this has certainly been a hit with the students!

News from the Canteen

Volunteers Needed:
We are always on the lookout for volunteers in our school canteen. You just need your VIC WWCC. Volunteer hours at 11.30am-1.30pm. Please email office@smswanhill.catholic.edu.au if you are able assist

Ordering from the canteen:
Recess and lunch orders are placed online only via CDF Pay. The orders close at 9.30am each day, so it is recommended you place your order the night before. Our canteen is a very busy, so late orders will be offered limited options. Please contact the office if you need help with CDF Pay.

https://smswanhill.cdfpay.org.au

Canteen Roster