Newsletter Term 1 Week 6

Principal's Message

Dear Parents and Families,

It was wonderful to see so many of our families and staff at the local Harmony Day celebrations in the park over the weekend and to see some of our students performing on stage. Tomorrow our Year 6 students participate in a Student Leadership Development Day where they focus on learning more about themselves and their peers as leaders and team players while having a lot of fun along the way! Thank you to Jacob and the team for organising this fantastic experience for our senior children. Welcome back to Mrs Bannam who returns after her big family holiday refreshed and ready for action and a huge thank you to Mrs Wade who has ensured 3W have been in good hands while Brooke has been on leave.

First Aid in Schools
First Aid in Schools Program is a free program delivered by St John Ambulance Professional Trainers, teaching primary school students on the importance of First Aid and what to do in an event of an emergency. We have the team back this week  delivering this very valuable program to all year levels. This year the program is focussing on what to do in an emergency with our older students learning the basics of CPR.It has been great to see so many levels making connections to this incursion with other aspects of the curriculum.

Open Day 1 - Wednesday 6th March 5pm 

There has been considerable interest in our upcoming Open Day  with  new and existing families warmly invited to join us to learn about St Mary’s firsthand on Wednesday 6th March - tours starting at 5pm. We will have further Open Days on weekends in May and the opportunity to see our school in action throughout the day during Term 2.  Current families are our best form of advertising, so please be sure to let family and friends know we have Open Days coming up.

To book a place at the Open Day, please call the school office on 50332541 or fill in a registration form at:  https://smswanhill.catholic.edu.au/book-a-tour/

NAPLAN
NAPLAN is being held this term in Week 7-8, March 13th- 22nd
Students in Years Three and Five will complete four assessments - Writing (narrative or persuasive), Reading, Conventions of Language and Mathematics.  Each online session will run between 40-50 minutes depending on the topic and year level.  NAPLAN is a point-in-time assessment that allows parents to see how their child is progressing in Literacy and Mathematics against the national standard and compared with their peers throughout Australia.  At the classroom level, NAPLAN provides additional information to support teachers’ professional judgment about student progress.
The best way you can help your child prepare for NAPLAN is to reassure them that NAPLAN tests are just one part of their school program and to advise them to do the best they can on the day.  Ensure your child has had proper rest and has a healthy snack and lunch as usual.  Students who are funded under Special Needs may be exempted from completing the NAPLAN tests. Parents/Guardians who do not want their child to sit the test, please contact the school for an Exemption form. If your son/daughter is not a funded student, a parent/guardian may withdraw the student from one or all of the NAPLAN tests. Parents/ Guardians need to contact their child's teacher, Chris Prockter, or myself if they wish to withdraw their child from any of the NAPLAN tests.
 NAPLAN information has also been sent to all families with students in Years 3 & 5 via email. 

Parent Teacher Interviews and Student Led Conferences
Wednesday 20/3 and Tuesday 26/3 have been set aside for staff to conduct Parent/Teacher Interviews. This is a great opportunity for all parents to book a time to spend with your child’s teacher. Our Year 5 & 6 students will participate in Student Led Conferences with their families, while our Year 2-4 students will run 3 Way Chats with both parents and their children required to attend. Foundation and Year 1 will have Parent/Teacher interviews where the children are not required to attend. Bookings will open later this week with information about the booking process to be shared via PAM.

St. Pat’s Family Fun Day Race Event 
Save the date as this is seriously a fun filled family event! Sunday March 17th, 2024  is the annual St Patrick's Cup Family  race meeting in Swan Hill and a major fundraiser for our school. With free children's activities run by Hart Sports there is everything from face painting, foot races, kick the footy in the ute, the jumping castle and pony rides, not to mention the actual race.  All this makes it a terrific family day out. 
With the installation of a new Ninja Playground scheduled for installation later in the year, 100% of proceeds from the entrance to the races and raffle sales go towards the purchasing playground equipment for this area.

Public Holiday -Monday 13th March

Just a reminder that Monday is a public holiday in Victoria so all schools are closed on that day.
Have a great week and enjoy the extra long weekend.

Kate
"We have much for which to be thankful"
St Mary MacKillop 1875

Key Dates

Monday March 4th & Tuesday March 5th
First Aid in Schools incursion
Wednesday March 6th
Open Day - Tours at 5pm
Friday March 8th
Assembly 12.25pm - 6N
Monday March 11th
Public Holiday
Tuesday March 12th
Regional Swimming
Wednesday March 13th
NAPLAN period commences
Year 1 Level Liturgy
Friday March 15th
Assembly 12.25pm - 1G

RE with Mrs Davies

Reconciliation Enrolment Sessions 

It was lovely to see many Year 4 children and families attend Masses over the weekend to begin their Reconciliation Journey. Fr James and Mary led very engaging and interactive sessions where the children were able to reflect on God’s love and how they can make amends when they have made poor decisions. Please make contact with the Parish Office if you were unable to attend to discuss further options.

PE with Miss Clark

Basketball coaching with Sharon Denham

Last week, the Year 5 and 6 students participated in their first session of Basketball coaching during their PE class time with Sharon Denham. Their session focused on dribbling and shooting. Sharon’s coaching expertise has already made noticeable improvements in student’s technique as they were able to take on board feedback. The main take away points from this week focused on footwork, hitting the backboard when shooting from the side, pushing the ball out in front when dribbling and getting down low when dribbling around others and ending with your elbow above your eye in the follow through when shooting.

Year 4 Tennis Hotshots
This week, the Swan Hill Lawn Tennis Club will be hosting the 2024 Victorian Grass Court Championships. This is a professional event where players from all over the country will compete for the title and of course prize money. Our lucky Year 4 students at St Mary’s are invited to be part of this event on Wednesday the 6th of March!.
This fantastic opportunity for the students will include traveling down to the courts by bus after lunch and spending the afternoon watching some excellent high level tennis and participating in a Hot Shots tennis session.
Hot Shots is Tennis Australia’s official development program for children. It is played on smaller courts with lighter racquets and using low compression tennis balls that don’t bounce too high and move slower to make learning tennis fun and easy for kids. 

@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

Camps, Sports & Excursions Fund (CSEF)
Applications for CSEF close on 28th June 2024

If you hold a valid means-tested concession card or are a temporary foster parent, you may be eligible for CSEF. The allowance is paid to the school to use towards expenses relating to camps, excursions or sporting activities for the benefit of your child. The annual CSEF amount per student is $150 for primary school students.

HOW TO APPLY:
New applicants should contact the school office to obtain a CSEF application form or download from the CSEF website www.vic.gov.au/camps-sports-and-excursions-fund

If you applied for the CSEF at your child’s school in 2023, you do not need to complete an application form in 2024 unless there has been a change in your family circumstances.

You only need to complete an application form if any of the following changes have occurred:
* New student enrolments; your child has started or changed schools in 2024 or you did not apply in 2023 
* Changed family circumstances; such as a change of custody, change of name, concession card number, or new siblings commencing at the school in 2024.
 If you are unsure please contact the school office on 50332541.

If you are eligible for CSEF you are also eligible for the Family Fee Assistance Scheme. The FFAS amount for 2024 is $860.00. This amount is credited against your school fee account once your CSEF application has been validated.

News from the Canteen

We are looking for volunteers to help in our school canteen during 2024. Volunteer hours at 11.30am - 1.30pm. If you have a Victorian WWCC and would like to assist, please contact the office on 50332541.

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: (Dates in yellow require a helper)

Breakfast Club Donations

We would love any donations of vegemite for our Breakfast Club. These can be dropped off at the office.

Student of the Week

Happy Birthday!

What's happening in 6O?