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Newsletter Term 3 Week 5

Principal's Message

Dear Parents and Families,

This Friday is the final day at school for a little while for Mrs Codie Brown and we wish her all the best as she prepares for the birth of her second child. Codie has been an integral part of the Year 4 team and we will all miss her innovative ideas and dedication to her work. The good news is she will return on part time basis later in 2025. Codie’s 2024 role has been filled by Mr Talboys and Ms Boers.

School Feast Day Thursday 15th August- The Assumption
Thursday is a special one on our school calendar as we celebrate our school feast day with our Assumption of Mary Mass. Mary, mother of Jesus is a very important and special woman in our Catholic tradition and Thursday’s feast honours her as “God’s Mother”. Our Feast Day celebrations will begin with our Assumption of Mary Mass in the Gym at 10am. All families are invited to attend. Thanks to the Year 6 teachers and students for their leadership of this special Mass. The fun continues Gen Bryant and her band entertaining our students with a whole school concert at 11:45 before running music workshops with the choir in the afternoon.

Pupil Free Day - Friday August 16th
Not only is Gen Bryant a talented musician and songwriter who has penned many original songs which share her love of God and her faith, she also facilitates Religious Education workshops for teachers focusing on personal faith development and spirituality. Gen is running our staff personal development day on Friday August 16th and we look forward to working with her.

SAC
The School Advisory Council provide input and advice on a range of matters to the school principal and I always look forward to our meetings and the support received from Jess Merrett, the Chair and the SAC members. On Tuesday, we will meet for our August meeting with discussions. All parents are encouraged to reach out to our SAC members if they have items they wish to be discussed at the SAC meetings.

Disco profit
Our recent school disco was a great success raising over $1350 which will help support upgrading the Ninja Playground. Our wonderful P & F have raised $15,000 this year to assist with funding this project, which is set to commence construction in 2024.

Book Week 19th – 23rd August 2024
Fast approaching! Book Week is celebrated each year in August. To celebrate, we will be holding the annual school book parade on Friday the 23rd of August at 9.10am. On this day the children can dress as any one of their favourite book characters and we love to see everything from Super Heroes and Pirates to Mermaids or Dalmatians as students and teachers get into the spirit of the day!

School Crossings
While we have a great bus system and all crossings are manned before and after school by staff its important for us to work together to ensure the children to use the school crossings correctly and safely. Could you please remind your child that when using the Murlong Street road crossing, students should; wait at the white line, wait for the crossing person to walk out, listen for the whistle to blow twice, cross safely and listen for any instructions. The car park crossings are supervised by St. Mary’s staff, allowing students to cross safely due to many cars and buses travelling through during the morning. Please make sure your children are dropped off in the marked car parks so they can walk to the closest crossing.

Once again it was lovely to see so many families at our Friday assembly. Well done to 2U who presented their prayer so confidently to our school community and congratulations to all our award winners who are always so proud to receive this recognition for their work throughout the week.

Enjoy what the week has in store,

Kate

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

Key Dates

Tuesday August 13th
Regional AFL (Girls & Boys)
Thursday August 15th
School Feast Day - Assumption of Mary Mass - 10am
Friday August 16th
Pupil Free Day
Thursday August 22nd
Kaboom Sports
Friday August 23rd
Book Week Parade
Monday August 26th - Tuesday August 27th
Year 4 Camp

Wellbeing with Mr Prockter

Standard 4 Families and communities are informed and involved in promoting child safety and wellbeing.

Michael Grose, founder of Parenting Ideas, is one of Australia’s leading parenting educators. He’s an award-winning speaker and the author of 12 books for parents. I thought this was a good article for all the wonderful dads out there

Use your words Dad
‘Seven-year-old Thomas lay crying on his bed wrapped in the arms of his father. Thomas was upset and his dad was trying to find out what was bothering his son. His voice was quiet, and his words were soothing. Gradually, Thomas opened up, sharing with his father how his best friend had embarrassed him in front of others at school. Unable to articulate his disappointment and anger, Thomas’s father did so for him. “I guess you feel let down. I’d be really mad too if that happened to me.” Thomas let out a sigh, relaxing even more into his father’s embrace knowing he understood how he felt.

Empathy has a soothing effect on upset children. Popular parenting author Steve Biddulph is correct when he wrote that activity is the main language of fathering. Dads use physical touch and play to build relationships and as a tool to develop self-control, teamwork, fairness, and other values. However, if activity is the only way a man relates to his children, his impact will be limited.

As Thomas’s father discovered, physical touch may provide an entry point but it’s through talking that we get to the heart of matters that bother children and young people. Anecdotally, talking with kids about their worries and anxieties is still largely a mother’s preserve.

Talking through personal problems with a son or daughter is a new role for many men, especially for a generation whose fathers stoically advised them ‘get on with it’ when problems emerged. Many males feel more comfortable giving advice rather than solace to kids who are struggling. The most effective parents are those who adapt to the times in which they live.’

Have a great week everyone!

Curriculum with Mrs Hall

Olympic Spirit at St Mary’s
It has been exciting to see the way classroom teachers and students have embraced the Olympic Spirit. The Olympics is a fantastic way to provide dynamic and engaging connections to history and encourage inquiry across various subjects. Over the past two weeks, our students have had multiple exciting opportunities to embrace the Olympic spirit. From holding a real Olympic torch (thank you Lisa Brady) to turning our school Green and Gold by celebrating our Mini Olympics Day. The Olympics has created many rich new learning experiences and wonderings, while fostering a sense of global awareness and unity.

Learning experiences such as ….

Invite a local guest speaker (thank you Lisa Brady) and listen to her story of being a part of the Torch Relay in Swan Hill
Create a story about an Olympic mascot. Describe the mascot's adventures at the Olympic Games, the friends it makes, and the challenges it faces
Reading and writing biographies of athletes (Jess Fox, Emma McKeon)
Creating news reports, and analyzing how the Olympics are portrayed in various media
Write about your dream of becoming an Olympic athlete. What sport would you compete in? How would you train? What would you do if you won a gold medal?
Research and create an information report on the History and symbolism of the Olympic Flame
Write a story about your potato athlete’s journey through the Olympic Games. Include the events it competes in, how it performs, and what it learns along the way
Create a diorama to reflect your new learning on the impact of a famous Olympian (Cathy Freeman)
Research the origins of the Olympics in Ancient Greece, the cultural and religious significance, key events, and notable athletes
Creating timelines, re-enacting ancient Olympic events, and comparing ancient and modern Olympics
Using mapping skills (world globe/posters) the locations of past and future Olympic Games, geographic diversity of participating nations
Debate the logistics of hosting the Olympics
Investigate the science of sports, advancements in sports technology, and the physiology of athletes
Research the changes and advances with the Olympic torch
Create and compile graphs and charts of medal counts, calculating averages and probabilities, and solving real-world math problems based on Olympic data

RE with Mrs Davies

Assumption of Mary Feast Day - 15th August
This Thursday is a very exciting day on our school calendar as it is our St Mary’s Feast Day. We have a day filled with celebrations beginning with Mass at 10am in the Gym to be led by Fr James and the Year 6 students. Parents and friends are most welcome to attend. After recess Gen Bryant and her team will be entertaining us with a whole school concert in the Gym. After lunch Gen will be holding a workshop session with the Choir.

For each canonised saint, the Catholic Church assigns one day of the year, known as the saint’s feast day, to honour and remember their unwavering faith and extraordinary contribution to humanity and the Church. Our school is named after the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is a very special part of who we are as a Catholic school. Mary was a woman of deep faith, trust and service. In the Gospel of Luke, we see Mary chosen by God to bring Christ into the world. She is with Jesus at his birth, nurtures him in childhood, is present during his ministry, witnesses his death, and stands with the early Church as it grows and proclaims the Good News.

On Friday 16th August our staff will participate in an RE Formation Day with Gen and her team - our focus for the day is - Be Joyful in Hope, Patient in Affliction and Faithful in Prayer. We are looking forward to a great day together!

PE with Miss Clark

Regional Netball and Soccer
Last week on Thursday the 8th of August, we had lots of our Year 5 and 6 students competing at Regional Soccer and Netball.

A big thank you to Mr Cleeland, Mrs Davies and Tenay for coming along to support our students.

Our girls and boys Soccer teams and boys Netball team all played excellent games but unfortunately came up against some very strong teams from other schools and didn't win a game. However, they can all be really proud of the way they played as a team and all fought till the end siren.

A special mention to our boys Netball team who gave up lots of their lunchtimes to train with our girls team to put them in the best possible preparation for the day.

Our girls Netball team was unstoppable from the first game and managed to make it to the grand final and come away with the win! Our St Mary's Netball girls are off to the State finals in Melbourne towards the end of the term.

Regional Girls and Boys Footy
This week on Tuesday the 13th of August we have a girls and boys team that will represent St Mary’s at the Regional footy competition. Draws have been sent to parents if they wish to come along to support. The boys will be playing at Swan Hill Grounds and the girls at Woorinen. Goodluck to both teams!

Girls Footy School Sport Victoria
What an incredible experience Mia H has had over the past week playing footy in the Under 12’s Victorian School team. The team absolutely dominated the competition against other states and won the grand final to receive a gold medal. Mia has thoroughly enjoyed the experience, has gained friendships, improved her skills and knowledge of the game and overall confidence. She can be very proud of her efforts and has certainly earned herself a well deserved rest. Well done Mia!

@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.

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

Just a reminder to sign in at the office when you are on canteen duty