Newsletter Term 2 2025 29th May
Principal Report
Dear parents and carers,
Thank you for sending your children to school so beautifully dressed in their winter uniform for photo day today. We try to alternate the bookings each year so that the students' photos vary between summer and winter uniform images. For our Year 6 students this is a very special day, as they are photographed wearing their leaders badges and alongside peers that they have mostly journeyed beside for 7 years.
I would like to congratulate our Year Six cohort on a successful excursion to Canberra, where there were many opportunities for learning. I am also very grateful to David Duncan, Claire Nicholson, Erin Holmes, Ben Benton and Nikki Provost for accompanying the children and being 'on duty' for such an extended period of time. It is rewarding, although exhausting work, and I appreciate their dedication to our students.
It has come to our attention that some students are accessing social media platforms like TikTok after school to post unkind things about each other. At the moment this seems to be impacting the Year 6 girls. If this was being done on school devices we could enforce consequences for breaching the ICT agreement, however, when it happens on private devices at home there is very little we can do to manage it. We can deal with the friendship 'fallout' of these posts by working with our students around safe internet behaviour and being good and kind people, but my strong advice to you is that if you believe your child to be experiencing bullying or harassment from anyone in the online environment that you report it to the Police. This is the advice given to us by our Police Liaison officer. There are very sound reasons why social media platforms have age restrictions. Remember your child can exert their power in such a situation by disconnection from these apps.
Last week I attended the Australian Catholic Schools Principals' biannual conference in the Hunter Valley. The major themes were:
- Education as a conduit of Hope Building for our times (see Hope Theory image below)
- Thinking of teaching and learning as a means to promote student agency: students who are able to be self-determining and take responsibility for themselves and others.
- Graduates from our Catholic Schools who will have empathy and compassion expressed through their abilities to collaborate, connect and care for one another and the global environment.
- Systems thinking: how do we build school environments that meet students' needs in an AI world?
- Connecting to faith and purpose for wellbeing
As the opportunity presents itself I will take these themes forward with our staff. I am particularly interested in the role of AI as a partner in student learning. The question is how do we gradually release what we do to AI to harness it's advantages while keeping our students safe?
I have an exciting update to share with you regarding the Infants' Playground Equipment. We have been approved for the removal of the existing equipment and replacement with a brand new play structure, that will include the highest quality soft-fall and landscaping. I spent the most part of my drive back from the Hunter Valley on Friday afternoon on the telephone to the necessary people to lobby for this... so am delighted that we have achieved a positive result so quickly. We will now take the design of the equipment to our Student Representative Council and Student Leaders who will have input into any changes that they would like to make, as long as these remain within budget. I do not have any timelines for you as yet but will keep you informed.
In closing I am, like you, very conscious of the suffering being endured throughout the flood affected areas in NSW. We will discern with our student leaders, a way that we can offer some support as a community. In the meantime, if you would like to help these communities rebuild and recover, St Vincent de Paul Charities provide practical local support. You can donate through www.vinnies.org.au/floodappealnsw or call 13 18 12.
Take good care of yourselves and each other,
Gayle Stratton
Assistant Principal
Attendance
Student attendance at St Mary's is important to us. Every day of attendance adds to a student's opportunity to learn, develop and experience success in education. There is no safe number of days for missing school. If a student misses as little as four days each term they will have missed over a year of learning, by the end of their schooling.
At St Mary's our process is as follows:
Classroom teachers monitor the attendance of their students. The classroom teacher generally telephones the parents/ carers of students with unexplained absences after 2 days and notes this in a student chronicle. The teacher will notify the Assistant Principal of unexplained absences after 2-3 days.
Classroom teachers will generally telephone the parents/carers of students with explained absences after 3 or 4 days to check on the welfare of the student. This is also added to the student chronicle (school recording system).
The Assistant Principal follows the CEDB Attendance Policy’s instructions in regard to sending out the Attendance Letters to families once various thresholds have been reached.
It is important you complete the absence note on compass to provide a reason when your child is away from school. We pride ourselves on an excellent school attendance rate, we are here to work together with families to maintain this.
Religious Education
Claire Nicholson
Religious Education Coordinator
School Feast Day
Thank you to all to came to celebrate Mary, Help of Christains' Feast Day. As a whole school community, we celebrated the day with a special Mass. For our Kindergarten students, this marked their first Mass of their schooling years. All students should be commended for their reverence in the church. A thank you to Fr Greg who celebrated Mass with us.
Following Mass families were invited to to the hall to share morning tea with the students. Thank you to the families who join for this.
PALS (Peer Assisted Leadership Squad)
On our Feast Day we had our very first PALS session. Students from all year levels come together in their PALS groups, led by Year 6 students. This initiative brings our new St Mary’s Learning Framework to life, focusing on the pillars of Relationships, Growth, Purpose, and Curiosity. PALS encourages meaningful peer connections, cooperative learning, and reflection, helping students build both academic skills and social-emotional confidence. Together, we’re creating an inclusive, supportive environment where every student feels valued and empowered to contribute. There will be one more session of PALS this term.
First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion
Starting in week 6, students in Year 3 who have been Baptised Catholic will celebrate the sacrament of First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion. Students will celebrate these sacraments over a number of weekends in June. For more information please contact the Sacramental Coordinator Liss Ryan at the Parish Office.
Parish Grade Masses
Parish Masses occur on Tuesdays at 9:30am.
The following classes will attend Mass on the following days: Year 4- Week 8 (17/6) and Year 3- Week 9 (24/6)
Christian Leadership Awards
Ryder Patterson, Lola Bell, Zainab Nadeem Baig, Evie Benson. | In recognition of "Positive View of Life" |
Alexander Lord, Ilithiya Parry, Fheliana Fhelyn Evangelista, Hannah Sheldrick, Florence McCarthy, Audrey Cleal, Paityn Splithof, Angelina Jose, Hunter Mepham, Amaya Manu, Ryan Jobis, Nasochi Odoemene, Jacob White | In recognition of "Community & Common Good" |
Nia Manu, Alexander Karger Wright, Evie Hughan, William Hayward, Jack Bollinger, Avneet Kaur. | In recognition of " God's presence in the world" |
Grace Lydon | In recognition of "Search for "Truth & Wisdom" |
Curriculum News
CWA Public Speaking
Congratulations to the students who were selected from their grade to represent St Mary's at the recent CWA Public Speaking Central Western Competition for Schools. Lola, Jacob, Sophie and Emily each wrote and presented their speech to the class and were selected to compete at the next level. They have been practising hard in preparation for showcasing their entertaining and polished presentations.
A huge congratulations to Jacob White who won the Year 4 competition! He received a book which he has generously donated to our school library. Jacob will now prepare to compete at the next level. Well done!
As part of the English syllabus, the Oral Language and Communication outcomes include content to build understanding and skills around Interacting, Listening for Understanding and Presenting. Oral presentations, such as the CWA speech, forms one portion of the content for this English outcome.
Stage 2 (Year 3 & 4) - communicates with familiar audiences for social and learning purposes, by interacting, understanding and presenting.
Plan and deliver spoken presentations using language and structure to suit purpose and audience
Stage 3 (Year 5 & 6) - communicates to wide audiences with social and cultural awareness, by interacting and presenting, and by analysing and evaluating for understanding.
Deliver presentations suited to purpose and audience
Experiment with volume, pace and intonation to enhance meaning when presenting and reciting, and recognise the effects these have on audience understanding
Sally Curran
Primary Coordinator
CWA Public Speaking Finalists
School News
| Year Group | Grade Reps | Event |
| Kindy | Michaela Wilson & Alice Weily | Kindy Orientation |
| Year 1 | Sharon Henry & Stacey Tracey | Kindy Welcome Morning tea-"Tissues & Tim Tams" & Father's Day Gift Stall |
| Year 2 | Olivia Day Gorham & Amanda Fragar | Father's Day Breakfast |
| Year 3 | Renee Davis & Lizzy Jaensch | Mother's Day Breakfast |
| Year 4 | Olivia Day Gorham & Renee Davis | Easter Egg Raffle |
| Year 5 | Jess McGrath & Katrina Holway | Mother's Day Gift Stall |
| Year 6 | Kellie Pickering, Kym Flitcroft & Angela Duncan | Kindy Welcome Morning Tea -"Tissues & Tim Tams "& Year 6 farewell |
Sports News
Bathurst Diocesan Community Sport
Dear Parents,
Keep up to date with sporting events and achievements across the Bathurst Diocese. Search CEBD community sport or use the following link.
https://sites.google.com/bth.catholic.edu.au/cedbsportcommunity/
SPORTS UNIFORM (Winter)
(any changes to the uniform days will be sent out via Compass)
Kindergarten - Friday
Year One - Friday
Year Two - Friday
Year Three - Wednesday & Thursday
Year Four - Friday
Year Five - Thursday & Friday
Year Six - Friday
Class News
Canteen News
SEVERE REACTIONS TO ‘NUTS’ & ‘EGGS’
As some of our students have a ‘nut’ and/or ‘egg’ allergy, we ask that nuts, nut
products and eggs NOT be packed as part of school snacks and lunches.
Sometimes even contact with nuts or eggs can trigger the severe reaction. This
severe allergy is called ANAPHYLAXIS and can be life-threatening.
Please, NO eggs, peanut butter, Nutella, nut products, etc.
(Check those labels to see that products do not contain nuts.)
Library News
Scholastic Book Club has gone home with students.
If you wish to place an order for your child please do so by using the LOOP online platform.
https://mybookclubs.scholastic.com.au/parent/login.aspx
No cash orders are taken.
Orders are due by 5th June 2025
Each book earns book rewards for our school.
Book Club Rewards help obtain free books and/or additional learning resources for the classroom.
School-Wide Positive Behaviour for Learning (SPB4L)
SPB4L
Our focus this week:
CORRIDORS
At St Mary's students are reminded of the importance of the expected behaviours in the corridors.
I will:
- stay out of corridors during break times.
- ask permission to go into the corridor at lunch or recess if I have left something in my bag or if I am going to a lunch club such as library.
- walk safely in line or pairs in the corridors.
- stay left to allow others to pass.
- keep the corridors tidy.
- step aside or open doors for others.
- only touch my own belongings.
- remember the corridors are out of bounds before school, at recess, lunch and after school.
YARNING CIRCLE
I will:
- sit and yarn, not run around.
- respect other people using the space for quiet time.
- respect and care for the space.
- report any misuse or damage to the teacher.
Yarning Circle
Health Matters
Medication at School- Parental Advice
If your child requires medication that needs to be administered during school hours, please bring the medication to the school office, where it is stored safely. This includes asthma inhalers.
Medication must be authorised by a Medical practitioner with a letter
Students can come to the office at an arranged time to have the medication administered by trained First Aid Officers.
The office does not have Panadol, unless parents supply and complete a form for their child only.
Thank you
Student Wellbeing
Children with communication devices such as iPhones and Smart Watches must be handed to the school office in the morning before class and collected at the end of the day. This includes any device capable of taking photos.
Please support your child to meet this school requirement.
If you need to contact your child during school hours please call the school office.
Community News
NO Parking in the Bowling Alley car park
the bowling alley car park is for their patrons so please park elsewhere when dropping or picking up your children.
The PCYC has many parks that can be used for dropping off and picking up
Thankyou
St Mary's Uniform Shop
is run by Parent Volunteers and is open from 8:45 am for an hour on Friday Mornings.
If you have put your order through Flexi schools it will be packed the following Friday and sent home with your child.
Dear Parents & Carers
Please label students' clothing , so we can return them from lost property with ease.
Clothes that don't have names will be returned to the clothing pool, if not collected by the end of term.
Thank you