Dear Parents and Carers,

Awards Day
On Monday this week, we celebrated a very special Whole School Assembly with many of our families in attendance. Following a beautiful liturgical dance by our Year 3 students, we awarded 36 students from Year 1- 6 with medallions in recognition of  their exceptional efforts in class in 2021. It was a pleasure to watch all of the  students at St Mary’s cheer on each other as the names were announced. Congratulations and keep up the great work.

Sunflowers For Ukraine Day
Late last term we held a special Sunflower Day at St Mary’s to raise funds to help the people of Ukraine. Thanks to the efforts and donations from our families, we raised $745 and this has been donated to the CARITAS Emergency Appeal for Ukraine. We continue to pray for all, especially the children who have been affected by the recent conflict.

NAPLAN
During the last two weeks, our Year 3 and 5 students participated in the national testing of literacy and numeracy. We are very proud of the way our students approached the tests and their efforts to remain focused each day. Hopefully the students’ results will reflect their abilities and understanding of concepts. We know however, that some students are anxious at testing time so NAPLAN results alone won’t necessarily tell parents the whole story about their child's progress. Results generally come out in August and parents are encouraged to talk with their child's teacher about them. 

COVID
Student cases are relatively low this term and we are no longer required to report daily to Catholic Education or our parent community. Parents will be informed if we have a major outbreak in a certain grade. Unfortunately though, the staff have been hit hard this term and staff absences reflect this. Last Thursday, we had nine staff on leave. We have been able to employ some additional casual teachers and with the support of the Leadership Team, we have managed to keep students in their classes. 

With COVID, students may return to school following their 7 days of isolation providing they are well and don't have major symptoms. A lingering slight cough is ok. RATs are available to those parents who request them although once a child is positive, please do not re- test for two months. Please contact the front office if you require RAT kits. 

Thank you to parents for keeping sick children at home. We are now finding that many children are catching the cold or flu and these are spreading in some classes. Please remind your children to continue with good hygiene. 

School Fees
On Friday of last week, Term 2 school fees were sent home. Thank you to those parents who have already set up a regular payment plan. If you are experiencing any financial stress due to COVID or other reasons, please contact me or Mrs Hazell for a Fee Remission Form. COVID School Fee remissions do need to be applied for each term.

If you are aware of a family who would like their child to attend St Mary’s but is hesitant because of school fees, please encourage them to talk with us. No child will be denied a Catholic school education because of a parent's inability to afford school fees. 

Enrolments 2023
We have already begun enrolling children into Kindergarten for next year and interviews will commence next week. Prospective parents are invited to have a tour of the Kindergarten classroom and school at any time. Please share our newsletter and Facebook page with any parents you think may be interested in having their children become part of the St Mary’s community.  

Noeleen O'Neill
Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

Sacrament of Confirmation
This weekend a number of students from Year 6 will attend a commitment mass as they prepare to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation later in the term. We keep these children in our thoughts and prayers this weekend and over the coming weeks. This is a very special time in the lives of these young people.

Prayer for Confirmation Candidates

Lord, You send out Your Spirit to touch the hearts of all people, so that they may believe in You and in Jesus whom You sent. Look kindly on all candidates for Confirmation as they listen to Your voice. Open their hearts to Your Spirit and bring to fulfilment the good work that You have begun in them. As we prepare these children for Confirmation, make each of us an instrument of Your love. Teach us to appreciate what is holy in others, and to be patient with what we do not understand. Deepen our faith in the Gospel and help us to pass it on by our example. We pray that You will continue to guide us and sustain us.

Through Christ our Lord, Amen. 

Please also note the following key dates for the sacrament of Confirmation:

Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 May - Commitment Mass for those receiving the sacrament of Confirmation

Friday 10 June - Year 6 Confirmation Retreat Day 

Sunday 26 June - Sacrament of Confirmation, 10:00am

Mrs Jess Afflick
Religious Education Coordinator

Dear Parents and Carers,

RFW Bushfire Recovery Program
St Mary’s will be welcoming back clinicians (psychologists and an occupational therapist) from Royal Far West (RFW) from 23 May - 27 May 2022. They will be delivering a range of support as part of the Bushfire Recovery Program. The visit will include Professional Learning and consultation for our teaching staff and mental health screening for a small number of children. As part of professional learning for teaching staff, the clinicians will be spending time with the teachers to gain an understanding of how the classroom runs, any concerns they have about how their classrooms are functioning, and provide advice to teachers on supporting learners’ regulation, learning and attention in the classroom. 

On Tuesday 24 May at 9.00am and on Wednesday 25 May at 2.00pm, the clinicians will hold some Parent Information sessions in the PAC. They will provide information on the services offered through RFW, how to support children to develop resilience after disaster and provide information on ways to support children with regulation. The clinicians will be available after the session if parents would like more information. You are welcome to bring toddlers along to these sessions.

If you have any concerns or questions about the visit and consultations, please get in touch with school staff before Monday the 23 May 2022.

National Sorry Day, 26 May
National Sorry Day, 26 May, is a day to acknowledge the strength of Stolen Generations Survivors and reflect on how Australians can all play a part in the healing process for the people and the nation. While this date carries great significance for the Stolen Generations and other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, it is commemorated by Australians right around the country.

Next Thursday, 26 May, our Year 3-6 Aboriginal students and some of their friends will be walking across the Batemans Bay Bridge in unity to recognise Australia’s traditional owners and pay respect to the Stolen Generation. Following the walk there will be morning tea and a barbeque on the Clyde River Foreshore.

National Reconciliation Week 2022, 27 May-3 June
Each year National Reconciliation Week (NRW) celebrates the rich culture and history of the First Australians. It is the ideal time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

The dates for National Reconciliation Week remain the same each year: 27 May to 3 June. These dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey— the successful 1967 referendum, and the High Court Mabo decision respectively.

Reconciliation Australia’s theme for 2022, ‘Be Brave. Make Change’, is a challenge to all Australians - individuals, families, communities, organisations and government - to Be Brave and tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation so we can Make Change for the benefit of all Australians.

Last year Reconciliation Australia encouraged all Australians to take action; not just in National Reconciliation Week but every week of the year. This year, they are asking everyone to make change beginning with brave actions in their daily lives - where they live, work, play and socialise.

Our school is acknowledging and celebrating National Reconciliation Week through our participation in a range of activities. 

During Reconciliation Week, we will continue to promote and celebrate the cultural identity of our local Aboriginal community and develop our knowledge of the ways that the Yuin people are connected to the land, sea, sky and waterways. Each class will be developing their own unique and meaningful group Acknowledgement of Country which they will use to begin each day before Christian Meditation. We will also be learning about what caring for Country and connection to Country mean. 

Reconciliation must live in the hearts, minds and actions of all Australians as we move forward, creating a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

This National Reconciliation Week, let's all Be Brave. Make Change!

God bless and take care,  

Sue Heffernan
Assistant Principal  

Can you believe that Kindergarten students have been at school for 60 days!  In those 60 days we have made lots of new friends and learned so many things.

English
In English we have learned lots of letters and tricky words.  To help us learn how to write a new letter and the sound that it makes, we enjoy making a craft item that begins with that sound and practice writing that letter. We are now able to read some books independently.  We have lots of opportunities to practice writing on whiteboards and in our writing books.

Maths
In Maths we’ve been working on ordinal numbers.  We have watched snails race and organised objects in order. We talked about the words heavy and light and used pan balances to compare the mass of objects.

Drama
In Drama we have played many games and worked on copying movements like a mirror. We pretended that sticks were musical instruments, lightsabers, fishing rods, horses and walking sticks. It was a lot of fun!

We have a Doctor’s surgery and chemist in our Role play zone. The boys and girls have pretended to treat others for snake bite, tummy bugs and a sore back, just to name a few of the ailments. We’ve made medicines for headaches and to turn people into frogs. We love acting as doctors and chemists!

Religion
In Religion we have learned the school prayer, different songs that we sing for prayer, how to participate in Christian meditation, say The Hail Mary and we have written our own prayers of thanks.

Kindergarten
Mrs Jacqueline Stephen

Rugby League: MacKillop Trials
Congratulations to Axel S, Sonny C and Oscar G who were part of the Canberra Goulburn Rugby League teams for U 11’s and U 12’s on May 6 in Canberra. It was a bitterly cold Canberra day but that didn’t stop the boys from showing off their impressive football skills against teams from Wollongong, Wagga, Sydney and Parramatta Diocese. It was a fantastic experience for the boys which was made even more special by the chance meeting and photo with Canberra Raiders NRL coach, Ricky Stuart and also a crowd spotting of former NRL player and Fox Sports commentator Michael Ennis. All of the boys should be proud of their achievement to represent our school and diocese at this level and have taken the skills learnt into their weekend football games. Congratulations boys.

Archdiocesan Cross Country
Congratulations to the following students for their outstanding performance at the Canberra Goulburn Archdiocesan Cross Country held at Mt Stromlo in Canberra on Monday 9 May.

Mitchell W	Darcy F	Archer Sch	Felicity P
Zac W	Alec P	Billy I	Declan T
Jaxon E	Xavier H	Jake P	Xavier E

All these students were wonderful representatives for St Mary’s. After the tricky track at Wolumla, the Mt Stromlo course was much more pleasant. Congratulations to the following students who have been successful in moving onto the next level of competition at the MacKillop Championships in Sydney on Tuesday June 7.

Mitchell W

Darcy F

Jake P

Jaxon E

Zac W

Archer Sch

A special congratulations to:
Darcy F: who placed 1st in the Archdiocesan 11 year old boys age group. Congratulations Darcy!

Jaxon E: who placed 2nd in the 11 years boys age group.

Mitchell W: who placed 3rd in the 10 years boys age group.

Archer Sch: who placed 3rd in the 12 years boys age group. 

Jake P: who placed 5th in the 11 years boys age group.

Zac W: who placed 6th in the 12 years boys age group.

Brumbies Rugby Union Gala Day Batemans Bay
Next Wednesday, students in Stage 3 will be travelling to Mackay Park Batemans Bay to participate in a Viva 7’s/ Rugby Union gala day, coordinated by the ACT Brumbies. All notes and information have been communicated via Compass. Please contact me if you have any questions regarding the day. I am sure the students will enjoy their first gala day in a very long time.

MacKillop Soccer Trials
We wish Archer Sch all the best as he travels to Goulburn next Friday to compete at the MacKillop Soccer Trials. Archer will be representing the Canberra Goulburn Archdiocese. We are sure you will show off your great soccer skills and look forward to hearing all about the day on your return.

Canberra Goulburn Rugby Union Trials
We wish lots of luck to Asher B and Kordel H as they trial for the Canberra Goulburn Archdiocesan Rugby Union team in Canberra on Monday May 30. We hope you have a great day at the trials.

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead.

Megan Grant
Sports Coordinator