Principal News
Welcome back to Term 3. Staff and students have returned to school well rested and ready for another big term at St Mary’s. The students have approached their learning with enthusiasm and have been very busy with extracurricular activities; Athletics, Public Speaking, Musical practices and 100 Days of Kindergarten celebrations.
New Families
Late last term and early this term, we welcomed some new students and their families to St Mary’s. The students in Kindergarten, Year 1, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 were especially excited to welcome Lucy, Patience, Adwik, Reyansh, Jace, Beau & Maeve into their classes.
We know that you will enjoy being part of our wonderful school community.
NAIDOC Week Mass and Awards
Last Friday, St Bernard’s Batemans Bay hosted the 2024 NAIDOC Mass and Awards Ceremony for our regional schools. Our Indigenous students and families and our Year 6 Class joined in with students from St Bernard’s, Carroll College, St Patrick’s Bega and Lumen Christi Catholic College Pambula for this very special occasion.
During NAIDOC Week each year, Catholic Education awards members of its community for their exceptional contributions to Aboriginal education, in whatever area they work or learn. Nominations from school principals and teachers are considered by the Aboriginal Education team at Catholic Education. This year we were thrilled to see that five of our Stage 2 students were recognised for their extraordinary efforts at St Mary’s. Congratulations to the following students and their families:
Emerson D - Culture and Identity Award
Jake F - Deadly Encouragement Award
Delilah S - Academic Achievement Award
Maya C - Sports Award
Indie C - Deadly Encouragement Award
This year we chose to take our Year 6 students with us for this special occasion. We were very proud of their exceptional manners and behaviour during Mass and Lunch. I received several compliments about our students' excellent behaviour.
Catching up with Mr Lowe cooking sausages for everyone was a special bonus for those children who remember him. Mr Lowe was principal at St Mary’s when our Year 6 students were in Kinder!
Stage 3 Structure
With the information we had available to us at the time, we initially made the decision to split the Stage 3 cohort into three smaller Home classes with Mr Harpley (Year 6), Ms Lock (Year 5/6) and Mr Campbell and Mrs Afflick (Year 5).
Earlier this year, several of our Year 5 students left St Mary’s and a similar number of Year 6 students enrolled with us. Last term, the Stage 3 teachers and the Leadership Team discussed the situation and decided it was best for all that we place the 21 Year 5 students together in one Year 5 class with Mr Campbell and Mrs Afflick and have two Year 6 classes for the rest of the Year. It has proved to be very successful and the students and staff are very happy.
Kindergarten 100 Days of School Celebration
On Tuesday this week, we seemed to have a lot of very old, grey and wrinkly people at St Mary's. It was odd that they looked old, but they were very little and they certainly weren't quiet or SLOW! The 100 Days of Kindergarten Celebration was a special day for everyone including Mrs Schofield. Check out our Facebook Page for more photos.
School Fees
Term 3 school fees were sent home this week. Most families find making regular payments the best way to manage them.
We understand that the last few years have impacted many of our families and we do not wish to add any additional stress upon you in regards to school fees. We offer School Fees Remissions for our families experiencing financial difficulties. It is important however, that parents make early contact with Mrs Hazell or me personally so we can assist you with the remission application. This is a highly confidential process.
Term 3 events and COMPASS calendar
Term 3 is always busy; NAIDOC activities, Musical Practices, Southern Region Public Speaking, Southern Region Athletics, Archdiocesan Athletics, Whole School Assemblies, Book Week, Science Week, Fathers Day and The Sacrament of First Eucharist.
Please closely monitor our parent calendar. If you have any difficulty accessing it, please contact the Front Office.
Please note that the last day of Term 3 for students is Thursday 26 September. Friday 27 September is a pupil free day for professional learning for staff.
Kindergarten 2025 Orientation and Little Investigators Playgroup
Dates have been set for 2025 Kindergarten Orientation sessions - Thursday November 14 and Thursday November 28. Invitations will be sent to families who have enrolled their children at St Mary’s next year.
I highly encourage parents to bring their children 0-5 years to our Little Investigators Playgroup each Wednesday in the PAC. Please let others know that it is free and open to all local families.
Family engagement with faith
Catholic Education has developed a resource for families to assist them in engaging their children in their faith. Parents and grandparents may like to use some of these activities to support them at home.
Family engagement with faith: Family Engagement with Faith.pdf
“I think this is truly the most wonderful experience we can have: to belong to a people walking, journeying through history together with our Lord, who walks among us! We are not alone; we do not walk alone. We are part of the one flock of Christ that walks together.” Pope Francis
God’s blessings on you and your families
Mrs Noeleen O'neill
Principal