Book Week
Last week we held our Book Week celebrations for 2024. This year's theme was ‘Reading is Magic’, and there was plenty of magic on the day with students and staff enjoying a fun and colourful celebration. It is always wonderful to see the creativity behind the book week costumes and how all St Mary’s students from K-6 involve themselves. 

We enjoyed another exciting and challenging Book Quiz, which is always a fun way for the students to come together to celebrate their love of books and reading. Students from K-6 worked together to answer questions related to the books they have been reading in their classrooms. Congratulations to the “Can You Teach A Fish To Climb A Tree” group comprising of Claudia A G (K), Finnley B (Yr 1), Quinn A (Yr 2), Maisie B (Yr 3), Noah B T (Yr 4), Delilah S (Yr 4), Matilda W (Yr 5) and Felicity P (Yr 6) who were our 2024 Book Quiz winners!

A big thank you to our wonderful community council who organised a book swap. Students had the opportunity to choose some new (recycled) books to continue their love of reading. It was exciting to see them sitting around the playground during the breaks reading their new books.

Farewell Mrs Matthews
On Tuesday afternoon staff officially wished Mrs Jo Matthews farewell as she is retiring at the end of this year, she will be on long service leave in Term 4. Jo has been a valued member of our staff and we want to take a moment to express our deepest gratitude and admiration for the incredible 21 years Jo has worked at St Mary’s. After close to four decades as an educator across a number of schools, she has provided support for our students, families and for staff, especially in recent years as our Learning Support Teacher. Jo’s commitment, passion, and unwavering dedication to work with our students and families has made a profound impact on our school community.

Jo’s expertise in understanding diverse learning needs and styles has been instrumental in helping numerous students achieve their learning goals and provided families with support both at school and within the community. We have been enriched with her knowledge about learning needs, where Jo has been a mentor to colleagues, and a true embodiment of the vision we hold dear at St Mary’s ensuring that every child is a learner. Her legacy will undoubtedly live on in the hearts and minds of those she has worked with. We know many families have been supported by Jo over the years, so please reach out and wish her well on her retirement before the end of the term. 

Bus Behaviour Code of Conduct

There are a number of important travel expectations to keep students safe and to ensure an enjoyable and stress free trip to and from school. This term, there has been an increase in reports from the bus companies of unsafe behaviour of students when travelling to and from school on buses. As a matter of urgency, please revise the following expectations about safe bus travel with your child/children.

Students are expected to follow these rules for the safety and comfort of all passengers, including themselves. If the rules are not followed, it may lead to the suspension of students or banning students from travelling on buses.

It is every student’s responsibility to behave in a manner that ensures the safety and comfort of passengers and drivers. This includes: 

Behaviour on buses: 

• Use appropriate language not offensive or racist language 
• Fighting, spitting, feet on seats, throwing things in or from the bus is not permitted 
• Do not push or shove other people
• Do not bully or harass other passengers or the driver 
• Avoid attracting the attention of the driver except in the case of emergency 
• Do not play music at such volume that it may distract the bus driver or other passengers

Safety on and near buses:

• Obey reasonable directions from the driver (e.g. where to sit or to remain in the bus) 
• Remain in your seat – do not move around the bus unnecessarily
• Keep bags and other items clear of the aisle 
• Do not allow any part of your body to protrude out of the bus at any time 
• Wait for the bus in a quiet and orderly manner – including at bus interchanges 
• Stand away from the roadside until the bus comes to a complete stop 
• Allow other passengers to leave the bus before stepping onto the bus in a single line 
• Wait until the bus stops before moving to get off the bus at your designated stop 
• Wait until the bus leaves the stop and you have clear vision before crossing the road 
• Cross the road where and when it’s safe to do so, use crossings/traffic lights where available

Legal considerations on buses: 

• Wear the seat belt properly adjusted and fastened, if one is available
• Ensure that buses are not vandalised – report any damage, e.g. graffiti and window etching, to the driver 
• Do not interfere with bus property, equipment and signage 
• Do not leave rubbish on the bus, or at bus stops or interchanges

It is important that students catching the bus report any unsafe behaviour to the driver and their parents.

Staffing
St Mary’s teachers may seem like superheroes, but actually we are not! There are times when we are doing other things that can take us away from being super in our classrooms. Some of these reasons may be:

• Professional Learning courses
• Applying assessments requested by Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn or Government & Education agencies
• RFF - (Release From Face-to-Face teaching), where teachers prepare learning programs, prepare resources, mark and grade assessment tasks etc
• Illness/injury
• Caring for an unwell family member
• Specialist medical appointments
• Leave of other types e.g. long service leave, leave without pay

Generally, we do quite well at St Mary’s to cover staff absences and we are fortunate to have some outstanding relief staff connected to the school, who are able to follow the teaching and learning programs prepared for the students. However, as you would know, there is currently a chronic shortage of teachers and we are affected like all other schools and communities. When there are many teachers who are sick, we call upon any additional staff who are already in our school if possible, and collapse extra programs if needed, but there may be times that classes will need to combine or split into other classes for the day. When this happens, students are provided with work to complete and are provided with assistance from the teacher in that class. We make every attempt to avoid this, but the situation is tricky at the moment. Thank you for your understanding.

Mrs Noeleen O’Neill will be on long service leave until the end of Term 3. During her absence, Mrs Sue Hefferrnan will be Acting Principal and Mrs Carla Durnan will be Acting Assistant Principal. Ms Allison Lock will be Acting REC, job sharing the position with Mrs Jessica Afflick. If you have any concerns during this time, please do not hesitate to contact Mrs Heffernan.

Kindergarten 2025 Enrolments & Orientation
We are very close to finalising the enrolments for 2025 and we want to be sure that all enrolments have come through to the office. If you know of any parent who is still undecided, please encourage them to contact the front office for information on how to complete the enrolment form.

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. 

Happy Father’s Day
While Father’s Day is a celebration of fatherhood, it’s a time for us to honour, celebrate and be thankful for all of the men, father figures and male role models in our lives…including our uncles, grandfathers, Godfathers, and even our male teachers. We recognise the very important role you have in the lives of our children.

Thank you to all of the families who came along to celebrate the fathers, grandfathers, uncles and father figures in our community today. We are pleased to be able to acknowledge and thank these role models for the wonderful support they offer our students. It was a fantastic morning and we would like to sincerely thank all of the staff who made the morning possible.

Thank you to all of the dads in our school community. The children love you and are so proud of you. We hope you have a wonderful day on Sunday. You are a hero!

Dear God,

Thank you for all the fathers and father-figures in this world and for the many ways you use them to lovingly guide others to Your heart. We ask that you bless them and give them great joy and peace. May they see You and know You in new ways. Show them how much you love them and care about them. Guide their steps, use their hands, and make them a blessing to others as you continue to fulfil your special purpose for their lives.

Amen