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Dear Parents, Guardians and Community,
The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary (8 December)
‘The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”’
—Luke 1:30–33
Please join us for this Mass this Friday at 9:15 for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception
Firstly, a big thank you to Sophie Carter for all her work organising our first Parent Summer Party. It was big success and I have heard nothing but positives from those who were able to attend. I am sure this event will get bigger and better. The event also raised $1200 for our school playground!!
We also welcomed Charlotte Irving to our School this week. Charlotte joined Year 1/2C. We welcome Charlotte and her family to our school.
Beach Program. Our Grade 5 and 6 students have experienced some great weather for their Beach Program this week. Thankfully it was not last week when we had all that rain. We thank all for their assistance organising and running this program.
Good News: Congratulations to Daryl Marmion who is one of 30 teachers chosen across Australia to take part in the Bell Shakespeare Teacher Mentorship Program. Daryl will have 4 days of extensive training in Sydney next year and have support throughout the year. We look forward to a bit of Shakespeare coming to St Mary's in 2024. Only four teachers were chosen in Victoria and only two Catholic teachers across Australia. Well done Daryl or should I say “Heaven send thee good fortune."
More Good News: We have also been successful in our application for us to spend $3000 on our Italian Resources and $5000 for access to dinolingo for most of our students for a year. Most of our books are old and looking a bit past their time. We will now have some great new resources to use across our school. Well done Melissa Edmunds!
School Fete/Fair: Well, after, looking at Williamstown Primary School, I think all of us agree that the School Fete/fair is a big part of who we are and so we should give it a go. I think we all get overwhelmed by the size of it, so perhaps we try what we have done with the Parents and Friends and break it up into small parts so it is manageable. So I guess we just need to put a few jobs up and see if someone(s) is happy to lead that part
The main parts I can think of are (There is a manual somewhere)
- Someone (s) to book/look into council permits, insurance etc
- Someone (s) to to look after the finances. money collection, ethpos etc
- Someone(s) to look at Site maps and book marques.stage etc
- Someone(s) to look after Sponsorship
- Someone(s) to look after marketing and social media
- Someone(s) to look after entertainment
- Someone(s) to look after liaisons with community groups
- Someone(s) to look after storage
- Someone(s) to look after the raffle
- Someone(s) to look after food stalls
- Someone(s) to look after the rides
In the manual most of these have all the contacts you need and information to organise, so you are not starting from scratch.
Perhaps we also need something like a car club to put on a display, so if someone is connected to a hobby club or another organisation, could they let us know if they are interested in displaying their hobbies on the day. ( I remember a school in my home town ran a very successful hobbies display for a number of years and it became one of the biggest events in the town as it ended up involving car clubs, motor sport, farming equipment, sewing, quilts, cooking, steam engines etc people came from everywhere to check it out)
I know I have probably missed a few things and some people have already indicated how they can help in the surveys that were completed. If we look at a tentative date of around the weekend of 22/23 of November, (Can depend on when rides are available) I think we can really make this Fete/Fair work
So, if you want to put your name against something please reply to info@smwilliamstown.catholic.edu.au and let us know which part you want to lead
Staffing news:
Further to our communication last Friday we have some other staffing announcements.
Catherine Anicic. We say goodbye to Catherine after many years as a Learning Support Officer. Catherine has been studying teaching part time and leaves us to take up a Position as an Art teacher at St Theresa of Kolkata, a new school in Tarneit North. Well done and thank you to Catherine.
We also say good bye to Shannon Zammit who has been working for us part time covering teachers. We thank Shannon for her time, but we know Shannon will be with us as a relief teacher so she will not be going very far.
We also say goodbye to Nicole Eckhardt who replaced Rebecca Backman as our Enhancement Teacher. Rebecca is returning in 2024. We thank Nicole for her time at St Mary's.
We also say goodbye to Sheridan McCuthcheon as a Learning Support Officer. Sheridan is not going very far as she is still a parent at the school. We thank Sheridan for her time.
School Improvement Plan Wind up
We are now half way through our School Improvement Plan and like most plans, some have made great progress and others still need a bit more work.
Student Voice and Agency: We continue to make great progress and we now see our students making much greater contributions to the school, running assemblies and other activities. We still want to progress their contributions to their own learning and some of our work around the Science of Learning will assist this.
Instructional Coaching. We made some good step forward with our Coaching for teaching with all our teachers now having worked with our coach, Lucy McCarthy-Hill. Our next steps is our teachers regularly filming themselves to help with their self reflection when working through a coaching cycle. Once again the work with the Science of Learning will support this goal as it involves having some set behaviour norms and practices across the school.
Behaviour Management: We continue to work through the modules for the Intervention Framework which looks at all ways we support students. Our classrooms are settled and we are recording less incidents with students, so we are making some progress there.
Data Literacy: We will have a bit more of a focus on this goal in 2024 as we have not embedded our practices in this area. Although we are looking at wider variety of data sets, we have not been consistent with this and we need to build on our processes.
So What else is happening in 2024.
Playground redevelopment should make a start, I am already in conversation about one of our major pieces with an artist, so hopefully we get a bit more momentum after being stuck down in council negotiations.
Saint Mary MacKillop: We want to have a big push to make Mary more central to who we are as she is a big part of our history. We think that dropped off over covid, so we need to reinvent.
Science of Learning. Some great work has already started and we will continue to add to our program. Our closure days for next year are already on our calendar most of which are full training days for staff. What you will see will be more structured work around spelling and reading with looking to introduce the Spelling Mastery program in 2025. We have to get everything right before we introduce the program.
Love Maths. We continue to work with Love Maths in 2024. Michael Minus will be working with teachers modelling lessons, helping with their planning and helping to analysis our data.
Our new sports top: Yes, frustrated at my end too, so it cannot be too far away. I am hoping we see it before school ends this year. We are looking to have a smoking ceremeony to celebrate it's arrival.
Boosting Our Numbers: No doubt, covid put a big dent in our numbers, which has impacted classes and other things so I think as a community we need to get together and get out there and sell St Mary's to the community again. Yes, we are not the only school that has been impacted the same way, however, I think if we get on the front foot and start to be out there really promoting our great school we can be ahead of the other schools. Word of mouth is the biggest selling point for a school so lets do this together. (In fact, let's face it, I'm an educator, so my expertise is in Literacy and Numeracy, not marketing a school. If any parent wants to take a lead in this I am happy to have the conversation!!)
It sounds like a big year already, I can't wait!!
Closure Days for 2024
1 |
Start of 2024 |
Monday 29th (Staff Day) Students start Tuesday January 30th |
2 |
Michael Minas - Love Maths |
Thursday 28th March |
3 |
Flourishing Learners |
Friday 26th April |
4 |
Flourishing Learners |
Friday 16th August |
5 |
Flourishing Learners |
Monday 21st October |
6 |
Time in lieu- pre Melb Cup |
4th November |
7 |
End of 2024 Last Student Day Tuesday December 17th |
Wednesday Dec 18 (Staff Day) |
8 |
Time in lieu |
Thursday Dec 19 |
9 |
Time in lieu |
Friday Dec 20 |
God Bless
Anthony
Dear families,
We have had another successful year with our camp program. We have had to make some changes to the 2024 camp program due to changes to the class structures.
Year 3/4 students will attend a one night camp at Ferngully Lodge. We loved Boomerang Ranch however they are unable to cater for the larger group in 2024.
Year 5/6 students will be traveling to Canberra for the 4 day camp. This camp will now be on a 2 year cycle to fit in with the new class structures.
Below are the dates and information for the camps planned for 2024
Year Level |
2023 Camp Program |
Fee Levy |
Prep |
Term 4- Breakfast at school |
*N/A |
Yr 1 & 2 |
Term 1- Day camp & dinner at school |
$20 |
Yr 3/4 |
Term 4- 1 night camp Ferngully Lodge (Nov 11th-12th) |
$225 |
Yr 5/6 |
Term 2- 4 night camp Canberra (May 6th-9th) |
$950 |
*Cost is included in the Student levy
St Mary’s Faith News
School and Parish Connections
Gospel – Mark 1:1-8
The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.
As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way.
A voice of one crying out in the desert: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.'”
John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
People of the whole Judean countryside and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.
John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. He fed on locusts and wild honey.
And this is what he proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.
I have baptized you with water; but he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
This Friday - 8th December
Join Us for Second Advent Liturgy this Friday!
We're excited to invite all students, staff, and families to come together this Friday afternoon for our Second Advent Liturgy. The liturgy will take place in the hall as part of the assembly, and your presence will add to the warmth of this special event.
This year, our dedicated Charism team has been hard at work planning the Advent Liturgies. From orchestrating the liturgy itself to creating a captivating slideshow and coordinating readers, this exceptional group of students has shown true commitment to enhancing our faith journey.
Let's take a moment to appreciate and support these incredible students who have willingly dedicated their time and efforts to enriching our school community. Your attendance at the Advent Liturgies would be a wonderful way to show your encouragement for their remarkable contributions.
? Date: Friday 8th December
? Time: 3:00
? Location: School Hall (Assembly)
We look forward to coming together as a community to celebrate the spirit of Advent and to show our gratitude to the Charism team. All are welcome, and your presence will undoubtedly make this event even more special.
Children’s Christmas Pageant
Exciting news for our budding vocal talents! This year, the organizers of the Children's Christmas Eve Pageant are thrilled to introduce a children's choir, and we want your child to be a part of it!
Look out for the expression of interest form coming home this Friday. If your child is eager to lend their voice to the festive cheer on Christmas Eve, simply fill in the form and send it back to school.
Once we have the lineup of our talented singers, further details about choir practices will be shared with you. Let's make this Christmas Eve Pageant truly special with the enchanting voices of our school's young stars!
Get ready to spread the joy through song!
Sacrament Programs for 2024
Reconciliation - Year 3 Students
In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the Church celebrates Jesus’ gift of forgiveness. Through their preparation, the Year 3 students will explore their ability of making good choices and the importance of forgiveness.
Next year, the children in Year 3 will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation in Term 1. At St Mary’s this a very intimate celebration with the candidate’s family and Fr Greg. Each candidate will need to book in for a ten minute session. Further information about booking a time will be shared in Term 1 next year.
The dates are as follows:
Tuesday 5th March 4:00 - 6:00pm
Wednesday 6th March 4:00 - 6:00pm
Friday 8th March 4:00 - 6:00pm
Saturday 9th March 10:00am -12:00pm
First Eucharist - Year 3 and 4 Students
Eucharist is the Sacrament that completes the process of initiation and is when the students can fully participate in the Eucharist by receiving Holy Communion. Eucharist is unique among the sacraments as it at the heart of our faith. The Eucharist, or Mass is the most powerful way we encounter the presence of Jesus Christ.
Next Year, the students in Year 3 /4 at St Mary’s will receive the Sacrament of First Eucharist in Term 2. There will be one Mass for each Year 3 / 4 class. This will be the 6:00 pm Mass on Saturday evening. Further Information about the program and requirements will be provided next year.
The Dates are as follows:
Saturday 18th May -3 /4 RM
Saturday 25th May - 3/ 4C
Saturday 1st June - 3 / 4 T
Confirmation - Year 5 and 6 Students
The Sacrament of Confirmation is the second of the three sacraments of initiation. Confirmation completes Baptism, by which, in the laying on of hands and the anointing with Chrism oil, the students are confirmed with the fullness of the Holy Spirit and strengthened to follow Jesus more closely. In their preparation for receiving this sacrament, the students will be reminded of their participation in the ministry and mission of Jesus.
Next Year, the students in Year 5/ 6 at St Mary’s will receive the Sacrament of Confirmation in Term 3. There will be one Mass for each Year 5 / 6 class. This will be held on a weeknight at 6:00 pm. Further Information about the program and requirements will be provided next year.
The Dates are as follows:
Tuesday 27th August - 5 /6 D
Wednesday 28th August - 5/ 6S
Thursday 29th August -5 / 6 AK
Some important dates to Remember for Term 4
Event |
Date |
Time |
Where |
Seniors Mass |
Friday 1st December |
11:30 am |
Church |
Advent Liturgy 1 |
Friday 1st December |
3:00 pm |
School Hall |
Feast of the Immaculate Conception |
Friday 8th December |
9:15 am |
Church |
Advent Liturgy 2 |
Friday 8th December |
3:00 pm |
School Hall |
End of Year Mass |
Thursday 14th December |
11:30 am |
Church |
Parish BBQ
All Parishioners of St Mary’s Church Williamstown are invited to:
This Sunday's 10:30am thanksgiving mass lead by newly ordained Tom Christie followed by the Annual Parish BBQ - All Welcome.
As we enter the final week of school for students at the College, we congratulate everyone on a
wonderful year, achieving their best both personally and academically.
We are really excited for those students that are heading off to join the workforce, commence an
apprenticeship, or continue their studies at TAFE or University and look forward to welcoming
everyone again at Alumni events in the future.
The College is grateful for the strong relationships that exist with both our current and future
families as well as the primary schools with whom we work.
We would like to wish everyone safe and enjoyable festive season and look forward to seeing you at
events in 2024.
Kind regards
Jenny Hendricks
Mount St. Joseph Girls' College
Mount St. Joseph Girls’ College Altona was established by the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart and the first 65 students walked through the gates on 4 February 1964.
In 2024, Mount St. Joseph Girls' College celebrates their 60th anniversary, Alumnae and families with connections to MSJ are invited to join in the celebrations.
Tickets are now available for “MSJ Celebrates 60 years" on Sunday 18 February. To RSVP, scan the QR code or visit Trybooking HERE.