Term 3 Week 5 Newsletter 2024
Important Dates
Aug 19 | BOOK WEEK commences |
Aug 20 | Year 6 - Praise and Worship Concert - SJC |
Aug 21 | Year 7 2025 Orientation 1 - 9.30am to 2.10pm |
Aug 22 | ICAS Science and Spelling |
Aug 23 | Diocesan Athletics - Barden Park, Dubbo |
Sept 03 | Infants School Dance - 6pm-7.30pm |
Sept 04 | Primary School Dance - 6pm-8pm |
Sept 20 | PUPIL FREE DAY |
Vision Statement:
St. Mary's Primary strives to be a welcoming Christ-centred learning community that promotes a quality holistic
education and trusting relationships in a caring and supportive environment.
Acknowledgment of Country: We acknowledge the traditional custodians of this land, the Wiradjuri people, who, long before us, lived, loved, educated and raised their children on this site. We pay our respects to elders past and present, and we recognise the young people who are our future. We acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families in our community. We respect their deep physical and spiritual connections to the country through their stories traditions and living cultures.
Character Virtue: P E R S P E C T I V E
It's easy to get caught up in our own point of view. Sometimes when others disagree with us, our first reaction is anger. Perspective lets us really practice being Christians by walking in each other's shoes and showing empathy. It also means that we don't think every obstacle is devastating - we understand each event's place in our overall life.
From the Principal
Mr Luke Wilson
Principal
Dear Parents,
Welcome to Week 5.
Thank you to Mr Keady and Father Nam for our Assumption Mass last Thursday. Thanks to Mrs Dann for playing the piano and Mrs Fiander for leading our singing. Thanks to Mrs Nuttall for preparing our debating teams for their debate with St John’s Primary last Friday. Year 3 students will celebrate the sacrament of the Eucharist this weekend. We pray for them and their families as they prepare for this important milestone in their faith journey.
Years 5 and 6 will attend the Praise and Worship Concert at Dubbo Regional Theatre and Convention Centre tomorrow. Thanks to Mrs McKenzie for organising today’s Book Week Parade and our visiting author, Beckie Plant.
School Dances - date reminder:
Our school dances are on 3rd September and 4th September in our School Hall.
Infants - Tuesday, 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Primary - Wednesday, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
BOOK WEEK
Beckie Plant
About the Author:
Beckie always wanted to write a children’s book—but it seemed as far away as the stars.
Then, one day, Beckie decided she wouldn’t ever know how far the stars actually were until she started walking, so she just started taking steps—some days big ones, some days little ones—and the stars moved closer.
On other days, Beckie studied Developmental Trauma, Art therapy, youth work, and Counselling, working in youth mental health to help others find their stars and start walking.
Phillip Donato Orange MP review
“The essence of this book lies in its artful rhythms and illustrations. Beckie encourages our children to embrace their unique qualities and empowers them to see their strengths. Her book does not merely tell our children of their brilliance, she guides them in comprehending the very reasons that make them exceptional”.
Beckie Plant gave author talks to each of our grades throughout the day.
Amazing Like You is available from The Book Connection Dubbo for $21.99 and online with free postage in Australia via rebecca-plant.square.site. Instagram and facebook: beckie.plant.author
Reading is Magic in KINDERGARTEN...
Sport
Diocesan Athletics Carnival - The Diocesan Carnival occurs this Friday, 23rd August, at Barden Park. We wish them every success. A Bathurst Diocesan Team will be selected from this carnival to compete at the Polding Carnival on Friday, 13th October. Congratulations to the following students who will represent our school at this carnival:
Thomas Alley, Charlie Bell, Jake Butcher, Amy Cass, Beckham Chapman, Jake Clarke-Lawrence,
Caludia Cook, Gus Dunn, Tom Galvin, Evie Galvin, Aidan Good, Lucy Grattan, Slater Gray, Vin Grey,
Solei Grey, Demi Horstman, Polly Hubbard, Roy Larkin, Cooper Lew, Emily Lindsay, Zara Maas,
Annabelle Mackintosh, Creaden Mallison, Olivia McGlynn, Georgie Meyers, Jackson O'Connor,
Liza O'Sullivan, Ollie Parkes, Cohen Quigley, Buddy Salloum, Willow Scott, Remy Sharkey,
Frankie Simpson, Diesel Simpson, Isabelle Sommerlad, Millie Walsh, Esther Williams, Eli Willocks,
Indie Wilson and Frankie Wilson.
TAP Basketball - Congratulations to Polly Hubbard, who has been selected to participate in the TAP Basketball Camp this week. At TAP camp, Polly will have the opportunity to excel with the Basketball NSW High-Performance Camp. We hope she has a great week.
Religious Education
Mr Tim Keady
RE Coordinator
Dear Parents,
First Eucharist - First Eucharist will be held in the coming few weeks. St. Mary’s school has been allocated the weekend of 31st August/ 1st September. We would like to invite all members of our school community to come along and celebrate this important milestone with our Year 3 students at one of the Masses this weekend.
If you have any questions about the sacrament of Communion, please contact Rosie Hosking via email at sacraments.dubbo@cdob.org.au
| RE Dates for the Calendar | |
| Week 5 | Tuesday, 20th August - Year 5/6 Praise and Worship @ DRTCC |
| Week 6 | Saturday/Sunday 31st August and 1st September - St. Mary's First Eucharist Weekend |
| Week 7 | Tuesday, 3rd September - NAIDOC Liturgy + activities. (Confirmation of times for events to be confirmed) |
| Week 8 | Wednesday, 11th September - First Eucharist Liturgy - 11.30 am @ St. Mary's Hall (Year 2) |
| Week 9 | |
| Week 10 | Gerard Yeo Shield @ St. Johns College (Year 6 from all Dubbo Catholic Schools) |
CEDB Year 5 & 6 Praise and Worship - Our CEDB's annual Stage 3 Praise and Worship Day will be held this Tuesday at Dubbo Regional Theatre and Convention Centre. This is a day where all Year 5/6 students from around the Dubbo area of our diocese come together to participate in a Praise and Worship event in line with our Religious Education curriculum.
Students are to come to school as normal and will be transported via bus to and from the event. It starts at approx. 10am and concludes at approx. 1.30pm. Permission for this event is covered with our 'local excursions permission note' that was completed at the beginning of the year.
This is a compulsory event for all Year 5 and 6 students who will attend with their class teachers. There will be no canteen facilities available on the day so students must bring a packed recess and lunch as well as a drink bottle. School sports uniform will be worn as normal on this day.
Gospel Focus: Sing to God (John 6:51-58)
Make the best use of every day.
ST. BRIGID'S PARISH - MASS TIMES:
St Brigid's: Saturday - 5pm, Sunday - 9am and Sunday - 5pm
St. Laurence's Church: Sunday - 7.30am
Library
REMINDER: The closing date for the PRC is Friday, 23rd August 2024. To complete the challenge the children in Years 1 and 2 need to have read 20 books from the PRC list and 10 free choice books. The children in Years 3 to 6, need to have read 10 books from the PRC list and 10 free choice books.
Each child must then log onto the website and record the books they have read before the 23rd of August to receive their certificates.
If you are having any problems, please feel free to contact me.
Mrs McKenzie
Awards
STUDENT OF THE WEEK:
| Toby Single - KB For incredible effort and a huge improvement in writing lessons. |
| Conor Carroll - KG For working hard in all areas and making massive improvements. Well done! |
HOUSE AWARDS:
Congratulations to the following students for gaining 10 points for
their Sports House for exemplary behaviour:
| LA SALLE: | McAULEY: | MOORE: | LENNON: |
| Ari Yeo - 3B | Maddison March - 2B | Ned Parkes - 2B | Alfie Bonham - KB |
| Amity Smith - 2B | Charlie Mackintosh - 2B | Rose Buckley - KB | |
| Charlie Boothby - 3B | Kala Squires - 2B | ||
| Billy Carney - 3B | Pippa Davis - 3B | ||
| Archie Chippendale - 3B | Max Robinson - 3B | ||
| Heidi Taylor - 3B | Lucy McArthur - 3B | ||
| Lily Thornton - 3B |
Debating
Last Friday, St. Mary's hosted St. John's Primary for our first debate. Our topic was "That handwriting is better than typing". We had two very interesting debates with many clever rebuttals from both schools. Congratulations to St. John's who won both close debates. A big thank you goes to Mrs Pauline Walkom for her excellent adjudicating skills. Well done to both schools and best of luck for your future debates. Thank you, Mrs Nuttall
ICAS
Dates for students (Years 3 to 6) who have entered the International Competition and Assessments for Schools:
| Subject | Date |
| Science | Thursday, 22nd August |
| Spelling Bee | Thursday, 22nd August |
| Mathematics | Wednesday, 28th August |
School Fees
Term 3 Fees were posted on Friday, 2nd August 2024 and were DUE last Friday, 16th August 2024.
Reminder letters will be sent out this week to our Term Payers.
Attendance
Regular school attendance will help your child to gain the skills and knowledge for success both now and later in life.
Regular attendance ensures that students have consistent exposure to new concepts and lessons. Learning is a continuous process, and consistent attendance allows students to build on their knowledge over time.
No matter the age of your child, a starting point may be guiding them to develop a morning routine. This life long skill could include a regular bedtime and wake-up time. Expectations around devices in the bedroom would be an important conversation. Having a structured routine helps students get enough rest and be ready for school each day.
Teaching time management skills to a teenager is an essential life skill that will benefit them in academics, extracurricular activities, and future responsibilities.
Talk openly about common time-wasting activities, such as excessive social media use or excessive video gaming. Encourage your child to be mindful of these activities and set limits to maintain a healthy balance.
Remember that developing effective time management skills is an ongoing process. Be patient, provide guidance, and adapt strategies based on your child’s individual needs and preferences.
Automated Attendance Notification:
CEDB has set up Automated Attendance Notifications for our school.
Attendance Tracking: Teachers will record attendance as usual.
Automated Alerts: If your child is marked absent without a known reason, an SMS will be sent to your registered mobile number.
Immediate Action: You can take immediate action by contacting the school if the absence is
unexpected or unaccounted for.
Ensure Your Contact Information is Up-to-Date: Verify and update your mobile number with the school office.
Communicate Absences: Notify the school in advance if your child will be absent.
Stay Alert: Look out for SMS notifications from the school.
PARTIAL ABSENCES:
Parents must attend the school office to use the Compass Kiosk to complete a PARENT DROP-OFF or PARENT PICK-UP if arriving late or leaving early.
FULL DAY ABSENCES:
A Note should be submitted via Compass for a FULL DAY absence from school.
Reminder: Parents to submit an attendance note within 7 days of absence. Thank you.
Community News
BIRTHDAYS:
Celebrating their birthday this week are:
George Finlay, Harry Lee, Billy Carney, Harlie Trimboli, Thomas O'Connor,
Jessica Comber, Ruth Sykes, Halle Box, Evie McLaren, Reuben Cross,
Zara Maas, Aubrie Olsen and Kenzie Williams.
We hope you enjoy your birthday!
Canteen
Canteen Roster
TUES Aug 20 | Jenny Higgens |
WED Aug 21 | Jo Trimboli |
THURS Aug 22 | Emma Maas, Kim Large and Emily Simpson |
FRI Aug 23 | Kim Scott, Nikki Taylor and Sophie Richardson |
MON Aug 26 | Sheridan Wiatkowski |
REMINDER:
MunchMonitor cut-off time for placing lunch orders - 9.45 am.
LATE LUNCH ORDERS:
9.45 am - 11.00 am - Parents are welcome to phone the school office to place a lunch order.
After 11.00 am - Students have an option of a Vegemite Sandwich, Cheese Sandwich
or Cheese and Vegemite Sandwich only.