Dear Parents/Carers,

Welcome to Week 2 at St Mary’s. There is a lot going on this week so please read carefully.  At Sunday’s Mass the reading from John’s Gospel was where Jesus instructed his disciples, after fishing all night, to cast their net on the other side of their boat. It was there that they caught many fish. I was struck by the significance of this event. It demonstrates that if we put our faith in the Lord and trust his guidance we will be fulfilled.

On Thursday we will support the “Do it for Dolly Day”. Students are asked to wear blue and Sarah and Josh Curry with Paul and Anne Crerar will cook a BBQ donated by the Community Council for the students. In return, we ask you to support this important cause by the way of a gold coin donation. Our school has set up their own page for this on the “Do it for Dolly Day” website. You can access this page via this link https://www.dollysdream.org.au/fundraisers/stmaryswarmemorialschooldoitfordollyday?ref=ch_3RK6BfC9u0tBmIYr1O2PHHw3. There will also be blue treats and blue jelly sold at the canteen to support the “Do it for Dolly” cause. The treats will range from $1 to $2. In class, students will learn about how to recognise bullying, how to respond to bullying and how to talk to adults about bullying. Students will learn about being kind to each other and looking after one another and how bullying is never OK. We will not focus on the story of Dolly as it is quite confronting for the younger children at school. However, if you feel you would like to address this with your child that is your choice. Can we please request that this is not discussed on the playground. The staff at St Mary’s are committed to raising awareness of bullying in our community and are proud to say there is no place for bullying at St Mary’s.    

The preliminary results for the NAPLAN testing from last term became available early last week. They are only the preliminary results as the writing component has yet to be analysed. Looking at the results I am happy to report that the data indicates an improved effort across all areas. I look forward to sharing with you a more comprehensive analysis when all results become available.

Catholic Education Canberra-Goulburn has communicated to St Mary’s in regard to reporting. CE has advised that general comments will not be required in its schools in Semester 1, 2025. But instead they have suggested schools prioritise Parent/Teacher Conferences for every family. These meetings provide an opportunity to discuss your child’s progress, their strengths, challenges and future areas of focus. A Semester Report will be sent home as in previous Semesters, providing work habits, attendance information and A-E grading for years 1-6. Kinder follow a different grading format. CE has advised us that Semester 2, 2025 reports will have a general comment for all children as in previous years. This general comment will provide a summative comment for the year, areas of achievement and areas to focus on for the following year. A-E grading, work habits and attendance information will remain as normal. We encourage all parents/guardians to engage regularly with their child/ren’s learning and connecting with their class teacher/s regularly to discuss learning progress.

The St Mary’s Community Council are organising a Trivia Night for Saturday the 28^th of June in the school hall. If trivia is your thing, please save this date. This fundraiser is sure to be a night filled with fun and entertainment. Please note this is a BYO and child free night. If you are interested in the organisation of this event, please contact the school.   

With everything going on this week we cannot forget Mother’s Day. The Community Council will run its usual stall on Thursday morning before recess. As usual the gifts will be between $2 and $8.

Remember my door is always open.

Principal

Damian Collins