St. Mary's eNews

Term 4 Week 4


Principal's Message ~ 30th October

Dear families,

I hope this message finds you all well and re-energised with the excitement that Melbourne is starting to open up.  I don’t know about you, but we have noticed the children (and let’s be frank, us adults!) are really beginning to show signs of tiredness. 

Of course, this is to be expected. Let’s hope the extra long weekend will be just the thing we need to take us through to the end of the year.

I am desperately trying to learn the children’s names and although I’ve learnt many, I still have some time to go.  The children all still appear very patient when I ask their names, even those who I know I have asked many, MANY times before. Bless them!

I will soon be meeting with the Education Board and we will be looking for new members in the new year. If you are interested in joining the Board in 2021, please let me know via email at principal@smaltona.cathoic.edu.au

Things are definitely starting to get hectic around here with our feet firmly planted across 2020 and 2021.
We are preparing to send off our Year 6s and now that some restrictions are easing, we will soon be able to share what our Graduation ceremony will look like. While we are still not allowed to have parents onsite, we are working on putting together a truly memorable celebration for our students.  Details will be sent out late next week.
On the other end of the student spectrum, we are also preparing to receive our newest intake of Prep students for 2021. Again, this process will look different to prior years, to take into account the new restrictions.

As mentioned previously, we will be reissuing revised fee statements in the coming weeks.  Thank you to those who have already arranged finalisation of fees.  We have rebated all levies with the exception of Family Fees and Curriculum Levies. If you wish to know your balance earlier, please email Katrina who will be able to let you know how much is outstanding.  Again, I reiterate that payment plans can be arranged for families who are experiencing financial strain. Please contact me to discuss your options.

Soon we will celebrate All Saints Day and All Souls Day on Sunday and Monday. I know the children had the chance to share prayer in their classes this week. I pray that those who have lived through loss find comfort in prayer. I offer a simple one for you today:

God our Father,

We ask that you hear our prayers and bring us some consolation in our lives.  As we remember in our prayers all of our loved ones who have died, we pray that they will have received the promise of eternal life and that they are with you in experiencing the joy of heaven.  

We ask you this through Lord Jesus  Christ, your son

Amen.


Until next time,

Sonia



Community Week @ St. Mary's

Week 5 is a short one in terms of days at school! 

 Monday 2nd Nov is a School Closure day.

 Tuesday 3rd is the Melbourne Cup day public holiday.

 So we will only be at school for 3 days....and oh what a fun 3 days they will be! On Wednesday 4th November we will be having some 'SPORTS DAY' type activities in class groupings.  All students will need to wear their sports uniform on that day.  The 'STAFF / STUDENT RELAY TROPHY' will be up for grabs on the oval after lunch.

We will have our RED DAY for Child Safety on Thursday 5th November.  Children can WEAR A SPLASH OF RED with their uniform.  Lessons about child safety will be covered in the coming weeks. 

The 6th November is Friday Fun Day.  Students can wear CASUAL CLOTHES  and we would love to see some CRAZY HAIR styles! We have a couple of other surprises too!

Community News

News from around the community...Parish, Secondary schools, Hobsons Bay council and Camp Australia.
    Take a peek...there might be something for you.

There's new information about the Hobsons Bay Music Academy who are running music lessons for children from a young age.

Church Bulletin 13th December
Williamstown Magic Basketball
Camp Australia - Summer Holiday Club
Hobsons Bay Music Academy
Hobsons Bay Netball Club
Creative Music for Schools


St Mary's College - Enrolments
Dear Family and Friends of St Mary’s College
Our final newsletter for 2020 is now available:

https://newsletters.naavi.com/i/kNVOjyJ
Just a reminder – to continue to receive our newsletters after this year, please subscribe:
https://newsletters.naavi.com/p/O5gLrNE/subscribe

Wishing you all a blessed Christmas!
Warmest regards  Jenny Knox ~ Director of Innovation & College Develpment

 

Mount St. Joseph Girls' College Community
The latest edition of the Synergy newsletter is now available to view or download. Dear Members of the Mount St. Joseph Girls' College Community,

Please Click here to read

We hope you enjoy this updated edition and we thank all staff and students for their contributions.

Mount St. Joseph Girls' College
133 Maidstone Street
Altona, Victoria  3018


Camp Australia

Camp Australia brings to you The BIG Art & Expression Competition – where your child can display their creative talents and win BIG prizes. The competition is open to all registered Camp Australia families and, if you’re not registered, registration is free! Register free at http://pp.campaustralia.com.au/ and find out more about the competition at https://campaustralia.com.au/bigartcomp

There will also be 3 prizes for the top 3 schools; 1st prize $3,000 art grant, 2nd prize $2,000 art grant, 3rd prize $1,000 art grant. 

 



Red Day for Child Safety ~ Thursday 5th November

WEAR a SPLASH of RED to show your support for highlighting the importance of Child Safety.

We will be learning about the importance of safety in our classes and highlighting some of the following messages…We ask that you reinforce these with your children.

 

  • We have rules to protect us, our homes, our friends and our community. 
  • When playing sports, visiting friends or going to the beach or shops, it's important to remember personal safety. Remember to tell someone, where you are going, who you are with & more
  • Be alert for the clues that warn us when something is unsafe. These clues can be as simple as smelling smoke which warns us there is a fire or a lock down alarm at school
  • If you feel scared, confused, sad or upset you need to REACT. This could even mean breaking a rule, like smashing a window to escape a fire or screaming “NO” to an adult.
  • Tell an adult in your life who cares about your safety when there is a problem. It’s adults who can keep you safe from harm and who can make a situation safe again for you.
  • Most children and teenagers have or will soon have access to social media and staying safe online has never been more important


Learning & Teaching: Inquiry Learning

An inquiry-based learning approach allows students to share their own wonderings, ideas and questions about a topic. This helps foster more curiosity about the topic and teaches skills students can apply across all dimensions of the curriculum. 

At St Mary’s we encourage inquiry through questioning, critical thinking and the development of new knowledge. Recently in the Gr 5-6 area this developed through a “Choose your own Adventure” unit where students had the opportunity to have choice and voice in the direction and outcome of their project.

Take a look at some of the photos of their creative development of their models. Students shared their models and slides with their class.

Stef Harvey
Learning & Teaching Leader

            




Sports Day ~ Wednesday 4th November

On Wednesday 4th November we will be having some 'SPORTS DAY' type activities in class groupings.  

All students will need to wear their sports uniform on that day.  

The 'STAFF / STUDENT RELAY TROPHY' will be up for grabs on the oval after lunch. House teams will also perform their chants.

Learning & Teaching: Maths at Home

Teaching mathematical concepts has long been considered the domain of the classroom teacher, with many parents often feeling unable to help their kids develop this skill.

However, parents already do many things with their kids that can encourage mathematical thinking 

and help them see the relevance of mathematics in their everyday lives.

Out and About

With holidays around the corner, we may actually be able to travel, albeit driving, but it’s the perfect opportunity to to think about concepts such as how many kilometres you will travel, reading a map, how far can we get on a tank of fuel? Can we read the numbers on signs or on number plates? 

Can we set a timetable and budgets for the things we can do?


In the garden

Estimating skills are an important part of mathematical thinking. At school we will often use a ‘guess and check’ strategy and being in the garden can help develop this further.

Planting in the garden is a great way to use our spatial awareness. How far apart should we plant them? Are they evenly spaced and can we use our understanding of arrays when planting veggie?


In the kitchen

There are so many fantastic ways to access mathematical concepts whilst cooking and baking.


Mathematical knowledge and processes are a fundamental part of this experience.

Measuring quantities accurately is crucial if you want the cake to rise. Actively discussing this with kids brings the importance of this math concept to life.

Develop curiosity by presenting problem-solving opportunities:

We need 1 cup of sugar, but we have only these ¼ and 1/3 cups to measure with. What can we do? ( knowledge of fractions)

And then ask again:

Great idea! What else could we do?

It is important that children know there can be many ways to problem solve and that we can solve problems in lots of ways.

 We will take the cake to  Grandma’s before midday. What are the possible times we could start baking if it takes 30 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook? 

At the shops

There are plenty of ways to explore mathematical concepts when you’re out shopping. 

Budgeting, grams and kilograms, money concepts are just a few. 

For the little ones you can count fruits and vegetables into the bag or find something that costs between $2 and $5.

Children with a greater understanding of money concept can be given an amount of money to spend. 

How much can you get for $10?


Both parents and teachers can use everyday experiences to reinforce and develop mathematical skills and support kid’s learning of this important subject area. As teachers, we relate all mathematical concepts to our everyday lives, building important mathematical thinking.


Lisa Said
Maths Leader



WOW

Cautious

Adjective

When you’re cautious, you try to stay away from problems or something dangerous.

Synonyms: careful, wary, guarded

I came up to the spider cautiously because I wasn’t sure if it was a Redback spider.

I needed to be cautious crossing the road because there was a lot of traffic.



Pollution Solution competition

Pollution Solution is a competition run by the Hobsons Bay city council.

This competition involves students from the local area sending in an online submission whether it be a video, a photo of how you recycle around your home, or something you have upcycled/created.

 

Why is recycling important?

Recycling is important because it benefits our beautiful beaches and natural habitats/ecosystems and the health of our planet.

Participating in this competition is a good way to show your knowledge and even go into the running to win an awesome prize.


More details can be found here

https://www.hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au/Services/Recycling-2.0-Waste-and-recycling-services/Pollution-Solution



Walk / Ride to School Day

Our next Walk / Ride to School day will be on Thursday 19th November.

 Come to school in an active way and earn points for your house team. 

  Remember to see the house captains on the netball court to get your name written on the house team charts.