Today we celebrate Remembrance Day. Our Social Justice team led the school in prayer this morning. Well done Amelie and Zara and thank you to Mr Taylor for organising the service.

 

On Tuesday night we held our first parent information session in a long time. The session centred around our Maths program and the changes that we have been working on in the last 12 months. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Thanks to Mr Freeman for organising the evening, to Miss A and Mr Taylor for running small group sessions and Ms Lycke and Mrs Masseni for providing supervision of children on the night. 

We will have more of these sessions throughout next year. We will also be asking families for feedback on what areas of schooling they’d like more about and also what times best suit for these sessions. We will aim to run each session multiple times so that more parents will be able to attend at times that work in with their family lives.

Thank you to the many parents who went out of their way to acknowledge my eNews piece last week. It was a cathartic experience for me and I am glad it helped so many of you.  By way of an update, Ryan (and his parents!) survived the experience! He has now started to ask to spend time with friends outside school hours, on weekends etc. As parents, we are now looking at what protocols and expectations we will need to put in place when this becomes a frequent occurrence. We're all learning together!

A huge thank you and welcome to Mancini Real Estate with whom we have just made official, a sponsorship agreement for the next 3 years. As many of you will know, the Mancini family have a long-standing, multi-generational relationship with our school and the wider community. 

We are looking forward to a long and mutually prosperous relationship.

We have updated our Operoo First Aid process in order to streamline the information that is required in the system.

Your new email notifications will be shorter.

Please ensure that the email address listed in Operoo is one that is accessible and used daily to ensure you receive these notifications in a timely manner. 

If needed, you are able to change the email address via your Operoo login.

Values/House names Update

It was our intention to create House Names this year, names after people who live out our school values of Respect, Responsibility, Resilience and Courage. We are not yet ready to do so at this stage, but early next year, we will share a shortlist of names for staff, students and families to vote upon.

Learner Dispositions

In our current work on Visible Learning, staff have begun discussing and listing the dispositions we want our students to exhibit as great learners. While our school values list our ways of being in our world and school, our learner dispositions will be those traits we want to build in ourselves as learners specifically.  There will be some overlap, for example, we want to be courageous citizens AND learners, these dispositions will be specifically addressed and taught in the context of learning. In the coming weeks, via this newsletter, we will ask parents to list the dispositions or traits they want their children to develop and exhibit as learners at St Mary’s and beyond. I encourage you to think about these in the coming weeks and share these with me when the invitation is extended soon. 

Staffing Update

Mrs Carol Hicks will be retiring at the end of this year.  Carol has been a stalwart of both St Mary’s and Altona for many years. 
In what is truly a testament to her commitment to our students and doing what is best for them, her own role changed multiple times this year and she not only accepted these changes but also offered to step up when changes were required. 

I have no doubt that there are many in our community who will join us in congratulating her on this next phase and also acknowledging what she means to each of us.

Please disregard the date that was released in an earlier version of this eNews. We will share updated information soon on how we will be acknowledging and celebrating Carol within our school community.

I confirm that Miss B and Miss A will be our Prep teachers for 2023. 

Both are very excited to be pairing up for the first time to teach the newest additions to our school community. 

The rest of our 2023 staffing arrangements are still currently being finalised.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend,

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On this day over a century ago, as citizens across the Allied nations celebrated the end of war. Today the students were led in a Remebrance Day service by our Social Justice Leaders, Amelie and Zara. These girls read the service aloud over our PA system whilst students listened on in silence in classrooms and learning spaces across the school. A copy of the service the girls read can be accessed here.

As we commemorate the Armistice this Remembrance Day, and cast our minds back over the years, we know too well the deep scars of war and long to prevent them from touching an Australian soul. Our human predisposition, our Australian predisposition, is for peace. It is to be in accord with family, friends, neighbours, community. To love, to live.

 

That’s why war is always a failure of our humanity.

 

Yet we know there are times when even the most peaceful of men and women are called upon to defend the beliefs they live by, and there have been too many such times over the course of the past.

We are proud of our history and we are proud of the way our Social Justice Leaders prepared and lead us in this service.

Lest we forget



Yours in Faith
Matthew Taylor
Leader of Religious Education

 

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Maths Information Evening for Parents 
Tuesday 8th November 7pm
What a buzz

On Tuesday evening, an enthusiastic group of parents attended the Maths Parent Evening.

This was aimed at informing parents about our improvement focus in Maths, including what Maths looks like in the classroom. Parents will have noticed how this has also impacted our approach to reporting to parents. They enjoyed participating in some activities from the classroom including focused teaching lessons and independent follow up activities.


Photo Gallery

Tony Freeman
Maths Leader
tfreeman@smaltona.catholic.edu.au

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A recent RCH National Child Health Poll found that half of all Victorian Childrean are experiencing porblems with anxiety.  In this article, Anxitey in kids is rising: How parents can spot it, RCH shares what parents know and offers tips to support your child. If you have concerns about your child in this area, please don't hesitate to contact Marg (Wellbeing Leader) or Cathy (Learning Diversity Leader - csims@smaltona.catholic.edu.au)

We hope you find the information useful.

Marg Masseni
Wellbeing Leader
mmasseni@smaltona.catholic.edu.au

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It’s nearly time for the St Mary's P&F Glow Disco 2022!
Got the moves?….Prove it, put your boogie shoes on and bop ‘til you drop!

  Follow the call of the Disco ball…..
The school Disco will be held on:

Thursday 17 th November.
Prep- Grade 2: 5pm to 6.45pm
Grade 3-6: 7pm to 8.45pm

*Grade 3’s* have the option to attend either the 5pm or 7pm session
Tickets are $10 each and includes a glow stick.

Available for purchase at: www.trybooking.com/CDSDM

Extra glow sticks are available for purchase on the night.
Funds from the event will go towards funding the new Sensory Garden.
This event is proudly brought to you by the P&F (Parents and Friends Committee).

To help the event run smoothly we will be putting a call out for volunteers on Operoo.

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The Parent’s and Friends Committee proudly presents the 2022 Walkathon!
 Come and walk with us on Thursday 24th November and raise funds for the new Sensory Garden for the school. Of all monies raised via the Walkathon, some will be set aside as a cash donation to the Daniel Morcombe Foundation, whose primary aim is to raise awareness of child safety, fundraise, and walk Daniel home.

The Walkathon will be held at the school between 11.30 –1.30 pm. The 400 meter course is set up around the school and the children walk for an hour- some of our students even opt to run the
course!! The younger years typically manage between 5-10 laps which fills them with tremendous pride.

Parents are welcome to join in and offer their children support to keep going. You don’t have to walk for the whole hour, just when you want.

All walkers will also receive Super Dooper Icy poles during the walkathon (max. 2) and a mini Chuppa Chup at the end.

Your child will receive a sponsorship booklet for them to obtain sponsors for their laps – this can be a set amount per lap or a flat donation. There is also a Prize Draw that will be held a few weeks after the Walkathon that children can enter – for every $20 raised, your child can enter a ticket to win.
Sponsorship booklets and Prize Draw tickets will be handed out in class on 11 November so please check their bags for these. If you don’t see these booklets come home or it goes missing, please just visit the office to get one.

We have some amazing prizes this year as part of the raffle we hold – we will begin announcing these prizes over the coming weeks, so keep a lookout.

We welcome all parents to attend as it is so great to see the whole school walking around the course – an impressive sight.

Thank you in anticipation of your support
The Parents & Friends Committee

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Olivia Rayner (O'Hare) our Speech Pathologist from Now We're Talking was honoured to be named as Young Alumni of the Year from Australian Catholic University (ACU).

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Congratulations to our October Aussie of the Month winners, Nevaeh, Lily and Alexandrea.  Click here to see their smiling faces and to find out why they are so wonderful.

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The Parents and Friends Committee would like to introduce Aggie Brazenor who has remained on the role of Treasurer.

Aggie has two children at St Mary’s
Emily (3/4B), and
Olivia (Prep B)

We had some get to know you questions for Aggie and this was what she shared with us.

What keeps you busy ?

My nearly full-time R&D consultancy work keeps me busy during every school hour, but also offers me the flexibility to attend school workshops, events and volunteer my time almost every time it is needed.  I feel very lucky to be able to develop a tight relationship with the School, with other parents, and with many of the children. 

What are the things you love to do?

There isn’t much I don’t enjoy: from meeting family and friends, travelling, reading, cooking, painting, sewing, to all sorts of arts & crafts and nearly every sport (can’t claim to understand cricket or rugby, but have watched both in my lifetime).  I love sleeping and watching a good British crime series – neither of which I have done properly in a really long time, though!

What’s your connection to Altona?

I grew up in Brazil and spent most of my adult life in London, where I met and wed Richard, my amazing Australian husband (from North Melbourne).  The decision to move to Melbourne was surprisingly easy, but choosing Altona took literally a few minutes: as soon as we visited it for the first time back in Nov 2017 (having moved here in Sept), all it took was a quick drive over the Esplanade, watching kids on their scooters and bikes, people walking/running around the beach path, the buzz of Pier St, the playgrounds, the vibrant energy – we just knew that was the place we wanted to raise both our girls and the lifestyle we craved for ourselves.  We moved in at the end of Feb 2018 and never looked back!  The community spirit of Altona makes us feel like we have belonged here since forever and luckily our children will be able to do just that.

Why did you join the P&F?

We all know that children thrive when they feel cared for, supported and important, so joining the P&F, as well as the School Advisory Council, are my attempts of staying connected throughout our children school journey.  It is a lot of fun to do that through social engagement and positive influence, whilst raising funds for crucial projects that could be deemed secondary (considering the limitations of the school budget).

What have you enjoyed about being on the P&F?

The Parent & Friends committee is amazing, so much fun to be a part of, and the events are exciting to organise, volunteer, and participate.  However, what I enjoy most about being on the P&F is the opportunity to connect to the children, listen to their voices, what’s important/relevant to them, learn from them and watch them having fun at events as well as the school grounds.

Why did you choose St Mary’s as your children’s school?
The is a lot to say about the Catholic values in education and community that are so important for raising responsible, resilient, caring children.  After one guided visit and an Open Day event it was easy to see that St Mary’s could offer all of that and more.  Four years later and we couldn’t be happier with our school choice.

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The Parents and Friends Committee would like to introduce Amber Collinson
who has taken on the role of Assistant Treasurer.

Amber has two children at St Mary’s
Owen (3/4B), and
Miley (Prep S)

We had some get to know you questions for Amber and this was what she
shared with us.
What keeps you busy?
I have a dietetics background and am currently working part time for a nutrition company that supports aged care facilities, hospitals, and community programs in managing and preventing malnutrition.

What are the things you love to do?
Cleaning and laundry…oops, I misread that. Those are the things I do most. I
enjoy spending time with my children, reading, walking/hiking, playing cards,
fishing, and lately have developed a green thumb (which could be greener) and enjoy gardening and tending to house plants. Quality time with family and friends is high on my list of priorities.

What’s your connection to Altona?
We moved to Altona from a very hilly area in NE Melbourne in 2017. We wanted to be closer to the city and the beach in hopes of living a more active lifestyle.

Why did you join the P&F?
Being new to Altona and not knowing anyone in the area, I thought it would be a nice way to get to know other people. I also very much enjoy event planning and all that goes with it.

What have you enjoyed about being on the P&F?
The P&F team is made up of a lovely group of people. There are always plenty of laughs and it is a very forward moving and supportive group. It is also very rewarding to see the children enjoying the events planned, and the school putting to good use the funds that have been raised by some of the events.

Why did you choose St Mary’s as your children’s school?
Being raised in a Catholic family, it was important to me that my children went to a Catholic school. That being said, we were blown away at the prep orientation by how connected the teachers seemed to be with students. The smaller school size is better suited to my children’s personalities, and there is a real sense of community at St. Mary’s.

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For this weeks Community News we have the Church Bulletin, Emmanuel College news and their Open Day information, Williamstown Community News, and Music Lessons here on campus.
Emmanuel College News

Emmanuel College Open Day (St. Pauls Campus)

Church Bulletin 

Williamstown Community News

Music Lessons

We would also like to thank Mancini Real Estate for their continuous support to St Mary's Altona


             

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