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principal@smaltona.catholic.edu.au

St Mary's eNews

Term 4 Week 6


Deputy Principals Message: 14th November 2025

What a busy and exciting week it’s been at St Mary’s!

Our Year 5/6 students did an outstanding job running their Social Justice Stalls, raising funds for St Vincent de Paul. 

These funds will support individuals and families in need within the Altona community, especially meaningful as we head into the Christmas season. 

On Monday, our senior students participated in the Virtual Puberty Night. This session provided a valuable opportunity for students and their families to learn together and openly discuss the important changes that occur during puberty.

It was also a big week for sliming! Mr Hein and Mrs Masseni bravely faced a very sticky and slippery situation … much to the delight of our students!


Coming Up Next Week

  • We are excited to welcome back Mrs Riccardi from Long Service Leave.
  • Sun Theatre Excursion
     Our Year 1/2 students will be heading to the Sun Theatre to watch Robots as part of their inquiry unit.
  • Canteen
     As there are some Cadbury Chocolate left over from our fundraiser. We will be selling these in conjunction with icy poles. Both chocolates and icy poles are $1 each.
  • Colour Run!
     The Colour Run is finally here! This Friday, students will enjoy a rotation of activities including relay races, a scavenger hunt, and of course, the much-anticipated Colour Run on the oval. Parents and guardians are warmly invited to come along and join in the fun.
  • Staff Meeting with Dr Nathaniel Swain
     Dr Swain will be leading our staff meeting on Tuesday, providing an excellent opportunity for staff to ask questions and further explore our flourishing learners journey as we move into 2026.

Reminders

  • School gates open at 8:30am. Students may play on the junior playground before school if they are supervised by a parent or guardian.

  • School finishes at 3:15pm, and gates close at 3:30pm. Please ensure your child is collected on time, or alternatively, arrangements can be made for After School Care.

Have a wonderful week!

John Hein

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage


Community News

Dear Families, 

Click on the links below to access information for Church Bulletin .

Have a lovely weekend and hopefully enjoy some nice warm weather.

 

 Church Bulletin


Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage


School Fun Run is approaching fast!

Exciting News – The Colour Fun Run is Almost Here!

We’re gearing up for a fantastic day, and I want to share some important details to ensure the event runs smoothly for our students.

The Colour fun run will be Friday 21st November.

 

 

 Please bring your child in their school uniform. Can you please provide a white t shirt for them to change into for the colour run.

Event Details:

  • Date: 21st November
  • Time: 2:00–3:10 pm
  • Location: Across three different areas with 20-minute rotations

The 200m Colour Run Track will be filled with exciting activities and colour stations. Students will complete multiple laps throughout the 20 minutes before rotating to the next activity.

We’re looking forward to a fun-filled day!

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage


Year 5/6 Social Justice stalls

This week, during Thursday and Friday lunchtimes, the Year 5/6 students ran their Social Justice Stalls to fundraise for St Vincent De Paul, St Mary's Altona branch.

The students spent the last 5 weeks learning about Catholic Social Justice Principles and our responsibility as catholics to offer support to those less fortunate. This leads into organising their own fundraising stall, which was a great success.
There were 29 different stalls organised to sell the product or experience.
Congratulations to the students on raising $2682.90

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage

 


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Cadbury Fundraising boxes left

We currently have 10 boxes of Chocolates left to sell. If you are interested in sellinig an extra box please see the front office.

 



Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage


Christmas Raffle

Raffle tickets have been sent home with the eldest child. If you have not received them, please stop past the office to collect. 

CHRISTMAS RAFFLE. Tickets $10 each $90 FOR 10
The Prizes are:
  • 1st prize - Free 2026 Family Fee
  • 2nd prize - 11.5" Lenovo Tablet
  • 3rd Prize - Garmin Vivofit Jr 3 Activity Tracker
Return ticket stubs, money & unsold tickets in an envelope to the school office by TUESDAY, 2ND DECEMBER. Please write Name, Class & Mobile on each ticket stub. Additional bundles are available at the School Office.

RAFFLE DRAWN Thurs, 4th of DEC at School Carols evening. Winners do not need to be in attendance to win. If a grade 6 family wins, they will be refunded 1 child’s school fees for 2025.

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage

 

ST MARY’S DADS NIGHT OUT

Friday Nov 14 • 7pm

The Junction Hotel, Newport

No kids. No guilt. Just beers.

 

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage


Christmas Appeal for St Vincent De Paul Society - Toddler & baby items this week



This year we are again supoporting our local St Vincent De Paul society in preparing to support families in the area who may not be able to celebrate Christmas well, without their support. The first week saw a greeat response with 232 items.
As a Catholic community we can make a difference to support those in need. We are asking families to donate an item each week, to build hampers to support families in need.
Each week we will collect specific types of items. (see below)

Week November 10:  - Non Perishable foods (tins of food, long life items)
Week November 17 - Toiletries
Week November 24 - Toddler and Baby items
Week December 1 - Christmas items (puddings, shortbread etc)

Each classroom will be supplied a basket to collect items each week. I will send a reminder the week before so that families can plan what they can donate each week.

Thank you in advance for your support.

Regards
Tony Freeman
Religious Education Leader
tfreeman@smaltona.catholic.edu.au

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage


St Mary’s Brush with Fame

We are incredibly proud of Lukas (Grade 2) and Maci Latimer (Prep), whose artwork has been selected for display in the Art Prize Small exhibition at 45 Downstairs Gallery on Flinders Lane. 

 

Both children share a remarkable passion for art, working from their own studio connected to the professional studio of their grandmother, international artist Julee Latimer.

Each school break, Lukas and Maci dedicate time to developing their skills on a range of projects. Their recent focus has been on creating striking linear abstractions using tape and layers of paint. Encouraged by Julee, they entered Small, a unique exhibition where all 20cm square artworks are displayed anonymously and sold for $150, with artists revealed only upon purchase.

The exhibition runs from November 27 to December 18. 

Make sure you keep an eye out for both Lukas and Maci in the upcoming edition of the Star Weekly!

Congratulations to Lukas and Maci on this outstanding achievement.

 
           
               Bubblegum                                    Battle 

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage

 


School Sponsorship

Fantastic News!
St Mary’s PS has been selected by Mayde Homes for a $2,000 sponsorship!
This generous contribution will go towards our exciting Ninja Warrior Course, set to arrive in 2026.

About Mayde Homes
Mayde Homes is passionate about helping first-home buyers across Victoria turn their dreams into reality by designing and building beautiful homes in the growing communities of Melbourne and Geelong.

While it might be your first time building a home, it’s a journey they’ve guided many families through before. Think of them as your trusted sidekick—making the process simple and enjoyable, with less stress and more pizza on your first night in your new home!

You can visit their display home at 9 Dandenong Way, Donnybrook, or learn more at maydehomes.com.au ?

                                

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage


Has your teen ever had a food Allergy?

St Mary’s school mum, dietitian and PhD scholar, Daniela Ciciulla is inviting young Australians aged 14 - 26 who have (or have ever had) a food allergy to share their experience in a short survey.

This research will help us understand how food allergies affect eating habits in young people – and how we can better support them 

 Takes about 20 minutes
 Anonymous & confidential
 Can be saved and finished later (just remember to take a screenshot of your access code) 

If this sounds like your teen, please share this with them  https://redcap.link/RiskEDstudy

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage






P&F

Hello families,
 
As the year is winding down, the Parents and Friends Committee have been reflecting on another great year of fundraising; creating memorable moments for our children and opportunities for our parent community to come together. 
We are so proud of what our group has been able to achieve again this year.
 
Below is a list of some of the events that our Parents and Friends Committee have organised with the support of parent volunteers.
 
Fundraising Events
Friend-raising Events
  • Hot Cross Bun Charity
  • Easter Raffle
  • Mother's Day Stall
  • Father's Day Stall
  • School Disco
  • Bunnings Bake Sale
  • Bunnings BBQ
  • Subway Lunch Order
  • Sun Theatre Movie Night
  • Pizza Orders
  • Cadbury Chocolate Drive
  • Colour Run
  • Christmas Raffle
  • Family Photo Sessions
  • First Day of School Morning Tea and Coffee Truck
  • Trivia Night
  • Mum's Lunch Day Out
  • Dad's Night Out
  • Winery Tour
  • Ladies Spring Soiree
 
 
 
Some of the funds raised have already gone to new Interschool Sports Uniforms, Chrome Books, resources for STEM, class sets of novels and materials for the Craft Club. Our current goal is to raise as much as we can for the new Ninja Playground.
 
Our final Parents and Friends meeting for the year is scheduled for the 11th of November at 7pm in the staff room. Meetings go for one hour and are a fun way to come together and create ways to support the school and foster community spirit. As always, all are welcome and we would love to have some new faces come along to our meeting to share new ideas for events next year. So please consider coming along to our next meeting.
 
Below is a quick questionnaire to help us plan for another great year in 2026. We'd appreciate as much feedback as possible. Click here for questionaire. 
 
We look forward to meeting you and have a wonderful remainder of the year!
 
Your Parents and Friends Committee Members 

 

Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage


Icy Poles Are Back for Term 4!

Term 4 has kicked off brilliantly, and as the weather begins to warm up, students can look forward to cooling down with a refreshing icy pole. Our senior student leaders will be selling icy poles for $1 each lunchtime from Monday to Thursday. 

 

All proceeds will go towards supporting the development of our exciting new ninja playground.

Please note our canteen will operate as usual on Fridays.

Thank you for your support in helping us make this fundraiser a success and for giving our students a fun way to stay cool this term!


Respect • Responsibility • Resilience • Courage

 


Together


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