Staff began working on lesson plans to support the teaching of our expectations. Our next step in early Term 3, will be to set up structures to begin rewarding students for demonstrating these expected behaviours. 

Big Freeze

A huge thank you to Sue, our LSO, for organising our first-ever Big Freeze campaign. What a way to kick it off, seeing so many staff brave the cold in support of such a meaningful cause was truly heartwarming.

The fact that so many of our staff were willing to step up says everything about the kind of community we have here at St Mary's. Your generosity, your spirit, and your willingness to get involved in something bigger than yourselves is something I never take for granted.

I'm proud of every one of you, and grateful every day to be part of this community.

We raised over $400 for the cause. Thanks to all for your generosity.

Staffing update

Emily Cross joins us this week as our new Administration Officer, stepping into the role independently following Kristy's departure last Friday. She has hit the ground running and is already making a wonderful impression. Please take a moment to introduce yourself when you're next passing through the office.

You'll also notice some fresh content appearing on our school socials as Emily takes the reins in that space. Keep an eye out for our Big Freeze reel coming soon. We think it's pretty cool. (See what I did there?!)

We are also pleased to welcome Ms Casey Achterberg, who will be joining our teaching team from Term 3. Casey recently completed her teaching rounds with us and will take up a three-day teaching position in 5/6A. Welcome aboard, Casey. We're thrilled to have you with us.

MACSEYE update

Please refer to the separate article in today’s newsletter that will direct you to fees and enrolment information for the new service commencing next term. You are encouraged to enrol early to ensure your child’s details are entered and ready for commencement from Day One of Term Three.

Our website has been updated to reflect our new provider and will also direct you to the new MACSEYE portal. 

Australia's Best Teacher Campaign

MACS is once again running its Best Teacher Campaign. I receive so much positive feedback from parents and students about how wonderful our teachers are. It would be fantastic to see their contribution to your child's education be acknowledged beyond our community.

I strongly encourage you to nominate one or more of our amazing staff via this campaign. You can do so here.

 PUPIL FREE DAYS / EARLY FINISHES

Friday 18th September - All Students 1:30pm Finish time (End of Term)



KEY SCHOOL DATES

Thursday 10th September - R U OK Day
Wear a splash of Yellow!

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• Link to the online family information session
• How to enrol
• Customer Service contact information

Introducing MACSEYE: Your new before and after school care provider.


Online information session:
https://youtu.be/jg0C4kgrHW4


How to enrol:

1. Visit our dedicated MACSEYE OSHC webpage:
https://macseye.vic.edu.au/oshc/oshc-locations/st-marys-oshc-altona/

This web page contains all the key information needed to get started, including:
• Session times
• Fees
• Enrolment information
• Enrolment form link

We encourage all families to complete your enrolment by the end of this term, even if you are still thinking about when you might need care. That way you can book as soon as you are ready.
All children must be enrolled with MACSEYE to attend.

For more information, you can also please refer to the attached MACSEYE brochure.


2. Click the green 'Enrol Now' button and complete the online enrolment form.


Contact MACSEYE - Customer Service
If you need support with enrolment or have any questions, the Customer Service Team is available to assist, Monday to Friday between 9am – 5pm (AEST):
1300 501 029
enrolments@macseye.vic.edu.au

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Friday, June 26th! 

We ask that students please bring a gold coin donation, as well as $1 if they wish to make a purchase at the Pop-up Store.

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

On the last day of Term 2, we will be celebrating PJ Day! Students are invited to come to school dressed in their favourite pyjamas for a fun and relaxed finish to the term. Students are asked to bring a Gold Coin Donation.

To make the day even more exciting, our School Captains will be selling leftover merchandise from the school disco at recess. All items will be available for just $1 each, so students may like to bring along some coins if they wish to make a purchase.

We are looking forward to a fun-filled day and a fantastic finish to Term 2!

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We are still collecting eligible containers to raise money for our environmental projects.

Our fundraising title is 'Recycle and Grow'

How can you help?

There are two simple ways to support our school through the scheme:

Option 1: Donate Your Refund at Collection Points

• When you visit a CDS Vic return point, you’ll be asked if you want to donate your refund.
  
  
• Simply download the app and enter our donation code (2000063591) or search for our school name on the app.
  
  
• All your refunds will be transferred directly to our school account!
  
  

Our donation code is: C2000063591

You can find your nearest return point at: https://cdsvic.org.au/locations 

Option 2: Send Eligible Containers to School

• We will be setting up a collection bin at school next to 3/4W so students and families can bring in eligible containers.
  
  
• Please make sure containers are:
  
  
• Empty and not crushed
  
  
• Have the 10c eligible label
  
  
• Not broken or overly dirty
  
  

We’ll return them in bulk, and the refunds will go straight to our school for our ‘Recycle and Grow’ fundraiser. All funds raised through container deposits will go directly towards keeping our outdoor environment thriving.

Thank you for supporting our school and the environment. Let’s turn trash into treasure and make this initiative a big success!

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On Tuesday, St Mary’s held it’s inaugural Ice Bucket Challenge in support of FightMND and the Big Freeze campaign.
A special thank you to Sue for organising this fantastic event and helping to bring our school community together for such an important cause.
Thanks to the generosity of our students, families & staff, we raised over $400 for FightMND which will go towards research into Motor Neuron Disease.

The event was very exciting! We all gathered outside and watched those staff members who were brave enough to take on the icy challenge. There was lots of laughs, chanting & shivering, and we sincerely hope the staff had a hot bath to go home to! The students chanted very loud for Mr Hein to take on the challenge, but unfortunately they couldn't get him over the line.. This time!

Thank you to everyone who donated & supported the event. We are very proud of the difference our community has made.

Head to our Instagram page to see footage from the event!

Our very first Family Book Club was a wonderful and memorable evening!

Families came together to celebrate the book Leo and Ralph, a story about friendship and embracing what makes everyone different, with a night full of activities including:

An out of this world game of Bounce the Moon with balloons
Dreaming up and naming our very own aliens and their planets
A sausage sizzle 
Sharing our best book reviews and favourite parts from the story
Gazing through a telescope and spotting the moon in the night sky

A huge thank you to all the families who joined us and to our amazing staff who helped make this such a special community event.

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Dad’s Drinks 

Our next Dad’s Drinks is on Friday 12 June at Mog Brew 22/36 Aberdeen Road Altona 

7pm ‘til late.

More than 20 dads came along to the last catch-up, and we’d love to see even more join us this time. These socials run once a quarter and are a relaxed way to meet other school dads over a drink.

Come for one or stay for a few — just turn up on the night. No RSVP or organising needed.

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BOOK WEEK IS IN 1 WEEK! Are you ready?!

Friday 28th August: Dress up day!
We will have a costume parade at 9:00 am.

There will be lots of other exciting activities planned for Book Week, from Monday 24th - Friday 28th August.

The theme for this year's Book Week is Symphony of Stories!

Bookweek theme and artist, Briony Stewart's (Author & Illustrator of 'Gymnastica Fantastica') introduction to 2026 Book Week & Theme:
https://youtu.be/wz-psnQnUmQ?si=_BfrV-bY7yyJ88aH

On Friday 28th August, students are encouraged to come to school dressed as their favourite book character.

Home made costumes are encouraged! 
They're fun, creative, sustainable, and a great way to keep costs down! 

We will have a costume parade at 9am.

We can’t wait to see our school filled with students favourite book characters, colourful costumes and a whole lot of storybook magic! 

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Trivia Night Success!

Our Trivia Night was a huge success, with plenty of laughs, fun and friendly competition throughout the evening!

Thanks to everyone who came along and helped make the evening such a fantastic success. Together, we raised just short of $3,000 on the night alone.

A big thank you again to our major sponsors, Xynergy Realty and Loaram Construction.

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This week in Community News:

• Church bulletin
• Deborah Barrese, upcoming show

CHURCH BULLETIN

https://www.smaltona.catholic.edu.au/source/BULLETIN%2006-09-26%20with%20ad.pdf


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DEBORAH BARRESE LIVE SHOW

Details below for Deborah's next live show.

Deborah is a parent of our school community.




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SIMONDS CATHOLIC COLLEGE




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MAGIC BASKETBALL

 

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WESTERN BULLDOGS AFLW ALL GIRLS AUSKICK AND SUPERKICK PRE-GAME CLINICS

 

Calling all future Bulldogs!

 

Girls aged 4–12 are invited to join our AFLW All Girls Pre-Game Clinics at Mission Whitten Oval. Each clinic will take place two hours before every Western Bulldogs AFLW home game.

 

 Perfect for girls of all skill levels!

 

•  Auskick (Ages 4–7) – Learn the basics through fun games and activities.
•  Superkick (Ages 7–12) – Build skills and confidence in a game-based environment.

 Location: Mission Whitten Oval

 Clinic Dates:

• Saturday 22 August vs Richmond
• Saturday 5 September vs Sydney
• Saturday 3 October vs St Kilda
• Friday 9 October vs Essendon

 Only $55 for the program

 

 

 Special Offer: Use promo code FCB008C6 at checkout to receive $20 off registration.

 

 Register now:

 Auskick (Ages 4–7): https://www.playhq.com/afl/register/9dd463

 Superkick (Ages 7–12): https://www.playhq.com/afl/register/251cd8

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ALTONA BEACH SHORT FILM FESTIVAL

 

This is our twelfth year of showcasing short films by filmmakers from Altona and around the world.

 

We welcome participants of all ages and abilities to use their cameras, phones or tablets to create a short film no longer than 7 minutes in keeping with this year's theme "Home". Entrants' short films will then be shown at our Festival Gala Screening & Awards Night and go in the running to win cash prizes in the following categories:

 

Best In Festival
Special Recognition
President's Encouragement Award
Best Pre-Teen
Best Young Adult
People's Choice

 

Awards 1 - 5 will be decided by a panel of esteemed judges from the community. The People's Choice Award, however, will be decided by the audience on the night, so make sure your students bring as many of their friends and family as they can to ensure a higher chance of winning!

In past editions of our festival our junior entrants have truly had their moments to shine, with children taking away wins in many of our non-age-related categories several times.

 

Entries into this year's festival are currently open from now until 31 August 2026 at www.altonabeachfilmfestival.com.au

We will be contacting all participants to confirm their place in the lineup by no later than 01 September 2026.

 

This year's ABFF Film Screening & Gala Awards Night will be held on Saturday 19 September 2026 at the Altona Sports Club - 11 Altona Road, Altona VIC 3018.

Tickets are available at reception at the club for $5 per child, $10 per adult, or $20 per family (2x adults + 2 children).

 

We can't wait to see you there!

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