Newsletter - 16th October 2024
Acknowledgement of Country
We respectfully acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Wadawurrung people. It is a privilege to be standing on Wadawurrung country.
We pay our respect to Elders past, present and emerging. We acknowledge the contributions of Indigenous Peoples from the past, present and future who contribute to this country in which we live.
May Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians continue to work together to educate, unite and live in peace on this land we call home, Australia.
Upcoming Events
22nd October: Playgroup 9:00am-11:00am; DOBCEL Board Visit
25th October: Damascus College Open Morning 9:00am-11:00am; Primary Golf Tournament
28th October: Little Feet, Big Footprints Session (Year 6) at St Augustine's, Creswick; Lunch orders delivered
29th October: Playgroup 9:00am-11:00am; Transition for 2025 Foundation Students, (9:30am-11:30am)
4th November: School Closure Day - Curriculum Day for Staff.
5th November: Melbourne Cup Public Holiday
11th November: Remembrance Day; Lunch orders delivered
12th November: Transition for 2025 Foundation Students (9:30am-11:30am)
Prayer
Dear Lord,
As we begin this new term, we thank You for the gift of education and the opportunity to learn and grow together. May our school be a place filled with joy, creativity, and kindness. Help us to support one another as we face new challenges and embrace new opportunities.
May our hearts be open to learning, our minds eager to explore, and our spirits ready to grow. We ask for Your guidance in all our endeavors this term.
We pray for our teachers, that they may inspire and nurture each student with wisdom and patience. Bless our families with love and understanding as we work together for the good of our children.
Amen.
Messages from the Principal
WELCOME BACK
Welcome to the fourth and final term of the year!! It was great to welcome our students and families back to school last week and to hear the buzz of excitement around the school. Let’s look out for each other this term and enjoy learning and being together at St Mary’s School!
PILGRIMAGE
In the last week of Term 3 and the first week of the school holidays I was very fortunate to join other Principals from across the Ballarat diocese on a Spiritual Heritage Pilgrimage to Ireland. The pilgrimage was led by Fr Justin Driscoll and focused on the many religious orders who left Ireland to educate children right here in Ballarat and across the country. I am extremely grateful for the staff who led the school so capably while I was away, particularly Louise. I had the most amazing time on my pilgrimage, visited some wonderful places and listened to some very interesting stories.
HATS
Thank you to those students who have remembered their school hat this term. When students wear their school hat they get to join in the fun outside. If they don’t have their school hat, they sit on the bench outside the classrooms.
NEW COMPUTERS
A huge thank you to the Parents and Friends Committee and everyone who has helped fundraise this year. Last week our students were very excited to receive the new devices.
END OF YEAR MASS AND GRADUATION
The End of Year Mass and Graduation is still happening on Wednesday 11th December, however it will now be at 5.30pm (not 6.00pm) at St Peter’s Church. This is always a wonderful celebration to finish our school year and we look forward to seeing everyone there.
END OF YEAR DINNER
The Parents and Friends have booked the Robin Hood Hotel for a meal after the Mass and Graduation for all students and families. Tables are booked for 7.30pm but if we can get there earlier they would really appreciate that. A note will be sent home closer to the date with more information and asking for numbers attending.
FOUNDATION TRANSITION DAYS
This term we commence 4 transition sessions for our new Foundation students. We welcome Boston and Mason to our school on these days and look forward to showing them around our school. Transition dates for our 2025 Foundation students are held on Tuesday 29/10, 12/11, 26/11 from 9.30-11.30am and the final transition on Going Up Day, Tuesday December 3rd from 9am-1pm.
May God Bless you all and keep you safe,
Clare
South Room News
It's been a busy start to Term 4 for the members of the South Room. This is a summary of the work we've done over the last week:
Kamden - Life Ed: This term we had Life Ed to teach us about Respectful Relationships and taught us to be respectful to everyone even if they are different and don't bully them if they are different.
Maeve - Little Feet, Big Footprints: This year, as a Year Six student, we have been going to LFBF every term and connect with other Year Six students from other schools. I have really enjoyed hanging out with my Loreto friends like Ava and Kaylee and having familiar faces for high school. We have also worked on our Year Six project. As you may know, Evie and I are representing Dolly's Dream. We did a bake sale early last term to break the silence around bullying. We will be presenting the speech about her on the 28th of October at St Augustine's, Creswick.
William - Dignity in Religious Education: This term we have been learning about dignity in religion and we have been watching videos about people who are different. We also learnt to treat people the same even if they are different to you.
Emilia - Leadership News - Icy Poles & Lunch Orders: The Leadership Team is going to sell icy poles on Friday for 50 cents. The money raised is going towards the missions, so we can help make a difference in our community. This is following the Catholic Social Teachings of Dignity for All and Preferential Option for the Poor.
We are also going to continue having lunch orders every second Monday. The lunch orders need to be in on the Thursday before so we can order them from the Bungaree store. This is a great treat for us and we are supporting the Bungaree store.
Patrick - Sporting News: Four Square - Official Rules & Golf at Xavier Golf Course: For the first two weeks of sport, we have been learning Australia’s official Four Square rules.
Maeve, Alexis, Kamden and I have been chosen to go to the Primary School Golf Tournament at Xavier Golf Course. We will play next week on Friday, 25th October. We will be playing against primary school children from other schools.
Quinn - Cooking Chocolate Cupcakes: Last Wednesday, Vanessa, Patrick, Kaezia, Kamden, Will and I did cooking. We cooked chocolate cupcakes. They were delicious. We were going to ice the cupcakes but we never got time to, so we ate them!!! We cooked them in the kitchen. We cooked cupcakes because it was our math time. We cook every Wednesday for math but we swap every week. We thank Sue for teaching us how to cook.
News from the North Room
Welcome back to school for Term 4. Can you believe it? The last term of this year!
Ellie: It was good to come back to school to see my friends.
Geneveive: It was good to see my friends and my teachers.
Adelaide: Seeing all my friends and teachers and having Healthy Harold visit us was great.
Skyler: I really missed my friends and teachers so it is good to be back at school with them.
Here is a summary of what we have been doing so far this term:
Adelaide: In maths we have been working on number lines and understanding four digit numbers.
Skyler: In Religion we are learning about a sacred story called The Visit. Mary went to visit her relative Elizabeth.
Ellie: When writing in class we have been learning about Persuasive texts and we read about brushing your teeth and wrote about brushing your hair.
Genevieve: Healthy Harold came to visit us. We learnt about being good friends and making a Commitment to Change to be a good friend always. We made fidgets so we can calm ourselves down when things don’t go our way.
Here is our persuasive text written as a rap!
Brush, brush, brush your hair!
Knots and nits, beware.
Brush, brush, brush your hair.
You’re not welcome, so take care.
Brush, brush, brush your hair.
You’ll look neat and fair!
Happy Birthday!
Happy birthday greetings to Quinn who will turn 9 on Monday, 21st October. We hope you have a lovely day Quinn!
Kingston Show
Social Media Safety
Parents and carers play an important role in supporting their children to be safe online and on social media. You can help your children safely navigate their digital world and educate them to avoid harmful online experiences. You can explore websites, games, apps and social media together and set some rules and boundaries.
Your support and guidance can give your children the knowledge to make sound decisions online and confidence to ask for help when they need it. It is also important to stay informed about online safety.
The Department of Education recognises this important issue and has developed fact sheets about supports to help keep students safe online and what to do if they are involved in an online incident.
The fact sheets contain links to evidence-based information on supporting positive and safe online experiences, signs a child or young person might need support, what to do if something unsafe happens online, and where to reach out to for more support.
To access the fact sheets, refer to the Safe Socials webpage. The fact sheets are available in 19 community languages.
The government is also launching public consultation on age limits for social media.
You and your children can share your experiences to inform proposed changes via an online survey, before 5 pm on Friday 1 November 2024. For more information on the survey and to take part, refer to Proposed changes to social media age limits on the Engage Victoria website.
If you have any queries about this information, you can contact the department by email: bullystoppers@education.vic.gov.au
Thunderstorm Asthma
As we are now in spring, it is important to be aware of the effects of thunderstorm asthma. Parents are asked to read the following information and if this affects your child, please see Claire in the office.
What is Thunderstorm Asthma?
Thunderstorm asthma is a serious and potentially life-threatening phenomenon that can occur during specific weather conditions. It is common throughout all parts of Victoria, particularly during spring when thunderstorms coincide with high levels of pollen in the air.
This combination can trigger severe asthma symptoms, even in people who have not previously experienced asthma or allergies.
Epidemic thunderstorm asthma events are uncommon and don't occur every year. In south-east Australia they can happen during grass pollen season from October through December.
What Causes Thunderstorm Asthma?
During a thunderstorm, pollen grains can be swept up into the clouds, where they break into smaller particles due to moisture. These tiny particles then get blown down by the winds and spread across a wide area. Because they are so small, they can be easily inhaled, reaching deep into the lungs and triggering asthma symptoms such as wheezing, shortness of breath, and chest tightness.
Preparing for Thunderstorm Asthma
- Stay Informed: Keep track of pollen forecasts and thunderstorm warnings from the Bureau of Meteorology and the VicEmergency app.
Check the epidemic thunderstorm asthma risk forecast: Epidemic thunderstorm asthma risk forecasts in Victoria are available from 1 October to 31 December (the typical grass pollen season).
Download the Vic Emergency app from Google Play or the App Store and set up a 'watch zone' for your school location to make sure you are notified of the risk of an epidemic thunderstorm asthma event occurring. You can also visit the Vic Emergency thunderstorm asthma webpage for updates and information.
- Have Asthma Action Plans: Ensure that students with known asthma have an up-to-date asthma action plan, and make sure staff are trained in asthma first aid.
- Indoor Safety: On high-risk days, consider holding activities indoors to minimise exposure to allergenic particles.
Schools should have staff trained in asthma first aid, and DOBCEL will monitor the VicEmergency app to receive thunderstorm warnings and notify schools, and when appropriate, students should be kept indoors when weather forecasts identify greater risk.
By raising awareness and being prepared, schools can protect their students and staff from the risks associated with thunderstorm asthma, ensuring a safer environment for everyone.
Find out more
Further information regarding thunderstorm asthma can be found at: https://asthma.org.au/triggers/thunderstorm-asthma/ and https://www.health.vic.gov.au/environmental-health/epidemic-thunderstorm-asthma-risk-forecast
Brown Hill Cricket Club
Basketball Ballarat Term 4 Community Programs
Basketball Ballarat offers children a fun and safe way to experience basketball, setting them up for a lifelong love of the game. We run a variety of introductory programs, catering to children as young as 2 years old.
Our introduction programs include:
- Aussie Hoops – Ideal for kids aged 4 to 11, including All Girls Programs
- All Abilities Rookie Hoops – For kids aged 5 to 18 with disabilities
- Mini Miners – Perfect for kindergarten-aged children, 2 to 4 years old
- Next Level – For domestic players born 2011-2013
Registrations are now open, with programs starting the week of October 21st. For more information and to sign up, visit Basketball Ballarat Community Programs.
For further details, please feel free to contact me, Zack Cummins, via email at programs@ballaratbasketball.com or call reception on (03) 5338 1220.
