Dear Parents,

It was a pleasure to welcome our Grandparents and Special Persons to school on Friday afternoon. The surrounding streets were filled with cars as eager grandparents made their may through the school gates to visit their loved ones and enjoy an afternoon in the classroom. I know I’ve said it before, but the grandparents seem to be younger every year!!!

Previous experience alerted us to the fact that grandparents like to turn up early, so we opened the gates ahead of time. Fortunately the rain held off too! Roaming from classroom to classroom it was a joy to see the grandparents engage with their grandchildren and their competitive nature in the many games being played. The school was a hive of activity with the sound of laughter filling the corridors. As we farewelled the grandparents in the afternoon their smiles said it all - they look forward to doing it all again next year!

Paese Della Danza - The Land of the Dance! - 10 days to go!

Just a reminder to secure your tickets for the much anticipated event. There are still limited tickets available (see School Production section of newsletter for booking details). If you have any questions in regards to ticket sales please contact the school office.

The full dress rehearsal was a success yesterday and there is a great sense of excitement amongst the staff and students.

Sound Check Day at Crossways - Thursday 17th August

The students will have an opportunity to have a ‘walk through’ and sound check at the auditorium on the day of the production Thursday 17th August. All students will travel by bus - a permission form will be sent out soon.

Costumes will not be required during the day and students will need to be in school uniform. Buses will leave the school promptly at 9am to take the children to the venue. P-2 students will leave at 9.00am and return to school by 12.00pm. Year 3-6 students will leave at 12.00pm and return to school by 3.00pm. Main cast, presenters, grade Prep-2 dance choreographers and singers will leave at 9am and return at 3.00pm.

In the evening children must arrive promptly at Crossway at 6.15pm in full costume - hair and makeup done. (make up is optional)

The Child Safe Standards and copyright laws necessitate that no photos or filming by families is permitted in the auditorium. A DVD/ online link has been made available for purchase (see further on in the Newsletter for details).

Looking forward to a fabulous evening of entertainment!

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me via email jformichelli@htws.catholic.edu.au

Ciao

Signora Formichelli

Help Needed!!!

We desperately require 3 or 4 volunteers to assist with directing parking at the venue prior to the concert. I can reassure you that these volunteers will not miss a moment of the performance. If you are able to assist please contact me directly on principal@htws.catholic.edu.au Thank you in anticipation of your support.

Friday 18th August

Following the school concert on Thursday e, students are welcome to have a late start to the school day on Friday 18th August. If your child is starting late could you please email the classroom teacher directly, preferably prior to the day. Classroom teachers will be in attendance from the beginning of the school day.

Prep 100 days of school celebration

Can you believe that this Friday 11th August will mark `100 days of school’ for our Prep 2023 students? It is amazing how much they have grown and how much they have learnt! This event is a highlight on the Prep calendar and a significant milestone in their journey of learning. Little do they know that they have approx 1300 days to go until they graduate from primary school - that’s a lot of packed lunches!

We will congratulate our wonderful Preps with a special parade on the basketball at 9am this Friday - all welcome!

Book Week

Costume Parade

Monday 21st August is the dress up day, children are encouraged to come dressed as a character from a book. The parade will take place just after 9am. This year's theme is Read, Grow, Inspire. There will be a range of activities held over the week related to books.

Book Swap - 21st - 24th August

During Book Week we will be having a book swap. If your child/ren would like to participate, they can bring a book that they no longer read and hand it in during the first break. Their name will be noted and they can return during the second break to choose a new book. Please supervise the selection of the book they donate as it will be going to a new home!

Interrelate - Human Sexuality sessions for students in Years 3- 6

In partnership with St Jude’s Primary School, we will once again be offering two optional sessions for families to attend on Tuesday 29th August, 2023:

Session 1: Where did I come from? (Year 3/4) 6pm
Session 2: Preparing for puberty (Year 5/6) 7.15pm

See further details in separate section of the newsletter. Cost will be $20 per family (inclusive of both sessions)

Bogan Bingo

Thanks to everyone who came to our Bogan Bingo fundraiser, it was a ripper! Thanks again to our incredible community of local businesses that supported us for our games and raffles.

The lucky winners of our raffle were:

1. Family pack - M Stephens 5/6 Blue

2 Kids pack - Preeti Highmoor

3 Adults pack - Preeti Highmoor

4 Penrite pack - Fazlyn Hartley

5 Karcher Pack - E Freeman 1/2 Green

6 Charlie’s pack - Katherine O’Hanian

7 Darrell Lea Hamper - E Clarke 5/6 Red

Emily Christison - on behalf of the PA

School Blog

Our students are responsible for a lot of the School Blog content, so please take some time to appreciate their posts. It is also a great way to find out about school events such as Camp, Production, Sports Events, the Arts …. And much more!

http://blog.htws.catholic.edu.au/

Warm Regards,

Adrian Scutt

Principal

Time to eXcel

St Mary's College

St Mary's College 75th Anniversary Celebration