Principals News

Dear Parents,

It seems as though the weather is starting to change with the feel of Spring in the air over the past few days. It has been nice to see the sun shining and hopefully with the warmer weather there will be a break in the illness that has been prevalent over the past few weeks. It is the time of year where there is significant illness in the school community. We have a number of staff and students suffering from both a virus and gastro. It is important that parents keep their children at home if they are unwell. 

On Wednesday our Year 5 children headed off to Forest Lodge Camp in Gippsland and they have been spoiled with the weather. Camp is a great opportunity for the students to be away from home with their classmates and teachers and undertake a number of challenging activities.  Thank you to the staff who have accompanied the students and given up their own family time to spend the two nights away. Catherine Wensley, Sam Sullivan, Claire Robinson and Tayla Kent have done a wonderful job looking after the Year 5 children. 

Wonderful things can happen for children when they are away from their parents. At many points in our children's lives, we need to step aside, ask other adults to take over, and even send our children away to fend for themselves in order to help them become loving, productive, moral, and independent young adults. For me, these four adjectives capture the universal goals of parenting. However, I have spoken with many parents who, out of the deepest love for their children, want to do more, not less, for them. They believe that the more time, energy, attention, and money they can devote to their children, the better. However, in doing so, we probably need to question if we are in fact doing the right thing.

Academic achievement and engagement are linked to perception.

Children with a positive perception of belonging to the school community and their families are more likely to

experience success in the school environment. Below is a list of 6 things you can do for your children to help

them realise their potential.

• Role Model – there is an old saying ‘kids may fail to listen to their parents, but they never fail to imitate them’. We need to be doing the small things like finding our voice when we see an injustice, having an opinion on issues and being passionate about the community and others. If they see you being a bystander, then they are likely to be one.
• Teach them to persevere – unless the situation is truly untenable, don’t let your children quit just because things are tough. Tenacity is not a trait we talk about often, but it is an invaluable life skill we can use at any age. Recognise when they are being tenacious and compliment them on it. We need to make our children understand that we expect them to be tenacious and never quit.
• Teach them to communicate – start early by getting your children to learn how to address people with a simple ‘hello’. If you make excuses that they are shy, they will stay shy. If you keep answering every question put to your child, they will never learn how to answer for themselves. Encourage them to share their opinions, build arguments and stand up for what they believe in. Teach them how to listen to others and recognise what is driving what people say. This builds great emotional intelligence.
• Be a team player – teamwork helps them get along with others and to understand the importance of striving for common goals. Simply playing a team sport won’t cut it. There are plenty of kids who play a team sport but have no idea of how to be a team player. Relating to the other kids, cooperating with them and reinforcing/living team rules and behaviours are the keys.
• Build character – it is never too early to build character based on trust, respect and honesty. Insist on each of these and importantly positively recognise each of these actions when you see them. Another good saying is, ‘You get what you settle for’ – meaning if you allow your child to disrespect you or be dishonest, you can’t complain when that is how they continue to behave in the wider community. Tell stories about honest people and relate ‘respect’ to simple actions they can take – like having good manners, complimenting people and showing appreciation.
• Show them how to succeed through failure – let them try new things and undertake new projects even if you know they aren’t really suited to them. In fact, let them try things you know they can’t do. Some will turn out well, some won’t. The key is not talking about how things failed or saying I told you so, but discussing what they learnt and what they can do better next time. If you get upset at their failures, they will be reluctant to get back on the horse. If you react ok, then they will eventually be ok. Let them say, ‘I can’t do it’, but encourage them to add on the word ‘yet’.

Normally at the first assembly of the year, I outline to the children the expectation to engage in conversation

with the teachers on duty on the gates each morning and afternoon. This would not just be replying “Good morning” but also asking that person how they are and looking them in the eye. I am a little bit old fashioned but manners still have a place in today’s world and the following I found online a few years ago.

Dear Parents,

We would like to remind you that magic words such as ‘Hello’, ‘Please’, ‘You’re

welcome’, ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘Thank you’, all begin to be formed at home.

It is also at home that children learn to be honest, to be on time, diligent, show

friends sympathy, as well as show respect for their elders and their teachers.

Home is where they learn to be clean, not talk with their mouths full and

how/where to properly dispose of garbage.

Home is where they learn to be organised, to take good care of their belongings,

and that it is not ok to touch others.

HERE at SCHOOL, on the other hand, we teach English, Mathematics, History and other Specialist areas. We only reinforce the education that children receive at home from their parents.

School Production Tickets

Excitement is beginning to grow at St Mary’s with the school production just three weeks away. Tickets will  go on sale on Sunday afternoon at 4pm and I know they will be well sought after by our families. Please note there are no limits on tickets bought by families. A reminder that all children will be performing on both nights with the show commencing at 7:00pm at St Bede’s College Mentone. Parents do not have to attend on both nights but may do so if they wish. 

Purchasing Tickets can be done through Trybooking using the following link: 

https://www.trybooking.com/CUOHU

Information regarding the program and show recording link purchases will be emailed out to families next week via Operoo. 

More information in relation to the production will be included in the next newsletter. 

Centenary Celebration

Last Friday the school celebrated its centenary by having a day full of activities involving some old fashioned activities which included an incursion by a teacher who made the children understand how school was structured in years gone by. The last hour was spent with each class organising a stall and the children able to purchase either an activity or food or lolly. Well done to the staff and students for planning and running their stalls. A special thank you to Bridie Kelly for her organisation of the day.  

Inform and Empower CyberSafety Session

Thank you to the families from Year 3 to Year 6 who made the effort to attend the night on Cyber Safety on Wednesday 7th August. Although we were happy with the attendance but also disappointed that not all parents heard the same message. We have included the presentation link below for those families not able to attend. The feedback we have received from families who attended was how informative it was as we were educating both the children and parents. I would like to thank Max Reid for his organisation of the event but also the teachers and Year 6 leaders who ran the sessions for the students. It was wonderful to see the leadership skills of the Year 6 students develop as they ran the program for the students. The link is below:

https://www.informandempower.com.au/parents

• To access the webinar replay, the password is informempower
• Toolkit (slides, links & resources from the session) 
• Blog posts 
• Printable family poster

Book Week

Next week the school will celebrate Book Week, with our book characters parade on Monday at 9am on the oval. Students are encouraged to come dressed as their favourite book characters or a magical character and join in the fun as we parade around the athletic track; parents are welcome to attend. We will also have a whole school incursion on Thursday at 9:45am, with a Magician, helping bring to live this year’s theme: 'Reading is Magic'. Each day the children will also be participating in activities to celebrate the week.

It is worthwhile reflecting on the importance of Literacy especially in primary schools, as strong Literacy skills allow our students to access other literacies in secondary school. Your investment in reading with your child each year is certainly a blue chip investment in your child’s education.

As a staff, we have spent considerable time over the past few years reviewing and revising our  programs in these areas. In my experience, the importance of developing an early love of reading to enhance success in later years of schooling is very evident. As I have continued to report in  previous newsletters, reading ability in the early years is a great indicator of success in later years of schooling. This is why it is so important that children develop lifelong habits with their  reading at home. In some classrooms, the children will take any opportunity to pick up a book they are reading and immerse themselves in the book. However, we also know there are so many more  distractions for our children such as devices that can possibly distract them from reading.

I would like to highlight the importance of children reading each night. Even though most children truly learn how to read in school, the importance of reading at home should never be underestimated. Children need positive role models for reading in their homes. The most significant factor in determining a child’s success in reading is the parents’ attitudes about reading. Therefore, it is up to the parents to provide an environment for the child in which they are surrounded by books and reading. If a child sees the importance of reading in their home through their parents’ actions, it will most likely transfer to their own life.

Reading at home aids children in developing important skills and habits that will lead them to success in school and in life. The first of these types of skills are language skills. When reading aloud to a child, they will develop knowledge about language, context, sentence structure, grammar, syntax, and other components of language. In addition, reading to a child promotes the value of education and knowledge in a child. The children will learn how important it is to succeed well in school and will have a stronger desire to do so. Reading at home encourages a special bond between the parent and child. Through reading with a child, a parent is able to impart their thoughts and feelings, lessons, and beliefs. The child and the parent are able to develop an emotional bond through reading and sharing their thoughts on stories. This emotional bond gives children precious memories to reflect on and foster positive thoughts on the stories read to them.

Finally, reading at home allows children to practise what they have been learning in school. Throughout the school day, children may not receive ample time to practise what they are being taught in class. At home, parents can help provide one-on-one instruction to their children. During this time, children can be free to ask as many questions as they want without infringing on anybody else’s time. Reading with a parent allows them to explore what is being taught in class in a more in-depth manner in order to provide the maximum potential of knowledge. 

It is these four reasons that prove that reading at home is vitally important to children. Without reading at home, it is difficult for children to develop a love for reading. It is a simple way for a parent to contribute and ensure success for their child in the classroom and beyond. In fact, it can be the greatest investment in your child’s education and just think it costs you very little other than some time.

Why Not Maths?

Below I outline some of the early strategies in Maths that can become a blue chip investment as we know that the children need to master the basics before they are able to master more of the complex areas as they move through school. The fundamentals of mathematics are the ‘foundations’ which your child builds their understanding of numbers. Learning the fundamentals involves developing efficient strategies, practise and making it competitive may help.

• Partitioning Numbers to 5, 10, and 20: Partitioning of numbers involves making another number (e.g. 1+3=4, 10-5=5, 12+7=19). These are easily practised at home with a deck of cards or even driving along in the car. With a partner and using cards, have the deck face down, turn over two cards and the first person to call out the answer is the winner. You can even just do it verbally, calling out number bonds and asking your child to respond. At the absolute minimum, by the end of Year 2, students need to be able to quickly recall addition and subtraction facts to 20.

• Counting: Students build their knowledge and skills in counting in a sequential manner. To ensure they are ready to learn their multiplication and division facts by the time they reach Year 3, counting skills need to be consolidated. Students need to be able to count forwards/backwards by 1 from any number up to 100. They need to be able to count by 2s, 5s, 10s from any number up to 100. Students also need to be able to count from a non-zero starting point by any single digit number (e.g. start at 22 and count by 6). These counting tasks are very simple to practise at home. Getting your child to count aloud and also write counting sequences on paper would only take 5 minutes before or after reading time.

• Multiplication and Division facts: In Years 3 and 4, students work hard to consolidate these skills, but practice is required and you can support your child at home to build their confidence. There are countless online tools and apps, including songs and interactive games that are easy ways to engage your child in this practice. Learning to skip count by 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9s will greatly assist the children with their number facts. The children need to master their number facts by the end of Year 4 and this can really be consolidated at home with the help of parents.

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys (MACSSIS)

Each year the school conducts a School Improvement Survey involving parents, students (in Years 4-6) and staff. The main aim of the survey is to identify the strengths and areas for development. The data provides valuable information that the school uses to inform the St. Mary’s School Improvement Plan and Annual Action Plan. Parents are encouraged to participate in the survey to provide a parent voice to help shape the ongoing improvement of the school.

Parents will be able to complete the survey anytime over a three-week window between Monday 2nd September and Friday 20th September via an emailed link and password which will be provided to each family on Monday 2nd September.

Father’s Day Stall - Thursday 29th August

This is an exciting opportunity for children to buy gifts for their Dad or a significant other in their lives. A maximum of $20 per child can be brought to purchase gifts and gifts will vary in price between $5 to $10. 

Father’s Day Breakfast and Liturgy

On Friday, August 30, we will honour our fathers, grandfathers and special friends and show them some extra love and appreciation for all they do. On Friday 30th August,  we will be holding our annual Father’s Day breakfast which will run from 7:30am until 8:45am. If the weather is nice this will take place on the basketball court or in the case of poor weather we will utilise the hall.  We look forward to seeing many of our dads attend this important event. We will have available for cash purchase; coffee, hot chocolate, juice, donuts and fruit as well as cheese toasties. Please note toasties need to be pre ordered, this has been sent out via Operoo. This will be followed at 9.00am with a liturgy in our church, to which all families are warmly welcomed. We look forward to seeing all our fathers, grandparents and special friends as we celebrate together.

District Athletics

On Friday 23rd August Dendy District Athletics will take place at Duncan McKinnon Athletics Track with only selected children participating. They must wear their sport uniform (including jacket/track pants to keep warm) and bring sufficient food and water for the day. Best of luck to our competitors on the day!

Tony McMahon

Principal