Mrs Ryan's Fortnightly Reflections

As we move into Week 9, our school community continues to demonstrate the strength that comes from working together. With Jasmine currently on Long Service Leave, we have been sharing the leadership responsibilities during this time, and it has been wonderful to see the continued dedication of our staff, learners and families as the term progresses. 

The past weeks have been full of rich learning and community connection. Classrooms across the school remain busy with purposeful learning, and it has been lovely to see learners settled into classroom routines and engaging positively with their teachers and peers. Last week we were fortunate to witness a beautiful Foundation Liturgy led by our youngest learners. It was a calm and reverent gathering, with learners demonstrating such respect and confidence throughout the celebration. The songs were joyful and catchy, with learners singing with pride. It was an excellent event and a lovely reminder of the faith formation taking place across our school. On the weekend, our Brennan Community participated in the Sunday G’Day Weekend Mass with our parish community. A reminder that we belong to a community rich in diversity and strong in connection. Thank you to our families and staff who supported this event. 

As a Catholic community, this time in the Church calendar continues to invite us into reflection during the Lenten season. Lent calls us to be mindful of the way we treat one another, through kindness in our words, generosity in our actions and forgiveness in our relationships. These values are lived daily at St Mary’s through the small and significant moments we witness between our learners, staff and families. It is in these everyday acts that we continue to grow as a faith-filled community. We are inviting families to donate a care meal for members of our school community who may need extra support or having times of difficulty. If you would like to contribute, trays can be collected from the school office. We are incredibly grateful for the generosity that we see across our school.  

This week we also celebrated Harmony Week, an important opportunity for us to recognise and celebrate the diversity that makes our community so rich. At St Mary’s we are proud of the inclusive environment we continue to build together and learners were able to share their experiences and cultures through traditional garments or wearing orange in support!  

NAPLAN testing has now been completed. While NAPLAN provides useful information about Literacy and Mathematical skills, it is important to remember that it is just one assessment on one given day. It does not measure the many wonderful qualities of our learners; being kind, compassionate, creative, curious, and respectful are equally, if not more, important. We are incredibly proud of all our learners for their positive attitude throughout the process, and our staff for supporting them.  

As we approach the final weeks of term, we encourage all to continue showing persistence in their learning and to remain focused on the goals they have been working towards this term. Thank you to our families for the many ways you contribute to the life of the school whether attending events, supporting your children’s learning or partnering with us to create a strong and connected community. We look forward to celebrating with you at our upcoming Community Family BBQ on April 1st.  

Go gently. 

Liz Chapman, Deputy Principal: Community Wellness and  

Rebecca Lloyd, Deputy Principal: Learning and Teaching