Primary School News

Dear Primary Parents,

Each day, we see more and more of our new Primary building as the scaffolding is removed and the latest work is unveiled. These are certainly exciting times for our Primary staff and students who get to observe these changes on a weekly basis. We are also looking forward to our two refurbished classrooms being handed over in the coming weeks. They look amazing and I know our 6White and 6Violet classes are keenly watching the progress being made behind those temporary fences!

It is important to note that the new Primary School construction is only one of many projects included in our exciting Master Plan for the campus.

Over the next 5-10 years, our college community will benefit from the following:

• FutureLab, our Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) centre
• An assembly space generous enough to welcome our entire community
• More flexible teaching, learning, and event spaces
• A greener campus. 

You’re invited to learn more about our exciting Master Plan and how it will transform and future-proof this unique campus. 

Please join us:

Date: Thursday 14 March 2024

Time: 6:00pm sharp

Venue: Tower East (upstairs)

RSVP at the below form by Friday 8 March

https://forms.office.com/r/YJ32PhVjZM

Year 6 Parent Function

A friendly reminder that the Year 6 Parent Function is happening this Friday night. We encourage as many parents as possible to attend as it is a great opportunity to meet and spend time with other Year 6 Parents.

Primary Pastoral Leader – Anthony Graham

A huge thank you to our generous Primary families who donated 3571 cans towards our Australian Marist Solidarity fundraising efforts.

Our Pizza Party Winners are:

5 Red with 486 cans donated

6 Red with 324 cans donated

Thanks to you! $1,387.50 was raised in can sales alone on Friday with over 500 cans sold. There will be plenty more opportunities throughout the year where we will be selling cans with all funds raised going directly to AMS.

Primary Learning Leader – Jen Little

Learning Excursions

At the end of this term, our Years 5 and 6 students will be attending excursions to Belivah, Gold Rush Fields and Queensland Parliament House respectively. Details regarding these excursions can be found in Parent Lounge. I ask that parents check these details as soon as possible and provide permission to enable your son’s attendance. 

NAPLAN

The countdown is definitely on for our standardised NAPLAN testing, commencing in Week 8. This is an opportunity for students to demonstrate what they can do in the areas of Literacy and Numeracy. As such, it is important information for schools. Please see below the testing schedule for our Year 5 students.

A reminder that students need to be punctual to school on these days, remembering to pack their fully charged device for the testing period. Students will be expected to arrive by 8:15am for the testing so that they can begin the process of setting up their computer and entering the NAP lockdown browser. Headphones will also be required for all tests (with the exception of Reading) and should already be at school in the classrooms. 

Please note that it is advisable that students spend some extra time at home on their keyboarding skills in the lead-up to the NAPLAN testing. Great sites for this include Typing Club, DanceMat Typing Studio and Typing.com. Further to this, students can also familiarise themselves with the Public Demonstration Site by accessing the following link: NAP - Public demonstration site 

Upcoming Assessments

As we move into the business end of the term, students are in the process of commencing and finalising assessments for the first quarter of the year. Please refer to assessment calendars previously sent out via email earlier in the term.

Importantly, parents and students will be able to access student results for Summative Assessments on Parent Lounge and Student Café. Results, along with teacher feedback for improvement, will be released approximately 10 school days after the assessments have been finalised or by the end of the school term (whichever comes first). Please refer to the instructions below to access progressive assessment results.

Accessing Student Results and Task-Specific Feedback

After each assessment task (assignment and exam), students' results will be released to Student Café. Boys are encouraged to ensure they are checking Student Café for their results with task-specific feedback. These results and feedback can also be located on the Parent Lounge. Please follow the steps below which highlight how to access your son’s results and feedback. 

1 - Open the Parent Portal and click on “Parent Lounge”

2 - On the left-hand tab select “Curricular Activities Due” and select “view all activities” on the top right-hand side of page. 

This will take you to a screen that lists of your son/s assessment to complete or has been completed.

3 - Click on a subject to view feedback. 

4 - Once you click on the subject you will be able to find the following information:

• Task sheet for assessment – this will outline what your son needs to do to complete the task successfully
• Draft due dates and due dates
• Criteria sheet
• Feedback
• Result

Primary Sport

Mr John Lambourne – Head of Sport (Primary)

Achievements

AIC Swimming Championships

Congratulations to the following boys who were selected to represent Marist College at the AIC Swimming Championships, this is the culmination of a lot of training for all of our swimmers and we wish them the best of luck.

2024 AIC Swimming Championships Squad

Congratulations to Tom Macdonald (6G) and Liam Marshall (6B) who have been selected to represent North West District Basketball at the upcoming Met North Regional Trial.

Somerville House School Teams Chess Tournament

The chess team went to Somerville House last Sunday to play in the Primary Chess Tournament. With 13 players Marist had the highest attendance for any boys school at the tournament. The team fought well securing 4th and 5th place with Rafael Cienfeugos securing a merit for his contributions, I look forward to continuing to work with the team as we prepare the the AIC season starting in Term 2. Thanks to all the boys that came and the parents that stayed to watch, I look forward to seeing the team on Monday morning.

Term 1 AIC Sport

Cricket

AFL

Swimming

Marist Primary Swim Squad

Training sessions continue Monday and Wednesday afternoons for the remainder of Term 1, 3:20 – 4:20pm. These sessions are open to all boys; boys attending for fitness training and boys wishing to qualify for the AIC Swimming Team. There is no obligation to attend AIC meets on Friday evenings.

Boys attending these sessions will need to bring the following equipment.

• Goggles
• Kickboard
• Short Flippers 
• Mesh Bag

Year 5 and 6 MCA Swim Squad Training Timetable Term 1

For further details please contact: swim@marash.qld.edu.au

AIC Championships, Tuesday, 5 March

Term 2 AIC Sport

Sport Sign-On

Sport sign-on is accessed through the Parent Lounge – sign-on closes Friday,15 March.

Please remember to select "Submit to School" to ensure that the sign-on is submitted. This may not be visible on some mobile devices, in which case sign-on will need to be completed via a desktop device.

The Term 2 sports on offer are Rugby Union, Football, Chess and Cross Country.

Trial details will be published on the College App.

Boys may also choose to participate in track & field, boys of all abilities are welcome to attend track training sessions.

Rugby Ready Program

Continuing Friday mornings, Marist College is delivering a 4-week Rugby Ready Program across all age groups leading into the rugby union trials. The Rugby Ready Program involves a host of measures such as physical preparation, skill development, correct and safe techniques preparing the players for contact, enforcement of game laws, and management of safety issues such as the Scrum Passport and the “MAYDAY” call.

NOTE – you are not required to sign on for the Rugby Ready Program.

Whilst there are a number of reasons for providing such a program, a key driver is wanting to deliver to all students a safe, challenging and enjoyable rugby union program. In order to develop the Marist College rugby players, we must give them the skills to approach the game with confidence and minimise the chance of injury.

Please see the documents on the Marist app for all information including the program content, schedule and dress code. 

NOTE – if you have a commitment to a Term 1 sport, that is your priority.

Cross Country

Training – Monday, Wednesday and Friday

Venue: McMahon Oval (new starting venue for 2024)

Time: Training starts at 7:00am sharp. Students are to arrive at 6:45am and sign into the session with their student ID card.

Year 5 students playing Term 1 AFL or cricket – Recommended to train on Monday morning.

Year 6 students playing Term 1 AFL or cricket – Recommended to train on Monday morning. AFL students to miss AFL training on Monday to alternate with cross country.

Please Note – AIC Swimmers – Cross country training will start in Term 1, Week 8. 

Sports Photographs

We are always on the lookout for photos and action shots to be used for the Blue & Gold, other College publications, season or end-of-year wrap-ups etc. Please follow this link and add your photos. 

Marist College Ashgrove Primary Sports Photos

College App

Please ensure that you download the College App to your smartphone. This app will be used weekly to inform you of sporting fixtures, cancellations and bus arrival information.

Late Pick Up After Sports Training

“PLAN B”

It is important that both parent and student are aware of the pick-up procedure if afternoon sports training is cancelled or if parents are running late for pick-up. As soon as a decision is made to cancel a sporting fixture or training, a message is placed on the College app. If training is cancelled, boys can remain in the primary school or walk to an arranged pick-up point when the time arrives.

Afternoon sports training sessions are scheduled to finish by 4:45pm. We ask that boys are picked up at this time. Any boy who is still at their training venue at 5pm will be directed to the After Hours Boarding Reception area / College Health Centre so that he may be collected from there. After Hours Boarding Reception can be contacted on 07 3858 4619.

In the case of bus arrivals from external sporting venues, boys will be sent to After Hours Boarding Reception 15 minutes after the bus arrives back at the College. Parents are asked to collect their sons from this location.