Principal's Message

Dear Families and Friends,

I would like to begin by thanking our families for supporting our School Closure Day on Monday. Each year, we are required to undertake professional learning in faith, and Monday was a particularly special day for our staff as we explored our rich Mercy history and tradition. Our focus was on enacting our faith – how do we walk in our faith and put our beliefs into action.  For us, this meant exploring YIMBI - caring for the land on which we live and learn upon, as well as strengthening our connection with Castlemaine Community House.

We want this relationship to be about much more than simply making a donation. Moving forward, we look forward to regularly collecting items for the Community House Food Pantry to support local families who may need a helping hand. We also hope to visit the Community House for shared lunches, creating genuine connections with others in our community while providing practical and financial support where we can. These are important ways our children can see our Mercy values lived through action.

We also had a fantastic time celebrating Science Week at the Discovery Science and Technology Centre in Bendigo! There was so much excitement and curiosity – from LEGO and the BIG slide to exploring stars, light and movement. A very special thank you to Clare and Nat for the enormous amount of organisation that went into making this whole-school experience possible.

I would also like to inform our community that Natalie Betts has resigned from her position due to family reasons. We thank Natalie for her contribution to St Mary’s and wish her and her family all the very best. You may see Natalie as a CRT and we will keep Natalie and her family in our prayers. 

During this transition, we have reorganised our Year 2 children into Charlotte's learning area, 3 and 4 children will join Blythe and Julie, with a strong focus on providing additional Literacy and Numeracy coaching and support across these levels. Blythe and I will continue to work closely alongside our teachers, providing learning and teaching support and monitoring the progress and wellbeing of our children. The wellbeing of our students and staff, alongside strong learning growth, remains our highest priority.

With this change specialists will be:

P.E. WEDNESDAY 

Farm to Kitchen  TUESDAY

Music & Art THURSDAY

Thank you, as always, for your continued trust and support of our beautiful St Mary’s community.

Have a great weekend,

Gemma