2024 Parent Handbook

The Power of Parental Engagement in Education

The impact of parental engagement on a child's education should not be underestimated. Research consistently shows that when parents are actively involved in their child's learning and school life, students are more likely to succeed academically, have better attendance, and exhibit positive attitudes toward school.

Here are a few reasons why parental engagement is so crucial:

1. Supporting Academic Success:

When parents are engaged in their child's education, they can provide the necessary support at home to reinforce learning, help with reading, and encourage a positive attitude towards learning.

2. Building Stronger Relationships:

By being actively involved in school activities, parents can develop stronger relationships with teachers and school staff, creating a collaborative environment that benefits their child's overall well-being.

3. Instilling a Love for Learning:

Parents who show an interest in their child's education can inspire a love for learning that extends beyond the classroom, fostering curiosity and a lifelong thirst for knowledge.

4. Boosting Confidence and Self-Esteem:

When parents are engaged and show interest in their child's achievements, it boosts their confidence and self-esteem, leading to a more positive self-image and a greater sense of accomplishment.

At St. Mary's School, we encourage all parents to take an active role in their child's education by attending parent-teacher meetings, volunteering at school events, and engaging in discussions about their child's progress.

Your involvement makes a significant difference in your child's academic success and overall well-being. Together, we can create a supportive and nurturing environment that empowers our children to reach their full potential. Please take the time to peruse our 2024 Parent Handbook.

GENERAL SCHOOL REMINDERS

Arriving Late or Leaving School Early

PLEASE NOTE that all students arriving late, or being collected early for an appointment, MUST REPORT to the Office to be signed in or out by a parent /guardian.

Parents, please note that students are not to be collected early from school unless they have an urgent appointment. School finishes at 3:10pm.

Compass entry is not required for partial absences (eg late arrivals or early pick ups). When you bring your child into school or pick them up, entering the arrival or departure in the Foyer Kiosk explains their absence.

Attendance

Thank you to families who explain their children's absences from school. Please remember to reply to the SMS sent or contact the school by phone. The Office also sends a reminder email which you can reply to with an explanation. You can explain planned absences in advance by writing an email or phoning the school. Absences of more than 10 days require a form to be filled out to apply for "Extended Leave" which requires approval from the Principal.

Due to Government regulation, notification of your child's absence must be received no later than 7 days after your child's last day of absence.

Students must attend school regularly so they can achieve their educational best and increase their career and life options. Just one absence per fortnight adds up to 20 missed days per year; this equates to 260 days from Kindergarten to Year 6 or 1.25 school years!

Please contact the Office either by phone or email regarding attendance matters.

School expectations

SCHOOL UNIFORM - We wear it with pride!

At St Mary's we have high expectations with wearing our uniform with pride. We therefore seek parent and student support with wearing our uniform correctly each day.

Term 1 Summer Uniform
Clean tidy hair. Hair that is long must be tied back (general rule if it touches your shirt collar)
Uniforms are to be worn correctly and appropriately daily (if circumstances prevent this communication with your teacher is required).
General rule is no jewellery except for: watch, earrings studs or sleepers
No fingernail polish
No writing or drawing on self - arms, legs, hands
No writing or drawing on school hats
No chewing gum at school
All children are to speak politely and have outstanding manners
Swearing at school is not appropriate
No hands or feet. Students do not use hands or feet to hurt others.
Respect school and others property

Parent Messages for Students during the Day

Please make sure where possible you phone the school by 2pm with any messages for students to be given before home time. This would be greatly appreciated so we have minimal interruptions in class time.

Contacting Your Child's Teacher

Teachers welcome contact from parents, if you need to talk with staff please either contact the class teacher by phoning the school – 67724441 or email the school on smaadmin@arm.catholic.edu.au

Please do not expect teachers to be able to speak to you while they are on duty or once class has begun. If you require an urgent conversation, please phone the office on the above number so that a message can be delivered by office staff and the teacher will contact you as soon as they can.

School Hours

8:20am Doors Open & Student Supervision begins.

8:50am Classes start.

Students who arrive after 8:50 am will need to be signed in by Parents at the Front Office, if this doesn't occur parents will receive an unexplained notification for late attendance.

Thank you for signing your child in if they are late as this ensures our attendance records are accurate.

10:50am-11:30am First Break

1:30am-2:10pm Second Break

3:10pm Classes end

3:15pm Buses are loaded

3.10-3.20pm Pick up top gate Dangar Street

3:15-3:30pm Pick up Rusden Street.

All students are to be collected by 3:30pm.

After School Care is available for families from 3:10-6pm on site at school.

School Office Hours

The School Office hours are 8:20am - 4pm Monday- Friday.

Lost Property

Please make sure that you check and label or re-label clothing items so we can return items to their owners and please remember to rename items purchased from the Clothing Pool - if the previous owner's name is still on it, we will send it home with them!

Apart from many items of unlabelled uniforms we also have large amounts of unlabelled lunchboxes, lunch containers and drink bottles in our lost property baskets. It is impossible to return these items to students. Unnamed uniform items are donated to the clothing pool.

Clothing Pool - Term 1

The Clothing Pool will open on the following dates during Term 1 2024. If you require items, please contact the School Office on 67724441 or via email to book your time to attend. Please note that it will open Friday one week and Tuesday the next (9.30am to 10.30am):

Friday 29/3/2024 Tuesday 2/4/2024

Tuesday 9/4/2024

Uniform Days

Monday

All children wear their school uniform

Tuesday

Kindergarten and Years 5 & 6 (stages ESI and S3) wear their sport uniform with yellow shirt

Years 1, 2, 3 and 4 wear their school uniform

Wednesday

Years 1, 2, 3, 4 (Stages 1 & 2) wear their sport uniform with yellow shirt

Kindergarten, Years 5 and 6 wear their school uniform

Thursday

All children wear their school uniform

Friday

All children wear their sport uniform with coloured house shirt

Canteen Summer Menu

In Term 1 the canteen will be serving the Summer Menu. Please see below.

On Ash Wednesday and on Fridays during Lent this term, the canteen will be serving the Special Lenten menu.

School Fees

A gentle reminder that school fees for Term 1 were due on 8th March 2024. Please finalise Term 1 accounts as soon as possible.

After School Pickup

When picking up students in the afternoon from the Rusden Street entrance, please bring your family name sign so that we can call students as quickly as possible and it makes it much easier to identify families with the sign. If you require a new sign or additional ones please contact the School Office.

Buses: Students are supervised by teachers until their bus arrives in Jessie Street.

Esteem After School Care: Is located in our School Hall Building. Please collect your child by entering and exiting through the southern gate in Jessie Street.

Keep connected with what is happening at school through Compass & the Newsletter

Please make sure you are connected to COMPASS and receive the newsletter.

All families need to subscribe to the St Mary's COMPASS portal. Regular information comes from this site to families. Each parent is given a login. If you have lost your login details or are having difficulty logging in please call the School Office for assistance.

It is also really important to read the newsletter fortnightly. The Newsletter can be found electronically on COMPASS.

Manners Matter

Manners matter - not just some of the time, but ALL the time.

Students are encouraged to stop, look at the person speaking and use the person's name to ensure they are using their best manners.

Mobile Phones and other Electronic Devices

When students arrive at school they must hand in their mobile phone, smart watch or other electronic device at the school office. Devices will be returned to the students at the end of the day.

If a student doesn't hand their phone or device into the Office when they arrive at school, the phone or device will be removed from the student and kept in the Office for parents to collect.

All electronic devices that are brought into school are at the owner's risk. No liability will be accepted by the school in the event of loss, theft or damage of the device.

Complaint Management

Please see below a guide for parents and caregivers.