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🌟 Explore Our Updated Website!

We’re excited to share that our website has been refreshed with a vibrant new look and engaging, up-to-date photos that capture the life and energy of our community. The updated design makes it easier than ever to stay connected, find key information, and celebrate what makes our school unique.

We are still working on some of the content pages and will let you know when updates are finalised.

Please note that several important policies and procedures have been updated. We encourage all families, staff, and community members to take some time to read through these documents to ensure everyone is familiar with our current practices and shared commitment to safety and wellbeing.

Updated Policies:

Child Safety and Wellbeing Procedures
Child Safety and Wellbeing Record Keeping Procedures
Child Safety Recruitment Procedures
Engaging Families in Child Safety Procedures
ICT Acceptable Usage Policy
Pastoral Care of Students Relating to Gender Policy
Reportable Conduct Policy
Reportable Conduct Procedures

All updated policies are available on our website under the Policies Link.

Thank you for taking the time to stay informed and for your continued support in fostering a safe, inclusive, and caring environment for every student.

STAFFING NEWS

Michelle Cameron is taking some extended sick leave and will be away for the next two to three weeks. We wish Michelle all the best and pray for a speedy recovery.

FRIENDSHIP CIRCLES

Today, as part of our class placement process for 2026, all students completed a Friendship Circle, on which each child was

asked to choose three peers they would like to be with next year.

Students were encouraged to think about who they work well with, rather than simply who they enjoy playing with the most. In multi-age classes (e.g. 3/4 and 5/6), children may choose peers from either year level — for example, a prospective Grade 3 student may nominate a prospective Grade 4 student.

Teachers will use this information, along with their understanding of each child’s learning and social needs, to help create balanced and supportive class groupings for 2026.

2026 CLASS PREFERENCES

It’s amazing that we are once again at the time of the year when we are beginning our discussions for structures for 2026. An important component of this is the regrouping of our classes.

When determining new classes, we consider the following:

❏ a balanced number of students with social, emotional and academic needs

❏ an appropriate mix of student role models and class leaders

❏ a balanced number of boys and girls

❏ student friendship circles. (Students will complete a friendship circle on which they will nominate three people with whom they would like be with in 2026. Teachers will talk to the students about choosing people who they work well with and who support them in their learning).

Please make an appointment with me if you wish to discuss any concerns you may have that may impact your child/children’s class placement for next year. This may include particular social nuances with other students or any other extenuating circumstances that might impact your child's class placement.

Please be aware that this is not an opportunity for ‘teacher shopping’ and to discuss a preference for a teacher, but rather an opportunity to share genuine concerns about your child’s learning environment for 2026. I am currently finalising the staffing schedule for 2026 and will share this with you once it has been confirmed.

If you are not intending to return to St Mary’s in 2026 please contact the office as soon as possible

🎓GRADUATION ASSEMBLY

This year, we will be hosting a special Graduation Assembly which will be held on Thursday, 11 December at 2:30 pm. During the assembly, we will farewell families who are leaving the school, presenting them with a gift to remember their time at our school, and share celebrations with our Grade 6 students.

We warmly invite everyone to join us in celebrating and honouring our 2026 graduating class! 🎉

In addition, all are welcome to attend our Graduation Mass on Friday, 12 December at 5:00 pm, as we give thanks and celebrate this special milestone. ⛪✨

🎶Performing Arts - Christmas Concert🎭

We are delighted to announce that Sophie Griffith has joined our team for one day each week to help prepare students for our upcoming Christmas Concert. Sophie brings a rich performing arts background and will be working with each class on Wednesdays to develop and rehearse their performances.

We warmly welcome Sophie to our school community and look forward to the wonderful creativity she will inspire. We’re sure the children will thoroughly enjoy this exciting performing arts experience!

🎅 **SAVE THE DATE

Get ready to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year with our annual Christmas Carols Evening! 🌟

Join us for a joyful night filled with music, laughter, and community spirit as our students share their favourite festive songs. 🎤🎵 Bring along your picnic rug, family, and friends, and enjoy a magical evening. ✨

There’ll be plenty of Christmas cheer; we can’t wait to come together as a school community to celebrate the joy of Christmas. ❤️

📅 Date: December 10

🕕 Time: TBA📍

Location: School Grounds

🏊‍♂️💦SWIMMING PROGRAMME

Our junior classes will begin their swimming lessons next week. These sessions are a wonderful opportunity for students to build water confidence, develop swimming skills, and learn about water safety.

Please ensure your child brings their swimming gear, including bathers, towel, goggles (if preferred), on their scheduled swimming days.

We’re looking forward to exciting and fun times in the pool! 💦

Keeping our kids safe online: A partnership with families

A MESSAGE FROM MACS (Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools)

Dear Parents and Carers,

You may have heard about upcoming government changes in the law regarding social media accounts for children under the age of 16, which will take effect on 10 December 2025.

We are committed to understanding these new changes and working with you to ensure our students have a safe and positive digital life.

Why are these changes happening?

The new rules are all about protecting our under-16s. Many social media platforms have inbuilt design features that can:

encourage too much screen time (like non-stop notifications or content that disappears)
expose children to upsetting, inappropriate or difficult content through their feeds.
learning about the positive aspects of being online and the things they need to be careful of
building their digital, social, and emotional skills so they can navigate the online world confidently and safely
knowing where to seek help if they see or experience anything that worries them.

Experts have linked these features to problems for young people, including increased stress, less sleep, and trouble concentrating.

Are you ready to partner with us?

While social media platforms have the main responsibility to enforce the age restriction, we all play a part in teaching our children to be safe online.

The best strategies are:

Clear communication – talking openly with your child about their online activities
Effective teaching – helping them understand online safety rules
Positive modelling – showing what responsible and kind online behaviour looks like
Mindful timing – holding off purchasing your child a smart phone.

Quick facts about the upcoming changes

We will continue to update you as more guidance is provided. In the meantime, we encourage every family to subscribe to the eSafety Commissioner alerts so you can remain informed about the legislation change and ongoing digital trends.

Let’s work together to help our children become safe, skilled and responsible digital citizens who can navigate the online world with confidence and care.

Keeping in the theme of 'Staying Safe Online' Terese Griffith has shared details for a free family workshop that provides a family-friendly session to further unpack the changes to this law.

HERE IS THE LINK TO REGISTER

SCHOOL CLOSURE REMINDER...

• Friday, Dec 05 – Staff planning day – 2026 preparation.

CHILD SAFE STANDARDS

Over the next few weeks I’ll continue to highlight the Child Safety Standards and share how we, as a school community, actively promote a safe environment and prioritise the wellbeing of all our students.

Child Safety Standard 7

From time to time, parents may have a concern or question about some aspect of school life that needs clarification or resolution. The following steps outline the appropriate process to follow:

Steps for Implementation:

Speak with the class or specialist teacher involved regarding your concern.
- If the matter is important, please make an appointment to ensure teachers are not interrupted during valuable class time.
- Most issues can be resolved effectively at this level.
If your concern remains unresolved, please make an appointment to meet with the Principal or Deputy Principal to discuss the matter further.

Please note: It is never appropriate for a parent to directly approach or confront another student in an attempt to resolve a concern. All issues should be addressed through the school’s established processes.

Child Safety Standard 8

St Mary's is committed to ensuring that all staff and volunteers understand and uphold our child safety responsibilities through clear induction, ongoing communication, and thorough record keeping.

Provide induction for all new staff and volunteers to ensure they understand and comply with the school’s child safety requirements.
Deliver ongoing child safety updates and briefings for all staff through forums such as staff meetings, newsletters, or year-level meetings.
Keep accurate records of annual child safety initiatives, including presentation materials, agendas, minutes, and attendance lists.

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