Primary School News

Dear Parents

It is difficult to comprehend that we are just over one week away from finishing Term Two here in our Primary School. This term has certainly flown by! With so much happening each week, it is easy to forget just how many opportunities our boys were given to get involved here at the college. From our Primary Cross Country at the start of term to our Champagnat Day celebrations last week, the boys were certainly kept busy. Throughout the term, the boys enjoyed excursions, Mother’s Day breakfasts, guest speakers, concerts, public speaking and debating evenings and, more recently, our walkathon. There is no time to sit back though, as we are still to have Primary Athletics Carnival this week and our End of Term Assembly next week. If our boys had their calendars full of commitments, it goes without saying that our Primary parents were even busier getting them all prepared and delivered to the right venue at the right time. Thanks to each and every parent for assisting your son get to the Term Two finish line next week. Your devotion and patience are very much appreciated by all the staff in the Primary School.

Police Talk 

Today, our Year 5 and 6 boys were most fortunate to attend an address by Sergeant Brad Holland on two very important topics that the boys need to have an awareness of. Sergeant Brad spoke to the boys about road safety and in particular, bicycle, scooter and skateboard safety. He also encouraged the boys to be Men of Courage when travelling in a car by always putting their seat belts on and speaking up if they see drivers being distracted behind the wheel. Quite a few statistics were shared that showed bicycle and skateboard riders were often at risk because they didn’t know what they were doing put them in danger. Things like riding through red lights, riding on footpaths and not wearing a helmet were just some of the examples that Sergeant Brad shared.

The second half of the presentation focused on vaping and the dangers that go hand in hand with this practice for young people. Sergeant Brad explained the types of substances that might be inside a vape and he also explained some of the laws around vaping. He again called on the boys to be Men of Courage if ever they found themselves in a situation where a vape was offered to them. Some of the boys did in fact tell stories that they had been in situations on the weekends at local parks where other boys had vapes in different situations.

I told the boys that I would be writing to you all in this newsletter so that you could ask them the three things that they took away from today’s presentation. Thank you, in advance, for taking the time to do this with your sons. 

I wish you all a safe and happy week.

Farewell James Furminger

This week, we farewell James Furminger who has worked with us here in the Primary School since 2019. James has made the decision to move his young family interstate to make a home and teach in Tenterfield, NSW. James has been a valued member of our Primary family and an integral part of our Year 6 team. We will all miss James’ cheerful nature and enthusiasm for all things, sport in particular! I recall interviewing James for his position at Marist in late 2018 and the growth in James as a teacher and a person has been wonderful to witness.  We wish James and his family every success with this next chapter of his life and have assured him that his Marist Family is always just a phone call away should he ever need us.

Anthony Graham – Primary Pastoral Leader 

Walkathon Wrap Up 

It was with great excitement that we wrapped up the walkathon last week. The primary raised a whopping $22607.66 which was over 2/3 of the total amount raised. A mighty effort from the primary boys and the money will be used to help benefit their time here at the College. The list below is for our major prize winners: 

Highest fundraiser – Assistant Head of Primary for the Day

• Harrison Fowler ($696.48) 

State of Origin Tickets – Primary Raffle (raising $200.00 or more) 

• Jack Hodges 

Lunch with Admin (raffle ticket for raising $50.0 or more) 

• Harrison Fowler 
• Balthazar Caesar 
• Jake Byrne 
• Otto Van Boxel 
• James Sexton 
• Liam Santos 

Well done on a fantastic effort with fundraising. The primary boys lead from the front and should be extremely proud of their efforts! 

Champagnat Day

Last Tuesday, the College celebrated Champagnat Day which recognised the incredible work of the College’s founding saint, Marcellin Champagnat. The students participated in Mass, shared a meal together, and participated in a ferociously competitive bin-ball competition. Throughout the day, the boys engrained a deeper understanding of the College’s founding saint and what it means to be a Marist man in the light of our role model, Marcellin Champagnat. 

Trick-Shot Challenge

Over the holiday break, boys in Years 5 and 6 are encouraged to throw their devices away, get off the computer, and upload their best trick shot to be in the running to win prizes! What is a trick shot? A trick shot is where a ball, or objects, finds its way into a hoop, basket, cup etc. The more creative, the better! A trick shot could be a basketball being thrown into a hoop from the balcony of the house or throwing a ping pong ball into a container from the other side of the room. It could be flicking a card and getting it into a cup or getting a hole-in-one in golf! The more creative and innovative the shot, the better the chances of winning a prize. 

The challenge provides boys an opportunity to be competitive, engaged in something other than a device or their phones, and a fun way to keep busy these holidays. You have to be in it, to win it! Submit entries to Stile – 2023 Primary – Trick-shot Challenge! 

Mr John Lambourne – Head of Sport (Primary)

Achievements

Congratulations to Tom Cross (6R) and Oliver Crowley (6V) who competed at the Queensland School Sport AFL (10-12 Years) State Championships last week.

Congratulations Nick Bray (5G), Fred Little (5V), Abe Patricks (6V) and Matthew Higgins (6B) who achieved First Place, 11 Years, in the teams event at Queensland Athletics All Schools Cross Country Championships.

Term 3 AIC Sport

The Term 3 sports on offer are Basketball, Rugby League and Tennis.

Please note that numbers are limited in each of these sports and that boys are only able to participate in one Term 3 AIC team sport.

Trial details will be published on the College App.

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

Basketball – Maximum 40 boys / grade

Uniform: MCA Basketball singlet, MCA Sport shorts and Blue MCA Sport socks

Fixtures Friday evening.

Training twice / week.

Tennis – Maximum 8 boys / grade

Uniform: MCA Tennis polo, MCA Tennis shorts and white MCA Sport socks

Fixtures Saturday morning.

Training twice / week.

Rugby League – Maximum 20 boys / grade

Uniform: MCA rugby league jersey (provided by the College), MCA rugby shorts and MCA team sport socks

Fixtures Saturday morning.

Training twice / week.

Track and Field

There are 4 AIC T&F meets scheduled at the end of Term 3.

• Thursday, August 24
• Wednesday, August 30
• Thursday, September 7
• Wednesday, September 17

AIC Championships – Thursday 5 and Friday 6 October – QSAC.

Uniform: MCA Athletics singlet, MCA Sports shorts and Blue MCA Sport socks

Track and Field training begins in Term 3, T&F training is twice a week.

Boys wishing to be considered for AIC selection should also be aware that there will be training and meets conducted over the Term 3 holidays.

Primary Athletics Carnival

Congratulations to the following boys who were selected team captains for Thursday’s carnival.

Primary Athletics Carnival will take place Thursday, 15 June – McMahon and Hayden Ovals. All Year 5 and 6 boys are expected to attend Friday in their College Sports Uniform. Parents are welcome to attend.

As with the Primary Swimming Carnival, events will be participation/novelty based. Team meetings will be held next week for boys to select team captains.

Boys may wish to change into coloured outfits, which they can do before Pastoral Group, they may also bring mascots and wear zinc in their team colour if they wish.

Hats, sunscreen and water bottles are extremely important on a day like this, and boys are expected to take some responsibility to ensure they stay sun safe and hydrated.

Each boy is expected to participate in all the novelty events to the best of their ability.

The College tuckshop will be unavailable for the Primary boys on Thursday.

Primary Athletics Age Championships

Nominations are open for boys wishing to compete for Track and Field Age Champion. Boys will compete in their age divisions; 10 Years (2013), 11 Years (2012) and 12 Years (2011).

Age Championship events are used as qualification events for selection to attend North West District Track in Field in Term 3.

Depending on the number of boys who nominate for each event boys may be required to qualify to participate in Age Championship events.

Term 2 AIC Sport

Rugby

Football

College App

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

Pick-up Arrangements - “Plan B”

It is important that you are aware of your son’s pick-up procedure if sports training is cancelled or if you are running late.

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.

Sport training sessions finish normally finish by 4:45pm. We ask that the boys are picked up at this time, or soon after. Any boy who is still at their training venue at 5:00pm will be directed to the Boarding Reception area so that he may be collected from there.

In the case of bus arrivals, boys will be sent to Boarding Reception 15 minutes after the arrival time of the bus.

Sports Photographs

We are always on the lookout for photos and action shots to be used for the Blue and 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.