Newsletter - 30th August 2023
Upcoming Dates
30th August: Bush Dance at the Bungaree Community Centre, 6:00-8:00pm
1st September: Father's Day Breakfast and Liturgy, 7:45am at St Mary's
3rd September: Father's Day
5th September: Athletics Day for selected senior children at Llanberris Reserve
6th September: CSD at St Brendan's
12th September: CSD at St Mary's; Years 4, 5 and 6 Sports Day with St. Michael’s at Daylesford
13th September: Footy Day; CSD at St Brendan's; 9:00am Combined Assembly - all welcome to attend
14th September: Last Day of Term 3 for students
15th September: Pupil-free day
2nd October: 1st Day of Term 4
Principal's News
Bush Dance
Tonight we will be having our Bush Dance and we strongly encourage everyone to come along. Extended families are also welcome to attend. This is always a fabulous community event and will be one of the last main times we come together as one. I understand life is busy, however, I ask that you prioritise this for a few hours. We will begin at 6pm and go through to 8pm with supper included. Please bring a plate to share.
Father's Day
On Sunday we take the time to recognise all of the special men in our lives and show them how much we love and appreciate them.
This Friday we will join together at St. Mary’s to celebrate Father’s Day with a breakfast, Liturgy and task that all can be involved in. Breakfast will be ready at 7.45am and we should be finished by around 9am. All Dads, Grandfathers and special men or women are invited to come along. Please ensure all numbers are in by 3.30pm today.
End of Year Dates
As we move to the latter weeks of Term 3 and approach Spring, I wanted to confirm some important dates for our school community so that you can plan ahead as needed.
For St. Mary’s, the final day for children is Friday, the 15th of December and staff will finish on Monday, the 18th of December.
At St. Brendan’s, children will finish school on Thursday, the 14th of December and Friday will be a day for staff to pack up and clean up the school as much as possible. Staff will also finish on the Monday.
Daylesford Sports Day – Additional Combined Schools' Day
On Tuesday, the 12th of September, our Year 4–6 children will be going to Daylesford to join with the St. Michaels’ students to play a number of sports. In order to make it easier for transport and staffing, we will make this day a Combined Schools' Day, instead of Friday which is a pupil-free day. We would be at St. Mary’s so swapping Friday to the Tuesday of the same week.
Wednesday will remain the same with everyone at St. Brendan’s.
A permission note will go out today and be on PAM ready to be approved.
Please contact me if this is difficult to manage or if you require assistance with transport. It is in the calendar and you will be sent a reminder the day before.
Assemblies and Footy Day
On Wednesday, the 13th of September, there will be a combined assembly at 9am at St. Brendan’s. Please come and join us and remember to wear your footy colours on that day.
It is a different day and time than usual with the plan that maybe some parents that find it hard to attend the usual drop off time, may be able to attend.
Anita
Our thoughts are with Anita as she rests at home after surgery on her foot. Anita will be out of action for the rest of the term. Take care, Anita and keep that foot up!!
Thank you to Claire for getting the newsletter done and getting permission notes out.
Athletics for children going through to next level
Next Tuesday, 5th September, a number of our senior children from both schools will be participating in various sports at Llanberris. These children qualified to move onto this event at our sports day in April this year. Good luck to all of our participants. We are very proud of what you have already achieved and know that you will represent our schools well.
Parents will be responsible for getting the children to and from their events. Please contact me if you require some support with this.
Congratulations!
Last Sunday, Bishop Paul Bird celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation during Mass at St Patrick's Cathedral, Ballarat.
Congratulations to Vanessa who was part of this special celebration. Vanessa is pictured here with Bishop Paul and her sister, Hannah.
Safety on our roads
This is just a reminder that we all need to be extra careful on our country roads when dropping off and picking up our children. It's important to remember that on Combined Schools' Days the traffic is doubled.
The roads around our schools are not in the best condition. They are narrow and have lots of pot holes due to the bad weather. Winter is especially a tricky time as roads are wet and slippery. Please take extra care and be mindful that school zone limits are in place around our schools.
We want everyone to arrive at their destinations safely and we need to be mindful of each other as we travel to and from school. Our families' safety is very important to us.
Take care and stay safe,
Inez
Junior Room Update
SHAPES, SHAPES, SHAPES
We are learning all about shapes, 2D and 3D.
2D shapes are flat and have sides and vertices. They are called 2D because they have 2 dimensions - length and width. This week we are learning to slide, flip and turn shapes and observe what happens when we do. The shape never changes but the position of the shape does.
Patrick - My favourite 2D shape is decagon - it has ten sides.
Paige - My favourite 2D shape is an octagon - it has eight sides.
Quinn - My favourite 2D shape is a rhombus when it looks like a diamond.
Jeremiah - My favourite 2D shape is a rectangle because it is shaped like a chocolate bar!
Kaezia - My favourite 2D shape is hexagon because it has 6 sides and 6 vertices.
Vanessa - My favourite 2D shape is a square because it has four sides that are the same length. and my favourite 3D shape is the cube because Louise helped us learn how to draw a cube.
3D shapes are solid and have faces, edges and vertices. They are called 3D because they have the 3 dimensions of length, width and height. We have been practising how to draw 3D shapes too.
Paige - My favourite 3D shape is the cube because I have learnt how to draw it.
Patrick - My favourite 3D shape is the triangular based pyramid also called a tetrahedron.
Quinn - My favourite 3D shape is the cone because it looks like an ice cream cone and I love ice cream!
Kaezia - My favourite 3D shape is a cube because I have learnt the trick to drawing a cube which Louise taught us.
Vanessa - My favourite 3D shape is the cube because Louise helped us learn how to draw a cube.
ACROSTIC POEM
This week we have been busy learning how to create an acrostic poem.
An acrostic poem is a poem in which certain letters of each line combine to spell out a word, name, or phrase when read vertically. Most often, it's the first letter of each line that spells out the word, but they can be placed anywhere on the line.This is a poem we brainstormed and created together and it is about our wonderful school.
St Mary's students smile
Courageous, respectful, inclusive and kind
Helpful in every way
Oasis in the paddocks
Offering friendship
Love of learning
Senior News
Book Week
Last Wednesday we celebrated Book Week. It was wonderful to see the array of characters and the effort everyone put into dressing up.
Throughout the term we have opportunities to join with the juniors for buddy reading. On Thursday it was wonderful to witness true engagement from every child, whether they were reading or listening.
Writing
Students have completed a second writing task on Elastik. After feedback from Sue and Jenny, students each chose 2 areas they wanted to focus on as well as everyone focussing on punctuation which scored quite low in our first assessment.
It was wonderful to hear so many asking to see their results from the second task and for many some very pleasing improvements. So far the results have shown some real improvement particularly in the areas of punctuation, sentence structure and vocabulary.
This week all students will get their results. Be sure to ask them how they went.
Maths
We have also been finishing off our current units in maths, including fractions and decimals, and area and perimeter. Our post test results on Essential Assessment showed a good understanding of the difference between area and perimeter and the correct way to calculate each. We are now working on a project using our understanding of area and perimeter and applying it to real life.
Our Goals
With only a few weeks left of the term, everyone has been working to achieve the individual goals set earlier in the term. For many, that includes working on speed and accuracy of times tables and improving vocabulary in writing. Everyone is encouraged to continue to strive towards achieving their goals.
Dean Kite Festival
Damascus College - Open Sessions
ATTENTION GRADE 5 2023 STUDENTS AND FAMILIES
If you are interested in learning more about Damascus College and have a child in Grade 5, then don’t miss the opportunity to attend the upcoming Open Night and Open Morning events at Damascus College.
Open Night – 3 sessions
Tuesday 17 October, 4.30pm, 5.30pm, 6.30pm
The Open Night is a great way for prospective parents, guardians and students to learn more about Damascus College. Families with children of all ages are welcome to attend.
Attendees will participate in an information session and guided campus tour, where students and staff will be situated around campus with displays and demonstrations showcasing Damascus facilities and offerings.
Open Morning
Thursday 5 & 19 October, 9am – 10.30am
Open Morning provides an opportunity for prospective families to take a guided tour of the College led by current students and is an opportunity to experience Damascus during school hours. Open Mornings commence at 9am and conclude at 10.30am.
REGISTER YOUR ATTENDANCE BY USING THE LINK BELOW:
School Holiday Program - Cricket
Renegades School Holiday Programs are back again this September! As we move into the season, this is a chance for girls and boys to get their cricket fix early, starting this holiday period.
MELBOURNE RENEGADES SCHOOL HOLIDAY CAMPS - AGES 7-10
Where: St Patrick's College - Ballarat
When: Thursday, 21st September 2023
Time: 9.00am - 3.00pm
Designed for Junior Graders, aged 7-10 years old, this one-day camp will feature fun, fully supervised cricket activities, games, giveaways and more! Places are strictly limited at each camp. Please note that we do not operate waiting lists for these events - it is first in, best dressed until the camp is sold out!
For other locations throughout Victoria: https://www.melbournerenegades.com.au/holidayprograms
Participants will need to bring their own food & drinks to the camp. Note that no nut products are permitted to be brought to the camp. There will be a fully supervised lunch break on the day.
***Parents/guardians do not have to stay for the entire day. Any Renegades player appearances are subject to availability***
