Newsletter - 28th May 2025
Acknowledgement of Country
We respectfully acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Wadawurrung people. It is a privilege to be standing on Wadawurrung country.
We pay our respect to Elders past, present and emerging. We acknowledge the contributions of Indigenous Peoples from the past, present and future who contribute to this country in which we live.
May Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians continue to work together to educate, unite and live in peace on this land we call home, Australia.
Upcoming Events
30th May: School closure day as staff gather for Professional Development in Literacy
3rd June: Wallace Kinder visit
9th June: King's Birthday Public Holiday
19th June: Lunch orders due in
22nd June: Lunch orders delivered
25th June: Student-free day; Staff Professional Development Day
2nd-4th July: Yeas 3-6 Urban Camp, Melbourne
4th July: End of Term 2
21st July: Term 3 commences
23rd July: Sacrament of Eucharist Parent Information Session 7pm
Prayer
PRAYER FOR RECONCILIATION
God of all creation,
As we journey together in this Great Southern Land, we pray for healing, forgiveness and unity, creating a path of goodwill, with justice and compassion.
Jesus, through the power of your love, you have given us the courage, wisdom and strength to share our gifts and talents in humility.
In peace and understanding we reconcile with each other.
Creator Spirit, we come together in prayer and thanksgiving for the many blessings we have received. Allow your Spirit to wash over us and give us strength to walk together as one.
Amen
Messages from the Principal
SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION
Congratulations to Will, Pat, and Addy on receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation on Saturday night at St Peter’s, Clarkes Hill. In the Catholic tradition, Confirmation is one of the three sacraments of initiation. Thanks to their families for preparing and supporting them!
NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK
Last week was National Volunteer Week across Australia and we took this opportunity to thank Melinda for everything she does to support and run our playgroup. Melinda’s enthusiasm, dedication and kindness have created a warm, welcoming space for our children and families on a Tuesday morning. Thank you Melinda!
ATHLETICS RESULTS
On Thursday 15th May our students competed in the Wathaurung Athletics Carnival at Llanberris. Thanks to the staff and parents who helped out on the day, it certainly was fantastic. The following students placed in these events
1500m distance - 9/10yo girls - Jemima Wallis - 3rd
200m sprint - 11yo girls - Abbey Parkin - 2nd
100m sprint - 11yo girls - Abbey Parkin - 2nd
Triple Jump - 9yo boys - Jayden Smith - 3rd
Triple Jump - 10yo boys - William Gage - 3rd
Triple Jump - 9yo girls - Ellie Dodd - equal 1st
Shot Put - 12+ girls - Leah Davis - 3rd
SCHOOL CLOSURE DAY
It seems wrong to be announcing our next School Closure Day when we are also having one this Friday but I want to get the date out as this one has been a change from Term 3. The staff will be continuing with Literacy and Numeracy Professional Development on Wednesday 25th June and school will be closed on this day.
NATIONAL SORRY DAY and RECONCILIATION WEEK
It was wonderful to have Jack Sampi visit us on Monday and read two powerful books to the students: Sorry Day and Took the Children Away. These stories helped students understand the significance of Sorry Day and the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
BIG SPUD DINNER
The Big Spud Dinner will be held this Friday night at the Dean Hall. It is bound to be a fabulous, family friendly night. Thanks to the families who are helping out with the activities for the kids too.
God bless,
Clare
Gumnut & Banksia Rooms News
CATHOLIC EDUCATION WEEK/ST MARY’S FEAST DAY
This week it is Catholic Education Week to celebrate Catholic Schools. We also celebrated our school Feast Day, the Feast of St. Mary of the Harvest. Many farmers prayed to Mary for protection over their crops and for a good harvest. As St. Mary's is set in the middle of paddocks, we felt that the Feast of Mary of the Harvest was fitting for us. So we enjoyed hot potato chips and potato cakes from the Bungaree Store on return to school.
We also explored five local Catholic churches and did a "Church Road Trip" with Father Justin. We wanted to see how they are similar and what makes them unique. It was a fun day and we were all fascinated by each building.
Here is what we thought:
Abbey was fascinated by the vivid colour in the Bungaree church.
Woo thought the blue roof in the Bungaree church was the most amazing thing!
Kaezia learned about the red light in each church, she was amazed that she had never noticed it before.
Gen loved the pop of colour in - you guessed it - the Bungaree Church.
Jayden loved beautiful the stain glass at the entrance of the Bungaree Church and how fancy it was.
Teddy was fascinated by the pictures on the wall in each church and fascinated by the relic in the stone in the altar.
Jemima thought the stone stations of the cross were very interesting.
Addy explored the back rooms and was interested to see so many cupboards because you never get to see that part.
Pat was fascinated by how the floors were so shiny. He also liked the carpet at Dunnstown and he learned that it was the leftover carpet from Her Majesty's in Ballarat. He also noticed that the altar in the Clarkes Hill church (our church), was all made of marble.
Ellie was fascinated by the colourful windows in all the churches and especially liked the modern colours in the Bungaree Church.
Vanessa was fascinated by the stained glass windows.
Emilia was amazed at how old the churches were and their high wooden roofs.
We are all very grateful to Fr Justin for joining us on our road trip and sharing his knowledge with us. We are also grateful to Clare for driving the bus so well and to the Bungaree Store for the yummy lunch. A huge thanks to Sue for organising the road trip.
It was a fun day to celebrate Catholic Education Week and our wonderful St. Mary's School.
Happy Birthday
There has been three birthday celebrations in our community since our last newsletter.
Firstly, Teddy, celebrated his 8th birthday on Sunday, 25th May. We hope you had the best day Teddy!
Also celebrating her birthday on the 25th May, was our Principal, Clare. We wont say how old she turned, but we know she likes to celebrate her special day in style.
On Monday, 26th May, Leo turned 12 years old! Congratulations Leo, only one more year before you are a teenager.
Loreto Performance
On Friday 16th May, we were fortunate to attend a special music performance at Loreto College. Staff members, Simone and Sarah introduced the different performances we would see, including the senior band, singing and dance. They also explained the meaning behind each performance and the different instruments or techniques that were used. There was also lots of audience participation which was lots of fun! On our return to school, Kaezia and Mimi wrote a letter of thanks on our behalf and we even received a reply!
Our letter to Loreto:
Dear Staff and Students involved in the music performance today,
On behalf of the students and teachers from St Mary’s, we would like to thank you for inviting us to
the performance today. It was wonderful. Thank you to the students for taking time out of their learning to show us their amazing music and dancing skills. They must have done lots of practise just for that performance today.
Here are some of our favourite parts -
Teddy and I (Mimi) really liked the Acknowledgement of Country song, Jayden, Skyler and Will
loved the dark and spooky song near the end and Addy, Leah, Emilia and Vanessa really enjoyed
the piano dance. Woo’s favourite part was “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.
I (Kaezia) enjoyed the cup song and when we got back to school, some of us tried the cup song
and have decided to practise it when we have rainy inside play.
Thanks again and we hope we get to visit another time.
From Mimi (Yr 3) and Kaezia (Yr 4) on behalf of St Mary’s Clarkes Hill.
The reply we received from Simone and Sarah at Loreto College:
Thanks for bringing your wonderful students to the concert. We had a blast!
Can you please let Mimi and Teddy know that our students feel so special being able to sing in the traditional language of the Wadawurrung people. The song was called Dalama Dja (embracing Country).
Please let Jayden, Skyler and Will know that it was really, really dark on stage and very hard to read our music in the spooky song. Some of our lights stopped working. We love playing that piece of music.
Please let Addy, Leah, Emelia and Vanessa know that the piano dance took lots and lots of practice. We had to practice it really slowly at first and then once we could do it slowly we started to speed it up.
Please let Woo know that we love the sound of the flutes when they play the Lion Sleeps tonight music. They sound like birds cheeping.
We love the idea of you spending time learning the Cup Song on rainy days, Kaezia. Your teacher might be able to find the YouTube lessons to help you learn it.
We hope to see you again, Simone & Sarah
School TV - Gender Diversity
In today's world, many young people are exploring who they are - not just in terms of career aspirations or friendships, but also how they understand themselves, including their gender identity. For some, this journey is straightforward. For others, it can involve questioning, rethinking, or expressing gender in ways that may not align with traditional expectations.
As a parent or caregiver, it's completely natural to feel uncertain or even overwhelmed at times. You might have questions, concerns, or simply want to better understand how to respond in a way that's helpful and affirming. The important thing to know is that gender diversity is not new - but our awareness and understanding of it is growing. It means recognising that not everyone experiences gender in the same way. While many young people feel comfortable with the gender they were assigned at birth, others may experience or express their gender in ways that feel different to what's traditionally expected.
Supporting a gender-diverse child doesn't require you to be an expert - it requires you to be present, open-minded, and willing to listen. Research shows that young people who feel accepted and supported by their families have significantly better mental health outcomes, regardless of where they are in their gender journey.
Please see the link below for more information: