Dear Parents

As we move into the Lenten period we have much to be thankful for at school. All of our students have settled into school life and are working productively in class. Our children in Foundation are at school each day now and are busy learning school routine and working through the day.Yesterday in Literacy it was fantastic to see the Foundation students writing neatly in books, starting to read and have a basic understanding of number operations.

This week all families will have / had the opportunity to meet with classroom teachers. Thanks for your support in these meetings. If at any time you have questions that need to be addressed please be in contact with the teachers. The same applies if you need to speak to administration staff- we are here to help.

As mentioned we commenced Lent. As you know the Easter egg hunt is so much fun but the history of Easter and the story is a long and complicated one. The season lasts 40 days which represents the amount of time Jesus spent in the desert- fasting and preparing for his ministry- and to celebrate, many Christians choose to make a sacrifice of their own over those 40 days. For 2022, Lent begins on Wednesday, 2nd March and ending on Saturday, 16th April. St Mary’s celebrated Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday at school last week with the rubbing of ashes on the school communities foreheads.

Congratulations to all of the children who have completed swimming lessons and swimming at district and local events. The 15 swimmers who competed at the Sale and District Swimming did an outstanding job under difficult circumstances with the weather. A number of the swimmers finished with placings and represented the school with pride and determination.

Next week the children in Grade 5/6 will finally get to go to camp. The camp will be at Coonawarra Resort in East Gippsland and it has many activities that challenge the kids in an outdoor environment. Our Grade 4 students will be off to Forest Lodge early in Term Two. It is fantastic to finally have our camping program return to the school curriculum.

A reminder for parents who are entering the school grounds, you must be able to show the correct COVID-19 vaccination certificate or exemption certificate. I thank you for your support in ensuring we follow all necessary procedures.

Please enjoy the long weekend.

Jason

Sale and District  swimming

We got on the bus at 9.30 with 15 determined swimmers. When we arrived we saw some of our competitors warming up in the pool. First up was the 50m freestyle. Well done to Ella Higgins, Jack Murphy, Ella Reese and Mitch House.

Next  was backstroke. No one from our school did backstroke.

After the backstroke, was breaststroke. Amazing job to Mitch House and Ella Higgins.

Then came the very challenging butterfly, amazing job to Sam Gately and Jessica Rowley for giving butterfly a go.

Next up came the relays. There were two relays, boys and girls. The girls team was Jessica Rowley, Ella Smith, Millie Daly and Hannah Bagguley. The boys team was Joel Shingles, Mitch House, Lenny Batahla and Jack Murphy. 

The boys came third and the girls came third too.

 What a great day!!!

By Joel Shingles and Ella Higgins.

TERM 1 - Thursday  28th January - Friday 8th April

TERM 2 - Tuesday 26th April - Friday 24th June

TERM 3 - Monday 11th July - Friday 16th September

TERM 4 - Monday 3rd October - Tuesday 20th December

Monday 14th March is Labor Day Public holiday.  We will see you back at school on Tuesday 15th March.  Enjoy your long weekend!

WEEKEND MASSES

Heyfield:

Saturday    6:00pm

Maffra:

Sunday    9:00am 

Cowwarr:

1st and 3rd Sunday   11:00am

Newry:

2nd and 4th Sunday  11:00am

Dargo:

5th Sunday   11:00am

WEEKDAY MASSES

Heyfield:

Tuesday      9:30am

Maffra:

Wednesday   9:30am

Thursday      9:30am

Friday          9:30am

Saturday      9:30am

If you applied for the CSEF at your child's school in 2021, you do not need to complete an application form in 2022 unless there has been a change in your family circumstances.

You only need to complete an application form if any of the following changes have occurred

new student enrolements; your child has started or changed schools in 2022 or you did not apply in 2021

changed family circumstances; such as a change of custody, change of name, concession card number, or new siblings commencing at the school in 2022

If you do need to complete an application, these can be obtained from the school office.