Dear families,

In a few weeks the school reports will be sent out and I wanted to make you aware of some of the changes to reports and why they are happening. Firstly, when the reports are sent out you will notice that they are more succinct than they have previously been. The reasoning for this is to minimise the amount of time teachers need to spend writing reports whilst giving the most accurate outline of your child’s learning. Educational evidence tells us that writing reports has no benefit to learning outcomes of students, therefore the more time spent writing reports takes time away from the much more important work surrounding learning and teaching. 

We value the communication between school and families about children’s learning and the school report is only one way that this is communicated. We are utilising Class Dojo more and more in the pods and I encourage you to talk to your child’s teacher about their learning if you have any concerns or questions. 

Please do not see less content in the report as any indication about how much your child’s teacher cares about your child’s learning. Teachers spend countless hours developing learning and teaching for the classroom based on the specific needs of each child and this time needs to be spent on the areas that will have the greatest educational impact.

The reports will be sent out via the Parent Access Module (PAM). If you have not yet signed up to PAM I encourage you to do so in  preparation for reports being sent out. If you have any issues signing up please let Kylie, Tara or myself know.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about the school reports. I will send out more information about reports before they are distributed but I am more than happy to answer any questions in the meantime.

Please have a great weekend.

Kind regards,

Julian

Congratulations and well done to all students who were nominated this fortnight for their wonderful choices in the classroom or on the playground.  This is a weekly award and all nominted children should be very proud of themselves.  

Congratulations to the following students who were drawn out of a box of nominees for this fortnights Positive Behaviour Awards.  St Mary's have introduced this reward system to acknowledge the wonderful behaviour of students who regonise our school values of Respect, Act and Learn.

11/11/2022

Tex Morgan

Olivia Nicolaci

Matilda Olsen

18/11/2022

Summer Domaille

Amber Bates

Roy Wilkinson

To celebrate student's achievements, we will be presenting children with Star Of The Week awards.  This is a self nominated award of something a student is proud of.  It could be something academic, sports related, or a personal achievement. Have you learnt to ride a bike?  Won 1st place in a dance competition?  Read a book by yourself?  Anything that makes you proud!

Forms can be found on the link below.

Week 6/7

The last two weeks we were lucky enough to have Shaun and Isaac from Reclink Australia visit our school. Students were introduced to a range of fun and engaging games. The two main games students participated in were Spikeball and Targetball. Both games were very engaging and required a range of gross motor skills and teamwork. 

An upcoming community event that will be a fantastic, and promotes getting active, is the Maffra Triathlon. The event will be held on Sunday the 4th of December at the Maffra Lawn Tennis Club. This year participants can nominate their local/club school, and the school/group that has the highest participants wins $750. There is a shorter course for primary aged students and is a lot of fun. Children are required to complete a short swim, bike ride and run. The event is also open to adults, so parents feel free to have a go too. The event gives all people a great chance to have a go at triathlons in a casual and fun setting. If your child is interested in the event, please send me a message on Dojo for more information. Alternatively, please see the flyer included in this newsletter.

This morning all children enjoyed our incursion, Teach Your Dinosaur Science.  This was a very captivating performance which had our students laughing throughout the show. Scientist Alistair engaged the children with his experiments covering robotics, circuitry, energy and sustainability.

This performance showed how science has influenced, transformed and refined our way of living over the years.

School closure date - Monday 28th November - no students

Friday 16th December - Last day of Term 4 (students)

Maffra Neighbourhood House are establishing a Maffra gifting tree with the help of the Maffra and surrounds community.

With this tree, it would mean that we as a community, will do our best to ensure those who would have gone without on Christmas day will receive something special.

We are asking the community to come forward and help by donating unwrapped gifts, gift cards, wrapping paper, cards/labels or your time to help on gift wrapping days.  All items can be dropped off at either the Maffra Neighbourhood house or 42 Queen Street.

We are also asking for those in need to please reach out.  Your details will remain anonymous to the public.

You can either go to the Facebook group page and message Mary or drop a note into the mailbox at 42 Queen Street Maffra or to the Maffra Neighbourhood House at 31A Thomson Street Maffra.

All that is required is a first name, age (if gift is for a child please give their age, if gift is for an adult, please write adult).  Also, please write the persons interests or a reasonable wish list.  Finally, please write an address where to deliver the gifts to on Christmas Eve.

Feel free to nominate for those who you know will not speak up for themselves.

For any quetions or further information, please contact Mary on 0438 314 053.

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   12:00noon

WEEKDAY MASSES

Heyfield:

Tuesday      9:30am

Maffra:

Wednesday   9:30am

Thursday      9:30am

Friday          9:30am

Saturday      9:30am

The Maffra fire brigade are seeking new juniors aged 11-16 for this upcoming season. This is the sport side of this field which can later be converted into fire fighting skills.

I think it would be a great sport for many to enjoy with the combination of competing and making friends from different towns all over Victoria. Yes, it may seem very competitive but it is much fun for everyone to enjoy and is really a friendly sport from all teams, from all towns. Maffra has open arms to everyone!  Come and enjoy the sport that present runners absolutely love.

Trainings are free and will be run on Mondays and Thursdays from 4pm to 5:30pm. (There may be a small fee for state and interstate competitions)

If you’re interested in finding out more information or wish to bring the kids along please Email Brent on  bm.mckenzie28@gmail.com

JOIN NIPPERS AT SEASPRAY THIS SUMMER  

Want to be part of the Nippers program at Seaspray Surf Life Saving Club this summer? 

If so, it’s time to get registered and get along to Aqua Energy to have your Nipper’s swimming ability assessed. 

Nippers is a beach education program for children aged between five and 13 that introduces participants to life saving. They learn valuable water safety and life saving skills and gain confidence in the surf. It is not a learn-to-swim program. Sessions will be held on Sunday mornings in December and on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings during January. 

All participants must have their swimming ability assessed by a qualified swimming instructor. Assessments will be done on Sunday 27 November at Aqua Energy in Sale.   

The assessment times are: 

9am: Under Eleven, Under Twelve, Under Thirteen and Under Fourteen 

9.30 for a 10am start: Under Six, Under Seven, Under Eight, Under Nine and Under Ten 

Please enter through the outdoor entrance just off Guthridge Parade. Those who are not Aqua Energy members may be asked to pay the entrance fee ($4.70 for children aged up to 15). If you are an Aqua Energy member, please bring your membership tag.  

Before assessment day, please make sure your child or family is registered and the appropriate Seaspray Surf Club membership is paid.   

To help us out on the day, please ensure you are clear of your Nipper’s age group. Remember, age groups are determined by a child’s age on 30 September. That means, a child who turns 10 years old on 1 November will be in Under Ten, as they were nine years old at the end of September.  A child who turned 12 years old on September 1 will be in Under Thirteen as they were 12 years old on 30 September.  

Children must be aged 5 years or more as of September 30, 2022 to participate in Nippers. The program is not designed to cater for children aged younger than this.  

For details of the assessment requirements for each age level, please visit https://lsv.com.au/wp-content/uploads/Pool-Junior-Evaluation-Preliminary-Assessments-2022_20231.pdf 

If you have questions about Nippers at Seaspray and the season ahead, please email nippers@seaspraysurfclub.org.au.