Dear families,

On Monday the school is closed for a professional development day for our whole staff. Thank you for your support, flexibility and understanding when we have school closure days. Rest assured that the work we do on these days is vital to the ongoing improvement of our school and will benefit the learning and well-being of our students.

It is a very exciting time for some of our Grade 3 students who will be celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation on Thursday evening. We keep these students in our prayers as they prepare to continue on their sacramental journey. Reconciliation is an opportunity to strengthen relationships to God by saying sorry for times we have turned away from God.

Next week is Harmony Week, this is the celebration that recognises our diversity and brings together Australians from all different backgrounds. At school we will be educating students on the importance of celebrating our diversity. Please visit https://www.harmony.gov.au/ for more information about the week.

It’s about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone.​

At St Mary’s our aim is for all students to feel safe and comfortable. As educators we understand that there can be many different causes of anxiety for children and that when children are anxious they can often find it difficult to learn. Please speak to your child’s teacher or myself if you have any concerns or issues that may be affecting your child.

Please have a great weekend with your families.

Kind regards,

Julian

10th March ~ Freddie Moyle

Congratulations to Freddie who competed in his first golf competition earlier this year.  Freddie has spent many hours dedicated to practising this skilled sport.  He has had hours of lessons too which put him in good stead for the tournament.  Freddie competed in Melbourne in a Pitch and Putt junior competition run by Golf Australia.  He had to hold his concentrartion and nerves for 2-1/2 hours.  Freddie displayed great sportsmanship, grit and determination to come away winning 1st place and his first trophy.  He came away with confidence and had lots of fun.  He is already looking forward to playing in another competition.

Well done Freddie!! 

10th March ~ Louis Wilkinson

Congratulations to Louis who recently sailed in his first regatta on his boat 'Satisfaction'.  He sailed with 3 team mates and he is very proud of their effort after winning the event.

Louis has demonstrated great maturity to be part of this exciting achievement.  Sailing requires attention to detail, awareness of your surrounds and others involved and great concentration.  These are fantastic qualities to have as he navigates his way through life.

Louis is very proud of winning and I'm sure he is looking forward to sailing in another competition.

Well done Louis!! 

17th March ~ Chevy McMahon

Congratulations to Chevy who recently won the title of U/10 Boy Age Champion/Iron Nipper Winner at the Seaspray Surf Club.  He has proven when competing if you try your best at every event and have a go, you will accumulate points.  Chevy has shown how perserverance, grit, determination and hard work can make you a winner.  He should be extremely proud of his never give up attitude.

Well Done Chevy!!

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

Wellington Division Swimming 

On Monday the 6th of March, 14 students represented St Mary’s at the Wellington Division Swimming at the Sale Pool. There were over 250 students competing and all our students did a wonderful job with their events. Thank you to Morgs and Kelly Murphy for assisting on the day. 

Our Wellington Division Swimming Team included: Elke Horsford, Ben Murphy, Max Roberts, Mack Howard, Tex Morgan, Georgia Foat, Evie Stobie, Jack Murphy, Mia Potter, Jess Rowley, Ella Smith, Mackayla Hickling, Millie Daly and Georgia Rawson. 

A special mention to following students for placing in their events:

Elke Horsford - 3rd Breaststroke 

Mackayla Hickling - 3rd Backstroke

Jessica Rowley - 3rd Butterfly  

Ride2School Day 2023 

Next Friday the 26th of March our school will be participating in Ride2School Day. It is a nationwide program that encourages students to get physically active on their journey to school. Students can walk, scoot, ride or skateboard to school. It would be wonderful to have family members join their child on the journey to school. For students who travel to school by bus, they will have the opportunity to participate in some active games before school begins. It should be a great morning and I will post more information on DOJO next week.  

Cross Country 

Our next big school sporting event will be the school Cross Country which will take place next term on Friday the 28th of April. All students will participate in long distance running events which will be held at Morison Street Ovals. We started our Fitness Unit last week which aims to support students in preparing for cross country. I will be in need of parent helpers on the day, so if you are able to help please send me a DOJO message. I will post more information closer to the event.   

School Photos 2023 – St Mary’s Primary School

Annual school photos will be taken at St Mary’s Primary School on Monday April 3rd, 2023.

More details will be shared closer to the date.  Thank you.

Please find attached the 2023 updated price list for lunch orders. 

Our P&F Committee have Lunch Order Bags available to purchase from the front office.

Insulated All Rounder - $12.50

• Designed to replace paper lunch bags
• Made from non woven polypropylene (like green shopping bags) as it is durable and easy to clean
• The insulated PEVA lining keeps food and drinks hot / cold
• Extremely easy to wipe with a damp cloth
• Hygienic zipper pocket to separate money from contact with food & clearly display order
• Insulated All Rounder available in 2 binding colors - blue or pink
• Insulated All Rounder is approximately 23cm (H) x 19cm (W) x 11cm (D)

TERM 1

30th January - 6th April (2:20pm finish, buses will be running)

TERM 2

26th April - 23rd June

TERM 3

10th July - 14th September

TERM 4

2nd October - 15th December

TERM 1

MARCH

APRIL

**  Please go to our school website for the full year of calendar dates.

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

Maffra Eagles 12U + 13U Netball teams are looking for GIRLS OR BOYS turning 11, 12 or 13 this year to play netball on Saturdays in the Sale Netball Association competition.

The 13+U team will play in the afternoons whilst the 12+U team will play in the mornings.

Anyone interested – please contact Cindy Rowley 0419 921 637 or Kelly Murphy 0402 404 114 asap.

It's lots of fun and a great way to meet new friends.