Week 1, Term 1 2025

Principal's Welcome

Dear Parents and Caregivers, 

Welcome back to the 2025 school year. I hope that you had an opportunity to get some down time and enjoy the break. I am writing to provide some updates to you about the year ahead, and to share with you some key events coming up early in the year. 

New Staff: While some of this information has been shared as appointments were made, I would again like to welcome the following new staff to the school: 

●    Ms Katrina Bullemor - Year 1 Teacher
●    Miss Renae Adcock - Year 5 Teacher

Over the holidays, Miss Emily Harte received a transfer to school in Townsville, and Ms Abbey Ross commenced her maternity leave. In light of these changes, I am pleased to announce the following adjustments to class teachers: 

●    Mrs Rachael Young - Year 2 Teacher
●    Miss Rachel Strambini - Year 4 Teacher.

Specialist lessons, including HPE, Music, The Arts, and Italian, will be taught by our regular supply teachers until we can appoint new staff to these roles. We are confident that these arrangements will ensure continuity of quality learning experiences for all students. Thank you for your understanding and support during this transition. 

Community Breakfast: We will be holding a barbeque breakfast for students and their families on Friday, 28 February, at 7.30am. We invite all families to come and enjoy a barbeque breakfast together, getting to know each other socially. Please mark this date on your calendar for next month. 

Opening Mass and Blessing of School Leaders: Our start of 2025 Mass will take place on Friday, 14 February at 9am in the St Mary’s Church. During this Mass, we will be blessing our new student leaders (Captains and House Captains) and we will also be commissioning the 2025 Mini Vinnies. All are welcome to attend the Mass. 

Uniforms and Haircuts: A reminder that we expect students to return to school with the appropriate school uniforms, shoes, haircuts and personal appearance. Our uniform policy states that students are to wear plain black shoes and shorts / skorts with no markings or colours.  

Uniform days for 2025 will be: 

●    Formal uniform - Monday, Wednesday and Friday
●    Sports uniform - Tuesday and Thursday
●  Community day - Other school shirts may be worn on Thursdays (Yr 6 senior shirts, 150th Anniversary, Indigenous, representative sport).

NAPLAN Dates: The NAPLAN testing period will again occur at the end of Term 1. NAPLAN will be sat by students in Years 3 and 5, with testing taking place from 12 March to 24 March.  

New Start Time: As per the communication to parents at the end of 2024, the school start time will be changing this year. Please be aware that school will now start at 8.30am, not 8.40am.  There is no change to the finish time, with students still finishing school at 2.50pm. 

Arrivals and Departures: Please remember that there is no supervision of children who arrive before 8.15am. In circumstances where a child is dropped at school before 8.15am, they are to wait quietly at the tables in the shed near the tuckshop until 8.15am. Stop-Drop-Go is available for the quick collection of students in the afternoons. Please display your yellow name tag on your visor to assist with the quick identification of cars. Please also remember that there is no u-turn allowed as you exit the Stop-Drop-Go lane.

Date Claimers 
Term 1 - 28 January - 4 April

●    Blessing of School Leaders Mass - 9am, 14 February
●    Clean Up Australia Day event - 9.30am, 22 February
●    Community Breakfast - 7.30am, 28 February
●    Year 6 Leadership camp - 5 to 7 March
●    Parent - Teacher Interviews - 18 to 19 March
●    End of Term 1 - Friday, 4 April

Again, welcome back to the new school year, and I look forward to seeing you in and around the school over the next few weeks. 

Kind regards and blessings, 

Alicia Ninnes

Principal  

Religious Life of the School

Dear Families,

Welcome to a brand-new school year at St Mary's! We are excited to journey with you and your children throughout 2025, nurturing faith, learning, and community.

We are reaching out to invite parents and community members to join our Catholic Identity Team. This group plays an important role in shaping the faith life of our school, setting priorities, and planning events that help our students live out their Catholic values. If you are interested in becoming part of this vital team, please get in touch with the school office or myself at swindridge@smbtsv.catholic.edu.au  Your insights and support will be greatly appreciated!

For families of students in Years 5 and 6, we kindly ask you to indicate in your permission email whether your child will be joining Mini Vinnies this year. Mini Vinnies is a wonderful opportunity for students to live out the call to serve others, and we encourage as many as possible to get involved. Again you can contact the school office regarding this if needed. 

We are looking forward to our first whole school and community Mass, which will be held in Week 3 on Friday, February 14th at 9:00 am.  We will be meeting in the Undercover Shed first to welcome in the Year of Hope at 8:50 am, led by Father Sibi.  During this special celebration, we will commission our Mini Vinnie leaders and school captains for 2025. This Mass will be led by our amazing Grade 5 and 6 students, and we hope to see many families join us in prayer and support. For more information about the Pope's Jubilee year, 'Pilgrams of Hope',  please see: https://www.tsv.catholic.org.au/news-events/jubilee25/ 

I want to wish all families a blessed and fruitful year ahead. May God’s love guide us as we learn, grow, and serve together as a community.

God’s blessings,

Mrs Suzette Windridge
Assistant Principal Religious Education (APRE and Chaplain) 

Learning and Teaching

Welcome back to everyone! I hope you had a nice holiday and are ready for some wonderful learning opportunities and growth to occur in Term 1.

NCCD refers to the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD). It’s a process used in Australian schools to gather data on students with disabilities. The purpose of the NCCD is to collect information about the educational adjustments schools make to support students with disabilities, ensuring that these students receive the help they need to succeed.

The NCCD provides a way to identify and track the number of students receiving different levels of adjustments in the education system. This data is then used to improve resource allocation and provide better support for these students.

Key Points about NCCD:
•    Purpose: The NCCD aims to provide a consistent approach to identifying and supporting students with disabilities in schools across Australia.
•    Data Collected: The data includes information on the level of adjustments a student receives—whether it's within the curriculum, teaching strategies, or the learning environment.
•    Focus: The initiative focuses on supporting students with disabilities but does not focus solely on specific types of disabilities. It includes students with physical, intellectual, sensory, and learning disabilities.
•    Impact: The data gathered helps improve funding and policy decisions to support students with disabilities and ensures better educational outcomes for them.

This year the school team for NCCD is:
•    Principal- Sharyn Bell
•    APPL- Krystal Land
•    Teacher Rep- Mel Menzies
•    School Officer Rep- Julie Muir
•    Admin Rep (evidence collation)- Kathy Lowcock

We are currently in the Planning and Implementation Phase of NCCD for the remainder of this term and our team goals are to:
•    Build an understanding of the school’s legal obligations and the NCCD. 
•    Engage in required professional learning about the Disability Discrimination Act, Disability Standards for Education and imputing a disability.
•    Review and streamline school processes for collecting NCCD evidence.
•    Prepare for cross-school moderation.

Kind regards,

Krystal Land

Assistant Principal Pedagogy and Learning.  

Getting to know our School Captain - Charlotte Wood ✨

I am Charlotte Wood. I am in Grade 6 and I am 11 years old. I am a School Captain and I love ballet. I am also a MASSIVE Swiftie and my favourite song is You Belong With Me. 

I am really looking forward to Year 6 Camp. We are going to Paluma (North of Townsville). I’ve never been there before, so I’m really excited! 

One thing I like about St Mary’s is their donations towards charity. I feel they are very generous with what they give to those who are less fortunate than us.

One of my goals for the future is to create a safe space for kids in our school who may feel upset or lonely. I want them to feel safe in our school.

Getting to know our School Captain - Grace Jones ✨

Hello my name is Grace Jones. I'm a school Captain for Saint Mary's, I am good at training my puppy Jack Russell. She can sit, speak, lay down, dance, stand and shake both hands, and I love to cook!

My Favourite food is spaghetti, my  favourite movie is “Doctor Dolittle” and my favourite song is “Trust fall” by p!nk. I would love to go back to where I was born as I do not remember Darwin.

I love going to Saint Mary's because everyone is nice  and my goal for when I'm older is to open my  own bakery. 

Getting to know our School Captain - Emerson Graf✨

Hi, I'm Emerson! I'm a school captain and enjoy sports, especially running. I'm also passionate about computer games, dogs, and keeping up with the news—along with many other interests.

When it comes to food, I love pizza, cake, chocolate, and ice cream. I'd love to visit Germany, Turkey, or America one day. While I don't have a favorite song, some of my favorite movies include Godzilla, all the Sonic movies, and the Loki series.

What I love about St. Mary's is that it's a great school where everyone gets a chance to participate and try new things. In the future, my goal is to secure a good job and build a successful career.

Getting to know our School Captain - William Dau✨

My name is William. I am a school captain. I'm good at basically anything.

I like to eat,play rugby and go fishing. Some of my favorite rappers are Eazy-e, Snoop Dogg, Notorious B.I.G, Ice Cube,2Pac, Chris Brown and Tyla. I would like to go to Europe.

I like St Mary’s because the tuckshop is great and my goal is to sign a contract with the cowboys.

First Parade for 2025

P and F Meeting

Thank you to our AMAZING P & F

Thank you to our wonderful P and F committee who made our school so welcoming for both parents and students this first week back. Our school is very blessed to have such a positive and caring community. If you are interested in attending or joining the P and F this year, their first meeting will be next Wednesday at 5pm, St Mary's staff room. Thank you St Mary's P and F! 

Mary's Munchkins Playgroup - Tuesday, 4 February

Mary's Munchkins Playgroup will commence this coming Tuesday, 4 February. We look forward to welcoming all of our regulars and any new attendees for our first session.

Stop, Drop, Go Zone

Uniforms

Uniforms are available for purchase from the school office.

Formal Uniform - Monday, Wednesday, Friday.

Sports Uniform - Tuesday, Thursday.

The Murri Bus Project

Community News

 Join the Bowen Lions Club! 

The Bowen Lions Club is looking for new members to join their incredible team and make a difference in our community.

 Where: Castle Motor Lodge

 When: 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month

 Time: 6:30 PM

If you're interested in joining or learning more, please contact Andrew Beatson, President, at 0411 481 738.
Be part of something meaningful and help create positive change!

Mary Mackillop OSHC

OSHC at St Mary’s Catholic School is now operating Monday to Friday from  2.45 pm to 6.00 pm.

The government has announced changes in the way that Child Care Subsidy is worked out. The income limit for CCS will be increasing to $530,000, meaning that the cost of OSHC will reduce for the majority of families. The changes came into effect on 10 July.

Food (afternoon tea) is provided at no extra cost. Please see below for more information about the upcoming reduction in fees.

If you would like more information or to register, please contact Theresa on 0428 216 062 OR at bowenoshc@mmcnq.catholic.edu.au

School Dental Service

Tuckshop Menu