Week 5, Term 1 2025

Book fair alert!

Book fair will be available next week at the St Mary's library. Students will bring home a wish list or you can access before and after school. See you there!

First Australian's Meet and Greet Breakfast

Thank you to all of our staff and families who took the time to attend our First Australian's breakfast today. It was such a relaxed and warm atmosphere, and we loved spending time together as a community and enjoying an amazing brekkie to start the day! Thank you to Uncle Jim who came as a proud Juru elder, and especially to all the beautiful students who make our school such a special place to be! 

Photos:

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Religious Life of the School

What is Lent?

Lent is a season of preparation leading up to Easter, inviting us to reflect on our relationship with God, make sacrifices, and focus on prayer, fasting, and charitable works. It mirrors Jesus’ 40 days in the desert, reminding us to grow in faith and compassion.

For Catholics, Lent holds special significance as a time of personal and spiritual renewal. Through acts of kindness, self-discipline, and generosity, we deepen our connection with Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection.

As we journey into the season of Lent, we invite our school community to come together for two events that mark the beginning of this special time of year.

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Breakfast – Tuesday 4th March at 8:00 AM
Lent begins with Shrove Tuesday, a day traditionally associated with using up rich ingredients before the fasting season starts. Join us on Tuesday morning at 8:00 AM in the big shed for a delicious pancake breakfast! It’s a wonderful way to gather as a community before we enter this season of reflection and preparation.

Ash Wednesday Liturgy – Wednesday 5th at 8:40 AM
The next morning, we will begin Lent with our Ash Wednesday liturgy at 8:40 AM. Ash Wednesday is a significant day in the Christian calendar, marking the start of 40 days of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. During the liturgy, those who wish will receive ashes on their foreheads as a sign of repentance and a reminder to turn our hearts toward God. All families are warmly invited to attend.

Big Water Walk – Walking in Solidarity

Following the Ash Wednesday liturgy, students who have returned their Big Water Walk sponsorship forms will have the opportunity to complete laps of the oval, raising funds for Project Compassion. This initiative supports vulnerable communities by providing access to fresh water—an essential resource many go without. It’s a meaningful way for students to put their faith into action by helping those in need.

We encourage everyone to take part in these events, as we begin Lent with a spirit of faith, generosity, and community.

Wishing you all a blessed Lent.

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

Learning and Teaching

Our teachers are very lucky and well supported by the Townsville Catholic Education Office in regards to building staff capacity to ensure that adjustments are put in place to meet the needs of each individual learner.

This week we had our Advisory Visiting Specialist for Hearing Impairment, Karyn Parnell spend time in our Prep-Year 2 classrooms modelling to teachers and students the importance of doing a “blow, breath, cough” exercise. It is recommended for this exercise to be done regularly so that our ears, nose and throat are in a prime condition ready to learn.

Rebecca Rowan, English as an Additional Language/Dialect Specialist also visited to work with our teachers on band scaling students so that adjustments can be put into place to access the English Curriculum.

We would like to thank both ladies for visiting and sharing their expert skills with our staff and students.

You may have also seen a familiar face getting around our school on a Monday, it gives me great joy to share with you that our Advisory Visiting Specialist for Vision Impairment in 2025 is Mrs Catherine Antonio. Catherine has been working on upskilling our staff on the use of braille and visiting classrooms to support some of our students with using braille as well.

Next week Jodi Parker, our Advisory Visiting Specialist Inclusion will be visiting to work with teachers in updating IEPs prior to our IEP Meetings which will occur in Week 9. Please keep an eye out over the next few weeks as the booking system is opened and shared via Compass. It is vital that all students on an IEP have an IEP Meeting so that we can work together with parents to achieve the common goal of supporting each individual learner in our school.

Kind regards,

Krystal Land

Assistant Principal Pedagogy and Learning.  

Getting to know our Year 6 Mercy Leaders - Dwyatt Schultz ✨

My name is Dwyatt Schultz and I am a great artist and a Mercy leader. 

I like art a lot. My favourite song is Toxic. 

I like to go to Nanny and Poppy’s. The one thing I like at school is seeing my friends. 

I hope to support everyone at St Marys to feel valued.

Getting to know our Year 6 Mercy Leaders - Harry Sylvester ✨

My name is Harry and Im a Mercy leader.

My job is to help run Religious events. 

I'm good at science and planet facts. 

My interests is Dandys World on Roblox. My favourite song is “Darling”. 

I would like to go to Japan. I'm learning Japanese. 

The thing I like about St Marys is the teachers and my friends.

 I would like to be a math teacher when I'm older.

Getting to know our Year 6 Mercy Leaders - Elishia Petersen ✨

My name is Elishia and  I am a Mercy  Leader at St Mary's Catholic School . 

As a mercy leader it is my duty to help and support everybody in  my community to make them feel safe and cared for. 

I will do everything in my power to make this world a better place because that is the job of a merciful leader.

Getting to know our Year 6 Mercy Leaders - Connor Ward-Musicka✨

My name is Connor Ward-Musicka and I am a Mercy Leader of grade 6.

I am good at playing soccer and I’m interested in Taekwondo.

My favourite food is Chicken Minions. One place I would like to go is England.

A thing that I like about St Mary’s is that the school isn't that big of a school with not many Kids. My goal for the future is to go back to the Soccer games in Townsville this year in 2025.

Class Awards - Week 3 - Compassion and Care ⭐

Class Awards - Week 4 - Safe, Just and Fair ⭐

Birthdays🥳

Clean Up Australia Day 💛💚

My New Gallery

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School Renewal Parent Feedback - Have your say!

Thank you to those who have already jumped on and completed our Year of School Renewal Survey.

Your voice matters to us, please remember to share your feedback via the following google form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1jvgkmt2W3hl5CyuzYy8mHuz9JjZCvVS7ncUx8m8Be2E/edit?ts=67b6742a&fbclid=IwY2xjawIuG5BleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHS8XkTyKdp-hVL-010pNDgjm3zuBmzTV_Z8N_G3wNCdkZ0-bikc_YW31Cg_aem__0wwYlBqWxtw_U2u3JwkZg

If you encounter any difficulties with accessing the form, please contact the school office on 47 861 203.

Tuckshop Volunteers Wanted 🦸‍♀️🦸

Bowen and Whitsunday Sub District Dates

Hockey Clinics

Mary's Munchkins Playgroup

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