St Mary's Catholic School - Bowen eNewsletter

Principal's News

Dear Parents and Caregivers

What a wonderful Fancy Dress Ball gathering as a school community we had last night! It was a fitting end to a very busy term, with its success due in no small part to the commitment of Mrs Bev Lowcock with her dance tuition and mercurial efforts, along with our hard-working P and F committee and their dedicated helpers. I had the nachos for my dinner along with a sticky date pudding for dessert and had no complaints whatsoever - delicious! My Oompa Loompa costume had a malfunction when I was trying to get into it so I decided it was probably in the best interests of all that I decided not to come in a fancy dress! It was great to see the array of creative costumes worn by students and parents. Thank you to the army of helpers who helped prepare for the evening, including setting up and pulling down after the music stopped.

Our Pre-Prep Transition Program commences next term on Friday 10th October (Week 1), running each Friday and will conclude on Friday 21st November (Week 7). If your child is formally enrolled in our Prep class for 2026, you would have received a letter last month with some key information regarding our transition program. Ms Emily Leighton and Ms Lindy Anderson will be running our Pre-Prep program this year and are both excited to be working with you and your child to have them ready for Prep next year. There is no cost to families for this program.

Earlier this week, we had the Requiem Mass for Mr Matthew Cullen, our long-serving crossing supervisor, and I was reminded yet again, of how St Mary’s has a rich tradition of individuals and families with an extended history with the school. His service to St Mary’s over many years and his daily interactions with students, staff and families will be greatly missed. Thank you to our school staff who have been assisting with the crossing supervision and it is expected that the main roads department will have one of their staff members available next term.

Next term is only 9 weeks, with many annual events to fit in before the last day of school on Friday the 5th December. Our first day back will be Wednesday 8th October, with Monday being a public holiday and Tuesday a Pupil Free day. I will commence working with the Year 5 students next term in relation to the selection process for our House Captains and School Captains, with more information on this process next term. We will have swimming lessons commencing on Friday 10th October (Mrs Romano and Mrs Lowcock) as part of our HPE program and will run each Friday up until 21st Nov, with our swimming carnival the following Friday. Our end of year awards, Graduation Liturgy and Dinner, Christmas Carols and Graduation Mass will all happen in the last week of school, but thankfully not all on the same day! We will send out detailed information on all events next term so that families know well in advance.

There will be no parade in our first week back. Our first school parade for Term 4 will be in Week 2 on Monday 13th October and will be in the afternoons next term at 2:15pm. All schools are being asked to do an audit on prime learning time (mornings) interruptions and also any interruptions to face to face learning. Many schools have already moved parade times to the afternoon to regain valuable prime time learning sessions and we will trial the same next term.

Thank you to all of St Mary’s Community members for your commitment and efforts this term and I look forward to working with everyone again next term. I pray that all families might find some quality time to spend together this break and can come back refreshed and ready to finish the year well.

Yours sincerely

Rodney Lane

Acting Principal

Learning and Teaching

Dear Parents and Carers,

As part of our Reflective Practice Day on the 5th of September, teachers looked at the changes to time allocations for learning areas in 2026 and beyond. Moving forward, across Prep-Year 6 an emphasis on English and Mathematics is to be prioritised and the most time dedicated towards these learning areas. The learning area of Languages will be an optional subject and up to a school’s discretion as to whether they offer it. Technologies will become optional in Prep only, along with the allocation of time spent on The Arts decreasing across Prep-Year 6. The Arts will still be offered, however, anything over the recommended time will become part of a school’s use of discretionary hours. The allocation of discretionary time per year level is the time left over in a school day that is not spent on curriculum related tasks once the time allocations for each learning area has been met.

On the Pupil Free Day planned for 7th October, all teachers will be working with the Leadership Team to conduct an audit of school events and interruptions that have impacted learning in the 2025 school year. From this, we will be making a number of changes moving forward to the events and interruptions which occur in a school day/week in order to ensure that we are being compliant with the regulations around the hours that curriculum areas need to be offered, along with, ensure we are giving all of our learners the best opportunity to learn which is our core agenda as a school.

Next term we will be starting swimming lessons which will occur every Friday during weeks 1-7. Please keep an eye out as correspondence has been shared via Compass with further details about swimming. The swimming carnival will be held on Friday 28th November at the town pool. If anyone can lend a helping hand and volunteer their time at this event, please email bwn@tsv.catholic.edu.au

I hope everyone has a safe, relaxing and blessed holiday. Looking forward to seeing you all for another term of learning at St Mary's in Term 4!

Kind regards,

Krystal Land

Assistant Principal Pedagogy and Learning

Music & Art News

In the Arts this fortnight, students in Years 5 and 6 have been combining their learning in both Visual Arts and Music to create incredible instrument-themed artworks. Using their knowledge of different musical instruments as their inspiration, students have explored a range of multimedia techniques to bring their ideas to life. The final pieces showcase our students’ artistic talents, and will be proudly displayed in our Music Room.

Class Awards - Week 7 - Show Respect

Congratulations to our Class Awards recipients: Indi, Jacob, Reef, Andrew, Ayesha & Ayla.

Class Awards - Week 8 - Mercy & Outreach

Congratulations to our Class Awards recipients: Maggie, William, Robert, Parker, Eli & Imogen.

Class Awards - Week 9 - Be My Best

Congratulations to our Class Awards recipients: Jack, Malia, Maddison, Ida-Olive, Keyahna & Evan.

Birthdays

Happy Birthday: Daniel, Matilda & Maggie!

Happy Birthday: Emma, Quintin, Elodie, Indy, Colten, Reggie, William & Joel.

Praise Note Winner

Congratulations to our Praise Note Winner: Lazariah.

Congratulations to our Praise Note Winner: Wilhelmina.

Star Reader

Congratulations to our Star Reader: Matilda.

Congratulations to our Star Reader: Colten.

Principal Awards

Congratulations to all of our Principal Award recipients!

Position Available

School Crossing Supervisor position available at St Mary's Catholic School.

Tournament of the Minds Finals

A huge congratulations to all our students who competed in the Tournament of Minds State Finals in Brisbane. They represented our school with pride and performed exceptionally well. The dedication shown by these students—spending countless lunch breaks preparing throughout the term—was truly inspiring, and their hard work has paid off.

We are especially proud of our Social Sciences Team, who were crowned winners of the Primary Division at the State Finals! This is an incredible achievement, and we can’t wait to cheer them on at the upcoming International Competition.

We would also like to sincerely thank the many businesses, families, and supporters who generously contributed towards making the Brisbane trip possible:

Liberty Oil
BM Diesel
Pilcher Industries
Pilcher Concrete
Vernon Jurgens Family
Gilmour Space
F Sellars & Co
RTB
Dobe Farming
Lowcock Builders
Aurizon
St Mary’s P & F
Shandell Buckley
TOM Committee

Your generosity gave our students the opportunity to take part in this incredible experience, and we are so grateful for your support.

Congratulations to the Tournamnt of the Minds Fundraiser Winners: Harry & Colten!

National Child Protection Week 7-13 September

Change begins with us. Like dominoes in motion, even the smallest step can spark a powerful ripple. National Child Protection Week reminds us that safeguarding children isn’t just a responsibility—it’s a daily commitment. Through our words, our actions, and our compassion, we shape the world they grow up in.This year’s theme, “Shifting Conversation to Action,” urges us to move beyond talk and into meaningful impact. Let’s keep pushing forward—together we can create safer, more nurturing communities for every child.

Our Year 3 students have been diving deep into the world of plants, soil, rocks and minerals through hands-on learning in class and during a visit to Bowen Tafe! At Tafe students had fun investigating different soil types, getting their hands dirty to feel for clay content and the wiggly worms. They also explored plant life cycles and discovered how in a controlled environment a pink light also known as the plant disco at night helps plants continue growing.The students had so much to say about their favourite parts of the experience:Mila: “We looked at a lot of types of soils and my favourite part was the VR!”Indy: “My favourite thing was everything!”Locklan: “The VR.”Rayan: “The plant disco and the VR.”Jaicee: “I liked it when we got to see the dirt because there were many different types to see.”Indigo: “I loved tasting the passionfruit and enjoyed trying the nice plants.”The VR headsets were a clear hit with the students, who were very excited to explore modern farming techniques and see how technology is shaping agriculture today.Outside, students had the chance to interact with real plants and were kindly given a huge passionfruit to try when back at school—they were all so excited to share and taste it together!All the fresh fruit and veggies grown go straight to Marina Gardens, supporting our local community and the students enjoyed trying the editable garden.It’s been a fantastic blend of science, sustainability, and sensory learning—well done, Year 3 and thank you to the wonderful staff at Bowen tafe.

Last week, our school came alive with the joy of Buddy Reading! Students across year levels paired up to share stories, laughter, and the magic of books. It was a beautiful reminder that reading not only builds knowledge—it builds connection. Thank you to our incredible teachers and students for making literacy a lived experience. Let’s keep turning pages and opening minds, one story at a time!

A huge thank you to Sergeant Michelle from the Queensland Police Force for visiting our students and leading such an important conversation about child safety. The session was full of valuable insights - our students learned how to recognize when something doesn’t feel right and brainstormed a list of trusted adults they can turn to for help. It was empowering, educational, and a great reminder that safety starts with awareness and support. We’re so grateful for community partnerships like this that help build confidence and resilience in our young learners.

A huge thank you to the incredible team from the Bowen Fire Station for visiting our Prep and Grade 1 students! The kids were absolutely captivated watching Mr. Lee suit up in his fire safety gear, and they learned so much about what to do in an emergency. These real-life heroes made fire safety fun, memorable, and empowering. We’re so grateful for their time and dedication to keeping our community safe! They even left us with a very important homework task—students need to learn and memorise their home address in case they ever need to call 000. We’re already looking forward to their next visit to see if we’ve nailed the challenge... and maybe even get a turn with the fire hoses!

We are deeply grateful to Gilmour Space for their remarkable generosity in temporarily loaning St Mary's their Space Simulator. We're thrilled to soon share this incredible opportunity with our students and watch them rise to the challenge.

Happy Holidays!

Swimming Lessons Term 4

Friendly Reminder

Stop, Drop, Go Zone

Uniforms

Uniforms are available for purchase from the school office. Reminder that uniform days have now changed, please see below:

Formal Uniform - Monday, Tuesday, Thursday

Sports Uniform - Wednesday and Friday

Specialty, commemorative and representative shirts - Friday

Community News

scan_kaitken_2025_08_08_11_31_47.pdf

Bowen_Childrens_Program.pdf

Kids_ex_phys_booking_form.docx

Afternoon_Achievers_Term_3_2025.pdf

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 Sue on 0428 216 062 OR at bowenoshc@mmcnq.catholic.edu.au

School Dental Service

Bowen_School_dental_service_flyer.pdf

Tuckshop

Flexischools

16 Oct	Catholic Identity Advisory Team Meeting 3:15 PM - 4:15 PM Recurring event

16 Oct	Catholic Identity Advisory Team Meeting 3:15 PM - 4:15 PM Recurring event

16 Oct	Catholic Identity Advisory Team Meeting 3:15 PM - 4:15 PM Recurring event

Week 9/10 - Term 3