Dear Parents and Carers,

We are fast approaching the midway point of term 3.  After a very cold and wet winter we will slowly head into some warmer days.

I like to call spring 'the season of the jumper'.  With cool and fresh mornings our spring days can become quite warm and inevitably the jumper that your child left home wearing is taken off during play. Our staff do a great job of helping our students to keep track of jumpers, however at times jumpers can be left behind.  At this point if your child has a name on the jumper the return process becomes a whole lot easier.  Now would be a great time to check your child’s jumper (and hat) and reprint any names that have become faded.

In line with our uniform policy the school tie is to be worn until September 1 and I encourage everyone to 'finish strong' and wear the tie proudly until spring begins.  Our school photo day has been moved back a week to Thursday 26 August and this photo will be in full winter uniform. Another good reason to finish strong with our ties.

It has come to my attention that we have a few students whose attendance is low and I thought it might be a good time to remind all parents of attendance requirements under NSW law.  The following table is used to classify student’s attendance:

A Student Attendance Plan can be activated if chronic absenteeism levels are reached.  Please note that students who attend representative sport and off site excursion are considered present at school for these days.  The full school attendance policy can be found here:

If you have any questions regarding this policy please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Thank you to all our parents for upholding the COVID-19 restrictions we are operating under.  It has been another challenging period with the pandemic and your cooperation is much appreciated.  Unfortunately the restrictions have claimed another event for the year.  The Trent Barret Shield that is held for our Year 3/4 students is going ahead in Temora, however we are not permitted to attend regional events outside our local government area.  While this is frustrating, we are still thankful that our school is open for face to face teaching, unlike many other schools in NSW.

At the moment there is no need to go to remote learning in our area, however there will be very little warning if a case arrives in our local area and we are directed to close for face to face teaching.  Our teachers have begun preparing for remote learning by ensuring students are logged into appropriate applications and developing online protocols with their students. We pray that we will not be forced into remote learning, however we would not be doing due diligence if we didn’t start preparing for worst case scenario.

Take Care,

Phil Nielsen

Jesus says to us, trust in God, work to bring about the kingdom in our lives and in our world and only then leave the rest to God.

This gospel passage was aptly chosen by the Church to mark the feast of St Mary of the Cross – Mary MacKillop.  The teaching of Jesus, conveyed through the gospel passage, characterised much of the life and work of Mary MacKillop.

We pray that our lives like Mary Mackillop,  will reflect the teachings of Jesus.

Term 3, 2021 Class and Whole School Mass Timetable

   

St Mary’s Parish Sacramental Program, 2021

The Sacrament of First Holy Communion for Year 3/4 students will be held this year and the following are important dates for your diary:

Happy Birthday to

Caitlin Parker, Hamish Braunberger, Harper McDonell and Bobby Bryant

who celebrate their birthdays this week.

We hope you enjoy your special day.

   

St Mary's War Memorial School

School Photography Date: 26 August 2021

ONLINE ORDER CODE: 6G9 B9C 7GD

Online Order link: https://www.advancedimage.com.au/keycode/keycodefinder.aspx?keycode=6G9B9C7GD

School photography day is coming up very soon. Group and portrait photographs can be purchased by following the link above.

Important Information:

• School photos purchased online DO NOT require envelopes returned to school.
• Don’t forget to order your sibling photos now - when you order your single photos.
• Late fees/additional charges will be applied for purchases after photo day
• Photos will be returned to your school for distribution approximately six weeks after photos are taken
• Past years’ photographs are available at school’s advancedlife & your advancedyou photo sites (follow the link above)

*Sibling photographs must be ordered either online, prior to the day of photography.  A photograph will not be taken without an order. Sibling photographs only apply to children enrolled at the school.

advancedlife would like to express our appreciation to St Mary's War Memorial School for placing your trust in us. Please remember we offer a 100% money back guarantee on our products to ensure your peace of mind. We would also love to receive your feedback or resolve any issues you may experience as fast as possible, to ensure your satisfaction. If you have any questions, comments or feedback relating to your advancedlife experience please contact us at  enquiries@advancedlife.com.au.

Please start using the Parent Portal as soon as you have Compass access to complete absence notes.  The absence note in SZApp will be removed at the end of term.  In the future the Compass Parent Portal will allow you to receive messages from the school, give consent and pay for excursions, pay school fees and book parent/teacher interviews.  Until advised the SZApp will continue to be used for all of the above items.

QKR! will remain the primary APP for the P&F for canteen and to collect P&F Fundraising payments.

This year the CBCA Book Week 2021 theme is, 'Old Worlds, New Worlds, Other Worlds'.  Unfortunately the Bland Shire Library are unable to host the author sessions that our students normally attend.

In lieu of the student visits to the Bland Shire Library for Book Week the library are running a bingo challenge competition that all students can enter. 

There are prizes on offer and we encourage you to support this book week activity.

Entries close Friday 27th of August and should be taken to the Bland Shire Library.

A link to the bingo sheet is below, please print one for each of your children and get started.

Please contact Mrs Daniher if you have any questions.

We are welcoming new enrolments for the 2022 school year.  We appreciate that this is a significant decision for parents and know that new families will need time to consider all available options.

Please enrol online at our website with the link below or call at the school office for a paper form.  https://smwms.nsw.edu.au/enrolment

If you require further information please ring and make an appointment.

St Mary's are currently finalising bookings for the biannual Year 5/6 overnight excursion to Canberra.

The dates proposed are Term 4, Week 1 Wednesday 6th October to Friday 8th October, 2021.

Costing has not been finalised but we were looking between $250 - $350 maximum. At the moment restrictions don't allow school excursions but we are hoping that by Term 4 this may be lifted and the students can still attend the excursion.  A final decision will be made in Week 10.

Payment for the excursion will be accepted when a decision has been made.  Please start planning to make full payment in the last week of Term 3 to avoid financial stress.  As always please contact the Principal if you need to discuss the payment.

Assembly

Our award winners on Friday last week.

The following events are in the calendar in the next week.

To see the school's full calender check out the SZApp or our website.