Week 4, Term 4 2024 - 22nd October 2024
Principal's Reflection
The Power of Influence and Association
Well-known American entrepreneur and author, Jim Rohn famously said, "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with." This simple yet profound statement underscores how deeply our relationships shape our personalities.
The people we associate with have a significant impact on our thoughts, words, and actions. Their attitudes, habits, and beliefs shape our own, for better or worse. This is the power of influence and association. When we surround ourselves with positive, motivated and uplifting individuals, we’re more likely to adopt those traits ourselves. Their energy propels us forward, encouraging personal growth and helping us become the best version of ourselves. Conversely, negative or unmotivated influences can weigh us down, stifling our potential.
A central theme of Jesus’ ministry was about the profound nature of influence. He called His followers to be "the light of the world" and "the salt of the earth" (Matthew 5:13-16), highlighting the responsibility we have to positively influence those around us. Jesus understood that our actions and words can either draw people closer to goodness or push them away. His life serves as the ultimate example of using influence for the betterment of others—always lifting people up, offering hope and guiding them toward truth and love.
It’s vital to consciously choose the company we keep, knowing that their influence will rub off on us. In fact, it’s not just about who we allow to influence us—we too play a critical role in influencing those around us. Our actions, words and attitudes can have a lasting effect on others, whether we realise it or not. This is why the challenge to be the best version of ourselves is so important. We must strive to be a source of positivity, growth and inspiration for others.
Peter Mitchell, creator of MJR, often says, "Attitudes are infectious. Is yours worth catching?" Take a moment to reflect on the energy you bring into your relationships. Are you building others up? Are they building you up? Remember, both giving and receiving positive influence is key to fostering a life of fulfillment and growth.
All the very best,
Wes Rose
Principal
From our Principal | Mr Wes Rose
Staff News
- We keep Mrs Lynne Camargo (Librarian) in our prayers, as she travels to the UK to visit her older sister who is very unwell. Lynne expects to be away until the end of October, and we pray for God’s blessing upon her sister.
- Mrs Battaia (Assistant Principal: Curriculum) will attend the regional Curriculum meeting this Thursday.
- This Friday, Mrs van Lint (Assistant Principal: Religious Education) will attend a ZOOM session for all APRE’s.
- Welcome back to Mrs Wood, who returned from Long Service Leave today. During her absence, Mrs Ford did a great job with our Performing Arts classes.
World Teacher’s Day
This Friday is World Teacher’s Day. This is a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the incredible work teachers do every day. On behalf of the school community, I thank all the teachers working at St Mary’s for their dedication and commitment to their students. By celebrating this day and showing our appreciation, we can help create a supportive and encouraging environment that allows teachers to thrive and continue making a positive impact on our children's lives.
Boys Hairstyles
We have noticed a number of boy’s hairstyles that need attention. As per the uniform guidelines, we ask boys hair styles to be neat in appearance and not falling into eyes or past the collar. No tracks, rat’s tails, mo-hawks, top knots, mullets or undercuts. Thank you
St Mary’s Reconciliation Workshops
We host the final Reconciliation workshop this Thursday from 3:15pm-4:15pm in the school Hall, in preparation for the Rite of Reconciliation next Tuesday 29th Oct from 6pm at St Mary’s Church. A reminder for families to ensure their child’s paperwork is all completed by 24/10, with both parents signatures, $50 fee and a copy of the child’s baptism certificate handed to the sacramental team.
Qld State Election – St Mary’s Hall
The QLD State Election is being held this Saturday 27th October. The St Mary’s Hall is being used as a polling station and will be open from 8am-6pm. Catholic School Parents Qld, the peak representative body for our P&F association, has a factsheet about the 2024 State Election here.
Quote of the Week
“Just as love is a verb, so is faith.”
- Nannie Helen Burroughs
2025 Confirmation of Enrolment Form and Sibling Discount
Dear Parents and Carers
The 2025 Confirmation of Enrolment and Sibling Discount Form was emailed to all families last Friday. A copy is also available by clicking the link below. We ask that you complete this form by the 1st November 2024. Only one form per family is required.
Confirmation of Enrolment and Sibling Discount Form
This form will confirm your child’s enrolment in St Mary’s for 2025 and also help us to determine whether you are eligible for a family discount on your fees, dependent upon the number of children you have attending Diocesan Schools.
Section 3
When completing section 3, please ensure that you complete the name, school and year of all children attending Diocesan Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools in 2025. Please list each student on a new line, e.g:
Michael Smith, St Patricks College, Year 11
James Smith, St Patricks College, Year 9
Sarah Smith, St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Year 6
2025 School Fees Schedule
To view the schedule of fees for 2025, please click on the link below. We are asking families that choose not pay their term invoice in full, to enter into a payment arrangement. The schedule of fees will help you determine, based on your individual family circumstances, repayment amounts either weekly, fortnightly or monthly.
You will be able to set up a payment plan using direct debit with your financial institution or by using Bpay (all details will be included in the first fees statement of 2025, which will be issued by the 31st January 2025).
Payment plans have been calculated over a 40 week period. If you would like to start your payment plan earlier to spread out your payments over a longer period, please contact me via phone on 4951 1743 or email smm_finance@rok.catholic.edu.au with your request.
Should you have any queries in relation to this form or would like clarification on a payment plan amount for 2025, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Kathy Parrish
Finance Officer
Booklists 2025
**REMINDER: 2025 BOOKLISTS ARE DUE TOMORROW
IF DELIVERY TO SCHOOL REQUIRED **
Orders can be placed online here or by emailing your order to admin@mackayschoolsupplies.com.au Orders are due by Tuesday 22nd October and must be paid for prior to delivery.
PLEASE NOTE: Orders can still be placed after 22nd October, however these packs will need to be collected directly from Mackay School Supplies located in the Mackay Showgrounds.
Book pack collection times are: Friday 29th November 2:30-3:30pm and Monday 2nd December from 8am-8:45am in the School Hall.
If you have any queries, please contact Michelle at Mackay School Supplies on 0432 515 407 or ask at the school office.
Each year level booklist can be viewed by clicking the appropriate link below.
Socktober
Socktober raises awareness and funds for mission programs, supporting vulnerable children around the world. Through our Socktober activities, we are using our heads, hearts and hands to offer support for those in need.
Tomorrow, Wednesday, 23rd October, we will have a fundraiser dedicated to supporting Catholic Missions. Students will be able to showcase their vibrant, crazy socks throughout the day for a $2 donation. The highlight of the day will be a soccer shoot out, where Socktober balls made by each class from recycled materials, are launched into the goals, guarded by our amazing teaching staff. This is sure to be a fun event, demonstrating the importance of sustainability and teamwork.
Socktober serves as an excellent opportunity to unite our community and make a positive impact on global issues. We are looking forward to seeing everyone in their crazy socks. Together, we are making a difference!
Belinda van Lint
Assistant Principal: Religious Education (Acting)
Youth Mass & Children's Liturgy
PLEASE JOIN US!
St Mary's School will join with St Patrick's College to celebrate our Youth Mass on Saturday 26 October, St Mary's Church at 5pm. Children's Liturgy will be also be held.
Mass will be followed by a pizza outside the church. Everyone is most welcome to attend.
We look forward to seeing you there.
Belinda van Lint
Assistant Principal: Religious Education (Acting)
St Mary's Christmas Fair
Parent Helpers Needed
As the festive season approaches, the St Mary’s Christmas Fair is scheduled for Saturday, 16th November 2024 starting at 5pm. We're looking for volunteers and a fair coordinators for each year level. I know many of you have already contributed your time this year, and if you're able to help out a little more, it would be greatly appreciated. The stall allocations are as follows:
- Prep – Fairy Floss, Popcorn, Snow Cones & Cold Drinks
- Year 1 – BBQ (Money Handling & Food Preparation)
- Year 2 – Cent Sale
- Year 3 – Hot Chips
- Year 4 – Bar
- Year 5 – Sweet Stall
- Year 6 – BBQ (Food Preparation & BBQ Cooks)
Once coordinators are confirmed for each year level, a volunteer roster will be shared to organise shifts. This information will be communicated through your class teacher via email, the coordinator or your year level’s Facebook page. If you’re interested in volunteering as a Fair Coordinator or have any questions, please feel free to contact me on 0438 138 392 or via email tanya_davies@hotmail.com
Donations Needed
We are currently seeking donations for our Christmas Fair Raffle/Cent Sale and would greatly appreciate your assistance. Donations can be in the form of goods, cash, or gift vouchers for your business products or services.
As a token of appreciation, all supporters will be listed in our school newsletter, acknowledging your sponsorship and encouraging our school community to support your business.
If you would like to donate, can you please kindly respond by Friday, 1st November 2024.
We sincerely thank you for your generosity and hope that you will consider contributing to our Christmas Fair.
Tanya Davies
Fair Coordinator
Mobile: 0438 138 392
Day for Daniel
All students are encouraged to wear an item of red this Friday 25th October. Day for Daniel honours the memory of Daniel Morcombe and encourages awareness of personal safety. Students will learn some important safety messages during the day on Friday.
Swimming Carnival
Student of the Week
Week 3, Term 4 Student Award Winners
| Prep P | Peachie | For super work in our literacy sessions. Peachie, you always have such great ideas during writing time. It's great to see you spelling tricky words and using punctuation in your writing. Keep up the wonderful work Peachie! |
| Prep P | Tabitha | For great work during our maths lessons this week. You are working hard with counting on and addition number sentences. Keep up the super work Tabitha! |
| Prep R | Quinn | For wonderful work in our maths lessons this week. You are working hard with your number sentences when adding and counting. Thank you Quinn and keep up the super work! |
| Prep R | Merci | For working very hard during our literacy sessions. You are have been working hard to improve your reading and writing and we are proud of the progress you are making. Keep up the great effort. |
| 1B | Vance | For working independently on your sentences. Your ideas are great and you always give 100%. Well done! |
| 1B | George | For trying so hard in maths this week when finding missing numbers in equations. Well done! |
| 1S | Vinudi | For working hard to solve your missing addends this week. You took your time and checked your work when finished. Well done! |
| 1S | Tyler | For your thoughtful contributions to our conversations on weather this week. Keep up the great effort Tyler! |
| 2A | Delancee | For the improvements you have made by participating in class discussions this term. I can see your confidence growing. Keep it going, Delancee! |
| 2A | Hudson | For the kind and caring classroom helper you are. The way you enter the classroom in the morning with a beautiful smile is infectious! You make my day, Hudson. |
| 2L | Lincoln | Lincoln, your teacher loves the enthusiasm you have shown since the beginning of term, to tackle challenges and do your very best!! What a star you are!! |
| 2L | Emily | Emily, it has been a pleasure to see your resilience and confidence grow this term. Keep being courageous! You shine!! You’ve got this!! |
| 3C | Isla | For your enthusiasm for learning in class each day is truly inspiring. It's fantastic to see your confidence growing throughout the year. Keep up the fantastic work! |
| 3C | Limo | For displaying diligence and dedication when completing your work. Your commitment to excellence sets a high standard for everyone around you. Keep reaching for the stars, Limo! |
| 3P | Clanci | Thank you, Clanci, for consistently bringing a positive attitude to class every day. It’s been a joy to see your infectious smile each morning, eager and prepared to learn! |
| 3P | Edie | For her amazing work in our poetry writing lessons! Edie’s creativity really stands out, and she has a talent for turning simple ideas into beautiful poems. Thank you for bringing great energy to every lesson, inspiring your classmates. Keep up the great work, Edie—we can’t wait to see what you write next! |
| 4C | Elyse | For the resilience you show in working through challenges. It’s great to see you bounce back after a set back and ask for assistance when needed. |
| 4C | Mischa | For your determination and commitment in solving Maths problems. It is great to see you apply maximum effort to your learning. |
| 4R | Finn | For the knowledge and understanding you demonstrated in Maths. You mastered all the multiplication strategies we worked with this week and calculated answers with accuracy. Keep up the great work Finn! |
| 4R | Jasleen | For your attention-grabbing, introduction paragraph in writing this week, you had your classmates captivated. Great work Jasleen! |
| 5C | Paulina | For your hard work in mathematics this week. Keep up the great effort! |
| 5C | Maisy | For your consistent dedication to you school work. Maisy you works so hard in all that you do and are a great role model for your peers. Keep up the great work. |
| 5M | Violet | For your beautifully descriptive writing about Christmas shopping. You really brought it to life and made it sparkle. |
| 5M | Elly | For excellent results in your PAT testing. You are so diligent and hard-working Elly. You set a wonderful example to others. |
| 6T | William | For your responsible and mature approach during group work activities this week. You took the initiative to ensure that all group members understood the tasks and worked collaboratively to solve problems. Well done William! |
| 6T | Nevicella | For the persistence you showed in mathematics. You have been working hard and challenging yourself to interpret and solve multi-step word problems. Well done Nevi! |
| 6V | Charlie | For displaying persistence when solving harder maths problems. Your willingness to accept assistance and keep trying is to be commended Charlie. |
| 6V | Brinda | For working diligently to research Australians who have contributed to social justice initiatives. You used your time effectively and collaborated with your peers. Great effort Brinda! |
| Sport | Class Prep P | Well done Prep P. You certainly enjoyed our PE lesson this week and showed how you use kindness towards others. It was fantastic to see so many of you smiling and laughing during the games. You all tried your best and celebrated the success of others in your class. Keep it up. |
| Drama | Imogen | For demonstrating clear communication and leadership skills when participating in Drama activities this week. Your skills showed great maturity, keep it up! |
| Drama | Ellie | For demonstrating clear communication and leadership skills when participating in Drama activities this week. Your skills showed great maturity, keep it up! |
| Drama | Airlie | For your fabulous understanding of a 'tabeleaux' in Drama. You followed instructions so well and had amazing expression! |
| Drama | Class Prep R | Well done for completing 1 hour Drama lessons. You have shown how resilient, patient and hard working you all are. You know how to have fun, be safe and listen to the teacher. Keep it up Prep R! |
