Every Week 

Tuesday Canteen

Tuesday Japanese with Janine - @ 1.45pm 

Thursday Canteen

Friday K-6 Sports Uniform

Friday Piano with Victoria

Week 10

Tuesday 2nd - Musica Viva Performance Incursion 9-10 K-3 10-11 4-6

Wednesday 3rd - Reports available on Compass at the end of the school day

Thursday 4th - Rewards Day

Thursday 4th - Last day of Term 2 for students

Friday 5th - Pupil Free Day - Staff Development Day

Monday 22nd - Pupil Free Day - Staff Development Day

Tuesday 23rd - 1st day of Term 3 for students

Tuesday 23rd - Literacy data collection period begins (3 x weeks)

Friday 26th - Olympic Games begin

Thank you for the generous donations that have come in so far - they are very much appreciated.

We are collecting….

Blankets and sleeping bags (in new and clean condition)

Small tents

Warm socks (new)

Tea and coffee bags

Hot chocolate

Chocolate

Hand cream and lip balm

Thanks so much for supporting Mini Vinnies in reaching out to those in need.

Carmel Dagger

Leader of Pastoral Care and Mission

Students enjoyed the four weeks of hockey training.  Ellie was impressed with the students - their respectful talk and their enthusiasm to try something new.  Some students have expressed an interest in having a go at hockey outside of school. Information regarding Monday afternoons will be sent home ready for Term 3.

Is My Child Being Bullied?

What are the signs?

Each individual student who has been bullied or is bullying others will respond and act differently. A student's behaviours and moods can also change for a variety of reasons. An important first step is to notice a change in behaviour.

Signs a parent may notice can include but are not limited to:

• not wanting to go to school
• changes to their method or route to school, or are frightened of walking to school
• changes in sleep patterns
• changes in eating patterns
• frequent tears, anger, mood swings
• unexplained bruises, cuts, scratches
• missing or damaged belongings or clothes
• arriving home hungry

(Source: Bullying NoWay!)

What could my actions be?

1. Listen and Validate: The first step is to stay calm and try to get all the facts through an open and supportive conversation with your child. Listen to their experiences without judgment and validate their feelings. Let them know that you believe and support them. While it may be a case of bullying, it might also be the result of poor communication by one or both children.
2. Reassure Your Child: Reassure your child that they deserve to be treated with respect and kindness. Remind them that you are there to help.
3. Problem Solve: Sometimes, as a first step, your child may just want some advice about how to manage the situation. Discuss the things your child has already done to try to solve the problem and suggest other things they might try.
4. Document: At other times it is important that action is taken immediately. Help your child create a simple timeline including when it started and important details such as location, what happened and the names of any bystanders. This documentation can be helpful when talking to the school and/ or police.
5. Talk to the school: If you suspect your child is experiencing bullying at school, provide the school with the specific incidents or experiences. It is important for the school to know as many details as possible. Request a meeting to support your child. Work with the school to solve the problem. Encourage your child to report any further bullying incidents to a teacher.
6. Ongoing Communication: Remember that addressing bullying requires ongoing communication, support, and advocacy for your child. Always prioritise your child's safety and wellbeing, and work in collaboration with the school to find a resolution to the bullying situation.
7. Cyberbullying: Often harmful online content can be removed by the site, game or app used to send it. eSafety may be able to help remove the content if it is likely to harm your child’s physical or mental health. Report to eSafety using this link. 
8. Nurture your child’s strengths and interests Provide a variety of opportunities for your child to explore different activities, sports, arts, and hobbies. Let them try different things to discover what they enjoy the

most. Help your child connect with peers who have similar passions.

Catholic School Parents Australia has developed free resources to strengthen the home-school partnership! The new video workshops help guide primary and secondary parents, principals, and school staff to take a holistic approach to their children’s well-being and educational experience.

The resources also include guides for local facilitators to run through the video workshops in collaborative sessions with principals, staff and families. Insights from experts like Andrew Fuller, John Hattie and Donna Cross inform the workshop’s research-backed strategies.

The resources can be found on the Gearing Up for Parent Engagement website.

Wearing a seatbelt doubles your chance of survival in a crash - it's a simple act that is not only a legal requirement, but one that could save lives.

It is the student’s responsibility to use the seatbelt and buckle up. It would be a great assistance if you can remind your students at the next school assembly about the importance of wearing a seatbelt on board buses and forming the habit of buckling up without being asked by the bus driver. If their seat is equipped with a seatbelt, they need to fasten it. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiiHg31FkGw

Premiers Reading Challenge Update

Updated Book Lists can be found here

Digital library including decodable readers and quality texts 

Please reach out if your family is struggling with school attendance. We have resources and strategies that can help. We are addressing a variety of possible issues in the newsletter each fortnight.

Persistent sleep problems in children and teenagers

Reports are available on COMPASS at the end of the school day this Wednesday. For more information regarding ‘Understanding the Student Report’ please go to;

https://www.clickview.net/share/bL8yN5

Our school is moving from paper-based enrolment applications to online enrolments using Compass.  As an existing user of Compass, you will find a new tile in the Compass app called Family and Enrolments, found under the “More” icon in the Compass app or under the Cog icon in your preferred browser.  As a parent, you can update your contact details at any time. We strongly encourage you to log in to confirm your details. 

Applications for 2025 can now be completed online.  See our website for more details on how to enrol and where to get assistance if you need it; https://www.stmarysbellingen.nsw.edu.au/enrolling-at-st-mary-s 

Dates for Kindergarten 2025 enrolments are as follows

Information session: Tuesday, 7th May.

Enrolment Period Opens: Monday, 29th April.

Starting Date for Interviews: Monday, 6th May.

Proposed Date for First Round Offers: Monday, 24th June.

Proposed Date for Second Round Offers: Monday, 5th August.

If you know of anyone in the community who is looking at enrolling their child for Kindergarten 2025, please direct them to the website or encourage them to make contact with the school as soon as possible.

Week 8

Kinder - Tara McRae & Tully Ouali

Year 1 - Eva Hamill & Phoenix Lane

Year 2 - Gabbie Carlon & Toby Rake

Year 3 - Eddy Wadick & Cash Connelly

Year 5 - Remy Martin & Miley Waugh

Year 6 - Halle Wamara

PBS Award - "I am a problem-solver on the playground"

Kinder - Jed Ravell & Archer Curwood

Year 1 - Pip Wadick

Year 2 - Henry Hart

Year 3 - Juliet Harper

Year 5 - Oscar Reibelt

Good Samaritan Award - Dimity Leslie

Week 9

Kinder - Vera Farrugia & Tully Ouali

Year 2 - Florence Frost, Jude Farrugia & Bodhi McRae

Year 3 - Arthur West & LuLu Northcott

Year 4 - Charlotte Carlon

Year 5 - Neerav Pratap & Jack Wadick

Year 6 - Sebastian Harfield

PBS Award - "I use good manners"

Kinder - Safiah Andrews & Kohan Phoenix

Year 2 - Oscar Wynter

Year 3 - Mateo D'Arcy Ryan

Year 4 - Jala Beddows

Year 5 - Miley Waugh

Year 6 - Nivedita Pratap

St. Mary’s Got Talent went off with a BANG on Friday afternoon in Week 9. St. Mary’s Got Talent was a celebration of our learning and love of entertainment. Throughout Term 1 and 2, Yr3-6 were introduced to different genres of performance, ways to express emotions through movement, key performance and audience skills, and team building during weekly Caring Connections sessions. St. Mary’s Got Talent allowed contestants to put this into action - and action they did! All contestants are congratulated on entering, practising and performing to the whole school community. Our 3 judges, Mrs. Stephen, Mrs. English and Mrs. Derrin had the difficult task of assigning points to each performance based on audience participation, evidence of rehearsal and creativity. Congratulations to the three standout performances and all contestants who made this event awesome. BRAVO St. Mary’s!

For the past 4 weeks, K-6 has been introduced to hockey skills, rules and games with our visiting expert coach, Ms. Ellie. Week 9 was our last session with Ms. Ellie where we saw all our skills come together to play the beginning of a game. We have some budding talents, those who are interested in the game and others who enjoyed the fun and sun. Ms. Ellie taught us how to hold the stick, dribble the ball, block an attacker, tackle as a defender, pass to team members and score goals all to the mantra “Sticks on the ground!” Here are some pictures of Year 4 and 5 in action.

Mufti-Day Fundraiser

Dress up as an animal Friday 6th September to raise awareness for Threatened Species Day and help raise money for OzGREEN!

OzGreen is a local charity that helps create sustainable communities in regional NSW.

We employ young people and deliver programs, events and resources to increase young people’s wellbeing, help them learn new skills and take action towards a better world. 

We love working with your school and have run interschool river fun days, waterbug workshops and the recent, riveryouthfest, where 300 trees were planted for the Bellinger River, home to the Critically Endangered Bellinger River Snapping Turtle and other threatened species.

Support a local charity that supports young people on the Mid North Coast.

The funds raised will support OzGREEN's ongoing efforts to connect young people with the environment, build skills in sustainable living, and take action together to reduce our community’s footprint.

Police School Liaison Officer -  Bernadette Snow - 0437774483

Police Youth Liaison Officer - Jo Brooker - 66910799 -

Kids Help Line - 1800551800 http://www.kidshelp.com.au/

Cyber Safety  - Incredible resource for parents and children  www.esafety.gov.au

Piano = Victoria Christie 6655 8782

Brass/Piano = Kate Butcher 0419 789 078

Guitar = Katie Crane 0431 151 987