Newsletter - T3W6 - 26/8/22

From the Principal

Today sees the end of the Trial HSC Examinations for our senior students. We have been very impressed by the diligence and attitude that many have shown during this week. All students should be very proud of their efforts and should now be focused on finishing well. This is particularly important for our Year 12 students who have only 4 weeks left of their secondary education. These weeks are incredibly busy, and will ‘fly’ due to the amount of different responsibilities and activities which will be taking place.

In my last newsletter article I wrote about the collaboration that is occurring between all the schools in Casino. This is an initiative which we are hoping will have positive outcomes for all students and their families in the community. One part of the process is to gather information from the students about their school community. This student voice process will be facilitated by the Safeguarding Kids Together Program (SKT) - which is run by the NSW Department of Education. All schools in Casino will be running this process. It is hoped that the information gathered (anonymously and from all educational sectors) will help inform future directions for the schools, and hopefully the wider community. I encourage you to consider allowing your child/ren to take part in this initiative which will take place on Thursday, 1 and Friday, 2 September. A note was sent home with students in Years 7/8/10 this week and is also available on the school App. Senior students and Year 9 will be given the note on Monday, 29 August. Please return the permission note to the College by Wednesday, 31 August.

After an enforced hiatus of 2 years, our College staff and students have also been working hard in preparation for our annual SHOWCASE event which will take place on Tuesday, 6 September. This is a wonderful evening where the creative arts are on show. Please consider coming along to soak in the atmosphere and the talent of our artists, musicians, timber students, and multimedia students. Tickets are on sale at the front office for anyone who is interested.

Sunday, 4 September is Father’s Day. Happy Father’s Day to all of the dads in the St Mary’s Community including all those who act in a father like capacity. Jesus is the ultimate example of the love a child can have for their father and the extent to which a father can guide and influence. In trying times may we all be reminded of the father/child relationship and the unbreakable bond that then gift of love can be.

Tracy Robinson
Principal

Upcoming Dates

Week 7
Monday, 29 August - Year 7,9 and 10 HSIE Troubie Production presentations
Monday, 29 August - Len Diett Round 4 Open Boys Rugby Union, Casino
Tuesday, 30 August - Year 9 and 10 PASS Sport Ability Program
Tuesday, 30 August - Year 9 and 10 Debate Team, MacKillop College Port Macquarie (Departing Monday 29/8/22)
Wednesday, 31 August - Stage 6 Construction, Concreting at EARTH Centre
Thursday, 1 September - Art Express, Murwillumbah

Week 8
Tuesday, 6 September - SHOWCASE
Thursday, 8 September - Diocesan Netball Championships, Port Macquarie (Departing Wednesday 7/9/22)
Friday, 9 September - RUOK Day

Parish Mass Times

Weekend Mass
5.00pm (Sat) & 8.00am (Sun)

Mass ONLINE

Weekdays
Monday 5.30pm 
Tuesday  8.00am
Wednesday 8.00am
Thursday  9.00am
Friday  9.00am
Saturday  9.00am

Reconciliation
Saturday 8.30 am-9.00 am

Country Mass
28 August - Tabulam 10:30am

Masks are recommended in the Church

From the Assistant Principal - Learning and Teaching

COMPASS
In term 4 the College will be moving to a new student management system. The system is called COMPASS and it will change a lot of the school procedures around marking rolls, mark books, reports, excursions etc. It will also change the way that the school communicates with parents, and the way parents pay for school fees and excursions. Please see the attached letter from the Principal around this new system.
In order to assist parents to get to know this system and understand the new ways that the College will be handling communication and payments, there will be a parent information evening on Tuesday, 13 September at 6:30pm. Further information regarding the functionality of this new platform can be found by navigating to  https://www.compass.education/guide. Students do not need to be present at this meeting as they will have their own information session at school regarding their log on and use of Compass.

Nadine Connolly
Assistant Principal - Learning and Teaching

From the Assistant Principal - Mission

This weekend, the Church celebrates the feast of Saint Augustine of Hippo. Born in 354CE in North Africa, he went to school in modern day Tunisia and enjoyed the Mediterranean Sea and all the trade links the position afforded. He is known for his academic achievements and prowess and thankfully, his writings still exist today. He is most notably known for the quote “the world is a great book, of which they that never stir from home read only a page”.

However, Saint Augustine implored people “hear the other side” and “love the sinner and hate the sin.” These words of wisdom offer us today a way of building community and respect which guide the actions of the Pastoral Care team at the College. We endeavour to act with justice and respond with compassion to the individual. Our team always seek out the “other side” to ensure they have all the information available to them. We hope to build these skills in our young people and allow them to grow in their own relationships with each other. 

Shine Sharing Dinner
Congratulations to all the students who attended our Diocesan Shine Conference last week! On Monday evening, we will be having our sharing dinner where the students get the opportunity to speak about their experience and join together as a group again. 

Camp Kokoda
As I write this, I am anticipating the return of our students from their Camp Kokoda experience. I have heard wonderful things from the staff who were attending. This is an opportunity for our young people to really stretch their boundaries and learn to be confident in themselves and their abilities. 

Student Leadership
We are in the process of electing our 2023 College Leaders. Next week our students will be given an opportunity to address their peers and staff. We look forward to hearing from all of the applicants!

Fathers Day Mass
Our Year 9 students will be attending the parish mass next week on Friday, 2 September at 9:00am. All fathers and grandfathers are invited to attend!

Parents, Carers, and Community Members in NSW are invited to attend free mental health education sessions giving practical strategies to support children and young people who have been impacted by natural disasters.
Date: Monday, 29 August 2022
Time: 6:30 pm – 7:45 pm AEST
Location: Online webinar
Registration: https://bit.ly/3bEqaHG

Clare Axman
Assistant Principal - Mission

From the Leader of Pastoral Care

Kirra Pendergast: Safe on Social
Kirra Pendergast the CEO of Safe on Social has produced a three part series for parents to compliment the Safe on Social Session presented to our students a few weeks ago. Parents can keep up to date with online safety by accessing Kirra’s presentation which focuses on Cyber Risk Management, Instagram and How to Control Group Chat issues.

Please find the links below:
Parents - Part One
Parents - Part Two
Parents - Part Three

Kirra has also sent through two interesting articles for parents:
Why parents are deleting photos of their kids
Is Instagram trying to be TikTok 

Nathan Hulls: Motivational Speaker
The Catholic Schools Parent Assembly has been able to access Nathan Hulls for presentations for both students and parents. Nathan is a passionate motivational speaker, entrepreneur, mindset coach and mentor. Nathan will be presenting here at the college to all our students on Wednesday, 7 September with a positive message “Decide Your Own Destiny”- inspiring and empowering young people to understand themselves, make good choices, be their best and make a positive difference in their world.

The Parent presentation will commence at 6:30pm here at the College. Nathan offers three topics for parents:
1. How to Motivate Teens
2. The Keys to Developing Resilience in Young People and
3. 10 Things Extraordinary Parents Say to their Kids

More information on his topics for parents can be found on his website. Please see the flyer attached for information on the parent presentation.

Headspace Presentations
RuOK day will be celebrated at the college during week 8 this term. Headspace will be presenting to all students Year 7-12 throughout the day on Monday, 5 September and will cover topics including respectful friendships, tips for healthy headspace, accessing support, resilience building and how to deal with bullying.

Michele McCaffery
Leader of Pastoral Care

From the Leader of Library and Resources

Book Week
At our last Assembly, Deklan Walker and myself spoke to students about reading and the importance of stories to give us a broader perspective. 

Reading stories provides insight into cultures, people, history as well as firing up our imaginations. The finalists and winners of 2022 Book Week do just that. 

Here is an outline of the winners in each category. Students are invited to view and borrow these books and others that are currently on display in the Library.

Younger Readers.
Meixing Lim and her family have arrived at the New House in the New Land, inherited from First Uncle who died tragically and unexpectedly while picking oranges in the backyard. ..

Her fragile universe is rocked when tragedy strikes and Ma Ma refuses to face the world outside. Surviving will take all the resilience and inner belief of this brave girl to turn their world around.

Older Readers
Wen Zhou is determined to create a future for herself that is more satisfying than the life her parents expect her to lead.

Wen Zhou is the daughter and only child of Chinese immigrants whose move to the lucky country has proven to be not so lucky. Wen and her friend, Henry Xiao - whose mum and dad are also struggling immigrants - both dream of escape from their unhappy circumstances, and form a plan to sit an entrance exam to a selective high school far from home. Then tragedy strikes…

“As an immigrant growing up in the 70’s, it is important for me that books allow us to ‘walk in anothers shoes’ and understand the world from a different perspective.” Rebecca Lim.

The full range of CBCA Book Week winners are also available for loan on Sora.

Bev Champion
Leader of Library and Resources

From the Literacy Coach and The Leader of Learning - Numeracy

Over the past few weeks, some students at the College have taken up the opportunity to participate in the ‘Unleashed Student Writing Competition’ run by Write4fun.  Students have been able to write on any topic and submit a poem or short story.  A few students have been studiously working away during lunch crafting their short stories and they are to be congratulated on their enthusiasm and creativity.  The closing date for the competition has now been extended to Sunday, 11 September 2022.  I have asked a few students if I could share their work here, while we wait for the competition to close and be judged, please enjoy these creative short stories by clicking on the title.

Under the bed By Colbie Hannah

The Myth By Daniel Hughes

I encourage any student who still may be interested in entering, to see me for entry details and we wish all those students who have entered the best of luck.

Kelly Winters & Mark Chivers
Literacy Coach & Leader of Learning - Numeracy

From the Sports Coordinator - External

FNC Girls Rugby 7’s
Our U17 Girls Rugby 7’s team travelled to Wollongbar on Friday, 19 August to compete in the Far North Coast Rugby 7’s Competition. With a mixture of experience amongst the girls, we were unsure how they would match it with some of the other schools. The first game was a real learning experience, as the girls went down convincingly to a very skilful Ballina Coast team. They were quick to learn from their mistakes and went on to play some beautiful rugby, defeating Xavier and Woodlawn in their remaining two matches. Special mention to the girls who kindly offered to back up and help out an understrength Trinity side, meaning there was very little rest for most of them. Battered and bruised from the hard, red dirt of Wollongbar, the girls came away extremely proud of their efforts.

NRCC U14 Boys Aussie Rules
On Tuesday, 17 August, our U14 Boys Aussie Rules team played in the Northern Rivers Catholic Colleges Aussie Rules Competition at Byron Bay. Our team was primarily made up of year 7 students who had a tough day out facing some much bigger opponents with a lot more experience. Unfortunately they were unable to come away with any wins on the day, however the majority of the boys were very well behaved and should be commended on their sportsmanship and the way in which they represented the College. We look forward to returning next year with more experience to shake up the competition.

NRCC U16 Girls Aussie Rules
Our U16 Girls Aussie Rules team went to Byron Bay on Tuesday, 23 August to play in the NRCC Aussie Rules competition. From the sidelines, no one was able to tell that none of them had ever played the game before, going through the whole day undefeated.
With wins against McAuley (54-21) and Woodlawn (53-26) in the pool games, the girls advanced to the grand final to face McAuley once again. Our girls were victorious, running away with a 49-31 win to claim the shield and become the NRCC U16 Girls Aussie Rules Champions. Congratulations girls!

Dio Athletics Carnival
On Wednesday, 24 August, 36 students represented the College in the Dio Athletics Carnival at Coffs Harbour. It was a successful day out for a number of our students with five students qualifying for NSWCCC:

• Angus Lawler - 1st in 15yrs Boys 100m and 200m
• Zubaida Soliman - 1st in 14yrs Girls Javelin
• Gloria Sampson - 1st in 15yrs Girls Shot
• Angel Codrington - 1st in 15yrs Girls High Jump
• Spencer Darragh - 1st in 13yrs Boys Discus

Other notable results:

• Angus Lawler - 3rd in 15yrs Boys 400m
• Nick Carey - 4th in 16yrs Boys 800m and Long Jump
• Jackson Lawler - 2nd in 15yrs Boys Javelin
• Tatiana Simpson - 2nd in 15yrs Girls Discus
• Angel Codrington - 2nd in 15yrs Girls Long Jump and 4th in 15yrs Girls Javelin
• Carlee Thomas - 4th in 17+yrs Girls Javelin
• Sienna Thomas - 2nd in 13yrs Girls Long Jump
• Aurora Hale-Hobbs - 4th in 12yrs Girls Shot

Congratulations to all students who were terrific representatives of the College and we wish the five students progressing to the next level all the very best.

Mike Ryan
Sports Coordinator - External

From the Leader of School Evangelisation

Shine
Last Thursday and Friday we took a group of Year 9, 10 and 11 students to the Shine conference at Coffs Harbour. The theme for the conference was ‘No Limits’ and students were encouraged to go beyond their comfort zones and be the people God created them to be.  The students participated in prayer, mass, adoration, rally style worship by the Diocesan band ‘Wildfire’, played games, listened to keynote speakers and were able to attend a series of workshops. This was such a valuable experience for the faith formation of our students.

Father’s Day Mass
Our Year 9 students will be attending mass with the Parish on Friday, 2 September at 9:00am to celebrate Fathers day. Any fathers or significant males are welcome to join our students. This will be a wonderful opportunity to show our appreciation of the fathers and father figures in our community. 

Father’s Day Weekend Event
There will be a family friendly comedian at Limitless Church Friday, 2 September at 6:30pm. This will be a fantastic evening of faith and fun. Families are invited to attend this event. The details are listed below:
When: Friday, 2 September 2022
Where: Limitless Church 85 North Street Casino
How: Please register for Free Tickets www.limitless.church

Mahaila Day
Leader of School Evangelisation

Hospitality & Food Technology

Hospitality Catering Task
Week 4 was an exciting week for our Hospitality students. They were given the task to come up with their own hors d'oeuvres/ appetisers for a catering function. They really showcased their skills around, planning, preparing, platting, time management, and teamwork.
Our lucky staff were the guinea pigs in this catering practical and were so amazed at the skills our students have developed over this past year.
Well done everyone. Next to come is catering our Showcase on Tuesday, 6 September.

Year 9 Food Technology 
Our Year 9 Food Technology students have been studying the topic “Food for Special Occasions” this past term, as a part of this topic they are required to plan a birthday party for a child. Included in this planning is the design of a birthday cake.
Week 5 was their time to shine, and shine they did. We saw an array of different creative themes with not one the same. The main techniques we focused on were piping buttercream frosting and fondant icing (which reminded many students of their primary school days playing with play-doh)
Great job Year 9.

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Jennavene Way
Teacher

Showcase

Showcase - Tuesday, 6 September
For the first time since 2019, St Mary’s Catholic College is proud to present our annual Showcase event for 2022. On Tuesday, 6 September, students from Music, Visual Arts, Drama, Photography, Design and Technology and  Multimedia, will be proudly displaying their talents and achievements. 

The evening will begin with doors opening at 6.00pm and the concert will commence at 6.30pm. Tickets will be available from the College Office on Monday, 22 August. Cost is $6 per ticket. 

Performances on the evening will include music performances from a range of genres, drama productions and dance numbers. 

Design pieces displayed on the night will exhibit the Senior students’ commitment and skill in their chosen construction field, ranging from timber, to metal and digital multimedia works. Artworks on display will highlight the outstanding achievements from students across Years 7, 8, 9 and this year the senior HSC Body of Works. These works will include drawing, painting, printmaking and sculpture.

Light refreshments and canapes will be provided during intermission on the night. St Mary’s Catholic College is so very proud of our students. We hope to see you on the night so that you can witness the truly outstanding talent of our young people. 

Jo Colville
Leader of English

Showcase 2022 Childminding Service
St Mary’s Catholic College Year 9 Child Studies class will be providing a Child Minding Service during Showcase 2022 on Tuesday, 6 September from 6.30pm-8.30pm. Parents will be able to enjoy the Showcase performances while their children are enjoying a variety of activities including dance, arts and craft and games. Please contact the College Office if you would like to take advantage of this opportunity and let us know how many children you require looking after. This is a free service, however a gold coin donation would be appreciated.

Canteen

Volunteers
We are looking for volunteers to assist in the Canteen. Please contact the Canteen via the College office if you are available at any time to help.

Flexischools
Flexischools is a well-established organisation allowing you to easily place all your canteen orders online at any time.

Download the Flexischools app from the App store or Google Play. Click here for details on how to set up your account. 

Once registered, you can start placing orders immediately.

Please note that sushi orders will need to be placed before Tuesday afternoon at 1pm as Sushi will only be available for Wednesday orders.

There is a charge of $0.29 per order for using this service.

If you have any questions, please contact the Flexischools Customer Service Team via their website contact page.

The normal process of ordering from the canteen (cash, eftpos, morning lunch orders) is still available.

Uniform Shop

2023 Year 7 Students
The Uniform Shop is now accepting orders for Year 7 students, 2023.
Orders can be placed online via Flexischools or in person at the College Uniform Shop.
We would encourage parents to place orders/layby uniforms, especially for those students who may require special orders, as soon as possible, to avoid disappointment.
Please note that while we are able to exchange uniforms (ie change of size), the item must be unused, and in its original condition and packaging. Please retain your original tax invoice and/or receipts for proof of purchase. 

2023 Senior Students
All students that are going into Year 11 when the new academic year commences in Week 6 of Term 4 are advised to start looking at purchasing their senior uniforms in the coming weeks.

Uniform Shop Opening Hours
Tuesdays         3.15pm to 5.00pm
Thursdays        2.00pm to 5.00pm

Payments of cash, cheque or EFTPOS are welcome.

Orders can also be placed via the Flexischools service. No fees are charged to families for using this service.

Please note the following information for orders made via this service:

Tuesday Orders
- Cut off time is 12noon on Monday
- Pick up available from the College office on Tuesday afternoon from 3.30pm - 5.00pm

Thursday Orders
- Cut off time is 12noon on Wednesday 
- Pick up available from the College office on Thursday afternoon from 3.30pm - 5.00pm.

Orders not collected will be given to the student the following day to take home.

Whilst all care will be taken to ensure that stock availability is correct at the time of ordering, there may be some items that are not in stock at the time of packing the online orders. In this case, you will be contacted to advise of an estimated time of arrival for new stock of that item or given the option of a refund processed through Flexischools.

All uniform shop order enquiries can be emailed to: cash-uniform@lism.catholic.edu.au

Second Hand Uniforms

Sustainable School Shop is an online shop dedicated to buying and selling of second hand uniforms. For more information ring 1300683337 or visit www.sustainableschoolshop.com.au.

 Please note that this facility is available for use with the new College uniforms only.

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