Boorowa Touch Football and Netball Carnival

Marian Procession

Six St Mary’s students, staff, parents and grandparents attended and participated in the Marian Procession in Goulburn on Sunday. Our thanks to REC, Mrs Rachael Croker for coordinating and supporting our station - The Fifth Luminous Mystery: The Institution of the Eucharist. The Procession was a spectacular display of colour, multiculturalism, singing and prayer for Our Mother, Mary. Archbishop Christopher Prowse celebrated Mass at the conclusion of the Procession and a sumptuous and diverse menu was on offer for lunch. Our student representatives, Tahlia, Anna, Harley, Aria, Beau and Charlie joined the Youth Rally and really enjoyed the music and dance.

Mackillop Cricket

Congratulations to School Captain and Year Six student, Henry Galland. Henry enjoyed a successful week as Captain of the Mackillop Cricket Team in Armidale during Week One of this Term. Mackillop were crowned winners of the competition after beating CIS convincingly in the final. Following that Henry was then named as a member of the NSW Team to compete at the Schools Sports Australia National Championships in Adelaide from Nov 30 - Dec 6.

An awesome and highly commendable achievement Henry. Well done !!

Healthy Harold

This week we welcome the Healthy Harold van to St Mary's. Each class will participate in a Personal Development and Health lesson delivered by a qualified instructor in the van. Lessons will run from Thurs - Mon.  Follow up lessons will continue in classes over the next few weeks.

This has been generously offered to us this year free of charge.

Prayers

We ask our families to keep Mrs Skelly and her family in your prayers. Mrs Skelly's mother, Pam, passed away suddenly last Saturday.

We ask that God gives them the strength, love and support that they all need at this time. 

"Dear Heavenly Father, in this time of sorrow, we lift our hearts to You. We ask for Your loving embrace to surround the Kearins family. May they find solace in Your constant presence and feel the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. O Lord, grant them strength for each step of the way.

Amen."

P&F Working Group AGM

This week we held our AGM and Term 4 meeting for the P&F Working Group. Thank you to all who attended.

I would like to extend a big thank you to our retiring Executive members, Secretary Reané Strode and Treasurer Allison Hewitt. Your dedication, time and effort were an inspiration to all.

We also bid farewell to members Sally Galland and Rechell Naughton, who are finishing their primary school connections this year. Both have had huge input over a number of years and we thank you immensely.

Welcome to the 2025 Executive:

President: Catherine Culley

Secretary: Sarah Handley

Treasurer: Paul Millett

Vice- Presidents: Sam Handley, Josh Hewitt, Alan McCormack

Upcoming Event

Grandparents Day

On Friday, 15 November, we invite our parents, carers, grandparents and special friends to St Mary's to share our Grandparents Day. The day will commence with Mass at 9.30am. Following Mass, our visitors are invited to visit with their grandchildren in their classrooms, see their wonderful work and participate in some fun class activities. Following that we will move to the MP Hall for morning tea. After morning tea, our students will perform their amazing skipping skills to music. This will be presented on the Basketball Court at the Bottom Playground. Seating and shade will be provided and we are sure you will be blown away by the skill and expertise of our skipping students!

Also, St Mary's is renowned for its incredible morning tea spreads; let us not disappoint this year. We ask families to donate a plate of food to share on this special day. Our Year 6 families, coordinated by Rechell and Reane, are asked to support with the setting up and serving of morning tea.

Please mark this date on your calendar.

Important TERM FOUR dates to note:

Wednesday 30 - Thursday 31 Oct - Yr 5 Astronomy/Ag Excursion

Tuesday 5 - Friday 8 Nov - Year Six Camp

Friday 15 Nov - Grandparents Day

Monday 2 Dec - Kindergarten 2025 Orientation Day

Thursday 12 Dec - Leadership 2025 Mass

Thursday 12 Dec - St Mary's Carols evening

Monday 16 Dec -  Year Six Graduation

Wednesday 18 Dec - Year Six final Assembly

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2025 Term Dates

Included below are the dates for our 2025 School year. 

TERM 1,2025 (31 Jan - 11 Apr)

Friday 31 Jan - CECG system-wide pupil-free day

Monday 3 Feb - NSW pupil-free day

Friday 11 April - CECG system-wide pupil-free day

TERM 2, 2025 (28 Apr - 4 Jul)

Monday 28 Apr - CECG system-wide pupil-free day

Friday 4 July - CECG system-wide pupil-free day

TERM 3, 2025 (21 Jul - 26 Sep)

Monday 21 July - CECG system-wide pupil-free day

Friday 26 Sep - CECG system-wide pupil-free day

TERM 4, 2025 (13 Oct - 19 Dec)

Monday 13 Oct - CECG system-wide pupil-free day

Friday 19 Dec - CECG system-wide pupil-free day

The Term 4 fees have been distributed by Head Office. Please check you have received yours by email.

If you would like to confirm your current balance, you can do this via the Compass app. Select "More" on the bottom right of the screen, and in the bottom centre you will find the tab "School Fees".  Here you can see your current balance and you are also able to check out your debit/credit history.

We would like to ensure that all accounts are paid by the end of the school year. We would appreciate your assistance with this.

If you have any questions regarding your school fee account, please do not hesitate to contact the School Office.

Addition to the Girls' Uniform

It is lovely to see some girls looking very smart in our addition to their uniform.

The girls now have the choice during Terms 1 & 4 of the summer dress or a white short-sleeved shirt to be worn with bottle green shorts and white socks.

There will be limited numbers available to start with so we do not have to carry too much excess stock. 

Further information about the St Mary's Uniform Policy, can be found here: 

Uniform Policy

Lost items, second-hand items and a reminder to name 

A kind reminder to please check the uniform items that come home with your child each day. Occasionally items get taken off and accidentally picked up and taken home to another family. We have a few students who are missing jumpers which are named. If you can please check and return anything that has come home accidentally.

Our lost property pile has grown into a mountain again, so please feel free to come and check for any missing items.

The second-hand items are also full to the brim. Remember these items are all FREE! So why not drop in and browse through these.

Weeks 3  Awards 

Awards will be presented at the assembly on Friday 1 November at 9:05am.

K - Sabey Bush

1 - Easton Gay, Troy Pulis, Georgie Strode

2 - Ivy Hewitt, Jack Hewitt, Abby Kennedy, Hadley Reynolds

3 - Josh Fraser, Karin Gerathy

4 - Rory Bensley, Jesse Costello, Donovan Francis

5 - Quade Haynes, Owen Moorby, Flynn Reeves

6 - Sebastian Cummins, Elsie McIntosh, Maddie Strode

Japanese- Well done to Year 5 on being the class of the week

JUSTICE and SERVICE at St Mary’s

ALL SAINTS DAY - 1 November

The Catholic Church celebrates ALL SAINTS’ on Friday. We will be hosting a mass at 9:30am and warmly welcome you to join us.

What is a SAINT?  The Church does not CREATE saints. Human beings make the conscious choice to do that for themselves. Catholics believe everyone is called to try to be saintly each day; to live lives according to God’s commandments to love God and love one another. Mary, Jesus mother and Patron Saint of our school, was the first saint. Mary Mackillop – our very own Australian saint – is another great example for us to follow. She led her life striving to be like Jesus – her motto was: ‘Never see a need without trying to do something about it.’

November 1 became the official day to give thanks for all the SAINTS after Christianity became legalised in A.D. 313. On this day, we give thanks for the many men, women and even children who chose to live lives of faith, hope, and love, and bring others closer to God.

Christians today ask the Saints to pray for them and their loved ones.

ALL SOULS DAY – 2 November

Throughout the year, the Church prays for and remembers all those who have died. However, All Souls Day on November 2, is the official day of commemoration when the Church remembers, prays for, and offers special masses for the faithfully departed. We pray that our loved ones and all of those who have died enter into the loving presence of God in Heaven.

Marian Procession

On Sunday 27 October, we had 6 students who participated in the Marian Procession in Goulburn. What an incredible day! With hundreds in attendance, the Archdiocese wrapped up this year’s ‘Assembly Festival’ with our beloved annual Marian Procession. It was a beautiful, ecumenical, intergenerational, and multicultural celebration as we all came together to move through the streets of Goulburn. Our students then attended the ‘Youth Rally’ which saw them enjoy music, guest speakers and a delicious lunch. Thank you to the students, staff and families that attended this beautiful celebration, we greatly appreciate you.

Operation Christmas Child Shoebox

We have been blown away by the generosity of our families for the Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Appeal. Each class has a shoebox that will be filled with goodies donated by students, and then sent to children overseas as a Christmas gift box to bring some joy to those less fortunate. Your child’s class teacher should have shared with students and families the gender and age of the student they are filling their box for. All shoeboxes will be collected on Friday 1^st November, thank you for your amazing support of this project!

St Mary's Mission Day

This will be held on Friday 22nd November (WEEK 6).

Class roles for the day are as follows:

Please clean out your cupboards and send items in for our hugely popular White Elephant Stall, as well as any donations for Lucky Dip prizes. 

Advice for Parents & Carers regarding Personalised Plans

INTRODUCTION 

Personalised Plans are used by teachers to support and record adjustments provided to students so that all students have the opportunity to access and participate in learning on the same basis as their peers. The Personalised Planning tool, through Catholic Schools NSW NETiD, is used by all CECG schools as the basis for individual planning for students who require adjustments to support their learning. The Personalised Planning tool is integral to the work of our schools in supporting and making adjustments for students. 

In 2022 a review of the CSNSW Personalised Planning process was undertaken by Dr David Evans. If you would like to read more about the scope of the project, please follow this link: David Evans review of Personalised Plans 

REDEVELOPMENT OF PERSONALISED PLAN FORMAT 

During 2022 and 2023 development of a new and modern plan was undertaken by CSNSW to ensure a planning tool that aligns with evidence-based approaches to personalised planning for students. The redevelopment process included extensive consultation and testing with key stakeholders including parents and teachers. The plan now better aligns with the personalised learning process and Nationally Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD) processes.  

In August 2024, CSNSW launched the redeveloped Personalised Planning tool that includes the following enhancements: 

• Less duplication of information
• Elimination of clunky user issues 
• Simplicity of design and functionality
• Options for reporting to parents.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR PARENTS AND CARERS? 

While the change in format is welcome, it will require significant time and expertise from Classroom Support Teachers, Inclusive Education Coordinators and teachers in updating existing Personalised Plans. During Term 4, teachers will commence the process of updating all Personalised Plans to the redeveloped format. For some schools, the updating may need to carry over to the start of 2025, due to the number of Personalised Plans. This may mean that your child’s Personalised Plan may not be sent home in Term 4. Please note that your child’s Personalised Plan will be updated as soon as practicable. 

If you have any questions, please contact your child’s teacher. 

For Parish and Sacramental matters please forward your enquiries to Goulburn Parish Secretary, Heather Moss. Heather works Tuesday to Friday 9am to 1pm in Goulburn.

Email: Crookwell@cg.org.au

Website: http://cg.org.au/crookwell/Home.aspx 

Phone: 0403 631 797 

Address: 55 Wade Street (the Old Convent Building)

Applications are now open for 2025 School Student Transport Scheme (SSTS) travel 

Students in the Opal network applying for an Opal card (including a Term Bus Pass) for the first time will receive their School Opal card at their nominated postal address from mid-January 2025.

Students progressing from year 2 to year 3 and from year 6 to year 7 do not need to re-apply if they:

• are continuing at the same school, and
• are residing at the same address, and
• have not been sent an expiry notification from Transport for NSW.

Where a student meets the new distance eligibility, the system will automatically update their entitlement. If they do not meet the new eligibility, they will receive an expiry notification.

Students who change address, school, campus location, have repeated a year or received an expiry notification for their school travel entitlement need to renew or update their details before the end of term 4. This will ensure that schools can endorse applications, so their travel entitlement can remain valid for the start of the 2025 school year.

Students who have an entitlement approved under a medical condition that is due to expire will receive a notification advising them to re-apply.

Term Bus Pass holders will receive a notification to re-apply.

Rural and Regional Students

Students living in rural and regional (R&R) areas should receive their travel pass at the start of the new school year from their nominated transport operator. It may come via the school or be sent directly to them at home. Note: some R&R operators do not issue travel passes. Students/parents should confirm with their nominated operator if they do not receive a pass.

Real-time Trip Information

** Please note, GPS information may not always be up-to-date if signal strength is compromised **