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- Principal Talk with Mrs Lowe
- Religious Education with Mrs Skelly
- Child Safe Advocate with Mrs Sally Croker
- Student Awards
- School Sport with Mrs Rachael Croker
- P & F News
- SZapp Update and Information
- Art with Mrs O'Keefe
- Uniform Shop
- Music with Mrs Cummins
- Goulburn Mission Parish News
- School and Community Notices
Term 3 Key Dates
| August/Sept | School Explorers Program - Postponed 7/8, 14/8, 21/8, other dates to be confirmed |
| Monday 10 August |
School Counsellor visit. Contact the Office for bookings |
| Wednesday 12 August |
School Public Speaking Competition Years 3-6 - Live streamed for spectators on Zoom 2248 321 592 from 12.10pm |
| Friday 21 August |
Jump Rope for Heart - Live streamed for spectators on Zoom 2248 321 592 |
| Monday 24 August |
School Counsellor visit, contact the Office for bookings |
| Wednesday 27 August | Northern Region Public Speaking Competition Years 3-6 - Live streamed for spectators |
| Monday 7 September |
School Counsellor visit, contact the Office for bookings |
| Tuesday 8 September |
St Mary's Feast Day |
| Wednesday 9 September |
Cricket NSW Gala Day Years 3-6 (TBC) |
| Friday 25 September |
Showcase of Learning 12.30pm (TBC) |
| End of term |
NSW Schools COVID Updates
St Mary’s Primary School and Catholic Education continue to take advice from health authorities in relation to COVID-19. The Catholic Education Office has a team that is actively monitoring the COVID-19 situation as it develops, paying particular attention to local hotspots and organising support for schools where required. St Mary’s Primary School is practising all safe hygiene practices in line with government advice. We understand that the situation is fairly fluid, and we will communicate directly with you should there be any important changes in relation to our school operations in the coming weeks. We remind all families:
- If your child is unwell, they should not attend school.
- Please ensure that anyone who presents with COVID-19 symptoms in your family is tested.
- Parents should avoid routinely entering the school where possible but can attend scheduled school events and meetings with teachers where required (physical distancing and hygiene measures still apply).
Should you have any questions in relation to our school and COVID-19, please feel free to contact our office.
Fee Relief
Currently, the Catholic Education Office is offering fee remissions to each parent/carer who is responsible for payment of school fees, if they have suffered a reduction in their primary source of income due to one of the below criteria as a result of COVID-19:
- Redundancy
- Stand down
- Reduction in hours
- Business owners - closure
- Business owners - reduced turnover
- Loss of income - carers duty
- Loss of income - infection/quarantine
- Other reasons not listed above
This information is obtained from the COVID-19 Fee Assistance Request Form, please refer to Attachment A. Please make an appointment to see me if you require more information about this.
CWA Grants
At the end of the year, the Southern Tablelands Group of the Country Women's Association (CWA) of NSW will award 15 Education Grants to children who will enter secondary school in 2021. Each Branch within the Group will award on grant of $250.
Our Branch includes our school, Crookwell Public School and Laggan Public School.
All of our Year 6 students are eligible to apply. The closing date for applications is 30 September 2020. Application forms can be collected from the school office and need to be submitted with a Principal reference.
School Public Speaking Competition
Our Public Speaking Competition will occur for primary classes on Wednesday 12 August with a twist this year. We will be holding a virtual version to accommodate current COVID restrictions, so it will be streamed live through Zoom.
To watch the speeches go to https://zoom.us/, click on 'Join a Meeting' and type in the Meeting ID 2248 321 592. The video conference will start at 12.10pm with Year 6 speeches, followed by Year 5, Year 4 and then Year 3.
Each class will have approximately five students present to Years 2 - 6 and the staff in the Old Hall.
From our School Public Speaking Competition, two students from each year level will be selected to compete virtually at the Northern Region Competition on Thursday 27 August. Following that, the Archdiocesan Public Speaking Finals, hosted by St Patrick’s Parish School Cooma, will be held on Thursday 22 October 2020.
The Northern Region Public Speaking Competition will have this same format so live streaming our school contest will also give us a chance to practise the digital format and iron out any issues that may arise.
The aim of this competition remains the same; to help students speak more effectively, have better communication and gain more confidence in speaking in front of others.
Speeches will be judged on the following criteria:
- Delivery
- Suitability and Audience Interest
- Content and Creativity
- Organisation
- Timing
Timing for speeches:
- Stage 2 - 2 minutes; with a warning bell at 1 minute and 30 seconds and at 2 minutes
- Stage 3 - 3 minutes; with a warning bell at 2 minutes and 30 seconds and at 3 minutes
Topics are as follows:
- Year 3 Belonging in school
- Year 4 Kid power!
- Year 5 Words can hurt
- Year 6 Many voices, one land
Students will be working on their speeches in class and may be asked to refine and practise these for homework.
Update of personal details
Please let the Office know if you have changed your contact or address details to ensure we have the correct ones on file.
This also applies for medical or action plans.
CECG Review into Student Counselling and Wellbeing Services
In 2019, Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn (CECG) engaged Integroe Partners to conduct an independent review into student counselling and wellbeing services in CECG schools. As part of this review, Integroe Partners conducted online surveys of parents, Principals, students and school staff.
They also conducted individual interviews and face to face consultation forums with parents, Principals, teachers and CECG staff. Integroe Partners also conducted face to face and online consultations with CECG’s primary provider of student counselling services, CatholicCare.
CECG would like to thank all those who participated in the review, especially those who travelled to Canberra for the face to face meetings as well as those who participated in the online surveys and forums. The information gained from the review enabled Integroe Partners to deliver an evaluation of existing programs, structures, systems and processes. Integroe Partners identified a diversity of
challenges across the schools in the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn, requiring a model of counselling and wellbeing service delivery that is flexible and responsive to the student wellbeing priorities of individual schools and their communities. Integroe Partners were also able to propose structures and systems aimed at delivering services to schools that reflect best contemporary practice, optimising resource efficiency into the future.
As part of its initial response to the findings and recommendations of the review, CECG has increased the school counsellor allocation for each of its schools for 2020 and have appointed a full-time Student Counselling and Welfare Manager. The Student Counselling and Welfare Manager will now look to work closely with schools, Principals and CECG staff to respond more fully to the review and to develop appropriate policies, procedures, frameworks and best practice to support high
quality school counselling practice and service delivery in our schools now and in to the future.
Shawn van der Linden,
Student Counselling and Welfare Manager
Website, SZapp and Digital Support
We have updated the website and SZapp to now include a "Parent Page". In this section, you will find the Absence form, Change to Travel Arrangements form, Tuckshop Roster and Helper form and Uniform Order form.
If you require any assistance with using or installing SZapp, please contact Belinda.
Compassion and Saint Mary of the Cross Mackillop
We celebrate the feast day of Australian Saint Mary of the Cross this coming Saturday (8 August).
What is a SAINT?
The Church does not CREATE saints. Human beings make the conscious choice to do that for themselves. In being Christians, we are in fact all called to be saints; to live lives according to God’s commandments to love God and one another.
Mary Mackillop did this consistently throughout her life. To understand this is to understand that God was central in her life. She loved God and believed with all her heart in God’s love for her.
“I think of the love too deep for words to express, with which God watches over this children.”
(Mary Mackillop Aug 6, 1870)
This loving relationship gave her the will, courage and energy to pour out her life for others. No matter what she was going through herself, her love for God gave her the tenderness and compassion to be side‐by‐side with those who suffered – the poor, homeless, hungry, sick, imprisoned, particularly the children.
‘Whatever troubles may be before you, accept them cheerfully. Do not be afraid. Love one another, bear with one another and let charity guide you in all your life’
(Mary Mackillop January 12, 1909)
In her crowded life she was never far from prayer and this sustained her in ‘never seeing a need without trying to do something about it.’ She recognised God in all the events and people of her daily life.
‘God’s presence seems to follow me everywhere and makes everything I do or wish to do a prayer.’
(Mary MacKillop March 28, 1870—Aged 28)
Mary’s love for God gave her the courage to speak the truth even though this caused trouble for her. It gave her the tranquillity to face with serenity constant attack and vilification. It also gave her the ability to show compassion for her attackers. Mary suffered from poor physical health, which she also accepted with grace and peace. All of her sufferings reminded her that God was always present in her life.
‘We have had much sorrow, and are still suffering its effects, but sorrow or trial lovingly submitted to, does not prevent our being happy, it rather purifies our happiness and in doing so draws our hearts nearer to God. (1883)
Mary’s way of life inspired others to follow in her footsteps. They are the ‘Sisters of St Joseph’. Their emblem, which is worn close to their hearts, depicts symbols of the Holy Family. The blue overlapping letters A and M stand for Ave Maria (Hail Mary). between this symbol are three letters J in honour of Jesus, Joseph and John the Baptist.
Today, the Sisters of St Joseph can be found making a difference all over the world carrying on the mission of this Holy Family and Mary Mackillop; reaching out to all – especially the poor and needy - with love, compassion and faith.
In Crookwell we have our very own Sister of St Joseph – Sr Rosemary – who has been carrying on the work of Mary of the Cross for over 50 years. Happy feast day Sr Rosemary.
Parenting Through Your Child's Friendship Issues By Linda Stade
You know that moment, when you pick your child up from school and something is deeply wrong? As they approach the car, the emotion is barely concealed behind a carefully managed mask. The facade will not cope with even a kind word. The emotion is just waiting to tumble forth.
More often than not, that sort of pain is brought about by friendship issues: mean words, exclusion, gossip, drama, and the sort of politics that happens in social groups. It happens in every school. Let’s face it, it also happens in workplaces and families and adult friendships. It doesn’t feel good and we don’t condone it, but it is very human.
Adults recognise this pain when we see it in children. Often it triggers in us memories of our own horrible experiences. Armed with our pain and theirs, we blunder forwards. In our efforts to make things better we can exacerbate the problems; we react, instead of acting.
However, what if I told you, these tearful moments are a good thing? I know your hackles are rising, but stay with me. Lourdes Hill College clinical psychologist Kristina Morgan says, “Your child will fall, and they will feel overwhelmed. That’s okay. Believe it or not, you want that. They need the bumps to learn. You want them to find the gaps in their social and emotional competence so that you can support them while they fill those gaps.”
Positive social-emotional learning happens for your child when two vital elements come together:
- They have real emotional experiences.
- They see the way you positively respond to and manage those experiences.
This is the magic space where social-emotional learning happens for children… and parents.
Acting instead of reacting
Right from the very beginning of our children’s path through schooling we need to recognise that kids will not always get on. However, there are thoughtful ways you can approach your child’s experiences that will dramatically enhance their social and emotional learning:
- Acknowledge differences in children and families
Children are different from one another; we love that, and we want that. The things that make them individuals are the gifts they will offer the world. Families are also different. They have different values and views of the world. These differences mean sometimes there will be conflict. Recognise that and help children value difference.
- Acknowledge the competency gaps
Schools are full of young, beginning learners. They are developing, trying and stumbling. It is inevitable that they make mistakes and fall into their competency gaps. Just as they learn to read and do algebra, children learn social skills, and they don’t always get them right.
To compound the problem, our children are working with brains that are still developing, so they are relying largely on instinct. The instinct part of the brain is fully developed by early adolescence, whereas the rational, judgement part of the brain doesn’t reach adult state until the mid-twenties. Often what we see in young people experiencing friendship issues is a consequence of this discrepancy. Too much feeling and reacting, not enough reflecting and thinking.
- Share your adult-state brain
When your child is experiencing conflict and pain, every instinct is to swoop in and solve the problems. Please don’t. When we rush in to save a child, they receive two very clear messages:
- This situation is much worse than I thought it was
- I’m not capable of fixing my own problems
What you can do, which will make a big difference in the future, is to share your adult-state brain. That means, bring the calm and coach your child, rather than taking over. You can support your child and let them know you’re there for them. You can stand by their side and ask, “What’s your plan? I believe in you and I’m going to support you. Together, we’ve got this.”
- Sit with your discomfort
Not swooping in to fix things is easier said than done. It involves us dealing with our own negative feelings. Ms Morgan says, “When you react from your discomfort and race to fix things for your child, it makes YOU feel better. It doesn’t make anything better for your child; no learning takes place and no skills are practised.”
Please don’t confuse this ‘standing back’ with tough love. Ms Morgan emphasises,” I am not talking about tough love. Tough love doesn’t offer connection or support. Tough love walks away and leaves the child alone and groping around in the dark for skills they don’t even know are missing. Your calm allows your child to manage their own feelings. It lets them practise thinking for themselves.” We need to recognise that distinction between supporting and rescuing our children.
- Recognise this is a skills problem
It is interesting that when a child is having friendship problems, parents will usually say, “Josie/Joe is having friendship problems at school.” In reality, what is often happening is Joe or Josie just hasn’t developed all of their friendship skills yet, neither have the children around them. The problem would be made manifest in any environment where peers were consistently present. This is where we need to step up.
Kids need to learn skills and we need to teach them. That includes all kids. Ms Morgan says,
“Every parent needs to put in work to teach their kids these skills. If your child is popular, check if they are playing the teenage social ‘game’. Are they using people, things, or social media to gain social currency? These gains are short-lived. Is your child including others and are they empathic? They are their best selves and develop the best friendships when they help others up, not when they push them down.”
- Control your expectations and fears
As much as we hate to admit it, we sometimes contribute to our children’s friendship issues. We have expectations about how popular they should be and the sorts of friends they should have. Sometimes we panic if those expectations aren’t reaching fruition. It is not unusual for parents to ring their child’s school after the first couple of weeks of term, concerned that their child hasn’t got a best friend yet. These calls are about parental fear.
We worry if our kids don’t have ‘enough friends’ as though there is some magic number. That worry and fear is coming from a good place, but it is contagious and unhelpful. Children know if you think they are failing. What they need is for you to empower them. Ms Morgan says, “You empower your child with your connection and your constant support. You empower them with realistic expectations and by encouraging them to jump into the skill gaps. By joining new groups and trying new things they can have lots of small wins and build their skills along the way.”
Finally…
The best thing about friendship issues happening at school is that it is an environment where there are caring, guiding adults involved; parents and teachers. We just have to constantly remind ourselves we are dealing with children. It’s not always obvious, but other people’s kids are just like ours; growing, learning, imperfect beings. They’re all just figuring it out and it’s our job to guide with compassion.
Class Awards
The Student of the Week Award recipients this week are:
Kinder - Rory Bensley, Henry Butler and Aria White
Year 1 - Logan Anderson and Tommy Picker
Year 2 - Sophie Kilborn, Emmett McIntosh, Elkie Storrier and Maddie Strode
Year 3 - Phoebe Fannin
Year 4 – Sommer-Lee Gann and Naomi Picker
Year 5 - Charlie Cramp and Patrick Walsh
Year 6 - Alec McIntosh and Nathaniel Waters
School Spirit Awards
Archie Foran for striving for Excellence
Phoebe Fannin for showing Compassion
Jump Rope for Heart
Students across all classes have been busily and enthusiastically preparing for the Skip Off on Friday of Week 5. Students will wear mufti clothing, bring a gold coin donation and present their class skipping items. We are currently making arrangements to be able to stream the class items.
The P&F have very generously donated their supply of fizzy cans for each student to enjoy at the end of the Skip Off to celebrate their hard work. If you would prefer for your child/ren to NOT have soft drink can I ask that you email me at rachael.croker@cg.catholic.edu.au. Thank you to the P& F for this treat.
Gala Hockey Day
There are plans, COVID depending, that we will be working with Crookwell Public to hold a Gala Hockey day. This will be on a much smaller scale than in previous years with students from Years 3-6 from both schools participating. Stay tuned for possible date for later this Term.
Cricket NSW Gala Day
We have committed to participating in the Cricket NSW Gala Day on Wednesday 9 September. This will be held at Todkill Park and will involve all students from Years 3-6. The format of the day is still be negotiated, ensuring all COVID restrictions are adhered to.
More details to come closer to the date.
Wood Donation
As we are limited this year with the type of fundraising we can do, we have decided a wood raffle will be a good way to raise some more funds to support the school. If you are able to assist with supplying, cutting or carting some wood can you please contact our P&F President, Daniel Walsh djlmwalsh@hotmail.com.
Any donation, regardless of the amount, will be appreciated.
Tuckshop
If you would like to volunteer your time to assist on either a Monday or Friday and your name is not down on our list already, please fill in the form below.
Remember, many hands mean less work!
Update
An important update for SZapp has been released to accommodate for iPhones which have been intermittently receiving push notifications.
SZapp version 3.6.0 is available from the App Store now and we advise all iPhone users to install this version to ensure notifications are received correctly.
Users with automatic updates enabled on their device will receive this update automatically.
Frequently Asked Questions
For information and answers to lots of frequently asked questions, please follow this link: https://www.schoolzine.com/szapp-faq
All students (Year K-6) are required to please bring in an old wire coat hanger for their Art Focus Day, thank you.
Kindy: Monday 31 August
Year 1: (already been)
Year 2: Monday 17 August
Year 3: Monday 10 August (swapped with Year 5)
Year 4: (already been)
Year 5: Tuesday 11 August (swapped with Year 3)
Year 6: Monday 24 August
A reminder that all uniform must be paid for before or at time of collection from the School Uniform Shop.
Items will no longer be able to be taken home for trying on for size unless paid for first. There are spaces available in the Office that can be used for trying on. Alternatively items can be exchanged if tags have not been taken off after purchase.
Thank you for your understanding.
Wanted
If you have any old shopping bags you no longer want, can you please give them to the Office for sending uniform items home with students. Thank you.
Order Form
The Uniform List and Order form is now available on the school website in the Parent Page.
Items preferably should be ordered via Qkr and will be distributed on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Can every child please bring in a recycled water bottle so that we can make our own shakers for music.
Thank you!
Sacrament of the Eucharist
Enrolments for students in Year 4 or older wishing to receive their First Holy Communion need to be received to the Parish Office by Monday.
The Parent Information evening will be held at St Mary's on Thursday 13 August at 6.00pm.
Parish Office
For Parish and Sacramental matters please forward your enquiries to Parish Secretary, Janet Haynes or Pastoral Associate Sr Rosemary via email or call into the Parish Office at the Old Convent Building on Tuesdays or Thursdays.
Email: Crookwell@cg.org.au
Website: http://cg.org.au/crookwell/Home.aspx
Phone: 48321 633
Address: 55 Wade Street (the Old Convent Building)
Lost Property
Can we please ask that everyone keep an eye out for a pair of missing prescription glasses? The glasses have a navy blue frame and Minnie Mouse on the arms.
SDN Crookwell Preschool- Enrolling Now!
Enrolments for 2021 now open
Please phone 48323501 on Wednesdays between 9-3 for information
Drum Lessons
