15/2013

15th May 2013

Wednesday, 15th May

- NAPLAN Test

- Open Night 6pm

Thursday, 16th May

- NAPLAN Test

- Interschool Futsal 3.30pm

Friday, 17th May

- Motivational Media

Presentation

Sunday, 19th May

- P&F Working Bee 8am

Tuesday, 21st May

- TLC Assembly

- Premiers Reading Challenge

Begins

- P&F Meeting 7pm

Friday, 24th May

- Saint Mary’s Feast Day

Tuesday, 28th May

- Whole School Assembly

- WB Cross Country

Bundaberg

- SW Futsal Titles Harristown

Wednesday, 29th May

- Reconciliation Liturgy 9am

Dear Parents, Carers and Friends of Saint Mary’s, Yesterday, I had the opportunity to duck around and wish all of our Years 3, 5, 7 & 9 students the best as they began their NAPLAN tests. We do our best to make these tests as least stressful and intrusive to our students as possible. Against sound educational advice, some schools spend a disproportionate amount of time on NAPLAN preparation simply to try and improve their NAPLAN scores. However while we prepare our students for NAPLAN, we ultimately teach to the Australian Curriculum for the maximum long term educational benefit for our students. The NAPLAN test is just one indicator of how students are travelling, and from most studies, probably not one of the best indicators. We do look at the NAPLAN data to see how far our students have progressed since their previous NAPLAN tests, and this data is extremely positive for Saint Mary’s students, with the vast

majority making significant improvements way beyond the average expected improvement. Families will remember that last year’s 2012 Year 9 cohort had the second best NAPLAN results for all Bris-bane Catholic Education schools from Maryborough to the Gold Coast. Each year, the College celebrates National Reconciliation Week. This year, we will celebrate with a liturgy beginning at 9am on Wednesday, May 29 followed by an official opening of our Bunya Dreaming garden. We are currently sending out invitations to elders, school leaders and our Indigenous families to attend, but I would also like to invite all families to join us. As we approach Reconciliation Week, it is interesting to hear the story of Archbishop John Bede Polding (Patron of our Polding House) and his work for Reconciliation. John Bede Polding was born in Liverpool, England, on November 18, 1794. He was educated by Benedictine nuns and monks and joined the Benedictine community in 1811.Throughout his life Polding found the Rule of Benedict a source of rich Gospel-based wisdom. Polding had the dream of being the ‘Bishop of Botany Bay’ become a reality when he arrived in Australia in 1835 as the first Catholic bishop. More visionary than practical administrator, Polding dreamt of building a Church based on Benedictine principles and practices. After the Kilcoy Incident (1842) where 60 Aboriginal people were poisoned with arsenic-laced damper, Polding set to work on creating an Aboriginal mission on North Stradbroke Island. In 1845, Archbishop Polding appeared before a Parliamentary Select Committee on the Aborigines. His words reveal the depth of his compassion for what he believed was a “burning injustice” with regard to Indigenous people. “I am making myself black, putting myself in that position and taking away all that I know except that this is my country, that my father lived by pursuing the emu, and the kangaroo, and I am driven away from my hunting grounds, that my children and tribe are subjected to the grossest barbarities…” In his 1849 pastoral letter to Australian Catholics, he said, “Aborigines of the country – the first occupants of the lands over which your flocks and herds now roam – have a very strong claim upon you. Nor will the Lord hold you innocent if you have not used your best endeavours to promote their temporal and eternal well-being.” During 1850 he travelled extensively throughout Queensland including Nanango and Barambah Station and wrote of his concern at the extermination of the Aboriginal people: “They were shot down in Queensland like wild dogs and with as little remorse.” In numerous settings during his long life, Polding expressed his dismay and his deep concern about the way in which white settlements were overtaking Indigenous people, their culture and their way of life. He com-plained bitterly to the legislative bodies of his day about the ongoing destruction of the Indigenous peoples and their spiritual attachment to the land. His ‘Benedictine dream’ also saw the establishment of two Benedictine communities of women: the Benedictine Community at Jamberoo and the Sisters of the Good Samaritan which began in 1857 and who

went on to found our own Saint Mary’s community. Polding is also credited with laying the foundations of Catholic education in Australia. When Polding died in 1877, his funeral was the largest ever held in Australia. More than 100,000 people joined the funeral procession through the streets of Sydney. Sources: www.goodsams.org.au/ & www.catholicweekly.com.au/ Yours in Christ

Mr Michael Nayler Principal

From the Deputy Pentecost The Easter Season begins at the Easter Vigil and ends fifty days later on the feast of Pentecost. The whole of Eastertide was originally called Pentecost and it was considered to be one big festival. There are three major feasts within the fifty days: Easter (the resurrection), Ascension (Jesus is taken into heaven) and Pentecost (sending of the Holy Spirit). The liturgical colour for the season is white, with the exception of Pentecost, when red vestments are worn. The fiftieth day after Easter Sunday is called Pentecost Sunday. ‘Pentecost’ is derived from a Greek word, meaning ‘the fiftieth’ day. Both Jews and Christians celebrate this feast. For Christians, Pentecost refers to the fiftieth day after the Resurrection of Christ when the Holy Spirit descended on the first Christians in the form of tongues of fire (Acts 2:1ff). Those first Christians were Jews and they reinterpreted their traditions in the light of what they knew about Jesus. So the Jewish feast of Pentecost became the celebration of the new covenant with Christ. St Paul, for example, applied all the themes relating to the Jewish feast to Christ: Jesus is ‘our paschal lamb’ (1 Cor 5:7), the ‘mediator of a new covenant’ (Heb 9:15) and ‘the first fruits of those who have died’ (1 Cor 15:20). Year 11 Dinner Last Wednesday night Mr Curran, Mr Richard and I accompanied the Year 11 class to a dinner at the Carrollee Hotel. We had a lovely meal (some people had 2 or 3!) and it was a great way to strengthen relationships for our 2014 leaders. Thank you to the students and Mr Richard for organising such a wonderful night and I hope there will be more. Dropping off students Some parents are driving around the back of the school and dropping children off. Please do not drop off students or use the back entrance of the school. This is for staff and trades people only to gain access to the TTC or MKC. Thank you for your co-operation in this matter.

I would also like to remind parents and carers to please move forward when picking up students in the afternoon in the Stop Drop and Go zone. God bless Mr Sean Erwin Deputy Principal

APA News Equestrian News Some important information for Students and Parents associated with the Equestrian Team: 1. Nominations for the Fraser Coast Equestrian Competition (in Maryborough August 29th and 30th) are now open. Parents should go to www.nominate.com.au to do all nominations on line, and also book a camp site. Payment is via credit card. This should be done as soon as possible, as most events have restricted entry. 2. Date Claimer: the College is again running the South Burnett Equestrian Competition. It will be held at the Kingaroy Showgrounds on Tuesday 23rd July. 3. Equestrian Team Uniform: In order to make our students look like a uniform team, we are currently considering making the equestrian team uniform, the boy’s maroon shirt and tie for both boys and girls. This will eliminate the problems associated girls having the blouse with a pinned hemline that doesn’t tuck into moleskin trousers for riding. We are also hoping that we have a number of these second hand shirts in various sizes available for the girls to purchase, since they will only be worn a few times per year. This will be confirmed soon. 4. Horse needed: there are a few students in the College looking for horses to ride (borrow or buy). If you have a horse suitable for young riders, (or know of someone who does), please contact me so that I can put you in contact with some of these students and their parents. Have a great week. Mr John Dalton APA

APRE News Family Mass next Sunday 26th May Year 1 and Year 7 students have been invited to lead the parish Mass next Sunday. Mrs Moya Hayden commenced singing practice for interested students today. It is hoped that in the future we can get a core group of interested singers and musicians to lead the music once a month. So far a little group has sung and done a great job. Pentecost Sunday This Sunday is Pentecost Sunday. The day has great significance in the Hebrew Scriptures as it signified 50 days after Moses received the Torah and it became quite a celebration for the Jews called Shavuot (pent meaning fifty). The event Catholics remember is the gathering for

this feast but with a massive twist - a visit from the Holy Spirit. The event is full of imagery and symbol and in many ways became the green light for people at these gatherings, no longer just Jewish people, to remember the recently risen Jesus. It is a time of new beginnings; no longer was Jesus with them but they were buoyed by the presence of the Holy Spirit and given the fortitude to come out of hiding. It required a certain level of faith that they found with the help of the Holy Spirit. It is a time we can recommit to some of our beliefs and to remain authentic to the things we value and hold dear. In the secularised world in which we live, the challenge to remain faithful and authentic, presents itself every day. Our College has the privileged role of helping youth articulate these beliefs and to help them remain true to them, be they religious or otherwise. Francis – New Pope, New Hope Winds of change are blowing and Pope Francis has already been credited with improved dialogue between Anglicans and Catholics, renewed discussion about the role of women in the Church and a focus on economic rationalism and social justice. These themes came out of an editorial in The Tablet entitled, ‘Thinking the Unthinkable’ (4th May 2013), and they refer to the leadership of the new Pope. Like the followers at Pentecost who needed faith and courage, His Excellence might be an agent of change for the Church. Our College Feast Day – May 24th Next Friday morning, the whole school will gather in the Mary Knoll Centre for a Liturgy of the Word to celebrate our Patron Saint, Mary Help of Christians. Mary is not only our college name sake and the Patron of our parish, she is also the Patroness of Australia. Mary Help of Christians came as a title for the protection of Christians under persecution in the middle ages. As for Australia, when Cardinal Patrick Moran of Sydney wrote his History of the Catholic Church in Australia, he recalled the laying of the foundation stone of what was to become the first cathedral in this land. His eminence asked: "Who was the patron selected by the people and their newly arrived pastor, Father Therry, for the Mother Church? Mary, the Immaculate Mother of God, under the special invocation of Help of Christians, was chosen patroness.” (http://www.theworkofgod.org/Library/MaryHelp/Patronss.htm, accessed; 14th May, 2013) There are some fabulous images of Our Lady of the Southern Cross and the like. Warm regards Mr Martin Perrett APRE

Library Corner Lexile Awards

Congratulations to the following

students who have received Lexile awards!

Blue Award (3 books)

Angus Robertson, Jacob Haydon,

Tom Pennell and Angus Pace

Red Award (5 books)

Joshua Gronbach, Kate Lipsett-Batts and

Emily Ross

Bronze Award (10 books)

Holly Stephens, Riley Berends and

Paige Parsons

Overdue/damaged textbooks from

2012 (Yr 7-12)

Letters were sent home last week as a final

reminder to return or pay for

lost/damaged textbooks from last year.

Students have already been individually

spoken to and families notified last year

and earlier this term. Please encourage

your child to return/discuss their

overdue textbooks with library staff

ASAP, if they haven’t already done so.

Book Fair

Our school will be hosting

another popular Scholastic

Book Fair in Week 8 (3rd-7th June) in the

media room. Book Fair will be open

mornings and afternoons. Various

payment options are available this year

including credit slips and order forms.

Chess Competition

There will be a school chess

competition (all ages) in

Week 9/10 of this term. A team of

competitors will be taken to Maryborough

in August to compete regionally. More

information about this will be provided

closer to the date.

Kind regards,

Mrs Melanie Burr Teacher Librarian

Curriculum Corner Change to Assessment item for Year 8 History -The scheduled written stimulus test will now be administered in Week 7 and not this week as specified on the assessment calendar. Let peace be your quest and aim Mrs Melanie Burr Middle Years Coordinator Prep to Year 6 News Welcome to week 5! Thank you to Mr Scanlan for his wonderful introduction for parents and students to the College Violin Immersion Program. The support from parents was awesome to see, and I’m sure we all have a much better understanding about how to support our children in their study of this instrument. Our College strings program is very special to our school, and we are very lucky that our

children have this opportunity. Year 4 enjoyed a fun adventure yesterday to the T J O’Neil library, Nanango Energy Centre, and to the Endeavour Biscuit factory in Kingaroy. Staff enjoyed some delicious biscuits at the staff meeting yesterday. Thank you year 4! Our College Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 students have completed two of the Naplan tests with the final tests in Numeracy tomorrow. Our students are very well prepared and we wish them and our teachers all the best for this final test. Thank you to Mrs Cross for the enormous amount of work she has put into preparing Saint Mary’s for Naplan. Congratulations to Year 1, Mr Scanlan, and their conductor Miss Van Dyk who placed second in the Own Choice Primary Choir at the recent Kingaroy Eisteddfod! Caitlyn Carney also placed second in piano. Congratulations! Congratulations also to Stephanie Arrell who was selected in the Kingaroy/Nanango Representative team for netball, and played in Bundaberg 11years team. We wish Stephanie the best of luck when she plays in this team at Maryborough. We are so proud of all the different talents that our Saint Mary’s students show, in sporting, academic, creative and musical activities. Well done to all children whose unique gifts shine in these areas. This evening is our College Open Night from 6pm. Please refer to further details in this newsletter. It would be wonderful to meet new families who are interested in joining the St Mary’s community on this night. Everyone is most welcome to pop in to see our Year 2 and Year 4/5 classrooms, as well as the primary computing room. Miss Celia O’Connor Prep - 6 Coordinator

Tuckshop News Friday’s extra choice menu Morning Tea and Lunch Savoury mince rolls $3.50 Lunch Bag System Only Chicken and macaroni bake $3.50 Orders only - no orders will be accepted after morning tea on Friday. Kind regards Mrs Michelle Davis Tuckshop Convenor

P&F News Next Meeting The next P&F Meeting is 21st May at 7pm in the College Board Room. All are welcome to attend. Working Bee Exciting news from the amazing P&F! The next P&F Working bee is this Sunday 19th May. All you need to do is bring a wheelbarrow, shovel, rake, blower, line

trimmer, brush cutter, blowers and brooms etc. and join the working bee from 8am to 12noon. Hope to see you all there. Woolworths Earn and Learn Don’t forget to collect your Woolworths Earn and Learn stickers. You will get one sticker for every $10 spent. Place the Woolworths Earn and Learn Points onto a Woolworths Earn and Learn sheet located at student reception. These sheets can be handed into the College Office or placed in the collec-tion box located at Woolworths Kingaroy. Items for Sale We have 60 Hessian Bags 585x1015 $1.50 each and Weed Mats 600x600 $1.20 each. Please contact the office if you are interested in purchasing any of these items. God’s Blessings, Mr Damien Martoo P&F President Personalise Label Drive Kids’ school labels, wall stickers and school bags. Support the P&F by going to www.brightstarkids.com.au, shopping and then at the checkout choosing St Mary's Catholic College P&F Association. See Bron Langford-Martoo for any more information. Mrs Bronwyn Langford Martoo Sticker Drive Coordinator

Art News Last week one of Saint Mary's senior Visual Arts students, Lylah Calvert was chosen as a finalist in the USQ annual art award and exhibition entitled, 'Escape from the Zoo'. She describes her piece 'Materialistic Wings' as, 'Small material patches of pink, black, blue and white were worked together to create an elegant, vintage look amongst the veins of the wing. Antique laces and styled fabrics were used to create that effect.' Her work is now on display in the USQ ArtS Gallery Toowoomba until the 6th June. Great work, Lylah! Mrs Bronwyn Langford Martoo Art Teacher

Counsellor News I spend a lot of time with people of all ages who seem to be looking for something different from what is present, what their reality is. Maybe the following excerpt by Jeff Foster’s book “an Extraordinary

Digital Art Goes Wild

Kingaroy Regional Art Gallery's Acquisitivie Youth Art

Competition has $2000 in prizes in digital art. If you are 12 - 24 and

interested in digital art please see Mrs Langford Martoo for an entry

form!

Absence” echoes the same questioning. Sit with it for a while. The Search for Home Looking for something more. Something else. Something other than what’s happening. Something - in the future – that will satisfy us, complete us, save us. Looking for the answers. Driving ourselves mad with the questions. We never seem to be able to just come to rest here, to fully relax into what’s happening. There is a constant pull into a future moment when things will be better. And with our attention so fixed on the future - and its reflection, the past – what’s present-ly happening gets reduced to a means to an end, just one moment in a series of many. We hope the future moments will be better than this one. We just never seem to be content with this. Regards Mr Graham Turnbull Guidance Counsellor

SB Community Orchestra RACQ Careflight Rescue ‘Gangsters & Gals’ Charity Dinner 6.30pm at Kingaroy Town Hall on Saturday, 25th May 2013. Tickets $60 per person Includes 3 course dinner with licensed

bar available Raffles, lucky door prizes Prize for the best ‘Gangster & Gal’

couple Entertainment by South Burnett

Community Orchestra All proceeds going to RACQ

Careflight Rescue Book a table - bring your friends Email: sborchestra@hotmail.com For table booking and enquiries phone Wendy Kelly 0409 270 496

Annual Cent Auction Yarraman Kindergarten invites you to our Annual Cent Auction Saturday, 15th June 2013 Doors open at 8am Calling starts at 10am sharp Yarraman Memorial Hall Entry $5 - includes morning tea and a sheet of tickets Come along and bring your friends for a fun-filled morning. For more details and early bird tickets contact Yarraman Kindy on 4163 8174 or yarramankindy@bigpond.com

Date Claimer…….

15th May 3,5,7,9 Testing Open Night 16th May 3,5,7,9 Testing Inter school Futsal 3.30pm 17th May Motivational Media Presentation 19th May P&F Working Bee 8am-12pm 21st May TLC Assembly Premiers Reading Challenge Begins P&F Meeting 7pm 24th May Saint Mary’s Feast Day 28th May Whole School Assembly WB Cross Country Bundaberg SW School Futsal Titles Harristown 29th May Reconciliation Liturgy 9am 30th May Year 4 Camp SW School Futsal USQ 31st May Year 4 Camp Immunisation Clinic 3rd June Book Fair 4th June Whole School Assembly 6th June QLD Day 7th June “Ditto’s” Presentation P-3 11th June TLC Assembly Young Australia Performance P-6 12th June Year 11/12 Drama Excursion 17th June Year 7 Reflection Day DPI 18th June Year 6 Reflection Day Whole School Assembly 20th June 10 Years to Open Athletics Carnival 21st P-12 Sprints and Relays. Prep to 4 Sports Rotation