SMC NEWS 2023 - Term 1, Week 7

Principal's Note

Dear Parents and Carers,

NAPLAN

NAPLAN online tests begin on Wednesday 15th March – Thursday 23rd March for Years 5, 7 and 9 across Australia.  Ms Jade Love is administering the exams again and I want to thank Jade and all teachers in English and Maths classes for their preparation of our students.  Preparation began in Term 4 2022 with work in the Writing, Reading, Language Conventions and Numeracy areas.  Also, our teachers in Skills lessons play an important role in going through the essential skills of NAPLAN.

Our focus this year is on the Writing Task.  As parents and carers of Years 5, 7 and 9, could we please reinforce the following to your son at home:

• The Writing task will either be a persuasive or narrative (story) piece responding to stimulus.  The correct genre is important.
• The most critical thing is to WRITE AND WRITE ACCURATELY. I have reproduced a marking guide from previous years. 
• Notice that only 5 marks out of 47 is allocated for IDEAS. It is important for the boys to WRITE TO THE RECIPE that we have taught in class:

Enrolment News

We have started our big enrolment push leading up to enrolments closing at Easter. Please remind friends and family that enrolments for 2024 are due soon. Principal tours are being held over the next two weeks and families can register through our website. Our staff and students are supporting these tours with their presence this year.

We look forward to seeing you at St Mary's College soon.

Reflection

Have a wonderful week,

Student Engagement

SMC Says NO WAY! To Bullying 

At Assembly last week, we launched a whole-school, five week campaign against bullying. While bullying is something that we are always watchful for, and responsive to, the next few weeks will give us a window to emphasise the strategies that we use here at the College to address bullying.

Our Assembly began last week with a shared understanding of what bullying is, and what it is not.

• Bullying is repeated and intentional behaviour.
• Bullying causes fear, distress or harm for another person.
• Bullying usually involves an imbalance of power.

Bullying is not conflict, disagreements, mutual conflict or single episode events. With help from some of the Year 12 leaders, we identified that hurtful behaviour could be rude or it could be mean but that didn’t make it bullying. We also used the recent message from Stymie, to ask boys to evaluate their behaviour as ‘helpful’ or ‘harmful’ – another useful tool to help us to reflect and to improve.

A competition was launched to help create some resources for our whole school – and there are significant prizes up for grabs. The poster for the SMC says NO WAY competition is included in this newsletter for your information.

This week, we will be using Assembly to look at the different ways that boys can report bullying or ask for help if they are involved in a disagreement or conflict with their peers. Please have some conversations with your son about this, as it is so important that they hear these keys messages from a range of sources.

Taking days off school: Is it really such a big deal?

Kids should go to school as often as their health allows them. From an educational perspective, it is self-evident. Consistent attendance at school makes a difference to learning and wellbeing outcomes. However, in Australia and many other western countries, attendance rates are falling.

Read more here: https://www.inspiringgirls.info/post/importance-of-school-attendance

Mrs Samantha Parle, Assistant Principal Student Engagement - parles@stmaryscollege.com

Curriculum

Years 5-9 Curriculum

NAPLAN Levels of Achievement 

We want to inform you about the recent changes to the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) Levels of Achievement. The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) have revised the NAPLAN performance bands to better reflect the skills and knowledge that students need to demonstrate to succeed in their education. 

The following will replace the numerical NAPLAN bands and the national minimum standard four levels of achievement: 

• Exceeding
• Strong
• Developing
• Needs additional support

These new levels are designed to provide a more accurate and comprehensive view of students' abilities and progress, and to help teachers and parents identify areas where students may require additional support. 

We are pleased to announce that we have updated our NAPLAN Awards criteria to reflect these new levels. We recognise that academic achievement is an important aspect of your child's education and are committed to realising their successes. Our updated NAPLAN awards will reflect the new achieving levels and continue supporting students who demonstrate outstanding performance in literacy and numeracy. In addition to our NAPLAN High Achievement Awards, we will recognise students who have shown significant growth from their previous NAPLAN results. Following NAPLAN testing, we look forward to celebrating and recognising students’ academic success in Term 2 once results have been published.  

We encourage you to talk to your son about these changes and to continue to support him in his education. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us. 

NAPLAN Schedule

What to Bring: 

All boys must arrive at each NAPLAN session with the correct materials. This includes: 

• Device (fully charged)
• Earphones (wired)
• Pencil case 

For more information on NAPLAN, please visit the ACARA/NAPLAN site.  Should you have any concerns regarding student participation, please get in touch with the College by Wednesday 8th March, 2023. 

Mrs Jade Love, Years 5-9 Curriclum Leader - lovej@stmaryscollege.com

Sport News

Australian Touch Selections

Congratulations to Year 11 student, Sam Sheppard who has been selected in the Aged 18 Boys Australian Touch team. 

Old Boys, Jacob and Riley Madden have also been selected in the Aged 20 Mixed Australian Touch team.

Well done, gentlemen!

Australian Boxing Title

Year 9 student, Junior Patterson won an Australian boxing title last weekend! He also won Golden Gloves in November and is fighting in the Queensland titles next weekend. Good luck, Junior!

Peak2Park

On Sunday, a number of St Mary's College students and staff participated in Peak2Park at Queens Park. It was a wonderful morning for a fun run. Well done, team!

Sports Report

St Mary's College is gearing up for an action-packed week of sports, and the staff are excited to showcase the talent and hard work of their students. From futsal to basketball to cricket, there's something for everyone to enjoy.

Starting on Wednesday 8th March, the U13's, U15's, and Opens Futsal teams will be taking on Downlands in the SWQ Schoolboys Futsal competition. David Lewis, Matthew Weston, and Paul Martin will be coaching the teams, respectively. The matches will take place at UniSQ, with the U13's kicking things off at 4.45pm, followed by the U15's at 5.30pm, and the Opens at 6.15 pm.

On Thursday 9th March, the Junior and Senior Cricket teams will be traveling to Scots PGC for the DD Independent Schools T20 competition. Todd Martens and Aidan Watterson will be coaching the teams, respectively. Both matches will start at 3.00pm, so the boys will be departing the College at second break. Thanks also to Mr Steer who will help drive the bus and get the boys there.

Friday 10th March is set to be an exciting day for basketball fans, with six matches scheduled to take place.

St Mary's College Stadium will play host to the 7/8 White, 9/10 White, and Opens teams who will be taking on Oakey State High School, while the 7/8 Blue and 9/10 Blue teams will be facing Centenary Heights State School. Jacob Pomfrett, Noah Silcox-Smith, and Akoi Manyok will be coaching these teams.

Adel Santino Dut will be coaching the 7/8 Gold team, who will be playing against Toowoomba Grammar School (White). This game will be played at Downlands College.

Please note that the scheduled times for games to start can change. Whilst the published times below is work we plan for as a College, we can experience last minute changes. This will be communicated through the parent paperwork should there be any changes.

• 5.10pm - Grade 7/8
• 7.00pm – Grade 9/10
• 9.00pm - Opens

Whether you're a fan of futsal, cricket, or basketball, be sure to come out and support the St Mary's College teams. The staff have been working hard to help these boys achieve success in their chosen sports, and they deserve all the encouragement they can get. So, mark your calendars and come cheer on your favourite teams!

Mr Scott Cowan, Head of Sport - cowans@stmaryscollege.com

Careers

Library

Australian Reading Hour – Read, Share, Enjoy

The Library team are excited to announce the return of Australian Reading Hour for 2023.

Australian Reading Hour is a time for all ages to unwind, learn new things and discover new stories through books. The Read, Share, Enjoy theme for 2023 encourages families to hold conversations together about themes they are coming across in the books they are reading. The conversations you have with your child about the content they are consuming encourage further development of their foundational literacy skills, as well as foster a positive attitude toward reading.

This year sees the national reading initiative move to a March date, and the Library is holding various timeslots for students to take part in quiet reading over two days – times as follows:

Wednesday 8^th March:

• Lesson 1: Year 5
• Lesson 3: Years 7-8
• Lesson 4: Years 9-12

Thursday 9^th March:

• Lesson 1: Year 6

Students are able to sign up by visiting the Library or discussing with their classroom teacher.

We’re hoping for a great turnout again this year, since books are a great way to unwind, learn new things, discover new stories, and build emotional literacy.

Please remind your son that this is an excellent opportunity to decompress in the midst of exams.

Anzac Day Liturgy

Our ANZAC Day liturgy will be held on Monday 24th April 2023 at 8.45am on the College Oval, Hill Stree (Week 2, Term 2).

Our ANZAC day service will begin with a march of Old Boys, or families of Old Boys, who are currently servicemen, or are returned servicemen. We ask that current students of St Mary’s College who have returned servicemen, or women, in their families, represent their relatives by wearing their medals and marching on their behalf. If you would like to participate or if you know of someone who would like to participate, please contact Mrs Lucia Armstrong at the College via phone (4631 7333) or email armstrongl@stmaryscollege.com.

If you have a family member who is a returned serviceman/woman, please encourage your son to be involved in this march wearing their service medals. Students who would like to be involved are asked to see Mr Murphy.

Musical "Big Fish - School Edition"

St Mary’s College Musical “Big Fish – School Edition” is shaping up to be an amazing production. Rehearsals began in Term 4 of 2022 and will continue in Term 1.  The dedicated cast and staff gave up three days of their school holidays to fine tune and finish Act 1 of the show. It was wonderful to see the cast reunite and throw themselves into some intense dance choreography and vocal training.

Big Fish centres on Edward Bloom, a travelling salesman who lives life to its fullest... and then some! Edward's incredible, larger-than-life stories thrill everyone around him - most of all, his devoted wife Sandra. But their son Will, about to have a child of his own, is determined to find the truth behind his father's epic tales. Overflowing with heart, humor and spectacular stagecraft, Big Fish is an extraordinary Broadway musical.

Three shows only:

• Thursday 20th April at 7.00pm
• Friday 21st April at 7.00pm
• Saturday 22nd April at 7.00pm

Don't miss this outstanding performance by St Mary's College, St Saviour's College and St Ursula's College students! Tickets on sale now at https://www.trybooking.com/CFGYT.

Sponsorship opportunities are available. If you would like to receive a copy of the sponsorship prospectus, please email Mrs Tyhla Roper at ropert@stmaryscollege.com.

Introducing the Cast

Meet William Bloom

William Bloom played by St Mary's College student, Nick Bielby – An earnest, thoughtful young man wanting to reconnect with his father, but unable to appreciate Edward’s romantic view of life. He is a successful professional, new husband, and expectant father.

Past & Present Choir

New Choral Ensemble - St Mary’s College Past and Present Choir

We would like to invite any current parents and old boys who love to sing to come and join the St Mary’s College Past and Present Choir.

We will be performing at the Toowoomba Eisteddfod in the Contemporary section. We aim to have a song selected and parts sent out prior to our rehearsal for people to learn their parts, then we come together for a rehearsal and possibly a drink or two afterwards.

If you are interested in being involved in this new project, please contact me and I will be able to send you more information. My email is cherie.runciman@twb.catholic.edu.au.

Mrs Cherie Runciman (Choral Conductor)

Audiology Testing

Dear Families, 

Good hearing health is essential for children to reach their full potential in all life areas, especially when it comes to school performance. 

Quite often, hearing loss has a profoundly negative effect on academic performance and social and emotional wellbeing. Commonly the signs of poor hearing can be overlooked and mistaken for other behaviours or conditions. 

Children with a history of ear infections, grommets or other poor hearing health are recommended to engage with this service. Other concerns may include: 

• Inattentiveness
• Inappropriate/irrelevant responses to questions
• Ringing in ears
• Exposure to loud recreational activities on a regular basis
• Daydreaming
• Trouble following directions
• Speech concerns and language concerns 
• Phonological awareness delays 
• Ongoing illnesses such as regular colds and runny noses

St Mary’s College is hosting Carbal Hearing Health for Audiology testing in Week 10 of Term 1.  If you would like your child to participate in this service, please contact the Curriculum Leader Inclusive Education, Mrs Louise Kennedy for more information (kennedyl@stmaryscollege.com).

New Parent Portal App

We are excited to announce that our new Parent Portal App is now available for parents to access.

To access the app please follow these steps:

• Open App Store or Google Play
• Search "St Mary's Toowoomba"
• Download the app (picture below)

The app includes important information and a live calendar with event information, that will act as our point of truth moving forward. 

The Hub

Support is available to all students who require assistance with homework, assignments or reviewing current classwork. Support is available in the Hub every morning before school from 7.00am and at both lunch breaks. Support will also be available after school on Thursday afternoons from 3.05pm until 4.00pm. If you would like further information, please get in touch.

Mr Dave Roy, Learning Support Teacher - royd@stmaryscollege.com

Tuckshop Menu (Term 1)

The St Mary's College Tuckshop is excited to launch a new menu for Term 1. Please note we have increased the hot and cold food options we offer everyday in addition to our menu specials. 

Tuckshop is open for breakfast before school from 7.45am and at both lunch breaks. We offer cash and EFTPOS.

Week Ahead

2024 Enrolments

Do you have family or friends considering St Mary's College? Are you hoping to enrol another son at St Mary's College? The closing date for 2024 enrolments is Easter, 2023.