Our Explicit Improvement Agenda

Student Voice and Agency

Planning for improved student learning

CELEBRATIONS OF LEARNING

Athletics Day

Our warmest congratulations to all students, staff and parents on a fantastic Athletics Day last Friday at Casey Fields.  It was a great day full of community spirit and student achievements.  A very big THANK YOU to Mr Tim for his planning and organisation of the event, his diligence in checking the weather and being at Casey Fields bright and early on Friday morning to ensure all the track and field events could go ahead safely and as planned. 

Thank you to our staff for their support and efforts on the day and to all the parent volunteers and helpers who helped to make the day such a success - we are very fortunate to have such dedicated staff, amazing ‘parents as partners’ in our school community and to be able to celebrate very special days like last Friday.  More information on the Athletics Day and students who participated at Regional Athletics on Wednesday are in the newsletter under the PE Section.  

Grandparents Mass and Morning Tea - Friday 20 October

We are very much looking forward to our Grandparents Mass and Morning Tea tomorrow (Friday 20 October).  The response to photos and messages from families has been extraordinary and is an indication of the deep love, respect and cherished moments we have with all our family members.  Thank you to Lize Privitera for her organisation of the Mass, our Administration Staff and parents for the setting up and serving at morning tea and teachers/ESO staff for organising the special time in classrooms.  More information on the Grandparents Mass, Morning Tea and Mission fundraising is in Lize Privitera’s section of the newsletter.

Timetable for Grandparents Day - Entry via Welcome Gate and Lowry Court Gate

• 10.00 - 10.30am   Time in Classrooms
• 10.30 - 11.15am   Morning Tea in the Lomas Gym
• 11.30 - 12.30pm   Mass celebration in the Allen Hall

Welcome Gate entry - Parking available in the school car park near the Allen Hall

Lowry Court Gate entry - Parking available in the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints car park - gates will close after mass

Important Dates and School Events 

School Advisory Committee [SAC] Meeting - Annual General Meeting

Tuesday 17 October, 2023 at 7.00 pm

The Annual General Meeting of the SAC was held on Tuesday in the Staffroom.  We warmly welcome Louise (mum of Emma FSL) to our SAC Committee.  Our current 2023-2024 School Advisory Committee comprises of the following members:

• Chairperson - Liz Jones
• Parish Priest - Fr. Brendan Hogan
• Parent Representative - Danielle (Secretary)
• Parent Representative - Stephanie, Marina, Yogesh, Louise
• Staff Representative - Helen Fourna
• Staff/Parish Representative - Lize Privitera

In the Chairperson’s report a special mention was made to Danielle for her role as Secretary of SAC, in keeping us informed of upcoming SAC meetings, agenda and minutes circulation each term.  An extra special mention and farewell was included for Julie Gubbels for her time on SAC as parent representative over a number of years.  We will miss Julie’s insights, practical suggestions and laughter - thank you Julie for your highly valued contributions to our school and SAC meetings.

Please don’t hesitate to email or make contact with the office OR a member of the School Advisory Committee if you have any questions regarding our SAC.

GRANDPARENTS MORNING TEA AND MASS CELEBRATION tomorrow – Families and grandparents/special persons are invited to attend MMPS annual Grandparents morning tea and Mass celebration. Invitations have been prepared and sent home with students.

We appreciate all of the parents and friends that shared pictures and/or videos. We are excited to share these with everyone during our mass celebration tomorrow because of the amazing response we received.

Catholic Mission Fundraisers

Each grade will be involved in a fundraising effort supporting Catholic Mission through Socktober activities. Please refer to the table below:

Families and grandparents are invited to support the activity by donating $1 or $2.  Thank you for your continued support in making Socktober 2023 a success at our school. Together, we can create positive change and teach our students the importance of empathy and kindness. 

Parish Schools Parent Prayer Group

Parents and families are invited to attend our Parent Prayer Group. In the busyness of our lives it can be a real challenge to take time to be present, to take time for prayer, faith and meditation. Let us take an opportunity to make a small change, a step towards prayerfulness, making space for God in our lives.  We will be alternating venues for the Parent Prayer Group between Trinity Catholic Primary School chapel, Mary MacKillop Primary School chapel and Don Bosco Primary School Library. We encourage parents to visit the different schools to get to know our wider Parish school community and engage in moments of prayer together.

Below is the planned roster of dates and locations for Term 4. The facilitation of the sessions will be shared among the clergy from the Parish, Fr Brendan, Fr Ajin, and the Schools RELs - Emily, Tahlia & Lize. There were ten parents present for the first session, which started last week. A fantastic turnout for the inaugural event!

The chapel will be open from 9am for all those interested in attending with sign in sheets available. Don Bosco Library will be open from 8:50am. We are looking forward to seeing you at the prayer groups! 

Parish Schools Parent Prayer Group

We warmly invite parents and parishioners to gather in the school chapel at 9am Wednesday each week for prayer. 

Class and Whole School Mass schedule – please note the upcoming buddy mass and whole school mass schedule during the remaining weeks of Term 4. Parents and friends are welcome to attend.  See table below:

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

Sunday, October 22, 2023

Matthew 22:15-21

The Pharisees send their disciples to test Jesus with a question about taxes.

In next Sunday’s Gospel, the Pharisees ask Jesus a trick question in hope of injuring his credibility and getting him into trouble. Think about the times when you do not give God what is due to God. Even though there are times when we are not the person that God wants us to be—when we are not loyal to God—we can always ask forgiveness. When you are faced with choices this week, think about whether or not your decisions will honour your loyalty to God.

Remembrance Day

The Berwick RSL have once again provided Remembrance Day poppies and associated stock to be offered for sale on their behalf. The Remembrance Appeal raises funds to support former and serving members of the Australian Defence Forces and dependents when in need. Most of the funds are raised through the sale of Poppies. Leading up to Remembrance Day our student leaders will be selling merchandise during recess. Items range from $1 to $5.

Our Welcome Garden will transform into a field of knitted poppies during this time. We also honour the memory of our friends and family members who have passed away. Families are invited to put a loved one's name on a card (provided at the school office) and attach it to a poppy as a gesture of remembrance. 

On Friday 10th November students will lead a Remembrance Day Service during Assembly. More details in the next newsletter.

Remembrance Day - Berwick  - High Street - 10.40am ceremony & wreath laying

WHOLE SCHOOL ATHLETICS DAY 

Congratulations to all staff, students and parent helpers who contributed to a successful athletics day despite the wet weather last Friday . It was fantastic to see all the students participate in sprint races , long jump, hurdles, shot put and novelty relays with great spirit, effort and skill.

The final results were as follows :

1st - PORTLAND - 1459 POINTS

2nd- FITZROY- 1335 POINTS

3rd- EDEN - 1291 POINTS

4th - PENOLA - 1279 POINTS

REGIONAL ATHLETICS

Congratulations to Leonardo (100m sprint yr 6) Cruz (Discuss yr 5) and Cecille (Long Jump yr 4) who competed in the Southern Metro Regional Athletics Day yesterday. This is a high level of competition, one step away from the state championships, so we are extremely proud of these students for reaching this level.

This term in Maths, the Year 1’s have been learning about patterns. We have learnt about repeating patterns, number patterns and growing patterns. Below are some quotes from the Year 1’s about their new knowledge: 

“Repeating patterns are when you keep doing the same thing over and over again” - Jude 

“Growing patterns grow and have something added each time” - Savannah 

“My favourite patterns are the growing patterns because they are new, interesting and challenging” - Jordan

“We learnt how to describe the rule for patterns such as ABC patterns, AAB patterns or ABBC patterns” - Lucas

“We showed student voice in our growing patterns because we could make whatever pattern we wanted like a snowflake or a Christmas tree” - Rosanne

“It was super fun to make growing patterns because I got to make it bigger and bigger each time” - Samuel 

“I liked how we got to work in groups and work as a team to make some really cool growing patterns” - Eden 

“I liked making growing patterns because we could use the blocks to make lots of cool designs” - Emma

“Growing patterns can be many different shapes and sizes and we can all do it together as a team” - Maikeli 

PARISH FOOD FEST

Dear school families,

Our Parish Pastoral council are organising a Fund Raiser event and we are extending a warm invitation to all families to support the event by attending the OLHC Parish Food Fest on 18th November 2023. There will be a number of food stalls that would have international cuisine for you to enjoy and also a couple of food trucks and a Sri Lankan Hopper Van . We have games and other fun activities for children, including  fairy floss and pop- corn machines. It will be a fun – filled afternoon and we are sure you won’t be disappointed.

Hope to see you all there  - Thank you - OLHC Parish Pastoral Council.

Child Safe Standards

Our school is safe, student centred and animated by our school values.  

We aim to Inspire Hearts and Minds.

"Children are the future of the human family: all of us are expected to promote their growth, health and tranquillity." Pope Francis 2021

At Mary MacKillop Primary School, we believe that ensuring the safety of the students in our care is an integral part of who we are as a Catholic faith community. We adhere to Victorian Child Safe Standards and Ministerial Order No. 1359.  We embed a culture of child safety and the matter is taken very seriously.

MMPS Child Safe Standards

Catholic Education Commission of Victoria (CECV)

The updated CECV Statement of Commitment to Child Safety - A safe, nurturing and empowering culture for all children and young people in Catholic schools, is attached to this newsletter.  This statement has been updated in light of the revised Child Safe Standards coming into effect from 1 July 2022 and the supporting Ministerial Order No. 1359

Parent Education - Rescources to support parents and carers

• eSafety Commissioner https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents.
• For Families https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents/parent-resources/online-safety-for-every-family
  • Online safety for every family 
    • Express learning for busy families 
      • eSafety's express learning series provides parents and carers with practical tips and advice on common online safety concerns. The videos are 5 to 10 minutes long and cover four important topics, including
        •  Setting up parental controls
        •  Digital technologies and mental health
        • Cyberbullying and online drama
        • Online sexual harassment and image-based abuse
• CCYP - Commission for Children and Young People https://ccyp.vic.gov.au/child-safe-standards/
• School TV https://marymacnarre.catholic.schooltv.me/wellbeing_news
• Bravehearts https://bravehearts.org.au/
• Happy Families https://schools.happyfamilies.com.au/login/mmnwn
  • Password: happymmnwn

Daniel Morcombe Foundation - Day For Daniel - Friday 27th October

 As part of a comprehensive whole school approach to personal safety education, teachers utilise the broad resources provided by the Daniel Morcombe Foundation to encourage positive discussions and in turn, promote better decision making and safer outcomes. On Friday 27th October all staff, students and families are invited to wear RED supporting the Day for Daniel campaign.