Welcome back to Term 3!

We hope you all had some time to rest and enjoy each other’s company during the break. This term we continue our focus on:

• Student Voice and Agency
• Planning for Improved Student Learning - key focus on Mathematics and Reading

There are many events to look forward to this term so please see the calendar attached to the newsletter and PAM eforms coming home this week. We hope many of you are able to attend our School Family Parish Mass at Our Lady Help of Christians at 6pm on Sat 2 August.

Student Devices

A reminder to all parents/carers of students in Years 4-6 that the devices which come each day belong to the school - they are school property.  At school, while students are using the devices, we have very strong filters which block students from being able to access any inappropriate content.

However, when the devices go home the filters which are in place at school are NOT in place at home. For this reason, students should always be using their devices in a public area at home and be under supervision from parents/carers. Students should only be using devices for the purpose of completing Home Learning.

To support students further, we have engaged with Inform and Empower Cyber and Safety Education program in addition to the other programs we offer each year. 

To support parents/carers further we are offering a Parent Seminar called Raising Kids in a Digital World  on Thursday 11 September: @ 6.30 - 8pm in MMPS Allen Hall.

https://www.informandempower.com.au/program/parent-seminars

I urge all parents/carers to attend this evening.This will not be booked every year so please make the most of this opportunity.

Today, we say farewell to Tylah Meunier, who has been a valued staff member of Mary Mac for over seven years. During his time with us, Tylah has made a significant contribution as an Education Support Officer, working closely with students across a range of year levels. Tylah has also taken on the role of our very capable general maintenance person—always willing to lend a hand and ensure things run smoothly around the school.

Tylah’s presence, positivity, and commitment will be deeply missed. We thank him sincerely for his hard work and dedication, and we wish him all the very best as he embarks on the next chapter of his career.

Welcome to 'Camp Australia'

A very big welcome to 'Camp Australia' our new Before and After School Care provider. Over the holidays the entire space was painted, the floors were stripped back and resealed and the area was thoroughly cleaned including putting down a new kitchen floor and installing a new dishwasher.

'Camp Australia' have brought in brand new, stimulating activities for our students. We look forward to our continuing relationship with 'Camp Australia'.

Staff Collective Feedback to Students

Well done to the Year 3’s on starting the term so beautifully, You have done an excellent job in week 1, by displaying the school values in and outside of the classroom. Keep up the good work. 

When on yard duty, a teacher noticed an older student return a ball to Year 1 students playing soccer. This was so nice to see - thanks to this student for being responsible, a great role model and for looking out for others. 

Well done to the group of boys riding their bikes to and from school. Great effort displayed within the school grounds to walk your bikes to the bike area - great role models.

NCCD The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data

The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) is a yearly count of students by all Australian schools across the country. The aim of the NCCD is to provide the Australian Government with information about the number of students with disability in Australian schools and the type of adjustments they need in order to access and participate in education on the same basis as other students. From 2018, the NCCD will be used by the Australian Government to inform funding for schools, known as the ‘student with disability loading’.

If you are a parent, guardian or carer of a child with disability who requires ongoing adjustments at school, a teacher or leadershipmstaff member consults with you to understand your child’s needs. This collaborative approach ensures the most appropriate adjustments are chosen to support your child’s learning and participation at school. In some cases, a Personal Learning Plan (PLP) or Student Adjustment Evaluation Plan (SAEP)may be developed to document specific educational goals and to review your child’s progress over time.

Your child will be included in the NCCD if they require ongoing adjustments at school due to a disability as defined by the Disability Discrimination Act 1992  https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2018C00125

This link will open in a new window (the DDA). This is a very broad definition of disability, which includes physical and intellectual disabilities, learning disorders such as dyslexia and dysgraphia, and mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.

The Disability Standards for Education 2005 (the Standards) set out the obligations of schools towards students with disability. Information for parents, guardians and carers on the DDA and the Standards about how schools can work with students and their families is available at Disability Standards for Education: A practical guide for individuals, families and communities.

https://www.nccd.edu.au/disability-standards-education?parent=%2Ffor-parents-guardians-and-carers&activity=%2Fdisability-standards-education&step=-1

If your child has a disability, the child’s school will provide information about them for the NCCD, including:

• your child’s year of schooling
• the category of disability that best describes your child’s difficulties (one of four categories is chosen by the school team to reflect your child’s greatest area of need: physical, cognitive, sensory or social/emotional)
• the level of adjustment your child receives at school (one of four levels is chosen by the school team to reflect the type of support your child requires: quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary adjustment, substantial adjustment, or extensive adjustment).

The information collected by schools for the NCCD will ultimately be provided to the Australian Government Department of Education. In some cases this will involve the school passing the information directly to the Department. In other cases the school will provide it to its state or territory government agency (or other relevant body) in the first instance, and that agency will then provide the information to the Department.

While it is not possible for schools or families to ‘opt out’ of the NCCD, the privacy and confidentiality of all students and their families is treated with utmost importance. Data is collected within each school, and personal details, such as student names and other identifying information, are not provided to local or federal education authorities.

Please find attached the Fact Sheet for Parents, Guardians and Carers in English

Fact sheet for parents, guardians and carers translated in:

• Persian
• Arabic
• Chinese (simplified)

NAPLAN Results – Year 3 and Year 5

NAPLAN results for students in Year 3 and Year 5 who participated in the assessments in March have now been received. Individual Student Reports (ISRs) will be sent home in a sealed envelope with students today.  Year 5 families are asked to keep their child's Naplan in a safe place as most secondary schools will require a copy with Year 7 enrolment applications.

The envelope will include:

• The Individual Student Report outlining your child’s performance
• An explanatory brochure for parents and carers

If a translation of the brochure is required in a language other than English, please contact the School Office to request a copy in your preferred language.

School administration staff are currently preparing the distribution of results to families. Please keep an eye out for the envelope in your child's school bag.

Feast of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop – School Family Mass & Celebrations

As part of our 2025 Feast Day celebrations, a detailed letter has been sent home via PAM outlining upcoming events, including our Mary MacKillop Pilgrimage Walk, Whole School Mass, and Kaboom Sports Day. Please ensure that you read the eform carefully and complete the permission section regarding the special commemorative cookie by the due date.  These special activities are an important part of honouring the legacy of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop in our school community.  

To mark this significant occasion, we warmly invite all families to join us for a School Family Mass on Saturday 2nd August 2025 at 6:00pm at Our Lady Help of Christians Church, Narre Warren.

This beautiful celebration of faith offers meaningful opportunities for students and family members to participate through readings, the entrance and offertory processions, the choir, and reflections. If you or your child would like to be involved, please return the form included in the letter or stay tuned for further updates.

We look forward to coming together in faith, unity, and gratitude as a school community, particularly in this 30th Anniversary Year – as Pilgrims of Hope.

Special thanks to Leona from 'Cookie Crave' for providing the cookies at a special price! 

Final Call – Winter Appeal Donations Due Today!
Winter Appeal 2025 – “Put the Warmth in Winter”

A warm thank you to all families who have already supported our Winter Appeal. Your kindness is making a meaningful difference in the lives of others.

As the cold weather continues, donations of tinned and packet soups are still welcome to support local families doing it tough. The MacKillop Kids Group is proudly leading this important initiative, with all contributions going to the Narre Warren St Vincent de Paul Conference to assist those experiencing food insecurity.

Key Reminders:

• Donations close end of today, Friday 25th July
• St Vincent de Paul representatives will join us at Friday’s Assembly to collect the donations
• Please ensure items are non-perishable, undamaged, and have at least six months before expiry
• Donations can be placed in classroom collection boxes

Let’s continue to spread warmth this winter—one can, one packet, one act of kindness at a time.

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

Sunday, July 27, 20

Luke 11:1-13
Jesus teaches the disciples how to pray

In next Sunday’s Gospel, a disciple asks Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Jesus teaches that God, the loving Father, always hears every prayer and invites all to pray often.

Prayer is a response to God’s love. Prayer can happen anywhere and at any time—in moments of joy, worry, hope, or need. Through prayer, hopes, fears, and gratitude are shared with God, who loves unconditionally and sent Jesus to bring salvation.

Feast of Saints Joachim & Anne

Honouring Grandparents and Special Elders

The Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary and grandparents of Jesus, is celebrated each year on July 26. This day is recognised as a memorial in the Catholic Church.

To mark this occasion, students have prepared special scrolls featuring Pope Benedict’s Prayer for Grandparents as a tribute to grandparents and significant older members of the community. These scrolls will be distributed during weekend Masses at Our Lady Help of Christians Church, Narre Warren.

Sincere thanks to all students for their thoughtful messages and beautiful artwork, shared as a heartfelt gesture of gratitude and love.

We have begun an exciting term in Japanese. The Foundies and Year 1s have begun learning colours and can already say four colours in Japanese - WOW! The Year 2s have started learning the names of items in their classroom. The Year 3 and 4s have begun using the sentences ‘I want…’ and ‘I don’t want…’ and the Year 5 and 6 students are learning about the Japanese language system and comparing the sounds to the sounds in English. 

A lot of learning in only the first week of term!

To help support students in the AMC teachers will be sharing examples of the question types students are expected to answer. Here are a few samples of what students can expect. We encourage students to try these out in their homestudy book.

We have a very exciting Term for Visual Arts coming up with lots of fun projects that students are excited to participate in. Students will be focusing on printmaking, painting and construction with clay this term. We have been working hard on painting backgrounds for our Mary MacKillop Feast Day celebrations too. Students across all levels have enjoyed being part of this huge artwork! We can’t wait for everyone to see the final artwork when it is complete!

Last weekend was the launch our Parish Renewal Program and a flyer is going home with the eldest child today with further information.  Your support of this important program in our parish is appreciated.

We are a Happy Families School!

Our school is subscribed to the Happy Families School Membership! Owned and run by Dr Justin Coulson, one of Australia’s leading parenting experts, the membership offers a wealth of parenting education and resources.  We will regularly share resources available through our membership with you, including Insight Articles and Live Webinars.

Insights Articles

A new Insights article is released weekly during the term and we will include these with the school newsletter. Insights articles are written by Dr Justin Coulson and provide parenting education and support for a wide variety of traditional and contemporary parenting challenges. The Two People Who Can Change Your Child’s School Life (attached below)

Live Webinars

ANSWERS with Dr JUSTIN COULSON is a live webinar series for all schools across Australia. Each term, Dr Justin will tackle a hot-button parenting issue, providing your parent and teacher community with timely and relevant support.  Upcoming live webinar:

Wednesday 20 August, 2025    7pm AEST   Anxious: Helping Your Child Navigate a World of Worry

It’s heartbreaking to see our kids struggling with anxiety. The statistics paint a stark picture: anxiety disorders are on the rise, affecting approximately one in seven primary school children and one in four adolescents. We see our kids burdened by fears and worries, their confidence fading, and sometimes even experiencing panic attacks. As parents, we desperately want to help but often feel lost or unsure of what to do.

Anxious: Helping Your Child Navigate a World of Worry offers a lifeline. In this presentation, Dr Justin Coulson will unpack what anxiety looks like in children and provide you with simple, practical strategies that are both clinically proven and easy to implement at home.

Empower yourself with the knowledge and tools to support your child’s emotional wellbeing and help them build resilience in the face of anxiety. PERSONAL ACCESS Individual Sessions $49 each

Positive Partnerships National online sessions

Positive Partnerships is once again providing on-line information webinars regarding autism. There are also sessions for Parents/Guardians/Carers.

Parent Carer (PC) online sessions- registration through links below:

• Tuesday 19 August 12:00-1:30pm(AEST)- Session 1 – Diversity of Autism
• Tuesday 26 August 12:00-1:30pm (AEST)- Session 2 – Sensory Processing
• Tuesday 2 September 12:00-1:30pm (AEST)- Session 3 – Understanding Behaviour
• Tuesday 9 September 12:00-1:30pm (AEST)- Session 4 – Working Together

NB:  Separate registrations for each session

School TV

Sibling Relationships

Sibling relationships are often a child's first and longest-lasting social connection. These bonds can offer companionship, support and opportunities to develop important life skills such as empathy, negotiation and conflict resolution. However, like all close relationships, sibling dynamics can be complex. Differences in temperament, age, needs and parental attention can all contribute to tension or rivalry. It's not uncommon for children to compete for attention, especially during times of change or stress.

As a parent or caregiver, your role in shaping the tone of sibling relationships is vital. Creating a home environment that celebrates each child's unique strengths and avoids direct comparisons helps reduce rivalry and fosters mutual respect.

By listening without judgement, teaching emotional regulation, and supporting each child's individuality, you can create a family culture where siblings feel secure and valued. This edition of SchoolTV offers insights to support young people in developing positive, lasting sibling bonds that can remain strong well into adulthood.

Here is the link to your Edition https://marymacnarre.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/sibling-relationships-au

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