Newsletter - 10th September 2025
Acknowledgement of Country
We respectfully acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Wadawurrung people. It is a privilege to be standing on Wadawurrung country.
We pay our respect to Elders past, present and emerging. We acknowledge the contributions of Indigenous Peoples from the past, present and future who contribute to this country in which we live.
May Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians continue to work together to educate, unite and live in peace on this land we call home, Australia.
Upcoming Dates
10th September: Damascus College Open Night for Prospective Families, 4:00-6:30pm
16th September: Winter Sports & F-2 Visit to St Michael's, Daylesford
19th September: Footy Colours Day. End of Term 3. Finish at 1:30pm
6th October: First day of Term 4; School Closure Day - Staff PD Day
7th October: Students return for Term 4
22nd October: School Photos - more information next term
Prayer
Loving God,
As we come to the end of Term 3, we give thanks for the learning, growth, and friendships we have shared. Bless our students, staff, and families with rest and renewal in the holidays ahead. Keep everyone safe and may this time be filled with peace, joy, and Your loving presence.
Amen
Messages from the Principal
FATHER'S AND SPECIAL FRIENDS' CELEBRATION
Thank you to all the fathers and special friends who joined us last Friday. It was wonderful to hear the chatter and laughter throughout the morning—perhaps some of that was from the classic dad jokes! We enjoyed sharing breakfast together, followed by a heartfelt liturgy that brought us all closer as a community.
Congratulations to the Prendergast family who won this year’s challenge, which was an A-Z I spy activity in the playground. Events like these are so important in strengthening the bonds between families and our school community. Thank you again for making the day so special.
FOOTY TIPPING
Congratulations to Will Gage for winning our footy tipping competition with an impressive 157 points! Claire Hay finished close behind with 154 points, and Kelly McGannon secured third place with 148 points. Well done to all participants for making this year’s contest exciting and competitive. Thank you to everyone who joined in and added to the fun of our footy tipping tradition. Hopefully, next year even more will participate and enjoy the friendly rivalry as we tip our way through another exciting season.
PIE DRIVE
Thank you to the Parents and Friends for organising our Pie Drive, with a special thanks to Bryden for coordinating this event and to Bec for helping Bryden count over $1,000 last week.
Like many of us, I’m looking forward to stocking my freezer with some delicious pies and pasties! Golden Nugget Bakery will be delivering the orders to the school tomorrow afternoon, Thursday, 11th September. The orders will be available for collection from the meeting room from 3pm. Please note that we do not have fridge space to store the products, so be sure to pop in to collect your order before school pick-up.
Thanks to your support, the school received $270 in profit to help fund our programs and resources. We appreciate everyone's generosity and participation, it truly makes a difference!
PLAYGROUP
A playgroup is held every Tuesday at St Mary’s in the library, and all preschoolers are warmly welcome to join in the fun. It’s a great opportunity for little ones to play, learn, and connect with other children in a safe and friendly environment.
BOOK CLUB
SCHOLASTIC Bookclub order forms were sent home with the last newsletter. If you wish to order please follow the instructions in the brochure. Books will then be sent to school to be distributed. Book Club provides families with an affordable and convenient way to bring the best in children’s literature into their homes. Each issue contains curated, age-appropriate titles that have been carefully selected and levelled by a dedicated team of professional booklovers.
FOOTY (SPORTS) COLOURS DAY
The student leaders are organising to celebrate Footy (Sports) Colours Day next Friday, 19th September, the last day of term. A day where students and staff are encouraged to wear the colours of their favourite sporting teams to school.
This is a wonderful opportunity to show team spirit, foster community, and bring some excitement to the end of term. Whether the choice is AFL, netball, soccer, or any other sport, all codes and teams are welcome.
A hot dog lunch will be available on the day as part of the celebrations. A hot dog and drink will be $5 and families are encouraged to make a donation which will go to the Fight Cancer Foundation. An order form will be sent home next Monday and needs to be returned to school by Wednesday.
END OF TERM 3 - START OF TERM 4
This term ends on Friday, 19th September at 1.30pm. School resumes for fourth term on Tuesday, 7th October.
MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING LEADER
I am pleased to announce that the advertisement for the Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader position at St Mary’s School is now live on our website. We encourage qualified teachers who are passionate about embedding preventative, whole-school mental health practices to apply.
https://smpsclarkeshill.schoolzineplus.com/mental-health-wellbeing-leader-mhwl-
END OF TERM
Next week, I will be taking long service leave and will be travelling overseas to Vietnam for a holiday. I’m looking forward to this time of rest and exploration. I want to take this opportunity to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday. Thank you all for your ongoing support and dedication throughout this term. I look forward to reconnecting when we return on Tuesday 7th October, refreshed and ready for the final term of the year.
God bless,
Clare
Banksia Room News
Kaezia and Mimi: Last Friday we had Father's Day Liturgy. It was so much fun! For the challenge we did an “I spy with the alphabet.” The Prendergast family won the challenge and the Dads and special people had breakfast with coffee, tea or orange juice. We made some great memories!!!
Adelaide: On the 27th of August, the Year 3 and 4 girls went to “Empower Girls” at St Michael’s, Daylesford and learnt about female relationships. We played games and we got this little book about it too. We met some new friends whose names were Poppy, Hope and Lucy. We loved it there, it was amazing!! Everyone there was amazing too!
Jayden: We have been working on time using analog clocks, especially past time and how to read minutes. I just learnt to read an analog clock yesterday which makes me happy.
Emilia: Each day while we eat our lunch Kelly reads a story to us. First we read “ The Enchanted Wood”. At the moment we are reading “The Magic Faraway Tree.”
We are enjoying hearing about the adventures of Franny, Beth, Jo, Moonface, Silky and all the other characters as they explore different lands at the top of the Faraway Tree.
Vanessa: I went to the SEED day at Loreto on the 1st of September with Kelly. First we did a tour of the school. I thought it was a very big school. Then we had a music lesson and a tour of the stage. We even got to see where the orchestra played under the stage. Not many people are allowed to go down there. I liked the art lesson we did in the art room; we had to decorate our names. I met a Loreto girl, Aysha, who is in Year 8 and she guided us around for the day. I enjoyed the day at Loreto.
William: Last Monday, Clare and I went to St Patrick’s College for SEED day. We went with St Alipius. It was very cool. I saw my friend and people who used to come to St Mary's. We got to do science first then we went to sport. Before we had sports we had St Pat’s donuts and our lunch. Then we played poison ball and went to wood work. We built a noughts and crosses board with a little pieces of wood, a foot drill, a normal drill and a small rectangle of wood. We then came back to school.
Patrick: During the last few weeks with Sarah, we have been doing ticks. They are on the front of the table. If we behave well and focus, we get a tick. Last week we got 186 ticks total. I got the most ticks with 41, Addy came second with 28 ticks and Jayden came third with 25 ticks. Our goal is to get to 600 ticks as a class.
Banksia Room Update
Woo: On Friday we celebrated Father’s Day. It was fun. We had a celebration. I loved eating breakfast and the liturgy celebration.
Genevieve: On Friday we had a Father’s Day celebration. There were egg and bacon rolls and a liturgy. There was also a challenge. We had to find things in the school yard that started with all the letters of the alphabet. It was so much fun. We won the challenge. Yay!
Skyler: At the Father’s Day celebration, I loved it because I was a little waitress. Dad had an egg and bacon roll with cheese and relish and he had a coffee. One of the Dad jokes was, “Why do you never give a balloon to Elsa” ? Because…."She’ll let it go”!
Teddy: On Friday it was our Father’s Day celebration. I had my Pop and Dad come. We had an egg and bacon roll. They were yum! When that was over we all listened to the song, “The Strongest Man in the World”. I had the best time with the people that came.
Mason: We read a story about a fish. I caught a fish at the beach last weekend.
Boston: I love to play soccer and basketball and tag at school.
Happy Birthdays
We are very happy to announce this month's birthdays!
Happy birthday to Leah who is celebrating her birthday this Thursday and turning 13.
Jemima will celebrate her birthday on Sunday and she will be 10 years old. We hope you have a fantastic day, Jemima.
During the holidays, Woo will turn 7. Enjoy your special day, Woo and we hope it's filled with fun!
Catholic Development Fund (CDF) News
We were lucky to have Maxine Vallance visit our school this week. Maxine is the Relationship Manager with CDF (Catholic Development Fund) based in Lyons Street, Ballarat. Max was warmly welcomed by the students and staff. If you are interested in finding out more about the CDF and their work in the community, please feel free to contact Max on 5337 7127.
School TV - R U OK? Day
Understanding the growing challenges related to mental health among young people is an important consideration. Anxiety, depression and self-harm - are all causes for concern. Factors like academic pressure, social media, family dynamics, and societal expectations, are contributing to these issues. It's therefore crucial for parents and caregivers to take action early, remove the stigma around discussing mental health, and offer accessible support to address these issues and the wellbeing of their children.
R U OK?Day is an initiative that focuses on preventing suicide by encouraging meaningful personal connections and helping informal support networks to help recognise the signs of distress. We urge all families to take part, emphasising the value of genuine human relationships and reminding everyone to ask the important question, "Are you OK?"
Engaging in R U OK?Day activities goes beyond the classroom; it's a commitment to our students' overall development. By talking openly about mental health, schools create safe spaces where students feel understood, valued, and supported. As parents and caregivers, you can contribute by fostering open conversations, normalising feelings and breaking down mental health stigmas. Participating in R U OK?Day promotes compassion and shows our dedication to the wellbeing of the entire school community, reaffirming that together, we can truly make a difference.
This Special Report provides guidance on how to talk to your child about mental health and engage in meaningful discussions.
Here is the link to your Special Report: https://smclarkeshill.
MPTA Juniors 2025
The Mt Prospect Junior Tennis Association are beginning our recruitment for the upcoming junior season beginning on October 11th 2025 .
MPTA is located in Creswick and is renowned for its 16 grass courts with additional 13 rebound ace courts. Our junior pennant is run on a Saturday morning from 9am, during school terms 4 & 1 and we also offer a Hot Shots coaching program in conjunction with the junior pennant. Please see the flyer below for more information.
Moorabool Libraries School Holiday Workshop with Real Pigeons Creators
Moorabool Libraries is very excited to be celebrating the opening of our brand new Ballan Library & Community Hub. We have organised for special guests, Andrew Mcdonald and Ben Wood, the creators of the popular graphic novel series Real Pigeons and Hello Twigs to visit us during the school holidays. They will be hosting 6 workshops for children 8+ to learn about their creative process in both writing and illustrating a graphic novels.
