Principal News
Well wasn’t that just supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
What an incredible week we have all had here at St Marys! Our school musical is a much-anticipated event in the school's calendar every second year. Audiences travel from near and far to experience the magic and wonder of our productions and we are extremely grateful to our entire community for all your support this week.
After months of exceptionally hard work from pupils, staff and our families, we were delighted to take our school community on a journey with a practically perfect nanny, Mary Poppins, and a jack-of all trades called Bert as they used a combination of magic and common sense to teach the Banks family members how to value each other again.
A huge thank you to all the parents, grandparents, friends, and family members who have dedicated countless hours to creating props, painting backdrops, and crafting the incredible costumes for our students. We are deeply grateful for your creative talents and the way you’ve brought our production to life with your hard work and vision. Your contributions have truly made a difference, and we couldn't have done it without you!
We are incredibly grateful to have had three amazing parents who have dedicated their time each week to teach the children their class dances. Hayley, Erica, and Jenelle have generously shared their knowledge, passion, and love of dance and movement with the students of St Mary's - a heartfelt thank you for your time, energy, and commitment.
Our school musical truly wouldn’t have come to life without the exceptional skills of our Sound and Lighting team. This dedicated group has spent countless hours ensuring that our Performing Arts Centre was equipped with everything needed to create a spectacular show. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Claire Reid from the Carroll College music and entertainment team, for providing both the sound and lighting equipment, as well as sharing her invaluable expertise with us. We would also like to acknowledge and thank Kieren Gillis, one of our parents, for generously sharing his knowledge and expertise with two of our senior students, Ollie and Andre. The boys have thoroughly enjoyed learning to operate the sound and lighting boards under Kieren’s guidance.
We also thank Wayne LeCompt from Loud Design for filming the Wednesday evening performance, we look forward to sharing that with our school community in the coming weeks.
We would like to extend our gratitude to our Community Council for organising the Jar Tombola and for arranging the delicious treats during intermission at our two evening performances.
I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to our entire staff and particularly the production team of Mrs White, Mrs Devonald, Mrs Hampson, Mrs Schofield and Mrs Afflick. I am truly grateful for the time, dedication, and energy of each member of our staff who has invested in lunchtime rehearsals, practising class dances, coordinating costumes, supervising students, covering additional duties, casting and workshopping performances, creating programs and managing the box office. Your hard work and commitment have been invaluable, and I am incredibly proud of all that you’ve accomplished. You have truly made a difference in the lives of the students at our school.
And finally to all our students - boys and girls I want to thank each and every one of you for your incredible contributions to this musical. From the rehearsals to the performances, your dedication, talent, and enthusiasm have brought this production of Mary Poppins Jr to life. Whether you were on stage, helping with sets, or supporting behind the scenes, your hard work has made a lasting impact. You’ve all shown what it means to work as a team, and your commitment to giving your best has made this show truly unforgettable. We are so proud of everything you’ve accomplished, and I hope you know how much you’ve inspired and impressed everyone who has seen your performance. Thank you for bringing your energy, your creativity, and your passion to this experience—you’ve truly made it something special!
Well done Everyone!!!
KINDERGARTEN ORIENTATION
Kindergarten marks the beginning of an exciting time where your child will take their first step on a journey of lifelong learning. That step can be a big one though and so it helps to have a head start—that’s where Kindergarten Orientation comes in.
Kindergarten Orientation eases the transition into ‘big school’ and soothes any anxieties children and families may have, giving them time to adjust before the start of the year. Orientation is where your child will first meet their new teacher, classmates and during the second session, their Year 6 buddy.
Kindergarten Orientation is designed to be social and engaging, with activities such as arts and crafts, creative playtime and stimulating learning games. Children will begin to establish an all-important trust with their Kindergarten teacher and other educators, and get to know the peers they will learn alongside for the next seven years.
Our staff will ensure that it’s an experience that will have your child feeling excited and energised about the school year.
Next Thursday 14 November we will welcome our 2025 Kindergarten class for their first orientation session. I am pleased to announce that Mrs Alicia Hampson will be our Kindergarten teacher in 2025. Alicia has many years of experience in early years learning and is very excited about returning to the Kindergarten classroom.
2025 STUDENT LEADERSHIP
At St Mary’s, we consider all of our Year 6 students to be school leaders. The Year 6 Buddy program with the new Kinder students is one of our most important leadership programs.
We also have an elected Student Leadership Team, made up of two School Leaders and six House Leaders. In the coming weeks, our Year 5 students will be invited to nominate themselves to be on the Student Leadership Team for 2025. Following interviews with Mrs O’Neill and a nominated staff member, the students will deliver a short speech to their peers and staff on Friday November 29, time TBC. Parents are welcome to attend. Students in Years 2-5 will then vote for the students that they believe will make the best School and House Leaders for St Mary’s. House Leadership is more than sport, so please encourage your child, if they think they would like to be involved in a broad range of leadership opportunities; Social Justice, fundraising, Liturgy, hospitality, IT and Media, Sport, Public Speaking, Performing Arts, Environment and Indigenous Culture. The Year 5 teachers will support the students with the process.
The 2025 Student Leadership Team will be announced to the community at our End of Year K-6 Awards Night on Thursday December 5.
Please keep Mrs O’Neill in your prayers as she has been very unwell. We look forward to her return in a couple of weeks once she has recovered.
God bless and take care,
Mrs Sue Heffernan
Principal (Acting)