Mary's Mount Primary School
Term 2, Week 10 - 1 July 2022
NAIDOC Prayer
God of all wonder,
We pause in the busyness of our days to listen deeply to the wisdom of this land and those who belong to it. May our minds be open to dialogue,
May our hearts be open to transformation and
May our hands do the work of reconciliation.
We ask that the Spirit accompany us on our journey of healing on these lands, seas and waterways.
We also ask the Spirit of peace be with all those who are living a life of fear, dispossession and distress.
We make this prayer in the name of Jesus our brother and friend.
Amen.
PRINCIPAL'S NEWS
Dear Parents and Carers
END OF TERM DANCE OFF
Your child may have come home this week sharing with you that we had a dance together on Wednesday afternoon. This is a new initiative that we have put in place for the end of each term.
The WHY behind this…
· Dancing makes us happy,
· When we dance our brains release endorphins,
· Dance activates the sensory and motor circuits of our brain,
· Dance is a connector of people,
· Dance enables us to release tension through movement,
· Dance brings JOY.
You can’t avoid joy when you dance.
It would be like laughing without a smile.
· Margaret B Moss
REPORTS
The School Curriculum and Standards Authority (SCSA) and Catholic Education Western Australia have acknowledged the impact of the high rates of absenteeism of students and staff due to Covid-19, on the ability of schools to report with grades meaningfully.
The reports that you will receive this term will therefore be modified. The general comment is the focus of the report, highlighting to parents the importance of the development of the whole child, their spiritual, social, and emotional, as well as academic progress. The focus on the overall wellbeing and social and emotional development of all children is at the centre of our educational purpose.
The well-being of your child is a major focus area for our school, and we have linked it directly to our strategic direction. On your child’s Semester 1 report the Self-Management and Awareness table is placed at the start of the report to emphasise our focus on this area.
Semester 1 reports will be shared with families via SEQTA Friday afternoon at approximately 4pm.
A deeper conversation around student progress will be discussed at the Three-Way Interviews in Week 2 and 3 of Term 3. Grades will be provided for the learning areas of Religious Education, English and Mathematics by the end of Week 3 Term 3.
3-WAY INTERVIEWS – Year 1 to Year 6
We will be conducting Three-Way interviews in Week 2 and Week 3 of Term 3. Your child’s teacher will be in contact to organise interview times.
NAIDOC WEEK
Mary’s Mount Primary School will engage in NAIDOC focus tasks and experiences in Week 1 of Term 3.
FAM Club – Running Club @ MMPS
MMPS is bringing a FREE running club to our community, commencing in Term 3.
FAM Club (Fun and Fitness At Marys Mount)
What: A school running club, where students meet once a week to run laps of the oval to improve fitness and have fun.
Where: MMPS Oval
When: Friday mornings from 8am to 8.30am
Who: All students and their families
If weather is inclement, the sessions will be run in the hall. More information will be provided early in Term 3. I personally cannot wait to get out there and get my steps up.
WELCOME TO NEW FAMILIES JOINING THE MMPS COMMUNITY
Over the past month, we have had the Soster and Harris families join our MMPS community. I would like to welcome these new families to Mary's Mount and I hope you are settling in well.
I trust you will have a holiday spending time together as a family thriving in what brings you joy.
God bless
Emma Bell
Be the best part of someone else's day - Ben Crowe
TERM 3, WEEK 1 PLANNER
Monday 18 July - Term 3 Starts
- Students return to school
Tuesday 19 July
Wednesday 20 July
Thursday 21 July
Friday 22 July
KINDY SUNFLOWERS
We hope you enjoy the flowers too.
HOCKEY SPORTING SCHOOL COACHES
Over the past three weeks Mary’s Mount students in Kindy to Year 6 were very lucky to gain some expertise in Hockey. We were fortunate enough to have been successful with being awarded sporting schools funding this term.
The students had various coaches from Kalamunda Hockey Club teach the students various hockey skills as well as game play. It was amazing to see most students who had never played hockey before having so much fun learning a new sport!
Teresa Curulli
Physical Education Teacher
LIGHTNING CARNIVAL
On Thursday 23 June we had our annual Interschool Lightning Carnival competing against eight other single stream catholic schools. Students in Years 5 and 6 chose to participate in either soccer, football or netball.
The students had a fantastic day, and it was so great to see them on the courts and the fields trying their best and showing team spirit. Mary’s Mount Primary School won four shields on the day! The Years 5 and 6 netball teams won their grand finals, the soccer team also won their grand final, and the football team came 4th overall. MMPS also won the overall carnival shield!!
Thank you to all the parent coaches on the day: Jo Dickenson, Liz Appleby, Frank Raschella, Vic D’Ascenzo, Antonio Macolino and Clint Valli as well as Steve Sorgiovanni, Adam Palmer and Gabrielle Hoffmann who came to support us all on this day.
Teresa Curulli
Physical Education Teacher
STARTING SCHOOL SOON??
CHILDREN STARTING SCHOOL IN 2023 - 3K & 4K
If you have received a Letter of Offer for a position in 3 Year Old Kindy or 4 Year Old Kindy, please ensure you sign the acceptance and return it to the school office as soon as possible.CHILDREN STARTING 4YO KINDY IN 2024 - DOB 1 July 2019 - 30 June 2020
We are currently reviewing our enrolment process and will soon be processing applications for children starting 4 Year Old Kindy in 2024. If you have a child with a date of birth between 1 July 2019 - 30 June 2020, then please submit an application early next term. More information on this change will be shared in Term 3.
Applications can be downloaded from our school website via the link below or a paper copy can be collected from the school office.
https://marysmount.wa.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/APPLICATION-FOR-ADMISSION.pdf
P&F NEWS
How do you like your honey?
On crumpets? On Toast? Weetbix? or straight from the container?
Our first batch of MMPS honey is now labelled and packed. The winning entries from our competition have been printed on lables and stuck on the pots of honey.
If you have placed an order online, you can collect your honey tomorrow from 8.30am until 3.30pm from the school office.
If you haven't yet placed an order, you can still order online and your honey can be collected in Term 3.
Thank you to everyone for supporting our fundraising and has ordered honey already. We have lots more, so don't worry, you can still buy some next term.
Simply visit www.quickcliq.com.au via the 'Events' page to place your order.
So let’s create a ‘buzz’ and get some yummy honey into everyone’s tummies! All funds raised will go towards a new Marys Mount branded marquee and 4 x new faction marquees - just in time for the upcoming school sports carnival next term.
MMPS P&F Committee
EARTHCARE NEWS
National Tree Planting Day arrived early for our children at MMPS this year. Our Year 5's, Year 2's and little Pre-Primary's were thrilled to be involved with planting 90 native seedlings into our kwobardak (beautiful) Harmony Garden on Wednesday. This was just in time before NAIDOC Week 3 -10 July. Many of the plants supplied this year have Noongar uses, so it will be fun to learn all about them in our future Aboriginal Education lessons.
SERCUL provided these plants to our school as part of the Phosphorus Awareness Project grant it receives from the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA), which aims to educate the community about the environmental impacts of too many nutrients entering our waterways.
Please feel welcome to walk through this peaceful, regenerative area of our school to observe its growth and to see the early results of our actions to heal Country and increase biodiversity.
Together we make a difference.
Enjoy the time with your children over the holidays.
Belinda Henderson
Sustainability Coordinator
SOCIAL WORKER CORNER
I was reading an article by Maggie Dent this week where she shared some quick and easy tips to help reduce tension and create some calm in our homes. As we are heading into the school holidays, I thought I would share with you some of these tips which may help to create a calmer more mindful school holiday period.
- Take three deep breaths often – this extra oxygen is good for calming the brain and, if done often, your kids may copy you. Enjoying three deep sighs is also a fabulous way to trigger serotonin.
- Stop striving to be a perfect parent – good-enough, imperfect parents can raise awesome children.
- Routines and habits help the brain make less decisions, which means it is less stressed – so set up clear routines around mealtimes, bath times, bedtimes and getting ready in the morning.
- Playing music at home can trigger positive neurochemicals. Play music that calms, or nature sounds. My sons listened to a lot of Enya! There are many other choices and playlists with online streaming.
- Music that makes you want to dance will lift energy and create dopamine instantly.
- Spontaneous dancing is a great stress buster – and it even works with moody teens!
- The smell of slow-cooking food like soup, curry, roasts and bread can trigger feel-good endorphins.
- Take your kids outside – fresh air and nature will calm everyone.
- Safe touch soothes most of us – it seems the busier we become the less we touch lovingly. Gentle tickles on the ‘tickle spot’ – high up on the back – is a quick way to trigger serotonin – anywhere and anytime!
- Start speaking to your kids the way you speak to your best friends. Also try a gentle whisper into a child’s ear rather than a loud voice.
- When you find the endless commanding, demanding, nagging and giving consequences is not working – try something new – try kindness. Kindness triggers all the positive neurochemicals – and lowers stress while lifting the love.
Remember it’s OK when you are struggling with stress to excuse yourself to the bedroom for some calm-down time. Ensure you have good quality fruit and nut chocolate hiding in your wardrobe for such an emergency (after all, it has fruit and nuts so surely it’s a health food?).
Just doing one thing a day will make a calm difference.
Julie Merrells
MMPS Social Worker
CANTEEN NEWS - WE NEED YOU!!
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for TERM 2 & 3
This term we managed to get through, but we are in great need of helpers for Term 3 and Term 4. Without helpers in our canteen, we can't provide yummy lunches for our students. So if you can help out mums or dads (or a grandparent or other relative), even for just a few hours, please either contact me or let the school office know via admin@mmps.wa.edu.au.
No experience necessary. Lunch and a cuppa provided. New volunteers welcome - I would love to meet you - and the children love to see mum or dad helping out in the canteen.
Term 3
Friday 22 July
Friday 29 July
Friday 5 August
Thank you.
Angeline Biggin
FAMILIES OF MARY'S MOUNT PRIMARY SCHOOL FB Group
The FAMILIES OF MARY'S MOUNT PRIMARY SCHOOL facebook group is a closed group only for families currently enrolled at Mary's Mount Primary School and you will need to request to 'join' the group.
It is a place to ask questions, post reminders, promote school and P&F events and activities, and anything else that is related to the MMPS community including school holiday activities you think other families may be interested in. You can also sell and buy second hand MMPS uniforms too.
COMMUNITY NEWS
Mercedes College
A College for every girl in the heart of your city!
We have limited places available in all year groups for 2023 and are currently interviewing for 2024 & 2025.
If you are considering enrolling your daughter at Mercedes College, please visit our website at www.mercedes.wa.edu.au to request a prospectus, to enrol online or to book a tour of our campus. Please contact our Enrolments Officer, Mrs Nicole Kirk on 9323 1323 if you require further information.
HOLY FAMILY PARISH
Mary’s Mount Primary School is the parish school for Holy Family Church in Kalamunda.
Fr Suresh celebrates mass at the beginning of each term, for solemnities and special feast days and offers reconciliation to students who are preparing to receive their Sacraments.
Parish Priest : Fr Antony Suresh
Parish Secretary : Mary Syme
Current Parish Bulletin : https://holyfamilykalamunda.org.au/?page_id=132
Email: kalamunda@perthcatholic.org.au
Website: www.holyfamilykalamunda.org.au
Location: 2 Burt Street, Kalamunda WA, Australia
Phone: 08 9293 1646
Facebook: facebook.com/holyfamily
MARY'S MOUNT PRIMARY SCHOOL
Email: admin@mmps.wa.edu.au
Website: www.mmps.wa.edu.au
Location: 47 Davies Crescent, Gooseberry Hill WA, Australia
Phone: 08 9290 5200
Facebook: facebook.com/marysmount