Mary's Mount Primary School
Term 3, Week 1 - 22 July 2022
'In the spirit of reconciliation, Mary’s Mount Primary School acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.'
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
I trust that you have had a restful break. I hope you enjoyed some downtime, which would have given all community members the chance to recharge. The staff are feeling energised and are excited about the teaching and learning opportunities that Term 3 has on offer.
Personally, I had a fabulous holiday. My husband and I took our children to Melbourne. Like so many, it was the first time on a plane in a while. It was wonderful having my children with me for 6 uninterrupted days. We talked, we walked, we saw footy games and we engaged in all things Melbourne. My heart was full, but my wallet was not. New learning is that when traveling with adult children, they cost money!
STAFFING TERM 3
It is with much regret that Mrs Fiona Connan has resigned from her teaching position at Mary’s Mount Primary School due to family commitments. Mrs Connan has only been with us for a short time and we are sad to see her leaving our community.
As we say goodbye to one fine educator, we welcome another exceptional one already on our team to the Pre-Kindy classroom for the remainder of 2022.
Mrs Erin Leech will be the Teacher in the Pre-Kindy classroom on a Thursday. She is looking forward to the opportunity to build relationships with the young children in their first experience of school. I trust that this will be a seamless transition and the children and families will be at ease with the change.
NAIDOC WEEK – Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!
Mrs Kristine Williams shares with us below the focus during our NAIDOC celebrations throughout the school. We also have a Facebook celebration post of how we at Mary’s Mount Primary School are embedding our acknowledgment and understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives across our curriculum and daily practice.
A message from Mrs Williams
Throughout our school this week, we have been celebrating NAIDOC Week. The theme this year is ‘Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!’ which encourages all of us to advocate and drive positive change whilst acknowledging and celebrating those who have previously stood up and taken action to fight for justice for Australia’s First Peoples and their communities.
At Mary’s Mount Primary School, our focus is to embed Aboriginal culture and understandings across the curriculum. So, although we highlight special events throughout the year, educating children and exposing children to First Nation’s perspectives, is part of our diverse, daily practice.
With our children, we can all Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! to celebrate the rich history and culture of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
HOMEWORK CLUB
Homework Club will start on Tuesday 26 July, commencing at 7.45am. Children in Years 2 - 6 are welcome to attend in the school library.
STAIR NOSING
Part of our ongoing commitment to our families and the children in our care is to provide a safe and nurturing learning environment. Over the holiday's stair nosing was added to every step in our school. Mr Gair and I realised on inspection that we have many stairs! The children have commented to me this week that they feel like the stairs are safer and that they feel more confident they will not slip while walking up and down them. Thank you, Mr Gair, for overseeing this fabulous addition to our school.
This addition was built into our maintenance budget for 2022 and I am proud that we responsibly manage this to enhance the school and what we can offer our community.
SURF ONLINE SAFE
Next Tuesday the Year 5 & 6 children will hear from Mr Paul Litherland (2022 WA Australian of the Year) about online hazards and providing our students will tools to support them in navigating the online world. The cost of the presentation is a service that Mary’s Mount Primary School offers our students. We believe in educating our children with the most skilled and knowledgable in this area, hence us engaging with Paul.
Biannually parents will be invited to a parent presentation with Paul so that we can keep abreast of the most current research and information for our community. In 2023, the parent information session will be held for all parents and carers in our Mary's Mount community.
For more information about the presentation, you can visit the Surf online Safe website.
https://www.surfonlinesafe.com.au/
Cyber Safety Links
Mary’s Mount Primary School has a comprehensive Parent Hub that you can access on our school website and can also be found HERE.
Common Sense Media - HERE.
Telethon Kids Institute have developed and released Beacon, which is a Cyber Safety App for parents. Beacon – HERE, offers content for parents and it is free to download and use.
Other online links to help you in this space are below;
Surf Online Safe YouTube Channel – HERE, which also offers some good tips and hints for parents.
The eSafety Commission website also has resources and advice for parents – HERE.
WELCOME NEW FAMILIES
This week we have had eight new students join our school community. Four new students to 3K, and 4 students in classes between 4K and Y5. I'd like to warmly welcome the following families to MMPS - Bishop, Brown, Bode, Ginbey, Giorgiante, Harris, Howley and Shilling and look forward to seeing you around school.
God bless
Emma Bell
Be the best part of someone else's day - Ben Crowe
TERM 3, WEEK 2 PLANNER
Monday 25 July
Tuesday 26 July
- 7.30 Homework Club (Mazenod)
- Year 5 & 6 Surf Online Safe - Paul Litherland
- 6pm School Advisory Council Meeting
Wednesday 27 July
- Year 5 BRLA Online Practice Day 1
Thursday 28 July
- Year 5 BRLA Online Practice Day 2
- Year 3 BRLA Online Practice Day 1
- Year 6 Confirmation Retreat DOJ @ MMPS
Friday 29 July
- 8am FAM Club (Fun & Fitness at Mary's Mount)
- Year 3 BRLA Online Practice Day 2
- 9am Assembly, Merits and St Emilie Award
TERM 3 FEE PAYMENTS NOW DUE
If you need to check your account balance, please email finance@mmps.wa.edu.au to request a current statement, or ring the school office.
Jane Taylor
Finance Officer
PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS - DID YOU ATTEND MMPS?
A large number of our enrolment enquiries are from parents or grandparents who, themselves attended MMPS. We know that many of our parents, caregivers and grandparents attended MMPS as a child, but we don't know exactly how many or who.
If you were enrolled at MMPS for your schooling, or a direct relative of your children who are currently attending school did, we would love to know the details.
Please take a moment to complete the questions below.
https://forms.office.com/r/5cM6kYQmbU
Warm regards,
Emma Bell
TWO OPPORTUNITIES FOR RUNNING AND FITNESS
"FAM CLUB" and "RUNNING CLUB"
We are really excited to be able to offer not one, but two opportunities for running and fitness in Term 3 for students before school.
FAM CLUB - EVERY FRIDAY MORNING 8am to 8.30am COMMENCING TOMORROW *No Registration Required *
Our new Fun and Fitness at Mary's Mount starts tomorrow morning. This is a FREE, supervised running club focussed on fitness and fun. Count your laps to join our 100s club (Y3-6) or our 50s club (K-2). Students K-2 require an accompanying adult. In the case of wet weather, we will meet in the school hall. Please read the poster below for more information.
RUNNING CLUB - SPRINTS AND RELAY PROGRAM - MONDAY MORNINGS COMMENCING WEEK 3 7.45am to 8.30am * Need to Pre-Register *
The running club from Term 2 will continue in Term 3 for any families who would like to continue to participate. A qualified coach from Let's Run Perth will coach the children on running technique for Sprints & Relays. Details on how to register can be found below.
STARTING SCHOOL SOON?? * CHILDREN BORN 1 JULY 2019 - 30 June 2020*
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, please submit an application as soon as possible.
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
HAVE YOU ORDERED YOUR MMPS HONEY??
If you have placed an order for honey, please visit the school office to collect your order.
If you haven't yet placed an order, you can still order online and collected it from the school office. Thank you to everyone for supporting our fundraising and has ordered honey already. We have lots more, so don't worry, you won't miss out.
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 this term.
CSPWA AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2022
The Awards of Excellence in Building Positive Catholic School Communities is an integral part of work that Catholic School Parents WA does in acknowledging and celebrating the amazing work that is carried out within our Catholic school communities.
The awards celebrate those within our school communities who demonstrate positive outcomes for students, families, and the wider school community and there are five award categories.
MMPS has three nominations linked to our school:
Principal Award: Emma Bell - For her contribution to the MMPS community working alongside our P&F, parents and her vision while ensuring the wellness of staff and students is of foremost importance.
Parish Award: Holy Family Parish Kalamunda / Fr Suresh - For bringing MMPS and the Holy Family Parish parish communities together through the sharing of community masses.
Agnes Weymouth Award: Sue Blair - For consistently contributing to building a positive school community through her contribution to the MMPS 100th year celebrations; her role as Archivist and Historian; and her dedication to the relationship between MMPS and our Parish.
The Award night is on Friday 5 August
If you would like to join us for a night out celebrating the achievements of our parents and friends building positive catholic school communities, details are below. Tickets are only $10 and can be purchased via - https://www.trybooking.com/CAHPO
MMPS P&F Committee
SOCIAL WORKER CORNER
I have shared in a previous social work corner that I have been listening to a book called ‘The Strength Switch’ by Dr Lea Waters. This is a book about strength-based parenting. This week I was listening to a section from the book on a mindfulness strategy called ‘savouring’ that caught my attention, so I thought I would share it with you.
Savouring is the idea that we should ‘stop and smell the roses’. It is noticing, appreciating, and aiming our attention on positive things and it involves conscientiously pausing to let our attention linger and enjoy these positive things for as long as possible.
Lee explains that the practice of savouring not only builds positive mood in ourselves and our children, but it also helps to build our children’s attentional skills over time and is a strategy that they can draw on to help them during tough times.
We all have many little moments of good that pass unnoticed throughout our day, but once we and our children learn to focus on them, we can use them to build our positive bank account, and this helps us to have healthy reserves to draw on during challenging times.
Here are 4 simple ways to help our children learn the practice of savouring:
1. Noticing the environment- We can teach children to savour the beauty in nature such as the smell of flowers, the sound, and colours of birds in the backyard and the feel of sand under their feet on the beach.
2. Enjoying physical sensations - We can encourage children to savour the taste of chocolate, the smell of dinner, the feel of warm water splashing on their back in the shower or bath, the refreshment of a cool drink on a hot day, a hug, or a backrub. Next time you put fresh sheets on your child’s bed encourage them to notice what it feels like to slip under those crisp, clean covers.
3. Creating family time - the simple act of hanging out together as a family is something that we can all savour. Watching a movie together, cooking a meal, going for a walk, or exercising together are all activities to savour.
4. Remembering happy times - savouring doesn’t always have to be focused on the present moment. We can encourage our children to engage in ‘reminiscent savouring’. We do this by thinking back to happy times in our lives. If our child has had a difficult day, first we can let them share about their day and express their negative emotions. Then, we can help them to use reminiscent savouring to remember a funny incident from the past or to think back to a time when they had the opposite experience to what upset them today.
I encourage you to give it a go and find some time to enjoy a few moments of savouring with your children this week!
Mrs 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 29 July
Friday 5 August
Friday 12 August
Friday 19 August
Thank you.
Angeline Biggin
CATHOLIC PERFORMING ARTS FESTIVAL
Dear Community
The Catholic Performing Arts Festival opened this month. The Festival is set to be a remarkable celebration of artistic creativity and talent with almost 15,000 students from 90 Catholic schools, including 11 regional schools, participating in this year's program. A number of our students and classes are involved in the Festival this year.
Soloists - you should have received ticketing information through Greg. Please contact him or myself if you need this information again.
Year 3 Class - performing, Aug 2nd, 11am-12pm session. Please refer to your class communication or use the link below to purchase audience tickets
School Choir - performing Aug 23rd, 11.15am-12.45pm session. Please use link below to purchase audience tickets. Specific Choir information will be sent to Choir families this week.
Try Booking Tickets available now!
Try Booking ticket links for all sections of the 2022 Performing Arts Festival is now on the Spirit of the Arts website, under the “Performing Arts” tab www.spiritofthearts.com.au.
We wish all our performers well for their performance date!
Thank you
Mrs Freeman
Music Teacher
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
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