9th October 2020

FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK – Chris Bartlett

I hope this newsletter finds you ready for the last leg of our academic year. I have reflected a lot over the break and thought how it has been a unique year of learning, due to the influence of COVID-19. Our natural being is to like certainty and given the changes we embraced during this global pandemic, I see the impact it has had on our local and broader community. Our school community is no different and like all effective, successful work places, change is essential. This means our students are still provided with the best environment to learn in, regardless of the world context.

As a result, there has been much change to navigate, and this impacts on our way of being. As teachers, we know the job can be challenging, but at the same time as exciting and innovative as we make it. The learners placed before us are our gift. Our gift to ensure we front up every day with our best self to make them better people. This is our non-negotiable – be the learner we expect our students to be. Our dispositions are the perfect place to centre our reflection on.

So, my reflection concluded that to be the best person I can be, I must be uncomfortable, make mistakes and be vulnerable. Yet most importantly, make the appropriate changes for the future to be content and happy. Then I am the learner / person that is authentic to my students.

Famous motivational speaker, Mike Robbins commented on a radio interview he had with Michael Beckwith, author of Spiritual Liberation, who said, “A bad day for the ego is a good day for the soul.”

“Too often our desire to protect our ego – to avoid failure and embarrassment – causes us to sell out on ourselves, not go for what we truly want, or hold back in a variety of detrimental ways. When we

remember that even if things don’t turn out the way we think we want them to, not only will we survive, we can grow in the process. As the saying goes, if it doesn’t kill you, it makes you stronger.”

Mike Robbins 2011

I hope you have had a great first week back. I am looking forward to an amazing Term 4 with you all.

FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL’S DESK – Angela Martlew

Welcome back to a new term. We trust you had a relaxing holiday and are ready for what will no doubt be a busy lead up to the end of the school year.

Sock it to Poverty In Term 4 as a school we traditionally support Catholic Mission’s Socktober campaign. This year we will again support this worthy cause with our Sock it to Poverty Crazy Sock Day on Friday 16 October. All students are invited to wear crazy socks and bring a gold coin donation for Catholic Mission.

In classes across the school, students have been shown the impact their donations have, viewing one family’s story in Ethiopia. As we begin our focus on our Including disposition this term, Yennesh’s story has provided opportunity to link this important aspect of our Catholic identity to being empathetic and seeing the perspectives of others – both key aspects of Including.

Sensory Pathway Huge thanks to Nikki Farrell, Mia’s (2 Eucalyptus) mum, who over the holidays created an amazing sensory pathway featuring our Dispositions in the PJ Doyle area. Her beautiful artwork not only looks fantastic, but incorporates physical activities specifically designed to provide appropriate sensory input to optimise learning. Sensory movement paths have been shown to:

• Improve focus and attention • Strengthen cognitive function • Meet the needs of ‘sensory seeking’ and ‘sensory avoiding’ students • Provide movement breaks and provide ‘heavy work’ opportunities • Fine tune balance and improve motor skills for better sensory processing and emotional regulation

ICAS Testing All our ICAS results have now been received. Congratulations to all those students who took the opportunity to participate in these higher order thinking and problem-solving assessments. Participation certificates will be sent home as soon as they are received, and award certificates will be presented at assembly when both English and Maths certificates have been received from ICAS. A big thank you to Mrs Pritchard who facilitated this opportunity for our students.

Congratulations to the following students who received outstanding results:

2020 ICAS Maths Award English Award

Year 2

Distinction: • Charlie Bradshaw • Tara Shridhar • Gemma Montgomery

Credit • Blake Logan • Edward McManus • Max Brownsdon

Distinction • Tara Shridhar

Credit • Charlie Bradshaw • Edward Macmanus

Merit • Gemma Montgomery • Alice Pattison • Flynn Moore

Year 3

Credit • Archer Brownsdon • Mitchell Sinuhaji

Credit • Patrick Dale • Maxwell Pattison • Ben Vogler

Year 4

Credit • William Holzheimer • Caleb Foster

Merit • Rosemary Wilson • Lewis Lamble • Riley Burke

Credit • Lucas Montgomery • Maya Cameron • Alice Rossini • William Holzheimer • Archie Rickuss

Merit • Matthew Gordon • Erin Irvine

Year 5

Credit • Lusi Manibe

Merit • Isabel Biggs • Isabella Pearson

Distinction • Isabel Biggs • Evie Braund

Credit – Zayne Chapman • Lusi Mainbe

Year 6

Distinction • Alex Vanzella • Beau Pritchard

Credit • Isacc Beveland

High Distinction • Alex Vanzella

Distinction • Mitchell Irvine

Credit • Beau Pritchard • Archer Bracey • Jack Waters

Merit • Emma Holzheimer • Tom Bourke

SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION STAFFING UPDATE Please be aware of the following points regarding staffing 2021:

• Julie Henderson has been seconded to TCSO to part of the diocesan Writing Improvement Strategy and will relinquish her Assistant Principal and Middle Leader position at Mater Dei. We thank Julie for the many years of service to our school as a member of the leadership team and wish her every success in this system project. Julie is still attached to our school for staffing purposes and we will thank her as a staff and community at the end of the school year.

• Claire Howden has been on leave for 4 years, due to health reasons, and has decided to not return to her APRE (Assistant Principal Religious Education) position at Mater Dei. Claire will be seeking part time work during this time, and as a prep parent for 2021 we will see lots of her next year.

As a result, these positions have been advertised with the intent to have the positions filled for 2021, in the next few weeks.

MARKETING Two key reasons for marketing our school is to attract more enrolments (particularly in prep) and increase the number of students who take the opportunity to be Yr 5 & 6 leaders in our wonderful primary school.

During the week, we had a production company visit the school, to take still shots, videos and interviews of parents, teachers and students. This will result in video productions and images that can be used to promote the school in the broader community. Keep your eye on this space!

COVID-19 SAFE REMINDERS Gathering limits From 1:00am Thursday 1 October 2020:

• The one person per 4 square metre rule for outdoor public spaces changes to one person per 2 square metres. • The maximum number of attendees permitted at outdoor events with a COVID Safe Checklist has been

increased from 500 to 1000 people per event.

Implications for Mater Dei • More parents can pick students up from the school grounds, providing there is no loitering and stop, drop and go

continues to be the main practice. This will alleviate pressure on the pick up / drop off zone. • Planning for the end of year Christmas Concert has more flexibility. Currently we are working to stage the event

within COVID safety guidelines. • School camps are going ahead in week three, unless there are sudden restriction.

SCHOOL RENEWAL AND IMPROVEMENT PROCESS (SRIP) In Term One our school started the four yearly SRIP. The official report was developed and published on our website in Term Two. Our staff have done work to take the commendations and recommendation from the report and drafted Strategic Goals for the next four years. We are now seeking further parent voice to add to the plan. Please take 10 minutes to complete the survey below and provide more detail to our 4 Year Strategic Plan.

• Mater Dei Strategic Goals Survey

The survey will close on Thursday 15 October.

PAYMENTS INTO SCHOOL ACCOUNT There have been some payments made into our school account in August without any identifying references. If you have not received a receipt for a payment you have made, please contact the school office.

Mater Dei 1:1 iPad Program for 2021 Please join us on Thursday October 15th from 6 - 7 pm in the William Morris Centre as we discuss the Mater Dei 1:1 iPad Program. All students in Years 4 - 6 will be taking part in this program in 2021. The information evening will provide an opportunity to share how students and teachers are currently using the iPad program to create new teaching and learning opportunities, as well as provide information on the roll out of the program at the beginning of the 2021 school year.

Please RSVP to Meredith.Thompson@twb.catholic.edu.au if you intend to attend this evening.

Book Week The theme for Book Week 2020 is Curious creatures, wild minds. We will be celebrating Book Week in Week 4 this term and this will include a dress-up day on Friday the 30th of October. Students can dress up as something related to the theme or as a favourite book character. Parents and students will have the opportunity to see each class in their costumes as part of our Zoom Assembly.

Non State Schools Transport Assistance Scheme (NSSTAS)

SPORT WITH DANIELLE KING Junior and Senior Swimming Trophies Please return all swimming trophies at your earliest convenience so these can be taken to be engraved.

Aussie Hoops Pop Dickerson from Aussie Hoops has been conducting clinics during PE classes this week. Aussie Hoops will be conducted on our basketball courts each Thursday for 7 weeks beginning next week October 15. Please see the flyer in this week newsletter for further information and costing.

Register at:

Mater Dei Primary

At the Basketball courts

Grades 1 – 6

Thursdays from

0ct.15th to Dec 8th 2020

(7 weeks/sessions)

From 10:40am

1st break-Playtime

$95,includes a ball, singlet with your name on back & a back-pack

$70.00 for returning-does not include include pack

www.aussiehoops.com.au

Bonus- free basketball for Aussie Hoopers also avail at Glennie HS on Saturdays 9:00am to 10:00am on 41 Vacy Street.

When?

Where?

What Time?

How Much?

TUCKSHOP

Welcome back to the last term at tuckshop!

Volunteers Urgently Needed It is a great time to come in and reconnect with the Mater Dei community by volunteering in the tuckshop. Please sign up by clicking the link below. Your help is greatly appreciated. Thank you to all our wonderful volunteers who have helped out. Please Click the link below to sign up!

https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/60b0e45a9a629a1fc1-mdps8

Specials We have a great special for your hungry kids this term.

• You can order Spaghetti Bolognese for $4 and add a garlic bread for only $1. • We will continue with the M and Ms but it will be a slice now instead of a cookie.

Birthday Cupcakes Don't forget we can do your birthday cupcakes for the whole class! Make it a special day for your child without the fuss!

Mango Yoghurt Unfortunately, we are unable to access any Bulla Mango Yoghurt but we will trial a Mango/Watermelon frozen Yoghurt in the meantime.

Regards Anne Day

MATER DEI P&F STARRY NIGHT RACE DAY

Dear Parents,

The Mater Dei P&F Starry Night Race Day is fast approaching, and we are so excited that everything is able to go ahead as planned! In some super exciting news - we can now stand and mingle with our drinks!! This will no longer be a strictly seated event making it a much more relaxing evening for all. No dancefloor just yet, but we remain hopeful for that. We are still seeking both financial and physical contributions for the day. This is a great way to promote your business within our school community and we do love to support our own. Please see the beow letter for further details. We thank you in advance for considering.

There is also still plenty of time to get your tickets for this event and we hope you will come and join us. See the attached flyer for details - it's sure to be a great night and we hope you can join us. Tickets are available through Flexischools as are multidraw tickets and lucky envelopes.

With thanks

The Starry Night Race Day committee

Dear Business Owner, It is with immense excitement that we are writing to inform you that the Mater Dei Starry Night Race Day has been confirmed to take place on Saturday 24 October 2020, in the Clive Berghofer Grand Atrium at the Clifford Park Racecourse. In the past this event has proven to be an excellent opportunity for local businesses to network and gain exposure with a captive audience of up to 200 guests. This year’s event is sure to be a successful afternoon/evening in the beautiful Grand Atrium as we celebrate our school community and the ability to be together again. We would be honoured if your business would consider supporting this event through one of the many contribution options we have on offer. All contributions will assist in supplying our school with the most advanced equipment available for our students to reach their goals. Please note that as all families pay the P&F levy, this contribution is above and beyond and completely optional. If you would like the opportunity to gain some exposure for your business and contribute to this day, the following options are available. Contribution options for 2020 include:

1. $2000 package: includes 4 x tickets and prominent signage and advertising throughout the days program of events;

2. $1000 package: includes 2 x tickets and prominent event signage;

3. $500 package: includes 1 x ticket and prominent event signage; and/or

4. $30+ package: any contribution large or small of goods or services that may be in the form of vouchers or items to be included in our multi-draw prize packs or lucky envelopes.

Anything you can provide would be greatly appreciated by the committee. If you have any questions or would like to support the event through one of the options above, please contact Alley Sullivan 0437 238 960 or Ashley Byrne 0428 350 500. We look forward to hearing from you soon. Thank you, in anticipation The Starry Night Race Day Committee c/- the Mater Dei P&F Committee

Mater Dei Spring Race Day