Dear Parents and Carers,

This week I would like to acknowledge our Year 6 leaders. In recent weeks they have led the school in liturgies, prayer services, passive play and this week with the lunch time workshops for Science Week.

It gives me great joy to see our students being the best they can be and acknowledging that all their experiences here at school build up to push them out of their comfort zone and allow them to shine. 

I have been so proud of what they have achieved and I am very grateful to the teachers who have supported them to lead our school in all of the variety of ways. 

Thank you to you as parents and carers for entrusting us with the gift of your children and having faith in us as a school to walk with you in this journey of their young lives.

I look forward to what the rest of the year may bring and the opportunities that all students will experience. 

God Bless

Mrs Belinda Hughes - Principal

Mary Mackillop

August 8 is always a special day for our school community. We celebrated  the Feast Day St Mary of the Cross Mackillop by sharing in a special liturgy. We were reminded of the importance of taking time to pray and give thanks for the life of Mary MacKillop.

More so than ever, what our world needs now is hope, kindness, and compassion.

We reflected as a school community and in our Religious Education lessons the story of Mary Mackillop and how she lived a life in service for others spreading the message of God.  We pray that we will continue Mary’s dream………..   

 “Never see a need  without doing something about it.”

As we honoured Mary Mackillop we reflected closely on our Vision and Mission Statement.

The students created a display where they shared ways they can live these special words of Mary Mackillop making those important connections with our school Vision and Mission.    

On Monday we gathered to reflect on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Mary, we remember that Mary was taken into Heaven after she died. This was God’s way of showing us that Mary is special to God, she said ‘yes’ to becoming the Mother of Jesus.

Thank you to Year Three for sharing this beautiful liturgy with us. We were reminded of how Mary lived a life of unconditional love and devotion for her son, Jesus. 

As a school we will be celebrating the special men in our lives with a Father’s Day prayer service in the hall on Friday September 2nd (Week 7) at 2:30pm.

We would like to invite families to attend this prayer service.

If any special Dad’s, grandfather’s or carers would like to be involved in this prayer service or share a special gift or talent please notify the office by Thursday 25th  August  (Week Six - Term Three). 

Upcoming dates

Staff Spirituality Day

Friday August 26th

Father’s Day Prayer Service

Friday September 2nd at 2.30pm

Year One and Four Buddy Grade Mass

Friday September 2nd at 2.30pm 

World Day prayer for the Care for Creation Liturgy 

Monday September 5th at 2.30pm

Grace and Blessings

Mrs Steph Brown - Religious Education Co ordinator

Year 2 Celebration of Learning

Throughout Term 3, Year 2 have been learning about informative texts in English. 

Students did lots of researching, investigating and enquiring for different types of informative texts. One type of informative text that Year 2 has dived into is procedures. 

Over the past 2 weeks, Year 2 has been learning about the features of a procedure, following procedures through images, videos and books, as well as creating their own procedure. 

Year 2 created a procedure on ‘How to make fairy bread’ but they soon discovered that their instructions were not specific enough because if they say to “put the butter on the bread”, Miss Negus will put the whole tub of butter on top of the bread. 

They worked hard using TAG feedback to develop their layout, instructions and diagrams to develop some great procedures! 

They then FINALLY got to make their own fairy bread by following their instructions carefully. 

Below are some photos of the process it took to get to where we are this week - enjoying some perfectly made fairy bread! 

Science Week 

This week the Year 6 Dynamic Learning Team have hosted a series of lunchtime workshops for students in K-6. 

On Monday we had Kindy and Year 1 discovering what items would sink and float. 

On Tuesday Year 2, 3 and 4 students used a range of materials to design and test parachutes for lego people. 

On Wednesday Year 5 & 6 experimented with the properties of oil and water to create some groovy lava lamps. 

Thank you to the Year 6 leaders for planning and delivering these workshops. 

Book Week

Public Speaking Competition

At the completion of this competition three students from each class will compete in our school competition the following week. 

Whole School Public Speaking dates 

• Week 10: Tuesday 20th September 2pm in hall - Stage 3
• Week 10: Wednesday 21st September 2pm in hall - ES1, S1, S2

Further information regarding speech topics and timing will be sent out via compass soon. 

Christmas Story Art Exhibition

This term Year 5 & 6 students have been engaging in the process of the Diocesesan Christmas Story Art Competition. Students are learning to develop deeper appreciation for their talents and recognise the value of the arts in expressing understandings of the Catholic faith.

Stage 3 students would like to invite you to an art exhibition where students will get to showcase their artworks and descriptions. 

Where: The School Hall

When: Tuesday 13th September

Time: 2pm - 4pm

eSafety News

eSafety’s parent guide to popular apps

Learn about TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube and help your children stay safe online.

This webinar is designed for parents and carers of young people aged 8 to 13.

It will cover: 

• case studies, research and targeted advice 
• ways of supporting the young people in your life to have safe, enjoyable online experiences.

WHEN? Thursday 25 August 12:30 to 1:30 pm

REGISTER HERE: https://register.gotowebinar.com/rt/5639946412689525773 

Miss Riolo - Middle Leader 2

South Coast Athletics 

Congratulations to all of the students who represented St Michael’s at the South Coast Athletics Carnival on Tuesday 9th August. Well done for making it to this carnival it is a massive achievement. 

The following students represented St Michael’s and we are all very proud of their effort and achievements; Gigi B, Milla B, Jemima C, Maya D, Hazel G, Lila H, Drew Mc James B, Sebastian C, Oliver D, Liam D, Darcy F, Alistair F, Monte H, River H, Will H, Oliver W, Cameron S, Riley S, Flynn S, Callum R, Ruby W, Imogen V, Eliza R, Sienna P and Isla O. 

St Michael’s were awarded the Small Schools Championship Award which was a fantastic achievement. We also had many students receive ribbons and make it to the Wollongong Diocese Athletics, these details are below. 

Wollongong Diocese Athletics

The following students qualified to represent St Michael’s at the Wollongong Diocese Athletics on Tuesday 16th August. This was an amazing achievement and we are very proud of all of these students.

The competitors who qualified and their results are listed below. 

NSW Representative Basketball

Congratulations to Riley S who is currently representing NSW in a National Basketball Competition. We are very proud of you Riley. 

Miss Emma Wragge - Sports Coordinator