Term 2, Week 1

Dear Parents, Caregivers, Students and friends of St Mary Magdalene’s School, 

 Welcome to Term 2! I hope you all had a relaxing and enjoyable   holiday. The students appear relaxed and excited to be back at   school and it was great to hear some of their holiday stories. Holidays are always a great opportunity for everyone to recharge their batteries and Term 2 looks like being a very exciting and busy term!

Congratulations and welcome Mrs Ciara James. Ciara is Head of Campus at St Mary Magdalene’s.  We trust that her time at St Mary Magdalene's School will be richly rewarding.

The Leadership Team is Principal, Chris Platten, Head of Campus, Ciara James, Assistant Principal Religious Identity and Mission (APRIM), Melissa Musolino and Inclusive Education Coordinator, Leah Williams. 

I would like to thank the many people who have made me feel welcome at St Mary Magdalene’s School community. I have already met with the students and am looking forward to meeting families. I certainly have a great sense of excitement and optimism this year and beyond.

Staff and I have had lots of meetings and it is because of their passion and enthusiasm that the planning for 2021 should be smooth.

There is much to celebrate and to recognise the rich heritage of our past, the gifts of the present and the vision for the future. It is a great privilege to be Principal of St Mary Magdalene’s School and I look forward to being part of this community. I encourage you to be an active member in our community and take up every opportunity possible to be involved in your child’s education.

ADJUSTING TO THE FIRST WEEKS OF SCHOOL

Back to school can be a very emotional time for children. For first-time students, being away from parents, adjusting to a new environment with new people, and adapting to a new routine can be overwhelming. You can help by talking about the positive aspects of school. Tell stories about your happy, funny and enjoyable experiences at school. Talk to older siblings about ways they can help so they don’t tell scary stories.

• Establish regular bedtime and wake-up routines. Children, including teenagers, need plenty of sleep. They may be more tired than usual and need time to relax. You may find that rather than becoming more grown up, young children might regress or become more difficult or defiant, in response to the stress of the new routines.
• Celebrate the start of school with a special meal or outing. Make the experience as happy and positive as you can.
• Children normally shed a few tears when they part from their parents. Try not to extend your stay because it can prolong and intensify the child’s reaction. This behavior may last a few days or weeks. Teachers are prepared to handle the situation and if alerted that a child may react to separation, they can give the student a special job or a partner in the class to help with the adjustment period. Even if children have been to school previously, they might still find their initial weeks a period of change.

CATHOLIC EDUCATION WEEK – Monday May 3 to Sunday May 9 2021

What is Catholic Education Week?

Catholic Education Week is a great opportunity to highlight the wonderful things that are happening in every one of our schools. This year will be the fourth time Catholic Education Week has run across all South Australian Catholic schools and we know that many of you already have celebrations planned. Catholic Education Week in 2021 will have a core focus on school-based celebrations and events within Catholic school communities and networks.

Catholic Education Week aims to showcase the wonderful things that are happening in all Catholic schools across Australia. Schools will hold a variety of events throughout the week.

NAPLAN 2021 - YEARS 3 AND 5

During week 3 (10 – 14 May),  the national testing will be conducted in all schools. ACARA (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority) provides the following information for parents about this program: “The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual assessment for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. It has been an annual event for schools since 2008. On Tuesday 11 May, Wednesday 12 May and Thursday 13 May, students will sit the 2021 NAPLAN tests. NAPLAN assesses skills in Literacy and Numeracy that are developed over time, through the school curriculum. NAPLAN is not a pass or fail type test, but rather shows how students are progressing in numeracy and literacy skills against national standards for all Australian children. It also provides valuable information that allows schools and governments to better target effort and support to help all students achieve their potential and acquire the basic skills to help them build successful and happy lives.” All students are expected to participate in the tests.

NAPLAN tests fundamental skills rather than specific content, and as such is not a test for which students can study or drill. A good discussion to have with your child regarding NAPLAN is to let them know that NAPLAN is just one part of their school program, and to reinforce to them that they did their best they can on the day. An individual student NAPLAN report will be issued by the school later this year. Parents can use this information to monitor how their child is progressing and to identify any areas of concern. Parents may also wish to use their child’s results to discuss progress with teachers.

ANZAC DAY

Sunday, 25 April was Anzac day.

ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) Day is the anniversary of the landing of troops from Australia and New Zealand on the Gallipoli Peninsula, Turkey, in World War I on April 25, 1915. The bravery of all military personnel who participated in this campaign and the lives of those who died in all military actions are remembered. Anzac Day is a day of memorial for all Australians, who have died fighting for our country, in a host of wars. On Anzac Day we remembered with those who made the supreme sacrifice for us in time of war.

MOTHER’S DAY

Sunday, 9 May is Mother’s Day - A Happy Mother’s Day to all of our Mums, Grandmothers and to the other significant women in our students’ lives. We acknowledge that this is a day to truly celebrate the wonderful role the mums in our community play in loving and ensuring the success of our students.

"Blessed be all mothers

Who have come into our lives

Whose kindness, care and loving

Remain with us to guide.

Your inspiration in us

Made us strive in every way

Especially to remember

Helping others makes our day.

Mothers, this little tribute

Flows directly from my heart

You are so loved and cherished

Invaluable, one and all, you are.”

- Susan Kramer

Connecting Life, Faith and Learning

Chris Platten

Feeling very privileged and excited to be the Head of Campus at St Mary Magdalene’s I want to introduce myself and let you know a little bit about me. 

 I have been teaching for more than 20 years with the majority of my teaching career being at Catherine McAuley School in Craigmore where I worked from 2002 – 2018. During my time at Catherine McAuley I worked in a variety of positions including the classroom, as a Reading Recovery teacher, Key Literacy Teacher, Inclusive Education Coordinator, APRIM and Acting Deputy Principal. 

My passion around inclusion and diversity lead me to work in the Catholic Education Office as a part of the Learning Diversity and Equity Team as a Students with Disability consultant. This position saw me working at a system level supporting a variety of Catholic Schools across South Australia, working with staff and families in planning effective adjustments to increase access and participation for students with disabilities. In 2020 I was privileged to work as the Mercy School Project Leader where I worked closely with leadership and staff at St Mary Magdalene’s, St Thomas More and Catherine McAuley towards increasing engagement and learning within the Elizabeth Mercy Schools. During this time, I developed a close connection to the St Mary Magdalene’s Community.

I learnt a lot working in the Catholic Education Office but missed the close connections I developed with students and families when working within a school community. I am very excited to build these connections within the Elizabeth Parish and within a Mercy School where together we can bring our Mercy Values alive in authentic and relevant ways. 

I am passionate about personalising learning and working towards improved learning outcomes for every student at our school. I want all students to experience success and feel safe and supported enough to take risks in their learning. I want to empower students to believe in themselves and be the best person they can be. 
I am excited to be a part of your child’s learning journey and look forward to working in partnership with you and your children. 

Connecting Life, Faith and Learning,
Ciara James 

Jesus said “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:12)

This term our theme for Religious Education across the school is Respect and classes will be exploring this in many different ways. During community prayer this week we shared the reading above and explored what it means to show respect.

Students will begin to break open the theme and explore what respect looks like, feels like and sounds like for them and how they might show respect in the same way.

This week students have been asked to consider:

• What does respect mean to you?
• Can you think of a time when you practised respect?
• What is something you could do this week to show respect?

Staff from St Mary Magdalene’s and St Thomas More School gathered this week for staff meeting. Our prayer focused on the upcoming Sunday gospel of the vine and branches.

In the gospel we read a very short part of a long speech that Jesus gave to his disciples the night before he died. He uses the image of a vine and branches. Just as the vine and the branches are joined together, so we are connected to Jesus and will live by his words. Like the branches of the vine that bear fruit, our lives will bear fruit too – the fruit of love and goodness – when we are united to Jesus as disciples.

Staff were asked to consider the following:

• What fruit is Jesus talking about?
• How am I as much a part of Jesus as a branch is part of a vine?

Sacramental Program 2021

If your child is currently enrolled in the Sacramental Program for 2021, please take note of the following dates for Term 2.

Week 4 Reconciliation Workshop - Saturday 22/05/2021 1pm - 4pm at St Mary Magdalene’s School - students only.

Week 8 Reconciliation Celebrations - (choose one date of preference)

• Friday 18/06/2021 5pm - 6pm St Thomas More’s Church

• Saturday 19/06/2021 10am - 11am St Thomas More’s Church

• Sunday 20/06/2021 11:30 am - 12:30pm St Thomas More’s Church      

Catholic Education Week – Week 2

In week 2 we celebrate Catholic Education Week with the theme ‘Raising Hearts and Minds to the wonder and awe of God’s creation’. The week has a core focus on celebrating teaching and learning and what it means to be part of a Catholic school community.

As we respond to the needs of others and all of God’s creation we are called to consider:

• Has God’s creation inspired wonder and awe for you?
• How can we ‘Raise our Hearts and Minds’ to the wonder and awe of God’s creation?

Connecting Life, Faith and Learning

Melissa Musolino

APRIM

Hello and Welcome back to Term 2.

We are excited to be back offering a range of programs and support services.

Check out our flyers on our website HERE and follow our Facebook page for more information.

New to the Hub this term is our sewing group. All skill levels are welcome to join in and we will help and learn from each other. All resources will be provided but feel free to bring along any projects you are currently working on. Creche is not available for this activity at this stage but if you require this service, please contact Kerryn and we can discuss options. We hope to see you over in the hub soon. 

*Do you have a child under 5 years old? Would you like to receive a FREE children's book every month? Please see Kerryn for more details and to see if you are eligible."

In OSHC we have a play based curriculum guided by My Time Our Place. Spontaneous play is encouraged and there are a lot of activities that are in cube boxes for the children to access. Riley decided that wanted to play with the lego yesterday and look at the creation that he made. When I asked him what he was building he replied with “I am making tetradactyl”. Great job Riley! There are still limited spots available for before and after school care. Please contact Lisa at the front desk or Esther on 0437609630. Bookings are essential.

Please ensure Students overdue Library Books are returned this week. 

I am pleased to see most Students are well on the way to completing the Premier's Reading Challenge.  Students who complete the Challenge will receive either a Certificate or Medal at the end of the year.

This term we will be having Subway orders in Week 2, Week 5 and Week 10. 
For families wishing to order a subway lunch, order forms will be sent home the week prior to the delivery.