School Newsletter Term 1, Week 4, 15th May 2025

Principals Letter

Dear St Augustine's families,

On Easter Monday we saw the passing of Pope Francis, a man who chose a simple life, walked with all people and had a preference for the poor and marginalised. 

On 8 May, Robert Francis Prevost, 69, became the 267th Pope. Many people are wondering Who is he? And What is he like? Much has already been written about him. He is the first Pope originating from The United States, he is considered as much a cardinal from Latin America because of the many years he spent as a missionary in Peru. Some of his own reflections from over the years give an account of what deeply concerns him. His following quotes share some insight into his wisdom.

"We are often preoccupied with teaching doctrine...but we risk forgetting that our first task is to teach what it means to know Jesus Christ," Vatican News 2023

"Our work is to enlarge the tent and to let everyone know they are welcome inside the Church." 2023 Press Conference

“We must seek together how to be a missionary Church, a Church that builds bridges, dialogue, always open to receive, like this square, with open arms. Everyone, everyone who needs our charity, our presence, dialogue and love”  First Address, St. Peter’s Square, 8th May 2025.

We pray for Pope Leo as he leads the Catholic church forward and that he be blessed in his ministry.

Mental Health Awareness Week - runs from 12–18 May. This year’s theme is ‘Community’, reminding us how important it is to support one another and create a safe, supportive environment for all. To show our support, students are invited to come in casual clothes, wearing a touch of green, on Friday 16th May to raise awareness of mental health and show that at St. Augustine’s, everyone belongs. No coin donation is required.

NCCD Attached you will see an outline of why and how we collect data to inform funding for our children who require adjustments to access the curriculum.

Come and Try Hour - Monday 26th May 3.30pm - 4.30pm for prospective Foundation 2026 enrolments. Please register at; https://app.enquirytracker.net/webforms/event-registration/616626c0-7448-4744-ac6b-62c6667e88e0?data-widget-event-type=IS

Open Mornings - Tuesday 27th May & Wednesday 28th May 9.15am - 11am. All new propsective future enrolments welcome to come and have a tour of our school lead by our Year 6 students. 

School Photo Day - Will be held on Thursday 29th May. MSP Photography will be taking our school photos this year. All photo purchases are to be made through the online portal as per flyer below. Please contact MSP direct if you have any difficulty with the portal. Link: https://staugustinespsmaryborough-vic.msp.photos/login.aspx?sessionstate=disabled 

Fee assistance -  If you have a valid government concession card as at 28/01/25 and have not yet applied for the CSEF credit (Camp, Sports Excursion Fund), applications must be in before the end of term 2. Please contact the school office for the relevant forms. All previous applicants have had credits applied and fee statements sent home.  

MOTHERS DAY  Last weekend, we also celebrated Mothers Day so I hope all of our Mothers and special women in our lives were treated with love and joy.

A huge thank you must go out to Sarah and Jacinta for organising the Mothers Day stall to ensure all of our children had the opportunity of buying a special something for that special person in their lives. Thank you also to the helpers who turned up to assist in serving the children as they came through the stall and to all who donated goodies. 

We celebrated a beautiful liturgy to give thanks to our Mothers and our Holy Mother for all they do and their unconditional love. Our P&F organised a wonderful 'high tea' for all to share, thank you to all who contributed. 

"Heavenly Father, we thank You for the gift of motherhood. Today, we celebrate the loving sacrifice of mothers, both biological and spiritual, who nurture and guide us in Your ways. Bless them with joy, strength, and love to continue their selfless devotion. May they feel deeply appreciated and honored not just today, but every day. Amen."

Many blessings,

Mrs Sonia Turner

Principal

Happy Birthday to...

Alfie B  - Year 6      Liv C - Year 1       Nation H - Year 3      Jasmine J - Year 3     

Sophia W - Year 5      Clark M - Foundation      Amelia T - Year 4        

     Isabella J  - Year 5     Shakira W - Year 6      Xavier D - Year 1     

STAR Students

At St Augustine's we are a SWPBIS school (School Wide Positive Behaviour in School) and we have a STAR culture. STAR stands for:

S  - stay safe

T  - take pride

A  - act justly

R  - respond positively

Just like children are explicitly taught academics, acceptable behaviour is also explicitly taught. STAR awards are given at Assembly each fortnight, exceptional STARs are sent a postcard which qualifies them to morning tea with the Principal at the end of the term.

STAR lessons are taught around a nominated behaviour blitz. Children are taught how to be a STAR in all places they go and what the acceptable behaviour looks like. Examples of a lessons: how to stay safe in class, in the library, the toilet, at the bus stop, on the playground or when walking to the swimming pool.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OUR WEEK 3 & 4 STARS! WELL DONE!

Parents & Friends News

Next P & F Meeting is Monday 26th May at 5.30pm in the Marian Centre. All welcome!

A word from our ART ROOM

This week all grades are learning about Pablo Picasso. 
They enjoyed the creative freedom of the activity while learning about Picasso’s life. 

My New Gallery

Lunch box ideas

SchoolTV

Because parenting doesn’t come with instructions, SchoolTV is a wellbeing resource that can support you in the challenges relating to modern-day parenting.

This award-winning resource helps build relationships, foster connections, enable understanding and break down barriers to navigate a pathway towards better mental health and wellbeing for young people. It can assist in starting conversations on topics that are sometimes awkward or difficult to tackle.

2025 School Fees & Levies

2025 School Fees & Levies - below is the 2025 School Fees & Levies information.

Camp fees are to be paid prior to students attending the camp. 5/6 Camp is the 24-26th March and the 3/4 Camp is 19-21 May. All other fees are to be finalised by the end of November each year. 

All credits have now been applied for valid concession card holder claimants of the government Camp Sports Excursion Fund (CSEF) and School Saving Bonus.  Statements were sent home last week along with the application form for Family Fee Assistance which needs to be completed and returned to the school office.  Statements will be sent home again once this is applied.

We welcome all students and their families who share or respect our Catholic faith, values and traditions. Catholic education is supported by State and Federal funding, with families contributing the balance of the cost of educating their children. At times, some families are unable to meet their commitment to the full costs of education. As a Catholic school system, we ensure fee relief mechanisms are available to support families in time of need. We encourage these discussions on enrolment or as these needs emerge.

Ambulance Cover

Emergency medical transport services are not free and not covered by Medicare. Become a genuine Ambulance Victoria member and be protected against the cost of transport and treatment by paramedics.

If your child required an ambulance at school we would not hesitate to call for one before speaking with parents. Without ambulance membership it can be a very costly trip! If your not already covered please consider!

Bus Travel & Conveyance Allowance

Bus travel on the country buses is available for students at St Augustine’s School and arrangements are made through the bus co-ordinator, Heather Leach, at the Maryborough Education Centre on 5461 7900 or via email to Heather.Leach2@education.vic.gov.au. 

A PTV form must be completed and approved prior to any bus travel.

For one off or seasonal travel, parents of the student/s must organise a bus pass through MEC at least two days prior to travel. Students cannot travel on the country buses without a pass.

The town bus is currently full so no additional travellers are being accepted. The town bus costs 50cents a trip, payable on the day of travel.  Please advise the office if your child will be travelling on any of the buses so we can update our bus rolls.

IMPORTANT

All bus travel requires parents/guardians to complete a Public Transport Victoria (PTV) Application for Permission to Travel form prior to any bus travel. This form can be emailed direct to Heather Leach at MEC, Heather.Leach2@education.vic.gov.au. It is important that this form is completed as these details will be used in the event of an emergency.

PTV forms are required to be updated and completed yearly by all families who have bus travellers.

CONVEYANCE ALLOWANCE 

Eligibility

An application on behalf of a student may be submitted if the student is:

• a Victorian resident.
• school aged and enrolled (3) three or more days per week at a school; and
• attending a school/campus located outside the Melbourne metropolitan conveyance boundary

A student who meets the above requirements may be eligible if they:

• attend their nearest or designated neighbourhood government school/campus appropriate to their year level, at which admission is permissible, or
• attend their nearest appropriate non-government school/campus appropriate to their year level, at which admission is permissible, and
• reside 4.8km or more by the shortest practicable route from the campus attended

Medical Information

Headlice information

Student Medical Information

If your child is unwell please keep them at home.

This includes coughs, colds, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea and any other contagious illnesses.  

Coughs & Colds

Children can return to school once symptoms have eased and they are not actively coughing or blowing their nose.  

Vomitting & Diarrhoea

Children can return to school 48 hours after the last episode.

We will send children home if they present with any of these symptoms whilst at school.

Notifying Absences

All absentee notifications should be recorded either through the Parent Access Module (PAM) or directly to the school office by phone or email to admin@samaryborough.catholic.edu.au prior to 9.30am on the day of the absence. Please do not send notes of absence through to classroom teachers on Class Dojo as they may be absent or unable to check messages prior to commencement of class.

If a student is absent and we have not received any form of notification by 9.30am, a text message will be sent to parents asking them to call the office or send a reply text. 

Child Safety

St. Augustine's Primary School Maryborough demonstrates a strong commitment to the care, safety and wellbeing of all students at our school.

All of our Child Safe policies and procedures are accessible on our website through the link below.

Uniform Shop

Uniforms will continue to be filled weekly and sent home with your child/ren.

We have discontined the lemon polo's due to the large delay in delivery times. We are out of stock of short sleeved lemon polo's in most sizes now. Long sleeve lemon polos are still available in some sizes while stocks last. Send a dojo to Amber if you would like to purchase.

Beanies are available in the school office for $20

Uniform orders will continue to be filled and sent home with your child(ren) weekly. If you would like to enquire about secondhand uniform, please send a message to Amber on Class Dojo with your required items and sizes and we will send home what we can supply, $5 per item. This can be paid through CDFPay under IOU uniform. 

If you have any queries or items to be exchanged, please contact the school office. 

Note: There is no designated period for summer or winter uniform. Students can choose what they would like to wear in any season. The only exception is that sports uniform must be worn on designated sports days and bucket hats are to be worn between August & April.

ALL ORDERS TO BE PLACED THROUGH THE NEW CDFPAY APP. INSTRUCTIONS FOR ACCOUNT SETUP ATTACHED.

PAM - Parent Access Module

PLEASE LOG INTO YOUR PAM ACCOUNT AND CONFIRM/COMPLETE YOUR CHILDS MEDICAL PROFILE. THIS INFORMATION IS MANDATORY FOR ALL STUDENTS. 

We require ALL families to complete and update their child/ren’s medical details and contact information for 2023 through PAM and throughout the year as changes occur. 

This information is mandatory and vital in the case of an emergency.   It is important that if you have any change to your contact numbers, including work place, mobile, home number, that these be updated through PAM and to advise the school office.

To complete your child/rens medical profile including contact information, go to PAM, click on your child/rens name, go to 'Medical Profile' and click 'Edit Details'. Complete details then click in the box at the bottom of the page to confirm the details are correct and click ‘Update Details’.

If you have any questions or require your login details, please contact the school office.

Parking & Road Safety

Parking behind the church & tennis courts is STAFF ONLY parking. Please do not use these areas to park or pickup your children. Vehicle movement in and out of these areas means you are driving over footpaths/walkways which both our students and Highview students are using. This creates a potential safety hazard.

Follow road safety regulations, keep driveways clear, check carefully before reversing and avoid letting your children exit or enter a car whilst on the road or stopped at the crossings. Please do not double park. We all want to keep our families safe so your co-operation is appreciated.

Please observe road rules around our school for the safety of all of our children.

* Schools have 40km zone.

* Parking behind the church & tennis courts is STAFF ONLY parking.

* Please use the children's crossing on Burns, Kars St and Burke St.

* For safety purposes, please avoid letting your children exit or enter a car whilst on the road or stopped at the crossings. Please do not double park. 

Thank you for your co-operation.

Bell times

5 minutes prior to classes commencing there is music played. This signals to the children it is time to start moving to class. This is the time children need to have a drink, go to the toilet etc. so they are lined up and ready to start class when the bell goes. 

8:30am - Yard Care Supervision begins

8:45am  -  Classroom teacher in classroom - meet & greet

8:55pm - School classes begin

9am-11am - 2 hour learning session

11am-11:40am -  First break

11:40am-1:40pm - 2 hour learning session

1:40pm-2:20pm - Second break

2:20pm-3:15pm - 55 minute learning session

3:10pm - Fiscalini & Flanagan dismissal

3:15pm - Arundell & Scanlan, Bus students dismissal

Parish News

Please see link below for the latest Parish Bulletin & readings.

Advanced dates for your diary

Please see the link to the school calendar below for all  important dates.

Community Notices