Newsletter Term 4, Week 2 2024
Monday 21 October- School Closure
Wednesday 30 October- Year 3 Reconciliation
Dear SMM Families,
We’ve had a fantastic start to Term 4, beginning with the celebration of St. Margaret Mary’s Feast Day and the 70th anniversary of our school.
All children received a commemorative prayer card and more are available from SMM church and from our school office.
On Wednesday, we came together as a community—students, families, staff, Fr. Samuel, Sisters of St. Joseph, parishioners, past students, and friends—to celebrate this milestone with a special Mass. It was a joyous occasion to reflect on our school’s rich history and give thanks for everyone who has been part of the journey.
From opening our doors in 1954 with just 76 students, to the expansion with the Hudsons Road building in 1958, St. Margaret Mary’s has grown and thrived. Through all the changes, it’s the people—past and present—that remain the heart of our school.
We are deeply grateful to those who laid the foundations of our community and to the current parents, friends, and parish members who continue to support and build our school. Together, we are committed to enhancing our students' learning, spiritual growth, and overall development.
A special thank you to our wonderful students, past and present. It’s for them that we are here, and we feel privileged to nurture their growth in partnership with families. The children remind us daily of the joy of learning, discovery, and wonder!
As part of our celebrations, the students enthusiastically participated in the STOMP dance incursion. It was fantastic to see everyone get involved, and even better to have so many parents join in on the fun! The spirit of St. Margaret Mary’s is truly alive.
Student Free Day – Monday, 21st October
All staff will be participating in professional development focused on high-impact, explicit teaching of writing as part of our "Flourishing Learners" program. This year, we’ve made a significant investment in enhancing our staff’s skills, which has already resulted in impressive improvements in student engagement and academic growth. We’ve also added a large number of reading materials for F–6 students, including decodable texts, storybooks, and novels. Parents of middle and senior school students, be sure to ask your child about the novels they’re reading! Our ongoing commitment to literacy and numeracy continues to support high-impact teaching practices based on the science of learning.
Outstanding School Fees
We’ve had an improved response from families this year, in regards to school fee payment, thanks in part to the ease of using Edstart. A big thank you to those who’ve engaged with Edstart and also to those who’ve paid through our SMM admin team. This shift has allowed Jo-ann and Ruth to focus more on child-centred work and engage more positively with families.
Please note, some fees are still outstanding. If this has slipped your mind, please take care of this commitment as soon as possible. If your family needs support, don’t hesitate to reach out to me at principal@smmspotswood.catholic.edu.au for a meeting, or to arrange a phone call.
World Teachers’ Day – Thursday, 24th October
Let’s celebrate and acknowledge the incredible work our teachers do each and every day!
FSG Trivia Night – Saturday, 16th November
Our annual trivia night is back! It’s a fun night and a great way to connect with other SMM parents and friends. Last year’s event was a huge success, and this year we’re inviting new families joining SMM in 2025, so it will be an inclusive and welcoming event for all. Gather a table of friends or sign up solo—we’d love to see you there!
Looking Ahead
As we approach 2025, we are planning our staffing which is directly linked to student numbers and 2024 fee payment compliance. Please email promptly if your child will not be attending St Margaret Mary’s in 2025.
In staffing news, Kate Flynn, our much loved and highly regarded teacher will be taking up a classroom position in Sandringham in 2025, which is closer to her new home in the East. We thank Kate for her dedicated service to the children and community of SMM over the past 6 years and wish her every success in the future. Please be sure to keep in touch Kate. You will be missed!
Further to this announcement, please join me in welcoming Tayla Kelly who began at SMM this week in a generalised teaching role and will join us as a class teacher in 2025. Tayla, an ex-student of SMM, comes to us with a wealth of educational knowledge, skill and teaching experience in both Australia and England. Tayla will be replacing Kate Flynn in 2025.
2024 is zooming by…
Looking forward to another exciting term!
Take care,
Colleen McCambridge
Principal
St Margaret Mary's Primary School
Awards
Due to the school closure on Monday 21 October, the student awards will be handed out at the morning assembly on Tuesday 22nd October at 8.45am.
Hats are back!
In line with the Sun Smart recommendations, students are now required to wear hats during yard time. To help avoid misplaced items, please ensure your child's hat is clearly labeled with their name.
Trivia Night - Sat Nov 16
Follow our socials for the latest learning posts from the classroom
St Margaret Mary’s students are independent life-long learners inspired by Gospel values and empowered with a sense of purpose and responsibility. They confidently engage with others and are equipped with skills to adapt to an ever changing world.
Each week, students who embody our values, apply the school mindsets to learning, work hard to improve or persevere to deliver on learning objectives are awarded a class award. The students who earned an award in the past weeks are:
Week 1
Week 2
Around the School
Seniors Design and Technology Day
Last Friday, our Year 5 and 6 students took part in an exciting incursion focused on exploring innovation through time. They got to look at innovation through time and designed and marketed a product of their own. It was a great STEM focused way to begin the term’s inquiry topic around design and technology.
SMM 70th Anniversary Feast day
We had a wonderful celebration of St Margaret Mary’s Feast Day and the school’s 70th anniversary, starting with a morning Mass and a lively STOMP performance. It was heartwarming to welcome so many visitors back to our school.
In the afternoon, our assembly provided a meaningful conclusion to a day filled with learning about our patron saint, St Margaret Mary, and St Mary MacKillop, the founder of the Sisters of St Joseph.
School Disco
What a wonderful way to end term 3! The FSG organised a fantastic night for our students and I think a few parents too! A big thank you to our FSG and parent helpers for making it a great evening.
Maths Puzzles
The answers are down below!
Answers down below.
Answers down below
Student Wellbeing & Mental Health in Primary Schools (MHiPS) at SMM
Student Wellbeing & Mental Health in Primary Schools (MHiPS) at SMM.
Welcome back to Term 4! Our students have resumed their routines ensuring a smooth transition back to school. In Term 4 we focus on supporting our students to navigate transitions. Transitions are a crucial part of your child’s development and a big part of school life, e.g. transitioning from home to school in the morning, moving from teacher to teacher, moving from play times to learning times, moving from one grade to the next, moving to secondary school, stepping up from junior to middle or to senior level, or taking on new age-appropriate responsibilities, e.g. taking on a Year 6 captain role in 2025 or preparing for being a ‘big buddy’ for the 2025 preps.
SMM staff engage in handover practices, plan and facilitate activities for ‘step-up’ days and plan and run Program Support Group (PSG) meetings to work in partnership with parents, colleagues and allied health to identify and support the educational, health, social and emotional well-being of students with diverse learning needs. Focussing on transitions is part of inclusive practice, where staff recognise the differences between students, their strengths and challenges and what might be needed to ensure that all students can manage transitions and participate fully in their learning.
Transitions are about coping with change. They are important to plan for and navigate and are often accompanied by strong emotions. For some, transitions can bring a sense of excitement and positive anticipation of the future. Others can feel sad, nervous or anxious about the unknown or grieve the changes to familiarity and routine. The terms to describe a person’s ability to manage and respond to emotional experiences are ‘emotional regulation’ or ‘self-regulation’. Through social-emotional learning (SEL) and integrated well-being practices, SMM students are exposed to many tools and strategies they can utilise to help them learn to regulate their emotions and build their coping skills. This can empower students with a sense of agency and control as they develop their capacity to independently draw on learned strategies to equip them to manage personally challenging situations, e.g. transition
Everyone continuously uses self/emotional regulation strategies throughout life to cope with emotional situations. As adults, most of us use a variety of personally preferred self/emotional regulation strategies and can apply them to different situations to adapt to the demands of our environment. Often our children are keen observers of what their parents/caregivers/older siblings do to cope with strong emotions. It is a good idea to share your coping strategies with your children.
Some emotion regulation strategies are beneficial and some are not. Examples of healthy emotion regulation strategies include breathing exercises, physical exercise, taking a break, talking with friends, meditation practices, completing creative activities, journal writing, getting adequate rest/sleep, developing communication skills, tuning into and monitoring self-talk, developing skills in perspective taking, understanding conflict resolution, understanding what I can control and what is beyond my control. Many of these are a part of day-to-day practice at school, are covered in our social-emotional learning lessons or are used in follow-up to any conflicts or displays of ‘big emotions’ when they occur.
Unhealthy self/emotional regulation strategy examples include: being physically or verbally aggressive, shutting down, avoiding or withdrawing from difficult situations, using social media or gaming excessively and avoiding responsibilities, deflecting and blaming and engaging in harmful addictive behaviours.
Emotional regulation is a skill required to function effectively in our lives. Learning and applying the skill of being able to self-regulate/independently regulate emotions has many benefits. It can contribute to safety and lessen risk-taking behaviour as children get older, support academic and social learning, enhance and build our relationships and ability to sort differences of opinion or conflict, promote health and well-being and build our resilience and coping skills to help us cope with life's adverse experiences and challenges.
How you can help your child with emotion regulation
Model how to regulate: Children learn by watching. Demonstrate your personal emotion regulation strategies and talk about these with your children.
Read or watch YouTube stories together about emotion regulation. This website is great start https://www.bookbaskets.com.au/blog/childrens-books-about-managing-emotions/
Talk about “Flipping Your Lid” which occurs when a part of our brain takes over and prevents us from using our rational upper brain to stay in control. This video explains this concept and could guide a discussion with your child/ren. Self Regulation/Flipping Your Lid
Students need to be explicitly taught about emotional/self-regulation and calming strategies and guided to develop the ability to self-regulate. Teachers often use the ‘I do, we do, you do’ method to support the development of new learning.
Use visuals such as ‘emotion/feeling thermometers/scales’ to help children understand the degrees of emotion, give context to how big the problem is and what they can do when their behaviours or emotions are escalating
Reinforce healthy habits such as regular meals, physical activity, and adequate sleep to support emotional regulation and mood.
Provide Praise for your child's efforts, no matter how small. Positive reinforcement for effort encourages them to take on new challenges and behaviours.
How you can help your child with transitions
Prepare Ahead: Talk to your child about upcoming transitions well in advance. Discuss what changes they can expect and how they might feel about them. This reduces anxiety and helps them feel more in control.
Stay positive and supportive: Show enthusiasm and encouragement about upcoming transitions. Your positive attitude can help alleviate any anxiety your child might have and foster a sense of excitement about the new opportunities ahead.
Discuss the upcoming term: Talk with your child about what to expect in the new school term. Discuss any upcoming events or changes and address any concerns they might have. Talk about what they look forward to in their final term at school. Talk about term 4 as a preparation for transition time moving into 2025, e.g. preparation for secondary school, new classes, different mix of students etc
Review your child’s age-appropriate school responsibilities to help prepare for transition. For example, your child can travel on public transport, walk to school with a friend, help pack or independently pack their lunch, encourage them to carry their school bag or drop them off at the school gate to walk in on their own.
Establish/continue with home routines: Consistent routines can ease transitions. Creating a predictable schedule that includes time for responsibilities, play, and relaxation, helps your child adapt to new situations more smoothly.
Encourage Open Dialogue: A major promoter of mental health is to provide an environment where your child feels comfortable expressing their thoughts and concerns about transitions or any issue. Use active listening skills and reassure them that uncertainty is normal.
Thanks for working in partnership with us to support your children
Kath (Student Wellbeing Leader)
SMM Trivia Night- Donations urgently needed!
Please see the flyer below about how you can help.
Tickets on Sale Now
FSG Meeting
The FSG will be having it’s final meeting of the year next Tuesday the 22nd of October. This meeting will be held in the staffroom at St Margaret Mary’s, starting at 7pm.
A zoom link is provided for anyone unable to be there in person.
All are welcome.
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/75848324898?pwd=rhsc2DXILCpQkV9EIhcJcKWxMaH2U3.1
Chromebook Information
Below is important information for our Year 2 families regarding the Chromebook program, which will begin next year as the students move into Year 3..
Zooper Doopers Starting in Week 4
If you are able to donate a packet of Zooper Doopers, all money raised goes to the FSG and student initiatives.
Foundation Transition Dates
Just a reminder about our 2025 Foundation transition dates! If you have a child starting in 2025, these sessions are a must for learning about school and giving your child the best start to their primary school education. We look forward to seeing you there!
Prep and Junior Book Request
Our Prep and Junior students are on the lookout for some of the books listed below. If you have any copies that are no longer in use and would like to donate, they would be greatly appreciated for our reading libraries. These books have been carefully chosen to support our literacy program.
Reconcilaition Formation Evening
Thank you to all our year 3 families for attending their first reconciliation formation evening. It was a wonderful chance to come together and learn more about reconciliation as a sacrament of healing. Thank You to our host Sam O’Dwyer for her knowledge and experience. .
Reconciliation for our year 3’s will be held on Wednesday, October 30th at 5 pm at Sacred Heart Church. If you require a stole, please contact Simon Devlin in the office.
Parish Secretary, St. Joseph Parish
The Parish of St. Joseph is a vibrant Catholic faith community in Melbourne’s Inner West, comprising Sacred Heart, Newport and St. Margaret Mary’s, Spotswood. Our vision is to be a dynamic and growing faith community that welcomes everyone to the living presence of Jesus Christ.
We are currently looking for the right person to join us on our mission as we seek to fill a Parish Secretary position.
Click the link to find out more.
https://melbournecatholic.org/job-vacancies/parish-secretary-st-joseph-parish
Application closing date:25 October, 2024
Emmanuel College News
Welcome to Term 4, which will be another term filled with lots of interesting and exciting events happening. We wish all students well in preparing for their upcoming exams and look forward to welcoming Year 7 2025 students and families at the Information Nights. We welcome back students and staff who had a wonderful time on the Italian Immersion Trip, which was an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime experience.
A friendly reminder that if your child is in Year 5, and you have not already applied for Year 7 2026 - applications closed on 16th August. Please contact Ms. Donna Grech, College Registrar, on 8325 5100 as a matter of urgency.
We welcome you to join us at the upcoming Twilight Talk and Tour event, where you will hear from College Principal - Dr. Janine Biggin, to find out more about the College’s innovative learning programs and enjoy a tour led by student ambassadors. Dates, times, and registration for events at each campus can be made via the College website: Tour and event registration here.
Yours sincerely,
Jenny Hendricks
Community Engagement Officer
