Dear Parents, Teachers and Students,


Term Dates
The last day of Term 1 for students will be Thursday 10 April. Term 2 commences for students on Tuesday 29 April, following a pupil-free day for staff professional development and administration on Monday 28 April. The start of Term 2 means a change to the winter school uniform. The Uniform Shop’s last afternoon of trading for in-person purchases before the new term will be Thursday 3 April (Week 9). Any online orders placed up to Wednesday 9 April (Week 10) will be collated on Thursday morning to be sent home with students on Thursday afternoon. Orders placed through the holidays will be collated on Monday 29 April and be available for collection from the office between 2pm-4pm. 


Interim Reports and Parent-Teacher Interviews
Teachers are currently preparing Interim Reports for all students, which will be published to parents on Friday 4 April, Week 9. The Interim Reports contain a selection of Engagement with Learning indicators (these are repeated on the Semester reports in order that development can be shown) and a statement about your child’s work so far in Literacy and Numeracy. Please bear in mind that the Interim Report is not an academic report but is designed to provide parents with a general insight into the work habits and social skills that students have been displaying as they have settled into the start of the new school year.

Following on from the Interim Reports, we will hold parent-teacher interviews throughout the day on our pupil-free day, Friday 11 April, so that teachers can conduct their interviews within the bounds of their normal working day. Interviews will be of 15-minutes duration and parents will have the option of selecting a face-to-face meeting or a Teams meeting. A timetable and details of how to book an interview will be published next week.


Holy Week and Easter
Holy Week commences with Palm Sunday on 13 March, the first weekend of the school holidays. For those families interested in attending, Palm Sunday Mass will be celebrated by Archbishop Christopher Prowse at 10:15am on the 13th.

To help our students prepare for what is the most important festival in the Christian liturgical calendar, the school Youth Ministry Team will present a dramatisation of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday) in the PAC at 9am on Monday of Week 10, followed by a dramatisation of the Last Supper on Tuesday at 9am in the PAC. On Thursday, we will be holding a school-wide pilgrimage to commemorate the Stations of the Cross – a journey of 14 devotional prayer-stations, each created by a different class in the school, to remember Jesus’ final human journey from Jerusalem to Calvary. Parents are warmly invited to attend any or all of these Holy Week events.


Easter Bonnet Parade
Although it’s not a part of the liturgical celebration of Easter, the Easter Bonnet Parade is a firm favourite on the school’s traditional calendar. This year it will be held on Wednesday 9 April at 12:30pm under the shade cloth in the playground. All students are encouraged to create an Easter Bonnet out of materials from around the home; reuse, recycle and be creative! Parents are warmly invited to attend this community event.


Cross Country Carnival
Mt Carmel will be holding our school Cross Country carnival on Friday 4 April, Week 9. This year, because of remediation works at Walker park, we will be holding the Years 3-6 event at the River Walk track, starting from the open field near the rotunda. Because of the proximity to the river and that this is a much more public part of Yass than Walker Park, we need extra parent-helpers for supervision around the course. See Mr Dunstan's Sports Report for details about how to volunteer. 8, 9 and 10 year olds will complete a 2km course; 11 and 12 year olds will complete a 3km course. Students in Year 2 who turn 8 this year and are competitive runners who can complete the 2km course are able to attend, but parents must notify their child’s teacher so arrangements can be made for them to walk to the carnival with a Year 3 class. Students will be back at school by recess so will only need to take a drink bottle with them to the track.

K-2 students will run their own modified cross country at school from 12:30pm - 1:30pm, cheered on by the rest of the school and parents.

Change to Our Sun Protection Policy
In previous years, the school hat has been a mandatory part of the summer uniform, but it has not been required to be worn during Terms 2 and 3 with the winter uniform.

Current advice is now that the minimum standard of sun-protection measures, including the wearing of a broad-brimmed, bucket or legionnaire hat, should be applied from August through May (all year except June-July). Given that these are minimum standards,  to avoid confusion and promote sun-safe habits, we will be enforcing the ‘No Hat, Play in the Shade’ rule all year. 

Colour Run Day
Another important part of our Sun Protection Policy is to ensure the provision of ample shade on the school grounds, and your support of recent fund-raising events, including Week 10’s Colour Run, is helping to directly meet this need. Shade structures for the Infants’ sandpit and the Primary playground equipment are currently in the design phase and we aim to have them installed as soon as possible. Many thanks to the school Community Council for their assistance with this project.

If your child hasn’t registered for the Colour Run yet, you can sign sign up for a Student Profile Page at www.schoolfunrun.com.au. You’ll be able to access online fundraising portal, and any student who raises $10 or more will receive a reward – the more money you raise the better the reward – there are parent rewards and prizes on offer too! Last Friday, all students were sent home a wristband with a unique code that can be entered on their profile page to enter a draw for a bonus $500 to be added to their fundraising total. Entry into this competition closes at midnight this Saturday; the winner will be drawn at 11am on Sunday. 

We will hold our Colour Run on the last day of this term, Thursday 10 April. The activities will be held in the afternoon, following a sausage-sizzle lunch. All students will be provided with a sausage sandwich and an ice-block for lunch; all dietary needs will be catered for. The canteen will also be open for lunch orders, but with a limited menu. After lunch we will hold a series of fun (and colourfully messy) rotation activities. Students can wear mufti on Thursday, preferably light colours, and certainly clothes that you are happy for them to get dirty. During some activities, colourfully dyed powders will be thrown over students. The powders are low-allergy, cornstarch-based, non-staining and made to be safe for contact. A material safety data sheet can be found later in the newsletter. Students who are catching a bus home on Thursday afternoon will need to bring a change of clothes and a plastic bag to put their dirty clothes in. 

Thank you for your continued support of Mt Carmel and we look forward to sharing this wonderful event with the students to celebrate the end of the term.


Sacraments
Next Thursday evening, 3 April, 16 of our students will celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time. They have been preparing with their families and classmates, with the help of the Parish Sacramental Team, for several weeks now, so Thursday will be a wonderful celebration of this milestone event in their faith journey. Congratulations, everybody!

Registrations for the Sacrament of First Communion opened on Monday and close on Thursday 4 April; Catholic students in Year 4 and above, who have completed their First Reconciliation, are invited to register for this sacrament. Please contact the Parish Sacramental Team via sacramentalteamyass@gmail.com if you require further information.


School Photos — Save the Date
School photo day will be Monday 12 May, Week 3. Photo package bookings, including family photos, will be via Compass. Details of how to book will be published early next term.


School Attendance - Every Day Counts
A reminder that any student absence is required to be explained promptly, preferably with an absentee note submitted via Compass. Notwithstanding the importance to public health of keeping children at home when they are sick, it is worth remembering that many small absences can quickly add up to have a big impact on your child’s learning – if your child misses as little as one day per fortnight, this equates to almost three full terms by the end of primary school. Regular lateness can quickly add up to impact on your child’s educational experience, too. The early part of the school day is considered to be our ‘Prime Learning Time’, where every class has a strong focus on explicit direct instruction of key curriculum content. 

The Catholic Education Attendance Policy identifies the following levels of attendance:

• Excellent Attendance: 95% and above (e.g. 2.5 days absence or less in a term or 10 absences over a year)
• Regular Attendance: 90-94.9% (e.g. 2.6 to 5 days absence in a term or 10.1 to 20 absences over a year)
• Emerging Absenteeism: 80-89.9% (e.g. 5.1 to 10 days absence in a term or 20.1 to 40 absences over a year)
• Chronic Absenteeism: Less than 80% (e.g. more than 10 days absence in a term or 40 absences over a year)

For the record, as of today, Mt Carmel School has just one class with average attendance sitting above the 95% rate at ‘Excellent' (Congratulations, 3 Red!), twelve classes rating ‘Regular', and only one class falling just below the Regular range, with an average attendance of 88.9%.

If your child is having difficulties with school attendance, we may be able to help. Phone or email the school office to find out what supports are available.


Parent Feedback on Disability Supports
A NSW Parliament select committee has been established to inquire into and report on child development, early childhood intervention services, and other foundational and disability supports available for children and young people with developmental concerns, delays, differences or disabilities in NSW. As part of the inquiry, the committee is seeking online submissions from NSW residents through a questionnaire, which can be accessed via the following link, if you would like to contribute:

Select Committee on Foundational and Disability Supports Available for Children and Young People in New South Wales


Yass Show
Congratulations to all the classes for their beautifully creative artworks that were on display at the Yass Show, and to Mrs Curtois and the Gardening Club for their magnificent array of decorated pumpkins!

It’s always fabulous to see so many individual contributions from Mt Carmel students, too, ranging from artworks, to baked goods, to lego creations. Of particular note this year, Louis Arnold's artwork was chosen as background for the prize certificates – well done, Louis!

Michael Green
Principal

Religious Education in the Classroom
Welcome to Week 8 ! Year 5’s Religious Education program focuses on how meaningful personal and communal worship can strengthen faith communities. Through a psalm retrieval chart and sorting Theological and Cardinal virtues, students were able to gain a deeper understanding of the connection between God and personal worship.

During my visit to 5 Green and 5 Red I asked a few students how they use the Catholic virtues or different psalms in their lives and below are their answers:

Evelyn: I use charity by giving stuff to the op shop.

Billy: I use faith to help me believe in God’s love for me.

George: I use charity towards my friends and neighbours.

Zoey: I always try to use fortitude by being nice to people and helping others.

Jess: The psalm I have chosen tells me to turn away from sin.

Ben: The psalm I have chosen teaches people to love God.

Religious Life of Mt Carmel School
Last Friday, Year 6 students participated in the Journey with Jesus Retreat, led by the Youth Ministry team of the Archdiocese of Canberra & Goulburn. Journey with Jesus is a faith and ministry experience that delves into core concepts of the Catholic Faith. The retreat is tailored for primary school students and is based around the Gospel messages of love, salvation, and forgiveness.

Students had the opportunity to provide feedback on the retreat experience and below are some of their answers.

James: It has helped me to understand the story of God and to be more positive and forgiving.

Zoe: It was amazing because we learnt a lot about Jesus.

Paul: It was beautiful learning about the story of Jesus and God.

Zara: The Youth Ministers were amazing and they helped me to understand the story of God and how it helps us in life.

Lily: The Youth Ministers have a good way of making learning fun.

Alayla: The Youth Ministers made good connections to help us understand the Gospel messages.

St. Patrick’s Day Prayer Service
Thank you to Ms Grace, Mrs Luckie and 5 Green for preparing and leading a beautiful prayer service. 

Project Compassion
Every year, countless people turn Lent into a demonstration of faith, love and generosity. You can be a part of this incredible community, who believe that there are simple actions we can all take to “be more” for our world.

Please remember to send in your donations for Project Compassion and help make the world a fairer place for all. Let us be more! 

Thank you for your support and donations for this great cause.

St Augustine’s Parish News

Please pray for the children as they prepare for their first Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Benedicta Barker
Giorgia Cavazzoni Pederzini
Chevy Leahy
Chella Macdonald
Cooper Sadlowski
Nicholas Da Deppo
Elsie Townsend
Harrington Roser
Charlie Butt
Hugh Davaris
Lachlan Inkster 
Hayden Spring
Zoe De Sisto
Evie Mitchell
Roy Mitchell
Harrison Cunynghame
Mikayla Clements
Delilah Inglis
Alexander Warhurst

Enjoy your week!

Eva Karakotas
Religious Education Coordinator

Mt Carmel Cross-Country Carnival
As Walker Park is currently closed, we will be running our cross-country this year around the river. We will require greater levels of supervision for this course so, if you are able to help, please fill out the Google form below. Years 3-6 will head to Riverside Park Cricket Pitch shortly after morning assembly. 8, 9 and 10 year olds will complete a 2km track. 11 and 12 year olds will complete two laps of the 1.5km Riverbank Parkrun. 8 year old students in Year 2 who wish to participate in the Primary carnival need to notify their teacher so arrangements can be made for them to walk with a Year 3 class. Students will be back at school by recess so will only need to take a drink bottle with them to the river. K-2 students will run their own modified cross country at school from 12:30 - 1:30pm, cheered on by the rest of the school and parents.

Click here to access Volunteer Google Form

Sports Trials
If you have children in Year 5 or 6 who are interested in trialling for Canberra Goulburn sporting teams, please check the following website regularly for upcoming events:

https://www.sport.cg.catholic.edu.au/calendar
https://www.sport.cg.catholic.edu.au/nominations

Ted Dunstan
Sports Coordinator

NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge 2025
Congratulations to the following students who have completed the 2025 NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge.

Peter Gorman
Sophie Gannon
Archer Jones
Asher Gorman
Eleena Mattappallil
Zoe Leahy

Kind regards,
Natalie Broers
Teacher Librarian

Have you met our School Captain Rory?

My name is Rory and this year I am the School Captain on the Student Representative Council for 2025.

Some of the things I enjoy are playing sports like cricket and rugby league, playing the drums and spending time with my friends and family.   

My favourite animal is a dog. My favourite sport is cricket and I support the Sydney Thunder. My favourite song is Flame Trees by Cold Chisel. One day I hope to travel to Italy. When I grow up I hope to be a professional Cricket Player.

Congratulations to the recipients of the Week 6 Mt Carmel Awards.
These awards were handed out last Friday, 21 March, at morning assembly.

K Blue Adrianna Nash Louie Hackett	K Gold Rosalie Abbott Londyn Newman Mitchell McGrath
1 Green Acacia Aniversario Samuel Walker	1 Red Ivie Denny Abigail Morris
2 Blue Scarlett Klemmer Ava O'Mara Phoebe Mitchell Willem Kunneke	2 Gold Evelyn Harris Eliza Henshall Brock Flynn Oliver Ryan Jayden Regan
3 Green Claudia Klemmer Harry Agostino Theodore Ward	3 Red Zoe Di Sisto Benny Shoring William Rothwell
4 Blue Eve Davis Archie Gooley	4 Gold Evelyn Platt Eddy Finnigan
5 Green Billy Field George Douglas Charley Shoring	5 Red Heidi Tyndall Benjamin O'Reilly
6 Blue Poppy Smith Alayla Dorris Lachlan Inkster	6 Gold Macy Camilleri Molly-Ann Howarth Dylan O'Reilly Beau Jones Conor Guiney

Congratulations to the recipients of the Week 7 Mt Carmel Awards.
These awards will be handed out this Friday, 28 March, at morning assembly.

K Blue Elle McRae Gigi Heckendorf Cooper Slinger	K Gold Paige Gleeson Wil O'Brien Oren Barker
1 Green Olivia Logue Lincoln Goode	1 Red Frankie Morris Emily Reynders
2 Blue Mia Brown Franki Aniversario Toby Reardon	2 Gold Winnie Smith Brooke Powell Brock Flynn
3 Green Anna Gunthorpe Charlie Butt Evanter Shinto	3 Red Nate Verma Cooper Sadlowski Harrison Cunynghame
4 Blue Ivy Worboys Marie Baptiste Violet Richardson Cody Drage Blake Eldridge Sebastian Dawes	4 Gold Chloe Tyndall Constance Potter Scott Tome Ashton Dorris Lachlan Black George Pidgeon
5 Green Isabelle Davis Sophie Donoghue	5 Red Alia Lees-Campbell Cecilia Candido-Pinherio Joshua Salzke
6 Blue Zara McEvoy Xavier Arnold Fletcher Lees	6 Gold Mabel Adie Molly-Ann Howarth Louis Arnold

Try thinking of yourself as a “Friendship Coach.” Coaches don’t go out there and play the game for their players. Instead, they give them advice and send them to play. Then, they stand back on the sidelines and watch. When they call their team in, they point out what they saw and give the players some tips and guidance. It should work that way with parents too, coaching your children through their friendships.

1. Rather than acting as lead negotiator in our children’s relationships, we should support them and coach from the sidelines with the following Dos and Don’ts:
2. Reframe friendship altercations as opportunities to learn valuable skills
3. Research shows that children who have good social skills grow up to be more functional and successful adults. And the good news is that these skills can be taught.
4. Like all skills, social skills take practice and don’t come naturally to all children. When our children are experiencing friendship problems it’s an opportunity for us to help them learn vital social skills, build resilience and strengthen their empathy.
5. Listen and empathise - While listening seems so simple, it’s probably often overlooked for that very reason. Just like adults, when kids talk about their problems they want to feel heard, validated and understood.
6. We need to remind ourselves that what might seem small to an adult can loom large in the eyes of a child; so large that it can seem overwhelming.
7. Encourage kids to stand up for themselves
8. Rather than retreating, we should encourage our kids to confront their problems and not simply put up with bad behaviour.
9. Ask kids what they could do differently next time and role-play different scenarios so they feel practised and more confident.
10. Teach kids the difference between healthy and unhealthy friendships

This one is the sort of advice that will be useful right into adulthood. It’s important for our kids to know that they are in control of their lives. This includes the people they choose to surround themselves with. Do their friends make them feel good about themselves? If not, they should minimise the time they spend with people who make them feel bad and spend most of their time with friends who treat them well. Emphasise that trust and respect are ‘must haves’ when it comes to friendship. 

What about bullies?
There’s a lot of talk about bullies and bullying at the moment. The best advice is to avoid the word altogether. The reason is that it’s often misused and leads children — and their parents — to label kids. Instead, she suggests the term “mean-on-purpose”. Children understand what this means and know when someone is intentionally trying to hurt them.

Parents can help their kids come up with a quick comeback statement to combat mean-on-purpose behaviour. It doesn’t have to be an Oscar Wildean witticism. A simple “Not cool”, “Wow” or “That was really mean” will suffice. Quick comeback statements should be delivered in a strong voice with authoritative body language, and then the child should walk away. If they’ve tried using a quick comeback and the person continues to be mean-on- purpose, that’s when an adult needs to get involved to ensure that children feel safe and supported. 

The Clothing Pool will be open tomorrow, Thursday, 13 March.
It will be closed next Thursday (Week 7).  

Opening Hours: 2.30pm-3.30pm. 
Location: in the Music Room, next to the Uniform Shop.

Any profit made from the clothing pool will be directly donated to the Vinnies Food appeal generally held twice a year.

If you have any questions, please contact Liz on lizdadeppo@gmail.com.

Clink on the following link to book your spot to the Daramalan Open Evening and Try Dara Day - https://events.humanitix.com/daramalan-college-try-dara-day-2025. Registrations are now open.