21 September 2020 (Term 3, Week 10)
CEO/PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
Dear Parents and Carers,
You would be aware from recent news coverage of the passing of John Fahey at the age of 75. His list of professional achievements is extraordinary. From being the State Member for Camden, the Premier of NSW, influential in securing the 2000 Olympics for Sydney, the Federal Member for Macarthur and a host of other national and international honours and roles of significance, John Fahey will long be remembered as a wonderful public servant of Australia. More important, though, are the tributes being paid for his personal qualities: deep respect for others, kindness and compassion. He was clearly a wonderful human being.
John Fahey’s connections to Mater Dei run very deep. He lived here on the property with his parents for many years in the caretaker’s cottage and has been a great supporter of our school and the local community. His sister-in-law, Helen Fahey, has been one of the longest serving teachers at Mater Dei retiring earlier this year, and Carla Warby, a current teacher, is his niece. Mater Dei has benefitted enormously from the previous and ongoing support of this great Catholic family and our condolences are extended to the family at this time of great sadness.
And as more evidence of the mysterious circle of life, we wish our Assistant Principal, Eryn Lonergan, all the best as she heads off on family leave for the pending birth of her second child. On behalf of the Mater Dei community our prayers and thoughts are with Eryn and her family and we look forward to news of the birth in coming weeks.
To cover Eryn Lonergan’s absence for Term 4 2020 and Term 1 2021, Kylee Laugesen will take on the role of Acting Assistant Principal and Jake Elvin will take on the role of Acting Leader of Pastoral Care.
Kind regards
Mark Raue
Principal/CEO
NOTES AND REMINDERS
TAXI NOTICE
If your child has been off school because of sickness please contact the driver when they are ready to return to school to confirm they need to be picked up.
Take a look at @Engineer4Allau on Twitter to keep up to date with Mater Dei’s Science and Engineering.
COMPASS UPDATE
Parents and Families with a Compass login are now able to access your child’s Awards total on Compass. This can be done via the web browser or if you use the App you will need to click “Open in browser”.
Instructions on accessing Awards Totals:
- Login to Compass
- If on App Click 'hamburger; icon (3 lines) and “Open in browser”
- Click on your child’s profile
- Look at Chronicle Newsfeed
Change date filter - If you would like to see what they have achieved this year, you can keep the date filter set to “This Year”. However, if you would like to see an overall total you can change to “All”.
PAST EVENTS
SENIOR RETREAT
Last Thursday, 17 and Friday 18, September, the Senior Retreat was held onsite in the Wivenhoe gardens. Wedderburn Christian Campsite brought their activities to us! Archery and Bush Survival skills were explored, as were communication and team work.
The Wedderburn team spoke very highly of our students and really admired how keen our students were to participate, despite some heat! On the second day, Mrs Warby organised a beautiful Liturgy. Mrs Gorey explored the theme of The Good Samaritan with the students and Mr Raue played some instruments and adapted a song to sing for them. It was wonderful to see the students enjoying the music so much. The second day continued with team work activities and also the delivery of some yummy pizzas! Overall, two wonderful days were had by all. Please check out our website and the Mater Dei Facebook page for photos.
INFANTS OUTDOOR INDIGENOUS STUDIES DAY
On Thursday, 17 September, the Infants' classes joined together to engage in an Outdoor Indigenous Studies Day based on the Dreamtime story 'The Rainbow Serpent'. Students enjoyed the hands-on learning and activities with their peers. A big thank you to our K-2 staff for organising such a wonderful event. Please check out our website and the Mater Dei Facebook page for photos.
CELEBRATION OF LEARNING
Last Friday, 18 September, we would have welcomed parents and friends into our classrooms to experience the quality learning that occurs at Mater Dei every day, also known as Celebration of Learning. Our Teachers took on the challenge of still giving our parents a view into the classroom, albeit remotely, with a video of classroom experiences posted on Compass. A montage of our students doing what they do best - engaging, smiling, participating, helping, playing and ultimately LEARNING! Access the video of your child’s class via Compass newsfeed. Enjoy!
UPCOMING EVENTS
PRINCIPAL'S ASSEMBLY
Our next Principal’s Assembly will be held on Friday, 25 September. As per previous communications, due to COVID guidelines, this will be a student-only event. No visitors. The assembly will be limited to 15 minutes and there will be no class presentation for prayer and learning. Photos of award recipients will be published to the school Facebook page.
END OF TERM
Our last day of Term 3 is this Friday, 25 September. Wishing all of our students and their families are safe and restful term break. Students return for Term 4 on Monday 12th October in full summer uniform.
MOVE IT 4 MATER DEI
BOOK WEEK PARADE
The famous CBCA BOOK WEEK parade will occur on Thursday, 22 October in our Mater Dei Hall. Unfortunately, this year no families will be able to attend. However, we will ensure that the parade will be made available to parents through one of our communication channels.
As usual, we encourage the students to dress up as a favourite book character. The theme this year is Curious Creatures, Wild Minds. It will be exciting!
SENIOR LEADERSHIP DAY
In Term 4, on Friday, 23 October, we will hold our annual Senior Leadership Day. Due to COVID restrictions this event will again look a little different but will still go ahead. A note will be sent home on the last day of school and if any COVID changes occur throughout the holidays we will advise first day back. Feel free to begin to prepare speeches with your young adult over the holidays and they will continue to work on these in class time after the holidays.
Youth Mission Australia will again be onsite for Students in Years 10-12 during the morning, and the day will conclude with Year 10 & 11 students presenting speeches via zoom.
TERM 4 P&F MEETINGS
P&F Meetings scheduled for Term 4 have now been cancelled. Instead, another Principal’s Forum will be arranged for Monday, 2 November (Term 4 – Week 4) via Zoom. More details to come via Compass.
MUFTI DAY
A Mufti Day is scheduled for Friday, 13 November (Term 4, Week 5) - a day for students to wear casual, comfortable clothes with closed in shoes. A donation of new and unused toiletries will be collected for the Santa Theresa Mission.
PUPIL FREE DAY
Students are not required at school on: Friday, 20 November (Term 4 - Week 6) – Staff are participating in Professional Development.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Throughout the year teachers have been engaging with Sarah Humphreys, Co-Founder of Inclusive Schools Australia, to continue to build their knowledge of Evidence Based Practices. Recently teachers have been focusing on the use of Learning Intentions and Success Criteria. Learning Intentions are statements that make explicit for students what they are going to learn during a learning experience. Success Criteria guide students in ways they can be successful at achieving the Learning Intention. All teachers have been practising using these in their classrooms with a focus on making the Learning Intentions and Success Criteria visible for students. During a recent Professional Development session, run by Sarah via Zoom, teachers had the opportunity to share their progress and collaborate to further improve their teaching practice. This Professional Development with Sarah has ignited enthusiasm and commitment in teachers to continue to strive to achieve higher outcomes for the benefit of our students.
COMMUNITY NEWS
FREE TRAVEL TRAINING
Please see the following link and attached flyer for details of services providing free travel training across Sydney and NSW:
NOVA EMPLOYMENT
HEROES WITH ABILITY - FREE HOLIDAY CLINIC
See below flyer for details.
SOCIAL STORY: What Happens Next - after the COVID test?
FREE WEBINAR - PUBERTY AND RELATIONSHIPSL SUPPORT FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY
Registrations are now open for the upcoming Family Planning NSW for an interactive workshop on Puberty, Sexuality and Relationships Webinar for Parents and Carers of People with Intellectual Disability and Autism. Please refer to the attached flyer for further information.
CARERS WEEK 2020 - CAMDEN COUNCIL
National Carers Week will be held between 11 and 17 October this year. There are over 2.7 million unpaid carers in Australia who provide support and care to a family member or friend with a disability, mental health condition, chronic or long term health condition, alcohol or drug dependency or who is frail due to age. Council will take this opportunity to celebrate local Carers and raise awareness of their caring roles.
Camden Council is seeking Expressions of Interest (EOI’s) from local Carers to share their stories. Stories will act as encouragement to other Carers and highlight the contributions that Carers make.
Stories can be shared as videos or short stories and will be made public across Council’s social media platforms. Council staff will assist Carers to share their stories in a manner that is comfortable and appropriate for each individual.
Please consider that your story may help others, you will help to highlight the contributions, work and achievements of Carers for others to appreciate and understand.
If you are a Carer who would be interested in sharing your story, or would like further information please contact Council by Wednesday, 23 September on 4645 5020 or email syd.lee@camden.nsw.gov.au