As we approach the end of Term 3, it is quite incredible to reflect back on the diverse range of activities our primary students, staff and families have been involved in over the past 9 weeks. As is the case every term, students participated in a huge number of sporting events, excursions and camps, including the annual Year 6 Canberra Trip, which is always a highlight. On top of that, Term 3 also included Book Week celebrations, Father’s Day, Creative Arts Club performances, the Christmas Art exhibition, student formation days and finally, RUOK? Day last week. Students have also had access to an enormous range of lunchtime clubs and opportunities to engage in student mentor groups, all of which enhance the wonderful sense of community in our school.

Whilst the core business of education is learning and teaching, all of these other components of school life are also crucially important to a child’s growth and development. Involvement in co-curricular activities helps young people to develop important life skills and can also improve their overall wellbeing. Participating in these events helps them feel connected at school and can help to build their self-confidence and resilience. Most importantly, they bring a sense of fun and joy to each day and make school a happy place to be.

The range of activities on offer at our school can only happen because of the hard work and commitment of our staff. The culture of generosity at St Matthews is incredibly impressive - there are so many people in our school community who regularly give their time and energy to make sure our students have access to every possible opportunity. So, when you get the chance in the coming weeks, I encourage you to take a moment to say thank you to those staff who have helped to make your child’s term the best it can be - it is amazing what a little bit of gratitude and appreciation can do to make someone’s day.

God bless
Angela Myles

Cricket Gala Day

For the first time in a few years, our students from Years 3 - 6 were able to attend a Cricket Gala Day in Mudgee. 185 very eager students teamed up, played against other schools and enjoyed the national sport of cricket. The opportunity to be active, meet with other schools and learn a new skillset has been popular with our students, promoting a healthy lifestyle and giving them the opportunity to try new sports with the option to possibly continue the fun at weekend sport. This year, students have had numerous opportunities with Netball, Rugby Union & League, Tennis, Touch Football, Cricket and next term Basketball.

I do emphasise that these opportunities occur due to the vast responses from our students wanting to participate, but also by having committed teachers giving of their time to plan, organise and facilitate the days. We are also incredibly appreciative of the local sporting committees who work tirelessly to put on these days to engage our students and showcase their sports.

Drop Off and Pick Up Zones

Thank you to the families for the continued support during the mornings and afternoons with Drop Off and Pick Up at the front of the school. We do remind families that if your child is unable to enter or exit the car independently, that you park and assist them away from the Drop Off & Pick Up Zone.

The maximum stopping time in this zone is 2 minutes between 8:30 and 9:30am in the morning and 3:00 and 4:00pm in the afternoon. Providing a safe environment for our students and reducing the impact on other community members using Lewis Street are always our priority in the afternoon rush.

Uniform 

As we move into the warmer months, students have the option for the remainder of this term to wear their summer or winter uniform. A compulsory move to our summer uniform begins at the start of Term 4. It is also the time to remind families about hats in the playground. As a ‘No Hat, No Play’ school, please check with your child to see if they have their hat to avoid the disappointment of remaining in our Undercroft during break time.

Justin Yeo

Over the weekend, the Catholic Church will celebrate the Feast Day of St Matthew.

On the last day of term we celebrate this day as a K-12 School. All families are invited to attend Mass from 12 noon in the Primary Gym, followed by a frolic (mini fete) to raise funds for Catholic Missions in the Primary grounds.

The call by Jesus and Matthew’s response is what drives us to resemble Jesus’ love, faith, and hope, who forgave, served others, healed, and showed compassion.

Ross McKeown | Leader of Mission

This is a whole school event where we are able to celebrate together as a community of students, staff, parents and parish as we recognise and celebrate our school patron, Saint Matthew.

This is also a fundraising event where classes have planned activities and will run stalls in order to raise funds in support of Catholic Mission. Further important details can be found on the attached information note.

You are invited to pre order a sausage sizzle lunch ($4) and purchase tokens ($5) for your child via Compass events. Families are required to purchase tokens via the Compass Parent Portal before Wednesday 24th September. Only a small number of tokens will be available to be purchased on the day.

Date: Friday 26th September (last day of term)

Venue: St Matthews Primary Campus (Secondary students will be transported by bus to the Primary Campus from 11:15am)

Time: Mass will commence at 12 noon in the Primary Gym. All families are welcome to attend. The frolic will commence at 1:00pm

Activities: Following a Mass celebrating our patron, St Matthew, students will participate in Mission Frolic where each class will hold an activity to raise money for Catholic Mission. Families are welcome to attend. 

Transport: Secondary students will be transported by bus to the Primary Campus from 11.15am. Students will then be dismissed from the Primary Campus at 3.10pm

Dress Code: Appropriate mufti clothing - a colour of the St Matthews Way Values

What to Bring: Each class/tutor group will have particular requests that they may ask for your child to provide if possible. You should receive an email from your child's teacher/tutor with information.

Lunch:

• The primary canteen will have a limited flexischools menu for lunch orders at Break 1.
• Sausage sandwiches will be available for purchase at a cost of $4. If your child is purchasing a sandwich, please ensure you purchase this through the event on the Compass Parent Portal"
  

Cost: To minimise cash handling on the day, we will be using a prepaid system where students can pre-purchase tokens via Compass to use at stalls. Each activity/item will be assigned a certain number of tokens. Unused tokens will not be able to be refunded and this will be considered as a donation to Catholic Mission. Some events will also be free to allow for all students to participate.

Transport: All students will be dismissed from the Primary Campus at 3:10pm

Ross McKeown & Belinda Redden | Leaders of Mission

Netball Schools Cup Regional Finals

A huge congratulations to our St Matthews Netball teams who played at the Schools Cup Regional Finals in Orange.

Our Year 6 Team played with amazing sportsmanship, skill and determination and won 8 out of 8 games.

They will progress to the NSW Netball Finals at Olympic Park in November.

We are so proud of all of our players for their sportsmanship, teamwork and commitment.

Polding Athletics Carnival

Congratulations to all our incredible students who competed at the Polding Athletics Carnival in Newcastle last Friday! We are so proud of the way you represented our school, achieving personal bests, placing in events, and showing outstanding sportsmanship throughout the day.

Special shout-outs to:

Senior Girls Relay Team– 1st Place!

Angus– 1st in High Jump

Bonnie – 1st in 1500m

Evie – 3rd in 12 Years 1500m

Lauren- 1st in 200m and 2nd in 100m

Well done to all our athletes on your achievements! For those heading to the PSSA Championships, we wish you the best of luck, we’re so proud of you all!

Peta Swain | K-6 Sports Coordinator

The 2025 Premier’s Reading Challenge – Finishes this Friday!

A friendly reminder that the Premier’s Reading Challenge for 2025 closes on Friday 19th September 2025. We encourage all students to make sure their reading records are completed and submitted before the closing date. This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate your child’s love of reading and recognise their efforts throughout the year.

The challenge not only promotes a lifelong love of books but also helps develop confidence, imagination, and literacy skills.

Please take a moment to check your child’s progress and support them in finalising their reading log. If your child has lost their login details, please get them to come up to the Library and receive another login card.

We are looking forward to having lots of finalised PRC students so they can receive a certificate at the end of the year.
Yours in reading,

Annie Mort & Carina Swords | Librarians

Lunch Orders:

EFTPOS only, no cash

Enjoy the convenience of online shopping. Save time and energy by ordering your uniforms online in six easy steps:

1. Go to midford.com.au
2. Select St Matthews Catholic School from the Online School Shops tab
3. New users to click the ‘Register New Account’ button
4. Start the registration process by selecting St Matthews Catholic School from the drop-down menu and add the unique school pass phrase: “Matthews1912”
5. Add your personal information, create a username and password
6. Order the items you need, select pick-up in store/deliver to school.

As a part of our biannual pricing review, uniform items will have a 2% price increase, rounded up to the nearest dollar.

St Matthews uniform pricing from Term 4:

Holiday Trading Hours

If you have any queries please contact the uniform shop directly:
Phone: 0439 442 509 or by email

Katie Ruth | Uniform Shop Manager