What to Bring and Stationery
What Junior School students need at St Mary's College: how booklists work for each year level, the items families supply (hats, drink bottles, library bags, art smocks, headphones), labelling, what not to bring and what to do about lost property.
Most of what a Junior School student needs each year comes through the annual booklist, delivered to your home before school starts. A small number of everyday items – hat, drink bottle, library bag, art smock and (from Year 3) headphones – are provided by families and need replacing as they wear out or go missing. This page sets out exactly what is needed in each year level and how to keep it all together.
Booklists
Booklists are ordered online through our supplier, Bookline Education, and delivered to your home in the second week of January. Ordering opens in mid-November and the deadline for guaranteed delivery before school is Friday 11 December 2026; late orders attract a $12 fee. The booklist code and instructions are emailed to families and posted on the Parent Portal in November. Families may buy items elsewhere if they wish, provided the items match the specifications (for example, the correct handwriting book), and unused items from the previous year may be reused.
| Year level | Approximate 2027 cost | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Prep | $95 | Reader satchel, scrapbooks, exercise books, pencils, crayons, glue, tissues, whiteboard marker, headphones (school-supplied for Prep–2) |
| Years 1–2 | $105 | Exercise books, handwriting book, pencils, textas, glue, scissors, tissues, class stationery contribution |
| Years 3–4 | $135 | Exercise books, grid book, pens and pencils, ruler, College diary, MathsQuest Online licence, coloured pencils, tissues |
| Years 5–6 | $150 | Exercise books, grid books, pens and pencils, geometry set, calculator (Year 6), College diary, MathsQuest Online licence, display folders |
Items marked "class contribution" (tissues, glue sticks, whiteboard markers) are pooled by the class. Devices are not on the booklist: iPads (Prep–2) and Chromebooks (Years 3–6) are provided by the College and stay at school.
Items families provide
| Item | Who | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Navy wide-brim hat | All students | Compulsory in Terms 1 and 4 (SunSmart); available from the Uniform Shop ($22). Keep a spare – hats are the most-lost item in the school. See SunSmart Policy |
| Drink bottle | All students | Water only; refillable stations are in every yard. Named, leak-proof, about 600 mL (1 L for Years 5–6 in summer) |
| Library bag | All students | Cloth bag large enough for A4 picture books; needed to borrow. St Mary's library bags ($12) are sold at the Uniform Shop, but any named bag will do |
| Art smock | All students | A long-sleeved, oversized old shirt or a purpose-made smock, named and kept at school in the child's tub. Replaced as needed |
| Reader satchel | Prep – Year 2 | Supplied on the Prep booklist; used through to Year 2 |
| Headphones | Years 3–6 | Over-ear or on-ear headphones with a 3.5 mm plug (not Bluetooth, not earbuds), in a named zip-lock bag. Kept at school for STEM, Library and MathsQuest work |
| Lunch box and snack container | All students | Named; we are a nut-aware school. Junior students eat outside so an insulated bag with an ice brick is recommended in Terms 1 and 4 |
| School bag | All students | The St Mary's backpack is not compulsory; any sturdy bag that fits an A4 folder and a lunch box is fine. Wheeled bags are not permitted on the stairs |
| Spare clothes | Prep – Year 1 | Underwear and socks in a zip-lock bag |
| Mouthguard and shin pads | Years 3–6 | Football (mouthguard compulsory) and soccer (shin pads compulsory) in the winter sport season – see Friday Interschool Sport |
Naming everything
Please name every item – including each individual glue stick, each shoe and the hat – with a permanent marker or iron-on labels. Unnamed items in the Junior School go to the Lost Property box outside the Junior Office and are donated to the second-hand uniform shop or charity at the end of each term. Named items are returned to classrooms each Friday by Year 6 monitors.
Uniform
The school uniform, sport uniform, shoes and hat requirements are on the Uniform and Grooming Policy and Uniform Shop pages. Sport uniform is worn on the class's PE day and on Fridays; check the Specialist Programs timetable.
What not to bring
- Mobile phones and smart watches: Junior students who need a phone for after-school travel must have it switched off and in their bag all day – see Mobile Phones Policy. Smart watches must be in "school mode" or left at home.
- Toys, trading cards, fidget items (unless part of an agreed learning plan), personal sports equipment other than a tennis ball.
- Money, except for specific fundraisers such as the Father's Day Stall or House Spirit Day gold coin.
- Nut products, including peanut butter, Nutella and muesli bars containing nuts – see Anaphylaxis and Allergy Aware.
- Glass containers, energy drinks, chewing gum.
- Aerosol deodorant (roll-on only, Years 5–6).
Mid-year replacements
Stationery runs low by Term 3, especially glue sticks, pencils and exercise books. Teachers send a short note home if your child needs anything replaced; the Junior Office also keeps a small stock of exercise books ($2) and pencils for emergencies, charged to your account via the Portal.
Camps
Packing lists for the Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 camps are on the camp pages.
Help with costs
Families holding a Health Care Card can apply for the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund, and the College provides confidential assistance with booklists and uniform through the Business Manager, Mrs Annette Kowalski, on (03) 9555 0100. The P&F Second-Hand Uniform sale runs on the second Saturday of each term month, 9:00am – 11:00am, in the Hall foyer. New families will also find the New Family FAQ useful.