Term 2 Week 1 2022
From the Principal
Dear Parents and Carers,
Welcome back to Term 2! I hope that you all had a wonderful Easter break and had plenty of opportunities to relax and recharge. Last week you would have received an email that had the Term 2 Calendar attached. As you can see it is already shaping up to be a very busy term. Please keep an eye out in the Newsletter and on our Facebook page for any updated information in regards to the calendar. We have also included the Term 2 Calendar in this week's newsletter.
School holidays are usually the time when parents take the opportunity to get their child’s hair cut. Just a reminder about our Uniform Guidelines in relation to hairstyles. Students must not have tracks or extreme parts. Extreme hairstyles, such as rats' tails, mohawks, shaved heads or sections of hair are also not appropriate for school. Hair should be neat and out of students’ eyes and must be of natural colour. Hair that reaches the collar must be neatly tied back using school coloured hair bands or ribbons. Thank you for your support with this.
ANZAC Day is next Monday and St Francis will once again be participating in the ANZAC Day March. Students need to be wearing their full formal uniform and have their hat. Today your child/ren will bring home a permission note indicating if they will be attending the march. If your child is attending, please fill in the slip and return it to school by Thursday.
If you haven’t yet completed the Catholic Identity Survey it’s not too late! This survey will be open for a few more days so that we can get the required number of participants so that our results are valid. Just a reminder to send your certificate of completion through to ayr@tsv.catholic.edu.au to go into the draw to win a set of school uniforms and a pizza party for your child’s class. Thank you to those parents and carers who have already completed the survey.
Towards the end of Term 1, I met with the Class Parent Representatives to discuss the changes with the P&F being dissolved in Term 1. We decided to hold a Wine and Cheese Parent Information Evening on Wednesday 27th April at 6pm in the Samaritan Centre to communicate these changes to our parent community. At this event, you will have the opportunity to meet other parents from your class, hear about the move towards FACE (Family and Community Engagement) and have your say about the events that we hold here at school. I encourage you to come along to this event. We have no one to run our Mother’s Day Stall this year therefore the stall will not be going ahead. Classes will prepare something special for their Mum’s and mother like figures. You will find a list of the Class Parent Reps and their email addresses further in the newsletter.
There is a lot of exciting staffing news to share this week. Today we welcome Corinna Polga back from leave. It is great to have Corinna back with her St Francis family. Congratulations to Emma Castelanelli and her husband Andrew who are expecting their second baby later in the year. Also, congratulations to Bonnie Robson who got engaged at the end of Term 1. We wish Bonnie and David all the best as they prepare for their special day.
Have a wonderful week.
Take care and God Bless
Amanda
Religious Life of the School
We hope you all had a lovely Easter and are reinvigorated for the term ahead! On the church calendar, we are now in the Season of Easter which began with Easter Sunday and the resurrection of Jesus. It is seen as a time of new beginnings, of joy and thanksgiving, a celebration of the risen Lord, a period of fifty days ending with the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Sunday.
Through a great act of love, Jesus gave his life to stand for the freedom to be true to a life of love God wants for all of us. Jesus is central to our core value of love at St Francis School. During this term, we will be unpacking the Catholic Identity model that encapsulates the Catholic life of our school.
Students at St Francis are encouraged to follow Jesus’ example through ...
Love of God - Exemplified by Mary, Mother of Jesus and Significant Characters such as…
- Bede Polding, St Marcellin Champagnat and St Francis
- Who found God in all things
- And followed (obeyed) their calling from God
Love for Neighbour - Exemplified by the Good Samaritan parable…
- To be neighbour, especially to the excluded and disenfranchised
- To stand with and be a voice for those who are voiceless
- Inspired by the work of the Good Samaritan Sisters
Love in Action - Exemplified by the lives and work of significant figures…
- To give hope, education and love to those in need – without judgement, limits or conditions.
- Empower others to create positive change
ANZAC DAY: On Friday, we will honour the ANZACS, who through their bravery and love of Australia, gave us the freedom to live our very unique Australian life.
Each day in the media we see the destruction in Ukraine of centuries-old cities, see the columns of refugees leaving Ukraine and read of those forced to stay in cities that are being continually bombed. As we think back to Gallipoli, we think of the grief that spread from the battlefield to the communities who lost men and women and of the families to which soldiers returned, changed for the worse by their experience. This Anzac Day is a time of us to pray for peace in our families, communities and in our world. As Mother Teresa says;"Peace and was begin at home. If we truly want peace in the world, let us begin be loving on another in our own families. Year 6 will lead us in prayer and reflection on Friday at 9am. Everyone is welcome.
God of tender mercy,
we thank you
for the joy of new life this Easter.
Give us new eyes to recognise your presence
around us each day.
The resurrection of your Son
has given us renewed hope.
Grant us the insight to discern daily deeds
of mercy, compassion and justice.
May the Spirit fill us with the courage,
perseverance and the strength to
live each day in mercy and humility.
May the Risen Christ be our guide
on the path of peace throughout all our days.
Amen
Sacramental Program: The information night for the Sacramental Program in Ayr 2022 is on Monday 15th August with the celebration on Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th October. To register you can ring or email the office and more information will be sent to you closer to the dates. (Phone 47832316 - Monday to Friday 9am - 12noon or email burdekinparishes@tsv.catholic.
TWO DAYS LEFT TO GO INTO THE DRAW FOR A FULL SET OF SCHOOL UNIFORMS!
Please email your Certificate of Completion to ayr@tsv.catholic.edu.au to be entered into the draw.
Aiming for Excellence
Welcome Back to Term 2
Many thanks to the parents who attended the Parent-Teacher sessions last term and provided valuable insights into their children's learning.
NCCD: The NCCD(Nationally Consistent Collection of Data) is a Nationwide annual collection of information about Australian school students with disability. The NCCD enables schools, education authorities and governments to understand the needs of students with disability and how they can best support them at school. The evidence about how a child is supported and the amount of support they require submitted by each school determines the funding provided to the school.
Each school participates in Moderation activities with other schools across the state. The consistent understanding of the levels of support provided to students and the range of information submitted meets the requirements for inclusion in the NCCD process.
The school information is then submitted to TCE and forwarded to QCEC (Queensland Catholic Education Commission).
To include a child in NCCD, we are to provide the following information:
- Evidence of assessed individual needs of the student
- Evidence that adjustments are being provided to the student to address their individual needs based on their disability
- Evidence that adjustments provided to the student have been monitored and reviewed
- Evidence of consultation and collaboration with the student and/or parents, guardians or carers, or associates
All Information is confidential. Children are referred to as Students A, B, C, or D for the moderation activities.
Ready Set Write!
Last term, our focus was on writing to practise skills. For the next three weeks, our focus will be on planning, writing and editing within a time limit.
NAPLAN
Thank you to parents who have signed the Adjustment applications or requested and completed the Request for Withdrawal.
Please check that your child has a set of fully working headphones by the end of this week so they will be comfortable with their use during NAPLAN.
If you have any concerns with any of the above, please contact me via the school office or email (rcranitch@sfatsv.catholic.edu.au)
Rita Cranitch
Leaning and Teaching Adviser.
Inclusive practices Teacher
From the Guidance Counsellor
In this edition of SchoolTV: Wellbeing - Checklist for Primary
Whilst most children are resilient and seem to be demonstrating a remarkable capacity to manage during this challenging time, others are not faring as well. Some are experiencing a variety of emotions ranging from fear to anxiety, all of which are considered normal or natural responses to this current situation.
However, despite this it is still important for adult carers to remain vigilant for any signs of unusual distress or behaviour, even though your child may not have any prior history of a mental health disorder.
It was estimated that one in seven Australasian children experienced a mental health issue before the Coronavirus pandemic, therefore early intervention, diagnosis and treatment is even more important now. In the current climate, one useful thing you can do is help your child focus on the things that they can control –– such as their learning, diet, exercise and sleep.
In this Special Report, adult carers will be provided with a checklist that can be used a guide in determining if there is any cause for concern.
We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this edition of SchoolTV and we always welcome your feedback. If you have any concerns about your child, please contact the school counsellor for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Here is the link to your special report:
https://sfatsv.catholic.schooltv.me/wellbeing_news/special-report-wellbeing-checklist-primary
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