Term 3 Week 10 2025

From the Principal

Good day good people, 

We made it! Samaritan Day has certainly capped off a very busy term in the best of ways - recognising our very own leaders who inspire and guide us here at St Francis.

Next week I will be going on a Franciscan Pilgrimage that had been organised before landing this amazing role here. I will be joining others to learn more about St Franics and St Anthony in Assisi, Padua and Rome. I am looking forward to my first time in Italy and hopefully not my last.

Over the holidays there are a few ups and downs; our shade sails are planned to go up and our beautiful fig tree is coming down. Whilst it is a picture of good health it has proven to be a concern with the root system heading in all directions including the footpath and buildings. We have had the local arborist confirm removing it and will invest in a more suitable garden to replace it. They will also remove another problem tree and trim all of our mahogany trees to make our shaded play areas safe.

Finally a safe and restful holiday for you all and I look forward to seeing you again in Term 4.

God Bless,

Lisa Fitzsimmons

Religious Life of the School

Dear families,

As Term 3 comes to an end, I am so grateful for the many ways our school community has come together in faith, learning, and celebration. It has been a joy to pray with our students, share in liturgies, and see our charisms lived out each day. I hope the holidays bring you rest, joy, and time with loved ones as we look ahead to a wonderful Term 4.

Samaritan Day

Today we celebrated the Catholic Identity of our school. We recognised St Francis Xavier, the Good Samaritan Sisters, and St Marcellin Champagnat, and reflected on how their charisms continue to shape and inspire our school community.

The day began with a beautiful liturgy led by our Mini Vinnies students, followed by the presentation of the Samaritan Awards. Each class presents this award to a student who lives out our Catholic Identity through Love of God, Love of Neighbour, and Love in Action.

Congratulations to all the students who received a Samaritan Award for 2025 – we are so proud of the way you shine God’s love in our community.

After lunch, students enjoyed a variety of fun and engaging activities around the school, organised by our wonderful teachers. We finished the day by coming together as a community, giving thanks for our students, staff, families, and for the gift of our St Francis School.

Wishing you a safe and restful holiday,

Maria

Learning Corner

LEARNING and TEACHING

Every minute counts!

Looking Forward.

Holiday time is a wonderful opportunity for our students to relax, rest, refresh and reenergise. Next term is packed as we complete the curriculum expectations for the year, participate in water safety programs and enjoy a swimming carnival.

The first day of next term is a pupil-free day for teachers to become familiar with the updated NSSAB (Non-State School Accreditation Board) guidelines released in May of this year.

The guidelines prescribe the number of hours to be dedicated to teaching and learning and the minimum number of hours to be allocated to each subject. Schools do have the option to allocate more than the minimum hours to a subject to respond to identified student needs. An example of this would be if our school learning data, including NAPLAN, shows that we are performing below expectations in a particular area, then we will be expected to allocate more time to address these needs.

During this day, teachers will be auditing how their class time has been used so far this year. Time spent on non-curriculum ( non learning) activities will be tallied to ensure we are devoting the expected minimum hours at least to teaching and learning. This will result in a reshaping of what ‘extras’ we include and how we include these experiences in the day-to-day of schooling. There are definitely changes ahead, as changes in society are reflected in school life.

Quest For Knowledge

Each year, four year six students are chosen to participate in the TCE-sponsored Quest for Knowledge. The quest requires students to answer sets of questions on a variety of topics, including Religion, Mathematics, Literature and Literacy, Science, Sport, and General Knowledge, within a set time limit. The team works together to decide on the best answers.

Congratulations to all Year Six students who tried out for the team by completing a timed quiz. The team, St Francis Brainiacs will be captained by Arden Mitchell and include, Bridget Ahern, Aalia Vallbadass, and Annabel Papale.

Wishing you an enjoyable two week break from school routine but filled with many conversations, discussions, shared experiences and reading.

Rita

P.A.T.H.

Community