Term 3 Week 9 2022
From the Principal
Dear Parents and Carers,
It is hard to believe that we are in the second last week of Term 3. Time certainly does fly by!
Saturday night saw the culmination of the 2022 Burdekin Water Festival. A huge congratulations to Claire Horan for representing St Francis as a Junior Ambassador. Clarie represented our school with both pride and maturity and we couldn't be prouder of her. Thank you to all the families who were able to come along to the parade on Saturday afternoon and ride on Claire's float. Claire took home the prize of Best Junior Float.
We would also like to congratulate Joe Pappalardo who represented Burdekin Football Club. Joe was named the 2022 Junior Ambassador Runner Up.
Water Festival
Thank you to Teena Butler and Bhree-Ana Perry and their helpers for another successful Father's Day Stall last week. Thank you also to our Class Parent Reps who were able to help organise and run the Disco on Thursday night.
Staffing News
Last week Emma Castelanelli finished in 3/4B for the year as she is now on maternity leave. We are very grateful to Emma for all of her contributions to our school community and wish her, Andrew and Mack all the best as they await the arrival of their new family member. We look forward to sharing some exciting news in the coming weeks.
This week we welcomed Mrs Chiara Oar to 3/4B. Chiara will be job sharing with Danielle for the remainder of 2022. We are excited to have Chiara joining our teaching staff.
We are also delighted to announce that Mrs Nicole O'Connor has accepted the position of Action Assistant Principal Religious Education (APRE) for 2023. Nicole brings to the APRE role not only an understanding of the Catholic faith and RE Curriculum but also an understanding of our school Charism and current directions. She is looking forward to working with our school community in her new role as a member of the School Leadership Team.
This week is Child Protection Week. While child protection is an everyday event in our Catholic Schools, this annual week, held around Australia, aims to educate and engage the community about what they can do to help prevent child abuse and neglect. The theme ‘Every child, in every community, needs a fair go’ recognises the importance of the bigger picture in addressing child abuse and neglect. Throughout the week our students have been involved in a range of activities around child protection. We are starting each morning with a safety message. These messages have included information around who our Safe People are, the 3R’s of Recognise, React and Report, body clues and online safety. Our class have all completed their 5 finger Safety Network (check out the display in the foyer of the Office) and will be engaging in a variety of activities throughout the week. I encourage you to have a conversation with your child/ren this week about the importance of child protection.
This past week I have been struck down by the dreaded flu and have spent the week at home and am very disappointed to have missed all of the wonderful events that have been going on at school and in our community. I would like to thank Mary Ferguson and the rest of the St Francis staff for covering for me with all of these events. It is so wonderful to work in a school where everyone pulls together and helps each other out in times of sickness and need. I feel incredibly grateful to work with such an amazing group of people.
Have a wonderful week.
Take care and God Bless
Amanda
Religious Life of the School
After overhearing the Pharisees complaining about him spending so much time with tax collectors and sinners, Jesus told a number of parables. (Luke 15:1-32) The Lost Coin is the story of a poor woman who lost one coin from her savings. She searched and searched the house, carrying on until her efforts were rewarded and she found it. The Prodigal son told the story of a father who forgave his son for the bad choices he made and welcomed him home. The Pharisees were very proud of their “goodness” and their obedience of the law. They would not associate with people they considered to be sinners and yet Jesus welcomed sinners, forgiving them and offering them a new start. We live ‘Love in Action’, as we forgive our children over and over for their mistakes and gently guide them to make better choices so they learn to treat all with respect and compassion.
Yesterday, September 5th, the Church celebrated the feast day of St Teresa of Calcutta, who devoted her life to caring for the homeless people on the streets of Calcutta. Mother Teresa was widely known as a living saint as she ministered to the sick and the dying in some of the poorest neighbourhoods in the world. Thousands of men and women who joined in her work are called the Missionaries of Charity. They serve the sick and the dying who have no one else to care for them, bringing God’s love to forgotten corners of crowded cities. In her own words: “I belong entirely to the Heart of Jesus. God still loves the world and He sends you and me to be His love and His compassion to the poor.”
Daily Prayer of Mother Teresa
"Dear Jesus,
help me to spread Thy fragrance everywhere I go.
Flood my soul with Thy spirit and love.
Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly that all my life
may only be a radiance of Thine.
Shine through me and be so in me that every soul I come in contact with
may feel Thy presence in my soul.
Let them look up and see no longer me but only Jesus.
Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as you shine,
so to shine as to be a light to others. Amen."
God Bless
Mary
Aiming for Excellence
Ready Set Write!
This week we are working through the writing process of discussing ideas, planning, drafting, editing and publishing.
PAT R and PAT M Testing
During this week and next, all children in years two to six will complete the online testing for Reading and Mathematics. No year levels are attached to the test as these tests are now adaptive, similar to the questions in Naplan. It allows children to show what they know.
The goal is to focus on what they know and what they still need to learn. Students are allocated a scale score and a percentile based on their answers to monitor progress from year to year.
Quest For Knowledge
Last week our Quest For Knowledge team participated in a practice round of questions to become familiar with the question types and time limits they will experience on Thursday. As a supervisor, I was impressed by the way they worked together to use their shared knowledge to arrive at an answer. ‘What colour is ebony? and ‘what is a patella?’ were two questions that created discussion.
On Thursday teams from 17 schools across the Townsville Diocese will participate in this Quest.
Reflective Practice Day - Reading and Writing
Friday, September 2 we were joined by St Colman’s School staff for our Reflective Practice Day. The focus for the morning was Version 9 of the Australian Curriculum, the changes, the reasons for the changes and an outline of how it will be implemented. We had a closer look at the updated version of the English Curriculum. This was presented via Zoom by staff from the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority.
The remainder of the day was focused on developing Reading and Writing through quality Literature. We looked at ‘mentor’ texts and the use of ‘anchor charts’ to promote reading and writing. We looked closely at ways of developing excellent writers and changing the focus from particular writing tasks such as writing a narrative, or an information report to developing the skills to write imaginatively, informatively or persuasively. Children need to know the purpose of their writing and then have the choice of how they will meet that purpose. This will encourage them to become creative and independent writers.
The prerequisite for any writing is always oral language, through the discussion of a mentor text, developing an anchor chart which children add to throughout the skill development stage of writing, the vocabulary and students’ own ideas.
Staff will continue developing various teaching strategies to develop these skills for students.
Holidays are a great opportunity to visit the library, browse the shelves, select a book you could read together and share opinions on the text.
Keep reading and talking.
Rita Cranitch
Learning and Teaching Adviser
Inclusive Practices Teacher
CHILD SAFETY WEEK September 4-10
Children will be receiving a child safety message every day this week to remind them how they can stay safe. They will watch Australia’s Biggest Child Safety Lesson about personal safety and on Friday, children will be watching presentations about online safety.
Australia’s Biggest Child Safety Lesson (ABCSL) is designed to engage children across the country in personal safety education, through the live streaming of video lessons.
The Foundation produces two videos every year during National Child Protection Week. The videos are aimed at two groups, early years aged children, 4 to 7 years old and upper primary, 8 to 12 year old children.
The 2022 lessons for ABCSL were developed with a focus on boundaries and body parts, using age-appropriate, evidence based personal safety education strategies to talk about a child’s right for privacy and personal safety, safe and unsafe touch, recognise, react and report and using the correct anatomical names for body parts.
Please ask you children what they have heard and learnt about staying safe.
The Good Samaritan's P.A.T.H.
Last week we went back to the start of P.A.T.H. and students were challenged to follow the rules of our first two letters P & A. The letter 'P' is Persist with learning and the letter ‘A’ is Act Safely. We saw a lot of people putting these into action by making smart choices in their learning, and in their interactions in class activities and playground games.
Congratulations to our Week 8 winners Connor Timms (1/2B), Amelia Barbagallo (3/4B) & Xander Botha (6A)
This week we will be revising the ‘T’. and ‘H’. of P.A.T.H. St Francis Staff will be on the lookout for students following the rules of Treat others with Respect: Use manners with others. Listen to staff and peers first time every time. Be mindful of people and things around me. Help your Neighbour: Be kind in words and actions. Be forgiving, fair and just. Show care, patience and help others.
Keep up the good work everyone!
From the Guidance Counsellor
In this edition of SchoolTV - POSITIVE PARENTING
Despite the best efforts of parents around the world, the reality is, there is no such thing as the ‘perfect parent’. However, arming yourself with the right information is a good start!
Research shows, that one of the most important protective factors in the lives of young people, is a close relationship with a supportive adult. With the mental health of today’s young people being at an all-time low, it is simply not enough to parent effectively. Parents need to familiarise themselves with practical skills, knowledge and strategies when it comes to raising children.
Many parents today are over-protective, resulting in children being less independent, unable to problem-solve or self-regulate. Parents are failing to set clear boundaries, which is unfortunately making kids feeling less secure. There is too much pressure on kids today. Parents fill their days with too many activities in an effort to avoid their child’s boredom.
In this edition of SchoolTV, parents will learn what is the best approach for primary and secondary school aged children.
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 guidance counsellor for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Here is the link to the Positive Parenting edition of SchoolTV
https://sfatsv.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/positive-parenting
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