Term 1 Week 5 2022

From the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

Wow what hot weather we have been experiencing over the past week. Due to the extreme temperatures we have had hot weather play during break times and kept students in classrooms in the air conditioning in an effort to help keep students and teachers healthy and safe.  We will continue this while the extreme weather continues.  Hopefully this weather breaks soon and we go back to normal temperatures and procedures.  

On Saturday members of our School Board gathered with the Boards from St Colman’s and Burdekin Catholic High for our annual Board Formation Day.  We were very privileged to hear from Bishop Tim and Prof Br David Hall on the topic of Our Church….Our Future Full of Hope.  Bishop Tim called us to work together to continue the mission of the Church at a local level and challenged us to go out and do something with our faith.  Prof Br David Hall reminded us that God had a dream for the world and it is through listening (which happens over time and via prayer) that we are invited to say yes and help fulfill God’s dream.  Br David spoke about Mary saying yes when she was invited to cooperate with God’s dream by becoming the mother of Jesus and while we may not have a clear invitation like Mary did to participate in making God’s dream a reality we have a responsibility to work towards the dream by taking the Gospel out to the world.  Br David spoke about our purpose of building a new humanity that is understood and realised through the person of Jesus Christ so that we can build a more compassionate and peaceful world.  We were called to be present in our relationships so that we remember that each person is made in the image and likeness of God and where love and charity meet that is where we see God. It is in this space that we align ourselves with living out God’s dream for the world.

Hairstyles

There are many students sporting extreme hairstyles such as mullets at the moment which do not conform to our Uniform Policy.  As these hairstyles are against our policy, I ask that you work towards rectifying hairstyles this week.  Please see the excerpt below from the Uniform Policy which was shared with all parents at the beginning of the year.

Hair should be:

• Neat and clean with no fashion extremes in styling or cut.  This includes but is not limited to mullets and tracks.  This will be at the discretion of the Principal or Assistant Principal.
• Off the face and tied back if shoulder length or longer.
• Natural colour.
• Ribbons, bands, headbands and scrunchies should be simple and understated in school dress fabric or in school colours of plain blue or red.  

P&F 

This Thursday at 6pm we will gather for our P&F AGM and first general meeting of the year in the staff room.  I encourage you to come along as this is a wonderful parent engagement opportunity.  We will be voting for a new executive committee at this time.  Please see further details later in the newsletter.  Our P&F’s main aim is parent engagement and providing opportunities for your children, not the traditional approach of fundraising.  I hope that you can make this meeting as everything that this group does is for your children and as I have said before many hands make light work.

Beginning of Year Mass and Student Leadership

On Friday 18th March we will be holding our Beginning of Year Mass and presentation of Year 6 leadership badges. Families are more than welcome to join us for this Mass.  I know that our Year 6’s are excited about this event after the strange start we have had to this year.

Have a wonderful week.

Take care, stay cool and God Bless

Amanda

Religious Life of the School

On the second Sunday of Lent (Luke 9:28-36), we hear the account of the Transfiguration.  While praying on the top of a steep mountain, Jesus was transfigured, changed so that his face and clothes shone with a brilliant light, as dazzling as the rays of the sun. The light shining out from Jesus that day enabled the disciples to see the power and glory of God, become filled with the light of faith and recognise Jesus as truly God’s son. We can be a light to others in the things we say and do for others particularly during Lent.

Love in action: During the last two weeks, our Student Council and Mini Vinnies Committee have met. These Committees empower our students to create positive change in their own lives, our school community and in the lives of those in need. The Student Council will be meeting with their classes to discern projects they would like to be involved in this year to make our school a better place for all students. They have already identified elements of our play areas that are unsafe and we have passed this onto maintenance.

Our Mini Vinnies Committee is looking at ways we can reach out in love and compassion to those in need. They have set a goal for fundraising for Caritas for term one and encourage students to fill their Project Compassion boxes. There will be an Easter raffle in the last two weeks of term to enable them to reach their goal. They also discussed the floods down south and how it has affected Catholic Schools. On Thursday 17^th March there will be a St Patrick’s casual day.  If students wear green they can bring along a gold coin which will be sent to help out the students in the Catholic Schools affected. Our committees are certainly very enthusiastic and full of great ideas.

Project Compassion: Our story for this week is about Biru 30, who lives in a rural village in Jharkand State in India’s east. He lost mobility in one of his legs, after contracting polio as a child, which makes it difficult for him to walk. With the help of Caritas Biru was able to access an entrepreneurship and livelihoods development program, run by Caritas Australia’s partner, Caritas India. He gained the skills, support and encouragement he needed to establish his own bicycle repair business.

Now, Biru is able to provide a good life for his family and an essential service to his community. He has discovered a sense of pride, confidence and hope which has inspired others living with a disability and paved the way for all future generations.  https://www.caritas.org.au/

Loving God,
We thank you for the gift of our lives and for the life of every person, both near to us and far away. We thank you for the wonder of all your creation.
Through fasting, almsgiving and prayer may this Lent draw us deeper into the warmth and light of God’s love.
May we see the world more clearly, especially those who are often overlooked.
May we come closer to your heart, which you showed through the cross of Jesus.
May we be full of hope for all future generations.
We ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Please email your Certificate of Completion to ayr@tsv.catholic.edu.au to be entered into the draw.

Aiming for Excellence

READY,  SET,  WRITE

This week our focus is Vocabulary, Word Choice and Spelling .

Of the 47 marks allocated to the writing task in NAPLAN, Vocabulary counts for five marks while Spelling is given an allocation of six. Marks are allocated based on the quality of the work. The same marking grid is used for the writing task regardless of year level.

A student will be given two marks for Vocabulary if they have used mostly simple verbs, adverbs, adjectives or nouns with the use of two or three precise words. To be allocated five marks for this section, the student would have used a range of precise and effective words and phrases in a natural and articulate manner. Their choice of words matches the text type. If the task is a narrative, the words would be descriptive, able to create images and actions and feelings while a persuasive text would use strong emotive words with facts to support opinions. For a strong vocabulary, students need to be able to accurately use a wide range of words and have a good knowledge of synonyms.

Word Walls relevant to topics covered in class help develop the range of vocabulary students can access. Even more effective in building a student’s bank of words is the reading of a wide variety of books.

If a student can demonstrate the correct spelling of most simple and common words, they receive three marks. If they correctly spell all the words that include at least ten difficult words and some challenging words that do not follow regular spelling patterns they are given six marks.

The ability to spell develops as a student becomes increasingly proficient in selecting and arranging letters to form accurately spelt words and using a knowledge of prefixes, suffixes and Latin and Greek roots. They are able to monitor their own spelling and explain how spelling affects the meaning of the word (there/their).

NAPLAN

NAPLAN is used by governments, education authorities and schools to determine whether young Australians are meeting important goals in literacy and numeracy.  All students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are expected to sit the NAPLAN tests, which are held in May each year.

NAPLAN gives a snapshot of how children are performing in reading, writing, spelling, punctuation, grammar, and numeracy. It complements other effective classroom assessment and reporting practices.

Participation

All students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are expected to sit the NAPLAN tests unless they are withdrawn by their parents/carers or exempt.

Withdrawals

Parents can withdraw their child from the tests by notifying the school in writing before testing. Withdrawal is intended as an option to acknowledge religious beliefs and philosophical objections to testing.

Exemptions

Students may be exempted from one or more of the tests if they meet one of the following criteria:

• Students with a significant intellectual disability and/or significant co-existing conditions that severely limit their capacity to participate in the test
• Students with a language background other than English, who arrived from overseas and have been attending school in Australia for less than a year.

Exemptions for students with physical and/or intellectual disabilities are determined through consultation between the principal, student, and parents/carers.

Please see attachment for more information about NAPLAN.

If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s participation do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher.

Rita Cranitch

Learning and Teaching Adviser

Inclusive Practices Teacher

Tuckshop

Tuckshop 2022

Dear Parents/Guardians,

This letter is to invite parents &/or grandparents to become part of this year’s Tuckshop team.

The Tuckshop operates from Monday to Friday from 8:30am - 11:30am for First Break.

Working in the Tuckshop is a great opportunity to meet new parents in a friendly & relaxed atmosphere.

Please note: you will need to have completed your Volunteer Induction Online Training and shown your green tick prior to assistance.

Volunteer Induction Online Training can be accessed via our website: https://www.sfatsv.catholic.edu.au/about/volunteer-induction-for-parents-and-carers/

Once you have completed all modules and documents please email your certificate, paperwork and green tick to ayr@tsv.catholic.edu.au

Please return the from below to the school office at your earliest convenience. Any amount of time that you can assist will be greatly appreciated. If you have any further enquiries please feel free to contact the school office on 4783 2877.

I am looking forward to another exciting year in the tuckshop.

Thanks,

Kylie Farrell

Tuckshop Convenor

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Students of the Week

P&F News

The P&F Annual General Meeting is being held in the Administration staff room on Thursday 10^th March 2022 at 6pm followed by a monthly meeting.

All executive positions at the meeting will be declared vacant.

If you wish to nominate for a position, please complete the nomination form below and return to school with your child or deliver to the office.

If you do not wish to nominate for a position, please still come along to the meeting to find out what is happening at our school.

Birthdays

Community