Term 3 Newsletter 19 August 202
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGES
WRITING FOCUS FOR ST FRANCIS - WHAT YOU ARE LEARNING, HOW YOU ARE GOING AND WHAT TO DO IF YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND.
Over the past couple of years, Writing has been a major focus for the school. We have begun to embed particular strategies which include:- The Writing Process, Writing Checklist, Quick and Daily Writes, Feedback on Writing, Sentence Types, Sentence Starters and much more. Sitting alongside these focussed areas are specific and key strategies which include learning intentions and success criteria. These assist the students in being able to articulate what they are learning, how are they going and what are their next steps in their learning. Our school has worked very hard and we have progressed with each of these strategies being explored, understood and the process of being embedded in our everyday practice.
Our continued goal here at St Francis is for all learners, including staff, just not only students, is to articulate their learning through a deeper understanding of where they are at, where are they going, and how do they get there. We would like for teachers to see learning through the eyes of the students and students to see themselves as their own teachers. This creates an environment that is rich on academic success for all and were achievement is celebrated. An effective way for this to happen is through teacher efficacy (everyone believing in the same thing, being taught in the same way, using the same language), response to intervention (teacher providing specific support when needed) and feedback (student to student; student to teacher and teacher to student).
As we continue our journey, I look forward to sharing the many of our successes that we have achieved.
FATHER'S DAY BBQ AND LITURGY - THURSDAY 1 SEPTEMBER.
This year the school will be hosting a BBQ at 8:15am for our FUDGs (Fathers, Uncles, Dads, Grandfathers). Please pop into school and grab a Bacon and Egg Burger and stay for our special Father’s Day Liturgy at 8:45am in the MPC. Thank you for your ongoing support and we look forward to seeing our father figures in our community.
READING IS FUN...
Reading is important, and it is fun! I encourage all parents to read every day at home with your children. St Francis students read and are exposed to reading every day, either with their teacher in guided reading, when their teacher is modeling great reading to them , or when they are sharing their reading with the teacher or classmates. Our teachers practice high-yield strategies to achieve reading progress, growth and achievement for all students. All this emphasis on reading is because reading is important at St Francis and it is fun!
FAMILY LIFE AND STUDENT PROTECTION WEEKS
In Week Nine, St Francis will be delivering lessons and content around The Guidelines for Teaching Sexual Health and the Daniel Morcombe Curriculum with an added focus on personal safety. Letters will be emailed out next week which will explain the content, vocabulary and outline of the lesson/s focus. Please contact your child’s teacher if you need any further information.
PARENT TEACHER INTERVIEWS
Over the coming weeks, teachers will be sending/arranging parent-teacher interview times for you and your child. Just a reminder that if you are unavailable to attend your parent-teacher interview please contact the school so another time can be arranged. These meetings are of great value to your child, your child’s teacher and to you, the parent. I sincerely thank the teachers for their efforts in preparing and organising these interviews and to you, the parents for scheduling time for this important meeting.
PREP 2023 TRANSITION DAYS
Please keep an eye out for our Prep 2023 transition days. This will be a time for getting to know our Prep teacher/students and our school community, also sharing information about what to expect as a Prep Parent.
EVENTS AND CELEBRATIONS - WHAT'S COMING UP
- 22nd August –Book Parade Dress up with Clifton State School – please refer to the Library section of this week’s newsletter
- 1st September – Father’s Day Breakfast (Bacon and Egg Burgers) and Prayer Celebration – 8:20 am
- 2nd September – Pupil Free Day for students
- 5th – 9th September – Child Protection Week – Teaching of Sexual Education and Daniel Morcombe Curriculum – more information to come out
- 9th September - Central Downs Ball Games – Clifton Show Grounds
Looking forward to seeing you at the Bush Dance. God bless and thanks for reading…
Regards,
Brendan
CURRICULUM COORDINATOR
CURRICULUM COORDINATOR
On Friday, please venture into the Parent Portal, where you will be able to book Parent-Teacher interviews for Term 3. It was wonderful in Term 1 to use an online booking tool, and due to its success, we will be using the same system for the Term 3 interviews. Bookings are now open! If experience any difficulty, please send an email to the office and we will be able to assist you.
All students from P- 6 have written a timed writing sample this week to see how their writing is progressing. Writing has many components, and it has been wonderful to see the progress being made. The teachers have worked together to ensure we have the same expectations and standards around this curriculum area. Later in the term, we will meet with teachers from other Catholic Schools to discuss our progress and ensure we are all marking consistently.
PREP/YEAR 1
Prep/Year 1
In Maths, Prep/One has been using the language of direction to move from one place to another. Excitement and curiosity filled the room as we explored the use of our Code and Go Programmable Robot Mice. Students worked with a partner to create a step-by-step path for their robot mouse to follow. They then created their very own treasure maps with step-by-step instructions to find the hidden treasure.
In Religion, students have been listening to stories from the Old Testament. They have explored the story of creation and the story of Noah. Students enjoyed using the classroom model of Noah’s Ark to help retell the story of Noah and the Flood. In the coming weeks we will learn about Moses and make connections between the lives of people in Old Testament stories, and the ways in which God was active in their lives. We also look forward to preparing for the Father’s Day Liturgy.
YEAR 2/3
Year 2/3
Year 2/3 have been busy refining our quick write skills. Quick writes are a 20 minute timed write building our stamina and automaticity for writing. Here are some extracts from our work that I am sure will leaving you wanting to know what happens next.
Chase
One night a cat was on a branch. Suddenly, the branch snapped. The cat's claws came out. The cat's claws ground the tree stump and climbed up the tree again.
Rhys
On a warm day Mr. Donut was walking on the footpath, when he saw his friend Dingle Berry in the bakery. Dingle Berry was practicing his ballet.
He didn't see a random person picked him up. The stranger walked away. Mr. Donut was on a mission. His mission was to find his friend. He set out to find Dingle Berry looking in every house in the city.
Olive
One sunny day there was a little girl. Her name was Amy. She was going to the farm to meet her friend Tabby. When she saw Tabby, she saw a tree. Not just a tree. A monkey in a tree. Amy's worse nightmare was a monkey!
Chaz D
One day Ryan made a Rocketship and flew to the blood moon. The moon was cold. One minute later....
During Religion learning we are continuing to develop our relationship with God through Psalms. We have been making the meaning of Psalm 51 which is about forgiveness. Some of our friends will begin their Sacrament of Reconciliation soon. This Psalm connects when with the act of penance and reconciliation.
Fractions have been our focus in math. It is sometimes tricky to move from the concrete hands-on learning to the abstract learning. We have had a lot of fun using food and craft to springboard our learning to common fractions, equivalent fractions, fractions on and number line and even decimal fractions.
Year 4/5/6 News
Year 4/5/6
In Religion, we have been investigating how our values impact our actions. The students wrote a list of things they enjoy, and from there we listed values associated with these activities. We will then discover where our values come from: our family, past experiences and beliefs. It has been interesting to take a good look at the school values and to understand how we act out these beliefs in everyday life.
During Mathematics, we are wrapping up our unit on fractions, decimals and percentages. It has been great to see the growth in understanding in these areas. Next week, we will start a unit on money. This area can be a difficult one for students to understand in a paperless society. I encourage you to talk to your students this month about budgeting and finance.
In Writing, we have been learning about Historical Narratives and we have written about the Eureka Stockade. The students have been applying their knowledge of paragraphing and emotive language to create this genre. We will share them with you soon!
From Andrea Yr 4/5/6
In HASS today, students completed their newspaper articles and began to publish them in PowerPoint.
Our science project of germinating seeds does not look promising but will monitor them in weeks to come.
In PE this week students practiced dancing in preparation for The Bush Dance on Saturday.
LIBRARY NEWS
LIBRARY NEWS
Our Book Fair is finally in full swing! All students visited the Book Fair on Monday during library lessons and created their Wish Lists. Since then, we have had a great response, with several families visiting each day to purchase books. There is a terrific variety of books available to purchase and to add to your home libraries. Book Fair will finish on Saturday night at the Bush Dance, where there will be opportunity to purchase items then.
Book Week Dress-up day is fast approaching! Don’t forget to come dressed up as your favourite book character on Monday and join the Book Parade. We will be joining with Clifton State School and other community organisations for the parade. We will start and finish at St Francis de Sales, and when we return, we will have our meal deal lunch with the Clifton community.
Happy reading!
Mrs Burgess & Mrs Hilton.
SPORT
PE News
This week in PE, the students have been getting ready for the Bush Dance. Heel Toe Poker and good old-fashioned Line Dancing could be heard throughout the school. We are all excited about the wonderful event.
Ball Games Practice has also taken place to prepare the students for the upcoming carnival on Friday 9 September at the Clifton Show Grounds (an information note will come out next week).
Congratulations to Mick Willett for being selected in the Southern Downs Athletics Team, to compete in the Darling Downs Athletics Carnival on Wednesday 24 September. Mick was selected for the Combined Event (100m, 800m, Long Jump and Shot Put). All the very best Mick, we pass on our blessings to you.
The school has kindly received a donation of newer high jump mats from Assumption College. If anyone is interested in our old mats, please let Mr. Red know.
SCHOOL COUNSELLOR
Counsellor
P & F UNIFORM SHOP
Uniform Shop Co-Ordinator: Kylie Hay
Contact Details: kurlz@live.com.au or 0487 582 107
Uniform Shop Days: MOST Thursdays & Fridays
If you would like uniforms, please fill in the updated Invoice Sheet and email or text Kylie to either arrange a time to meet or for the order to be sent home with your child. If you have an old invoice copy, please bin it and replace with our updated one. This can be found on the Facebook Page or request one from me directly.
UNIFORM SHOP NEWS
- We now have EFTPOS available in the Uniform Shop at the time of collection
- We have some good quality second hand winter uniforms and also summer uniforms available for $5 per item if you’re looking for an extra jumper, shirt, shorts etc. Please note that only limited sizes and items are available but you are welcome to request second hand if available.
- We are no longer stocking the following items however we still have limited stock available for a discounted price if you would still like to purchase them.
- Green Fleece Vest $10
- Sizes 4,6,8,12 & 14 available
- Long Sleeve Boys Polo Shirts $15
- Sizes 4,10,12,14 & Small available
- Girls Green Long Formal Pants $10
- All sizes except 10 available
- Girls Green Long Sports Pants $15
- Sizes 4,6,8,10 & 16 available
- Green Fleece Vest $10
If you urgently require uniforms on a day other than Thursday or Friday, please let me know and I can arrange this with the staff at St Francis De Sales. Please note I do work and will get back to as soon as I possibly can.
STUDENT PROTECTION CONTACTS
Feeling Safe- All students have a right to feel safe and be safe.
If you are concerned about any form of abuse that is immediate, you should call 000. A significant risk or harm to a student, whether or not you have formed this belief on reasonable ground, should immediately be raised with one of our Student Protection Contacts.
ADMINISTRATION
School Fees:
We do recommend the setting-up of a direct debit facility to pay regular amounts into the school account. This alleviates overdue bills.
SCHOOL Bank Details
BSB: 064786
A/C: 100023789
Reminder: All P&F payments & Uniform payments are paid to a different bank account NOT the school account.
P&F Bank Details
BSB: 084610
A/C: 508684159