Term 2 Week 5

Weekly 5 With Leadership

Gullarn ngheeree - Welcome to this beautiful place

My daughter, Hannah, doesn’t often send me Instagram posts, so when she does, I take notice.  This recent one resonated with me:

“What God does first and best is to entrust us with our moment in history; no one else!  What we really need to do is to have the courage to accept that invitation.  We’re the people of God, we are the ones to continue God’s mission.

I say to people, “It is God’s Church; it is God’s time; which is now.”  And so we do the best we can and if we do and we accept the responsibility that we received at our Baptism then that is all that we can do, that is all that can be asked of us.”

(Sr Mary Franzmann, Presentation Sister)

My thoughts when reading this were of my colleagues: those who teach and support our children, those who clean our schools, and those who are the interface at the Administration desk between our school and the parents and wider community of St Francis Catholic Primary.  Every single day, every single person who has a ministry at St Francis Catholic Primary has accepted the invitation to represent the mission of Catholic Education, Diocese of Rockhampton.

In recent conversations with Prep 2025 and new families, I share a document, ‘Right Relationships’ which forms part of the enrolment agreement that parents sign upon enrolment of their child at St Francis Catholic Primary. These right and collaborative relationships are certainly critical in the ‘big moment’ interactions when we discuss pathways forward in your child’s learning journey.  But, I would advocate, that it is the ‘smaller and frequent’ interactions that build a community based on ‘peace through love’ which are absolutely critical.

How people show up matters:

-How your child shows up each day ready for school matters, the priority placed on daily school attendance matters
-The conversations between our administrative staff and you and the respect and courtesy given in these conversations matter
- The times when teachers receive a ‘good news’ parent email about your child’s learning day matter

If we truly are to ‘journey as family in peace through love’ these basic fundamentals must form the bedrock of our relationship together.

Next week provides diverse opportunities for students along with parents to engage in various learning, we welcome all to join where you can:

• High Jump and Discus finals on Tuesday (students born 2012 - 2015)
• Under 8’s Morning - Wednesday
• Assembly - Wednesday @ 2.10 pm
• Mary Help of Christians Thursday
• Prayer Celebrations Prep - Yr 1 @ 9.30 am
• Liturgy Yr 2 - Yr 6 @ 1.35 pm
• Athletics Day - Prep to Yr 6

God’s blessings on your weekend,

PAX et bonum,

Meredith

From the Sports Desk

With next Friday's athletics carnival approaching, the students are preparing during PE, daily brain breaks, gross motor programs, and Friday senior sport.

Children born in 2015-2012 have been trialing in heats during PE and Friday sport. Finals will take place over the next week, and parents will be notified via class Seesaw.

Shot Put and Long Jump finals are on the schedule in last week's newsletter and will take place during the carnival.

800m heats took place on Friday 10th May. Finals will be on the morning of the carnival.

High Jump heats took place during PE earlier in the term. Finals will be on Tuesday 21st May from 8:30-10:30 PM. 2012 will start first as this is their PE time.

DISCUS finals will take place on the far side of the oval from 1:30 - 2:30 PM on Tuesday 21st May.

Country Coast Athletics is on the 14th June and the Port Curtis Carnival is next term: 23rd/24th July.

Prep to Year 2 AND those Year 3 children born 2016, all events are to encourage participation.

Preps are making special participation ribbons in the week preceding. They will collect these after their sprint race during the carnival. They loved making their ribbon to wear after the Cross Country.

All other sprints earn place ribbons for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. It is suggested children wear a safety pin on their shirt/hat to pin their ribbons to during the carnival.

Ball games are about team sports and participation and although they contribute to house points, they are not presented with ribbons.

Some generous parents have sent a survey asking for volunteers to help with the Carnival Sausage Sizzle and help with setting up tents on Thursday/field event finals/timing. Thank you for your help.

Please reach out if you're unsure of any of these details.

Kylie Linforth

Assistant Principal Curriculum & Sports Co-ordinator

Under 8's day - Wednesday 22 May

School Assembly - 22/05 time change

Tuckshop News

Parents & Friend group

We've got a busy and exciting week coming up next week!

Starting with P&F Group next meeting at 8:30am on Monday 20th, we'd love for you to come along and find out how you could get involved.

On Wednesday 22^nd we have Under 8's Day and we're joining in the fun by providing face painting for the kids from 9am.  Reach out to our new P&F Group email if you'd like to volunteer your artistic skills.

Thursday 23^rd and Friday 24^th we need lots of parents to pitch in to make the St Francis Athletics Carnival a fun and successful day. See below flyer regarding volunteering and choose an option via the Sign Up Genius, link here:   https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0548A4AB23ABF94-49522840-athletics  

Tuckshop will be closed on Friday 24^th May for Athletics Carnival. In it's place, the P&F Group are providing a fundraising BBQ and limited snacks, that will be collected from the tuckshop at lunchtime. Order food for the whole family (not just the kids!) via Flexischools prior to 9am Thursday 23^rd May.

Any questions or offers to be involved, please contact: StFrancisTSPandF@rok.catholic.edu.au

Thanks, and looking forward to seeing you at one of these fun events next week!

Parents & Friends Group

Fee Advice

Please find attached the first of a series of Advice pieces, developed to inform our Catholic Education families of the new Federal Government Funding model (Gonski model) and the impact on funding for Catholic Schools.  

Over the coming months, further Advice pieces will be shared, with each piece building on the detail of the previous.  Please take the time to read each of the Advice pieces, to understand the impact of the changes on the funding for our school and School fees.

Mass of Thanksgiving

Uniform Shop News - New School Jacket

Transport Assistance Scheme

In and around our community ...

We would like to introduce you to an exciting new program that Lionheart has recently launched – our Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) program.

EAL is a dynamic approach to learning that harnesses the unique qualities of horses to promote personal and social development. Through carefully crafted activities and interactions with our gentle equine partners, participants can develop essential life skills such as:

• Communication: Students learn effective communication skills by interacting with horses, who provide immediate and honest feedback.
• Teamwork: Collaborative activities with horses encourage teamwork, cooperation, and leadership skills among participants.
• Self-Confidence: Working with horses fosters self-confidence and self-esteem as students overcome challenges and achieve success.
• Emotional Regulation: Interacting with horses promotes emotional awareness and teaches valuable coping mechanisms for managing stress and anxiety.

Our program is designed to complement your existing curriculum by offering experiential learning opportunities that engage students in a meaningful and memorable way. Whether integrated into physical education classes, counselling sessions, or extracurricular activities, EAL has the potential to make a profound impact on the lives of your students.

 We would love the opportunity to discuss how our Equine Assisted Learning program can be tailored to meet the specific needs and goals of your school community. Please don't hesitate to reach out to schedule a meeting. Together, we can empower your students to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.

 Thank you for considering Lionheart Equine Assisted Learning program as a partner in education. We look forward to the possibility of working together to enrich the lives of your students.