Term 4 Week 2

Weekly 5 With Leadership

Gullarn ngheeree - Welcome to this beautiful place,

Spring has ‘sprung’ providing wonderful weather to learn, play and grow in our beautiful grounds and classrooms.  Term 4 brings many learning opportunities for our students, casting my eyes over our term calendar I note: the Prep to Year 2 excursion to the Gladstone Entertainment Centre to see a nationally acclaimed dance company; the Year 5 and 6 Student Explorers’ week taking them to various areas within our region; the Year 4 excursion to Quoin Island; and the Year 3 excursion to the Boyne Island Environment Centre - providing rich and engaging learning for our students. Class teachers will communicate the details of these events with parents.

And whilst our feet are very much planted in the learning for Term 4, it is important from a strategic point to cast one’s glance ahead in preparation for 2025.  Many will be shared with you as the term progresses.  Today, I share the specialist suite of offerings for our students for 2025.  Human resources, in the form of staffing, are the most important resource for excellence in teaching and learning - beyond the buildings, the canteen, the IT devices, beyond all these things. In making the best use of our human resources, I am pleased to announce the specialist suite of offerings for 2025:

Performing Arts
St Francis Catholic Primary makes a deliberate and conscious decision to offer all elements of the Performing Arts - Dance, Drama, and Music to our students through this specialist offering. These elements are part of the Australian Curriculum and it is an advantage to have this learning area as a specialist role. Mrs Dicker will continue in this role in 2025, bringing a wealth of knowledge, experience, and passion. 

Visual Arts
A critical component of the Australian Curriculum Arts program, Mrs Hartsorn has shared her gift of Visual Arts with our students this year through the Visual Arts and Cultural Arts lessons.  Visual Arts will continue as a specialist subject in 2025 with incredible opportunities through lessons, Art Club, and participation in many art opportunities in the local community.

To see all of our students thrive through the Arts offerings at St Francis Catholic Primary is such a joy, nurturing many aspects of identity.

Physical Education (PE
“At the core of Health and Physical Education is the acquisition of movement skills and concepts to enable students to participate in a range of physical activities – confidently, competently, and creatively. As a foundation for lifelong physical activity participation and enhanced performance, students acquire an understanding of how the body moves and develop positive attitudes toward physical activity participation. They develop an appreciation of the significance of physical activity, outdoor recreation, and sport in Australian society and globally. Movement is a powerful medium for learning, through which students can practise and refine personal, behavioural, social and cognitive skills.” (Australian Curriculum).  An important part of our weekly specialist offerings to our students, PE provides the skills that form the basis of the PE Australian curriculum. 

Digital Technologies
“Digital Technologies provides students with practical opportunities to use design thinking and to be innovative developers of digital solutions and knowledge. The subject helps students to become innovative creators of digital solutions, effective users of digital systems, and critical consumers of information conveyed by digital systems.” (Australian Curriculum)

In 2025, the offering of Digital Technologies as part of our specialist suite of curriculum ensures that students are engaging in authentic learning challenges that foster curiosity, confidence, persistence, innovation, creativity, respect, and cooperation.  Before taking on the Acting Principal role, I led the Digital Technologies program at St Francis and will return to this role in 2025 working with students from Prep to Year 6.

As always, I am grateful for the support and commitment from our school families and look forward to the term ahead.

God’s blessings upon your weekend,

PAX et bonum - Peace and all goodness,

Meredith Grove
(Principal 2024)

From Kylie's Desk - APC

Swimming  - Term 4

Years 1&2 swim on Monday and Wednesday of Week 7.

Prep and Year 3 swim on Monday and Tuesday of week 8.

The final sporting event for the year is the whole school swimming carnival on Wednesday 20th November. Families are welcome and are required to pay spectator fees. It is recommended that toddlers find alternative activities on this busy day.

All students travel by bus to the pool for the carnival, leaving on the first bus at 8:30. Those who live in Gladstone can meet us at the pool at 9AM - please inform your class teacher of these arrangements.

In the next week, a Google Form will be sent home for 9-12 year old swimmers’ nominations. Please discuss the options with your child whilst completing. If a student nominates to swim a stroke in 50m, they cannot also swim that stroke in 25m.

Another Google Form will come home to younger swimmers to gauge their competency and determine the length of their race. After swimming in the big pool, the Preps, Year 1-2s and 8 year old Year 3s move to Splash zone. 

The Google Forms will allow parents to notify if students are travelling home with family, rather than on the bus. 

All children are encouraged to swim in either a novelty or competitive race. No child is forced to swim. 

Any questions, please don’t hesitate to email me at kylie_linforth@rok.catholic.edu.au

Pax et bonum,

Kylie Linforth

(Assistant Principal Curriculum)

Affirmation Awards

Spirit Guardian Award

Nominations are now invited for the Spirit Guardian Award 2024 for an adult within our St Francis school community.

School Uniform Policy

Our school uniform forms an important part of our school's identity and culture and is a positive reminder to our students that they belong and are valued at St Francis Catholic Primary. Please see below the School Uniform policy for your information.  I draw your attention to the criteria for hair and am grateful for your support:  

Style:  Extreme hairstyles which draw attention to the student through cut or colour are not permitted.
Long hair:  Long hair (below shoulder length) must be worn tied back.

2025 Prep Enrolments

Socktober

Tuckshop

Transport Assistance Scheme

Parents and Friends News

World Educators' Day 2024

Australia will celebrate the teaching profession on World Teachers’ Day on Friday 25 October 2024.

Let’s celebrate Australia’s teachers for their skilled work in educating, inspiring and supporting our young people, especially our awesome teachers here at St Francis. Hats off to teachers this World Teachers’ Day!

The Parents & Friends group is encouraging students to wear a special / fun hat on Friday 25 October and “take their hat off” to teachers throughout the day.  Please note that hats must be sun-safe.

Students will have the opportunity to write messages of celebration on posters that will be displayed in the staffroom for our teachers to read on World Educators' Day.

The Parents and Friends Group is also providing our teaching staff with a lovely morning tea on the day as a way of saying thank you from the school parent community.

Prep Transition Days

Our school has several mornings coming up in early November where 2025 Prep students and their parents have the opportunity to visit St Francis and prepare for school life next year.

At each of these mornings, the P&F will provide coffee and morning tea for the parents, as well as chatting with the new families to the school to provide them with a friendly face and general information about our school and parent community.

These mornings are from 9am to 10:15am on Tuesday 5th, Thursday 7th, Tuesday 12th and Thursday 14th November.

Please consider coming along, and contact the P&F via email SFTS_PandFSecretary@rok.catholic.edu.au if you’re available.

Woolworths Free Fruit for Kids Program

Our local Boyne Island Woolworths generously provides fruit free of charge to our school, which is available to our kids to access at the office, on days when they're still hungry (or forgot their fruit break!).

This is an amazing service, but in order for it to happen, we need a parent to collect the fruit and deliver it to school each Wednesday morning.

Do you go past Woolworths on your way to school and could pop in to grab the box?

Let us know via email SFTS_PandFSecretary@rok.catholic.edu.au

A massive thank you to the lovely Anne Brooks who collected the fruit in Term 3.

We're looking for someone new to help out the kids in Term 4. 

Planning for 2025

Please remember, you can contact us at any time via the P&F email SFTS_PandFSecretary@rok.catholic.edu.au, the feedback & suggestions box at the school office, or by attending the general meetings. 

We appreciate and encourage your thoughts and involvement which nourish the St Francis community.

Parents & Friends Group

Community News

Tannum Sands Junior Tennis

All days, times and sessions remain the same. If anyone is interested in a private lesson child or adult, or would like more information on our Monday night Cardio sessions, please send me a message to see what available times we have.

Red Balls Mondays 3:30pm - 4:15pm
Orange Balls Mondays and Tuesdays 4:15 - 5:00pm

JDS Squad Thursdays 5:00pm - 6:00pm
Super Squad Tuesdays 6:00pm - 7:30pm

Gladstone Basketball