Newsletter-Term 3-Week 2-Friday 28th July 2023

Principal's News...

Dear Parents,

Following some beautiful weather over the holidays, we started back last week in very high spirits. As always, it’s wonderful to see the children energised and eager to engage. As we work through the second half of the year, it’s important to set clear and achievable goals for our children. Along with the Semester One Report Card, continual class teacher feedback provides us with quality scope to develop and achieve these goals. As a parent, it can be easy at times to prioritise many other things outside our children’s education, feeling confident that the school’s efforts to educate our children should be sufficient. This is true to a certain extent as we all work towards the same overall objective to support our children towards success, but we know that they will find even greater success, when they are aware that we, as parents, show an active interest in guiding them towards their personal goals. If you haven’t already done so, I encourage you to take the time to go over your children’s report cards and discuss with them areas in which they feel they could improve. Set goals with them and continue to check in on their progress regularly.

It was lovely to see a number of our children engaging in the First Eucharist Sacramental Program on Tuesday evening. As these boys and girls prepare to receive the Blessed Sacrament, I ask that you keep them in your prayers. I congratulate these children and their parents for having the courage to strengthen their faith in a world that is becoming more and more complex, and a culture that often sends messages that challenge our Christian values.

I was away last Friday, but know that the community had a lovely celebration for our NAIDOC Day. A big thank you to our awesome IEW, Ms Jada Williams for her efforts in preparing for and facilitating events on the day.

NAIDOC Gallery

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Yesterday our Zone Athletics Team competed against the other Catholic schools in our region. I congratulate all children who participated and especially those who made it through to the Diocesan competition. It is always a pleasure to hear how proudly our children represented our school community, in both effort and sportsmanship. Well done team! (See Mr Wilde’s report in the next edition of the school newsletter in Week 4  for full details). 

It is wonderful that we have filled our quota for the Japanese Cultural Evening, but also understandably disappointing for those who missed out this time. Unfortunately, we can only cater for a limited number of participants at a time. If you were hoping to attend but missed out, I do encourage you return your form to the office to register your interest so we can determine if we have enough participants to host a second event. There is a strong possibility we could hold another evening in November. I look forward to seeing all those who are registered to attend on Wednesday night.

Peace in Christ
Dan Gubby

School Calendar...

Term 3

Assistant Principal Mission...

The Seventeenth Sunday of Ordinary Time

This coming weekend's reading is from Matthew 13:44 - 52 - Jesus teaches about the Kingdom of Heaven. Over the past three weeks, we have heard Jesus teaching about the Kingdom of Heaven. As Jesus’ disciples, we place everything we value in the service of the pursuit of the Kingdom of God. 

As you gather as a family this weekend, talk about what your family values are. Consider the things that are of most importance to you as a family. Just as Jesus teaches us, it is worth giving up even valuable things in order to possess the Kingdom of Heaven. 

Let us pray: Thank you, Jesus, for teaching us what is most important. Please help us to know and remember what is truly important in life and to live in service of God’s Kingdom. Amen.

Source: https://www.loyolapress.com 

St Vincent De Paul Winter Appeal

Thank you to our families for your support of the St Vincent DePaul Winter Appeal. The SRC and Mini Vinnies have been working together in preparing events for our school community. 

The theme of this year's appeal is older women experiencing homelessness. 

Today we held Pyjama Day. We are still taking donations of warm blankets and warm clothes. These can be dropped into the office or the classrooms ready for collection.

We thank our school community for your support of this great organisation. 

Whole School Mass

Our whole school Mass for this term will be Thursday, 14th September. This Mass will begin at 2:15pm in the Church. We welcome our families to join us for this whole school Mass. 

Whole School Retreat

We are in the final stages of preparing a whole school retreat for our students. The theme of our retreat is Crescente Simul meaning Growing together. 

This retreat is based on our five school values - Prayer, Education, Justice, Hospitality and Compassion. Students will participate in activities based on our values throughout the day with the assistance of the CSYMA class from Xavier Catholic College. 

Our retreat will take place on Thursday, 31st August. We are looking forward to this wonderful opportunity for our students. More information to follow in the coming weeks. 

Light of Jesus Awards

Congratulations to the students who were awarded a Light of Jesus ticket last term. 

• Riley Hall - Kinder
• Anders Fletcher - Year 2
• Jack Geddes - Year 2
• Benji Simpson - Year 2
• Jack Keough  Year 6

Congratulations to the following students on receiving 10 light of Jesus Tickets. They now receive a certificate and blue or yellow arm band. 

• Indigo Ansell - Kinder - green arm band (25 tickets)
• Arabella Batson - Kinder
• Egodi Ezeanata - Kinder - green arm band (25 tickets) 
• Maebh Flynn - Kinder
• Riley Hall - Kinder
• Maya Hordern - Kinder
• Helen Joby - Kinder
• Luan Lang - Kinder
• Ruby Simpson - Kinder
• Aria Smith - Kinder
• Connor Webb - Kinder
• Locklan Creighton - Year 1
• Maxon Andrews - Year 2
• Jack Judge - Year 2
• Emily Nguyen - Year 2
• Elliot Rohn - Year 2
  

Lost Property

At present, there is a lot of lost property!! Jumpers, hats, glasses cases, lunchboxes…the list goes on. Unfortunately, not a lot of the items have names on them. Could you please ensure names are on all items, especially hats and jumpers and encourage your children to check out lost property to collect any items they may own. 

Kasey Miles

Assistant Principal Mission

Parish News...

St Francis Xavier Catholic Parish of Ballina

• St Francis Xavier Church-47 Cherry Street, Ballina
• Holy Family Church-94 Ballina Street, Lennox Head 

Parish Mass Times

Learning & Teaching News...

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

Staff engaged in two Professional Learning Days at St Francis Xavier on the last day of Term 2 and the first day of Term 3. These days aligned with our School Annual Improvement Plan (SAIP) teaching and learning goals around inquiry learning. On the last day of Term 2, we focussed on Project Based Learning (PBL). A big thanks to the team who led the day, Mr Hosie, Mrs Niland and Ms Miles, who have all trained with Michael McDowell. Our learning intention was: How can I introduce aspects of Project-Based Learning into my teaching so that my students are engaged in rigorous learning? The staff engaged in workshops around learning protocols, driving questions, entry events and co-constructing driving questions and success criteria. The staff then planned their next steps in implementing these within their class programs.

On the first day of this Term staff engaged in Professional Learning led by the STEM Academy team. The STEM team, consisting of our Stage 2 teachers, Mrs Bateman, Miss Kearney, Mrs Ons and Mrs Niland, led the learning with the staff. The learning intention was to: Develop an understanding of the evidence base underpinning inquiry learning and STEM education and why it’s important. The staff engaged in Level 1, 2 and 3 tasks. Staff then planned how to implement these tasks within their own units. A big thanks to the team for leading the learning and providing lots of fun engaging STEM tasks.

My New Gallery

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9th Annual Primary School Spelling Bee 2023

Parents are warmly welcome to attend our Annual Primary School Spelling Bee on Thursday, 24th August from 9.15 - 11 am (Week 6 of Term 2) in the school hall.

• Students in K-2 will compete from 9:15-10am
• Students in Years 3-6 will compete from 10-11

In the coming weeks' students’ can choose to enter the spelling bee heats in their grade level. The top five spellers from each grade will then compete in the Primary Spelling Bee Finals. I encourage all students to participate and have a go in the grade heats. Take this chance to make learning fun and exciting!

Book Week 2023

St Francis Xavier Book Week will be held from Monday, 21st August to Friday, 25th August. The theme for this year’s Book Week is read, grow and inspire. There are many exciting events planned for this week including Spelling Bee Finals, Book Character Parade, Open Classrooms and the Writers’ Festival.

Book Week Timetable

100 Days of Kindergarten

Kindergarten has been counting the days that they have been at school and on Thursday the 3rd of August (Week 3) we will be celebrating 100 days of school!

To help celebrate this milestone, we invite students to dress up on this day as either a 100-year-old person or in an outfit that is connected to the number 100. We have attached some photos for inspiration.

On this day, we will engage in some fun learning experiences and games that are connected to the number 100.

We also would like to invite families to join us for afternoon tea on the deck from 2:30 to  3:00 pm.

Art News...

Let’s Hang It! Art Competition

Today voting opens for the People’s Choice Award for the Let’s Hang It Art competition run by the New England Regional Art Museum. 

‘The Sleeping Tiger’ by Emmie Nesbitt in Year 6 was selected as a finalist for the Primary section along with 23 other students from around the state.

The exhibition in Armidale is open for viewing until Sunday the 13th of August.

We encourage all members of our school community to get behind Emmie and vote for her in the Peoples Choice category at the link below. 

https://www.neram.com.au/unesap-online-voting-peoples-choice-award/

The Sleeping Tiger is artwork number 19.

Good Luck Emmie!

Hallie Watt-CAPA Teacher

Sports News...

NSW PSSA Cross Country

On Friday, 21st July, Alexandra Dogan and Luke Dogan travelled to Eastern Creek for the annual NSW PSSA Cross Country. The top six placegetters from the NSWCPS Cross Country last Term progressed to  these Championships.

Alex and Luke ran well on the day against a talented field of runners from across the state. Luke came 7th out of 78 competitors in his 2km race and he is first reserve for a spot on the NSW team for National Cross Country Championships. Luke's 10 year boys Polding team won Gold as they had 4 boys placed in the the Top 20. Alexandra came 22nd out of 74 girls. A wonderful achievement for both students. Congratulations Alexandra and Luke!

Sporting Schools Grant

Last Term St Francis Xavier had a successful grant application for a Sporting Schools Grant.

Football Australia Development Officer German Mtonh from the Northern Rivers Football Academy will be teaching the K-2 students skills in Football. German plays in the local Far North Coast Premier Football competition and, in his teenage years, represented Tanzania in the National Team.

The Football Program being delivered is developed by Football Australia. The program will run for 5 weeks and the 40 minute sessions will build skills through games and simple drills delivered in an engaging and inclusive environment. Every student will get plenty of time on the ball and the prime aim of each session is for children to build fundamental motor skills.

On Thursday, 20th July and Tuesday, 25th July Julian Vandendriest and Jason Clark from AFL QLD ran some taster sessions at school during PE.

QLD AFL will be offering an after school Auskick Program for students from Kinder to Year 4 on the St Francis Xavier Ballina school grounds.

The Program will start in Week 5 on Monday, 14th August and run for six weeks. Sessions run for an hour from 3:15pm - 4:15pm. The cost is $80.00 and includes a Gold Coast Suns backpack, AFL ball and much more.

Either Click on the link to register or go online to play.afl/auskick to the registration page.

https://www.playhq.com/afl/register/093371

Richmond Zone Athletics Carnival

The Richmond Zone Athletics Carnival was held yesterday at St John's College Woodlawn. The Carnival report and results will be shared in the next edition of the school newsletter in Week 4.

Paddy Wilde-Sports Coordinator

Canteen News...

We Need Volunteers for our School Canteen

Tammy & Kaylene are looking for volunteers for the canteen. If you are able to spare a couple of hours, between 9am and 11:30am, once a month please contact the school office on 66863370 or contact Tammy or Kaylene in the canteen and let them know what day suits you.  

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Canteen Roster-Term 3

Week 3

Monday, 31st July - Friday, 4th August

Canteen Roster-Term 3

Week 4

Monday, 7th August -Friday, 11th August

Please click on the link to view the QKR App instructions

Wednesday Specials-Term 3

Sushi Specials Term 3

$3.90 each Chicken, Tuna, Avocado or Vegetarian-Sauce 20c each.

Student Awards...

Congratulations to all of our students who received an award this week.

                                         Welcome Awards

We welcome the following students and their families to our school community.

Happy Birthday...

Wishing all our students a wonderful birthday!!

Friday, 28th July  to Thursday, 10th August

Parent Information...

School Fees

Please note that Term 3 Fees for 2023 have been applied to your accounts and can be viewed via the Compass App.  Please note that Statements are sent each month via email from our Head Office.

If you have a current payment arrangement with the school office for the 2023 school year, please continue with your payments for that payment arrangement. 

Compass Events-School Excursions/Events

The Compass Event Module is where you receive all the information about an excursion or an event. It will also be where you are required to give consent and make payment. 

The Event Module has replaced the hard copy note that would normally be sent home.  If you receive an event notification or email, this means your child/ren are required to participate in the event. Please do not disregard the notification or email. If you have any questions about an event, please contact the class teacher or the school office.

Parents are required to action the Excursion Event in Compass prior to the due date that is stated in the event, unfortunately if you miss the due date your child/ren may miss out on attending. Event notifications will come via email and Compass notification on your Compass App. 

Student Messages

If you need to contact the school to give your child/children a message regarding a change to arrangements for after school transport, please ensure you phone the school office prior to 1:45pm to ensure the message can be delivered in time. Unless it is an absolute emergency, we are unable to ensure messages can be delivered at such short notice and PLEASE NO EMAILS to notify your child/children of any changes, as we cannot guarantee that the message will be delivered in time to your child.

All after school care arrangements should be relayed to your child/children prior to arriving at school and in the case of infant’s children, the teacher should also be notified of any change to arrangements, particularly in relation to bus travel, by a written note/email.

As you can appreciate the school is a very busy place at home time, so your assistance and consideration in this regard would be greatly appreciated.

Parent Sign In

All parents are reminded that if they are entering the school grounds, for what ever the reason, you MUST sign into the school via the Ipad in the front office or via the QR codes at our gates. There are no exceptions. 

Student Absences

Parents are reminded that if your child/ren are absent from school you must follow the following steps:

• Reply to the text message that is sent via Compass before 3pm, or
• Email the school office on balp@lism.catholic.edu.au

All absences must be received in writing. 

Student Partial Absences

Parents are reminded not to enter a partial attendance note in Compass for their child/ren. To be compliant with the attendance SOP, we need to ensure that child safety is maintained as far as possible. Parents are to come to the school office to drop/collect the student. This gives the parent the opportunity to provide the reason for the early departure/late arrival at that time. 

Kinder 2024 Information...

Please add these dates to your calendar for the transition program: 

• Wednesday, 6^th September 2023 -8.50am-10.50am-Transition Day 1 – Parent Meeting
• Wednesday, 13^th September 2023-8.50am-10.50am-Transition Day 2
• Wednesday, 18^th October 2023-8.50am-10.50am-Transition Day 3
• Wednesday, 25^th October 2023-8.50am-10.50am-Transition Day 4
• Wednesday, 1^st November 2023-8.50am-10.50am-Transition Day 5
• Wednesday, 8^th November 2023-8.50am-10.50am-Transition Day 6

Further details regarding transition including what children will be required to bring will be sent out in the coming weeks. 

Community News...