Week 5 Term 1

Acknowledgement of Country

We would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of this land the Birri-Gubba Juru people and pay our respects to the elders past, present and future for they hold the memories, the traditions, the culture and hopes of Indigenous Australia. 

Principal's Update

Welcome to Week 5! 

Last week four representatives came from the Townsville Catholic Office to work with staff at St Colman's School on our Strategic Improvement Plan. 

St Colman's School will focus on some key areas to ensure that our students receive the highest level of education to equip them to be effective learners and participants in society. The goals of our Strategic Improvement Plan can be divided into three key areas:

1. Mission and Purpose  2. Climate Conducive to learning  3.Emphasis on Learning 

In the area of "Mission and Purpose" we will be looking at our Mission statement and the Mercy charism. The Mercy sisters were instrumental in establishing our school. The school opened in 1927 and was operated by the Sisters of Mercy until 1967 when it became a systemic school operated by the Townsville Catholic Education Office. Through our Mercy Charism we will be co-creating our Mission statement. A Mission statement is an action-based statement that declares the purpose of a school and how it will "serve" students and parents of the community.  The updating of our Mission statement was a recommendation in our last verification. Through the year I will be asking students, parents, parish and staff for their input on this. 

Drop off in the Afternoon

When picking up your child at the front of the school:

If you stop and get out to pick up your child -  please park in the middle of the road and walk across to the grass area.

If you are not getting out of the car please sit in your car in the 2 minute parking. As people pick up their child then continue to move up the parking spots. 

Learning and Teaching

The Early Years Project

Over the next two weeks our Prep to Year 2 students and teachers will take part in The Early Years Project. The Early Years Project is a Townsville Catholic Education initiative that provides pre and post-screening/testing for our Early Years students. 

The purpose of this term’s screening is for teachers to work with children one on one to identify exactly what they already know and can do. This allows teachers to determine focus areas for explicit teaching throughout the year. In Term 3 the post-test is conducted in the exact same way. This is a very exciting time for Early Years teachers as the results from this screener clearly demonstrate the progress that students have made throughout the year. This post-test also allows for teachers to revise any areas where there may be gaps in student learning.

Minilit Sage 

Minilit Sage is a small group reading program for students struggling or have some gaps in the area of literacy. The program is for students in Year 1 and 2. The program provides explicit instruction in phonemic awareness, systematic synthetic phonics for reading and spelling, letter formation, and connected text reading. MiniLit Sage represents the latest scientific research and evidence based on effective reading instruction and intervention. MiniLit Sage is delivered 4 times per week, for 30 minutes per lesson. At St Colman's School Mrs Bernie Bocalatte will be delivering the program.  Over the holidays Bernie received training in the program. All students in Year 1 and Year 2 have been tested and sessions will commence this week.

Maclit

MacqLit is an explicit and systematic reading intervention program for small groups of older  readers Year 3 - 6. It provides a tutor with a comprehensive sequence of lessons that includes all the key components necessary for effective reading instruction: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Mrs Venera Pont will be trained in the program in the next few weeks. All Year 3 - Year 6 students are presently being tested presently. A note will be sent home if your child is eligible for Maclit by the end of the week. 

PAT Testing

In the coming week, new students in Years 2-6 who have joined St Colman's School this year will sit a Progressive Achievement Test (PAT) test.  A PAT test is a standardised test that provides data to teachers to assist them to know their learners.  Our school completes PAT Maths, PAT Reading and PAT spelling and all students are tested annually each October to measure the academic growth from year to year.  This data also helps us refine and continue to improve our practices and approaches to learning and teaching. After collecting data for new students, teachers are able to plan more effectively for the needs of students.  Each test takes between 20 - 50 minutes.

Home Reading at St Colman’s 

All students from Prep to Year 4 will receive a Reading Diary and a Reading Bag. This diary is required to be taken home on Monday and returned on Friday.  The Reading Bag will go out next Monday 

We ask your child to read each night and then parents are to record: 

• The name of the book
• The date 
• Any comments e.g. great reading, having problems, a book we enjoyed, can we read this again, read well, attempted to sound out
• Tally the number of days read. 

On Friday the teacher will collect the diary and make a comment in it. 

Students will receive awards when they have read :

25 Nights    50 Nights     75 Nights 

100 nights - each student will receive a book  with a special certificate acknowledging that they have read for 100 nights. 

The diary, with the child’s homework, will then go out again on Monday. 

We encourage books to be changed every day unless your child is reading a long or chapter book.  Your child will be taking readers from a box that has books at your child’s reading ability and also below and above. This means that at times you may read to your child or they may read to you. We want the whole reading process to be  an enjoyable and rewarding time.  Every reading experience is valuable. 

The diary is full of lots of reading hints. Please take the time to read them.

Religious Education News

Next week is the start of Lent. Tuesday is Pancake or Shrove Tuesday. 

What does Pancake or Shrove Tuesday mean ?

Shrove is the past tense of the English verb “Shrive” which means to obtain absolution for one’s sins by way of confession and by doing penance. Dating back to 1000 AD, over the years Shrove Tuesday not only became a day for Confession but a time for Catholics to feast on eggs, sugar and dairy which are traditionally restricted during the Lenten fast.

Not only was Shrove Tuesday a last chance to gorge on such foods but it was also a way to use them up before the fast began.

What is Ash Wednesday ?

Ash Wednesday opens Lent, a season of fasting and prayer. Ash Wednesday takes place 46 days before Easter Sunday. Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The practice includes the wearing of ashes on the head. The ashes symbolise the dust from which God made us. As the priest applies the ashes to a person's forehead, he says: "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

Alternatively, the priest may speak the words, "Repent and believe in the Gospel."

Next Wednesday due to Covid restrictions we will be unable to attend mass. We have arranged that Father Manjo will bless some ashes. Each class will then have a simple liturgy in their classroom and the teacher will place the ashes on every child’s forehead. 

Opening School and Leadership Mass

At the moment (unless restrictions change) our Opening Mass and Year 6 Leadership  Mass will be held on Wednesday 16th March at 9.30am at the Home Hill Church. Parents or a family member of the Year 6 students are invited to mass to pin the leadership badge on their child.

I thank evryone for a great start to the year and look forward to lots of learning and community times together. 

Karen Keys (Principal/APRE/Teaching and Learning Co-ordinator) 

Tuckshop news

Birthdays

Student of the Week

Sport Update

Burdekin U10 -12 Schools’ Girls/ Boys Touch Team

Trial Dates: Tuesday 22nd February and Friday 25th February

Burdekin Schools Girls’/ Boys’ Basketball Team

Trial Date: Wednesday 23 February and Wednesday 2 March

Water Awareness Swimming Program 

The Water Awareness Program will continue at Home Hill Public Swimming Pool on the following three next weeks in Term 1 2022:

Thursday 24th February 2022

Thursday 3rd March 2022

Thursday 10th March 2022

Year 5/6 & Year 3/4 students come dressed in thier swimmers. All other grades please bring your swimmers in a labelled bag. Bring thongs or sandals in your bag. 

Upcoming events

Community News

HELP FOR PARENTS TO SUPPORT KIDS’ BACK-TO-SCHOOL EMOTIONS IN 2022

Ongoing upheaval from the pandemic continues to impact families, and going back to school adds another layer of stress during a time where there’s already a lot of change. Children and young people may have mixed emotions but being able to cope with uncertainty is a key life skill, and with the right support and strategies, parents can help their children develop ways to tackle change more confidently, manage their emotions, and build resilience in the long term.

Practical Triple P – Positive Parenting Program tips and ideas are FREE, thanks to Queensland Government funding! Do Fear-Less Triple P Online, Triple P Online, or Teen Triple P Online.  For more on free Triple P programs, go to: www.triplep-parenting.net. 

With thanks,

The Triple P – Positive Parenting Program team