Issue 17 - 9 November 2016

Newsletter Articles

VISION STATEMENT

St Rita’s School will be a compassionate and supportive community built on the Gospel of Jesus Christ, specifically incorporating the Mercy Values which are lived out. We will be a values-based community reaching out to and welcoming the wider community. Our strong school spirit will shine. St Rita’s will be a school in which every member is respectful of self and others

PRINCIPAL’S PEN

Dear Parents and Carers,

Last week I attended the two-day Primary and Secondary Principals’ Conference for Cairns Catholic Education. The full agenda included discussions on strategic planning for 2017, the implementation of the of Australian Curriculum, school budgets and staffing, and the review of current CES policy documents. On Thursday evening several principals were acknowledged for working in the diocese for long periods as teachers and leaders. I was proud to receive an award for Twenty Years of Service to Cairns Catholic Education.

Staff and students were happy to be part of the opening and blessing of the St Rita’s Church renovations last Saturday evening. Bishop James Foley and Father Kerry Crowley expressed their appreciation to the St Rita’s Feast Day Committee for providing the funds needed for the work to modernize our church.

The renovations have made the church look very refreshed and, the Bishop noted, make the sacristy look so much bigger. I hope you get an opportunity to visit St Rita’s Church before the end of the term to admire the renovations made to our parish church.

On Thursday, St Rita’s will acknowledge Remembrance Day with a whole school liturgy organised by Mrs Masina and the Year 5/6 class. Parents and friends are most welcome to attend this special event which will take place in the church.

At 11:00am on 11th November 1918, after four years of continuous warfare, the German army called for an armistice and accepted the Allied Forces terms of unconditional surrender. “This year 11 November marks the 98th anniversary of the Armistice which ended the First World War (1914–18). Each year on this day Australians observe one minute’s silence at 11 am, in memory of those who died or suffered in all wars and armed conflicts”.

I have recently worked with the CES Curriculum Education Officer to thoroughly review and analyse our Year 3 and Year 5 NAPLAN results for 2016. It was pleasing to learn that our Year 3 students, who sat the tests for the first time, achieved at a high level in all components of NAPLAN; Reading, Spelling, Language Conventions, Writing and Numeracy. Comparing our achievement to that of other sectors, St Rita’s results were higher than those of State, National, Diocesan and Queensland Catholic schools. Well done St Rita’s!

In the busyness of this term what comes to mind for me, a number of times, is how important the ‘little things’ are in the everyday life of a school. The help we receive in completing the many small tasks that need to be done to keep a school running: working in the tuckshop, baking for the Trivia Night, having an extra turn mowing the lawn, liking us on our facebook page or sending a ‘Thank You’ email. It is these ‘little things’ that let us know that we are appreciated and supported in our work. Thank you!

All students and their families are invited to celebrate the completion of primary education for St Rita’s Year 6 students on Tuesday 22nd November. Following a Mass beginning at 5:30pm in St Rita’s Church, a light supper and presentation will complete the occasion at the school. You are encouraged to be part of this special event on our school calendar. For catering purposes, we ask that you RSVP to the Office by either phone or email. See you there!

I hope to see you around the school this week. We have so much for you to be part of and to enjoy!

Regards and blessings,
Judy Billiau

CAIRNS CATHOLIC EDUCATION POLICY

Changes to Privacy Act: Changes to our Privacy Policy and Collection Notice

Due to recent changes to Privacy legislation, the Diocesan Board of Governance Education has updated the privacy policy for all schools in the Cairns Diocese. The updated policy provides parents with guidance about the approved collection and use of student information.

The updated policy with marked changes and the revised Privacy Policy Statement can be found here:

The changes take effect from 1 January 2017.

If you would like more information about the changes please contact Andrew McKenzie, Manager Governance and Engagement, Cairns Catholic Education Services, telephone 40509783 or email amckenzie@cns.catholic.edu.au

APRE THOUGHTS…..

Last week saw two very important Feast Days in the Catholic Church Calendar. The Feast of All Saints, on November 1st and the Feast of All Souls on November 2nd. Our school held a service to acknowledge both All Saints and All Souls Day with a Remembrance Ceremony to call to mind all of the wonderful people who have touched our lives, who are no longer living on Earth, and are in our hearts. For more reading on the history and tradition of these two feast days, please see the link below. This article by Fr. William Saunders explains these feast days in a very easy to read manner and is very informative.

Last week we also had our bi annual visit from Natural Fertility Services who presented the Wonders of Living program. All children seemed to enjoy the presenters. If you haven’t had the opportunity, you may like to talk with your child about the presentations.

During the last two weeks we also held a very successful Crazy Sock Day and Paper Plane competition. The coin race this year was won by Dalrymple, in both the length of the line and amount of money raised. In total, our small school raised $122! Great effort everyone! These funds combined with the rest of the Diocese, will make a real difference to the lives of many children in Cambodia.

We are fast approaching the Season of Advent. This interesting, short video explains Advent very simply and is wonderful to watch with your children. It is very important amongst the hype and sometimes stress, of the Christmas period, that we truly remember the reason we have this wonderful holiday. The birth of our Lord Jesus is truly the greatest gift we could receive. To spend time reflecting on this with our family and friends makes it even more special. The presents, tinsel, food etc., are just icing on our already, amazing cake!

Finally, as we approach Christmas we also keep in mind those who are lonely or without at this special time of year. This year we will once again be collecting goods on behalf of St. Vincent de Paul Society that will be used to create hampers to lessen the load on those less fortunate than ourselves this Christmas. Hamper donations will be collected at the office from Monday 7th November. Please bring in non-perishable food goods any time up until November 25th.

Bec Burns
Assistant Principal Religious Education

SEL (SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING)

Cairns Catholic Education places a great emphasis on the Social and Emotional Learning and wellbeing of children. In the reports you receive for your child, you will notice there is a section that is directly linked to SEL, which is broken down into various work habits. I would strongly encourage you and your child to look closely at this section of the report and discuss what work habits are areas of strength and set goals for those areas where some more focus and attention may be required. The data has shown over time the better the work habits and life skills of a child, the more likely they are to have academic growth.

Play is the Way continues to be used this term and the children are certainly showing more skills in strategic thinking, team work and communication. The games are changing every couple of days and some involve playing as a whole school and other involve the work of teams. It is also very beneficial for our teachers to watch individuals and groups working so we can see which areas we have strengths and areas where we can focus our attention to assist our children grow in a holistic manner.

Have a wonderful fortnight,

Bec Burns
SEL Coordinator

CASTING THE NET

True Importance

“For the most important person in the world – you!” Whenever I see an ad with a line like that in it, I feel like taking a gun to the TV or ripping out the page. What a terrible attitude to expose children to. Anyone living by that philosophy is condemning themselves to an unhappy, selfish life.

We are important but as children of God. Made in God’s image, we are made to love and love is expressed as care. Imagine a community where everyone aimed at doing what was best for each other. Now you have some idea of the dance of love that goes on within God between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Many of you would have experienced a taste of that passion when your new born baby was first placed in your arms. The surge of care and responsibility towards this infant is a taste of true love.

The challenge as parents is to continue that love and care, day in and day out when you often don’t feel like it. But there is a greater challenge: to teach your children to love and care in the simple daily tasks of family, school and community life. Rather than looking after ‘number one’ they need to learn to be like God and look after each other. Fostering habits of helpfulness will lay the foundation for true happiness. Small acts of daily service help them to grow into large-hearted people – true sons and daughters of God.

Loving God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you call us to join in your dance of love. Give us the wisdom to show our children how to truly love you and to care for each other. We ask this in Jesus’ name confident that you will hear us.

Sr Kym Harris osb

COUNSELLOR’S CORNER

Our Children

Dear Parents,

A thought for today!

On Children
by Kahlil Gibran

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

Yours in counselling,
Carmel Parisi

PARENT CHATTER

What is ParentWorks?

ParentWorks is a free online program for Australian parents and caregivers of children 2 to 16. It provides evidence-based parenting strategies to improve parenting skills, confidence and child behaviour. This means that the strategies in the program have been tested and found to work.

ParentWorks has been developed by a team of psychologists and researchers at the University of Sydney.

We know from research that parenting programs are more effective when all parents are involved. We also know that fathers are less likely to participate in parenting programs than mothers, for a whole range of reasons.

One of these reasons is that most parenting programs have not been developed with dads in mind!

Parents and caregivers may find this program helpful for managing challenging child behaviours such as tantrums, aggression, noncompliance, inattentive or hyperactive behaviour, sibling conflict, getting ready for school and/or bed, and behaviour outside the home, such as problems in the supermarket.

Practising Mindfulness in Family Life

Spring is a time of new life and can also be an ideal opportunity to work on awareness with your children. As a weekend gardener, I am noticing my tulips and daffodils emerging from the soil and the very tips of leaf buds on the trees. I am often amazed by the details that my son notices around him as we go through our day. But I shouldn’t be. Children are hard-wired to notice details. Because their brains are eagerly taking in and making sense of information in order to learn about their environment, they are able to receive many more details than we adults do. Adults have processed so much over the years about their environment that we necessarily make assumptions and skip over details in order to deal with the sheer volume of information that comes at us daily. However, experiencing greater awareness with your children can enhance your own focus and presence in the moment and it can give your children valuable practice in doing the same. For children, practice in awareness can contribute to their focused attention on any task including school work and allow them the chance to exercise self-control.

Excerpt: Federation of Parents & Friends Associations of Catholic Schools in Queensland.

DATE CLAIMERS

STUDENTS OF THE WEEK

St Rita’s School congratulates those students who were awarded ‘Student of the Week’ at Assembly on Monday 7th November 2016.

CUPCAKES FOR CEREBRAL PALSY

Thank you to all the students, staff and parents who supported me in the recent Cupcake Day. Moneys raised goes towards ‘September’ which supports children and adults living with Cerebral Palsy. I am so happy to say on the day $167 was raised. I really appreciate the support that was given by everyone. A huge thanks to you all.

Donna Lauridsen

P & F NEWS

At a recent Assembly, the P&F presented Mrs Julie Cross with a gift for her wonderful contribution to the school for 23 years. Julie worked as a school officer and administration officer in her time at St Rita’s, as well as being an active parent and committee member. We are lucky to have Julie working with us on a casual basis when needed. Congratulations Julie!

P & F Committee

SCHOOL DISCO

THOUGHT OF THE WEEK

COMMUNITY NEWS