Issue 17 - 5 November 2019

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,

St Rita’s participation in the annual ‘Day for Daniel’ event on Friday 25th October saw the whole school walk through town at the end of the school day. Constable Philip Rohder was invited to visit the school, and after touring the classrooms and talking to the students, he accompanied us on our ‘Walk for Daniel’. Learning for the day was highlighted by lessons from the Daniel Morecombe curriculum on personal safety, with the children learning to ‘recognise, react and report’ unsafe situations and experiences. We’re looking forward to Constable Philip visiting us more regularly in the future.

Last week, all students from Years 1 – 6 participated in PAT Testing, an educational resource developed by ACER (Australian Council of Educational Research). PAT testing in Reading and Maths is undertaken as an integral part of our whole school assessment schedule. From the analysis of test results by teachers, valuable information will inform future planning, as specific learning needs are determined for the individual student.

“The ACER Progressive Achievement Tests are an Australian, nationally normed series of tests designed to provide objective, norm-referenced information to teachers about their students’ skills and understandings in a range of key areas. At the centre of each PAT test is a described proficiency scale, providing both quantitative and qualitative data on student performance, making the PAT tests ideal for understanding students’ current strengths and weaknesses, informing teaching and learning, and monitoring progress over time”.

Last Thursday and Friday, I attended the two-day Primary and Secondary Principals’ Conference for Cairns Catholic Education at Seville Mercy Conference Centre. The agenda included discussions on strategic planning for 2020, the CES School Effectiveness Framework and Learning Framework, School Annual Improvement Plans and Student Wellbeing. This was our last professional gathering as a group of CES principals this year, with my colleagues travelling from as far north as Thursday Island, west to the Tablelands and from Tully in the south.

During the conference, the CES System Improvement Priorities for next year were presented by the Directors of these groups: Sharon O’Keeffe, Director of Identity & Outreach, presented the system goal and strategies for the implementation of Catholic Identity; Janine Conolly shared the goals and strategies planned for the Data Literacy priority; and the Director of Learning & Teaching, Ursula Elms, provided insight into the direction and support her team will be providing to diocesan schools for the improvement of Writing.

The three System Improvement Priorities give direction to the overarching goal of all schools in the diocese. Effective Schools in our Diocese are required to:

• implement the Australian Curriculum Version 8. The Australian Curriculum consists of eight learning areas, seven general capabilities and three cross-curriculum priorities. When implementing the Australian Curriculum:
  - consider government priorities
  - where possible, offer a Languages program from Prep to Year 12 and teach Languages from Years 5 to 8
  - where appropriate, within the learning areas, embed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures using the Australian Curriculum cross-curriculum priority
  - develop and maintain a Systematic Curriculum Delivery document that is regularly reviewed
  - teachers plan, teach, assess and report on the content descriptions and achievement standards for all Learning Areas
  - use Standard Australian English as the basis for teaching, including the teaching of spelling
  - teach Queensland Modern Cursive Script
• where appropriate a Catholic perspective is to be considered in the delivery of curriculum content.
• implement the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum annually (P to 10) - delivered through HPE.

We will be extra busy this week assisting the P & F group organise this Friday evening’s ‘Spooky’-themed disco. If you missed the last disco, I encourage you to come along and join in the fun. It is a night out for everyone in the family, with the children having a wonderful opportunity to socialise outside of school hours and for parents to have a night off cooking. And at the same time, you will be supporting the P & F and your school. As we will be preparing the BBQ this week, could you please RSVP to the Office for catering purposes if you are having dinner at the disco.

In the busyness of the first weeks of this term, beginning with the mammoth effort needed for the Harvest Festival, I have often been reminded of the ‘little things’ 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, sending along morning tea for the staff on World Teachers’ Day, having an extra turn mowing the lawn, or ‘liking’ us and commenting on our facebook page. It is these ‘little things’ that let us know that we are appreciated and supported in our work. Thank you!

In the local media, you may have read recent reports of planned industrial action by QIEU (Queensland Independent Education Union) in some of the Catholic schools and colleges in our diocese. St Rita’s School in Babinda is not one of the schools affected by this action and there will be no impact on staff or students in the coming weeks.

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

Regards and blessings,
Judy Billiau

APRE THOUGHTS

Sockball Socked it to Poverty!

Last Thursday afternoon, St Rita’s ‘Socked it to Poverty’ through a game of Sockball. This was essentially a game of soccer, without the aid of a store-bought soccer ball. In fact, our soccer balls – or ‘sockballs’ as we now know them – were handmade by the children from Years 2 to 6! The bulk was formed by some old shirts, shorts and socks that were in need of handing-on, and lightness and bounce was added to the sockballs using leftover pieces of bubble-wrap and scrunched foam-roll. This was all moulded and neatly held neatly together with a couple of reused plastic bags, and – voila! – we had our sockballs for the kick-around.

It was all a bit of fun crafting our own sockballs, but the importance of this cannot be understated. The purpose of this activity was for our children to act in solidarity with poor children in a developing nation, and experience a game of soccer Ghana style! As you are aware, many children from this country lack adequate shelter, food, education, healthcare and life-fulfilling opportunities. This is doubly compounded for those who are born with a disability. Hence, our appeal will contribute to the efforts of missionaries like Sister Stan Therese Mumuni to provide compassionate care and a safe haven for the most vulnerable.

If you have not yet had a moment to access St Rita’s unique page for Socktober, it can be found at the link below:

Here, you are welcome to view information concerning Catholic Mission’s efforts to make a difference to the lives of those who are less fortunate, through Socktober. Thank you to all families who supported our Sockball event – it was a happy occasion to witness the inventiveness of sock-wearing amongst our students and - since we were dubious of their robustness - even more of a thrill to have our sockballs survive our friendly game.

Remembrance Day Liturgy

On 11th November 1918, at 11am, the guns of the Western Front fell silent, after more than four years of continuous warfare. Though this happened a little more than a century ago, we can never forget the brave Australians who fought and died for our country in the ‘Great War’. Since this time, there have been other wars and armed conflicts. On Remembrance Day, we will remember the men and women who have fought to defend our freedom. While the school leaders will participate in the ceremony organised by the Babinda R.S.L. commemoration service at 11am, remaining staff and students will hold a prayer celebration at school, commencing at 11:15am. Parents and family members are warmly invited to attend this occasion.

God of love and liberty,
we bring our thanks this day
for the peace and security we enjoy,
which was won for us through the courage and devotion
of those who gave their lives in time of war.
We pray that their labour and sacrifice may not be in vain,
but that their spirit may live on in us and in generations to come.
That the liberty, truth and justice which they sought to preserve
may be seen and known in all the nations upon earth.
This we pray in the name of the one
who gave his life for the sake of the world,
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

World Kindness Day

Did you know that on 13th November each year, it is World Kindness Day? It was decreed in 1998 at the ‘World Kindness Movement’ Conference in Tokyo. Its purpose is idyllic:

“…to look beyond ourselves, beyond the boundaries of our country, beyond our culture, our race, our religion; and realise we are citizens of the world. As world citizens we have a commonality, and must realise that if progress is to be made in human relations and endeavours, if we are to achieve the goal of peaceful coexistence, we must focus on what we have in common. When we find likenesses we begin to experience empathy, and in such a state we can fully relate to that person or those people.” As implied, World Kindness Day is about being kind to the world! Imagine the joy it could spread! Wishing you such joys - hopefully both as the benefactors and recipients of small acts of kindness - not just on World Kindness Day, but most days!

Source: http://www.kindness.com.au/world-kindness-day.html

Blessings,
Maureen Gaul
Assistant Principal (Religious Education)

CASTING THE NET

World Teachers’ Day

Recently I gave a calligraphy workshop to four adults. They were interested, readily following instructions and suggestions. They were polite and friendly to me and to each other and their enthusiasm was contagious…but I went home exhausted. Oh yes, I was exhilarated by all that was achieved but I was wiped out as well. I can hear the teachers reading this laughing... ‘Only four, all adults, all enthusiastic …why if she had my class…’ Exactly.

What was the crux of ‘my problem’? It was that all day I was constantly trying to see the challenges from the point of view of each of these adults, seeing how they held the pen, drew the lines, choose their colours, saw how well they matched and a myriad of other details and then trying to work out how to convey my knowledge to them in such a way that they could learn. Being a good teacher is a constant exercise in humility. You have to take all you know and put it at the service of the pupil.

Our teachers do that every day in classrooms not filled with compliant adults. Imagine your child in a bratty mood. Our teachers may have a few of them on any given day. Imagine your child at his or her most enthusiastic. Our teachers may have a few of them on any given day. Imagine the many moods your child goes through in a day and thank the teachers that have whole classrooms of such children…and come to work enthusiastic, prepared and committed to opening the wider world of knowledge to your child.

Loving God, thank you for the teachers that care for my child/ren. Show me how to express my thanks and support our teachers in the challenging and wonderful work they do. I ask this in Jesus’ name confident that you will hear me.

Sr Kym Harris osb

AROUND THE CLASSROOMS

Grandparents’ Day Celebration

We have two Nanas. Nana Casey and Nana Christine. We love our Nanas very much. They both came to St Rita’s this week to celebrate Grandparents’ Day. First, we had a liturgy in our Prep/Year 1 classroom. Izaac, my little brother had the special job of placing a blue shawl on the Prayer Table. Joseph, my cousin, carried up a bunch of colourful balloons. And I read out some special prayers.

All the grandparents had afternoon tea. My Nana Casey shared some of the fruit cake with Izaac. “It was so yummy!” said Izaac. My little brother, Samuel had some too. I liked playing board games with our cousins Joseph, Elijah, Teelah, Hayley, Pearle and our two Nanas.

We gave both our Nanas lots of hugs for Grandparents’ Day!

By Timothy Logan (Year 1) & Izaac Shaw (Prep)

LIBRARY LINKS

Again, a HUGE thank you to our wonderful families for the support you have given to our annual Book Fair. Your overwhelming generosity has meant that because we have exceeded our target, we now have $200 to spend on books of our choice to further enrich our library.

Additionally, Scholastic have gifted us with books to the value of $110 in further commissions earned during the Book Fair. Exciting times indeed! Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Lisa Calcagno
Library Assistant

SPORTS TEAM POLOS

This term we are encouraging the children to wear their sports teams polo shirts for our two ‘houses’ of Dalrymple and Palmerston. In the past, children have worn t-shirts and singlets that were in varying shades of red and blue, and without sleeves and collars they were usually not ‘sunsmart’. Having our sports team polo’s in stock has successfully avoided such problems.

Our uniform supplier provides cool, 100% Breezeway polyester mesh fabric, quick dry, sun protection antibacterial treatment polo shirts at the very reasonable price of $12.50. This uniform is available for purchase through Debbie in the School Office. The children can be wearing their ‘house polo’, with sports shorts or skort, every Friday this term.

Thank you for your continued support in helping St Rita’s students look smart!

DATE CLAIMERS

STUDENTS OF THE WEEK

St Rita’s School congratulates those students who were awarded ‘Student of the Week’ at Assembly on Friday 1st November 2019.

THE CAIRNS POST ‘INSPIRE’ AWARD

St Rita’s congratulates Ethan Hansen (Year 2) on his article published in the Cairns Post ‘Inspire’ on Tuesday 22nd October 2019. Ethan wrote about how much fun he had at the recent Harvest Festival and when participating in the parade with St Rita’s School. Congratulations Ethan!

P & F News

Dear Parents,

The next monthly meeting of the P & F will be next Monday, 11th November beginning at 3:00pm in the school library. We will be sharing information about the proceeds raised by the Harvest Festival canteen and how this will be spent on supporting the school needs.

The Committee keeps these meetings to one hour, so we urge you to join us for this meeting and be an active part of our parent community.

Maryjane Masina
P&F Secretary

THOUGHT OF THE WEEK

COMMUNITY NEWS

ONE TIME CLEANING

‘SPOOKY’ THEMED SCHOOL DISCO