Issue 17 - 9 November 2022

Newsletter Articles

VISION STATEMENT

PRINCIPAL’S PEN

Greetings Families and Friends,

So, this week I’m solo parenting. I know this is not unique, so I’m not after any sympathy. My wife is away, so surely, I can manage my own four children, right? I cannot understate that it is a tough gig. Parenting is already hard, so my hat is off to those who solo parent or share parenting responsibilities. What I’ve learnt over the last few days is it is near impossible to do everything perfect. As a school we must be careful not to place unrealistic expectations on parents, which is why I hope you find us reasonable and fair to deal with. This year we have decided to focus on reading as our main means of homework, as we know how much of a burden this can be for families. I feel that in primary school, nearly 5 ½ hours of learning each day is generally enough. Families that would like additional homework are of course able to request this. We have Weet-bix available for those who occasionally miss breakfast and have a range of school shoes available for those who simply can’t find them in the morning rush. I’m always available to talk about fees and negotiate where possible and we will certainly support our school families in any way we can. All I ask for is that you can communicate with us when practical and let us know if there’s something we can help with at school. Please let us know if there’s an absence, and a note or text will suffice if your child can’t find their correct uniform. We certainly understand family life is busy and at times chaotic, I still can’t find Maddie’s lost school shoe! Sorry Miss Wilson, a note is coming your way and Maddie will be in her pink sparkly shoes in the meantime.

All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day

Last week was a significant week in the Catholic Church’s calendar. We commemorated both All Saints’ Day on the 1st of November and All Souls’ Day on the 2nd of November. On All Saints’ Day we remember those exceptional, faith-filled people that have gone before us and lead exemplary lives, such as our schools namesake, St Rita.

On All Souls’ Day, we remember all of those who have departed this earth before us, especially family and friends. On Tuesday we held a liturgy to mark this special occasion. On Wednesday the grade 3/4 students made their way to the Babinda Cemetery for a short prayer service, and some exploration time. They were able to link this to their history unit and were amazed by the history they found out.

Pre-prep

Next week we finish our pre-prep program for 2022. It has been a wonderful transition program for Georgia, Mia, Danny and Charlie. A big thanks to Miss Wilson and Ms Benvenuti for their flexibility and expertise over the last 6 weeks. We can’t wait for our 4 pre-preps and their families to join us next year.

Swimming

Please note that our St Rita’s swimming carnival will be held on Thursday the 24th of November. Parents and family are welcome to attend as our students take part in various races and fun activities. Please stay tuned for further information in the coming weeks.

Remembrance Day

This Friday is the 11th of November, and at 11am we all pause to remember the fallen, those who have fought for our country in various conflicts beginning in World War 1. On Friday, our senior students will be walking to Anzac Park, Babinda to represent our school at the formal proceedings. We will also stop to acknowledge a minute’s silence at school. In the afternoon, our senior students will be presenting a Remembrance Day prayer for assembly. Parents and friends are welcome to attend.

Skateboarding

We are very fortunate to be involved in the ‘All Aboard School Skateboarding’ sessions. Yesterday we had special guests teaching all our students about skateboarding, bike, scoot and skateboarding safety. This was a great opportunity for our students with all equipment provided. Another new learning experience for many. 

Free Dress

On Friday the 18th of November, St Rita’s will hold a free-dress day to raise money for the Cancer Council. The theme will be Free-dress (and a touch of crazy), and was the idea of year 5 student Hannah Lansdown, who recently lost her uncle to cancer. Students are asked to wear free dress, bring a small donation, and dress with a touch of crazy!

We remember Peter Anthony in our prayers and hope we can raise some money for this great cause. Thanks, Hannah, for the great idea, more information will be forthcoming.

End of Year

We are currently in our 4th last week of school, which means our end of year festivities will be just around the corner.

Graduation

On Thursday the 24th of November we are holding our annual Graduation Evening. Mass in our Church will be at 6:00 pm followed by supper and formalities. Please RSVP if you plan to attend, all are welcome to farewell Rhylee, Pearle, Teelah and Latoya.

End of Year Mass

On Wednesday the 31st of November we will again celebrate Mass at 9.30am, as a faith community, to celebrate the year and the progress of all our students. We will then gather in the school for morning tea and carols, performed by the students. Parents are very welcome to attend.

Last Day

Our official last day is on the 2nd of December. We will gather for a school assembly at approximately 11:00 am and present our end of year award winners. We finish at 12 midday and will make a guard of honor for our departing students before home time.

Hampers

Each year, we ask our community to donate items, which are then packaged up and delivered to St Vinnie’s to help families in need. As our Babinda Vinnies is now closed, we want to keep our donations local, particularly to our school families. If your family would benefit from a Christmas hamper, please contact me directly in person, by email or by phone. This will be done with the utmost privacy, as we hope in some way, we can support you as you continue to support us. My principal’s email address is principal.babinda@cns.catholic.edu.au

Likewise, if you're in the position to donate items, we will start a collection in the school office very shortly and will notify all.

Michael Rowe
Principal

DEPUTY PRINCIPAL

Picture books, vocabulary and grammatical development

As we approach the end of the year educators are currently testing our students on their reading levels. Over the next couple of weeks, we will look at the wide range of literature we have here at St Rita’s to ensure books in our literacy program are authentic and purposeful. I am personally a firm believer in picture books, even for our older students as they delve into the magical world of reading begin to infer.

Using authentic picture books are essential both in the classroom and at home:

• They allow children to make contact with other people – like themselves and people who are different.
• Allows children to examine and questions people’s motives, moral conflicts and values at a safe distance.
• Encourages children to think aesthetically and creatively when using their imagination
• Enables readers to “travel” to different places and times.
• Develops children’s understanding of the power of written and spoken language and how it works
• Extends children’s ideas and understandings of relationships
• Shows that we can relate to others on lots of different levels – that people are multi-faceted, quite unlike fairytale character stereotypes.

Without a doubt, a story stirs the child’s imagination, allows them to experience emotions, and encourages their ow creativity – for anyone can be story teller. Stories can be based on everyday life, actual events, myths, legends, fairytales. These stories can be inspired by a memory, an event, a smell, a toy, or someone else’s tale, and everyone should be encouraged to tell stories.

Tips for telling stories with your child:

• Choose a story you enjoy and make it come alive. Have fun!
• Build up a repertoire of different types of stories from many different sources that you can call on anytime.
• Practice well before hand, know the plot and the sequence, and what parts to emphasize.
• Practice using your eyes, body and hand gestures to add expression.
• Practice using your voice – tone, volume, pace as well as creating character voices to provide expression, humor, suspense and drama.

Kind regards,
Sam Benvenuti
Deputy Principal – Leader of Learning and Teaching

Counsellor’s Corner

Dear parents and carers,

CHILDREN NEED BOUNDARIES – by Professor Matt Sanders

Many parents today are confused about how to discipline their children, or even whether or not they should! But children need discipline, just like adults need rules and boundaries so that society can function smoothly.

Good discipline is simply about helping children learn that their behaviour leads to consistent consequences that are always enforced within a predictable, loving environment. It’s important that parents are empowered to make informed decisions about raising their kids, and what values and beliefs they want their children to grow up with.

We now know that the most effective method of changing children’s behaviour is to be more “pro social” with your children by changing the ratio of negative and positive attention, shifting the balance toward more positives. Give children much more positive attention for the things they do right and teach them the skills to handle difficult situations in appropriate ways. For example, if your children are fighting over a toy, instead of just telling them to stop fighting, teach them about the importance of sharing and then show them how to go about sharing.

And what if a child is testing the limits by deliberately breaking the rules or refusing to cooperate? As a clinical psychologist specialising in family concerns, and a parent and grandparent myself, the best single piece of advice I can give is to always try and remain calm. Don’t let things escalate into a full-scale battle of wills between child and parent.

Plan ahead. Discipline for children must involve clear, fair, age-appropriate rules and consequences carried out in a predictable way, within an environment that’s generally positive. And you have to be consistent. It’s no good changing tactics one day because you don’t feel up to the challenge.

When your child breaks a rule they know about, there should be an effective consequence. Removing a favourite toy, cancelling a trip to the park, or turning off the TV or computer are all valid consequences of misbehaviour.

There are other strategies you can use too, in combination with the above. Research shows that parents attending Triple P Positive Parenting Program are much less likely to use smacking to discipline their children, are less stressed and more confident in their parenting. It’s about giving parents practical, proven skills that lead to happier, healthier, more stable families.

For more information on local Triple P groups or online options, please contact your school counsellor Miss Jo.

Miss Jo
School Counsellor

LIBRARY BOOKS

As the end of the school year is fast approaching, we would ask that you have a look at home for any missed readers or Library books that need returning to the Library. Thank you for your co-operation in this, it will be very much appreciated.

Many thanks

DATE CLAIMERS

STUDENTS OF THE WEEK

St Rita’s School congratulates those students who were awarded ‘Student of the Week’ at Assembly on Friday 28th October 2022

BIRTHDAY CONGRATULATIONS

St Rita’s wished Samuel Shaw who celebrated his birthday recently. We hope you had a wonderful birthday celebration Samuel.

POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR

Jude Rowe was last week’s winner and this week’s winner was Evie Rowe. Jude and Evie chose their prizes from the prize box, well done. Congratulations Jude and Evie!

P & F NEWS

On Monday 14th November at 3:00pm we will have our final P & F meeting for the year. Please come along and join us to wrap up for another successful year, drinks and nibbles will be available.

Thank you.

Maryjane Masina
P&F Committee

THOUGHT OF THE WEEK

MUNRO THEATRE