Term 1 Newsletter 28th Feb- 2024
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGES
Welcome to Week 6 – Steps to Positive Parenting
A few years ago now, a good friend and fellow colleague introduced me to a program called the Triple P Parenting Program. My first reaction was “What, I am not good enough as a parent and you are giving me this to read – seriously?” Never actually saying this, (but it did cross my mind). I then began to do my own research on what this program was all about.
Triple P helps make raising children and teenagers easier and more enjoyable for both you, the parent, and the kids. It’s about building relationships, communicating well and encouraging the kind of behaviour you want to see. It helps you manage your child’s behaviour, emotions and development in a way that isn’t hurtful. Positive parenting helps you feel more confident and less stressed about raising children. You’re likely to have fewer arguments with your partner. And kids who grow up with positive parenting do well at school. They make friends easily. They feel good about themselves. They’re also less likely to have behavioural or emotional problems when they get older.
We make mistakes and are constantly learning in this role called parenting. With the landscape frequently changing, technological advancements and children seem to be getting older at a younger age – our job is not made to be easy. From time to time we will require support/ assistance and some advice. The Triple P is there to help and assist when needed, as I know I have gone to this playbook a few times over the past few years. Like the sound of Triple P? Well, here’s just a little taste: five principles that underpin Triple P’s positive parenting. These principles are relevant whether you’ve got toddlers, teens or in-betweens!
- CREATE A SAFE, INTERESTING ENVIRONMENT
Bored kids are likely to misbehave. Bored teenagers may find trouble. So create an environment that allows kids to explore safely and develop their skills.
- HAVE A POSITIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
If a child or teenager comes to you for help or a chat, they’re ready to learn. Give them positive attention, even if only for a minute or so. Encourage their ideas and opinions.
- USE ASSERTIVE DISCIPLINE
Set clear rules and boundaries and follow through with fair consequences. You can negotiate some of these with older kids and decide on the rules and consequences together. Praise little and big kids to encourage the behaviour you like.
- HAVE REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS
Nobody’s perfect – kids, teenagers or adults – so don’t expect your child to do more (or less) than they’re capable of. And remember, we all make mistakes sometimes.
- TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF AS A PARENT
It’s all about balance. You’ve got to look after your own needs too, so make sure you’re getting some support, time with friends, and maybe even a little time to yourself!
https://www.triplep-parenting.net.au/au/free-parenting-courses/triple-p-online-under-12/
This program is offered to families here and I urge anyone considering, to take up the opportunity – your kids will love you for it and the benefits are immeasurable. If you would like further information please get in contact with me.
We Are All Learners Here at St Francis de Sales…
You would have heard by now these two phrases, Learning Intentions and Success Criteria. You maybe asking yourself, why the big focus on these two key strategies? Other than the fact that ‘Learning comes first here at St Francis, Learning Intentions and Success Criteria are valuable strategies in making the learning process visible for students. Students need to know why and what the purpose of the lesson/activity is. This forms part of students being assessment capable learners – in which students can articulate the intention of the lesson, what they are learning, how they can be successful and explain the next steps in their learning.
When we know what we are learning (Learning Intentions) and how they can be successful (Success Criteria), it can create a specific focus on the learning for the student. Our goal is to enable students the ability to clearly articulate their learning and the processes that underpin it. We are aiming to make the learning process more individual, so students can pinpoint their location on the learning journey. We need students and teachers continually modelling and using the Learning Intentions and Success Criteria so that the language becomes evident and consistent across our school.
With the use of prior knowledge and other effective teaching practices, students will be in more control of their learning and this will assist them ‘achieving academic success’ – our promise to you. So, parents, I challenge you to ask your child when they get home, two questions, what did you learn today (rather than what did you do) and how did you know you were successful? Your child will then be able to tell your where they are at in their learning.
Throughout the learning process we also use ‘Feedback’ to assist with our learning journey. Feedback provides staff and students with a determination on how things are going. Through student voice teachers will ask students questions which enables for learning to be specific and targeted towards an individual/group of students. We develop impact cycles and teaching and learning cycles to measure the impact our teaching has on the students and determine where to go from this data. We are also aiming for student to student (peer to peer) feedback as the year progress for students to be in charge and take control of their own learning. We will use our Learner Qualities to assist us when we arrive in the ‘Learning Pit’ (where learning is tough). These Qualities will be shared in the coming weeks.
Communication is The Key To All Things
Time moves rapidly these days, fasten now than when we were kids. Blink an eye and your child has started school. Blink again and they have finished school. Rest an eyelid and before you know it, you are grandparents, beginning the journey again.
Time is precious, and we need to be sure what we are doing has a purpose behind it. I can’t stress the importance of communication. Talking to your child is a vital step in the learning process. It is also a wonderful tool to see how things are going including behaviourally/socially and academically at school. In order for the school to effectively do their job, we require students to let us know if there have been any incidences at school, either involving themselves or others. We require students to be vigilant and advocates for our ‘be kind’ focus for this year. Being Good Samaritans is about looking after each other, if they see or have been mistreated in anyway, we need students to let teachers know. This is an important part of looking out and after one another, just as a family should.
Chip Van Fundraiser Brings Outstanding Success
We are currently determining the overall figure (to be announced shortly) but from first reports, this may be our most successful year. A huge thank you to Mr and Mrs Skillington for their efforts behind this fundraiser. All your little extras are so very important in making this work, and they don’t go unnoticed – thank you from the bottom of our hearts. A big shout out to those parents who helped out over the 3 days, cooking or salting the chips, handing out the drinks or even donating various items – without this support, none of this is even possible. The school is very appreciative of your efforts and sacrifices you make – well done!
Parent Teacher Interviews in week 9/10
These interviews are most important and are designed to provide parents with the opportunity to gain a greater understanding of your child’s progress and wellbeing at school. They are also a great avenue for dialogue around achievements, areas which require some further improvement and ways parents can assist. Each teacher is required to have an interview sheet which parents are required to sign as record of the discussion. Just a reminder that if you are unavailable to attend your parent teacher interview please contact the school so another time can be arranged. I sincerely thank the teachers for their efforts in preparing and organising these interviews and to you, the parents for scheduling time for this important meeting.
Cross Country Training
It has been wonderful to see so many of our students and staff participating in the Cross Country Training in the mornings. It begins at 8:00am on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings on our school oval. Students, staff and parents are all welcome to attend. These sessions are not just for those interested in cross country running but a great way to improve fitness and train with your mates. It has been great to see the increase in numbers in attendance. Spread the word as it would be great to see even more show up for a run on the oval on these mornings. A reminder that our annual cross country carnival will be held on Friday 22 March at 9:00am on our oval – weather depending.
Prep 2025
It is that time of year again where we urgently request for any families who may have a child eligible for Prep in 2025 to ensure an enrolment application has been submitted. Children who are born between 1/07/2019 to 30/06/2020 are eligible to enter next year’s Prep program. It is vitally important to spread the word to our community and get them to secured a place for their child for 2025.
Thank you for reading and your continued support.
Changes to Calendar Events:
The list of school events are located on the school’s webpage – https://sfdssclifton.schoolzineplus.com/calendar
This is a great way of keeping up to date with upcoming events. Emails, notifications and Facebook posts will also occur throughout the year to inform and remind you of upcoming events etc. Please see the next couple of events happening very soon:-
Week 6
28 Feb – DD Swimming – Gatton
29 Feb – SD B&G Soccer – Warwick; SD Netball – Warwick; SD RL – Warwick
1 Mar – Tennis – CD – Clifton
Week 7
4 Mar – Basketball SD; Marty Visit 9:00am; Cricket DD trials – Harristown
5 Mar – Cricket DD Trials – Harristown; Touch SD Warwick Scots
6 Mar –
7 Mar –
8 Mar – Nobby Triathlon
Week 8 Newsletter Week; NAPLAN ONLINE BEGINS
11 Mar – Netball – DD – Glennie; Tennis SD noms due
12 Mar –
13 Mar – NAPLAN Testing
14 Mar – NAPLAN Testing
15 Mar – NAPLAN Testing
Week 9 - NAPLAN ONLINE; Parent Teacher Interviews
18 Mar – NAPLAN Testing; St Patrick’s Day
19 Mar – NAPLAN Testing;
20 Mar – NAPLAN testing period; Tennis SD – Clifton
21 Mar – NAPLAN testing period; Softball DD – Kearney Springs; Harmony Day
22 Mar – NAPLAN testing period; St Francis Cross Country;
23 Mar –
24 Mar – Family Sunday Mass – 9:30am / Palm Sunday
Week 10 – Newsletter Week Holy Week Celebrations; NAPLAN ONLINE; Parent Teacher Interviews
25 Mar – NAPLAN testing period
26 Mar – Basketball DD – Twmba; Swimming State – Chandler
27 Mar –
28 Mar – Easter Liturgy – 2pm; Holy Thursday
29 Mar – Good Friday
Regards,
Brendan
MIDDLE LEADER
CURRICULUM COORDINATOR
In this newsletter I thought I would discuss the area of phonological awareness. What is phonological awareness?
Phonemic awareness is an ability to hear, identify and manipulate separate, individual phonemes in words.
Phonological awareness is essential for reading because written words correspond to spoken words. Readers must have an awareness of the speech sounds that letters and letter combinations represent in order to move from a printed word to a spoken word (reading), or a spoken word to a written word (spelling) Did you know there are 44 phonemes (sounds) in English?
In order for a student to become a fluent reader and spell well, they must have mastered the following phonemic awareness skills. The following skills are needed for students to become fluent readers.
Blending: A student must be able to blend individual sounds together to construct words, such as /c/../a/.../t/...'cat'.
Segmenting: A student must be able to segment individual sounds in speech, knowing that the word "cat" is made up of the three sounds /c/../a/../t/. This skill is also used when spelling words. Students need to identify the three sounds and then access the graphemes that represent each sound.
Phoneme manipulation: The skill of manipulating sounds within words to enable one sound to be replaced by another is essential in order to decode words with spelling that can be represented by more than one grapheme. It allows a reader to try alternative sounds. A proficient reader is able to perform these skills automatically.
If you would like to learn more about phonic awareness, please watch this video:
Prep/ Yr 1/ Yr 2/ Yr3
P/1/2/3
During Religion we have been learning about God. We have explored the story of Moses on the Mount. Moses delivered the 10 Commandments. Through story telling we have deepened our understanding of these 10 rules and can identify ways we can follow these rules today at school, home and in the community. We are very grateful to Sam Singleton for painting our characters for Godly play. This is a valuable resource for our school .
The children have completed two character descriptions during writing sessions based on our mentor text Teh 27th Annual African Hippopotaus Race. We will now move on to writing our own narratives. A narrative is a made up story which entertains the reader. I look forward to sharing the narratives the children create with you!
The year three students are beginning to prepare for the NAPLAN testing. These standardised tests are completed by all Australian students in Year 3, 5, 7, and 9. The tests are across a week and will check in on students writing, reading, maths and spelling and language conventions. This is another way schools can gather evidence to inform teaching and learning. We are super excited to use the computers to show our knowledge and understanding.
Year 4/5/6 News
Year 4/5/6
What is Federation and why did it happen? This is the rich question we have studying this week in 4/5/6. Your student should be able to tell you that there were four main reasons for the colonies to federate in the late 1800s! The students examined the arguments for and against federation, looking at some interesting literature from the time! Students investigated the role of advertisement and propaganda during the Federation debate through analysis of how political messages were delivered to the public in the 19th Century and how political messages are received now.
During writing, we completed our story about the lady who fell in the hole and during Quick Write time, we constructed our own story. We are very excited to share these stories at the upcoming Parent Teacher Interviews. Next week, we will write one more narrative before we begin constructing a persuasive text.
During Religion, we are identifying the ways in which faith is shared and strengthened in communities of believers, past and present, including followers of Judaism. Students will describe the significance of personal and communal prayer and worship (including the Eucharist, the Psalms, Sabbath rituals and prayers).
Lastly, a reminder that our new cycle of Speaking Presentations kick off in Week 7. Please check when your child is presenting. The topic is, “Something I have made”. Remember that you may email through a photo or a video if you would not like the object to come to school. We are looking forward to seeing the creativity.
SPORT
PE with Mrs Malbon and Mr Spranklin (Mr Red's absence)
Cross country practise and tennis skills have continued again this week. Prep to Year 4 experienced the tennis courts, while Year 5/6 were working hard on their fitness for the upcoming Cross Country Event.
Central Downs/Southern Downs/Darling Downs
Please keep an eye out for Facebook as we have had a number of students make different representative teams over the past couple of weeks for swimming, netball and rugby league– well done to these students. A very special mention to Rhys, Henry and Joseph, as they head off to Gatton to attend the DD swimming trials on Wednesday – a massive achievement and all the very best.
PEN UNIFORM SHOP
Uniform Shop Co-Ordinator: Kylie Hay
Contact Details: kurlz@live.com.au or 0487 582 107
Uniform Shop Days: MOST Thursdays & Fridays
If you would like uniforms, please fill in the updated Invoice Sheet and email or text Kylie to either arrange a time to meet or for the order to be sent home with your child. If you have an old invoice copy, please bin it and replace with our updated one. This can be found on the Facebook page or request one from me directly.
UNIFORM SHOP NEWS
- We have some good quality second hand winter uniforms and also summer uniforms available for $5 per item if you’re looking for an extra jumper, shirt, shorts etc. Please note that only limited sizes and items are available but you are welcome to request second hand if available.
- We are no longer stocking the following items however we still have limited stock available for a discounted price if you would still like to purchase them.
- Green Fleece Vest $10
- Sizes 4,6,8,12 & 14 available
- Long Sleeve Boys Polo Shirts $15
- Sizes 4,10,12,14 & Small available
- Girls Green Long Formal Pants $10
- All sizes except 10 available
- Girls Green Long Sports Pants $15
- Sizes 4,6,8,10 & 16 available
- Green Fleece Vest $10
If you urgently require uniforms on a day other than Thursday or Friday, please let me know and I can arrange this with the staff at St Francis De Sales. Please note I do work and will get back to you as soon as I possibly can.
STUDENT PROTECTION CONTACTS
Feeling Safe- All students have a right to feel safe and be safe.
If you are concerned about any form of abuse that is immediate, you should call 000. A significant risk or harm to a student, whether or not you have formed this belief on reasonable ground, should immediately be raised with one of our Student Protection Contacts.
ADMINISTRATION
School Fees:
We do recommend the setting-up of a direct debit facility to pay regular amounts into the school account. This alleviates overdue bills.
SCHOOL Bank Details
BSB: 064786
A/C: 100023789