St Anthony's School - Term 4 Week 4 2021
Principal's News
Here we are at about the halfway mark of the final term of our 2021 school year. It is at this time of the year we are in the thick of finalising one school year but at the forefront of our minds is planning for the next!!
We have a number of contract teaching positions to fill for next year. These positions have been advertised both internally within our St Anthony’s staff and externally with other schools in the diocese. These positions have already attracted lots of quality applicants and once applications close, there is a process of shortlisting, interviewing and appointing. As soon as we have finalised our 2022 staff, we will let our school community know.
I can confirm that our class structure for next year will remain the same as this year, with 11 classes across the school comprising of 2 x Prep, 2 x Year 1, Year 2, Year 2/3, Year 3. Year 4, Year 4/5, Year 5/6 and Year 6.
Composite classes for us at St Anthony’s are inevitable and where children thrive and learn in the same way as those in a straight class. There is no classroom that exists where all students are at the same level and require the same things, delivered in the same way. Our teachers are experienced and supported in adjusting the curriculum to cater to many diverse learning needs. Regardless of classroom structure, a child’s education comes down to the quality and effectiveness of the teacher and whether the classroom environment is conducive to learning. We take great pride at St Anthony’s in our classrooms being calm, conducive places of learning and where behaviour expectations are clear and consistent. We are committed to having expert teachers who are invested in developing learners who are engaged, communicators, curious, persistent and proud. Our school wide data also shows that students are not at all disadvantaged by learning in a composite class.
Louise’s Review
Thank you to all of the staff, parents and students who were interviewed as part of my recent four year review. I am so privileged to be entrusted to the vocation of Principal here at St Anthony’s. It was very reassuring to hear all the resounding positive comments that were shared with the review panel. It will be my great honour to take St Anthony’s forward for the next four years!
Once the report is finalised, I will share with our school community!
Congratulations Jathu!
We are so proud of Jathumintha Jesu Sebastian who was the recipient of the 2021 Mayoral Achievement Medal at a ceremony in Highfields last Thursday.
With Jathu’s permission, I would like to share her inspirational story of her family she shared with her classmates in an oral presentation earlier this year. Jathu is a student who espouses our St Anthony’s values each and every day. She is a motivated learner and undertakes all she does with enthusiasm and positivity. You are an inspiration Jathu!
Welcome students, teachers and parents My name is Jathu and today I will be sharing my inspiring life story. I was born in a faraway place called India. I speak Tamil, I may have been in my mother’s stomach for some of my story, but I know what my parents went through, and I know how hard it was for them. So, I started off like an ordinary life. My dad started fishing when he was 13 years old. My mum started off by studying until grade 12. Then one dreadful day my dad was coming back from fishing and the Singlam army thought that my dad was an LTT which is people who help Sri-Lankan people. They started hitting my dad aggressively. Dad tried to tell them that he wasn`t helping the LTT people and had nothing to do with them but sadly they did not believe him then they tried to shoot my dad but thankfully a fisher who was in dad`s village came and told them that he had nothing to do with LTT. Then the Singlam army left him and finally believed the other loyal fisherman but before the fisherman had arrived dad had already received many injuries and had lost so much blood. He was about to die. Since dad had many injuries, he has a big scar across his back till this day. Sadly, The Singlam people had taken over dad`s house. Dad was taken to the hospital to get healed. While dad was healing my mum was studying until grade 12 but now and then my mum would hear bombs exploding and people screaming for help and since bombing was so scary mum had to flee the country to India. When we were there, I was born, and I was baptised. It is known that Singlam army was now going to invade India we had no choice but to flee the country again. A bunch of families and us were all frightened for our lives, we got on the boat at night, and we left India. The families and my family and Arul`s family packed all the Jewellery we had and all the food we had. Most of our people packed rice. We started our journey through the night all fearing that nothing bad would happen to any one of us and we would pray at any time we had, my dad and other fishers would start catching fish from the sea and would fry it by leaving it in the sun. But sadly, one day our water ran out, so all of us had to drink salty sea water and one lady was pregnant and when she drank the sea water, we realised that the baby in her tummy died. A few weeks past and she started getting sick and died we had no choice but to throw her in the sea. But to make it even worse we had a robber on the sea which were called pirates. They frightened us, and they took all the Jewellery we had, and they also took some of our food including our rice and we all had to eat a handful of rice a day since we couldn`t waste our rice because we don`t know how many days we will be on the sea. We finally arrived at Christmas Island. When we got there, we thankfully got free food and new clothes most of the time me and Arul would play together. We stayed there for months, and we got ready for our journey again. Then we had to get on the boat, and we arrived in place called Australia and I turned 1 years old, we had to get on the helicopter which really hurt our ears. We arrived in Brisbane and got help and started life like a normal person we lived in units and normally we would visit our cousins. Most of our people are still trying to flee Sri- Lanka and India, and that`s why most of the Sri- Lankan parents would force their child to study hard and achieve more so we do not live like our parents, and that's why Sri- Lankan people are begging for citizenship so we can visit our grandparents and other family members in Sri- Lanka or India.
Thank you so much for listening to my inspiring life story.
Tomorrow is………World Teacher’s Day!!!
World Teachers’ Day is celebrated annually, a day that we acknowledge the professionalism, dedication and expertise of those responsible for educating our students at St Anthony’s.
As many parents know, the impact individual teachers have on a child’s education can be great. Teachers are central to learning and while there are other important factors, including the quality of the curriculum, school environment and student ability and commitment, it is teachers that breathe life into what is being taught and who engage and motivate students.
As a Catholic school, we recognise that parents are their children’s first teachers during the course of primary and secondary school. It is often individual teachers that enliven education and cause students to identify what is most exciting and rewarding.
Each one of us, if asked, could most likely name one or two special teachers that made what was being studied engaging, lively and relevant and who sparked an interest and passion for learning that was life changing.
Teachers in Catholic schools, given their faith-based nature and commitment to the Church’s teachings, are especially important. Teaching is a vocation, a calling from God, not just a ‘job’. I encourage you to take the time to personally thank your child’s teacher on World Teachers Day!
Swimming Carnival
It’s that time of year again!!!
Our annual swimming carnival will be held at The Glennie Aquatic Centre on Tuesday, 9th November for students born in 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012.
Students must swim 50m of each stroke to be eligible for age champion.
This event will take place from 10.00am and will conclude at 2.30pm. All students will be bused to and from the pool.
Students are able to wear house colours but with no zinc or hair spray.
Unfortunately, we are unable to have parent spectators for this event.
Day for Daniel
Tomorrow (Friday 29th October), we are supporting a very worthwhile cause and raising money to support the valuable work in the area of child safety by the Daniel Morcombe Foundation. Students are able to wear red and bring a gold coin!
Congratulations Matilda!
We would like to wish Matilda Crothers all the best as she is participating this weekend at the Queensland school athletics carnival for Shot Put. What a great achievement, Matilda!
Christmas Concert and Fair
At our PPF gathering last night, we finalised the stall for each year level at the upcoming Christmas Fair and Concert, commencing at 5.30pm on Thursday, 25th November. All students will be performing under the big tree on the back oval and the stalls will be around the oval. The food available will be hot potatoes, tacos, and Dippin Dots ice cream. We’re waiting to hear back from a hot chip van.
The following stalls will be coordinated by these year levels:
Prep – Chocolate Coin Toss
Year 1 – Raffles and Showbags
Year 2 – Second-hand books
Year 2/3 - Glowsticks
Year 3 – Bottle stall (noodle boxes)
Year 4 – Christmas art and craft
Year 4/5 – Drinks
Year 5/6 and 6 – Photo with Santa - calendars, cookie decorating and scrunchies
There will also be a raffle of some Christmas hams and a jumping castle for the kids!
This will be a cash only event and smaller denominations of cash are preferable.
Please keep an eye out for rosters on the portal for each class, where parents are asked to assist on a stall for 20 minutes. We ask that each family contribute some time on the night and donate items for the stalls. Many hands make light work and all donations are greatly appreciated!
We are looking for donations of second hand books in good used condition suitable for kids and adults.
The Prep classes welcome any donations of wrapped chocolate bars for the coin toss.
Donations are welcome of new toys for the hamper raffles on Year 1 stall. There will be 2 hampers raffled.
For the mystery noodle boxes, we are looking for donations of items such as: wrapped lollies, play dough, hairbands, toy cars, bubbles, balloons etc. Anything that will fit in the noodle boxes that children would love to win!!
All donations can be left at the office.
The profit from the Christmas Fair will go towards the purchase and installation of an electronic school sign on Stephen St and the upgrade of Prep Peace Garden.
As a school, we are very grateful for the commitment of the parent community to assisting our school with the purchase of resources which benefit every child at St Anthony’s.
Until next newsletter…..
God Bless!
Louise
louise.pfingst@twb.catholic.edu.au
APRE News.....
Grandparents Day
It was lovely to see so many Grandparents at school last Thursday. Covid has been very hard for so many and not being able to experience the joy of spending time with our Grandparents at school was keenly missed last year.
Parish Family Mass
On Sunday 7th of November at 8.30am we will celebrate our final Parish Family Mass of the school year. We would like to invite ALL students and their families to attend. Students from all year levels will be encouraged to assist in the co-ordination of the mass. We hope to see you there.
Sacramental Program
On the weekend of the 6th and 7th of November at either the Saturday Vigil at 6pm or the Sunday Parish Family Mass at 8.30am, students who are embarking on the sacramental program will be commissioned into the program. This formally acknowledges the students and their families in the Parish community. These students will make the Sacrament of Reconciliation in a few weeks’ time. We continue to keep them in our prayers as they prepare.
World Mission Month
October marks World Mission Month in Australia. It is a time to celebrate the global work of the Church and the dedication of missionaries as they reach out and support children and communities in need around the world, including remote parts of Australia. Next Friday the 5th of November we will encourage students to wear crazy socks for a gold coin donation in support of the Good Shephard Sisters and the work they are doing caring for children from Thailand in the poorest areas of Bangkok. This small gesture is one way we can develop students’ understandings around the Catholic social teachings that promote the dignity of all and the common good.
Middle Leader News
ICAS awards
Earlier in the year students were invited to participate in the ICAS Maths and English Assessments. ICAS assessments are designed to recognise academic excellence. Students are assessed on their ability to apply classroom learning to new context, using higher-order thinking and problem-solving skills. We want to acknowledge the five students who participated this year; Olivia Sheward, Kate Schouten, Alexander Dalton, Tom Varley and Jathumitha Jesu Sebastian. Olivia and Tom were awarded a Credit in the English assessment, which is a wonderful achievement.
Mid-term tips
Often at this time of the year things become hard. Everyday life can feel difficult for families with many commitments to fulfill, hectic schedules and still a few months until the end of the year. It is the same for children and the mid-term slump is often when we see children have less of an ability to manage their emotions which, in turn, can affect their work effort and motivation for learning. If you have noticed that your child is experiencing this, a good way to try and fix this is to look at their sleep patterns. On average, children aged from 5- 12 years of age need 10-12 hours of sleep per night. The brain is doing so many things when we are sleeping, such as recharging and processing information from the day. This chance for the brain to rest and repair is critical to maintain clear thinking, energy and concentration levels. Ensuring children have a consistent bedtime and a healthy bedtime routine will go a long way to helping your child make the most of their day at school. Another area to consider is how much technology may be playing a role in either a lack of sleep or over stimulation, which leads to a lack of rest for the brain. Having a routine where children turn off devices half an hour before bed can help to calm down from the stimulation of the day and prepare children for rest. These tips are useful not only for children, but adults alike!
Love of Learning
Be engaged | Be curious| Be a communicator| Be persistent| Be proud
School Fees
School fees were issued on 12 October and are due for payment by this Friday 29th October. If you pay by Direct Debit, these payments will continue until your nominated end date. We do have Direct Debit payments that default and each time a payment defaults, the school is charged $1.10. It is important that you ensure there are sufficient funds in your account on the day you have nominated for withdrawal, or if you have changed/closed your account you will be required to complete a new Direct Debit Request form to avoid the default charge. The Archdiocesan Development Fund, which is the financial facility we use for Direct Debits, will allow 3 failed attempts before they close your request. Unfortunately, due to the number of times we are charged the default fee of $1.10, consideration is being made in regards to passing the fee back to the debtor who defaulted.
If you have a credit balance at the end of 2021, this credit will automatically transfer to 2022. If you have a credit balance and your child/ren are completing their education at St Anthony’s at the end of 2021, you will be reimbursed by the end of year.
All outstanding fees are required to be paid in full by 29th October unless you pay by Direct Debit or you have a payment plan approved by Mrs Pfingst, Principal.
Prep KJ & SJ
Thank you to all of the lovely grandparents who came along to our special Grandparent’s Day last week. We love to be able to share what we do in our school and classroom with our families. With our St Anthony’s Christmas Concert and Fair coming up later this term on Thursday, 25th of November, the Prep classes will be responsible for organising a fun stall involving a counter toss to win a chocolate. For this stall to be successful, we will be asking the Prep families to please donate chocolate bars (a note with more details about this will come home). We will begin to collect the chocolate bars next week. In the classroom, we have been writing letters to our Year 1 buddies, letting them know that we are excited about being in Year 1 next year and asking them some questions about what happens and what they like doing in Year 1. We have also begun our reading testing for this term, with the students likely to bring home different level readers over the coming weeks. Please remember to return all library books and homework on a Monday so that the students can bring new books and readers home each week.
samantha.jaeger@twb.catholic.edu.au
kylie.jones@twb.catholic.edu.au
jo.keleher@twb.catholic.edu.au
Yr 1 HS
Welcome to week 4/5! This term is flying by! Students have been busy with learning and assessment and this continues over the next couple of weeks. It is important they are getting enough sleep and that they aren’t missing any days of school (unless sick). Your support with this is so appreciated.
In science this term students are observing and comparing changes in everyday materials, in particular, food. Last week we watched a video of a man walking across a pool full of custard. We then made cornflour goo to test its properties. This activity was very popular in the classroom. You may already have been asked to make this at home. It is simply cornflour and water mixed together. It’s quite therapeutic.
This term we also introduced our Rhyme bags! The students have loved presenting their rhyming words. A few wonderful presentations have included a chick and a brick, a dog and a log, money and honey and a shell and a bell, just to name a few. The students love trying to guess what could be in the bag!! Keep them coming.
holly.sheehan@twb.catholic.edu.au
Yr 1 KS
Year 1 is an exciting place to be at the moment. Science experiments are our focus as we investigate how materials change. We have cooled, heated and added water to all manner of ingredients to change the way they look, feel and react to pressure. Spaghetti and marshmallow towers, cornflour goop, melted iceblocks and popping corn are just a few of the activities we have been involved in. It’s great fun and lots of learning is taking place.
The Christmas Fair is coming up – a message will go home regarding parent support. 1KS and 1HS will be working together on a toy and raffle stall as well as Show Bags. If you are able to support us please respond to our message.
Many thanks
Kathy Spencer
kathleen.spencer@twb.catholic.edu.au
Yr 2 OT
2OT are continuing to develop their knowledge in the world of poetry - soon we will be writing our very own and we are pretty excited about it. In numeracy we are using balance scales to determine whether the mass of different objects is more, less or about the same. I cannot believe we only have 5 weeks left together as a class. What a busy year it has been. We have started our reading assessment and I am beyond proud of their growth! Let’s keep moving!!
Don’t forget to come for a run every Wednesday morning at 8:00am! We have travelled a collective 500km. How far will we run before Christmas?
Until next time,
Cheers. Mr Tattam!
ory.tattam@twb.catholic.edu.au
Yr 2/3 VN
Welcome to Week 4 in 2/3VN. In Math, we have been learning about our times tables. In particular we are focusing on our 0, 1 and 2 tables and will build to 10, 5 and 3 times tables. When we are learning about times tables, it is important that students see multiplication as repeated addition. For example, 2 x 3 is the same as saying 3+3 or 2 groups of 3. The aim is that by the end of this term, students have automaticity with these tables as a fast recall. This is a great skill you can practise at home to support your child in their learning. In English we are learning about rhyme and rhythm. Sharing nursery rhymes is a great way for students to engage in poetry in a fun and engaging way. Ask your child why they enjoyed the poem and what parts (elements) made it enjoyable for them.
vicki.nauschutz@twb.catholic.edu.au
Yr 3 RM
In English we have read and analysed the book "Fire", looking at poetic devices and learning a LOT of new vocabulary. In Maths we have started our data inquiry and are now working on representing our data using software. In HASS we have started learning about rules and laws. In Religion we have learnt about the Torah and its importance to the Jewish people.
rebecca.more@twb.catholic.edu.au
Yr 4 SC
Weeks 3 and 4 have been filled with an abundance of learning and fun activities. During Science we discovered how to explain momentum by rolling drink bottles, both full and empty, with a gentle push and a firm push. We continue to enjoy writing and performing various types of poetry to entertain our audience. In Mathematics we have learnt how to create a graph using Excel. We collected data, chose our graph, plotted our data and used formatting tools to change the colours of our graph. We painted a mountain scene using water colour and will be completing our single-point perspective drawings this week. All students presented a piece of scripture that explained how Jesus brought healing to the world. Many presentations touched our hearts with the depth of understanding shared with us. God Bless. Mrs Cox
Yr 4/5 RS
Dear Parents,
When a great number of grandparents visited us last Thursday, they met us in the church for a heart-warming liturgy. Our visitors were then entertained by our students reciting a poem they had found and rehearsed. Each poem was different and very well received. Thank you for doing this so well!! The grandparents then watched how we write a 'Daily Write' about the topic of... “Grandparents” and we wrote an acrostic poem. It was a lovely morning and a special time to thank our grandparents and remember with love those who couldn’t attend.
G reen is Nan’s favourite colour
R eading books together
A kind one to me
N ever angry
D ancing and singing together
P laying board games
A happy person
R evered person
E xcited to see me
N ever gives up
T yranh loves her! by Tyarnh
One Maths task was to create graphs using technology and when Mrs Cox shared her skills, our results were fantastic! We have been reading the serialised story of “Deltora Quest” with its seven gems of Diamond, Lapis Lazuli, Ruby, Amethyst, Topaz, Opal and Emerald. Lots of learning has been happening with Mrs Mary assisting our class. We have enjoyed reading and researching for an Information Report about Sound or Light. We will be preparing a speech to deliver to the class based on this learning.
Our future leaders have actively taken on the task of big buddy to Prep students when they visit us each week. Together we have read, sung, played and made stick puppets. It has been lots of fun and we are proud of the way the older students help and care for their buddy.
Thanks for all your efforts to have your student arrive daily on time; and all the reading, conversations and Homework in your home. This is appreciated very much.
Have a great week! Barbara and Robyn.
robyn.smith@twb.catholic.edu.au
barbara.hair@twb.catholic.edu.au
Yr 5/6 TN
Can you believe that we are halfway through the term? This week I have emailed to everyone a copy of a LIVE calendar. This is to keep us all up to date with due dates and things that are happening in our classroom. My hope is that we can support those who are struggling with time management with gentle reminders and encouragement to stay on task. The students also have access to this via our TEAMS channel and I encourage you to remind your child to check the calendar a few times each week.
At the moment, all of the students are working on their LOTE assignments. Year 5 are required to complete a booklet and a PowerPoint about Germany, while the Year 6 students will need to complete a booklet for Indonesian. Next week we will have a large focus on Religion assessment. The majority of this will be completed at school, however, students may need to bring some home to put their finishing touches on.
Until next time. Keep Safe.
Mrs Terri-An Nolan
YR 6 LW
We are masters of poetry in 6LW.
Please enjoy these limericks.
There once was a teddy-bear who didn’t give hugs
His breath smelt extremely awfully of bugs
I leant in for one
He said he was done
So I traded him in for a set of new mugs! – Isabelle Jones
There once was a small book of big bugs
About the kind that lived under rugs
They could swallow a man
And even a big pan
But instead they chose chicken nugs! – Xander Dalton
There once was a rat named Luna
Who liked to hide in my doona
He was left for too long
I was left with some pong
I wish I’d checked on him sooner! - Charlotte Wiedman
There once was an ordinary red fox
Who wore rainbow socks and two bright green crocs
He would jump and bite
All through the dark night
Until he caught a bad case of chicken pox! – Callym Rollans
Please note that the dates on the letter sent home were incorrect – the Farewell liturgy is on Tuesday, 30th November and the fun day is Wednesday 1st December.
leigh.winters@twb.catholic.edu.au
Tucka Time
This week was our last Tucka Time session. Over the 10-week program the students have cooked and tried new foods, learnt the difference between healthy and unhealthy choices and about food from the land.
For our final session, the families of the children who participated in Tucka Time were invited along as the children made grazing platters and were presented with their very own cookbooks, cooking equipment, fruit and veg bags. The real highlight was getting to keep the aprons and bandanas they have been wearing each week.
Mrs Terri-An Nolan
St Anthony's Outside School Hours Care
Commencing January 2022
Our Outside School Hours Care (OSHC) services provide the opportunity for children to grow and develop their social skills in a leisure based environment nurtured by our Catholic ethos.
The services offer a combination of before school, after school, pupil free days and vacation care led by a team of qualified educators. Our educators work with all children to create fun and recreational experiences so that a child’s wellbeing, learning and personal development are a priority. The services provide a variety of indoor and outdoor activities to support the diverse interests of all children.
Donations needed for the Christmas Concert and Fair Toy Raffle
Over the next few weeks, it would be wonderful if families would consider donating toys for this raffle. Ideal suggestions include brand new toys such as lego, dolls, hot wheel cars, craft boxes, gift vouchers etc. The list is endless. Any items donated would be so very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
