St Anthony's School Term 3 Week 4 2022

Principal's News

Welcome to our Week 4 newsletter!

Parent Teacher Interviews

I hope that everyone had a chance to read their child’s Semester 1 Report Cards via the Parent Portal at the end of last term. These reports are a reflection of both attainment and effort shown in the classroom across Terms 1 and 2. Parent/Teacher Interviews will take place in Week 9 of this term. ALL Parent Teacher Interview bookings will be through the Sentral for Parents app. We have decided to trial a new format for interviews this term that hopefully better suits parents, particularly those with multiple children and the staff and their personal commitments.

On Tuesday, 6^th September from 1.00 until 7.00pm, teachers will conduct interviews in the assembly hall for 15 minute intervals.  At the conclusion of each 15minute time slot, a bell will ring and the interview concludes and then successive interviews can occur.  These booking times will come out via the portal next week and it is a first in, first served model.

If you book an interview, please record the details somewhere.  It is frustrating for teachers who have prepared for these and parents don’t show up.

BID (Bishop’s Inservice Day)

Last Friday, as a staff, we gathered in the library for our annual Bishop’s Inservice Day.  The keynote speaker for the day was Christian Brother, Damian Price. I’ve listened to Damian now on a few occasions and each time I take away something practical to reflect upon and implement in my own life.  

Damian is authentic and passionate about the power of story to unite us. “When in doubt, share story!” Story is neither right nor wrong, better or worse, better or best; story just is. In the sharing of story we celebrate our shared humanity and foster each other’s innate dignity. Damian has a lovely analogy of when engaging in that story with another, you come as a guest, to listen intently and give your undivided attention, you give your presence to that person in that moment.

Here at school, we have the privledge of being ‘guest’ each and every day as our students share stories with us, often about those moments in their lives which bring great joy. With many of us, that balance between home and school is a tricky one and on Friday during Damian’s insightful words, I felt like this was a great reminder to me that coming as a guest and being present at home for my own children is important too!

2023 Enrolments

We are well and truly underway with planning our class structures and staffing for 2023.  Our staffing is very closely linked to our student numbers and our class structures are determined by enrolment numbers.  Last term, a Microsoft form was sent to parents to be completed if you know your child WILL NOT be returning in 2023.  Please endeavour to complete this form so our predictions are as accurate as possible. 

Commonwealth Census

Tomorrow, August 4, we complete the annual Commonwealth School Census. We complete two of these a year – one in February and now in August. The census collects information on staff and students from all non-government establishments which have as their major activity the administration or provision of full time primary, secondary and/or special education. The information collected on Census Day will be utilised by the Commonwealth Government to calculate our school’s annual entitlements for general recurrent grants, grant entitlements in respect of Indigenous students and entitlements for students with disabilities.

Term Outlines

At our recent PPF gathering, it was suggested that a term outline of the curriculum covered in classrooms would be helpful for parents.  These have all been uploaded to the portal this week for your reference and perusal.

Have a great fortnight ahead……God Bless!

Louise

APRE News.....

Religious Life of the School

It has been a busy few weeks celebrating and acknowledging our school community and people within it.  Whether we are coming together as a whole school to reflect and celebrate NAIDOC Week and Catholic Education Week, or participating in the ordinary rituals that happen everyday in our school such as prayer circles in our classroom, we put our love for God and each other at the centre of all we do.  

Sunday Parish Family Mass

This Sunday the 7^th of August is our monthly Parish family Mass where all students and families from the school are invited to attend.  Classes 6LW, 3RM and Prep TF will be leading this mass so we hope to see many children and families there.  All school families, however, are very welcome to come.  After mass there is a morning tea in the Parish Centre which is a lovely way to meet other families and members of the Parish community.

Middle Leader

World of Maths                                                                                          

This week we were fortunate to have the ‘World of Maths’ team here to enable students to analyse mathematical problems through investigation, comparison and reflection. The students worked together in small teams to discuss and record answers. It was great to see the touchstones along our pathway of ‘love of learning’ on display as the children were engaged, curious, communicators, persistent and proud of their efforts to solve the challenges.   

Prep SR & TF

Welcome to Week Four of Term 3!

We have had a busy few weeks. Last week, children became detectives in our rhyme crime and were challenged to solve our mystery using rhyme. We had a visit from Healthy Harold who spoke with us about healthy eating choices. On Tuesday we celebrated our 100 days. Thank you to all our parents for assisting your child with their outfits to be 100. Our activities included threading fruit loops onto necklaces, decorating crowns, building a tower using 100 cups, decorating cookies with our Year Six buddies and a number hunt. We would like to give a special thank you to tuckshop for our sausage sizzle lunch and to Patrick’s mum (Amy’s Sweet Treats) for our amazing cupcakes. The children were thrilled. On Thursday children will be attending ‘The World of Maths’. Next Thursday we are offering a free vision assessment for our Preppies. Please ensure that you have consented using the app on the whiteboards for your child to attend. This Sunday the 7^th of August Prep TF has their family Parish Mass. We would love to see your family there. Mass starts at 8:30am.

From Siobhan and Tracey

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Yr 1 ED & Yr 1 KS

Greetings from Year 1!

This week has been quite exciting!  On Monday we had a special guest author, Cori Brooke, visiting to tell us about her books.  It was great to listen to her read some of her books and we could ask questions at the end of her presentation. She even gave us each a bookmark as a gift!

This week we have moved on to the story of 'The Very Brave Bear' and have been thinking about times when we have been brave!  So many of the children have lots of stories about their bravery!! We are also looking at verbs this week and 'The Very Brave Bear' did many things that were brave – so there are plenty of verbs in the book!

In maths we are continuing with our number work – particularly skip counting in 2s 5s and 10s.  We are also investigating just how much magic sand can fit into objects and comparing the quantities!  Lots of fun to be had by all!

Take care and God bless you all

Kathy and Emma

Yr 2 BH

These last couple of weeks we have been honing our powers of persuasion. We’ve read about and laughed at a particularly pesky pigeon who keeps trying to get his own way. Now we’re beginning to write our own convincing arguments using persuasive words and good reasons.  I wonder if your children have been trying some extra persuasion at home with you?!

Thank you for all the bottle tops. We have enough now!  In fact, we have 1,634 of them!  After many adjustments to our estimating, Aiden came closest to the actual quantity, on his fourth ‘guesstimation’. Well done Aiden!

We pray for Micheal and Savera as they travel back to their respective home countries to visit relatives, after being apart for so long.  May God bless your family time and keep you safe.

*Remember, Library has changed to Tuesday only.*

Mrs Hair

“If you wish to persuade me, you must think my thoughts, feel my feelings and speak my words.”      -Cicero

Yr 2/3 VN

This week in Math we have been learning to count money using a vertical algorithm.  For example:

  $2.50

+$1.90

We have also been graphing the medal tally from the Commonwealth Games that we are linking to our HASS, learning about celebrations that bring together people from all over the world. 

In Spelling, we are learning about contractions and how the apostrophe replaces the letters we remove. 

In Science we are looking at resources; man made and natural, and this week we have been looking at the need to be sustainable for the future to come. 

Reminder:  Library is Wednesdays

Yr 4 SC

Week 3 and 4 see 4SC well into informative writing. We are learning to summarise, skim and scan for specific information. We will soon begin researching a country in either Africa or South America. We found that it is not easy to write information in our own words. In Mathematics we have been challenged by the different ways we can add numbers together. This week we are looking at different ways of measuring. On Monday we saw an author, Mark Wilson, who gave us some tips about how to create a character and develop a story. His most important message was 'Your first draft is your worst draft.' In Science we investigated how mountains are formed and developed an understanding of what weathering and erosion mean. Last week our Life Education topic was on body systems. We learnt that children only have half a brain as it takes time for it to fully develop!! Next week we look forward to Bike Safety lessons. A note will be sent home this week with more details. God Bless. Mrs Cox

Yr 4/5 PK

Welcome to Week 4! This week students have engaged in many positive learning experiences.  On Wednesday last week, we were lucky enough to have a visit from Life Education.  Our topic was ‘Mind your Medicine’.  We explored the different systems in our body and what can positively and negatively affect these systems.  We were left in awe learning about how our body can function – humans are incredible!  We enjoyed listening to Author, Mark Wilson, on Monday.  We had previously read some of Mark’s stories and it was exciting listening to him share his journey as an author with us.  Today was World of Maths Day! It was exciting to engage in some different activities outside of the classroom. Next week, our Year 4s will be engaging in Bike Safety. 

Until Next Time, 4/5PK.

Yr 5/6 TN

There is not much that will hold down 5/6TN even with a tough start to the term due to illness!

This term it is all about time management and getting our assignments in on time. As a class we have been putting lots of strategies into place, including,

• a digital online calendar (which is found in Teams)
• check in dates and due dates for all assignments
• class lists to confirm when pieces have been handed in
• extra email communication from me to home about assignment
• extra support times in the mornings (please see emails)
• emails home if assignments are late

Hopefully with these strategies everyone is going to experience success and continue to develop their own time management and organisation.

As always if you have any questions, please make sure you contact me via my email.

Until next time, stay well.

Mrs Terri-An Nolan

Yr 6 LW

It’s all about Asia in our classroom at the moment! We’re learning about various Asian countries for our integrated English and HASS research assignment, as well as exploring some well-known volcanoes that are found across Asia.    

In English, we’re ensuring that reading remains a priority in our classroom as we enjoy the novel 'Wonder' and complete various activities based on our reading. Research has shown that children who read regularly generally have a wider vocabulary and are more confident in writing tasks.  (Regular reading at home would also be beneficial.)   

As we move into measuring and calculating angles in maths, the biggest challenge seems to be using a protractor correctly and measuring angles accurately!  

Please note that we regularly have literacy rotations during the last session of the day, and students who go home early are missing out on some vital learning and individual support.  

As always, please don’t hesitate to contact me with any queries or concerns. 

Leigh 

Catholic Schools Netball

Last Thursday some of our Year 5 and 6 students attended the Toowoomba Catholic Schools Netball Carnival.  Many of the girls played back-to-back games – the exhaustion was real! Throughout the day, we learnt new skills and showed great improvement. Many moments of positive sportsmanship were displayed and lots of fun was had. Congratulations to all the students involved: Mikayla, Libbie, Sharna, Natahlia, Sophia, Pyper, Savannah, Olivia, Erin, Puondak, Alexis, Ariana, Estar  and Tanisha.

Awards Presented:

Player of the Carnival: Natahlia 

Most Improved: Puondak 

Displaying Perseverance: Alexis 

Book Week: 22nd – 26th August

Our Book Week activities will be held this year in Week 7 (Aug 22nd – 26th) 

The theme for Book Week this year is “Dreaming with eyes open” 

There will be the usual favourites: 

Book Week Dress Up Parade – Tuesday 23rd August at 8:40am in the school hall.

Students are invited to come dressed as their favourite book character or dress up around this years’ theme. 

• Short Listed Titles: Reading of shortlisted titles & follow up activities.

• Reader’s Cup Competition: Monday 22^nd for our Prep and Year One students

• Book Fair Opening Times: August 22^nd – 25^th

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday:  

8:00am – 8:30am, 3:00pm – 3:30pm

Tuesday 9:30 – 10:00am (Parents only)

  Friday - CLOSED

We will be holding our annual Book Warehouse Book Fair during Book Week. There will be a large variety of books for sale at prices to suit everyone. An Online option will be available for those who cannot get into the library. This is a wonderful opportunity to buy some great books and help the library gain new resources, as the school receives 30% of the total sales as our Commission. 

We are looking for volunteers to assist with the running of the Book Fair. Please contact the library if you can help during Book Fair Opening times.

Jen Fenn - School Counsellor

St Anthony's Outside School Hours Care

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.  

St Anthony's OSHC Toowoomba

Phone: 0458 937 154 or 0458 897 293

Email: ANTcare@tckc.qld.edu.au