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Ms Angela Gilbert / Mrs Sarah Jackman
Mr Garry Birch / Mr Chris Golightly
Dear Parents & Carers
Every generation, pre-teens and teenagers have always found a way to create problems for their parents and teachers. In the 50’s it was rock n roll, 60’s hippie culture, 70’s fashion blow outs, etc. This age group of course has and will always involve rebellious behaviour at some stage…it’s all part of growing up. I suppose each generation has had to deal with common issues such as drugs, alcohol consumption, body image, self-esteem, peer pressure, etc. However, with this generation it is the misuse of social media that has the potential to cause problems with all involved.
I have been to many a conference and read numerous articles on the pitfalls of the misuse of social media and the associated complications it has for this age group to function as a normal member of society. Strong parenting is a common message but I believe it is too broad a statement for as every teenager is different so is every parent. We all have our own idea of what strong parenting is. The best definition of what a strong parent is one that does not give in. The rule in our house was no mobile phone until Year 11 and no social media until you get home safely from schoolies!! And yes, they did try every trick in the book to have the terms of this seemingly harsh sentence reduced and of course try to download snapchat, Instagram etc. without us knowing. But unfortunately for them, like me, they had teachers as parents, which means lots of informants at our disposal so…no matter what…we always found out!!
The following article provides wonderful advice and I urge every parent, no matter what age your children are, to take the time to read it. Do not fall for the trap in believing it won’t happen with my child and don’t wait till a problem arises. Be proactive and start now to instil correct and proper behaviour whilst using social media.
“It’s important to start conversations with children about using social media at a young age to prepare them to be savvy users when we’re not around.
“If a job’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.”
This mantra always pops into mind whenever I am about to cut some corners or do a rushed job in any endeavour. As a result, I double-check every article I write for mistakes. I over prepare every talk I give. And I continually edit and re-edit my books. This message keeps me at the top of my game. I can thank, or blame, my mother for inserting this mantra in my mind as she repeated it whenever I did a rushed job as a youngster making my bed, doing homework or cleaning up my bathroom mess.
Parents of every generation have always found ways to frame messages of safety and success for their children to remember. Parents of past generations who only had to contend with the offline or real world intuitively knew that they needed to teach child important lessons about safety and manners rather than assume they will be understood.
The same maxim holds true for the world of social media that children now inhabit from an increasingly young age. Even though our children are growing up with technology as a part of their everyday lives, they will still make plenty of mistakes while using it. This means we need to have direct conversations with our kids about the comments and posts that are okay to make using social media of all forms.
As parents we teach our kids to talk politely and clearly so that they know how to speak to others when we are not around. In effect, we give our kids social scripts to fall back on when they talk to friends, teachers and relatives. There is no guarantee they’ll look an adult in the eye when they speak to them, but our discussions, reminders and lessons about manners will hopefully hold up when we’re not around. The same applies to social media. Our conversations and lessons will prepare them to be savvy users when we are not around. Here are some ideas to get you started:
- “Is this worth posting?” The relatively impersonal nature of social media means that we can post information and pictures with relative immunity. Also, its immediacy means that we can do so without much thought. This means that kids need to be very critical about what they see online. ‘Is this accurate?’ and ‘Is this worth posting?’ are two valid questions children can ask when they read posts placed by others.
- “Have you taken a big breath?” A child who blurts out everything that comes into his mind without thinking is sure to put plenty of people offside. ‘Think before you speak’ is the type of message that every child should have in mind. The same applies to social media. Just because they think something does not mean they post it. ‘Take a big breath’ may just about be the most important message to give your kids about social media.
- “Do you want the Principal to see this?!” Inappropriate language, images or threats posted online cannot be withdrawn and even if deleted can be recovered by authorities if deemed necessary! The viral nature of social media means that kids should only post messages and photos that they want to be spread and read by a large audience.
- “How does this post make you feel?” We need to teach kids that not every post needs to be commented upon and not every thought needs to be shared, particularly when they are angry. Teaching them to walk away and then to step back in when they have calmed down is perhaps the most important communication lesson of all. It is very relevant to social media as emotions are often the last thing on many people’s minds when they haphazardly post a message.
- “How will you fix this?” Social media just like any social space requires kids to behave ethically and with kindness. When kids overstep the mark and post hurtful things then it’s fair that they fix their mistakes and apologise. It is reasonable that we teach our children to act with tolerance and with empathy online, and if mean things are posted then they should be expected to try to repair relationships through social media, just as they should offline.
[Michael Grose]
“Parents should have conversations with children around social media before they reach the teenage years. Starting these conversations when they are younger means that they are more open to our parenting opinions, as well as being a little more amenable to the messages of tolerance, kindness and empathy that we need to encourage.”
[Galit Breen “Kindness Wins”]
Homework
Usually, one of the first things that begins to fade at this time of year is homework. Parents need to dig deep and keep an optimistic outlook. A couple more weeks of homework may seem like an eternity to kids. However, by concentrating on encouraging them to keep going, set a goal and the reward at the end is two weeks holiday.
Homework always has and always will be a source of frustration in many households around the country if not the world...so you’re not alone on this one! However, why is it so that some families struggle with homework more than others? The answer to that question is simple…. The value parents place on supporting their children and their child’s teacher, clear and consistent expectations and routines right from the start.
Homework is a common expectation for most primary school children. The nature of the activities will vary between different schools and for different ages. Purpose, content and teacher expectations on homework are covered at our parent information nights at the beginning of each year. Information about what is covered at these nights is also forwarded home to all parents.
Homework causes more headaches for parents than it does for children. Some parents worry because their children don’t seem to do enough while others are concerned because they are given too much. And most parents want to be able to help their children more effectively. Homework is very much a part of secondary education; however primary schools vary in their approach. As a general rule, little formal work is given to children in the first couple of years of schooling. But as they progress, the amount of homework increases.
Here at Lourdes each year level has a clearly defined homework procedure and expectations. Homework tasks should be an extension of work covered in class or revision. In other words, unless a student has been absent from school, the excuse of “I don’t know what to do”, is not completely accurate. For the kids who genuinely struggle academically, tasks and expectations are modified to suit the needs of the individual student. Completion of assignments in older year levels are never given at the last moment. The students are always provided with criteria sheets and rubrics with more than enough class and home time for their completion.
As I mentioned on assembly last week, I have been around the teaching profession long enough as well as a parent, to determine whether the amount or difficulty of homework is appropriate or not. I can assure all parents that homework expectations across the year levels are not excessive in any way. With a mindset of persistence "power of now" and getting it done and being organised, children should have little difficulty in completing their homework and submitting it on time.
I am fully aware there has been considerable debate over the last decade about the value of homework for primary aged children. Most educators agree that reading and learning of basic maths facts are the most valuable homework that a child can do and should become a daily habit for children. What we need to understand is that schools don’t set and have never set homework to improve academic performance. The benefits of homework are to reinforce topics covered at school, promote important learning habits of persistence and organization and to help establish a regular study routine in preparation for secondary school study expectations.
Opportunities
At Our Lady of Lourdes, we strive to offer the kids as many opportunities as possible in order to engage students in a variety of ways. These include, Tech Time, specialist tech lessons, interschool sport, gala days, drama club, choir, Yr. 6 leadership groups, excursions, camps, gymnastics, sports coaching, various library based activities, speaking festival and other performing arts events. The students certainly do have a great deal of choice from term to term. They are wonderful opportunities but they are also privileges received in return for positive behaviours and demonstrated work ethic. Students cannot expect to be chosen to represent the school in sporting or cultural pursuits if they are repeatedly reminded about poor choices in behaviour or who are regularly not putting in the expected effort with their schoolwork. Along with the teachers, particularly in the upper grades, I spend time throughout the term to constantly remind students of the role they play in co-operating with the teachers to create a safe, harmonious and enjoyable learning environment.
Race Day
Wow! What a great night! A big thank you to all who attended our major fundraising event last Saturday night. It was obvious that everyone had a ball. Thanks to all who supported the Race Day, especially our amazing sponsors, a total of $22,000 was raised for the school. So, to all who donated prizes, purchased multi-draw tickets, sponsored, attended the race day, I extend our sincerest gratitude for your wonderful support.
Prep 2022
A final reminder for any existing family who may have a child eligible for Prep in 2022 to ensure an enrolment application has been submitted. Children who are born between 1/07/2016 to 30/06/2017 are eligible to enter next year’s Prep program. It is vitally important that we have secured a place for children of existing families prior to offering places to new families. Formal enrolment interviews are not conducted for existing families unless requested by the parents. I would also highly recommend that you regularly discuss your child’s progress with your Kindy teacher. Delayed entry for children who are not developmentally ready for formal schooling is the best strategy by far in ensuring your child is given every opportunity to experience a positive and enjoyable start. Children of existing families are guaranteed a Prep position for the following year if delayed entry is recommended by Kindergarten teachers or other specialists.
If you know of any prospective families seeking a Prep position in 2022, please encourage them to contact the school or submit an application by the end of next week. Interviews for prospective new families will commence next Thursday 25th March.
NSSAB
Every four years, all Catholic and Independent schools are required to be audited by the Non-State Schools Accreditation Board. This audit involves an external validator to review governance policies and procedures of each school. This would include an audit of Student Protection, OHS, Student Support procedures, as well as current curriculum programs, resources and facilities and school improvement processes. The review of our school will be conducted next Monday. Following a successful audit, the school is then provided with accreditation for another four years.
Principal Performance Review
Catholic School Principals are required to undergo an individual performance review every four to five years. As this is my 10th year at Lourdes, I’m up for my second review. All families and staff should have received an email outlining the purpose and procedure of my upcoming review in Term 2. I certainly encourage each family to complete the survey which will be forwarded to you in the coming weeks. Similar to our whole school review last year, the focus of my performance review is to identify what is going well and to provide feedback on areas to improve on over the next 4-5 years.
NAPLAN Practice
NAPLAN for our Year 3 & 5 students will be held this year over two weeks in May. As part of their preparation for NAPLAN, the students will participate in a practice test on Monday 29th March. This practice test will provide students with some insight into how the online test looks and tips on how to navigate and how to use the online tools. The practice test is also designed to trial the school’s broadband capacity. It is most important that all Yr 3 & 5 students are present at school on the 29th to take full advantage of the practice test.
Cross Country
Our school Cross Country Carnival will be held on Tuesday 30th March at Newtown Park. Full details of the carnival have been provided by Mrs. Salisbury in the last couple of newsletters and is again included in the P.E. News of this edition. Please take the time to carefully read the information, especially for those students wishing to run in the competitive events.
Tuckshop
Over recent weeks there has been a significant increase in the number of tuckshop orders. While this is an encouraging reflection on the wonderful service Tegan and her faithful band of volunteers provide, the increase in orders is placing pressure on the volunteers to process 400 plus orders each Friday. Consequently, we need some more help in the Tuckshop each Friday. Even if it is for a couple of hours, any assistance will be greatly appreciated. If you can help out in any way, please contact the school as soon as possible.
School Fees
The migration of family data to the new admin system has unfortunately caused a few issues with regard to forwarding school fee statements to each family. However, we have managed to overcome these issues and statements were emailed home to families this morning. Please be advised, that the statement sent does not reflect any extra-curricular activies such as Tech Time, Chess Club, Camps and Excursions and is only covering the school fees and levies. A statement with these extra-curricular activities will follow in due course. If you have any questions in relation to your statement please contact Hazel at the school office.
Most families utilize internet banking; however, parents are more than welcome to come into the office and pay school fees at any time, eftpos facilities are available at the office. If you would like to start paying via BPAY, please contact Hazel in the front office for your biller code and reference number.
Once again, I apologize for the delay in sending out statements and any inconvenience this may have caused but it is vital that we are confident that family details are correct rather than a “fingers crossed and hope for the best” approach in launching untested financial and administrative procedures. Thank you for your continued understanding in this matter and we look forward to receiving timely payment of school fees and levies.
Happy Easter
This will be our last newsletter for the term, so I will take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy Easter. Please take care if you are travelling and I look forward to catching up with everyone after a well-earned mid semester break.
Thanks for reading…...Chris.
To learn anything new we need the Will, Skill and Thrill. Not only do we need the skill (knowledge and skills), we also need the will (motivation and engagement) and the thrill (joy, delight and excitement).
When writing we must consider…
How do we provide the knowledge and skills for our learners to write effectively?
- Consider the purpose and audience when writing
- Teach the writing conventions- text structure, ideas, cohesion, sentence structure/ punctuation, vocabulary/ word groups, spelling
- Engage in the writing process- planning, drafting, revising, proofreading/ editing, publishing
- Explore the reading/ writing connection
How do we provide the will to write by motivating and engaging the learner?
- Work towards a goal
- Provide choice and gauge interest
- Link to a purpose and relevance to the real world
- Encourage persistence and develop the traits of a learner - We are CALLed to Think
- Build relationships
How do we provide the thrill to write?
- Achieve goals
- Investigate, question, wonder, reflect on an author’s writings
- Persuade others to change something that matters
- Inform others to take action
- Entertain and delight an audience
I’m sure we can all think to a time where we had the engagement, the skills and the excitement to learn and we want the same for our Lourdes Learners. Not only do we want to focus on the knowledge and skills but also the bigger picture of how we can be effective communicators in our world with our writing skills.
Sentence Types
This week we look at a couple more sentence types that your child may have discovered in writing lessons. Great writers vary the types of sentences to impact their reader.
The Very Short Sentence - a sentence with five words or less. The intent of this sentence is to knock over the reader with powerful impact.
We can use a mentor text as teachers do, to find fabulous examples of different sentence types. The author, Paul Jennings, uses very short sentences powerfully in his short story Nails. For example, to evoke the character’s emotions he writes, “He had no more tears. He had cried them all. Every one.” And again, in the story to effectively describe the setting, “The wind screamed and howled. Tore at his hair. Stung his eyes.”
The Adverb Start is a different sentence type that creates intrigue and adds interest to writing. Adverbs describe the verb, and many adverbs end with an ly, for example, sadly, slowly, interestingly, annoyingly, fortunately…
To use an adverb start sentence, begin with the adverb and place a comma after the adverb. Here are few examples of adverb starts:
Interestingly, Mrs Wagner was not wearing heels.
Remarkably, Mr Golightly couldn’t find the words to speak.
Curiously, Mr Franzmann was able to score a century.
Undoubtedly, Mr Birch will forever be known as ‘Saint Garry’.
Can you come up with some other adverb start sentences?
Hopefully, you’ll start seeing different sentence types in your child’s writing. I wonder if you will also hear elements of will, skill and thrill when they talk of their learning. Feel free to encourage your child to think about how they can consider the will, skill and thrill in what they are learning, not only in writing but in all learning areas.
Thanks for reading.
Miranda Murray
Assistant Principal
Miranda.Murray@twb.catholic.edu.au
Faith & Religious Education News
It’s St Patrick’s Day today 17th March - we have seen some weird and wonderful St Patrick’s Day outfits today. We raised some money for Caritas Lenten Appeal.
Don’t forget about “Guessing the Number of Jelly Beans in the Jar” - our Year 6 leaders are found at the bottom of the steps near Prep at morning tea and lunch. 50c a guess – the winner will be announced on Assembly Thursday 25/3/2021
Thank you to all those families involved in Confirmation/First Eucharist preparation for coming along to get their groups organised. All families should have a group contact list – if you haven’t chosen a group – please contact me and I will forward home the contact lists. At this meeting, parents were asked to choose their Confirmation time, 1st Eucharist Mass and let me know about the numbers of family coming to the Confirmation and 1st Communion celebrations. Please get this information to me as soon as possible. If you have any questions or concerns about this preparation, please contact me (Mrs Moore) at the school office on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays or email her on Janice.Moore@twb.catholic.edu.au
Our Mini Vinnies leaders always organise an Easter Egg hunt for the Preps and Year 1’s in Week 10 this term. It would be great if these students could bring in a bag of little eggs to hide. (Shhh - don’t tell the Preps and Year 1’s!!!)
It’s 50c for “Fifty Cents Friday” during Lent. We will have a great donation for each of our chosen school charities – St Vincent De Paul and Caritas.
We have our “Holy Week Presentation” on Thursday 1st April at 12 noon in the OLOL school hall. Please come along to pray with us.
Calling for photos of Mothers and their Children for our Mother’s Day Mass next term – Take One photo per family over the Easter Holidays ready for next term! Email to Janice.Moore@twb.catholic.edu.au Please ensure photos are at school no later than Friday 30th April.
Diary Dates
Term 2
Tuesday 20th April – Term 2 begins
Tuesday 20th April – Resurrection Prayer 2:30 pm School Hall
Wednesday 21st April – 2nd Confirmation/First Eucharist Parent Meeting at 3:30 pm in OLOL Church
Friday 23rd April – OLOL Anzac Day Reflection 2:15 pm – School hall
Wednesday 5th May – OLOL Mother’s Day Mass 10.00 am – Mothers Day Photos sent to Mrs Moore by 30th April.
Have a blessed week!
Janice
Prep
Week 8 already – wow! It’s great to see the children learning our routines, checking the visual timetables to see what to do, being bucket fillers and living the Lourdes Way. Homework is going well – please remember to revise previous letters, sounds and sight words. Sometimes learning takes a while to remain in our long term memory banks so repetition is the way to go.
As part of our History unit we are visiting Cobb & Co museum this week.
Our cross country practice is going well with lots of children telling us that they are jogging at home as well!
We look forward to catching up on the 27th March in our classrooms for our Term 1 progress report.
Cheers,
Liz and Melita
Year 1
Week 8 already! Where has the term gone?
In English, we have been learning all about how to write a recount. We used the text Wombat Stew to sequence the main events of the story and recounted the day from the point of the ‘clever’ dingo. Grade 1 were introduced to a WAGOLL (what a good one looks like) and they will use this when they write their own recount, using events from a different text. 1M will sequence the events from the text ‘Lost and Found’ by Oliver Jeffers and 1B will sequence the events from the text ‘Sebastian Lives in a Hat’ by Thelma Catterwell.
What fun we are having being animal scientists! Students have been curious learners, asking lots of questions and researching about snails to build on knowledge they already know.
Don’t forget it is swimming week, next week. Students will swim every day, maybe pack a little extra in their lunchbox as they will get very hungry. Use this week to practice, dressing and undressing themselves independently, including their shoelaces.
Jen and Ange
Mother's Day Stall
With the holidays not far away, when we return for term 2, Mother’s Day will be upon us. Grade one is responsible for running the stall. We will require donations fit for our beautiful Mothers. Grade One teachers will be accepting donations for the stall. Please give them to your class teacher.
Year 2
Welcome to week 8! This term has flown by and before we know it the holidays will be here!
In English the students are becoming experts at researching and writing information reports about animals. They have been busy locating information about diet, habitat, appearance as well as other interesting facts like defence mechanisms. As part of our research the students are learning to write an introductory sentence and a concluding sentence.
In Religion we have enjoyed learning about how to be stewards for the environment. We have been very creative designing super-heroes with powers that defend the earth.
Next week is swimming week which is always a very exciting time! The year twos will be swimming at 11.00. Parents are asked to not attend lessons due to Covid Restrictions. Please ensure that they have all items named, especially goggles. Students may choose to wear a jumper, dressing gown or over their swimwear while travelling to the pool. Students have been asked to bring thongs or sandals to wear while travelling to the pool.
Notes for Parent Teacher Interviews have gone home. Let us know if you didn’t receive a note or if the times don’t suit you and we can arrange another time.
Please let us know if you have any queries or concerns.
Dennielle, Allyson, Sarah, Aleisha and Megan
Year 3
The weeks are flying by and we continue to work hard in Year 3.
In the last few weeks we have worked with money, length and time in Maths. These are very practical topics that can be practised with everyday items at home. It would be great if the children had an opportunity to count some coins, look at different ways to make different amounts of money and even purchase something small like a bottle of milk or loaf of bread to experience the real world of money and receiving change. Chatting to the children about the use of real money (not credit cards) helps with their understanding of the value of money. Discussing the length and height of everyday objects also gives the children a visual of what a millimetre, centimetre and metre looks like. Getting into the habit of telling the time, both on an analogue and digital clock, at different times of the day helps with time awareness. In English we wrote our own narratives. Students are presenting a book review of their favourite book in weeks 8 and 9. Information and a timetable for this was given - please check the children’s homework book for the timetable. We look forward to hearing about some amazing favourite books.
In RE we have been looking at the 10 Commandments, the importance of following God’s Rules and discovering the 2 great Commandments which Jesus gave us – Love God with all your heart and love your neighbour.
3G did a wonderful job of presenting assembly last week.
Year 3GM will present the assembly item this week (Thursday 18th March 2021). It would be great to see everyone there to pray with us.
3M is on assembly in Week 9.
Today we celebrated St Patrick’s Day - 17th March, we looked great in our Green outfits and we brought a gold coin for our Caritas Project Compassion Appeal.
Please also return any outstanding swimming notes ASAP. Swimming Lessons are for 5 days in Week 9. Year 3 is swimming at 10:30 -11.00 am. Remember to wear your Sports Uniform each day of swimming and have everything you bring to school named – swimmers, towel, slip on shoes, t-shirt, shorts and underwear!
In Week 10 we have our Holy Week Presentation on Thursday 1st April at 12 noon. Each class will present a small part of the Station of the Cross.
Have a great week!
Angela, Sarah, Damian and Janice
Year 4
Welcome to week 8! Hope everyone enjoyed the free dress day today for St Patrick’s Day. Gala Day is this Thursday could you please ensure that your child brings lots of water, food, hat and wears sports clothes for this day. Swimming is in week 9 and students can wear their sports uniform for the entire week, as it is easier to change. Please ensure that all notes are returned as soon as possible. Mrs Salisbury handed out Cross Country notes to the students that were interested on Wednesday.
Students have been given an assignment on a country in Africa or South America. They are to create a PowerPoint presentation. They will also have to present an oral presentation. The students will be given time in class to work on these, however they will also be required to work on these at home as part of their homework. Please make sure they are accessing their work on One Drive. They can get in their using Accessit http://au.acessit.online/ORL13 Students should be familiar with this as they have been looking at this during their Tech Lessons. These presentations will be due at the end of this term.
As we head towards the end of term, please be aware that teachers will be conducting parent/teacher interviews notes and times have been finalised for 4L and 4G. 4B will notify you of these shortly.
In the next few weeks, Year 4 students will be creating a landscape for Science-it would be helpful for each student to have a roll of alfoil, to help them shape their landscape features. 4L have started theirs already!
Don’t forget to donate 50c each week to Project Compassion. Have a wonderful two weeks!
Suzanne, Toni and Garry
Year 5
It’s week 8 and we are still putting our best effort into all of our work. We are busily working on our persuasive writing techniques with a focus on PEEL writing structure for forming arguments and incorporating persuasive devices such as modality words, personal pronouns, rhetorical questions, and rule of 3. The students are working through the learning pit in Math when it comes to problem solving and the four operations. We are working on developing our 'this is the way' mantra to help break down the steps to successfully completing these. Many discussions have been had around the building up of the quick recall of their number facts (including timetables, rainbow facts, doubles, near doubles), which is one of the main errors when completing these operations. Keep practicing at home.
Don’t forget your 50c donation for the missions each week during Lent. This is a time when we think about others that we can help in our community.
Swimming is in week 9 – Thanks to all those who have returned their notes, please return your note as soon as possible if you are yet to do so. Sports uniform can be worn each day in week 9 as it is easier for students to change. As we swim in the first session, students may come dressed in their swimmers ready. Remember girls to wear one piece please. Please ensure they have thongs, sandals or slides for walking to and from the pool. Students that don’t participate in swimming lessons may not be able to participate in water activities at camp for safety.
Students have begun using Office 365 in English and HASS and in IT lessons with Mrs Leathart. Navigating Office 365 is all about practice and the more exposure students have using and navigating this space the more confident they will become. With the use of Office 365 it is important for the students to practice correct typing skills. Please encourage your child to practice at home using Typing Tournament or by typing in word. Perhaps they could create an online journal.
Parent/teacher interviews will be conducted before holiday in 5P and early next term for 5F and 5M. A note has been sent out by Miss Packer, and Mr Franzmann and Mrs McKay will be sending one home shortly for you to select a time and date.
Our final thought to leave you with this week is how impressed we have been in the children's mindsets to learning. Our focus in year 5 is to build capable and reflective learners for school and in the wider community who use a range of strategies to succeed. Reflection is hard, but they are rising to the challenge to see who they are and how they can find ways to improve in all areas of their learning.
Tim, Jess and Emily
Year 6
Year 6 Date Claimers
Week 8: Monday 22- 25 March: Swimming lessons
Week 9 and 10 – Parent/Teacher Interviews
Week 10: Tuesday 30th March: Cross Country (training every Wednesday and Friday is an option for a great start to your morning at Newtown Park 7:30am)
In Numeracy, we will have completed our fourth learning cycle by the end of this week on angles. Next week, we transfer this knowledge to construct pyramids as scale models of the Egyptian pyramids.
In Literacy we have read Home to Mother, the young readers version of Rabbit Proof Fence. Great to hear in our class discussions, our students demonstrating Catholic Social Teachings of dignity for the human person and the Global Citizenship trait of empathy. Students are now working on a speech to present to the class about a person who has furthered the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People. An additional note has been sent home outlining our plans to watch Rabbit Proof Fence (PG) in the last week of school.
Swimming begins next Monday 22nd March. Students will need to arrive at school by 8.30am during this week and will need to bring towel, togs, goggles and a pair of thongs/slides/sandals. Also, packing extra in the lunch box during swimming week is a good idea!
Parent interviews are available in Week 9 and 10 of this term for Year Six. Each student has received a note which outlines availability of class teachers. Please send these back to school as soon as possible to ensure your preferred timeslot. We look forward to sharing your child’s learning with you.
Traits of a Lourdes Learner who Looks:
- Look for learning intentions
- Seek examples of what success look like
- Identify ways to support peers.
Traits of a Global Citizen who Looks:
1. See connections between actions on people and the environment 2. Look beyond personal interests 3. View the world critically and see things from a different perspective.
“When I am having a conversation with someone, I don’t interrupt. I let them give their opinion.” Eric Bonell on being on a Global Citizen who LOOKS.
We are proud to share our mask designs from art that demonstrate our learning about shape.
Larry, Kylie and Shauna
German
This week we are doing a German test. Next week we will be working on a Wordsearch.
This week we wanted to bring the NCCD process to your attention. This has been happening across Australia for a few years now. This is a timely reminder of what is involved. We have already met with many parents who have provided us with invaluable information on the adjustments and modifications best suited to meet the needs of their children. We really value these discussions and thank these parents for their input and information sharing.
Every year, from August to August, all schools in Australia participate in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD).
This is a cyclical, on-going process. The NCCD process requires schools to identify information already available in the school about supports provided to students with disability. These relate to legislative requirements under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and the Disability Standards for Education 2005, in line with the NCCD guidelines (2019).
Information provided about students to the Australian Government for the NCCD includes:
- year of schooling
- category of disability: physical, cognitive, sensory or social/emotional
- level of adjustment provided: support provided within quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary, substantial or extensive.
This information assists schools to:
- formally recognise the supports and adjustments provided to students with disability in schools
- consider how they can strengthen the support of students with disability in schools
- develop shared practices so that they can review their learning programs in order to improve educational outcomes for students with disability.
The NCCD provides state and federal governments with the information they need to plan more broadly for the support of students with disability.
The NCCD will have no direct impact on your child and your child will not be involved in any testing process. The school will provide data to the Australian Government in such a way that no individual student will be able to be identified – the privacy and confidentiality of all students is ensured. All information is protected by privacy laws that regulate the collection, storage and disclosure of personal information. To find out more about these matters, please refer to the Australian Government’s Privacy Policy (https://www.education.gov.au/privacy-policy).
Further information about the NCCD can be found on the NCCD Portal (https://www.nccd.edu.au) and in the attached brochure.
If you have any questions about the NCCD, please contact the school.
Until next time….
Mrs Kehoe & Mrs Jessen
Learning Support Teachers
New BOOKS!
Check out what is NEW on the green shelves in the Library this week... You can also look at the New Books and library catalogue via AccessIt. You can the Library page HERE.
Library Webpage
Please Bookmark au.accessit.online/ORL13/ on all your family devices! This page has links to Typing Tournament, Reading Eggs, Sunshine Online, Britannica (via One Search), Maths Online, Office 365, Class Learning Pages and so much more!
Library at Lunch
It is wonderful to see so many of our Year 1, 2 and 3 students in the Library at Morning Tea enjoying all that is on offer! On Wednesday last week we had computers, colouring, Bee-bots, an episode of Bluey and of course plenty of reading too!
Typing Skills are ESSENTIAL SKILLS
Typing is an essential, life skill. Here at Our Lady of Lourdes we encourage all students to work on the typing and keyboarding skills. Last week our PREP students were using Keyboard Zoo to practice essential keyboard skills.
Typing Tournament COMPETITION TIME!
TT conducts a quarterly Typing Challenge. This term the Challenge began on Sunday 14th March and runs through until March 20th. Every word typed during this time counts towards our school total. The link to TT is on the Library Webpage – au.accessit.online/ORL13/
Students should have a copy of their TT Username and Password. If not please contact Danielle.Leathart@twb.catholic.edu.au
Tech Club
Last week at Tech Club, Lizzy, from USQ, came along to educate us about drones and how they are being used in agriculture. In this session we were able to experience flying a drone and then looked at using software that was able to identify an object based on its colour. Where’s Wally has never been so easy to find!
Book Club
Book Club orders for Issue 2 are now OPEN! Please order online no later than March 18 2021. For any issues with Book Club please contact: Danielle.Leathart@twb.catholic.edu.au
National Simultaneous Storytime from SPACE on May 19 at 11am
Book Week from August 21 - 27 2021.
Looking forward to seeing you in the Library soon.
Mrs Leathart & Mrs Monte.
Upcoming Dates
Week |
Date |
Event |
Venue |
Who |
8 |
18/03/2021 |
T Ball GALA Day |
Kearney’s Spring |
Grade 4 |
9 |
22-26/03/2021 |
1-6 Swimming Lessons |
Glennie |
Grades 1-6 |
10 |
30/03/2021 |
OLOL Cross Country |
Newtown Park |
P-6 |
10 |
31/03/2021 |
Gymnastics Excursion |
Allstar Gymnastics |
Grades P-2 |
Friday Sport Draw
Week 8 |
|
19/03/21 |
|
|
|
SPORT |
|
OPPOSITION |
VENUE |
COURT/ |
TIME |
Touch Senior A Girls |
S Coren |
Rangeville SS |
Anderson Park |
West 1A |
1:45pm |
Touch Senior B Navy Girls (1) |
S Coren |
Rangeville SS |
Anderson Park |
West 1A |
1:00pm |
Touch Senior B Sky Girls (2) |
A Mills |
East SS |
Anderson Park |
West 1B |
1:00pm |
Touch Junior A Girls |
J Packer |
Rangeville SS |
Anderson Park |
East 2 |
1:00pm |
Touch Junior B Blue Girls (1) |
J Packer |
Rangeville SS |
Anderson Park |
East 2 |
1:45pm |
Touch Junior B White Girls (2) |
A Mills |
East SS |
Anderson Park |
West 1B |
1:45pm |
Cricket Senior Girls |
T Franzmann |
St Saviour's |
Captain Cook |
1 |
1:00pm |
Cricket Junior Girls |
E McKay |
Darling Heights |
Captain Cook |
6 |
1:00pm |
AFL Junior A Boys |
L Lee |
Harlaxton SS |
Queen's Park |
QP1 |
1:00pm |
AFL Senior A Boys |
L Lee |
Rangeville SS |
Queen's Park |
QP1 |
1:45pm |
Hockey Junior B Boys |
K McKenzie |
Glenvale SS |
Clyde Park |
1A |
1:00pm |
Hockey Senior B Boys |
R Salisbury |
St. Mary's College |
Clyde Park |
2B |
1:45pm |
Please Note: Should adult members of the community wish to attend an event at a public space, i.e. Friday Sport venues, they must ensure that they maintain appropriate social distance and do not join the team.
Cross Country
The Our Lady of Lourdes Cross Country Carnival will be held on Tuesday 30th March at Newtown Park. In preparation for this event, we will be running a cross country training program, as below:
Who: |
Children in grade 3-6 ONLY Due to teacher/student ratios, children in grades P-2 are not permitted to attend. |
When: |
Wednesday & Friday Mornings – Starting Wednesday 17th February 2021 and concluding on Friday 26th March 2021. |
Time: |
7:30am Sharp |
Where: |
Rose Garden – Newtown Park |
What to Bring: |
Water Bottle, Hat & Asthma Puffers if required. Students can wear their sports uniform for the entire day. |
PLEASE NOTE – STUDENTS ARE TO BE DROPPED OFF AT THE PARK AT 7:30AM.
PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU WALK YOUR CHILDREN TO THE MEETING PLACE AND CHECK THEM IN WITH THE STAFF MEMBER PRESENT.
FOLLOWING TRAINING WE WILL WALK BACK TO SCHOOL AS A GROUP.
IMPORTANT: As part of the risk assessment process for Cross Country Running, all students that run the competitive track must participate in a training program. Students can complete this at our school training sessions or individually outside of school. ALL STUDENTS wishing to run the competitive track must also have a SIGNED CONSENT form. These will be sent home with interested students.
OLOL Cross Country Carnival
Tuesday 30th March 2021 – 8:30-1:00pm – Newtown Park
Prep- Grade 2 Fun Run
- Approximate run time 9:00 – 10:00am
- Students will walk to Newtown Park in Class Groups.
- Prep, Grade 1 and 2 students will run an extended lap of the oval (approximately 600m).
- The following ribbons and house points will be presented to students in Prep – Grade 2:
1st Place |
Blue Ribbon |
20 House Points |
2nd Place |
Red Ribbon |
12 House Points |
3rd Place |
Green Ribbon |
8 House Points |
4th Place |
Yellow Ribbon |
4 House Points |
5th Place onwards |
Navy Participation Ribbon |
1 House Point |
- Race Order: Grade 2 boys, Grade 2 Girls, Grade 1 Boys, Grade 1 Girls, Prep Boys & Prep Girls.
- After these races, the P-2 students will return to school
Grade 3-6 Competitive Cross-Country Event
- Approximate starting time – 10:00am
- Students will walk to Newtown Park in class groups.
- Following the P-2 Fun Run, grade 3-6 students will participate in a competitive cross-country race.
- Students will need to nominate for this event. Only students that have completed the consent form will be allowed to run the full track. I will take nominations during PE lessons and send consent forms home.
Starting Time |
Age |
Year Born |
Distance |
10:00am |
8/9 Years boys |
2013/2012 |
1km |
10:15am |
8/9 Years girls |
2013/2012 |
2km |
10: 30am |
10 Years boys |
2011 |
2km |
10:45am |
10 Years girls |
2011 |
3km |
11:00am |
11 Years boys |
2010 |
3km |
11:15am |
11 Years girls |
2010 |
3km |
11:30am |
12 Years boys |
2009 |
3km |
11:45am |
12 Years girls |
2009 |
3km |
These are only approximate and subject to change.
The following ribbons/medallions and house/individual points will be presented to students in 9-12 years:
1st Place |
Blue Ribbon & Medallion |
20 House & Individual Points |
2nd Place |
Red Ribbon & Medallion |
12 House & Individual Points |
3rd Place |
Green Ribbon & Medallion |
8 House & Individual Points |
4th Place |
Yellow Ribbon |
4 House & Individual Points |
5th Place onwards |
|
4 House & Individual Points |
- As with Athletics and swimming, all students in grade 3 who are born in 2013 (8 years), have attended training and wish to run the competitive event, will participate in the 2012 or 9 year’s category. However, as they are not of appropriate age, they will not be eligible for age championship points, nor will they be eligible to continue on to the West Zone Carnival. These students will be awarded a place ribbon and 4 participation points, regardless of finishing place. Please see me if you require further clarification on this.
- The first 6 place getters, in the 10, 11 & 12 Years age categories, will be offered the opportunity to represent the school at the West Zone Cross Country Carnival. There are qualification times in place for this event which students must run to be eligible. These times will be adhered to regardless of whether students finished in the top 6 at our school carnival.
9-year-olds are not eligible to compete at West Zone.
- The course will be marked with markers and marshals will be stationed around the course.
- After the races, we will have presentations and return to school by 1:00pm. This is subject to change.
Grade 3-6 Fun Run
- This event is open to ALL grade 3-6 students, regardless of whether they have already run the Competitive Cross-Country Race.
- The event will be 1 lap around the competitive cross-country course.
- All students will be encouraged to at least walk the track.
- All students who participate will receive one (1) point for their house.
In the Morning before coming to School
- Please apply sunscreen before coming to school and remind the children to apply more throughout the morning.
- Students are also required to bring their morning tea and lunch with them. Depending on time, we will eat morning tea and possibly lunch at the park.
- It is crucial that the children drink lots of water, so please make sure they have a water bottle.
- PUFFERS and EPI-PENS – please make sure your child has their own with them if required.
- Please make sure students have been to the toilet prior to arriving at school. While there are toilets available at the park, we would rather avoid using them where possible.
- Students will walk to Newtown Park in Class Groups.
Spectators
Due to COVID-19 restrictions no spectators will be permitted to congregate on the main oval, where the children will be assembled, or on the inside of the track boundary. Thank you for your support.
Volunteers
If you are able to help set up in the morning, we will be down at the park from 7:30am. Grade 6 students in the Sports Leadership Group are also asked to arrive at 7:30 to assist with setting up.
Representative Sport—Toowoomba & Darling Downs Teams
Throughout the course of the year Toowoomba Primary School Sport and Darling Downs School Sport offer trials to eligible students for a variety of team and individual sports. To be eligible for selection, students need to be born in 2011, 2010 or 2009. Strict nomination requirements apply, and it is at the sole discretion of the school to decide whether to nominate individual students.
In order to gain interest levels and an idea of previous experience, a representative Sport Nomination Form will go home this week. This form outlines all relevant information regarding the trials for the whole of 2021. Please thoroughly read all information. If your child is of a high standard in their chosen sport/s and would like to be considered for nomination, please complete the nomination form and return to Ms. Salisbury ASAP. No student will be nominated for a trial without a completed form.
Congratulations to the following students on their selection in representative teams for 2021:
Riley (Grade 4) – Toowoomba Softball
Maddox (Grade 5) – Toowoomba Softball
Ezekiel (Grade 6) – West Zone Swimming
Bowie (Grade 5) – West Zone Swimming
Jack (Grade 5) – West Zone Swimming
Asher (Grade 4) – West Zone Swimming
Claire (Grade 6) – West Zone Swimming
Sophie (Grade 6) – West Zone & Darling Downs Swimming
Skye (Grade 4) – West Zone & Darling Downs Swimming
Ezekiel (Grade 6) – Toowoomba Basketball
Novena (Grade 5) – Toowoomba Basketball
Rachel.Salisbury@twb.catholic.edu.au
This Thursday the 18th of March, Tim, Darius and Tyler will be running a little stall, selling plants that they have grown this year while working in the garden. The stall will be held outside of the hall, before and after assembly. There will be various veggie seedlings, herbs, packets of seeds and bunches of fresh flowers for sale, at super bargain prices. All proceeds will be donated to Caritas. We look forward to seeing you there!
Jo Broderick
School Gardener.
After the most successful race day for the school, raising just over $22,000, the OLOL P&F would like to thank all that attended and the following people for their contributions.
Major Sponsors
Beef City / JBS
Brown & Hurley
Complete Bathrooms
Greenridge Connect
Kelly Transport, Toowoomba
Paint n Colour
Solomons Flooring
Minor Sponsors
Born n Bread Bakery
Dolley Concreting
Hancock Builders
Little Miracles Kindergarten
Auction Donors
Barry The Picture
Framer
Chris Golightly
Darren Ingram,
Magic Millions
Ron & Sue Crossley
Caitlyn Broderick
Henry & Tamara
Kiepe
Owen Studios
Pascoe Jewellers
Floral Decorations
AM Civil – Consulting Engineers
Multi Draw Donors
Antara Yoga
Athlete’s Foot
Australia Zoo
Bazinga Entertainment Centre
Big Picture
Browns The Greener Dry Cleaner
Bruce Sullivan
Bunnings
Clean 4 U
Club Glenvale
Downlands
Fitzy’s
Francisco Painting
Gail Clark
Hakfoort Group
Hello Harry
Irish Club Hotel
Jo Broderick
Kiki & Moo
Marlene Donaldson & Scott Arnold
McLean Family
Newsxpress Westridge
Non Stop Coffee
Paul Mooney Tennis Coaching
Priceline
Pump
Rhonda’s Refits
Somerville & Merrin Optometrists
Southern Hotel Motel
Spotted Cow
St Ursula's College
Stock Hotel
Sweet Cheeks Mobile Makeup
Tague Family
Dann Family
The Rock
Thomson's Pharmacy
Toowoomba Sports Club
Urban Fox Designs
Dental Van 42A is at Newtown State School and registration forms will be issued to every student at Our Lady of Lourdes this week. Please complete these forms and return them to the School Office by Friday 19/03/2021. Once we receive the registration forms and they have been processed we will contact parents for an appointment at Newtown State School.
Parents will also need to sign in at the Newtown school office before attending the Dental Van. (Please bring your Medicare card to this appointment).
The Dental Van is open Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 8.30am until 4.00pm and are closed Thursday and Friday. Our Phone number is 0408 767 779
In an emergency please contact 1300 082 662 at 8am Monday to Friday
Thank you.
Karen and Deborah
The Dental Staff