T4 W6 Newsletter 2023

From The Principal

STAFFING 2024  |  It is with sadness that I announce the following staff members are leaving St Anne’s Catholic Primary School and taking up posts to further their teaching journey at different schools or journeying life differently for a while:

• Erika Milne, St Anthony’s Catholic Primary School, Rockhampton
• Dawn Goodman, St Francis Xavier Catholic Primary School, Mackay
• Fiona O’Farrell, MacKillop Catholic Primary School, Mackay
• Elyse Walsh, Maternity Leave
• Haley Saye, returning to fulltime work at St Francis Xavier Catholic Primary School, Mackay
• Leigh Ford, focusing on her mothering role
• Ally Grech, focusing on supporting her husband in the family business

I know that you join with me in thanking these staff for the great work they have done in their time with us and for us.  There will be a more formal time to thank these staff later in the term.

Dear God,

We pray for our staff members who are leaving our school.  We thank you for their dedication and service to our students and our school community.  We ask for your blessing upon them as they embark on new chapters in their lives.  We pray that you will guide them and protect them.  We pray too, that you will continue to use them to make a difference in the world and to focus on family, and to have joy and fulfillment in their new role.

NEW INCOMING STAFF:

• Georgia Moloney, APRE 2024
• Eliza Larkin
• Montannah Browne
• Siobhan Rice
• Nicola Buglass

We welcome the above new staff and most importantly to the community that is St Anne’s.  I am sure they will experience that same joy and community that we all so easily feel.

“Welcome to the Family”

Principal's Messages

Students Not Returning to St Anne's in 2024  |   If you have children at St Anne's in years Prep to Year 5 and know that your child will not be returning to St Anne's in 2024, can you please let myself or Kathy in the office know as soon as possible, so we can take this into account when planning classes and staffing for next year. 

REWARDS  |  At St. Anne's, we are committed to providing our students with a learning environment that is both challenging and supportive. We believe that all students are capable of success, and we strive to create classroom environments where all students feel valued and respected.

One of the ways that we support our students is by using positive reward systems. Reward systems can be a great way to motivate students to learn and behave well. However, we recognise that it is important to use reward systems in a way that does not undermine student autonomy.

That is why we are remodeling our systems to focus on intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation systems are designed to help students develop a love of learning and a desire to achieve for the sake of their own personal satisfaction.

Here are some of the ways that we are working to implement intrinsic motivation systems at St. Anne's:

• We are providing students with opportunities to choose their own rewards. This gives students a sense of ownership and control over their learning.
• We are focusing on rewarding students for their efforts and progress, rather than just their outcomes. This helps students to see that they are capable of success, even if they don't always achieve their goals.
• We are using positive rewards to create a positive and supportive classroom environment. This helps students to feel comfortable and valued, which makes them more likely to engage in learning.
• We are celebrating students' successes with them. This helps students to recognize their accomplishments and develop a sense of pride in their work.

We believe that by moving towards intrinsic motivation systems, we can help our students to develop a lifelong love of learning.

How Parents Can Help:

There are a number of things that parents can do at home to support the school's focus on intrinsic motivation systems. Here are a few tips:

• Provide your child with opportunities to choose their own activities. This will help them to develop a sense of autonomy and ownership over their own lives.
• Focus on praising your child for their efforts and progress, rather than just their outcomes. This will help them to develop a growth mindset and believe in their ability to succeed.
• Create a positive and supportive home environment. This will help your child to feel comfortable and valued, which will make them more likely to engage in learning.
• Celebrate your child's successes with them. This will help them to recognize their accomplishments and develop a sense of pride in their work.

By working together, we can help all students to develop a lifelong love of learning.

FAMILY WELLBEING EXPO: A Thank You to Our Staff and Parents  |  On behalf of the entire school community, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all of the staff and parents who were involved in our recent Family Wellbeing Expo. Your dedication, hard work, and enthusiasm made the event a resounding success!

The Family Wellbeing Expo was an opportunity for our school community to come together and We were thrilled to see so many parents and grandparents in attendance, we hope that you all found the event enjoyable.

The success of the expo would not have been possible without the support of our staff.  Two words, which are so simple, mean so much – THANK YOU.

We believe that strong partnerships between schools and families are essential for student success. When schools and families work together, students are more likely to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. The Family Wellbeing Expo was a perfect

example of the power of partnerships.

When schools and families work together, we can create a positive and supportive learning environment for all students and we place a great deal of value on these partnerships.

We also thank our community partnerships for their part in this event – our thanks to Woolworths for sponsoring the sausage sizzle, to Catholic School Parents Queensland for the grant to run this event, and to Margaret Ross and the Sarina Saints Soccer Club for offering workshops and to Aurizon for the kind donation of two BBQs for cooking hundreds of sausages.

Again, thank you for your involvement in our Family Wellbeing Expo!

SCHOOL DISCO | Many thanks to all staff and parents who supported our last school disco through the volunteering of time; from the doors to the kitchen to the stall and general supervision, your blood is worth bottling!!!! We appreciate you so much.

Christmas Concert

Tuckshop

The St Anne's Tuckshop is open Thursday and Friday each week. Orders can be placed and paid for online via Flexischools or cash orders can be placed first thing in the morning in a brown paper bag with the student's name, class, first or second lunch and order clearly written on the outside. If you order Tuckshop for your child, please remember to still supply friut for fruit break for that day, as well as second lunch if you only order first lunch Tuckshop. 

If you can volunteer to help in the tuckshop please ring Debbie Nielsen on ph. 0417 128 428. 

COVID Requirements

Student Protection News

Across The Curriculum

Active Reading Strategy - Summarising

Summarising connects with other comprehension strategies to make the reader ACTIVE in the reading. The ability to summarise a text, students condense a text to the essence of its meaning. The summary is in their own words and may be oral, visual or written. The purpose of summarising means students synthesise the text by adding or margin what they already know. Summaries are always written in complete sentences. 

We Value YOUR Feedback

I’d love curriculum based feedback please…. What would YOU like to learn or know more about?

For example…

• How to provide your child with prompts or questions when reading?
• Strategies teachers use during mathematics lessons?
  

Click on the link below to complete the google form. Thanks in advance for your feedback.

https://forms.gle/425GfQbCSCqmM25i6

Yours in learning,

Shona Gibson

School Therapy Dog

Over the coming weeks you will see a new addition to St Anne's!

Meet Tilly our School Dog.

What breed is she?

Tilly is a Labrador, she has a brown nose and green eyes because both her parents are chocolate labradors. Her brothers and sisters are chocolate, and she is the only yellow lab. I think this makes her extra special.

What makes Tilly different to other dogs?

Tilly was purchased and specifically bred for this role. She has been temperament tested and  completed intensive training. Tilly has already had positive imprints to children, adults and other animals (small and large) at the K9AA HQ farm/training centre. She has had early exposure to other environments including vehicles and cafes (with great caution) and vets.

All K9AA Therapy and School dogs wear a bandana when working. Tilly will be visiting the school a few times this year, and more frequently in 2024.

Why bring a dog into school?

Please see below some of the tasks that a school dog may be trained to do. 

Concerns/Questions

Please email shona_gibson@rok.catholic.edu.au if you have any questions or concerns regarding Tilly visiting St Anne's.

The Good News

From the Assistant Principal: Religious Education

Erika Milne

Vinnies Christmas Appeal 

The Vinnies Christmas Appeal serves to bring joy to families and individuals who may need a little extra support. The Christmas Season for most, is often a time of celebrating with family and friends, sharing in the joy of giving and receiving presents, laughing over family traditions and silly season moments. However, for 2.2 million Australians, including families and 750,000 children, living below the poverty line, it can be a time when meeting even their most basic needs, like having food on the table, a place to call home, or keeping the lights on is a real struggle.

Each class will gather donated items in a basket and present them to St. Vincent De Paul at our annual giving mass on Thursday 30th November 2023. To uphold the dignity of those receiving the hampers, please ensure that all food items are not due to expire for another six months and are in date and in good condition.

Finance News

Concession Card Discounts  |  If you have an existing concession card discount,  please be aware that discounts are not automatically applied to new enrolments.  Discounts are applied to each student upon individual application and there is a form that is required to be completed each time.

If you have an existing concession card registered at St Anne’s and have more than one student, please contact Sandra Adams to confirm that discounts have been applied to each student. 

Term 4 Fees  |  Term 4 fees are now over due. If you have not paid your fees in full, and do not already have a payment plan in place, please contact our Finance Officer, Sandra Adams, to discuss options. 

Sports News

Students Of The Week

Congratulations To Our Students Of The Week  |  Amelia T, Taytum C, Scout M, James M, Asher H, Isabelle B, Emilie F, Beau P, Charlotte L, Felicity E, Lucas N, Monica Z, Chiara M, Jayde C, Christopher B, Zane C, Benjamin B, Addison W, Kaly F, Marcus S, Zoe P, Lucy J, Carter R, Georgia B, Makinley M, Harper O, Riley G, Dylan G, Reuben F

Year 4 Recycling

Waste Free Wednesday

General Information

St Anne's School Bags From Harlequin

Schoolzine App For Reading Newsletters

Community News