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SFX SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES 2021
Mercy Charism, Writing, Problem Solving, Wellbeing and Partnerships
Friday 16 July, 2021
Week 2
Tuesday 20 July
NAIDOC WEEK
P & F Meeting—6.00pm
NAIDOC Mass at St Joseph’s
Friday 23 July
HOUSE SPIRIT DAY
Mky Primary Math's Challenge
Pete the Sheep Workshop-Prep
Saturday 24 July
Rock Pop Mime MECC
Friday 30 July
Gold Coin Donation
Dear Parents & Guardians,
Welcome to Term 3. I hope you were all able to have at least a little time as a
family over the 2 week school break. This term is another busy one. Just this
week alone we have our Year 5s and 6s heading to Challenge Cup in Yeppoon,
Dance Fever starts for all year levels, as well as many classes participating in
Whitsunday Voices. Next week we have the NAIDOC Mass which our
indigenous students are attending, and the week concludes with our Rock Pop
Mime group, organised, and trained by our Year 6 teacher Mrs Rackham and
Mrs Leisa Persson (SFX parent), performing on Saturday evening….and this is
just the first two weeks of school! Other events over the term are our Year 5
camp, Book Week dress up day and Book Fair.
Our major event for the term will be our School Open Day, which celebrates
Catholic Education Week, 200 years of Catholic Education in Australia and our
school. We look forward to seeing you all there on the 1st of August. Please
make sure you register by Friday 23rd July.
Busy and exciting times ahead!
Learning at St Francis Xavier
Over the past 2 years we have been working on our School Teaching and Learn-
ing Framework. The framework helps us to develop and refine:
• Who we are?
• Who/what we want to become?
• Why our school exists?
• What our shared understanding of the school’s purpose is?
• What we do?
• What will be taught?
Our Teaching and Learning Framework is based on the research of leading
educational researchers, including John Hattie, Michael Fullan and Lynn Sharratt, on
making learning more visible. In doing so we have been developing a common
language around the nature of learning and the difference that inspired and
passionate teachers make. Teachers have begun to be more explicit in the learning
intentions (WALT) and criteria for success. This week, I will be sharing with you more
about learning intentions.
“Our job is to…. see learning through the eyes of kids” (John Hattie 2012)
When educators (parents and teachers) put themselves in the learning seat of the child, to “feel” what
they experience, they will identify more easily things they need to change in order to provide the most
effective learning opportunity for their child/student.
Learning for students must be made clear. Would you enroll in a course you knew nothing about?
Probably not. Children are the same. We must take the guesswork out of learning; lay all the pieces on
the table. See the learning through the eyes of the child/student. Through the use of big inquiry
questions or big learning goals, all based on the Australian Curriculum and where the point of learning is,
teachers are able to create learning intentions that deliver the teaching for focus lessons, in order to
succeed in meeting the big learning goal.
At St Francis Xavier, teachers make the intended learning very clear to the students through the
Learning Intention. New concepts or specific tasks require a learning intention, so the students know
what to focus on. Sometimes the learning intention is a familiar one from previous lessons.
Sometimes it is new. It always describes the learning, not the activity the students are doing. The
teacher then assists the students in connecting this learning to their lives, here and now. This is the
purpose of the learning…. Why do you need to be able to compare and contrast? Why should you know
your times tables? Why do you need to be able to form letters correctly? Why is it important to apply
great learning at our tables?
Students will frequently reply that this is required for the future, when they are grown-ups or teenagers
at high school. We are working toward changing this perspective to now, today, when you are 5 or 7 or
however old the student is. Through discussion, teachers assist students in making this very important
direct connection.
These learning intentions are made visible in the classroom, together with the overarching big learning
goal or inquiry question that students are working towards, to ensure success in learning together with
growth.
What can you do as a parent to reinforce this concept of making learning clear at home?
Ask your child what learning they experienced at school today.
Discuss the purpose of the learning, how it helps them NOW, TODAY.
Apply the concept of the learning intention to any household chores, responsibilities, behav-
ioral expectations you may have.
Share the reason behind the learning intention.
Together, let us remove the mystery from learning, erase the hidden agenda and share the message of
purposeful learning. In the next article on Success Criteria, I will describe what they are and explain how
they connect to the learning intention so that all learning is very explicitly stated.
Have a wonderful Term 3.
God Bless,
Jodie Benfer—APC
On Monday 12 July, Miss Leesa Jeffcoat celebrated 20 years as Diocesan
Director of Catholic Education Diocese of Rockhampton.
Congratulations Leesa!
St Francis Xavier Catholic Primary School, Mackay
Strategic Priorities 2021
1. Catholic Identity and Ethos • Effective Teaching and Learning
(NSIT Domains 2,5,6,7,8)
1.1 To embed and align Catholic Social Teaching and the Mercy charism throughout the Curriculum and the Teaching and Learning Framework.
Goal: To educate our school community on who the founders of our school are and what values they have imparted.
2.1 That our school has a culture of data informed practice where every student is engaged and learning successfully in their own ways.
Goal: To embed 6 + 1 Writing Traits to improve student writing. Goal: To plan and deliver deep learning opportunities in Mathematics enabling students to become proficient in problem solving strategies and terminology.
3. Pastoral Support and Wellbeing
(NSIT Domain 3)
4. Leadership, Partnerships and
Resourcing
(NSIT Domains 1,4,9)
3.1 Based on the Diocesan Wellbeing Framework implement a student wellbeing program that focuses on each child being the best version of themselves.
Goal: To identify and enhance the wellbeing of students through the BE YOU program (which is under the umbrella of the Diocesan Wellbeing Framework) to the school community.
4.1 To enhance and develop parent and community partnerships to improve student learning. Goal: To inform our parent body about our spelling practices and changes to spelling homework.
Assistant Principal Religion Education
Amanda Griffin
DANIEL MORCOMBE CHILD SAFETY CURRICULUM
Throughout this term, our school will be once again implementing the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Cur-
riculum with students in all year levels. The curriculum is based on principles of best practice in child safe-
ty education and centres around three key messages: Recognise, React and Report. Through a series of
lessons, students will learn how to recognise, react, and report when they are unsafe or find themselves
in situations that can have a significant detrimental effect on their physical, psychological or emotional
wellbeing.
Information about the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum can be found at
www.education.qld.gov.au/child-safety-curriculum.
RECOGNISE
This week we are starting to implement the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum. The first key safety
message of the curriculum is recognise. Recognise is about being aware of your environment.
Children, young people, and adults can all learn to take notice of what is happening around them to help
keep themselves safe. Everyone can use clues, such as the things we see, hear, smell, or feel to help pro-
tect us from harm and keep ourselves safe. Clues can be simple things that warn us about a danger, e.g.,
hearing a fire alarm or seeing smoke, that prompt us to react. We can also use clues to prepare for poten-
tially unsafe situations, e.g., if we are walking alone at night, then we try to use a well-lit route and avoid
secluded lanes or parks.
When we recognise that there might be a safety problem, we can take steps to move away or reduce the
risk or develop strategies that can help keep us safe. For instance, if you are in a busy environment such
as the Ekka or a local event where there are big crowds, you might consider what you and your child
could do if you became separated. Strategies could include: going to a highly visible pre-determined
meeting spot; writing your phone number on a card and placing it in your child’s pocket; identifying who
your child could approach if they become lost, e.g., police, staff at a booth.
BOOKING ONLINE IS ESSENTIAL
Link for weekend Mass bookings:
https://www.trybooking.com/BKACF
Confirmation Dates
Monday 26th July 6pm
Tuesday 27th July 6pm
PARISH MASS - BOOKING INFORMATION
Link for weekend Mass bookings: https://www.trybooking.com/BKACF
Booking availability commence 9am on the Monday previous. If you are unable to book on
line please phone your respective Parish on the phone numbers listed below.
For St Patrick’s, St Francis Xavier, St Mary’s and St Michael’s 0460 423 603 or 4957 4807 from 9am to 3pm Monday to Friday.
MASS TIMES
Catholic Diocese of Rockhampton website http://rok.catholic.net.au/
Includes updates from Bishop Michael; the diocesan response to COVID 19; prayers and faith resources; useful links and lots of other information regarding our diocese. Join Bishop Michael for daily mass via the link above.
30 July 2021
Gold Coin Donation
We know this is the same day as our Beanies for Brain Cancer, but as it is Australia
wide, we don’t want our students to miss out. So on Friday 30 July, students can wear
Green and Gold to show our pride of and support for our Olympic Team and wear a
beanie and bring a gold coin for Brain Cancer.
Beanies for Brain Cancer & Green and Gold Day
Friday 30 July, 2021
Assistant Principal Administration
Mary Oxenham
FRIDAY 23 JULY, 2021
House Spirit Day for this term will be held on Friday 23
July. All students are invited to wear their House
coloured polo shirts if they have them and also wear their
school hats displaying their house. Students who do not
have a house polo may wear their sports uniform. House
polos are available from Uniform Solutions.
Anaphylaxis Awareness for Parents
Parents should be aware that there are a number of students at St Francis Xavier who are anaphylactic. Anaphylaxis is a severe and sudden allergic reaction. It occurs when a person is exposed to an allergen to which they are sensitive.
There are many potential allergens that can result in an anaphylactic attack, however the most common (and most publicised) are nuts and eggs.
Schools have a duty of care to take reasonable steps to keep students safe at school. With regard to anaphylaxis procedures, our school ensures we meet our duty of care by:
• Training staff in the signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis and how to respond in the event of an anaphylactic attack.
• Ensuring a general use Epipen is available for use by first time anaphylactic sufferers.
• Ensuring Individual Action Plans and individual Epipens are available in an emergency, when they have been provided by parents.
• Communicating known allergens to camp staff if anaphylactic students are attending camp.
• Encouraging parents of relevant year levels not to bring known allergens if a severe anaphylactic are present in that year level.
• Encouraging all parents not to send food containing the most common allergens.
St Francis Xavier cannot and does not claim to be nut or egg free. It is not advised schools do this, because a school has no day to day control over what food is placed in lunch boxes in the home and is not in a position to be checking lunch boxes during the school day and determining what the ingredients of all items in the lunch box are. However, we do request that parents avoid sending products that contain nuts or eggs to school.
Exposure to allergens is impossible to manage in public places (such as a school), the most effective risk management procedures with regard to anaphylaxis are:
• Parents of anaphylactic children educating their child so that, as they become more independent they are more likely to identify their own signs and symptoms of an anaphylactic emergency and raise the alarm.
• Parents of anaphylactic children educating their child about their allergies and how to minimise risk of exposure (such as not sharing food or utensils if allergic to food, or precautions outdoors if allergic to insects).
It is also requested that parents of anaphylactic children:
• Notify the school of the student’s allergies and risk of anaphylaxis and provide appropriate medical information.
• Ensure that the school is notified of changes to the student’s medical condition or medication order.
• Ensure the student has an anaphylaxis emergency kit which includes their Action Plan completed by the student’s doctor and the student’s personal adrenaline auto-injector.
• Monitor the expiry date of the student’s adrenaline auto-injector and replace if used and before it reaches its expiry date.
St Francis Xavier Art Competition 2021
St Francis Xavier School will be holding our annual Art Competition again beginning on 26
July and ending on 20 August. There will be three awards presented in the competition:
The Judge’s Choice
The People’s Choice
The Principal’s Choice
The winning entries will be framed and hung in the school library and the winner of each
category will receive a small trophy. Our invited judge, Bradley Short an artist and owner of
Milton Framers, will determine the winner. The People’s Choice award will be determined
by staff and students. All students will be given the opportunity to vote for their choice by
secret ballot through their class. The Principal’s Choice will be awarded by Olivia.
The entry may be part of artwork that has been completed in class time or it may be an
individual’s piece completed at home. Importantly, the work must belong entirely to the
student. Therefore, all entry forms must be signed by the student and his/her parent [or
teacher – if the work has been done in class] certifying that the work is entirely that of the
student.
Entries:
• must be able to be framed and hung
• maximum size A4
• A4 art-block paper is provided by the school on request to Mrs Chick in the office
• only one entry per person
• no entry fee
• no signature on the front of the work until after judging
Entries open on 26 July and close on 20 August.
Announcement of winners will be made on Assembly in Week 10.
Assistant Principal Curiculum
Jodie Benfer
PARENT TEACHER INTERVIEWS
Parent Teacher Interviews will be held in Weeks 8 and 9 of this term. Please keep an eye out in the
newsletter for booking details.
DEVELOPLMENTAL READING TESTS (DRAS)
Over the next few weeks, classroom teachers
will be working on assessing each child on their
reading ability. We use the Developmental
Reading Assessment (DRA) tool which allows
classroom teachers to individually administer
assessment of a child’s reading capabilities. It is
a tool to be used by teachers to identify a
student’s reading level, accuracy, fluency, and
comprehension. Once levels are identified,
teachers can use this information for
instructional purposes. The assessment takes
place during Term 1 and Term 3 each year.
Throughout the year teachers constantly
monitor each child’s reading ability through guided reading groups, individual reading, and RADICAL
reading time. This allows teachers to adjust goals if changes have taken place and to cater their
teaching to the individual needs of the class.
READING GOALS
During this term, each child will have an
updated reading goal, please check in
with your child (goals are recorded in
the school diary or home reading book)
and the classroom teacher about their
individual reading goal. The goal is tai-
lored towards an area in your child’s
reading that needs to be improved.
Please make yourself aware of your
child’s goal, so you are then able to as-
sist your child with practising it during
home reading. If you are unsure about
how to assist your child with tackling the
goal at home, ask your child’s teacher to
assist you with some strategies.
Premier’s Reading Challenge
This year, our school will again participate in the Premier’s Reading Challenge. The Premier's Reading
Challenge is not a competition but a way to encourage students to develop a love of reading for life.
Children and students who complete the challenge have their efforts recognised through the receipt of a
Certificate of Achievement signed by the Premier of Queensland. Early childhood centres will also receive
a centre-wide certificate of recognition for their involvement.
For a student to successfully complete the Premier's Reading Challenge they are required to read or
experience the number of books indicated below:
• Prep to Year 2—read or experience 20 books.
• Years 3 to 4—read 20 books.
• Years 5 and above —read 15 books.
The reading period for the 2021 Premier's Reading Challenge commences on Monday 10th May and
closes Friday 27th August. A reading log has now been given to each student to fill out at home when they
complete a book. Please keep this reading log safe when students are recording their books as it will be
due back to school around Week 7 of Term 3. Please let your classroom teacher know if you require a
new log.
Miss Tayhla Wood (5W) and Miss Shannon Cross (2C)
DATE CLAIMER: Children’s Book Week – Week 7
We will celebrate Children’s Book Week for 2021 from Monday 23rd to Friday 27th of August.
Term 3 in the library is dedicated to celebrating Children's Book Week and the books that have been shortlisted for the Children's Book of the Year awards.
The children will be involved in a Book Week dress up day on Friday 27th August. Our Book Fair will be during Week 9 – further details will be out soon.
Don’t forget to visit the library and/or encourage your children to take a look at our library board display and the shortlisted children’s books for 2021.
Tuckshop News
We appreciate your support for QuickCliQ. We strive to make the
canteen ordering seamless for the school community. On 14 July, for the
start of Term 3, QuickCliQ delivered the first of a set of major releases
that includes:
• A refresh of the website, including an overall to the look and feel of
the interface. This will provide us with a foundation to build upon
in upcoming releases to modernize and simplify the parent user
experience.
• New reports for improved management visibility as well as updates
to existing reports. This is part of a major overhaul to our
reporting suite for quicker results in an updated interface.
• Simplified terms and conditions for parents and care-givers.
To fund this change and future development, as of the 14 July, we will be
increasing the booking fee cost for parents from 21 cents to 25 cents.
Please also note, the update to the website means that any bookmarks
saved previously will no longer work. We have temporarily redirected
these pages, and parents will just need to resave an bookmarks. For instance to bookmark the new login page,
they will need to first go to www.QuickCliQ.com.au and select ‘Log in” the top right hand corner. Then they will
need to re-establish a bookmark in their browser to ensure continued access.
We are committed to the continued development of our cashless online ordering system now trusted by almost
900 schools and thousands of parents across Australia.
So Sad!!!! There are a lot of school jumpers sitting in the office waiting for their owners to collect. They are washed and
ready to be worn. As far as we could see, there are no names, but you may have better luck than us, being able
to identify owners. Please collect them ASAP otherwise they will be put in the Uniform Shop for resale.
P & F MEETING
Tuesday 20 July, 2021
6.00pm
Staffroom
All families are most welcome to come along!
P & F News ~ What's Happening
P&F Meeting - 6pm July 20th
We invite family, carers, and friends to join our P&F Meeting on Tuesday 20th July commencing 6.00pm in the Staff Room. We discuss our upcoming events and how we can provide back to our kids at the school. We look forward to seeing you there!
Providing Supplies
Did you know the P&F work together to supply a number of items for our wonderful St Francis Xavier School. We thank everyone who attended our last P&F Meeting. It was decided to provide such items as Document cameras, Ukulele's, exciting new book packs, Construction Equipment and STEM supplies to name a few. Thank you, as we band together to raise funds for our children's events and equipment. We hope the equipment is enjoyed by all.
Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow
Sunday August 1st, our school is hosting an Open Day. We encourage you to attend so your children can show off their school. The P&F are working together with the school to provide refreshments and ask if you have time to offer to help, we would be very appreciative. There will be a volunteer form distributed, if you can offer any time, please add your name so we can help where we can. This will be a fabulous event and hope to see you all there.
Disco Mark your calendar for our next school disco.
Friday August 13th!
More details to come.
Uniform Shop
Just a reminder the uniform shop is open every Monday morning from 8.15am - 8.30am in the school hall. Don't forget your cash!
Did you know?
Six giant Gouldian Finches, complete with party hats, will fly into Mackay this Saturday, July 17, for the Mackay Festival of Arts.
These colourful birds will be perched on top of Artspace Mackay, Bluewater Quay, Bluewater Lagoon, Rydges Mackay, Caneland Central and Mackay Showgrounds until July 25.
Congratulations to our St Francis Xavier Rugby League & Netball players on a great 2021 Challenge Cup
carnival.
Thank you to our dedicated staff, parents and supporters for your time to make this a memorable
occasion for our students.