5 June 2012

MESSAGE FROM AP - A

MESSAGE FROM AP-RE

CHANGES TO OUR REPORTING SYSTEM As you are aware, if you have been keeping up to date with the news in this school newsletter, we are implementing a new reporting system which has been set down by Brisbane Catholic Education. It is a web based system and therefore, there will be consistency with reporting across all Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, as with any new programme, one can expect hiccups, so we ask you to please, bare with any complications this first time around. One change we have had to make is the delivery of the hard copy of each child’s report card to you. The advertised day has been Thursday 21 June. This has been extended to Friday 13 July (Week One of Term 3). Therefore, every child will take home a written summative report of their achievement and progress in all learning areas for the 2012 first semester on Friday 13 July. A judgement will be made about each child’s work on the curriculum covered so far this year. In the past, student progress reports in Prep and Year One looked very different to reports in Year 2 – Year 7. All our report cards have been reorganised so as to reflect the new Australian Curriculum Standards. RUN AROUND AUSTRALIA We only have a couple of weeks left of this promotion and St Francis Xavier is still in the lead. Please pull out all stops to contribute what ever dockets you are able to. Thanks so much for all the wonderful support you have shown so far during the competition. Have a good week! Ronnie Wilson

ANOINTING MASS This Thursday 7 June at 9.30am in the Church, the Year 7 children will lead the Anointing Mass with the parishioners. This Mass for the sick is open to all who require God’s healing touch. Join in and be anointed if you require healing of the spirit or the body. The parents of Year 7 children are asked to provide a ‘cuppa’ and something to eat after Mass. PARISH SACRAMENTAL PROGRAM – Sacrament of Eucharist Over the next two weekends, a number of our students will be receiving the final sacrament of initiation – the Sacrament of Eucharist or Holy Communion. The students have already received the sacrament of Baptism, the first of the sacraments of initiation which is often referred to as our entrance into the Church. The second sacrament of initiation is Confirmation, which is seen as the perfection of Baptism and gives us the grace to live our life as a Christian boldly without shame. The final sacrament of initiation is the Sacrament of Holy Communion, and it is the only one of the three that we can (and should) receive repeatedly—even daily, if possible. In Holy Communion, we consume the Body and Blood of Christ, which unites us more closely to Him and helps us to grow in grace by living a more Christian life.

So it is only fitting that a couple of groups of students will receive their First Holy Communion on the feast of The Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) this Sunday. This feast recalls how at the Last Supper before He was to die, Jesus gave us His body and blood in the form of bread and wine to be our food of life. Each time we celebrate the Eucharist, we receive the body and blood of Christ – this communion unites us with the risen Jesus and with each other. Please keep the following students and their parents in your thoughts and prayers especially in this special Year of Grace.

YEAR OF GRACE In this Year of Grace, we are asked - What is Grace? Grace is a mysterious word, found in the Scriptures, particularly in the writings of St Paul, and speaks to us of God’s love and presence in our lives. ‘Grace is God’s practical concern for us in the uncertainties of our lives’. (Fr Pat Richards) Bishop David Walker says, ‘I see grace as the environment in which we live our life. In each moment there is a divine presence and our task is to be open to that divine presence’. ‘Grace is a real gift or favour from God that is a blessing, freely given as a benefit and received as a joy, prompting gratitude and thanksgiving’ Bishop Peter Comensoli. So Grace is: A real gift or favour (from

God) That is a blessing Freely given as a benefit And received as a joy Prompting gratitude and thanksgiving Grace can only exist and operate within a loving relationship. This is a topic we will look at next week.

Saturday 9 June, 5.30pm Mass

Sunday 10 June, 9.00am Mass

Charlotte Bellamy Levi Beil

Zach Carrodus Brody Caldaia

Samuel Davidson Llaryz Collins

Ella Desbrow Rohan Deaves

Alexandra Duke Luke Geraghty

Yardana Ivamy Bronte Hood

Jackson Kirkham Charlotte Jackson

Alicia Maiorana Robert Katic

Julia Maiorana Gidget Richardson

Brandon McPhee Benjamin Roberts

Nicolas Pledge Ally Sheldon

Joseph Sharnock Lara-Anne Stoeckl

Antoinette Zahra Raiffe Thompson

Stefania Zahra Marlon Thompson

Cheers Jackie Cameron

Virtue Student Name Class

Generosity Sam Cautela 5 Red

Enthusiasm Ella O’Brien 5 Green

Determination Will Peace 4 Gold

Forgiveness Yardana Ivamy 4 Red

Caring Aimee-Rose Rushton 7 Gold

Georgie Graham 7 Green

Service Lilly Saxon 7 Red

Helpfulness Cayla Sweeney 1 Red

Emily Le Cordier 1 Red

Rosemary Mitchell 1 Red

Piper Fielding 1 Red

Tom O’Brien Prep Gold

Conscientiousness Harry Sullivan 1 Gold

Responsibility Jarvier Subramani 3 Red

Compassion Jacob Wills 3 Gold

Daniella Fraquelli 3 Gold

Excellence Ivy Gibson 2 Gold

Sienna Austin 2 Red

Friendliness Byron Runde 2 Green

Patience Cooper Murphy Prep Green

Zachary Evans Prep Gold

FAMILY MASS – TRINITY SUNDAY Congratulations to the many families attending Family Mass on Sunday which marked the significant feast of the Holy Trinity. Never again will we take for granted making the Sign of the Cross – In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen This beautiful prayer symbolises the interconnectedness of the three in one. This is a mystery which we accept as a teaching in faith. Year 5 students read well and I personally thank Olivia Sattler and Erin Steer for stepping up to read extra parts at short notice. Thank you Olivia and Erin! The choir was made up of children from other year levels and they sang beautifully. Maureen and I wish to thank Ms Handford, Mrs Vague and Mrs Melling for their continued support of the Family Mass. VIRTUE OF THE WEEK – FORGIVENESS This is the second week of watching out for people within our community who are practising forgiveness. Below are some Signs of Success if you are practising forgiveness: -

Remember that everyone makes mistakes

Take responsibility for my mistakes

Share my feelings without taking revenge

Stop giving uncaring people the chance to hurt me

Say the word “Sorry”

Miss Barton spoke to the students about the reasons for celebrating this day along with an explanation of the emblem on the Queensland flag. We thank Miss Barton for her many words and look forward to her future visits. At this Wednesday’s Assembly, Mrs Vague’s 5 Gold will present a prayer assembly on the importance of Queensland Day and use the Queensland flag. Our parents are invited to attend this informative and prayerful assembly. TALENT QUEST – TUESDAY 19 JUNE The auditions are over, the excitement is growing and the practising is continuing in preparation for the Talent Quest which will occur on Tuesday 19 June between 11.15 – 1.00pm in the Ivey Activity Centre. The Yr 7 Spirit Committee is working hard planning and organising the 2012 St Francis’ Talent Quest. I will meet with the committee on Friday to finalise names of acts, certificates, music and order of appearances. Keep working hard on your acts and we look forward to seeing them preformed on Tuesday 19 June.

UNIFORM POLICY During different times of the term, a reminder needs to go out to our parents regarding our uniform policy. It has been noticed that the appearance of some of our students is below our expectations. The ‘scruffy’ hair look is not for our boys and girls. It is not acceptable from the leaders of our school, so it is not acceptable from our little Prep children. I ask parents to look critically at their child’s appearance – hair, shoes, track suit and hat. Is my child a reflection of the Uniform policy? I believe the majority of our parents say “Yes! Yes! Yes!” We want all our families to support the Uniform policy.

Mia Braun – P Gold Jackson Crowe – 1 Red

Jessica Hignett – 3 Gold Matthew Blower – 7 Red

Taryn Blower – 1 Red Jack Runchel – 3 Red

Katelyn Runchel – 6 Red Alec Craig – P Gold

Patrick Anning – 6 Green Grace Reeves - 4 Gold

Jada Reeves – 2 Green Jazmin – Reeves – P Gold

Harry McLoughlin – 3 Red Claudia Attard – 5 Green

Tayla Pettit – P Green Hannah Son – 2 Gold

Anna Son – P Green

QUEENSLAND DAY – 6 JUNE Each year, we remember Queensland Day on the 6 June and celebrate Queensland's official separation from New South Wales. On 6 June 1859, Queen Victoria signed the Letters Patent, authorising Queensland's separation, and confirming its status as an independent colony. This day—6 June—is now known as Queensland Day. We were fortunate to have our State Member of Broadwater, Miss Verity Barton attend our Monday Assembly and present to our Senior Leaders a Queensland flag.

Project compassion certificates for the following children will be presented at assembly tomorrow.

CONGRATULATIONS

NEW CALEDONIAN STUDENTS

Bonjour tout le monde! (Hello everyone!) As you know, the New Caledonian students will be arriving at St Francis Xavier on Monday 22 October for a week’s stay with us. We are looking for six more families to offer their homes and hearts for 4 nights during the children’s stay in Australia. The children are between 10-12 years of age and will be billeted in pairs. This means that you must be capable of having two students so they can comfort each other during their stay. If you are able to offer your hospitality, please fill out the form below as soon as possible and then send it to the office. Thank you to those generous families who have offered to take in some New Caledonian students. Merci, Nick Claudia, Jemima, Jessica and Jacinta (Yr 5) on behalf of the organising committee Our family can host 2 children from Sacré-Cœur, New Caledonia from 22-26 October. We would prefer to host boys girls ( p l e a s e circle) Name: ____________________________________________ Your child/ren: ______________________________________ Class: ____________________________________________ Phone: ____________________________________________ Email: ____________________________________________

FAMILY READING MONTH We have finished National Family Reading Month with a grand total of 4568 books being borrowed during the month of May. What a sensational effort. But just because National Family Month has finished, we would still encourage you and your child to borrow this week as we are nearly at the end of the term. The last day for borrowing will be Wednesday 13 June. GOLD COAST READER’S CUP COMPETITION On Thursday night, our very dedicated Reader’s Cup team of Thomas Jackson, Cassie Duncan, Bethany Melloy and Millie Jones will compete against twenty other Gold Coast schools in the Regional Reader’s Cup for the Gold Coast at Hillcrest Christian College. Our team has been busy reading 6 titles and will answer questions about each of the books. We wish them the very best and we are looking forward to hearing the results. GOOD LUCK! Happy Reading Mrs Jen Craig and Mrs Lisa Duncan Teacher Librarians BEATING BULLY BULLDOZER Our third character made an appearance on assembly last Monday and the Pastoral Care committee informed us about Roving Random. The team explained that unfortunately people sometimes are grumpy or have bad days and take their aggression out on others. We call these events RANDOM ACTS. However, if the same person continually hurts us or seeks us out to pick on, then this is BULLYING and BULLYING is a totally unacceptable behaviour and not welcome at our school. All children have had a lesson with Mrs Fraser and Mrs MacHunter last week about Roving Random and Random Acts and we will introduce our last character, Bully Bulldozer to the school community next term. If you have any questions regarding the Beating Bully Bulldozer program, please feel free to email our team ( j s c i a s c i @ b n e . c a t h o l i c . e d u . a u o r kjohnston@bne.catholic.edu.au). Conflict Resolution Team

RESOURCE CENTRE NEWS

Congratulations to Sharon and Darrren McLoughlin on the recent birth of their daughter Evie-Lou, 6lb 14oz sister to Millie (5 Gold) and Harry 3 Red

DIARY DATES

TUCKSHOP NEWS

COMMUNITY NEWS

6 Jun Catholic Cross Country 7 Jun Anointing Mass—Year 7 8 Jun Yr 4 Bicycle Safety 9 Jun First Communion—5.30pm Mass 10 Jun First Communion—9.00am Mass 11 Jun Queens Diamond Jubilee Celebrations School Closed 16 Jun First Communion—5.30pm Mass 17 Jun First Communion—9.00am Mass 18 Jun General Assembly 19 Jun Talent Quest 11.00—1.00pm 20 Jun General Assembly 21 Jun Bicycle Safety 22 Jun Bicycle Safety 22 Jun Last day of Term

ICT NEWS

PHYSICAL EDUCATION NEWS

DID YOU KNOW?

The tuckshop sells all of your bookshop needs. We have all the text books, exercise books and stationery requirements that your child needs. Anything that is on the booklist I have or can get

overnight.

Recently a lot of brown tuck shop bags are being heavily taped or stapled up to prevent the money falling out. This is very time consuming to undo, alternatively could you please place money either in an envelope or fold the bag over instead or you may

purchase a reusable bag for $8.00.

Thank you.

Helpers this week are:

Wednesday June 6 Sonya Belyea, Help Needed Thursday June 7 Carol Kelly, Help Needed Friday June 8 Kim Grobbelaar, Carmel Tijsen, Sharon Hood, Jodi Rintoule Monday June 11 HOLIDAY Tuesday June 12 Natasha Hunter Wednesday June 13 Shannon Bowtell, Tina Brewster

YEAR 5 TOUCH RESULTS

SFX A vs Arundel we won 6 to 1 SFX B vs Assisi A was a draw 2 to 2

SFX A vs Assisi A we won 5 to 3 SFX B vs Assisi B we won 4 to 1

iPod/iPad App of the Week

Pop Maths

A great app to consolidate number facts. When you start the game, your aim is to pop pairs of balloons that match up a math problem with the correct answer. Popping them is as simple as touching the screen as the balloons bounce around. The game can be set to work on either multiplication, division, addition or subtraction problems, or all four depending on the student’s level. The math problems start out easy, but soon increase in difficulty as you battle to master your math skills and your hand-eye coordination skills all at the same time. Terese Hogarth ICT Project Teacher

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS CROSS COUNTRY The final early morning training session was held on Monday. Team members are to meet in the quad at 8.40am for check-in before departing by bus or pre-arranged parent transport. Please wear the school athletic singlet under your sports uniform and wear black school shoes. It is a long day so bring a towel or mat to lie on. Tracksuits are recommended. PARKING In previous years St Brigid’s have received numerous complaints of cars parked illegally causing considerable concern for the local residents. All parents attending the Catholic Cross Country event at St Brigid’s Nerang are advised to:· Not park illegally across resident’s driveways OR in local shops parking bays. There will be parking for cars only on the school oval; this can be accessed via the driveway to the left hand side of the administration block at the front the school. . INTERSCHOOL SPORT All Interschool sporting fixtures were cancelled due to poor ground conditions. Please return all school sports jerseys and uniforms to the team coach by this Friday June 8. Athletics Field Events Trials in High Jump, Long Jump and Shot Put for 10-13 years students commence this Friday afternoon June 8 and will continue each Friday leading up to the school athletics carnival. RECALL OF MEDALS Unfortunately this year’s school cross country first and third place medals were set incorrectly by the trophy company into bronze for first place and gold for third. The company has offered to correct the mix-up. Please hand the medal into the office by Friday June 8. I apologise for the inconvenience and confusion. Thank you for your co-operation. Paul Fullagar PE Teacher

GRADE PREP CLASSES DIARY DATES Friday 8th June—Parents of children in all prep classes are invited to meet at 9am at Manos Garden Centre (Oxley Rd Coombabah) for a coffee and a catch up. All welcome. Friday 15th June - Parents and prep children (all classes) are meeting at the Paradise Point playground for a play and afternoon tea after school at 3.15pm. Bring bikes, scooters, etc

St. Francis Xavier P & F Meeting

Minutes for Tuesday 8th May 2012

Attendances: Jane Howard, Sandra Shervey, Sally Swanson, Carmel Tijsen, Ania Forster, Ronnie Wilson, Peter An-derson, Libby Vertullo, Todd Chapman, Dani Chapman, Janelle Dimmock, Felicity Lenehan, Anne Neville, Sandra Cook, Brighid Collins, Peggy Mucci, Lynette Tudor.

Apologies: Tina Kobler, Dianne Voss, Jodie Dovell, Samantha Murphy, Sarah Heddle, Trudie Murray, Tina Brewster, Jackie Cameron.

Peter Anderson and P&F members started meeting with a special prayer celebrating mothers in celebration of the up-coming mothers day.

Minutes from previous meeting:

Distributed in Newsletter

Accepted: Dani Chapman

Seconded: Sandra Cook

Business arising from previous meeting:

Jenny Jinks Fundraiser:

A great night had by all, very informative with approx. $2500 being raised for the Jinks Family. Good format for a fund-raiser - Casual Wine and Cheese followed by information seminar.

Entertainment Books:

Stall at Fun Run to sell more copies (Todd and Libby to man with help from any committee attending). Only 12 copies sold so far. Suggested to put Flyers outside classrooms. Ronnie to mention it on every assembly.

Cleaning of the Desks:

Peter got a quote from cleaners and to clean all of the 665 desks is going to cost $300. To do this every week for a year would cost $12,000 so therefore it is not going to happen as it is not financially viable. The clean is only going to happen every holidays as is currently being done. Peter argues that the issue of germs being spread at school or an infection from desks is not going to be resolved by weekly cleaning. Every classroom has a safe spray to clean desks that they are meant to use to keep desks clean. Some parents who attended suggested that we promote better hygiene practises at school, however, Peter suggested education needs to start at home. For example, before you eat wash your hands, after you go to the toilet wash your hands.

Peter is investigating 'Dyson' hand dryers in toilets - $1400 per unit. Looking at installing in the four toilets for better hy-giene practises.

Some attending parents also argued that they would like to be notified if a contagious infection is in the classroom your child is in.

Quotes for Blinds

Glare in the classrooms upstairs in the Ignation Building and Activity Centre. Costing has been approved and installation will be going ahead. May ask the P&F to contribute to the funding of these blinds at a future meeting.

Council Queries regarding bridge on Bayview Street

Sandy Shervey made enquiries and found out from the Councils Main Roads that at some stage Bayview Street will change to four lanes as it has reached its quota for number of cars it is carrying but the funding is not currently available so it will be looked at in another two years. Also the Council is in charge of Traffic Safety and Sandy found out that the spot for the lollipop person is where it is because after surveying it was found to be the safest spot for our children to cross.

In regards to school pick up, Sandy suggested that children moved closer to pick up area in quad to make things faster and smoother, however Ronnie and Peter said that they have been moved further down the quad to keep the children contained in an area and it wouldn't make a difference to pick up in any case.

His recommendations - The implementation of single study areas where computer usage can be supervised, and centrally controlled charging areas for mobile phones etc.. monitored by parents.

Second guest speaker was Peter Kenyon who promoted the open space idea.

23rd July - Presidents Dinner where Peter Cosgrove will be the guest speaker. Venue TBA but it will be in Brisbane. If you are interested in attending let Todd know.

Correspondence:

None

Treasurer’s Report:

Balance at end of April is $27,790.84.

Principal’s Report: Peter Anderson

Woolworth's/ Coles Promotions – The school Leadership Team has made a decision on behalf of the school that we are not going to partake in Coles and Woolworth's run promotions. These are only promoting their business for very little return to the school. This obviously does not include Run around Australia which supports all business' at Runaway Bay Shopping Centre. Attendees agreed.

General Business:

Libby to email all P&F Committee members re: Out of the Box Festival - the under 8's Festival in June at QPAC in Brisbane. In particular the Connecting the Dots seminar where Dr Tina Payne Bryson , the author of THE WHOLE BRAIN CHILD is the Key Note Speaker. Parents are welcome to register. Details to be emailed out. Passed on to Pe-ter and Janelle for the Teacher Taster programme.

Next Meeting

Tuesday 12th June 2012

MEETING CLOSED 8.30pm

Brisbane Catholic Biennial

P&F Conference - Todd Chapman attended the Sunday where Father Richard Leonard was the guest speaker. He addressed issues such as the correct use of Facebook, mobile phone, internet, etc.. Incorrect use has led to court action regarding slander. Parents need to educate children in relation to this.