Term 2 Week 9
Key Information
Term 2 Important Dates
- Week 10
- Tuesday 18th June - Board Meeting
- Wednesday 19th June - SRC Meeting, first lunch
- Thursday 20th June - Walk to School Day; Middle Leadership Meeting, 3pm
- Friday 21st June - Assembly (Year 1), 8:30am; Dress Like Your Teacher Day
Term 3 Important Dates
- Week 1 – NAIDOC Week
- Monday 8th July - First Day of Term 3; Elders Luncheon (Emerging Leaders), 10am-2pm
- Wednesday 10th July – Assembly, 8:30am; 100 Days of Prep; Careers Expo (UMY)
- Thursday 11th July – Deadly Day Out
- Friday 12th July – NAIDOC March
Tuckshop News
Our special for Week 9 is: Creamy Spinach & Mushroom Tortellini & Caramel Slice
Please have your orders in by WEDNESDAY 8:30 am.
To order: https://myschoolconnect.com.au/
OUR TUCKSHOP CREW NEEDS YOU
Miss Jamie-Lea is looking for some wonderful volunteers to help her in Tuckshop on Thursdays. You do not have to be a parent to volunteer. We have had grandparents, aunties, uncles, friends and cousins as well as mums and dads. If you are interested in volunteering, please join Miss Jamie-Lea's tuckshop volunteer group 
https://m.facebook.com/groups/
Uniform Shop
Our Uniform Shop is open to orders being placed via the app, https://myschoolconnect.com.au/
Please give us 24 hours to organise collection for your order; we generally contact you when your order is ready to collect.
If you are needing students to try on sizes, we are available:
Monday from 2:30-3pm and Wednesday from 8:10-8:30am.
Miss Heather
General News
We would love your help with our Fete this year. To find out how you can support, come along to our next FACE meeting. Please RSVP via email, phone, facebook messenger or in the office by 12th July so we can cater accordingly.
Principal's News
Well, we are almost at the end of another very busy term. Concepts have been taught and learnt, carnivals have been held, and we have had new faces join our community. Sadly, one family will be leaving our school to take up employment overseas. Isabella (Year 1) and Sophie Gillmore (Year 3) will be embarking on a great adventure at the end of this term. We wish the girls and their family a safe and uneventful journey and send our prayers and thoughts with them as they navigate an amazing new life. Miss Nina will also be finishing her role as a School Officer at the end of the term. Miss Nina has spent this term helping students in Prep and has quickly built many relationships with the students and with the whole school. Her work in this area was invaluable and she will be missed. Miss Nina will be returning home to Germany to resume her university studies. Please join us at the end of term assembly next Friday to honour the Gillmore family and Miss Nina.
School Reports
Semester 1 Reports will be issued via Compass on Wednesday, 19 June. It is important that parents and students take the time to read the comments that were written by their teacher and take note of both their areas of strength and areas for improvement, as well as comments about their attitude towards learning and levels of effort. I encourage you to discuss the key points made in the comments with your child and then help them set a learning goal for Semester 2. I have been reading the comments from the teachers and I take great pride in the progress made by all of our students. I would like to congratulate all of the students on their efforts this semester and look forward to even greater improvements in Semester 2.
FACE
Our FACE committee have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to secure prizes and sponsorship for this year's school fete event. The committee’s next meeting is on Monday 15 July at 5pm at the Leichhardt Hotel. Please join us if you would like to assist in the organisation of the fete. Food platters will be supplied. Also, if you know of anyone who would like to be involved or who may like to donate to our fundraising, please contact the school office. In saying this, the support from our community in grants received and gifts donated has been humbling. We are very grateful for this generosity given to our school. I will be naming and thanking the businesses individually in upcoming newsletters.
School Officer Day
Schools simply would not function without school support staff. From classroom assistants, to library assistants and all-round contributors to the school, our support staff are dedicated professionals. Wednesday 12 June is all about recognising, respecting and celebrating what you do to make schools accessible, safe, supportive and engaging places to learn. You have done an amazing job to keep schools running, learning continuing, and keeping our community safe. It’s time to remind everyone just how important the work our do is!
Show Time
I am looking forward to this (my first) year’s Cloncurry Show this coming weekend. Our students have submitted many entries and I am eager to see the finished products. Thank you to our staff and Mrs Ruth Chaplain for their unwavering support in assisting students to create some masterpieces.
This will be our last newsletter for the term. Our newsletter from Term 3 will now be issued fortnightly, with the first being issued on Friday 19 July (Week 2). There will be no change to the format. I wish you and your families a safe, happy time and a time to refresh and reconnect without the worry of the school day.
God bless
God bless
Mrs Karen Good
Acting Principal
Deputy's News
As Term 2 draws to a close, I am delighted to share some of the many wonderful events and achievements within the Teaching and Learning space.
Science Workshops
Our students were thrilled to participate in hands-on science workshops that sparked curiosity and encouraged collaborative learning. These workshops provided an excellent opportunity for students to engage in scientific exploration and develop a deeper understanding of the subject.
Specialist Art Lessons with Ruth Chaplain
We were fortunate to have Ruth Chaplain join us for specialist Art lessons. Her expertise and passion for art inspired our students to explore their artistic talents. The artworks created during these sessions were truly impressive and showcased the creativity within our school community. Many of these artworks will be on display at the show this weekend in the pavilion.
Robotic Workshop
The robotic workshop was a highlight for our tech-savvy students. They had the chance to explore the exciting world of robotics, developing problem-solving skills and creativity — some of the teachers looked like they were having just as much fun programming the drones.
Open Day
The Open Day was a fantastic opportunity to showcase our school to prospective families and community members. It was a wonderful day and a lot of our future leaders of the school stepped up to help out.
Staff Professional Development
Our commitment to providing high-quality education was evident in the professional development day dedicated to the new Version 9 (V9.0) Curriculum. Teachers and school officers engaged in capacity-building sessions that focused on aligning with educational standards, meeting diverse student needs, and enhancing pedagogical practices. This day was instrumental in ensuring our educators are well-equipped to deliver engaging and effective lessons.
Next week, student reports will be released for Semester 1. Please take time to sit with your child/children and discuss their reports. Your feedback and assistance in unpacking the report will help students to identify areas to improve and assist them in setting goals for their academic journey. Having said that, please take time and find at least one area for celebration, this will assist in creating a positive environment for feedback.
I wish you and your family a happy and safe holiday period filled with many moments that will become memories that live on long after the break is over.
Mr Dean Kelley
Deputy Principal - Teaching and Learning
APRE
Excitement is in the air as “The Cloncurry Show” dominates the topic of conversion. I look forward to viewing all the student's work on display in the pavilion. A huge shout out to all our wonderful staff who have made the effort to ensure our students can proudly display their amazing work! Please make sure you check it out!
On Thursday we celebrated School Officers’ Day. This day provides us with a special opportunity to say thank you to our staff who assist children with their learning and are sometimes ‘unsung heroes’. Our School Officers are wonderful people who contribute to the successes our children achieve daily. To all our School Officers, thank you! Please encourage your child/children to show their gratitude to our School Officers each and every day.
Notices:
Year 1 is on Assembly Prayer next week.
Have a blessed week
Therese Curley
APRE
Pastoral Care
URSTRONG - “Help! My Child is Gossiping & Causing Conflict!”
Is your child getting involved in conflict? Do they seem to be sparking or spreading Friendship Fires?
As social creatures, we all want to feel that we belong. Sometimes children will gossip as a means of feeling close with others. So, it’s a matter of helping your child seek connection in positive ways instead.
Here are a few angles we would suggest in your discussions with your child:
- BUILDING TRUST: In order to foster healthy friendships, your child needs to be trustworthy. If they’re at a URSTRONG School, they would have learned that Friendship Fact #3 states that Trust & Respect are the two most important qualities of a friendship. Ask your child, “How can you build trust with your friends?” Use the Friend-o-Meter in your discussion, reminding them to be a Green-Zone Friend. Here’s an activity to guide your chat!
- BE KIND-ON-PURPOSE: Explain to your child that research shows that kids who are kind are the most well-liked and trusted by their peers. Get your child to brainstorm ways they can be Kind-on-Purpose to their classmates and friends. Intentional acts of kindness not only fosters feel-good friendships, but will also improve your child’s own wellbeing (evoking positive emotions).
- SPREADING or SPARKING FRIENDSHIP FIRES: Remind your child that it’s important that they make choices that make Friendship Fires smaller, not adding fuel to Fires or spreading them around. Ask your child, “How can you put out Friendship Fires?” Here’s a video to show your child!
- STAYING OUT OF THE MIDDLE: Encourage your child to focus on their own friendships and not get stuck in the middle of others’. In Friendology, they learn about not being in the middle of a Friendship Sandwich – it’s sticky & messy in there. Here’s a video to show your child!
Lastly, here’s a little reflection sheet that might be useful. It’s helpful for children to reflect on conflict in friendships and try to see the situation from a more objective perspective. The ‘fly on the wall’ question helps them to see things from another perspective, which ultimately, helps to strengthen empathy and compassion for others.
The Resilience Project
Working on empathy helps us to identify, understand and feel what another person is feeling. When we show empathy or we do something kind for someone else our brain releases oxytocin. This leads to increasing our self-esteem/confidence, energy levels, positivity and overall happiness.
Whole Family Activity: Neighbourhood Kindness Challenge
As a family, choose-=0 an act of kindness from the list below that you would like to do for a neighbour or family friend. Each family member can select one to commit to, or you can choose to do one together.
- Cook them something delicious like a cake, hot bread, or biscuits.
- Write a note to put in their letterbox thanking them for being a great neighbour or friend.
- Design them a Thank You card.
- Pick or buy some flowers to deliver to them.
- Choose a little plant from your garden to give them.
- Make them a gift from things around your house.
- Offer to do a job for them, like wash their car or water their garden.
- Offer to take their pets for a walk.
- Invite them over for afternoon tea.
- Invite them on a walk.
- Recommend one of your favourite books to borrow and read.
- Ask them if they need anything from the shops next time you buy groceries.
- Say hello next time you see them, and ask them how their day is going.
Feel free to do more than one and spread the kindness even further!
Report back to each other in one week and share how your acts of kindness were received, and how doing them made you feel.
Family Habit Builder:
Every night at dinner, have each person thank another family member for something they’ve done or said today, or give another family member a compliment.
Feed and Succeed
I encourage all senior students to attend weekly tutoring available on Thursdays from 3-4pm!
Upcoming Events
Best regards
Mrs Schneekloth
Pastoral Care Leader
Prep
Welcome to Week 9!
During our literacy block this week, we learnt the new letters and sounds for /u/ (Umbrella Up) and /b/ (Bessie Bilby). We also learnt the new 'Tricky Words' look and one.
We were lucky enough to have Mr Delaney come and join our class for prayer on Tuesday morning. During this time, we discussed the purpose of prayer, who we pray to and practiced the Glory Be.
On Tuesday we also had a visit from Evolution Mine who sponsor the Books in Homes initiative. Every term we are lucky enough to be gifted three books to ensure that all children have the opportunity to read at home.
Keep up to date with what is happening in Prep by checking out our Little Leaders Website. I have also added an additional page called Home Learning with different activities and resources that may be useful to consolidate learning at home. Please access this via the Little Leaders Website.
Yours in fun and learning,
Miss Brock, Mrs McLauchlan, Miss Rachel, Miss Kylie and Miss Nina
Year 1
Hello Parents and Carers
We are nearly at the end of term!
This week:
In Maths, the students are continuing to look at place value. They have been putting one and two digit numbers into a place value house. We have been looking at how we can partition numbers in different ways.
In English, the students have been using their knowledge of adjectives, simple and adverb start sentences to create some awesome recounts on their weekend. The students have loved creating some sentences describing Mr Kelley and Mr Timms as well as some different animals.
Here are some photos from our visit from Evolution Mine:
Reminders:
Tuesday: Art
Thursday: Sport, No more Library and homework
Friday: Technology
Have a wonderful week.
Miss Haley and the always fun Year 1s!
Year 2
Hi Year 2 Parents and Carers
During InitiaLit this week, we have focused on the spelling combinations oi,oy, and ph. We are also looking at the comprehension strategy of Asking Questions. This term in writing, students have created an imaginative text based off of Wombat Stew. We have all finished these and they will be up on display at the Cloncurry Show this weekend. During Math, we are looking at addition and subtraction strategies and will continue with this next term.
On Friday next week, it will be dress like your teacher day. I’m looking forward to seeing the Miss Ansell interpretations!
Reminders:
- No homework next week (last week of term)
- Library is on Mondays of Week B - Please bring library books back!
Have a fantastic Show Weekend!
Miss Ansell
Year 3
Hi all
I hope everyone is excited for the long weekend and is able to go and check out the Year 3s Show writing entries. All the students worked really hard on their narratives!
Mathematics
This week has been an exciting change for the Year 3s as they have started to learn about multiplication. So far, the students have practiced tracking skip counting on their fingers and they learnt to use arrays and skip count the columns/rows to help them with their 2-, 5- and 10-times tables equations.
English
This week, the students started a two week Writer’s Toolbox challenge to work on until the end of the term. Students spent careful time planning their story and beginning to write their first draft. They focused on having four key paragraphs to describe the where, who, problem, and solution of the story. Next week, they will finish their stories and engage in peer editing activities to ensure that the sentences they’ve used are proofread and optimized. For example, they investigated if they used a range of sentence styles like W-start sentences, adverb-start sentences, or red, white, and blue sentences.
Students continued to work on their literacy activities including handwriting, spelling, and reading comprehension. They also learnt about Haikus and various rhyming styles in poetry. This was great fun!
Religion
The students participated in another Lectio Divina prayer with Mr Delaney this week. They read a psalm and focused on allowing their minds, bodies, and souls’ with gratitude.
Week 10 Reminders:
- Homework - Homework will be given to students every Monday and is due Friday.
- PE uniform Tuesday
Chaplain’s Breakfast - Tuesday & Thursday at 7:45am in MMS
Thank you
Laura Cook
Year 4
Hi all
As everyone is aware, the Show is on this weekend. If you go, please make sure you drop into the shed where the Arts & Crafts are displayed. The class has created some awesome narrative Stories that I would love for you to read.
I am going to be away for all of Week 10 - I hope everyone has had a wonderful first half of the year, and that they have a happy and safe holiday. I look forward to hearing all of the holiday stories at the beginning of next term.
This week we have been consolidating all of our learning and reviewing work we have found challenging over the past semester. We have been working on our understanding of Complex-Sentences and trying to connect as many of the features of the sentence types we have learnt to these. So far, we have identified that the Explore the Subject and Preposition start sentences are ALSO Complex-Sentences - how cool! This will continue during Week 10.
We have no new spelling sound this coming week, therefore any spelling lesson will focus on reviewing sounds/rules we have covered so far.
Reminders:
- Homework is due on Monday. There will be no homework issued for Week 10. Please ensure your child's book is returned so they are ready to go for next term.
- Chaplaincy breakfast is on Tuesday and Thursdays at 7:45am.
- This coming Friday is ‘Dress like your teacher’ day!
Have a great long weekend and enjoy your holidays!
Mairin Borlase
Year 5
Welcome to Week 9
I hope you are having a good week. It is hard to believe that we have almost reached the end of term - the time has really flown. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your support this term. I have really enjoyed working in the Year 5 class. I hope both the children and parents have a wonderful time at the Show.
English
This week we have been putting all our writing skills into practise with some quick writes. We have been working on both narrative and persuasive texts.
The children have also continued their weekly Soundwaves lessons. This week we are working on the sound ’I’. The grapheme igh is usually used before ‘T’.(e.g. light, night).
The grapheme y for ‘I’ is usually used at the end of words (e.g. by, reply).
The grapheme eye in the word eye is an unusual way to represent ‘I’.
‘I’ is also the name of the letter i. When discussing with your child, always clarify you are talking about the phoneme, not the letter name. For example, say ‘Which words have the sound ‘I’?’ instead of ‘Which words have ‘I’?
Maths
This week we have been working on multiplication facts. The children have been playing lots of games to encourage retention and quick recall of multiplication facts. I have used the Top Marks Push the Button game with success before and have introduced it to the Year 5s. They have loved the game and the competition between the children has been friendly and great to see. If you wish to use this game please click the link below it can also be used to develop number facts. https://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/hit-the-button
Homework
If you or your child is having any issues with homework, please let me know.
Specialist Subjects:
Monday: Japanese and Science
Tuesday: Drama
Wednesday: Health and Technology , students may wear their House Shirts to school
Thursday: Science and HASS
Reminders:
- Tuesdays and Thursdays: Chaplaincy breakfast begins at 7:45am.
- Wednesday : Tuckshop orders due by 8.30am
I hope you have a great week. If you have any concerns please do not hesitate to contact me.
Nicola Cullen
Year 6
Dear Families
After weeks of hard work in Art lessons and English, we have some exceptional work that we'd love you to take the time to come and see at the display at the Show. Every student should feel extremely proud of their effort and hard work and please celebrate their success. Miss Bianca Besly continues her teaching placement next week, taking on greater whole class responsibility across Y5 and Y6.
In English this week, we reviewed our persuasive writing, using criteria for success, self assessment, peer review and Writer's Toolbox AI feedback. We will investigate how we can continue to improve our writing, before beginning a new topic - most likely Health and Fitness related or possibly Drones for Education! In our reading, we finally returned to Space Boy by David Walliams (which the class continue to love) and we will continue to complete a range of comprehension texts with a main focus on unfamiliar words and their meaning within the texts. In spelling, we are investigating the common graphemes for the [n, nn, kn] phoneme and [n, ng] and we will also investigate adding the suffix [-ance, -ence] which means the action or state of e.g. attendance - the action of attending. There will be an opportunity for learners to inquire into other words which use these suffix pairs.
In Maths, we will review our work about fractions and percentages and the Think Mentals focus will be on efficiently calculating 25% or 50% using half and quarter and connecting to division strategies. Bianca will continue to lead the children into their investigation of the Cartesian Plane. This initially starts off as x-axis (letters) and y-axis (numbers) and learners need to identify locations in terms of (x, y) coordinate/ grid references. This quickly progresses into negative values in the 4 quadrants of the Cartesian Plane. We have tried to make this as practical as possible with children set challenges to investigate the school grounds.
HOMEWORK: This coming week, children will need to continue practising their multiplication facts - multiple wars with a deck of cards. Reading should be completed every evening (or as often as possible). It is important to read with your child and discuss new vocabulary and pronunciation of these words. If children always read ‘in their heads’ they won’t develop this important aspect of reading. The Premier's Reading Challenge must be completed and returned to Mr T before 23rd August to be entered into the Challenge.
Have a great week
Mike and Bianca
Subject Spotlight
Technology Recap P-6
Hello Parents and Carers
We've had another very busy term in Technology. This term we continued with digital technology. The students learnt all about coding and writing algorithms - a sequence of steps to program their games.
In Prep - Year 2, students used beet bots and the programs on their ipads: Bee-bots and Lightbot. They looked at sequencing a series of directions. For Years 3 and 4, we used the program Scratch to create an addition game for someone younger than themselves to practice their math. For Years 5 and 6 they also coded on Scratch to create a catching game for their classmates to play.
Primary PE with Mr Matthew Timms
Our students, over the last term, have participated in PE lessons where they practiced various athletic skills. The Preps focused on mastering basic running techniques, while Year 1 and 2 students honed their jumping skills, impressing everyone with their improved coordination and strength. Year 3 and 4 students worked diligently on their throwing techniques, showcasing precision and power in events like shot put, discus, and javelin. Meanwhile, Year 5 and 6 students concentrated on relays and distance running, perfecting their baton passing and endurance. The emphasis on building team spirit and encouraging one another was evident throughout the practice sessions and the Athletics Carnival itself, as students cheered on their peers, celebrated successes, and offered support when needed. We are incredibly proud of the effort and enthusiasm shown by all our students during the Athletics Carnival and their PE lessons. Their hard work and dedication paid off. Let’s continue to celebrate their achievements and encourage them to strive for their personal bests in future Physical Education lessons!
Guidance Counsellor
Every year, more and more emphasis is placed on achieving good results in exams causing many students to feel extraordinary pressure and having unrealistic expectations. This month on SchoolTV, parents will find advice on how to help students cope with the pressure and how students can work smarter to achieve the results they desire.
Exams are like a game. Once you know how to play the game, your chances of achieving great results rapidly increase. Parents can learn how to assist their kids to maintain perspective and keep their sanity intact during exam time.
Diet, exercise and sleep all play an important part in helping a student balance a busy schedule and study smarter. Keeping stress levels to a minimum and reducing anxiety can be easily achieved through careful planning and having a supportive environment.
Here is the link to the Exam Jitters edition of SchoolTV
https://sjctsv.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/exam-jitters
Mrs Bec Greaves
Guidance Counsellor
Community Information
