Sacred Heart Primary School, Cunnamulla eNewsletter

Principal Report

As the term gets underway it is fantastic to see the learning that is taking place in our classrooms. Our new Prep students have settled in well and Miss Walker and Mrs Fett have done an amazing job teaching them the routines of school. Every other class also has well-developed routines and transitions which means that students know what to expect and what is expected of him/her.

Last week we had Mrs Kimmorely, our school Education Officer visit. While here, she helped us to create our action plan for the year of learning ahead. We have decided to focus our term one learning on creating some rigorous routines that mean that no student is able to ‘opt out’ of learning. We are starting a new phonics program called UFLI (University of Florida Literacy Institute) and rigorous learning routines will play a major role in ensuring students are developing automaticity in sound/letter knowledge. This will allow them to draw on this knowledge to effectively decode words and therefore read well. The focus of our routines will be choral responses- students repeat what the teacher has said or give an answer to a question as a whole group, cold call – students all need to think about a question posed and be ready to give the answer when called upon and the use of mini-whiteboards where students record their answers and show these to the teacher. These routines will taught in our Tuesday morning student briefing and will be used in every classroom. We are excited to see the growth in our students and an improvement in fluency and automaticity.

Sport has also been a focus over the last fortnight. We held our first swimming lessons with Miss Maryanne and hosted both our school and Cunnamulla District swimming carnivals. Xavier was victorious at our school swimming carnival and Sacred Heart took out the District Carnival. Congratulations to all swimmers who took part in the carnivals. Your strong participation and excellent sportsmanship were fantastic! Our school captain – Penny Schmidt was unable to attend the District Carnival as she was at the State Aquathon in Harvey Bay, where she came 9^th in her age group and 40^th overall. Congratulations!

We also held our leadership speeches and opening liturgy over the past fortnight. Congratulations to our school captains, house captains and school leaders. We know you will lead our school with pride – demonstrating the Habits of the Heart and Mind.

Next week I am off to the Principal forum in Toowoomba. Mrs Goodman will be on deck Monday and Tuesday as usual and then Mrs Belinda Tolete will be visiting for the remainder of the week. We will also have our Inclusion Coach – Christine L’Estrange visiting the school as well.

A PPF meeting is proposed for Tuesday 27^th February. This will be the first meeting for the year and we would love to see lots of people in attendance. Please spread the word and lock it into your calendars, 5pm!!

I hope you all have a great fortnight.

Mrs Cara Haig

Co-Principal

Prep

Welcome to Week 4! I honestly can't believe how fast this term is going. It has been a busy whirlwind over the last fortnight in Prep. We have settled into a fantastic daily routine, and the preps have done very well as they dive further into their learning. Our morning routine consists of reviewing our class expectations, morning greetings to one another and a primer game which has been such a positive start to our mornings, to ensure everyone feels as though they belong.

Our morning session has developed into literacy enriched lessons, as we focus on concepts of print when introducing and reading new stories. We are also beginning to learn about word awareness and how many words consist in familiar sentences. We have also been learning different strategies to share our thinking, known as “think, pair, share” which is a learning strategy to allow students to have an independent think, a choice to discuss with their partner and then share with the class. Excitingly, the prep students have also started the foundational skills in handwriting, as we have been controlling our pencil grip through various warm up activities, which then led to the students recognising and tracing their own name. We have also started our English rhyming unit, looking at the nursery rhyme ‘Down by the Bay’. The students are working to identify the rhyming pairs from this song. Students will continue to identify rhyming pairs from books and songs and will eventually work to create their own rhyming pair.

In mathematics, the students have been learning about a new number each day of the week, and they are doing incredibly well with recognising and identifying individual numbers. We have also been learning about sequencing parts of our day. The prep students have been identifying what happens in the daytime and what happens in the nighttime, and it is incredible to see hear their answers and justifications as to why something happens at a particular time. We will continue to build on sequencing familiar events, before we jump into learning about patterns and shapes next week.

This week, we started to learn about Lent and what this time of year means to us in a Catholic school. On Tuesday this week, we started to learn about Strove Tuesday and the meaning behind ‘Pancake Day’ and the students were lucky enough to enjoy pancakes!

It has been a busy 4 weeks, but the Prep students, Mrs Fett and I are ready to continue to embrace new learning in Prep! Have a wonderful week!

Miss Sophie Walker

Prep Teacher

Year 1

Welcome to Week 4! I can’t believe we are almost halfway through the term already! We have been very busy in the Year 1 room over the last fortnight.

In Maths we have introduced a daily review routine which the students have gotten very good at and enjoy doing everyday. As we do this review, they have the chance to work independently but also respond chorally as a class. We have also been looking at shapes and how we can use their features to identify, classify and sort them. The students have been working on retrieval practice and using their memory to recall everything they have already learnt on this topic. I am pleased to report that most of us can now identify whether a shape is a polygon and explain why or why not! We have also been focusing on recognising and representing numbers up to 30. As we go on, we wil be building up to 120.

In English we have begun our new UFLI phonics program. The focus ober the last fortnight as been to build atuomaticy with letter/sound recognition, as well as segmenting and blending CVC words. Over the next fortnight we will be focusing on applying our segmenting an blending skills to read and write CVC words. We have also been working on appropriate interaction skills and how we can use these to communicate effectively and respectfully with others. To do this we have engaged in role play, communication circles and co-constructed Success Criteria students believe will help them to interact appropriately with others. We will be continuing this process over the next fortnight and will begin adding in questions and unpacking ghe vocabulary around question words and how these words help us know what type of answet is required.

Our Integrated Unit has seen us exploring different family structures and the roles people play within their families. I was pleasantly surprised about the discussions the students have been having around this and how this has transferred to their purposeful play interactions. It was wonderful to hear all the things the students to contribute to their families at home. We will begin looking at how life has continued or changed from when students grandparents were children. I am excited to see how the students engage with the upcoming learning within the classroom.

Have a lovely fortnight and I look forward to informing you of the progress within the Year 1 room in another 2 weeks.

Miss Ellie Charlton

Year 1 Teacher

Welcome to week 4, its scary to think we have been at school for a whole month now. Year 2 has been very busy with our learning over the last two weeks. We have begun our new phonics program UFLI and through our phonic we continue to embed important learning routines. We have specifically been learning how to use the “Think, Pair, Share” learning strategy where we have a designated learning buddy who we can share our thinking with; we have also begun to use the “Choral Response” strategy where we must listen, stop then think and respond all together like a choir.

We have also begun to delve into our unit work and through this we have bene learning about maps and how to locate places on maps. We have also begun learning about the sun and the earth and how they are connected. The year two’s made a model of the sun and the earth with Mrs Campbell and I was extremely impressed with how they could explain their understanding of how the sun works.

We are also learning about Lent and what this time of year means to us in a Catholic school, we started our Lenten learning through Strove Tuesday and the students were lucky enough to enjoy pancakes!

We also farewelled Miss Carter for the rest of term 1 as she embarks on the last of her university studies. We can’t wait to welcome her back in term 2.

Miss Ailie Lewis / Miss Grace Carter

Year 2 Teacher

Year 3/4

Happy Week 4! It is crazy to think that we are already nearly halfway through Term 1! Time really does fly when you are having fun. The 3/4 students are knuckling down into their work already.

We have begun our work on place value and shape. Students have discussed the different sections on a place value chart and worked with partners to represent these numbers in a variety of ways. For shape, we have discussed the different 3D shapes that can be found in a familiar environment. We have made different 3D models of these familiar shapes. Students have also created familiar environments using 2D shapes. Be sure to look in our classroom at our map of our classroom and of the school.

In our Connected Unit, we have continued to investigate Australia Day and begun looking at the sacrament Baptism. As a class we discussed the song ‘I still call Australia Home’. We discussed specific language from the song that link to the identity and diversity of Australia. We were also lucky enough to video chat with Father Shane. We spoke with him about special symbols and emblems that we found in the church, the meaning of these symbols and the importance of them too. We asked him all of our burning questions and definitely made him think!

Last Friday, some of our 3/4 students also went across to the local pool to participate in the Districts Swimming Carnival. Congratulations to all students that participated in this swimming carnival.

A reminder to all parents and guardians, all student reading diaries are to be returned on Fridays and are the STUDENTS responsibility. It is an expectation that the student is to be reading and writing in their diary each night and that they are to bring it back to school on Friday. Thank you for your continued support. Have a nice week!

Miss Aimee Bretherton

Year 3/4 Teacher

Year 5/6

Welcome to week 4! Learning is well underway in 5/6 as the students learn skills to improve not only their reading and writing but also their artistic capabilities. The students have allowed curiosity to drive many discussions, that are aiding them in expanding their concept knowledge of a range of areas.

In English, students have been working on their sentence structure and creative writing. There has been a huge emphasis on thinking before doing, to ensure that ideas make sense before they are recorded.

Diagnostic testing has resulted in individualised learning goals to be set for not only spelling but also writing. Please ask your child what their goals are and their steps to success. Hopefully students will show you their new phonics page which outlines their goals and some practice drills.

The students shocked me with their discussion during math lessons this fortnight. Our focus this term is on number, place value and finding efficient mental strategies to solve problems. I have been loving how students are discussing their strategies and questioning each other in a way that makes them justify and share their reasoning. I have truly been able to take a back seat during our daily number talks and let the students drive their own learning. They should be congratulated on their curiosity and communication skills displayed during these lessons.

HASS has had the class deep diving into ecosystems. We are setting ourselves up with ample prior knowledge before we begin learning how humans manage the impacts that each ecosystem faces.

Art has probably been the weekly highlight, as we slowly work through the elements of design, including colour, texture, shape, line and value. Last week we created an ‘Under the Sea’ artwork using our knowledge of tints and shades (you can see these in the images). This week the students manipulated texture in some beautiful watercolour paintings. Please feel free to pop into the 5/6 classroom and check out the art we have on display.

I wish you all a lovely fortnight.

Mrs Abby Kindelan

Year 5/6 Teacher

Class Awards

Birthdays

Swimming

Swimming lessons with Miss Maryanne at the town pool have begun. All students are expected to participate in these lessons as it is part of the HPE curriculum. If your child is unwell and not able to participate in a lesson, please write a note for the classroom teacher or phone the school office. All students need to bring their togs, towel, thongs (optional) and $1 to participate.

Class swimming days and times for the next fortnight are:

Thursdays:
Year 1: 11.45am – 12.15pm
Year 2: 12.15pm – 12.45pm
Prep: 2.15pm – 2.15pm
Fridays:
Year 3/4: 12.15pm – 12.45pm
Year 5/6: 2.15pm – 2.45pm

District Swimming Carnival

Last Friday 9th February, 19 students participated in the District Swimming Carnival. Sacred Heart were the overall winners for the day. Great sportsmanship was displayed by all competitors. Congratulations to our Age Champions.

2015 Boys: Lake Wilson
2014 Boys; Noah Spaul
2013 Girls: Natasha King
2012 Girls: Laura Murphy

PPF Meeting

A PPF meeting is proposed for Tuesday 27^th February. This will be the first meeting for the year and we would love to see lots of people in attendance. Please spread the word and lock it into your calendars, 5pm!!

Tuckshop

We are pleased to announce that Ms Angela Webster will be our Tuckshop convenor for this year, so Tuckshop will start this Friday 16th February. Please down load the Flexischools App.

Flexischools App

The tuckshop uses the App called Flexischools. This will make ordering and paying for Tuckshop easier. Attached are the instructions to download and use the App. Make sure you update your child's class name.

Tution Fees

School Fees for Term 1 will be sent home. Can these please be paid by Friday 15^th March 2024. At Sacred Heart, we have several payment options for your convenience: Cash, Cheque, ETPOS, Direct Debit and Centrepay. For further details on these payment options please see the school office.

Student Protection

At Sacred Heart the safety and wellbeing of our students is our highest priority. All children should grow up free of violence or exploitation and be able to learn in a safe and supported environment. Schools have a number of specific child protection reporting obligations that are detailed in our Student Protection Processes and Guidelines.

It is a legislative requirement that all non-state schools have at least two nominated staff members to whom a student can report the behaviour of another staff member that the student considers inappropriate. We call these specially trained staff members School Student Protection Contacts, or SSPCs. Each SSPC has been nominated by the principal in recognition of their integrity, approachability and knowledge in the area of student protection. Whilst students are encouraged to speak up to any trusted adult in the school community, it is important that they know they can access these specific staff members at any time should they have worries, queries or concerns. You will have noticed posters throughout the school depicting our current SSPCs. The SSPCs are also published on our school website along with information about our student protection processes. In everything we do at Sacred Heart Primary School student safety is our highest priority, therefore the SSPCs at our school are key personnel in our overall safeguarding processes.

If a student wants to talk to someone about harm, abuse or inappropriate behaviour toward themselves or others, they can speak to a trusted staff member or one of our School Student Protection Contacts (SSPCs). The SSPCs receive additional training and are identified in the student protection posters displayed around the school.

Summary documents have been developed for parents and caregivers about our student protection obligations and our broader strategy for maintaining safe school environments.

Further information on all of the above topics can be found on the Toowoomba Catholic Schools website at the link below:

Embed Link - https://www.twb.catholic.edu.au/parents-and-community/student-protection/