28 November 2019

Newsletter Articles

IMPORTANT DATES

Principals Report

Dear Parents and Carers,

In the last newsletter of the year I would like to thank everyone in St Kieran’s school community for supporting me in my year as Principal. Life is good and I have enjoyed myself very much. I love going to work each day to see and speak to the students. They always have exciting stories and they make me laugh. This last week our Year 6s are in their final days as primary school students and relishing in the thought of a long summer holiday and the start of a new journey in high school next year. Graduation on Monday night will be fantastic and to say goodbye to some of our families. Thank you to Miss Pereira for creating a magical last hurrah for our graduates.

This week I had the pleasure of announcing to Year 6 students the results of voting for School and Sports Captains for 2020. This year I have been largely impressed with Year 6’s contribution to the spirit and character of our school and believe that they have worked hard and achieved much in their years here. As school leaders they are the hands, eyes and voice of Christ. From now on, everything they do and say will impact greatly upon the rest of the student body and the school community. Such an awesome responsibility should not be taken lightly. Each year St Kieran’s school and sports captains are endorsed by their peers as the best choice to lead them through their final year at school. Together with the whole school community, we congratulate the following students who have been chosen to represent St Kieran’s Catholic School in 2020:

School Captains - Kaitlyn Lagiono & William Webber
Service Leaders - Marnie Caldwell & Hayley Winks
St Vincent De Paul - Jett Malouf & Jessica Tokawa
Corella Sport Captain- Allison Thomson & Ayla Thompson
Moondarra Sport Captain - James Kleinman & Tristan Cameron

On Thursday we will celebrate a wonderfully productive and successful year with our end of year mass. Mass at the Good Shepherd Parish as it enables us to include more of the school community in the celebration. At this time we give thanks for our Year 6 students as they graduate from primary in to secondary education for their contribution to St Kieran’s over the past seven years. We recognise the staff and parents / caregivers in our community for we would not shine without their dedication and commitment to our students. We acknowledge the support we receive from our P&F, Fair, eSmart Committees and the School Board and the time given up by those in the school community who help out each week simply because no one else is around to do the job.

Thank you again for all of our support for the year. Enjoy your holiday break and may you be blessed this Holy Season with the spirit of Christmas.

God Bless
Claudine Dank

LOVE GOD

APRE

Advent is Coming! BE ALERT!

Jesus said, “Strange signs will happen to the sun, the moon and the stars. On earth, nations will be in despair, afraid of what is coming, the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the Son of Man will appear, coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin, stand up, because your redemption is near.” (Luke 21-36)

The beginning of Advent in our Church calendar, marks the start of a brand new Church year. During these weeks, we turn our thoughts to the coming of Jesus, who is the saviour of the world. Jesus is the Son of God, present among the people God loves. That is good news!

Advent is what makes the Christmas season so special. It comes from the word ‘Adventus’, meaning ‘coming’, and is the first Church season leading up to Christmas. It is the hopeful waiting of Jesus coming to dwell among us. The colours of Advent are pink and purple, like the colours on and Advent wreath.

Father in Heaven,
Our hearts desire the warmth of your love.
Increase our longing for your Son Jesus.
Amen

Thank you all for a wonderful and eventful 2019! I wish you all a safe and happy Christmas break with families and friends!

‘May you be held on the palm of God’s hand’
Peta Laffin

LOVE LEARNING

CURRICULUM

Reports

Over the past few weeks our teachers have been working hard on completing end of year reports. These will be available on Compass at 3pm Tuesday the 3rd of December. Remember to celebrate the hard work and effort your child has put in over the school year. If you have any questions regarding your child’s report please make sure you contact their class teacher to make a time to meet.

Just a reminder for Yr 6 students that when they move across to Good Shepherd they will be given a new Compass login. This will mean they will lose access to their current Compass account so you will need to print off any reports for future reference.

This year there is also a small change for our students on IEP’s (Individual Education Plans) the report on their goals will be a part of their general report. These will be located on the back page of their report.

Indigenous Education

This term our Indigenous students have been working with Miss Young and Mrs Germaine on learning sprints. We sat with each student as they identified a goal they wanted to work towards throughout term four. They then worked each week towards achieving their goal. All of our students have made us proud with their commitment towards their goal and their positive work ethic. In recognition of their hard work we will be presenting their certificates at our final yarning circle for 2019 in the library on Monday the 2nd of December at 8:30am. All parents are welcome to attend and we will have a small morning tea following their awards. We hope to see you there.

I would like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to Miss Tiarna Young for all of the care, time and hard work she has put into working with our Indigenous students this semester.

Wahoo

Prep, Year 1 and Year 2:

The P-2 Wahoo students finished their units about under the sea with a live video conference with Reed HQ in Townsville. We saw a live coral reef, many fish and shark species, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, sea stars, shark eggs and had live discussions with a scuba diver while he was in the aquarium!

Year 3 and 4

The Year 3 and 4 Wahoo students have been finishing off their unit learning about the history of war and important figures within these wars. We have looked into World War 1, World War 2 and the Vietnam War including weaponry, tactics, important figures and Australia’s roles within these wars.

Year 5 and 6

The Year 5 and 6 Wahoo students have been running the St Kieran’s Got Talent competition within the school.

Thank you to all students who participated in the auditions and congratulations to all who made it into the finals.

Prep

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Year 6

This year, in grade six has been amazing. It has been absolutely fantastic to get to know each of the students and watch them grow and learn as the year has progressed. We have had many highlights, including sporting carnivals and school camp. As the year comes to an end my feelings are bittersweet because I will miss each student and their individual spark that they bring to St Kieran's but I am very excited to see them progress into high school and grow into the adults they will one day be. I wish them nothing but success for their futures. Ms Pereira.

Library

Book Returns: All Library books are due back next week. If you want your students to continue reading over the holidays, they can access the public library.

What shall I read: Better Reading Australia (in the link below) has published a list of the top 50 books, children around Australia have enjoyed reading – Over the holidays you may read some of the collection.

LOVE ONE ANOTHER

HPE

In HPE, our assessments have been completed and students will be working on different sports and chasing and fleeing games for the remainder of the term. I would like to take this opportunity to once again say what a pleasure it has been to take on the PE role this year. Our students are all such wonderful people and I feel blessed to have been part of their PE journey.

In School Sport news (only applicable students born in 2007,2008 or 2009), an application will be sent home this week for any students wishing to participate in swimming in the Mount Isa team. The NW trials will be in Barcaldine on the 21-22 Feb. This will be via individual nominations so any students who wish to be considered in the Mount Isa team need to have verified times. I can use the times from our swimming carnival.

If you are interested in what dates school sports are happening, please check out the North West School Sport calendar;

I wish everyone a very merry and safe Christmas and New Year and look forward to seeing you all next year.

P&F Dates

All meetings start at 5.30pm

Thursday 28th November

Playgroup

Little K’s Playgroup is free and all are welcome. Mondays 8:30am to 10:00am in the Parent Engagement Room.

Tuckshop

28/11 - Fish & Chips + Popperm Muffin and Zooper Dooper

Did you know the tuckshop can make cupcakes for your child’s birthday? $1.00 each, please enquire at the office. Phone orders can also be made.

Community Notices

St Kieran’s Buy, Swap, Sell

Guinea Pigs

Two guinea pigs for sale with cage. One male and female (she is pregnant). The are well cared for, but children are no longer wanting them. Needed to go to a good home. Call the school if interested.