Dear Parents and Carers,

On Tuesday (14th) next week, the Parent Engagement Network (PEN) will meet for the first time in 2023.  Created in 2023 as an acknowledgement of the changing nature of families and schools and evolving ways of working together, the PEN is a combination of what used to be the school board and the school P&F.  

As a Catholic school, St Saviour's Primary School considers the partnership with parents and families as crucial in the education of each student and to the school being actively involved in the local community.  As a school we welcome the involvement of parents and families in all aspects of school life and it is thought this network that we provide an avenue for parents and families to come together and be informed, consulted, engaged and learn in relation to planning, policy, decision making and educational programs.

All parents/guardians are welcome to be members of the Network and assist in:

• developing a positive and affirming community spirit
• supporting the work of the principal and staff
• providing feedback to the principal and staff
• promoting consultation between home and school, parents and teachers
• encouraging parent/family engagement with their child's learning and school life
• deepening parent/family understanding of teaching and learning programs
• promoting the school in the wider community
• the provision of resources to promote the educational program

Meetings only take place once a term.  Please see the agenda below for next Tuesday's meeting: 

The first event organised by the community working party will be the 2023 Welcome BBQ and Disco.

For those who are interested, the meeting will commence at 5.30pm in the conference room.  All parents/guardians are welcome.

NAPLAN 2023

In 2023, NAPLAN will commence in Week 8 of Term 1 for our Yr 3 & 5 students.  

The below link will take you to the NAPLAN parent brochure for 2023.  This brochure provides you with key information including the purpose of NAPLAN, what it assesses, participation in NAPLAN and a range of other key points.  If your child is in YEar 3 or 5 this year, please take the time to read the brochure.

This link will take you to the public demonstration site for NAPLAN.  Here you can view the types of questions the students will be asked:

Over the next few weeks students in Years 3 & 5 will also be participating in practice tests for each of the disciplines mentioned above.  These will take place online (apart from year 3 writing) as they will on the day.

All children are expected to sit NAPLAN testing, however if you are unsure about whether your child should be participating (for any number of reasons), please make contact with your child's teacher.

Thanks for reading

Sam Hannant

Acting Principal

St Saviour's Primary Parent Engagement Network (PEN) would like to invite all of our wonderful families to come and join in a fun afternoon at our welcome BBQ! There will be a prep afternoon tea, free sausage sizzle, drinks for sale and also a disco for the St Saviour's students to enjoy.

Please see the agenda below:

Prep afternoon tea from 3.00pm to 4.30pm  (food provided for prep children)
Welcome BBQ to commence at 5pm - all families welcome (including Prep)
Disco Years 1 and 2 St Saviour's students - 5pm to 5.45pm
Disco Years 3 to 6 St Saviour's students - 6pm to 6.45pm

If you would like to attend please RSVP by Friday 10th February by clicking on the link below and completing the form
https://forms.office.com/r/9QsTymrjjd

If you are able to volunteer on the afternoon please make sure to indicate this when completing the form.

Welcome to Week 3! It's already been such a busy time settling into new school routines and the calendar is filling quickly! 

This week on Wednesday morning, we celebrated our first whole school Mass together. The theme was Service to others, the cornerstone value of McAuley house. Fr Michael shared with us a rocket display! He encouraged us all to reach high in our learning, work hard towards reaching our goals and never give up just like Catherine McAuley showed us. After Mass, our McAuley leaders rang the bell and shared the excitement of beginning a new school year together.

Thank you to the members of McAuley house who led our Mass through participation in songs and prayer. In particular, the following students represented McAuley with courage and pride; Lacey Sanders 6O, Grayson Nissen 6O, Sophie Enders 5C, William Prust 4C, Nyibol Nhial 3C, Xavier Adams 3K, Nyigok Gakeer 4C, Charlotte Grundon 6L, Mae Kearney 6S, Hari Vinod 5H, Harley McLeod 5H, Lola Woods 4C, Kobie Matthews 6O, Samuel Abot 5H, Maya Adams 5C, Ayen Gakeer 6O, Kobe Kearney 6O, Angelina Ones 6O, Claudia Shoebridge 6L, Willa Schuh 6L, Katelyn Sheedy 4GC, Lydie Kanyana 6O. Thank you students for your willing and enthusiastic participation.

Thank you to the parents & friends who were able to join us. We look forward to welcoming many of you to our school Masses and class liturgies throughout the year.

Weekly class/parish Masses have begun this week. Year 6 and the senior Religion class at St Saviour’s College came together to celebrate Mass on Tuesday. This will continue throughout the term with a different year level joining in each week. Parents/friends/community members are welcome to this Tuesday morning Mass at the Cathedral beginning at 9am. Please check your child’s class communication note for exact dates.

2023 Sacramental Program We look forward to welcoming you to the parent information evening about the Reconciliation program on Thursday 16 February 7pm at the Cathedral Centre (approximately 30 minutes). The enrolment ritual will be held at Mass on either Saturday 25 February 6pm or Sunday morning 26 February at 10am Mass. Further information will be shared at the information evening. Cluster groups start Sunday 26^th February 10.15am or Thursday 2^nd March 3.30pm

Date claimers

Tuesday 21^st February – Shrove Tuesday – McAuley will be hosting the sale of pancakes at Morning tea. If you’re able to cook pancakes and share them on Tuesday, we’d appreciate it. Please email me for futher information. Students are encouraged to buy a pancake to support our fundraising efforts for the Sisters of Mercy.

Wednesday 22^nd February – Ash Wednesday – Years 4,5 & 6 will gather in the Mercy Centre for this Liturgy and to receive ashes. This signifies the beginning of Lent and the 40 days of reflection leading to Easter. 

Thank you for reading and have a great week!

Ann-Maree 

Welcome to the third week of learning and teaching for all at St Saviour's Primary!

School Library Week is being celebrated around Queensland from 13th – 17th February with the theme,

School Libraries Devoted To You.

• We will challenge students to share what this means to them as learners.
• There will be special theme related paper activities available during Wednesday lunch-time library
• Students will also be invited to illustrate the theme for a chance to enter the State run competition organised by the Queensland Schools Library Association. See following details or online at https://www.qsla.org.au/qslw 

Queensland School Library Week 2023 - Competition 

The primary competition has two categories, Prep - Year 2 and Year 3 - Year 6. 

Prep - Year 2:  What do you love about your school library? Draw or paint a picture to illustrate this.  Your picture should be on an A4 sheet.  Add a caption if you like.

Year 3 - Year 6:  Take a photo or produce an artwork inspired by the theme: School Libraries Devoted to You.

One entry for each category will be chosen for the State Competition.

Winners will each receive a $50 book voucher and their school will receive a $100 book voucher. Schools will be notified of winning students’ names via email.

  Entries can be left with Library staff on or before Monday 27th February. All entries will be displayed in the hallway near the library. 

 Student/Adult Book Club 

Year 5 and 6 students, along with a family member, are invited to form a Book Club!

Come along to the first gathering of our Student/Adult Book Club in the library on Monday 20th (Week 5) at 3.30pm. We will discuss the Book Club and decide on our first book. Interested students are welcome to attend without their family member if this time is not suitable. Please email your expression of interest to anne.anderson@twb.catholic.edu.au  

 Thank you for taking the time to read with your students at home

Anne Anderson

Teacher Librarian

St Saviour's Primary Swimming Carnival 2023 

St Saviour’s Primary Swimming Carnival was held on the 31st of January at Glennie Aquatic Centre. Students from Year Three to Year Six were involved in freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly in both 50m and 25m events. The carnival concluded with a Year Six relay involving the four houses. All students put in a mammoth effort in both the swimming and the cheering on the day. It was a tough competition, but Goretti was the overall winning house also winning the relay. Age champions for the day are listed below. Congratulations to those students who are representing St Saviour’s Primary at the Catholic and Central Zone swimming carnivals next week (Photos Attached). 

• 9-Year-Old Girls – Indi Brookman, Nina Lucas, Makaya Teske (Runner Up) 

• 9-Year-Old Boys – Brooklyn Metcalfe, Darcy Phillips, Parker Littleton Erbs (Runner Up) 
• 10-Year-Old Girls – Emily Carrigan, Emily Bignell (Runner Up) 
• 10-Year-Old Boys – Liam McHugh, William Prust (Runner Up) 
• 11-Year-Old Girls – Sophie Enders, Lily Brookman (Runner Up) 
• 11-Year-Old Boys – Cooper Dunlop, Joseph Humphreys (Runner Up) 

• 12-Year-Old Girls – Mia Casagrande, Charlize Rogers (Runner Up)

Fitness Club 

Fitness club started up again this week with around 40 students attending (Photo Attached). Fitness club is a fun way for your child to work on their fitness with their peers in preparation for the SSPS Cross Country in the last week of Term One. These sessions are offered to students in Year Three to Year Six. Fitness club runs every Tuesday and Thursday morning from 7:15am - 8am running till Thursday 23rd of March 2023. Your child is welcome to attend all sessions, once a week or whatever suits your family schedule. Thank you to Mrs McHugh, Mrs Wagner, and Mr Logan for helping with running these sessions. If you have any questions, please email me via Brendan.luck@twb.catholic.edu.au. 

Athletics Champs 

Emily Carrigan and Ava Orr competed in the Little Athletics Downs and South West Regional Championships over the weekend with both girls doing an amazing job on the day. Emily won shotput and discus breaking the regional record in shotput with a throw of 9.73m. This record was set in 1987 and has stood for 36 years. Ava came 2nd in shotput and 1st in discus throwing 25.98m also breaking the current record (Photos Attached). 

Zone and Darling Downs Trials 

All Zone and Darling Downs trials will be placed on Parent Portal. Please check Parent Portal regularly or set up notifications on your phone if you wish for your child to be eligible to trial for Zone and Darling Downs sporting teams as you will be required to obtain paperwork from myself. I am unable to nominate students after the closing date so please make sure you do keep an eye on Parent Portal. Any questions, please contact me at brendan.luck@twb.catholic.edu.au. 

Upcoming Events (Term One) 

• Catholic Schools Swimming Carnival – 10/02/2022 
• Central Zone Swimming Carnival – 15/02/2023 
• Swimming Lessons (3-6) – 20-24/02/2023 
• Regional Swimming Carnival – 28/02/2023
• Swimming Lessons (Prep – 2) – 13-17/03/2023 
• Junior Swimming Carnival (Prep – 2) 27/03/2023 
• SSPS Cross Country – 30/03/2023

Cheers 

Brendan Luck 

HPE Teacher 

brendan.luck@twb.catholic.edu.au 

Classes across the school are continuing to work through the Positive Education Enhanced Curriculum (PEEC). During these first few weeks of term, the focus has been on re-introducing students to PEEC, exploring the concept of flourishing and being kind to themselves and one-another.   

Flourishing is a combination of feeling good and functioning well. Functioning well begins with attention – bringing an attitude of interest and curiosity to the world around us, which in turn leads to engagement, embracing opportunities, and developing our full potential. Functioning well also includes self-regulation- the ability to manage our thoughts, feelings and behaviours, and to reflect on our experiences, not denying or burying them. This allows us to make better choices and to be resilient in the face of difficulties or challenges. Finally, functioning well extend beyond the self, by contributing to the wellbeing of others.  

To continue the learning at home, we encourage you to open up discussions with your child about what contributes to their wellbeing. Here are some resources and questions that may be helpful:  

• Watch the recording ‘I am Enough’ by Grace Byers (7 minutes). Follow-up by asking: What does it mean to you to say to yourself ‘I am enough’? 
• Watch the recording ‘I am Human’ by Susan Verde and discuss.  

• Discussion questions: Tell me about a time when someone was kind to you. How did it make you feel? How does it feel to be kind to others?  

Students will continue to explore these topics in the coming weeks and we look forward to sharing more with you as the term progresses.  

For more tips and resources, please jump on to the SSPS Wellbeing Hub.   

Anne Woodcroft-Brown

School Fees:

Term 1 School Fees are due for payment on Friday 24th February. 

School Dental Forms REMINDER:

Free dental care is offered to all Queensland students from the age of four to the completion of Grade 10 through the School Dental Service. The dental team consists of a dentist, dental therapists, oral health therapists and dental assistants.  You will be advised if your child needs specialist dental treatment.

Students at St Saviour's Primary School are now being offered dental treatment through the School Dental Service at Rangeville Dental Clinic, South Street.  

If you would like your child/children to participate in the free dental care program, please complete each section of the registration form (forms have been sent home today), sign and return it to the School Office by 10^th February 2023.

Please note that by signing this form, you are only advising our service of your wish to participate in the dental care program and providing personal information to allow us to contact you.  Using the information that you provide to us, a staff member will contact you to arrange an appointment.

Please remember

• Students will be seen at the Rangeville Dental Clinic, South Street.
• Parents/Legal Guardians must attend all appointments & must hold a current Medicare Card-please bring this card to the appointment.
• There are limited appointments available before and after school and most appointments will have to be during school time.
• Oral Health does not accept any responsibility for transport of the children to and from their appointments.

Peak 2 Park:

The Optimise Heath Peak 2 Park is being held on Sunday March 5, and St Saviour's Primary School will be participating. 

Peak 2 Park is an annual 10km and 4km fun run and walk which is held in Toowoomba on the first Sunday in March.

This year St Saviour's Primary will be taking registrations for students who wish to participate in the 4k event which starts at 7.45am.  Cost of registrations for students at SSPS is $10.  Registration forms are available at the office.  Children who wish to participate will be participating under St Saviour's Primary School and therefore will need to wear their sports uniform on the day.  

Families who wish to participate can also take part.  Family entry is $45.

Invidivual entry is $10.  

Staff from St Saviour's Primary will also be participating in the event and will be providing supervision for the children who wish to participate.  Please note that if your child does take part on his or her own, parents will need to be at the finish line to collect your child.

Registration forms are available from the school office. 

This is a fantastic event to participate in and all monies raised do go to charity.  

Congratulations to our Weekly Award Winners for Week 2, Term 1

School Photo Day

Please see information below that has been sent to all Prep families regarding Prep Vision Screenings.

The Primary School Nurse Health Readiness Program will be screening at St Saviour's Primary commencing on Monday 6^th March 2023.

We are a Queensland Government service that offers Free Vision Screening to all children enrolled in Prep.  If your child is in Prep and you would like their vision screened, you will need to complete a consent form. 

The following video explains the benefits of having your Prep child’s vision screened- “What is Prep Vision Screening?”

Please click on the following link to access the Online Consent Form and Parent Information Letter: https://visionscreening.health.qld.gov.au/ParentalConsent/3011kUIN

REMINDERS:

Tuckshop is only available MONDAY and FRIDAY. 

Ordering is via Flexischools.  The cut off time for ordering is 9.30am.

If you would like to volunteer and help out at the Tuckshop please contact Renee on 0417 797 8554.