Week 10, Term 2, 2023

Dear Parents and Carers,

I would like to take this opportunity to recognise the enormous contribution of Ms Madonna Sleba to the St Saviour's Primary School Community. During the last five and a half years the school has moved to new heights in terms of teaching and learning, resources, enrolment numbers and Catholic identity under Madonna's leadership.  St Saviour's Primary is certainly a better place for her presence.

A lasting legacy of Madonna's time is the impact she has left on teaching and learning at St Saviour's.  Students have benefited from her wisdom and guidence in this particular area which has led to her new role as Director of Education Services at Toowoomba Catholic Schools.

Other notable mentions include the vision to create a third Prep classroom which has opened the school up to between 20 and 30 extra prep students each year,  moving from iPads to laptop devices in the upper years of primary which has helped many students transition comfortably to secondary school. She has helped to increase parent engagement in learning as St Saviour's transitioned from a P&F and School Board to a Parent Engagement Network.  Of course, the latest refurbishments to the school, including a new office, library and classrooms would not have been possible without Madonna's foresight.  

Madonna has also been a strong mentor to many staff and a role model to countless students. As a school, we will had the opportunity to congratulate Madonna on her new position at our final assembly this morning.  

Good luck in your new role Madonna!

TCS ARTSFest

ArtsFest has been taking place for the last four days at various venues across Toowoomba.  I have been lucky enough to attend many of the performances and see the incredible talent we have at St Saviour's Primary and across the Diocese.  

I would like to thank Anita McVeigh and Kathryn Stewart in particular who have worked tirelessly to make sure all events ran smoothly.  They were ably assisted by Miss Nicarla Prentice, Ms Rachel Harlen, Mrs Lisa Cavanagh, Mrs Bee King, Mrs Tarsha Scotts, Mrs Shelley Murphy and Miss Madelyn Robinson.  We are incredibly fortunate to have such dedicated staff to support our amazing students at St Saviour's Primary.

Uniform Reminders

Please see below a section from the school uniform policy.  I have noted recently that there are a few hairstyles that can be classed as 'extreme'.  Please take the time during the holidays to have these hairstyles rectified so that 'hair is neat and tidy, and worn off the face'.  Hair cuts should not bring attention to ones' self.  Thank-you for your attention to this matter.

Staffing News

Leadership Team - Whilst the recruiment process takes place for a new principal, the leadership team will remain the same for the remainder of 2023.  That is, Sam Hannant (Acting Principal), Ann-Maree Ward (APRE), Nicarla Prentice (Acting APA) and Rebecca Thomas (Acting Middle Leader - 3 days per week)

Prep T - Whilst Rebecca is in the Middle Leader Role, Janelle Wann will continue in Prep T for 3 days a week.

3S - Mrs Judy Smith is reducing her days to 3 days per week so that she can help care for her mother.  Mrs Melinda Harkins will continue in 3S for the other two days in Term 3.  

Annette Murdoch is taking long service leave for the first 4 weeks of term 3.  Lisa Kynoch will be replacing Annette during this time and Cate Bell will be teaching 3K.

Madelyn Robinson who has been working with our prep classes during Semester One has now graduated university as a teacher and has taken a position at Sacred Heart for the remainder of the year.  We wish Madelyn all the best!

Tuckshop

Tuckshop at St Saviour's Primary is a valued service that currently offers a wide variety of options for students.  We would very much love for this to continue, however that is only possible with the help of volunteers, particularly on Fridays (some days over 450 orders).

Starting in Term 3, we are going to trial having a particular year level being responsible for supplying volunteers to tuckshop each week.  It is hoped that with this in place, parents will have plenty of notice and can book a time well in advance.  

If you are available on the below days, please email Renee.Kilpatrick@twb.catholic.edu.au and include your child's classroom teacher in the email.  2 volunteers each Friday would be fantastic.

Week 2 (Friday 21st July) - Prep

Week 3 (Pupil Free Day)

Week 4 (Friday 4 August) - Year 1

Week 5 (Friday 11 August) - Year 2

Week 6 (Friday 18 August) - Year 3

Week 7 (Friday 25 August) - Year 4

Week 8 (Pupil Free Day)

Week 9 (Friday 8 September) - Year 5

Week 10 (Friday 15 September) - Year 6

Have a fantastic holiday everyone!

Sam Hannant

Ms Sleba's farewell Assembly 23/6/2023

Hello SSPS Community!

This term, the Year 6 students formed a Service-Learning group where they have been focussing on giving their time and attention to the residents of Brodribb Nursing home. In between their monthly visits where they celebrate Mass together, the students have been thinking hard of many ways they can connect with their new friends and form strong link with the elderly in our community. Last visit we shared a video of the students performing an African Blessing. It was very well received. Below is a picture of Alistair, Lacey, Ciarah and Annabelle with Gloria Collins. Gloria is a past SSPS student and recollects her time at our Primary school when the Church bell was installed. Fr Michael kindly put her words with his reflection which he shared with me.

Thanks to Mini Vinnies and Mrs Cooper for their time and commitment in compiling the "Blessing bags" for a women's shelter in Toowoomba. Manna House is a St Vincent De Paul crisis centre here in Toowoomba. It is one of the largest, if not the largest in QLD and families come from all over Australia. These were presented to Rachelle from St Vincent De Paul at our end of term assembly. We know that our blessing bags will be put to good use. A HUGE "Thank you!" to you, our school community for supporting the most vulnerable and those most in need in Toowoomba. This act of Service is what being at SSPS is all about!

Week 3 next term, we will take the time to celebrate our school community which is based on a Catholic faith education. This is a state wide celebration with a number of events across the week including our school Mass on Monday 24 July, Andrew Chinn will be joining us for Music and singing (see concert details below) and the students will have a Student free day on July 29 when staff from the Toowoomba Diocese gather for the Bishop's Inservice Day.

Where do you see signs/images/examples of "HOPE, LOVE & FAITH" in our community? Share them with your child's classroom teacher or a member of our Leadership team. We'd love to hear from you!

At a recent PEN meeting, a new and contemporary way to connect with our community has been discussed to meet the needs of Pastoral care at SSPS - Know of someone in need of our care and support? Perhaps they're going through a challenging time and need a helping hand? Keep an eye out and let us know via the link tab on the Sentral App which will be live early Term 3. This will be a convenient, confidential and anonymous way to let us know of someone who needs our help. It may be yourself who needs support during a challenging time and you're not sure how to go about asking for help. Please let us know! Our Parent Engagement Network and school community are here to help. It's about living the Mission and Vision of SSPS.

Congratulations to these awardees! They received their well deserved Cornerstone Value award at our final assembly for the term. Be proud of yourselves and who you are! You are all examples of how special it is to be parrt of our SSPS community!

National NAIDOC 

We will acknowledge NAIDOC Week at our assembly in Week 2, Term 3.

Have a restful and relaxing break. Stay safe and we'll see you all in Term 3!

Thanks for reading, 

Ann-Maree 

Dear Parents and Guardians,

CF Fundraiser

A busy few weeks to end the term! Yesterday we had Crazy Hair Day for our CF fundraiser, it was great to see how involved the students were – thank you for your time and effort with all the hair styling! With some of our students here battling with CF, the day was a great reminder of the importance of growing in our awareness of CF, as well as an opportunity to open up conversations around how we can help those in our community with the disease.  In total we raised $410 for the Cysitc Fibrosis Foundation of Australia. 

Wellbeing Week

Our Year 5/6 teachers organised a successful week of wellbeing activities in Week 9. We had some mystery readers who read to the children during their eating time, some even doing some dramatization along with the reading! On Tuesday in Week 9, we celebrated a shared morning tea on the oval in our school houses. A great opportunity to mingle across year levels, as well as within the community. Another successful element of our week was the Lego play, Ms Harlen had over 70 children at the first session! Thank you so much to all the staff who have gone above and beyond their roles to celebrate wellbeing with our students.

Teaching and Learning Meetings

In Week 8 we released all year levels to meet to discuss how their students are progressing in their learning. We focussed on reading, where we identified the main area of need and developed an action plan for how to move forward. The teachers will be putting this plan into action over the next few months and then we will come back together to reflect on how the student’s reading abilities have improved. We also spent some time planning using the revised curriculum, which we will implement for Maths and English in 2024.

School Officer Day 14^th June

Last Wednesday we had a shared morning tea to celebrate our incredible school officers. Their work is so important within our school community. We celebrated them on Wednesday with all the teachers doing their playground duties through the day, cards from the students and a shared morning tea. A big thank you for all they do, we certainly wouldn’t have the incredible learning environment we have without you!

Academic Awards Semester 1, 2023

Phoenix Awards Semester 1, 2023

St Saviour’s Primary School Athletics Carnival 2023

All students had a fantastic time at the St Saviour’s Primary Athletics Carnival. Students dressed up in their house colours competing against each other gaining points for their house. I was very proud to see so much determination and sportsmanship on the day. It was a tough competition, but Goretti was the overall winner. Below are all the results from the carnival.

2023 SSPS Athletics Carnival Results

Overall Winner – 1^st Goretti, 2^nd McAuley, 3^rd Xavier, 4^th Coolock

Field Events – 1^st Goretti, 2^nd McAuley, 3^rd Xavier, 4^th Coolock

Relays – 1^st McAuley & Xavier, 2^nd Goretti, 3^rd Coolock

Ball Games – 1^st Goretti, 2^nd Xavier, 3^rd McAuley, 4^th Coolock

Age Champions and Runner Up

9-Year-Old Girls – Abigail Robinson, Ruby Land

10-Year-Old Girls – Nyigok Gakeer, Emily Carrigan

11-Year-Old Girls – Rose Stead, Aya Doherty

12-Year-Old Girls – Ayen Gakeer & Matilda Crothers, Angelina Ones & Charlotte Franklin

9-Year-Old Boys – Harrison Black, Darcy Phillips

10-Year-Old Boys – Samuel Abot, Liam McHugh

11-Year-Old Boys – Joseph Black, Finnegan Hannam

12-Year-Old Boys – Kobie Matthews, Isaac Ragh

High Jump

8-Year-Old Girls (Year 3) – 1^st Chelsea Ray, 2^nd Nyibol Nhial, 3^rd Arok Gakeer & Jemma McHugh

9-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Myley Bengston, 2^nd Abigail Robinson, 3^rd Ruby Land

10-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Nyigok Gakeer, 2^nd Mia Aylward, 3^rd Maddilyn Timmins

11-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Ava Orr, 2^nd Akeer Adol, 3^rd Lacey Dull & Phoebe Neenan

12-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Ayen Gakeer, 2^nd Charlotte Franklin, 3^rd Abiar Geu

8-Year-Old Boys (Year 3) – 1^st Albie Zenke, 2^nd Leo Hasted, 3^rd Jagger Witt

9-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Harrison Black, 2^nd Darcy Phillips, 3^rd Lachlan Scott

10-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Samuel Abot, 2^nd Rafferty Dwan, 3^rd Lachlan Giuffrida

11-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Jaxon Jessep, 2^nd Finnegan Hannam, 3^rd Levi Holden

12-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Kobie Matthews, 2^nd Caleb Cavanagh, 3^rd Isaac Ragh

Long Jump

8-Year-Old Girls (Year 3) – 1^st Arok Gakeer, 2^nd Jemma McHugh, 3^rd Chelsea Ray

9-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Julia Raeth & Abigail Robinson, 3^rd Ruby Land

10-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Nyigok Gakeer, 2^nd Emily Carrigan, 3^rd Mary Quiles

11-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Rose Stead, 2^nd Lucinda Allan, 3^rd Phoebe Neenan

12-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Matilda Crothers, 2^nd Lucy Hardy, 3^rd Angelina Ones

8-Year-Old Boys (Year 3) – 1^st Kenn Corpuz, 2^nd Albie Zenke, 3^rd Leo Barker

9-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Harrison Black, 2^nd Lachlan Scott, 3^rd Darcy Phillips

10-Year-Old Boys – 1^st William Prust, 2^nd Samuel Abot, 3^rd Rafferty Dwan

11-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Joseph Black, 2^nd Grayson Nissen, 3^rd Finnegan Hannam

12-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Kobie Matthews, 2^nd Isaac Ragh, 3^rd Cooper Hoole

Discus

8-Year-Old Girls (Year 3) – 1^st Orla McDonald, 2^nd Jemma McHugh, 3^rd Nyibol Nhial

9-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Ruby Land & Ella Murtagh, 3^rd Abigail Robinson

10-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Emily Carrigan, 2^nd Charlotte Crothers, 3^rd Nyigok Gakeer

11-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Ava Orr, 2^nd Sophie Enders, 3^rd Xara Castle-Stampa

12-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Matilda Crothers, 2^nd Charlotte Franklin, 3^rd Lucy Hardy

8-Year-Old Boys (Year 3) – 1^st Kenn Corpuz, 2^nd Cooper Skuse, 3^rd Albie Zenke

9-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Darcy Phillips, 2^nd Harrison Black, 3^rd Ronan Willis

10-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Liam McHugh, 2^nd Oliver O’Toole, 3^rd Lachlan Giuffrida

11-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Joseph Black, 2^nd Jimi King, 3^rd Cooper Dunlop

12-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Caleb Cavanagh, 2^nd Cooper Hoole, 3^rd Isaac Ragh

Shotput

8-Year-Old Girls (Year 3) – 1^st Jemma McHugh, 2^nd Nyibol Nhial, 3^rd Orla McDonald

9-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Myley Bengston, 2^nd Abigail Robinson, 3^rd Ruby Land

10-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Emily Carrigan, 2^nd Nyigok Gakeer, 3^rd Yar Nhial

11-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Ava Orr, 2^nd Ellie Smith, 3^rd Sophie Enders

12-Year-Old Girls – 1^st Matilda Crothers, 2^nd Charlotte Franklin, 3^rd Charlize Rogers

8-Year-Old Boys (Year 3) – 1^st Leo Barker, 2^nd Blair Hannemann, 3^rd Albie Zenke

9-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Darcy Phillips, 2^nd Brooklyn Metcalfe, 3^rd Harrison Black

10-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Liam McHugh, 2^nd Lachlan Giuffrida, 3^rd Rafferty Dwan

11-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Joseph Humphreys, 2^nd Joseph Black, 3^rd Olly Goodland

12-Year-Old Boys – 1^st Caleb Cavanagh, 2^nd Isaac Ragh, 3^rd Alistair Scotts

Track Events

5 Year Old Girls (60m) – 1^st Ivy Ferguson, 2^nd Grace Elder, 3^rd Niah Stone

5 Year Old Boys (60m) – 1^st Nathaniel Katuna, 2^nd Jaxon Brigg, 3^rd Kuch Adol

6 Year Old Girls (60m) – 1^st Nariah Monagle, 2^nd Victoria Kizito, 3^rd Yzabella Corpuz

6 Year Old Boys (60m) – 1^st Aiden Carrigan, 2^nd Sam Scott, 3^rd Jayden Inkindi Kirenga

7 Year Old Girls (60m) – 1^st Kaiya Jeffrey, 2^nd Alice Prust, 3^rd Mackenzie Child

7 Year Old Boys (60m) – 1^st Alfie Benvenuti, 2^nd Mach Adol, 3^rd Banjo Taylor

8 Year Old Girls (80m) – 1^st Arok Gakeer, 2^nd Olive Pole, 3^rd Chelsea Ray

8 Year Old Boys (80m) – 1^st Kenn Corpuz, 2^nd Albie Zenke, 3^rd Leo Barker

9 Year Old Girls (80m) - 1^st Ruby Land, 2^nd Myley Bengston, 3^rd Abigail Robinson

10 Year Old Girls (100m) – 1^st Mary Quiles, 2^nd Deborah Thomas, 3^rd Emily Carrigan

11 Year Old Girls (100m) – 1^st Rose Stead, 2^nd Ava Orr, 3^rd Aya Doherty

12 Year Old Girls (100m) – 1^st Ayen Gakeer, 2^nd Matilda Crothers, 3^rd Angelina Ones

9 Year Old Boys (80m) – 1^st Raphy Duce, 2^nd Harrison Black, 3^rd Parker Littleton-Erbs

10 Year Old Boys (100m) – 1^st Samuel Abot, 2^nd William Prust, 3^rd Oliver Guy

11 Year Old Boys (100m) – 1^st Joseph Black, 2^nd Finnegan Hannam, 3^rd Grayson Nissen

12 Year Old Boys (100m) – 1^st Kobie Matthews, 2^nd Isaac Ragh, 3^rd Caleb Morabe

8-Year-Old Girls (200m) (Year 3) – 1^st Chelsea Ray, 2^nd Jemma McHugh, 3^rd Arok Gakeer

9-Year-Old Girls (200m) – 1^st Letti Stephenson, 2^nd Abigail Robinson, 3^rd Piper Sullivan

10 Year Old Girls (200m) – 1^st Mary Quiles, 2^nd Nyigok Gakeer, 3^rd Deborah Thomas

11 Year Old Girls (200m) – 1^st Rose Stead, 2^nd Aya Doherty, 3^rd Mahaylie Weribone

12 Year Old Girls (200m) – 1^st Ayen Gakeer, 2^nd Angelina Ones, 3^rd Sia Luck

8-Year-Old Boys (200m) (Year 3) – 1^st Kenn Corpuz, 2^nd Albie Zenke, 3^rd Leo Barker

9 Year Old Boys (200m) – 1^st Harrison Black, 2^nd Lachlan Scott, Ronan Willis

10 Year Old Boys (200m) – 1^st Samuel Abot, 2^nd William Prust, 3^rd Oliver Guy

11 Year Old Boys (200m) – 1^st Joseph Black, 2^nd Finnegan Hannam, 3^rd Grayson Nissen

12 Year Old Boys (200m) – 1^st Kobie Matthews, 2^nd Isaac Ragh 3^rd Caleb Morabe

8-Year-Old Girls (800m) (Year 3) – 1^st Arok Gakeer, 2^nd Jemma McHugh, 3^rd Millie Timmins

9 Year Old Girls (800m) – 1^st Letti Stephenson, 2^nd Ruby Land, 3^rd Madeline Franklin

10 Year Old Girls (800m) – 1^st Mia Aylward, 2^nd Deborah Thomas, 3^rd Nyigok Gakeer

11 Year Old Girls (800m) – 1^st Rose Stead, 2^nd Aya Doherty, 3^rd Akeer Adol

12 Year Old Girls (800m) – 1^st Ayen Gakeer, 2^nd Madison Gale, 3^rd Angelina Ones

8-Year-Old Boys (800m) (Year 3) 1^st Albie Zenke, 2^nd Kenn Corpuz, 3^rd Xavier Adams

9 Year Old Boys (800m) – 1^st Harrison Black, 2^nd Ronan Willis, 3^rd Lachlan Scott

10 Year Old Boys (800m) – 1^st Liam McHugh, 2^nd Lachlan Giuffrida, 3^rd Samuel Abot

11 Year Old Boys (800m) – 1^st Joseph Black, 2^nd Finnegan Hannam, 3^rd Grayson Nissen

12 Year Old Boys (800m) – 1^st Kobie Matthews, 2^nd Isaac Ragh, 3^rd Cooper Hoole

School Sport

Congratulations to Matilda Crothers who made the Darling Downs Rugby Union team. Matilda also made the Toowoomba Rugby League team along with Mahaylie Weribone and will now trial for the Darling Downs. Lucy Hardy travelled to Cairns last week representing the Darling Downs in Hockey. Mammoth effort girls and we are all cheering for you.

Futsal Champ

St Saviour’s Primary wishes William Prust all the best as he heads over to Fiji being selected for an Under Ten Futsal Australia representative team. What an awesome experience and we look forward to hearing all about it.

Weekly Sport Stars

I will be adding a new section to the school newsletter next term celebrating students awesome sporting achievements outside of school. These achievements may include sporting carnivals or player of the week. If your child has a sporting achievement they would like to share, please email it to me at Brendan.luck@twb.catholic.edu.au.

Congratulations to Joseph Foot who received Magpie of the match at his soccer game. Fantastic effort Joseph, keep up the great work (picture below).

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.

Cheers

Brendan Luck

HPE Teacher

brendan.luck@twb.catholic.edu.au

ARTS FEST 2023

What a whirlwind this week of Arts Fest has been!  

During Term 2, many primary and secondary school students, under the leadership of their Drama and Music teachers, practised different poetry, choral and musical items in preparation for the events and performances that culminated this week at Arts Fest.  

Multiple Arts Fest events took place this week at 3 different locations, the Empire Theatre, St Patrick’s Cathedral and the Callaghan Centre at St Saviour’s College, involving schools from Toowoomba, surrounding areas and as far as Chinchilla, Roma, Charleville and Quilpie.  

St Saviour’s Primary School students participated and featured in the following activities: 

Verse Speaking & Collaborative Drama  

On Tuesday some of our students were involved in the Arts Fest Collaborative Drama workshop with primary students from various other schools. They worked with Mrs Carmel Treasure to create a performance piece called ‘Harriet and the Promised Land’, the finale at the Tuesday afternoon Verse Speaking Concert at the Empire Theatre.  

Another highlight of this concert was our fabulous SSPS Verse Speaking Choir, presenting a lively and engaging interpretation of “Hist!”, a classic poem by CJ Dennis. Their confident, polished performance was a credit to them and the artistic direction of our talented and much-loved drama teacher, Mrs Anita McVeigh.  

Musical Theatre 

On Tuesday and Wednesday, our Music Theatre ensembles (comprising of singers and dancers from Years 5 and 6) attended rehearsals with 170 primary school students involved in a production of ‘The Little Mermaid’ medley. During the lead up to Arts Fest, our students have been lucky enough to work with special guest choreographer, our very own Miss Madelyn Robinson, in learning the dances for this performance. In addition, there were lyrics and harmonies for our singers to learn!  

The Little Mermaid medley was the final performance in Act I at the Belief in the Arts Concert at the Empire Theatre on Wednesday evening. It was a fantastic performance, full of energy, colour and movement. It was wonderful to see many familiar faces of family, friends and staff enjoying the show. It made all the hours of lunchtime rehearsals and home practice worthwhile!  

It was incredible to watch this performance come together, under the capable direction of local Musical Theatre extraordinaire, Mrs Vicki Bravery, and the ever-encouraging, patient Miss Robinson.  

Congratulations to all our students involved in this production: Alexis Allen, Emily Carrigan, Zoe Giles, Estelle Harlen, Annabelle Horne, Akshara Manojkumar, Alessandra Ocampo, Eve Phillips, Emily Ray, Gorgi Saad, Lacey Sanders, Alistair Scotts and Kacey White. Special mention goes to Alessandra Ocampo, Year 5, who was successful in her audition and featured in a leading role as one of the mersisters. 

Another highlight of this concert was the outstanding and highly entertaining duo of Alexis Allen and Estelle Harlen, who performed their prize-winning Eisteddfod performance of the poem ‘Nits’. It was incredible to see these two girls in character on stage, capturing the attention of an audience of 800+. Their clever characterisation and comedic rendition of this poem is a tribute to their dedication and teamwork in rehearsing, as well as another example of Mrs McVeigh’s creative genius!  

Improvisation 

Whilst the Music Theatre students prepared for the evening concert, another group of students were fortunate enough to attend a full-day improvisation workshop that culminated in performances improvised by students in their school-specific teams. Two teams were selected to represent St Saviour’s Primary School at this workshop. Students auditioned in Drama lessons this term, then worked together at lunchtimes to hone their craft with Mrs McVeigh.  

The improvisation workshop was led by our very own Mrs McVeigh and local guest drama teacher Mrs Dani Cripps. Claudia Shoebridge, one of our Year 6 students who participated in various Arts Fest events, said that the Improvisation workshop was an Arts Fest favourite for her:  

“For the first half an hour we played fun drama games and warmed-up with interactive activities, such as ‘Fill in the empty space’ and ‘Pick your character’. In our groups we did two separate improvisations.  I loved all the unique ideas that people came up with. Dani helped us grow in confidence and skills. Mrs McVeigh was a big help.” 

Sacred Choral Concert 

The Sacred Choral Concert at St Patrick’s Cathedral on Thursday morning was the final fabulous performance for Arts Fest.  

The primary school students were fortunate enough to work with accomplished and nationally renowned choral conductors, Mrs Tess Laird and Dr James Cuskelly, as well as St Mary’s Music teacher, conductor and vocal tutor, Mrs Cherie Runcimann, who coordinated this concert.  

We thoroughly enjoyed learning and performing the choral music for this concert. Our students joined the first group to perform, singing the Alleuia canon, ‘The Lord is My Shepherd’ and ‘I Sing Because I’m Happy’ (repertoire chosen and conducted by guest conductor, Mrs Tess Laird).  

A highlight of this concert was an exquisite solo by St Saviour’s student, Alessandra Ocampo, singing a beautiful song of dedication, ‘I Offer My Life’. Many of the audience were moved to tears by this sensitive and sincere interpretation of the song.  

What a thrill and privilege it was for us to join the massed choir of 480 primary and secondary students, who somehow managed to fit into St Patrick’s Cathedral, at the conclusion of the concert. Conducted by Mrs Cherie Runcimann, hundreds of voices filled the atmosphere with a joyful rendition of ‘Sing Alleluia, Clap Your Hands’.  

Student Quotes & Arts Fest Highlights 

Here are some other comments and reflections from students: 

Alexis Allen, who participated in various events, commented after ‘The Little Mermaid’ performance:  

"I was feeling very nervous and excited at the same time, but it was a great experience to join in with other kids from lots of different schools."  

Alessandra OCampo:  

“The Art Fest was a wonderful experience. Having a chance to make new friends from different Catholic schools all over Toowoomba was amazing.  Having a chance to showcase our talent in front of a huge crowd was overwhelming.” 

Alistair Scotts:  

“While I was doing musical theatre, I made a lot of new friends and I have had a lot of new experiences that I’ve never had before. I appreciate having the opportunity to perform on stage.” 

Georgina Sullivan, reflected on the Sacred Choral concert: 

“These events required hours of practice and dedication of the children directed by our Music teacher and conductor, Mrs Stewart.” 

Piper Sullivan, one of our youngest choristers, said, 

“I loved singing and had a great time!”  

Some of our students were very excited to be interviewed for newspaper and television on Thursday morning. Keep an eye out for Arts Fest articles in The Chronicle and on local WIN news.  

We hope to showcase some of these performance items for our school community in Term 3.  

A Note of Thanks  

Thanks to all the St Saviour’s staff and parents who have supported Arts Fest and worked as a team to enable our students to benefit from the opportunities on offer.  

We are especially grateful to God for the gift of creativity and the joy of music, art, dance and drama.  

In addition, we are deeply grateful to Mrs Anne-Maree Spalding from the Toowoomba Catholic Schools Office who was responsible for planning, organising and coordinating this inaugural Arts Fest for Toowoomba Catholic Schools.  Mrs Spalding is well known to the St Saviour’s Primary School community as a past-Music teacher here. For over six months, she has worked tirelessly, solving many logistical challenges to envision and bring this spectacular event to life. We truly appreciate the way she has included our school in this experience. It has certainly been an exciting, memorable and worthwhile opportunity for our students, staff and wider community.  

Zoe Giles: 

“Thanks everyone involved that put Arts Fest together because I had so much fun. I have loved the opportunity to have a go at everything like singing, dancing and drama. I had fun meeting new people from different schools from these events. I loved how we got to practise to see how it was going to go and try different things we mightn’t have done before. 

I loved the wonderful dances Miss Robinson taught us. She has been a great teacher. We will miss you Miss Robinson but we hope you have fun with the next school you are going to. Also thank you Mrs McVeigh and Mrs Stewart for all that you have taught us.” 

Headspace will be visiting our Grade 6 classes on July 20th, to deliver a workshop targeted at supporting their transition from primary to secondary school. A parent and carer session will also be offered on Wednesday July 19th at 5:00pm, in our Staff Room. The parent workshop will explore strategies to connect and communicate with your young person, practical ways to support them during this transition period, and where to access professional support, if needed.  

If you’d like to attend the Parent and Carer workshop, please complete the following form: https://forms.office.com/r/rE4qEvZNrh  

If you have any questions about the workshop, please contact our School Counsellor anne.woodcroft-brown@twb.catholic.edu.au  

Regional Readers’ Cup Competition 

Our team of Year 6 students, Charlotte Franklin, Lily Kucuku, Emily Ray and Willa Schuh took part in this event on Tuesday afternoon 13th June. The team had prepared during Term 2 by reading 5 set novels and they had to answer 10 questions from each book. Thanks for your participation girls, it was a great experience for you all! 

Borrowing/Reading for the Holidays 

Students were encouraged to borrow extra library items for holiday reading. Please make time over the break for family reading time! 

Thank you to our Term 2 Coverers 

We are very grateful to Merryl and Andrea Nunn, Donna Enders and Mary Milton for the extraordinary amount of very professional book covering carried out this term, thank you so very much!  

Please consider joining this group of volunteers as the need for book covering is constant.  

Unclaimed Personal Books 

Please claim these books if they belong in your home by the end of term. 

Library Lessons in Prep and Year 1 

We have been learning to ask questions and locate facts in Non-Fiction texts and the students have enjoyed exploring our fabulous collection of Junior Non-Fiction titles about living things. Please encourage your students to be curious and ask questions about the world and support them to find some facts that answer their questions.  

 Semester 1 Library Statistics - Great student borrowers at SSPS!

 Term 3 in the Library

We will be celebrating great Australian books all term with the 2023 Book Week theme "Read Grow Inspire". Our Book Week parade is set for Tuesday 29thAugust and the Book Week performance from e-perform will take place on Wednesday 30th August (Week 8).

Lunchtime Fun in the Library

The dress-up basket is providing loads of fun!

HAPPY HOLIDAY READING EVERYONE!

Office Hours- Holidays:

The office will be open through the holidays from 9am - 1pm.  

Term 3:

Term 3 commences on Tuesday 11 July.  Monday is a Pupil Free Day.  Term 3 will conclude on Friday September 15.

School Photos:

We apologise for the delay in receiving 2023 school photos.  We anticipate that school photos will arrive over the school holidays, ready to be delivered home next term.  Thank you for your patience and understanding as we await delivery of our school photos.

Save the Date:

Congatulations to our  

Weekly Award Winners

Week 9

Our St Saviour's Primary Service Learning Group have started to decorate the fence line at the Toowoomba Catholic Schools Office in preparation for Catholic Education Week.

Catholic Education Week runs from 23-29 July.

After watching  youtube Getting Nosey about CF with Oli and Nush | Support - YouTube  and discussing Cystic Fibrosis and the fact that we have 2 students at school with CF, 3S spent some time writing a factual report. Cooper’s was selected as that best suited to share on the school newsletter, as written below.

Crazy Hair Day at SSPS

On June 12 at SSPS we had a Crazy Hair Day to raise money for Cystic Fibrosis (CF).

CF is a life-long disease and people who have it have to eat more than other people their age and they have to eat more fatty foods too. They also have to have lots of medicine.

All money raised at the school will be sent to the CF Foundation to assist with research.

It was a positive experience to be able to share information with the students about CF in a positive way.

Skool Dayz Uniform Shop:

The Uniform Shop will be closed during the school holidays but will be open on the Pupil Free Day Monday 10 July from 2.30pm - 4.00pm

All other times are by appointment only.  Please contact Dan Eagleson via Skooldayz on 0481 318 398.

SkoolDayz Uniform Shop is also on Facebook - we encourage you to like and follow for updates, changes in times, and information on stock.