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Ms Angela Gilbert / Mrs Sarah Jackman
Mr Garry Birch / Mr Chris Golightly
Dear Parents
No one should put up with bullying. I’m pretty sure that there would not be anyone who would disagree with this - especially those who may have been on the receiving end at some stage in their life. Throughout each school term, myself and the classroom teachers spend time talking to the classes about this important issue and I know the teachers address pro-active approaches on a regular basis with common language being used across all Year levels. However, each age group requires a different approach because bullying can take on many forms - depending on the age and maturity of children and adults for that matter.
I can’t promise any parent that there won’t be a case of bullying here at OLOL this year. I will promise however that we will never ignore bullying that becomes apparent or is reported and that as a community we will do all we can to ensure that every student at the school will feel safe.
First and foremost, there needs to be a very clear and common understanding of what bullying is, for the word bullying can be a default term when it comes to playground issues. The school’s anti-bullying policy defines bullying as… “any act that causes hurt or fear in another person. Bullying exists where there is an imbalance of power and where there is a deliberate intent to cause harm or distress through repeated negative behaviours.”
When dealing with reports of bullying, the following key indicators need to be evident - imbalance of power, deliberate intent and repeated negative behaviours. In other words, a one-off push and shove, argument or heat of the moment name calling between students of the same age or young boys grabbing one another to wrestle is not bullying. Children, like us are people and people from time to time have disagreements, get frustrated over friendship breakdowns and do things out of character - it’s called life.
In my experience, physical bullying is very rare. More commonly we experience teasing that can escalate as various parties attempt to have the last word or it is at the end of a term when people become more emotionally drained and resilience levels are low.
Such instances can escalate into bullying if left unchecked. Too often cases of bullying are not reported. As I mentioned before, we will never ignore reports of a bullying nature but teachers are not mind readers and need to know the facts in order for something to be done. At times, I speak with parents who only come to me or the class teacher after a long period of time because their children convince them that if they say anything, it will only get worse...in fact, it is the total opposite that is true.
Again, from my experience the vast majority of negative incidences that we deal with can be resolved fairly simply, especially when a strong relationship exists between school and home. It is always better to deal with issues at the earliest opportunity, before things go too far. So please encourage your children to report repetitive incidences or those times they feel threatened or unsafe.
Also, if they open up to you about an issue please don’t be reluctant to share your concern with your child’s teacher if you feel your son or daughter is not being treated with respect on a regular basis. In speaking with students, we urge them in the first instance to be resilient. That is, some stuff we just learn to put up with - life and people are not always fair. If, however, a pattern develops, the next skill we work on is becoming appropriately assertive. To confidently learn how to say STOP, I don’t like that, Give it a break etc. If then, the perpetrators continue, we know we have a case of bullying and it must be reported. Everyone needs to expect respect. This is the core element of being part of a positive school community.
Being a witness to teasing or other inappropriate behaviour is also a difficult situation to be in for young people. It takes courage to stand up and call out such behaviour. “What will others think of me? Will I become a target? What do I say? Will I lose friends over this?” are examples of what kids worry about when confronted with such a situation. Primary schooling is the testing ground for kids and a time where they hopefully learn strategies and develop increasing levels of confidence to stand up for other or speak out against injustice. It is part of our mantra CALLed to Think as a Global Citizen. ‘A” is to Act…act upon injustice.
The following are two articles which provide supporting information to assist parents to distinguish the difference between teasing and bullying.
“Teasing Versus Bullying”
When speaking with parents when I present at schools, or engaging with them via our social media, bullying is always a hot topic. A recent Facebook post had one of our biggest engagement rates ever. It begged the question- “What is bullying? Do we mix it up with teasing and other forms of mean behaviour? “It’s an important topic that needs clarification. Bullying is a term that’s wrapped in emotion. For many people it’s associated with bad childhood memories. It’s been estimated that around 40 per cent of people have experienced bullying in the past. It’s something that we don’t want to happen to our kids. But I fear it’s being overused at the moment and confused with teasing and rudeness.
Rudeness refers to thoughtless behaviours and thoughtless words. Kids often do rude things to each other without thinking their actions through. Examples include, joking about the colour of a child’s hair in front of others; failing to share possessions and neglecting to acknowledge someone. Rudeness is usually about selfishness and thoughtlessness. Taken on their own many rude behaviours can be seen as an element of bullying but when looked at in context they are more about thoughtlessness, lack of consideration and poor manners rather than a deliberate attempt to hurt someone.
Teasing refers to annoying, hurtful behaviour that is used to get a reaction from someone else. Teasing can be persistent in nature, but not always. It’s generally an attempt to get under a person’s skin. It can involve name-calling; it can be personal and hurtful in nature. It can also infringe on another person’s rights. But generally teasing doesn’t have the key ingredients that make up bullying.
Bullying is the selective, uninvited, repetitive oppression of one person or group by another. It involves three elements – intent to hurt or harm; power imbalance; and repetition over time. It takes many forms and guises including physical aggression; verbal abuse; emotional aggression (or blackmail); intimidation; harassment and exclusion. The new cyber-dimension to bullying has moved the goalpost for many kids. In the past children and young people could escape bullying behaviours by being at home. Cyber-bullying means that children can’t escape bullies like they once could.
Why the distinction?
I hear the term bullying misused a great deal in the media and when talking with parents. We run the risk of “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” Syndrome where we become so desensitized to the term that some adults may ignore it when children really are the victims of bullying. We also run the risk of failing to skill our kids up to manage rudeness and teasing if we categorize every awful behaviour that kids experience as bullying. Our ability to be discerning about bullying is as important as the action we take when we are sure that our child is on the receiving end of bullying behaviour.
These actions include, dealing with feelings; providing emotional coping skills, getting others involved; building up a child’s support networks; and building self-confidence that can take a battering. Bullying needs to be taken seriously. But we also need to be discerning about bullying behaviours.
[Michael Grose]
“Not Every Act of Meanness is Bullying”
by Michael Hawton | Sep 10, 2018 | Adolescent, Children
One of our jobs is to help children and young people to interpret events proportionally. However, in recent times, I have seen a shift involving the wrong application of words like trauma, depression and bullying. When these very meaningful words are misused, their misuse can result in unwanted consequences. What might be the ‘unkind’ behaviour of another may, in fact, not be ‘bullying’. In this article we discuss the differences between unkindness and bullying – and how defining the two correctly can teach kids resilience and how to cope with conflict.
Anyone who spends a great deal of time with children or simply remembers their own childhood or schoolyard days, would know that children can be downright mean. Conflict is unfortunately a part of life that we all deal with, no matter what age.
Bullying is, however, way more than that and can have serious and sometimes tragic consequences. Yet the term ‘bullying’ seems to be readily bandied around these days for all forms of ‘mean behaviour’. According to ‘Bullying No Way’, the National Australian definition of bullying is:
“an ongoing misuse of power in relationships through repeated verbal, physical and/or social behaviour that causes physical and/or psychological harm. It can involve an individual or a group misusing their power over one or more persons. Bullying can happen in person or online, and it can be obvious (overt) or hidden (covert)… Single incidents and conflict or fights between equals, whether in person or online, are not defined as bullying”.
The key terms in the definition of bullying are ‘misuse of power’ and ‘repeated’. The key terms in the definition of what is not bullying is ‘between equals’ and while conflicts or mean and hurtful behaviour may upset a child tremendously, by labelling the mean behaviour ‘bullying’ we may be disempowering children. It is important for children to understand the difference between someone being insensitive or mean and what constitutes bullying behaviour because being able to successfully resolve and navigate these situations is a huge step in their emotional growth and maturity. If the situation is deemed to be simply mean or hurtful behaviour it is important not to over-play this through misleading terminology (i.e., bullying) and offer ways for the child to address and resolve this themselves.
Prep 2022
It is that time of year again where we urgently request for any existing family who may have a child eligible for Prep in 2022 to ensure an enrolment application has been submitted. Children who are born between 1/07/2016 to 30/06/2017 are eligible to enter next year’s Prep program. It is vitally important that we have secured a place for children of existing families prior to offering places to new families. Formal enrolment interviews are not conducted for existing families unless requested by the parents. I would also highly recommend that you regularly discuss your child’s progress with your Kindy teacher. Delayed entry for children who are not developmentally ready for formal schooling is the best strategy to ensure your child is given every opportunity to experience a positive and enjoyable start in Prep. Children of existing families are guaranteed a Prep position for the following year if delayed entry is recommended by Kindergarten teachers or other specialists.
After School Care
For those families who utilize our current after school hours care provider (Hall Thorpe Sports) you should have received information regarding the change of service provider following the Easter Holidays. As of the beginning of Term 2, the Toowoomba Catholic Schools Office will take over the operation of After School Care with an additional option of before School Care if the demand arises. Vacation Care will also be a continued service to families. Basically, there will be no change in the service provided apart from the name. As of the beginning of Term 2, the outside school care service and operation will fall under the responsibility of Toowoomba Catholic Kindergartens and Care (TCKC). Due to legislative requirements, parents will need to complete some required paperwork which will be forwarded to you. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Hall Thorpe Sport for their dedicated service of after school care over the past 9 years. Their quality program set high standards in student care and have been a valued partner of OLOL during this time.
School Fees
At the end of last year, a new administration and financial software system was introduced to all Catholic schools within the Toowoomba Diocese. Due to numerous teething problems including issues with the migration of student and family data, we have spent a great deal of time to ensure all data involving students and their families is accurate prior to the processing of school fee invoices. We are confident that all data will have been doubled checked by Monday of next week, therefore it is hoped that school fee invoices will be issued by the end of next week.
I urge all families to check emails for these invoices or any correspondence from the school. If they do not appear in your general emails folder, please check in your junk or spam folder as it may appear in there the first time the invoice is issued. If you are not receiving correspondence from the school via email, please contact us immediately. In the meantime, families are more than welcome to continue or set up direct debits or pop into the school to pay school fee invoices. A reminder that as of last year, invoices are issued on a quarterly basis. 2021 school fees are as follows:
Your timely payment of these fees will greatly assist the school to meet its ongoing financial commitments and to provide much needed resources for all students.
Thanks for reading…. Chris
We want our learners to be effective communicators. One way we can efficiently convey a message and affect the reader is through writing. Writing is designed to be read, and with technology and social media so prevalent, our message can potentially be read right across the globe. Thus, it is important our learners learn the skills to be effective writers.
We have begun the Writing Improvement Strategy here at Lourdes and there are certainly many creative sentences being crafted in all classes.
Since our professional development day at the beginning of the year, across our school teachers have predominantly been exploring the following four areas within the context of their class:
- Daily writes - developing writing stamina by practising writing every day
- Sentence Trains - helping students construct sentences
- Grammar in context - e.g. using picture books to help generate the subject, verb and circumstance
- Sentence Types - using a variety of sentence types in writing
A resource we are using is Write that Essay – a program based on the research and writing of Dr Ian Hunter. Although we will not be purchasing the whole suite of resources provided by Write that Essay, we are going to be referring to the different sentence types and sentence trains that are offered by the program.
The sentence trains help make clear the five essential elements of a sentence.
A sentence must:
- start with a capital letter
- include a subject (a noun or pronoun)- who or what is the sentence about?
- include a verb – what is the subject doing?
- end with a punctuation mark (e.g. a full stop or a question mark for a question)
- make sense
A red train engine represents the subject of a sentence and the yellow train carriage represents what the subject is doing. This was modelled in Year 2 last week using one of their favourite texts ‘Lucy Goosey’. Students practised using the train carriages to generate simple sentences, for example:
A simple sentence begins with the subject and says only one thing about that subject. The subject can be a person’s name or another noun such as a place (Toowoomba) or an object (The car). The subject can also be a pronoun that can be used instead of the noun, e.g. she, it, that, those, they, everyone. A few examples of simple sentences are:
- Toowoomba is a lovely town.
- He is a great learner.
- The car is moving.
Students are learning to be more descriptive when writing, so the last example could be bumped up to, ‘The red car is slowly moving down the hill.’ Even though more descriptive vocabulary has been added, this is still a simple sentence.
At home, you may like to practise writing, making sure learners understand the five essential elements of a sentence and that a sentence is a complete thought.
In the following newsletters, we will delve into other types of sentences.
Miranda Murray
Assistant Principal
Miranda.Murray@twb.catholic.edu.au
Faith & Religious Education News
Last Wednesday afternoon the families involved with Confirmation and First Eucharist Preparation for 2021, gathered for the first Parent Information meeting. If you missed the meeting and still wish to be part of the preparation programme, please contact Mrs Moore by emailing Janice.Moore@twb.catholic.edu.au as soon as possible – family groups have been formed and will be starting their preparation.
The Caritas Project Compassion Lenten Appeal started on Ash Wednesday in Week 4. We ask families to donate 50c each Friday, so we can send a sizable donation to help the Caritas organisation so they can continue helping others in need. Each class has a Caritas collection box on their prayer table.
St Patrick’s Green Coloured Clothes Day is on Wednesday 17th March – remember to wear your wackiest sun safe Green outfit and bring a Gold coin donation. We will be supporting Caritas and St Vincent De Paul on that day.
Date for your Diary – Our End of Term 1 Holy Week Prayer is on Thursday 1st April at 12 noon in the school hall.
Thoughts for Lent:
Have a great week!
Janice
Assistant Principal Religious Education
Prep
Have You Filled A Bucket Yet? is our Lenten program in Prep and Wow! Have we all been outstanding! We went for our Church visit which was very exciting. Please remember it is for an extra behaviour/action. This will continue till Easter. Thanks for joining in.
Letter/sound of the week and sight words need to be practised at home please – the more you practise the better you get is one of our sayings.
Our History unit is about families and how things have changed over the years. Please send in a baby photo for our competition.
We have included cross country practice in our Morning Fitness in readiness for the school cross country in the last week of this term. It could be a fun family activity going for a walk and chatting along the way.
Children have settled in well to our school way of life – thanks for your support.
Cheers,
Liz and Melita
Year 1
We have finished listening to each student in a reading test (running records). This is a very time-consuming process, but very valuable. We are happy to report we heard some wonderful reading from our Grade 1 students.
We have completed our first unit of English on Character Descriptions. Students wrote a character description about Hush, from Possum Magic. We were very pleased with what was produced – but there is always room for improvements. This week, we will move into our second English unit. We will read Wombat Stew and learn how to write a recount.
Students have also completed an artwork on our Possum Magic characters. 1B followed instructions to create a paper possum of Hush. Then on Friday, 1B read a Dreamtime story about ‘The Scaly Tailed Possum and Echidna’, discussed what a Dreamtime story is, viewed some Aboriginal dot paintings and turned Hush into an Aboriginal dot painting masterpiece. 1M used watercolours and painted Grandma Poss. All art works look amazing.
In Science, we are looking at habitat of our small creatures. Both classes are looking to build their snail habitat by the end of the week. So, if you find any snails in and around your garden, please bring them in.
Thanks for reading and have a great week!
Jen and Ange
Year 2
Welcome to week 6! In Year 2 we are getting very excited about our excursion to the zoo on the 16th of March. A reminder that students may wear their sports uniform and to also pack a generous lunch, a water bottle and a hat. If you are coming on the day, you can meet us at the zoo at around 10.00am, as we will leave here at 9.00am.
We have started learning about the wonderful world of animals, in preparation for our trip, and will be writing information reports based on what we have learnt both from books, and from the zoo.
In Maths we are becoming more confident with our Maths Mental strategies. We are currently delving into the world of money, using addition strategies and skip counting to count coins, as well as working on the concept of place value and calendars.
In Hass we are exploring Aboriginal art as we continue our journey around Australia. We have made our Lenten promises for Religion and hopefully we are remembering to try hard to keep those promises, in preparation for Easter. Thanks for returning those zoo notes and medical forms! Let us know if you have any queries or concerns.
Dennielle, Allyson, Sarah, Aleisha and Megan
Year 3
This week we are continuing to examine various narratives, looking at their structure and various ways authors create tension and sequence in their stories. We are also investigating noun verb connections, adjectives and “bump it up” sentence construction. We are using these things to add interest to our writing. In Maths, we are continuing to explore place value, practise the addition and subtraction facts and working with Money – we are realising that $5 doesn’t go as far as we thought!
In Science we learnt about what happened in the Ice Age.
In Religion, we are looking at the Stories that Jesus told and trying to think how we can apply his messages to our lives today. Thank you to those families who are supporting our 50c Fridays - our Project Compassion Lenten Appeal.
In Week 7, 3G will present assembly, in Week 8, 3GM will be presenting followed by 3M in Week 9.
Don’t forget to get organised for swimming in week 9 – name your belongings clearly.
In Week 10 we will share our Holy Week prayer presentation at 12 noon on Thursday 1st April.
Have a great week!
Angela, Sarah, Damian and Janice
Year 4
Welcome to week 6, can you believe we are halfway through the Term already? We hope that everyone enjoyed the welcome BBQ and disco a couple of weeks ago. Most students have been completing their homework to a high standard and they are to be commended for this, however could you please ensure that they are also completing their Maths Online tasks as well.
Mrs Salisbury has been providing Year 4 with extra T-Ball practice on Friday, in preparation for the Gala Day in Week 8. We are very grateful for this extra support. The Gala Day notes were also sent home last week, if you haven’t returned these yet could you please do this as soon as possible.
This week 4G will be presenting at this weeks Assembly. 4L and 4B have set the bar high in both of their performances.
We will be having our first Free Dress Day with the theme of St Patrick’s Day on the 17th of March. Students are encouraged to wear green and will need to donate a gold coin for the privilege of wearing regular clothes.
Congratulations to Skye Parker for making the West Zone Swimming Team we hope she did her best at The Darling Downs Carnival today.
We have our Mission Boxes in our classrooms, and with the beginning of Lent we would encourage students to donate 50c each week to help those less fortunate than ourselves.
It is a very busy time for the next five weeks and it is important that students attend as much as possible, so they don’t fall behind on assessment. Having said that, we don’t want to share any illnesses!
Hope you all have a fantastic fortnight!
Suzanne, Toni and Garry
Year 5
It’s week 6 and we are still putting our best effort into all of our work. The students are working hard to build up the quick recall of their number and multiplication facts – keep practising at home using MathsOnline as we are working on problem solving and operations.
Don’t forget your 50c donation for the missions each week during Lent. This is a time when we think about others that we can help in our community.
We still have a few outstanding Medical Forms and Discus Consents.
Students have begun using Office 365 in their IT lessons. Office 365 has an email feature which students can access however this feature can ONLY be used when directed by their classroom teacher. Any misuse of the email function and students will be removed from Office 365. With the use of Office 365 it’s important for the students to practise correct typing skills. Please encourage your child to practise at home. They all have usernames and passwords for Typing Tournament.
Please remember the important communication information sent via email a few weeks ago. Please be aware that parents should be communicating with class teachers via teacher email, not via the school administration email, unless the email is sent during teaching time and the purpose is to notify office staff of an absentee, or early departure. Please do not expect emails to be actioned or responded to during teaching time, evenings or weekends. Added to this if you are wanting to meet with a teacher, please make an appointment. In the morning, teachers are preparing for the day and at 8:30am commence teaching. If you are wanting to meet with a teacher outside of teaching time it is best make an appointment so as not to be disappointed.
Tim, Jess and Emily
Year 6
Year 6 Date Claimers
Wednesday 17th March: St Patrick’s Day – Green Free Dress. Gold coin for Caritas
Monday 22nd- 25th March: Swimming lessons (more details to come)
Tuesday 30th March: Cross Country (training every Wednesday and Friday is available at Newtown Park 7:30am)
The 6B’s
Year Six are becoming stronger Lourdes Learners when referring to 6B’s – what to do when we do not know what to do. By remembering the 6B strategy, students are developing their independence, problem solving skills and personal responsibility.
Brain
Book
Board
Buddy
Bing (google)
Boss
Literacy
In Literacy, we have examined the petition written by Vincent Lingiari in 1967 to the Governor-General to return the land to the Gurindji people. This forms the basis of the iconic Australian song by Paul Kelly, “From Little Things Big Things Grow”. Next, we used a “Bump it up” wall to create our own petitions to Mr Golightly on a range of topics including installation of a swimming pool, tuckshop vouchers as part of student awards and longer lunch times.
Sport
Friday sport continues to be enjoyed by all. Mr Lee has a great group of AFL players battling it out every week at training and on the field.
“I have learnt how to do a handball. Playing other schools is fun.” Harry Sevil
Attendance
Attendance is an important factor in student achievement. Thank you for maximising the learning opportunities for your child and sending them to school each day keeping appointments where possible to outside school hours to help support your child’s success.
Global Citizenship
We have examined how we can ACT as global citizens. When we act for the common good, we collaborate with others and make our efforts together as team. ACTing as a global citizen also means respecting and valuing diversity. These attributes are shown in the real story of the Panyee Football team that lived on an island in the south of Thailand. The children here loved to watch football but had nowhere to practice. That did not stop them. They challenged the norm and became a great inspiration in the way they ACTed. Check it out: Paynee Football Club- ACTing as global citizens
Larry, Kylie and Shauna
German
For the next 2 weeks we will be discussing the classroom and the school and looking at everyday items we use there.
Christine
Last week we started applying the Response to Intervention Model. This model was explained in our previous newsletter. We worked in some classrooms (Tier 1) and took some Tier 2 and 3 groups. This intervention will continue to the end of this term. The program will then be re-evaluated in readiness for Term 2.
Another aspect of Tier 1 intervention is working with classroom teachers. We have been working with classroom teachers on their Planning for Personalised Learning (PfPLs). Please see below for parent information explaining what this means for your child.
Dyslexia - how you can help
(5 - 11 YEARS)
Lots of kids have trouble with reading and spelling, but some kids continue to struggle even though they are bright and able to learn. This can be a sign that they have dyslexia or a learning difficulty. Find out more about dyslexia and what you can do to help if your child has dyslexia or a learning difficulty.
What is dyslexia?
The word ‘dyslexia’ comes from the Greek language and means difficulty with words. Dyslexia is a learning disorder that makes it difficult for people to match letters with sounds when reading and spelling, despite having the ability to learn.
Kids with dyslexia may see some letters backwards or upside down, see the text jumping on the page, or have difficulty seeing the difference between letter shapes. But having dyslexia doesn’t mean that they cannot learn – kids with dyslexia just learn in a different way. Individuals with dyslexia can be very intelligent and creative. Some famous people with dyslexia who went on to accomplish outstanding things as adults include the author Lewis Carroll, film director Steven Spielberg, astronomer Galileo Galilei, and entrepreneur Richard Branson.
What are the signs?
Children that have dyslexia or a learning difficulty will often:
- have difficulty learning letter sounds
- read slowly and make lots of mistakes
- have poor spelling
- be reluctant to read.
If you notice some of these behaviours in your child, it could be an indication that they may have dyslexia or a learning difficulty.
What can you do?
If you think your child might have dyslexia or a learning difficulty, here are some things you can do to help:
Talk to their teacher
If you’re worried that your child is having trouble with reading and spelling, talk to their teacher. They will be able to tell you if they have noticed the same issues with your child’s learning and can make sure your child is getting the support they need at school. The school may do an assessment with your child to identify any learning difficulties and provide some extra support in the classroom. If your child would benefit from support or adjustments in the classroom, this is something that could also be arranged in consultation with your school.
Talk to your doctor
Sometimes learning difficulties can be caused by underlying hearing or vision problems. Arrange for a check-up with your GP to test your child’s sight and hearing. They may also be able to refer you to a specialist for a learning difficulty assessment if it is not able to be done through the school (although there will likely be a cost involved for a private assessment).
Engage their senses!
For kids with reading difficulties like dyslexia, the use of sight, hearing, movement and touch can be helpful for learning. Try this activity using sight, touch and sound to help your child connect letters and their sounds – encourage your child to use their finger to write a letter or word in sand or shaving cream, saying the sound each letter makes as they write. Then encourage them to blend those sounds together and read the whole word aloud.
Use their strengths
Just because your child may have troubles with their reading and spelling doesn’t mean there aren’t lots of other things they can do really well! Try to use your child’s strengths and interests to help with their literacy learning. If your child loves to draw, perhaps you could read a story aloud to them and ask them to draw a picture of the main character. Or if they love drama, you could try role playing a different ending together.
Celebrate the wins!
Remember to praise your child for their successes and their efforts. If they have managed to read a word correctly, tell them they’ve done a great job! If they tried really hard but were not able read a word, tell them you’re proud of their efforts and help them to sound it out correctly. Letting your child know that you support them will help boost their confidence and encourage them to keep trying their best.
If you would like some more information on dyslexia and what you can do to help, check out:
- The Australian Federation of Specific Learning Difficulties (AUSPELD) website. AUSPELD have a range of resources to help families better understand dyslexia and other learning difficulties, as well as state-based organisations which provide support to people with learning difficulties and disabilities.
- The Raising Children Network website has a range of resources on learning disabilities.
(Taken from www.learningpotential.gov.au)
Until next time…
Mrs Kehoe and Mrs Jessen
Learning Support Teachers
Upcoming Dates
Week |
Date |
Event |
Venue |
Who |
6 |
03/03/2021 |
DD Swimming |
Gatton |
West Zone Swim Team |
8 |
18/03/2021 |
T Ball GALA Day |
Kearney’s Spring |
Grade 4 |
9 |
22-26/03/2021 |
1-6 Swimming Lessons |
Glennie |
Grades 1-6 |
10 |
30/03/2021 |
OLOL Cross Country |
Newtown Park |
P-6 |
10 |
31/03/2021 |
Gymnastics Excursion |
Allstar Gymnastics |
Grades P-2 |
Friday Sport Draw – Week 4 & 5
Week 6 |
|
05/03/21 |
|
|
|
SPORT |
|
OPPOSITION |
VENUE |
COURT/ |
TIME |
Touch Senior A Girls |
S Coren |
Fairholme |
Kearney's Spring |
1 |
1:45pm |
Touch Senior B Navy Girls (1) |
S Coren |
Fairholme |
Kearney's Spring |
1 |
1:00pm |
Touch Senior B Sky Girls (2) |
A Mills |
Rangeville SS |
Kearney's Spring |
11 |
1:45pm |
Touch Junior A Girls |
J Packer |
East SS |
Kearney's Spring |
8 |
1:45pm |
Touch Junior B Blue Girls (1) |
J Packer |
Fairholme |
Kearney's Spring |
2 |
1:00pm |
Touch Junior B White Girls (2) |
A Mills |
Concordia |
Kearney's Spring |
9 |
1:00pm |
Cricket Senior Girls |
T Franzmann |
Rangeville |
Captain Cook |
1 |
1:00pm |
Cricket Junior Girls |
E McKay |
Fairholme |
Captain Cook |
6 |
1:00pm |
AFL Junior A Boys |
L Lee |
St. Mary's College |
Queen's Park |
QP2 |
1:00pm |
AFL Senior A Boys |
L Lee |
TAS |
Queen's Park |
QP2 |
1:45pm |
Hockey Junior B Boys |
K McKenzie |
St. Mary's College |
Clyde Park |
1A |
1:45pm |
Hockey Senior B Boys |
R Salisbury |
TAS |
Clyde Park |
2B |
1:45pm |
Week 7 |
|
12/03/21 |
|
|
|
SPORT |
|
OPPOSITION |
VENUE |
COURT/ |
TIME |
Touch Senior A Girls |
S Coren |
East SS |
Kearney's Spring |
1 |
1:45pm |
Touch Senior B Navy Girls (1) |
S Coren |
East SS |
Kearney's Spring |
1 |
1:00pm |
Touch Senior B Sky Girls (2) |
A Mills |
Concordia |
Kearney's Spring |
7 |
1:00pm |
Touch Junior A Girls |
J Packer |
East SS |
Kearney's Spring |
2 |
1:00pm |
Touch Junior B Blue Girls (1) |
J Packer |
East SS |
Kearney's Spring |
2 |
1:45pm |
Touch Junior B White Girls (2) |
A Mills |
Concordia |
Kearney's Spring |
7 |
1:45pm |
Cricket Senior Girls |
T Franzmann |
Darling Heights |
Captain Cook |
1 |
1:00pm |
Cricket Junior Girls |
E McKay |
Toowoomba East |
Captain Cook |
5 |
1:00pm |
AFL Junior A Boys |
L Lee |
TAS |
Queen's Park |
QP2 |
1:00pm |
AFL Senior A Boys |
L Lee |
BYE |
Queen's Park |
- |
1:45pm |
Hockey Junior B Boys |
K McKenzie |
East SS |
Clyde Park |
1A |
1:00pm |
Hockey Senior B Boys |
R Salisbury |
St. Mary's College |
Clyde Park |
1B |
1:45pm |
Please Note: Should adult members of the community wish to attend an event at a public space, i.e. Friday Sport venues, they must ensure that they maintain appropriate social distance and do not join the team.
Cross Country
The Our Lady of Lourdes Cross Country Carnival will be held on Tuesday 30th March at Newtown Park. In preparation for this event, we will be running a cross country training program, as below:
Who: |
Children in grade 3-6 ONLY Due to teacher/student ratios, children in grades P-2 are not permitted to attend. |
When: |
Wednesday & Friday Mornings – Starting Wednesday 17th February 2021 and concluding on Friday 26th March 2021. |
Time: |
7:30am Sharp |
Where: |
Rose Garden – Newtown Park |
What to Bring: |
Water Bottle, Hat & Asthma Puffers if required. Students can wear their sports uniform for the entire day. |
PLEASE NOTE – STUDENTS ARE TO BE DROPPED OFF AT THE PARK AT 7:30AM.
PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU WALK YOUR CHILDREN TO THE MEETING PLACE AND CHECK THEM IN WITH THE STAFF MEMBER PRESENT.
FOLLOWING TRAINING WE WILL WALK BACK TO SCHOOL AS A GROUP.
IMPORTANT: As part of the risk assessment process for Cross Country Running, all students that run the competitive track must participate in a training program. Students can complete this at our school training sessions or individually outside of school. ALL STUDENTS wishing to run the competitive track must also have a SIGNED CONSENT form. These will be sent home with interested students.
OLOL Cross Country Carnival
Tuesday 30th March 2021 – 8:30-1:00pm – Newtown Park
Prep- Grade 2 Fun Run
- Approximate run time 9:00 – 10:00am
- Students will walk to Newtown Park in Class Groups.
- Prep, Grade 1 and 2 students will run an extended lap of the oval (approximately 600m).
- The following ribbons and house points will be presented to students in Prep – Grade 2:
1st Place |
Blue Ribbon |
20 House Points |
2nd Place |
Red Ribbon |
12 House Points |
3rd Place |
Green Ribbon |
8 House Points |
4th Place |
Yellow Ribbon |
4 House Points |
5th Place onwards |
Navy Participation Ribbon |
1 House Point |
- Race Order: Grade 2 boys, Grade 2 Girls, Grade 1 Boys, Grade 1 Girls, Prep Boys & Prep Girls.
- After these races, the P-2 students will return to school.
Grade 3-6 Competitive Cross-Country Event
- Approximate starting time – 10:00am
- Students will walk to Newtown Park in class groups.
- Following the P-2 Fun Run, grade 3-6 students will participate in a competitive cross-country race.
- Students will need to nominate for this event. Only students that have completed the consent form will be allowed to run the full track. I will take nominations during PE lessons and send consent forms home.
Starting Time |
Age |
Year Born |
Distance |
10:00am |
8/9 Years boys |
2013/2012 |
1km |
10:15am |
8/9 Years girls |
2013/2012 |
2km |
10: 30am |
10 Years boys |
2011 |
2km |
10:45am |
10 Years girls |
2011 |
3km |
11:00am |
11 Years boys |
2010 |
3km |
11:15am |
11 Years girls |
2010 |
3km |
11:30am |
12 Years boys |
2009 |
3km |
11:45am |
12 Years girls |
2009 |
3km |
These are only approximate and subject to change.
The following ribbons/medallions and house/individual points will be presented to students in 9-12 years:
1st Place |
Blue Ribbon & Medallion |
20 House & Individual Points |
2nd Place |
Red Ribbon & Medallion |
12 House & Individual Points |
3rd Place |
Green Ribbon & Medallion |
8 House & Individual Points |
4th Place |
Yellow Ribbon |
4 House & Individual Points |
5th Place onwards |
|
4 House & Individual Points |
- As with Athletics and swimming, all students in grade 3 who are born in 2013 (8 years), have attended training and wish to run the competitive event, will participate in the 2012 or 9 year’s category. However, as they are not of appropriate age, they will not be eligible for age championship points, nor will they be eligible to continue on to the West Zone Carnival. These students will be awarded a place ribbon and 4 participation points, regardless of finishing place. Please see me if you require further clarification on this.
- The first 6 place getters, in the 10, 11 & 12 Years age categories, will be offered the opportunity to represent the school at the West Zone Cross Country Carnival. There are qualification times in place for this event which students must run to be eligible. These times will be adhered to regardless of whether students finished in the top 6 at our school carnival.
9-year-olds are not eligible to compete at West Zone.
- The course will be marked with markers and marshals will be stationed around the course.
- After the races, we will have presentations and return to school by 1:00pm. This is subject to change.
Grade 3-6 Fun Run
- This event is open to ALL grade 3-6 students, regardless of whether they have already run the Competitive Cross-Country Race.
- The event will be 1 lap around the competitive cross-country course.
- All students will be encouraged to at least walk the track.
- All students who participate will receive one (1) point for their house.
In the Morning before coming to School
- Please apply sunscreen before coming to school and remind the children to apply more throughout the morning.
- Students are also required to bring their morning tea and lunch with them. Depending on time, we will eat morning tea and possibly lunch at the park.
- It is crucial that the children drink lots of water, so please make sure they have a water bottle.
- PUFFERS and EPI-PENS – please make sure your child has their own with them if required.
- Please make sure students have been to the toilet prior to arriving at school. While there are toilets available at the park, we would rather avoid using them where possible.
- Students will walk to Newtown Park in Class Groups.
Spectators
Due to COVID-19 restrictions no spectators will be permitted to congregate on the main oval, where the children will be assembled, or on the inside of the track boundary. Thank you for your support.
Volunteers
If you are able to help set up in the morning, we will be down at the park from 7:30am. Grade 6 students in the Sports Leadership Group are also asked to arrive at 7:30 to assist with setting up.
Representative Sport—Toowoomba & Darling Downs Teams
Throughout the course of the year Toowoomba Primary School Sport and Darling Downs School Sport offer trials to eligible students for a variety of team and individual sports. To be eligible for selection, students need to be born in 2011, 2010 or 2009. Strict nomination requirements apply, and it is at the sole discretion of the school to decide whether to nominate individual students.
In order to gain interest levels and an idea of previous experience, a representative Sport Nomination Form will go home this week. This form outlines all relevant information regarding the trials for the whole of 2021. Please thoroughly read all information. If your child is of a high standard in their chosen sport/s and would like to be considered for nomination, please complete the nomination form and return to Ms. Salisbury ASAP. No student will be nominated for a trial without a completed form.
Rachel.Salisbury@twb.catholic.edu.au
What’s NEW at the Library?
Check out what is NEW on the green shelves in the Library. You can also look at what is new on the Library catalogue: au.accessit.online/ORL13/ Bookmark this link! If you login (use your school logon details) you can also access our subscription services including Britannica Online and Enhance TV.
Library at Lunch
We have had so many visitors to the Library at lunch breaks these past weeks. It is so great to catch up with you all. The Bee Bots have been very engaging!
When is the Library OPEN?
We are open for children in Year 1, 2 and 3 at Morning Tea on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. On Thursday and Friday we offer quiet reading only.
We are open for children in Year 4, 5 and 6 at Big Lunch on Monday, Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday.
The Library is not open to students on Friday at Big Lunch.
We are open for students who have been away or have forgotten their Library books to do a quick swap from 8am – 8:25am and from 3pm – 3:10pm each day. Parents are most welcome to drop by and borrow at these times also. Parents can borrow up to 10 items at a time.
What can I do in the Library at break times?
We offer a range of activities at lunch breaks including: READING, Bee Bots, Colouring In, Laptops are available on Wednesday at Morning Tea for students in Year 1 – 3 and at Big Lunch for students in Year 4-6 each day or sometimes you can even catch an episode of Bluey. Drop by and see what is happening. ?
Typing Skills are ESSENTIAL SKILLS
Typing is an essential, life skill. Here at Our Lady of Lourdes we encourage all students to work on the typing and keyboarding skills. Last week our PREP students were using Dragon Drop to practice essential drag and drop ‘mouse’ skills. It was such a great activity some of our Year 2’s had a go at Morning Tea.
CBCA Book Week – DATE CLAIMER!!
The theme for Book Week this year is Old Worlds, New Worlds and Future Worlds! At Lourdes we will celebrate Book Week with a Dress-up day on Monday 23rd August 2021. The artist behind this incredible poster is Shaun Tan. If you like his style pop over to the Library to check out some more of his work.
Tech Club
Our Tech Club members have all commenced work in their Tech-Project for Term 1. They will spend the next few sessions being creative and working on their chosen digital project ready to present back to the group in Week 9.
CHESS News
Chess lessons are going well and students are expanding their knowledge about the game and game rules each week. We meet each Tuesday morning from 7:45am in the Lourdes Library. All welcome. Get a permission form from Mrs Leathart in the Library if your child is interested.
Book Club
Book Club orders have been received and most orders should have been passed along to students by now. For any issues with Book Club please contact: Danielle.Leathart@twb.catholic.edu.au
Keep an eye out for Issue 2 flyers COMING SOON. Remember all orders must be placed via the LOOP platform.
Looking forward to seeing you in the Library soon.
Mrs Leathart & Mrs Monte.
Little Miracles Community Kindergarten
We have started the year strong with lots of new families joining our community. One of our classes has already filled up, and the others have limited vacancies, so if you are considering enrolling now that the older children are back at school, it would be best to contact us ASAP on: little.miracles@bigpond.com
Limited Vacancies
Kindy – Monday, Tuesday every second Wednesday 8.15am – 2.30pm
Kindy – Thursday, Friday every second Wednesday 8.15am – 2.30pm
Junior Kindy (from 3 years) – Thursday & Friday 8.30am – 2.30pm
Before and After Kindy Care available
DENTAL VAN 42A NEWS
Dental Van 42A is at Newtown State School and registration forms will be issued to every student at Our Lady of Lourdes this week. Please complete these forms and return them to the School Office by Friday 19/03/2021. Once we receive the registration forms and they have been processed we will contact parents for an appointment at Newtown State School.
Parents will also need to sign in at the Newtown school office before attending the Dental Van. (Please bring your Medicare card to this appointment).
The Dental Van is open Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 8.30am until 4.00pm and are closed Thursday and Friday. Our Phone number is 0408 767 779
In an emergency please contact 1300 082 662 at 8am Monday to Friday
Thank you.
Karen and Deborah
The Dental Staff