Welcome Back

Welcome back to school for Term 3. We hope you had a fabulous winter break and have adjusted to the usual routines of the school term. We trust that you will enjoy another terrific term and continue to partner with us in building a positive culture and educational environment for our children.

Welcome New Staff

We welcome to Our Lady of Lourdes, Miss Michelle Drebing, who joins us in 3M class. Moving from the Gold Coast, Miss Drebing is most excited to join us at Lourdes. She had a great first week with the students of 3M. We also welcome Miss Siobhan Rush as School Officer assisting student learning predominantly in Year 2. Siobhan has been working for our 'Out of School Hours Care' so is no stranger to Lourdes.

Mr Golightly on Leave

Chris Golightly, Principal of OLOL, is now on leave and returns later this term. Last week he had surgery on his feet and as he stated in the last newsletter, it is all to improve his dance moves! We wish Chris a speedy recovery and hope he enjoys a well-earnt break. During his absence, I will be acting Principal and Middle Leader (Teaching & Learning) and Janice Moore will be acting Assistant Principal and still aims to fulfil many of her responsibilities as Assistant Principal Religious Education. We thank Mrs Sarah Goldthorpe for filling the fulltime teaching role in 3GM during this time.  I am sure you will continue to support Janice and myself knowing that we are a reduced leadership team while Chris is on leave.

Mrs Salisbury on Leave

As you would most likely know, our remarkable PE teacher, Rachel Salisbury, had a lawn mower accident during the holidays where she was rushed to hospital for surgery to save her fingers and hand. She has had more surgery and is currently in Brisbane recovering in hospital. Your ongoing messages of support have been overwhelming and she is so thankful for your encouragement. She is happy to keep receiving your well wishes as these keep her going through this tough time. Any messages or queries related to school that Rachel would normally take care of, now need to be directed to Carla at the Admin Office. Mrs Deb Tully will take over as PE teacher for Prep- Year 2 and Mrs Helen Cruice will teach PE in Year 3- 6. We are very grateful two of our regular supply teachers have taken on a more permanent role whilst Rachel is recovering, and we thank them for helping us out. We keep Rachel in our thoughts and prayers as she continues to make her family, friends and her work colleagues very proud of her strength and persistence to overcome this injury and recover quickly.

Catholic Education Week

Catholic Education Week in 2021 will be celebrated in Queensland next week. The theme for 2021 celebrations will be A Spirited Tomorrow. This theme acknowledges the long tradition of Catholic education and its continued relevance in preparing students for the future.

Celebrated annually in Week 3 of Term 3, Catholic Education Week is an opportunity for all 309 Catholic schools in Queensland to celebrate and promote their distinctive mission and ethos. Catholic education strives to make a difference in the lives of those in our schools and in the wider community by challenging young people to live out the message of Jesus and to reach their full potential as compassionate, contributing, life-giving members of society.

During Catholic Education Week we also have the opportunity to acknowledge the accomplishments, services and contributions of our staff to Catholic education. Congratulations to Mr Garry Birch for 40 years of service, Mr Larry Lee for 35 years of service and Mr Chris Golightly and Mrs Janice Moore for 25 years of service to Catholic Education. They will receive their Long Service Awards next week. We are very fortunate to have such dedicated staff at Lourdes.

Act as a Learner and a Global Citizen

For the first half of this term, each class will be focusing on a particular area of our CALLed to Think teaching and learning motto – Lourdes Learners Act as a learner and a global citizen. Recently, on the news, you would have heard about the significant victory of Australian, Ash Barty, winning Wimbledon. She is someone who demonstrates what it means to Act as a learner and a global citizen. Overcoming a hip injury a month ago, she fought to make her dream a reality. A video of her mindset coach talking about Ash’s success is floating around social media, in which he states that Ash has been able to concentrate on things she can control. He expresses the fact that we cannot control outcomes or other people’s expectations, so we must focus on what we can control. We must focus on how hard we try and the thoughts we tell ourselves – words that represent the best version of ourselves to build our self-confidence. Thus, the only expectations you can put on yourself is valuing your self-worth, working towards your goals and persisting to reach them.

At Lourdes, we aim to Act as a learner and global citizen by treating others with respect, attending and being on time to school, wearing the correct uniform, and placing a high value on learning. Your assistance with helping us instil these values in your children is most appreciated. We encourage our learners to set goals, persist when in the learning pit, and take responsibility for their own actions. Yet it is not only about setting goals; it is about the habits we repeat that determine our success.

Habits to Make a Change

Author of Atomic Habits, James Clear, states that many people think that they lack motivation to achieve goals, but it is clarity they lack. People go about setting goals; however, it is the environment and daily routines that shape human behaviour and determine success. If you want better results, it is not just about settings goals, it is about the clarity and systems in place to practice and reach goals. It does not really matter how long it takes for a habit to become automatic, what matters is that you take the actions to progress. Every time you practise the habit, you become that person and develop that identity. The goal should not be to read more books, but to become a reader in an environment where there are lots of books. The goal is not to write a book or write more, it is to become a writer. Every belief, including those about yourself, is learned and conditioned through experiences and your habits.

The more you repeat behaviour, the more you reinforce the identity associated with that behaviour. Every time you read, you are a reader. Every time you write, you are being a writer. Every time you play a sport, you're being an athlete. Habits are the path through which we forge our beliefs about ourselves - our sense of self. To change your habits is not to focus on what you want to achieve, but on what you wish to become. If you can change your habits, you can change your life. As James Clear suggests, decide on the person you want to be and prove it to yourself with small wins. What are the learning goals you and your child have set for this term? What are the systems in place at home to support the continual practice for self-improvement? What study area, homework routines and reading habits are in place that are conducive to learning? What small changes and routines can you and your family undertake to deliver big results? How can we all be the best versions of ourselves? A challenge for us all as we begin Term 3 and venture into the second half of 2021.

Upcoming Events

Co-curricular Events

As you will read throughout this newsletter, there are many fabulous opportunties on offer at Lourdes, including sporting events, academic opportunities, tech, chess, learning support, excursions, social justice awareness (raising money with dress up days) etc. etc. We hope your child makes the most of these great experiences.

Speaking Festival

Mrs Ebony Rosier (Years 3- 6 Drama Teacher and Mrs Amanda Holzheimer (P-2 Drama Teacher) have begun preparations for the Speaking Festival in Week 10. They will be sending out year level information shortly. Could you please support by encouraging your child to practise their piece at home. All students need to be ready to perform in Drama lessons in Week 6. Semi finalists will be announced in Week 8, Semi Finals will take place in Drama lessons in Week 9 and then Finals in Week 10.

Thanks for reading, Miranda.

Miranda Murray

miranda.murray@twb.catholic.edu.au