Term 3 - Week 2 (21st July)

Student Protection Contacts

From The Principal

Compassion in Action – Our school’s values were revised and refreshed in 2021 through extensive consultation with our families, staff, and students. Our school was established by the Mercy Sisters and so our values of hospitality, integrity, compassion and excellence, are drawn from the larger number of values promoted by them in their work. Schools of all kinds will share their values and this is easy enough. The challenge that we take seriously at Sacred Heart, is ensuring that our parents, students and staff, live these values every day. It is in doing this that makes our school very different from the one ‘down the road’.

Compassion is a tricky one to understand for children as it requires empathy, something that we develop through life experience and reflection. Jesus’ entire life was about ensuring that those in the margins were loved and cared for. Compassion is about seeing the need of others and doing something about it. During this week’s assembly on Monday, the Year 6 students launched a ‘Soup and Noodle Drive’ for the less fortunate in our community - specifically, those that experience homelessness. The Year 6 students are calling for donations of cans of soup. I challenged all of our students to go home and ask you if they could do this and, in doing so, tell you who and what it is for. I encourage you to have this conversation with your children so that they may come to understand more deeply, what compassion is.

Japanese Students Visiting  - Next week we have the pleasure of hosting 25 students from Yuhigaoka School in Japan. As part of their own journey in learning English, these students will join our children in classes as part of the immersion element of their day. These children will be in various classes across the week. Not only is this a valuable experience for these students, it is also a valuable experience for our students. These interactions build an understanding of cultures, other than their own, and builds pride in their own school and culture. If you see the students around, be sure to say ‘hello’ or ‘G ’day’.

Early Years Morning – This morning, we had our under 8s from our Prep to 2 classes and children from our surrounding community, come and enjoy a morning of activities and fun. Thank you to our staff for their work in bringing this wonderful event together and to our surrounding early years educators for supporting the morning. Our Year 6 leaders did a wonderful job supporting the activities and our under 8s were on their very best behaviour. Well done everyone.

Catholic Athletics Carnival – Thank you to our families for supporting their children last week in being able to attend the Catholic Schools Athletics Carnival. As always, the behaviour of the Sacred Heart children was exceptional, both on and off the field.

God bless.
Mr Tyronne Maher

From The APRE

Welcome
Welcome back to all families to Semester Two here at Sacred Heart! We’ve been very fortunate to have several new students and teachers joining us this term. I would like to welcome Rubie, Aria and Willow to our school and Owen who returns to us this term after 6 months away. We also welcome Miss Madelyn Robinson and Miss Gabriella Brac who have taken on teaching positions in 5R and 2A. We also welcome back Mrs Kerry Weber who returns to us after some very-well deserved Long Service Leave to start the year. This week we also welcome Father Salvador Fernandes who will be celebrating Masses over the next 2 weeks, with Father Mick Carroll while Father Roque is on a two-week break in the Philippines.

Year 6 Soup and Noodle Drive – Compassion in Action
Last term, Year 6 organised a collection of non-perishables, warm clothing and toiletries to donate to Tony’s Kitchen and Base Services to help people less fortunate than us. This was an action to assist our community members who may be homeless, living rough or just struggling to make ends meet. Thanks to so many donations and our wonderful Sacred Heart community, we delivered a ute full of items in the first week of the holidays.
Continuing on with our Mercy values of hospitality and compassion, Year 6 are now holding a soup and noodle drive. We are calling for students to bring a can of soup or a packet of noodles to add to our collection to help provide a warm meal to people who are struggling to put food on the table. We will look to deliver these in week 7 to Tony’s Kitchen. The items can be dropped to the Year 6 classroom or the staffroom.
Thank you for your support!

Catholic Education Week
Celebrated annually in week 3 of Term 3, Catholic Education Week is an opportunity for our school community to join with the other 312 Catholic schools across Queensland to celebrate and promote our distinctive mission and ethos. Catholic education strives to make a difference in the lives of those here at school and in the wider community by challenging our young people to live out the message of Jesus and to reach their full potential as compassionate, contributing, life-giving members of society.
Here at Sacred Heart, we have planned out many ways of celebrating Catholic Education Week and we invite parents and families to join with us in these celebrations!

New Bishop Heralds New Chapter for Diocese
Last Tuesday, our School Captains, Clare and Alexander, accompanied Mr Maher to represent our school to welcome Bishop Ken Howell as the Seventh Bishop of Toowoomba.
The Solemn Liturgical Reception was held on Tuesday 11th July, at St Patrick's Cathedral Toowoomba. Some 800 people gathered, including 23 bishops and 140 clergy, joined by civic and community leaders, parish delegates and inter-faith representatives in welcoming Bishop Howell to the community. Even more gathered virtually to watch live online via YouTube and Facebook. During his homily, Bishop Ken acknowledged that the day's events heralded not only a new chapter for the diocese, but a "continuation of a story that has been guided by the power and strength of the Holy Spirit." "My first task is to get to know you and to do as Pope Francis urges us to do, to listen deeply to your story and to grow in love of the people entrusted to my care." Bishop Ken said. Bishop Ken and Tom Jolley, on behalf of the diocese, also gave thanks for the ministry and leadership of Bishop Robert McGuckin. Bishop Robert will now enjoy retirement and a much-deserved break (Exert from our Sacred Heart Parish’s Sunday Bulletin (July 16th 2023).

Mrs Alice Lucas

Prayer of the Week

This week’s prayer is retrieved from: Prayer Before Class - Simple Short Classroom Prayers (living-prayers.com)

From the Learning Support Teacher

Psychologists, Clinical Psychologists, Psychiatrists and Paediatricians Explained
Many of our families have, and are currently accessing the services of these specialists - but what is the difference between them?

Psychologists are mental health professionals who can provide therapy and counselling. They are trained in human behaviour and aim to understand the social, cultural and environmental causes of mental health conditions and learning or behavioural difficulties.  They may provide some observations and assessments to inform the therapy they provide, which can also assist a psychiatrist or paediatrician to make a formal diagnosis.

Clinical psychologists are licensed psychologists who have conducted further study to perform various assessments to diagnose and treat mental illness, learning and behavioural difficulties. They have completed additional training in psychology (the study of the human mind and behaviour).  They provide a more intense focus on assessment in addition to understanding the social, cultural and environmental causes of a mental health conditions.  They can conduct assessments to diagnose conditions such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Attention Deficit Disorders (eg ADHD, ADD) but will generally refer students to a paediatrician for final confirmation of a diagnosis.

Psychologists and clinical psychologists tend to treat people with conditions that can be helped with therapy and counselling, including behavioural problems, learning difficulties, anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, stress, grief and relationship problems. They are not medical doctors and therefore cannot prescribe medication but can provide therapy and gather information for psychologist or paediatrician diagnosis.

Psychiatrists are medical doctors who have completed extra training to specialise in mental health.  They examine the causes, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of mental health and other medical conditions. They generally do not conduct assessments but work in collaboration with others eg psychologists, school guidance counsellors, etc to form a diagnosis and treatment.  Psychiatrists can diagnose mental illness and conditions including formal diagnosis of ASD, ADHD, Global Developmental Disorder etc and can provide psychotherapy (counselling) as well medication.

Paediatricians are medical doctors who have completed further study in paediatrics (children from birth to teenagers).  They often use information obtained from psychologists and other professionals to diagnose and treat mental health and other medical conditions.  They generally do not conduct assessment but may refer a student for further testing by a Psychologist, Occupational Therapist or Speech Pathologist etc to ensure they have the relevant information to make an accurate diagnosis. Paediatricians can formally diagnose Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, Global developmental disorder and provide recommendations for treatment including medication.

Our School Guidance Counsellor can conduct many of the assessments of a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist for students who have been identified as having learning and/or behavioural concerns at school.  These results together with reports from the Guidance Counsellor, Learning Support Teacher and Class Teacher can be used by psychiatrists and paediatricians to make a diagnosis and inform treatment.

Mrs Genny McNair

From The Middle Leader/Curriculum Co-ordinator

Learning Intentions and Success Criteria
At Sacred Heart Primary School, we are cultivating engaged lifelong learners. Our commitment to providing a holistic education goes beyond imparting knowledge; it extends to nurturing a love for learning that will accompany our students throughout their lives.

At the core of our approach is an emphasis on students understanding learning intentions and success criteria. We believe that when students are aware of what they are learning and what success looks like, they become active participants in their own educational journey.

By clearly communicating the learning intentions at the beginning of each lesson, our students understand the purpose and relevance of the content they are about to explore. This helps them engage with the material more deeply and make meaningful connections to their own lives and experiences.

Furthermore, we guide our students in understanding the success criteria for each task. By breaking down the desired outcomes and expectations, students gain a clear understanding of what they need to achieve and how they can measure their progress. This promotes self-reflection and empowers them to take ownership of their learning.

To support students' understanding of learning intentions and success criteria, our teachers provide regular feedback and engage in meaningful conversations about their progress. This feedback loop encourages students to reflect on their learning, make adjustments, and set new goals to further enhance their skills and understanding.

We firmly believe that when students have a clear understanding of what they are learning and what success looks like, they become motivated, engaged, and lifelong learners. By nurturing their ability to reflect on their learning, we are preparing them for a future where they can confidently take charge of their educational journeys.

Mrs Charlie Barrett

From the Guidance Counsellor

This week the Year 6 students had a session with Riki Galerakis from Headspace in Brisbane. The students were also able to meet Grace, who currently works at the Headspace in Toowoomba. The Year 6 students had a very interactive and interesting session which focussed on the transition from Primary to High School.  Students were able to identify some of the challenges and changes that they might experience during this transition and ways to cope with the change. Students were able to reflect on many of the changes that they have already experienced growing up, whether it’s been a change in the home, or school situation.

It was great to see so many of the year 6 students, identify that talking to someone is important when coping in times of stress or transition. Currently Headspace is available for children aged 12 years and over. If children want to access Headspace it is a free service located at 1 Snell Street Toowoomba. It was great to hear that this service is expanding its services to include not only counselling services for young people, but a drop-in centre, help with homework, applying for part time work and group sessions to support them. If attending in person doesn’t suit, teleconferencing appointments can be arranged by phone. To make an appointment at Headspace, please phone 074639 9000. Another service that young people aged 5-25 can use is Kids Helpline.

Alternatively, if you are unsure if your child would benefit from having some counselling sessions, or if you are worried about their mental health, having a chat with your family Doctor is always a good first step.

Take care, and hoping that you have a great term,

Mrs Sarah Jackman

Classroom Awards

Class In Focus

Year 5R

This term we began talking about the school Mercy values of Hospitality, Integrity, Compassion and Excellence. The students worked collaboratively in groups to create a PowerPoint presentation explaining what each value looks like in the classroom and out on the playground. Students related these values to common characters from movies and cartoons to explain how they upheld these values. Each group presented their presentation to the Year 2 students. Miss Robinson also created a classroom tree that branches out to each of the Mercy values. We are slowly adding leaves to our tree when we see one of our classmates ‘walking with Jesus’ and upholding any of the Mercy values. We share and celebrate these values whilst reflecting on the saying ‘We grow as we go’.

In HaSS we have been discovering the characteristics of places and categorising them into human and environmental. The Year 5 students researched maps and images of their camp destination and created a picture collage on Canva that grouped all of these characteristics together. We are working hard on the importance of collaborating and treating other people and places with respect!

Miss Madelyn Robinson

Sport News

Toowoomba Catholic Primary Schools’ Athletics Carnival
Last Friday, 35 Sacred Heart students participated in the Toowoomba Catholic Primary Schools Athletics Carnival. The purpose of this carnival is to provide students with carnival and race experience prior to the Zone trials which are held later in the Term. By all accounts, the students had a great day of running, jumping and throwing and Mr Maher reported to me that all the students represented our school with pride, both on and off the track. Thank you to Mr Maher, Mrs Weber and Mrs Bein for your efforts on the day to make sure the students had a great day out!

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Inter-school Sport for Term 3
This week, our Year 5 and 6 students will start participating in Inter-school sport! In Weeks 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7 they will play Football (soccer) against various schools from around Toowoomba. Our Year 5 and 6 students will get a chance to try out their Football skills that were developed in PE in Term 1 and continue to be developed in countless hours of lunch breaks and for some students who also play for local clubs. Our Year 6 students will be invited to provide a Game Day report after each week’s game that I will include in our fortnightly newsletter; stay tuned.

Catholic Netball & Touch Carnivals
Students who have opted in to join one of our Year 5/6 Netball and Touch teams will participate in the annual Catholic Education Week Netball and Touch Carnivals on Thursday 27^th July.

Venues: Touch will be at Kearney’s Spring Reserve and Netball will be held at Nell E Robinson ovals.

Starting time: Teams will depart school via bus at 8:30 am

Finishing time: Teams will return to school via bus at approximately 2:30 pm.

Congratulations to the students who took up this opportunity! It is wonderful to see you striving for Excellence and taking up opportunities that come your way. Students who chose not to participate or who were unable to due to an injury will remain at school for the day.

Families are welcome to come and cheer the teams on!

Mrs Alice Lucas

From The Arts

Arts Fest

“It was a great experience because I am new to the school and helped me face my fears of standing on the stage” (Year 6 Student)
“It was fun to learn it in a day and perform it at the Empire Theatre” (Year 4 Student)
“It was cool performing the Little Mermaid and having people dance in front of us while we sang” (Year 6 Student)
“It was fun but also nerve racking performing at the Empire Theatre. It was fun practicing!” (Year 5 student)

The TCSO Arts Fest 2023 was held during Week 10, Term 2 at the Empire Theatre, St Saviour’s College and St Patrick’s Cathedral. The festival was the first of its kind offering students throughout the Toowoomba Diocese the opportunity to work with other professionals in their field and students. Sacred Heart School was able to be involved in many different aspects which I have listed below with details on what they achieved.

• Verse Speaking Choir: 150 students worked on a poem for 2 hours and performed that evening. The students learnt all the words and actions during that time. 11 students from Sacred Heart were involved from 3C and 4G.
• The Little Mermaid Medley (Music Theatre): Over 200 students worked for 4 hours on combining singing and dancing, with some students learning on the spot. 10 students from Sacred Heart were involved from 5R and 6B.
• Belief in the Arts Concert: Sacred Heart School Band performed at this event. It was very exciting for the band to perform on the amazing Empire Theatre stage. Thank you to Miss Jessie Joy for preparing them for this event.
• Sing for Joy (Sacred Concert): Sacred Heart Choir was involved in this wonderful event held in St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The students sang with a mass choir of 250 students, a special item with St. Anthony’s, St. Thomas More and St. Mary’s College of 120 students and then performed in the finale with 500 students.
• Sacred Heart Art Installation: This was part of the opening art event and can be seen in the foyer of the school office. Come and see how the students represent the Mercy values through art.

I would like to thank Renee Bein, Kerry Weber, Alice Lucas and Tyronne Maher for your support in this wonderful event and enabling so many students to be involved. 

Sacred Heart Instrumental

Lessons will continue on Wednesday with Miss Joy for Term 3.
There are still spots available for this year. If you would like to enrol your child, please fill in the online form below or contact me directly via email. Cherie.Runciman@twb.catholic.edu.au

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=_f1LV0RCBUK3EBaPWwxYDVbF2GR6D2hAo-dL1hpSKMRUQTBXNEcwWURNTk05MlgxNVJBRkRUQjI4Sy4u

 Sacred Heart Choir

Every Tuesday afternoon 2.55-3.30pm in the Music Room.
The choir is available for all students in Year 3 to 6. We are currently working towards preparing new songs for Sacred Heart Idol in Week 8.
If you would like your child to be involved in the choir, please contact Cherie Runciman, cherie.runciman@twb.catholic.edu.au  or send them along next Tuesday after school. 

  Sacred Heart Idol

This event is a fun talent competition and has been part of our school calendar for many years. The event is an ideal platform for our students to show off any special skills and talents they might like to share and is growing each year in popularity! This year our show will be on Tuesday 29th August in the school hall. Students need to be in Years 3-6 to enter this talent competition.  After the show, one student will be chosen from each category as a winner, an encouragement award and an award will also be given to an overall winner –  The Sacred Heart Idol 2023

Auditions will be held during Week 5 at breaktime. A timetable with names for the audition will be posted on the office window at Student Reception. Parents and members of the community are welcome to attend auditions and the Sacred Heart School Idol Final.
It is the students’ responsibility to organise all props, costumes, music or any other materials they require for their performance. A student who is not prepared for their audition may not be rescheduled due to time restraints. If a student is absent on the day of audition, an alternative audition date will be given.  
Finalists for the competition will be announced after each audition day.
All groups and individuals wishing to participate in Sacred Heart Idol must submit the below form by
Monday 31st July.
Please fill in the form if you are wanting to participate in this fun event. https://forms.office.com/r/WgvqMX0ucT

From the Library

School Fees

Please be advised that school fees have been billed to family accounts and will fall due by Monday 31^st July.  Statements have been emailed.  If you haven’t received your statement, please contact the office.  The school accepts payment via a direct debit, Centrepay or bank transfer.  Thank you for your attention in settling your account.

2023 Commonwealth Census Data Collection

The Australian Government will be collecting certain information about our school, staff and student body as part of the 2023 Non-Government School Census collection (the census).  Please see more information about the census by clicking on the link below.

The Uniform Shop

Thank you for your continued support of the school’s uniform shop.
PLEASE NOTE: WE CAN NO LONGER ACCEPT DONATIONS OF PRE-LOVED ITEMS
Thank you for your understanding in this regard.
*We accept EFTPOS only - NO CASH OR LAYBY*  
Normal Uniform Shop hours:
Mondays (THIS INCLUDES PUPIL FREE DAYS) & Thursdays 8.00am - 10:30am 
If Monday is a PUBLIC holiday, the Uniform Shop will open on the following Tuesday.
SCHOOL BAGS: School Bags are COMPULSORY to the WHOLE SCHOOL.
Do you have the correct bag? Available from the Uniform Shop for $39.50 
SCHOOL PULLOVERS - This is a compulsory uniform item for Years 1 to 6.

EMFIT Bootcamp

Tennis Lessons

Community Notices

Sacred Heart Parish