Dear families,
Welcome back to school for term 2. It already feels like a significant amount has happened, and been achieved in only 3 weeks! As families would already know from my briefing, remediation works are continuing apace and we are starting to get a sense of what the school will look like once the oval and playground areas have been fully remediated. I very much appreciate your ongoing patience as these works are completed and I sincerely hope we will have greater access very soon! I would like to once again publicly acknowledge Horizon Building and Stallard Meek Flightpath, our builders and Architects for their vision and delivery of an outstanding facility.
As part of this short period of time, students in R-3 are gathering on the oval area in the mornings before being taken into class. Given the current state of the yard and playground, we have told the students that they are not to play games, or climb on the playground during this period. As we get greater access to these areas, we will update the children and families. Your support of these protocols is appreciated.
This week, Catholic schools in SA have been celebrating Catholic Education Week. We have much to be thankful for at St Francis-amazing educators, supportive families, an engaged and pastorally supportive parish community, wonderful facilities and above all fantastic students who give us joy each and every day. Hopefully you will have seen testimonies from some of our families on Facebook, about their experience of St Francis-we are very grateful for their kind words!
Last Friday’s Mother’s day celebration was a great way to honour all mums and female role models, and I was very grateful for all the mums and others who came along to join in the celebration. Sincere thanks to the receptions and year 6 students for their beautiful performance for the mums present, and to the dedicated committee who prepared the spread, manned the coffee station and sold the raffle tickets!
While on P&F matters, you will have received a survey in the last couple of days seeking assistance with the various events and activities coming up. Please be generous with your time and expertise in support of the P&F committee, who do so much good in our community.
It was great to be able to join the SAPSASA Cross-country team on Monday as they competed in the Airport West District trials. All students performed admirably, and we had numerous top 5 and top 10 finishes. We will have a number of representatives at the state day in Oakbank later in the year. Well done to James Goldy and James Daley for facilitating trainings and organising the team.
As families would know, in recent times we have introduced a Vacation Care service to the school community. The development of such a service was long desired and the approvals required, along with the extensive paperwork involved in the planning of each incursion and excursion were enormous. It truly amazing and a celebration of our OSHC that we have been able to deliver an excellent and well patronised service in such a short period of time. My congratulations and appreciation go to Alexandra Curtis and her team of dedicated staff for everything they’ve done to enable our service to flourish so quickly. As with all services the school provides, we are in a continuous improvement cycle and always looking to develop and strengthen aspects of the service. Our staff are dedicated to ensuring the highest provision of care to our families! It won’t be too long before information regarding the July holiday vacation care program information will be made available, so keep an eye out!
As I do my regular yard duties and wander around the school in the mornings and afternoons, I notice a LOT of parents carrying school bags for children. Coming to primary school is about increasing independence, and managing belongings is a key component of being independent. In this spirit, I ask that families begin to ask their children to carry their own school bags-they are all more than capable of doing so! If you feel as if your child’s bag is too heavy, I would suggest a stocktake of what is actually in the bags. In my experience, there is usually a whole lot of stuff that isn’t required to be in school bags! I would also strongly suggest adjusting straps so that the bag can be worn properly. In this spirit, I would also provide families with a friendly reminder to ensure your children are wearing the correct school uniform, which includes appropriate shoes, socks and headwear.
Have a great week everyone,
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