08 May 2024

From the Desk of the Acting Principal

Week 4 , Term 2

New Principal
I am pleased to inform you that Mrs Majella Lynch-Harlow has been appointed as Principal of Good Shepherd Catholic School commencing on Monday, 8th July 2024.

Majella is currently the principal of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart School on Thursday Island, a role she has held since 2018. Prior to that, Majella was the Assistant Principal - Religious Education of St Francis Catholic School, Ayr from 2009 to 2017, and Principal of Canossa Catholic School, Trebonne
from 2007 to 2008. She commenced teaching in 1999 at St Mary's Primary School, Ipswich.

Majella is a committed Catholic educator and brings a great deal of knowledge and expertise to this role with over twenty-five years of teaching and leadership experience. She builds strong partnerships with all community stakeholders and is focussed on whole-school improvement to ensure a high level of student engagement and growth in student learning.

We look forward to welcoming Majella back to the Townsville Diocese and to the Good Shepherd
community.

I have enjoyed my 12 months as Acting Principal and look forward to handing the reins over to
Majella from next term.

Safety Reminder

Keeping our students safe is everybody’s responsibility – including yours! There has been an increasing number of people trying to pick students up from the bus zone area in front of Prep, or expecting students to walk across the carpark or out of the school grounds to be picked up. This
causes a considerable safety risk!

ALL students being collected by car should go to the STOP DROP GO zone in the carpark near the office and D block. Parents can then pull into the zone, collect their children, and drive out. If you park, please walk across to your child – do not call them across the carpark.

It would also be appreciated if, while in the STOP DROP GO zone, you pull as far forward as possible, and remain with your car. This allows the flow of traffic to continue and helps keep everyone safe.

ECSI Survey

Thank you to all parents and carers who took the time to complete the ECSI Survey. Your responses are invaluable in shaping the future of our school, and in formulating our Annual School Improvement Plan.

Congratulations also to those parents/carers who won one of the four $100 Visa cards for completing the survey.

Maxine Nolan

AP

mnolan@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Acting Assistant Principal Pedagogy and Learning

Talofa lava parents, carers and students!

Please see below for what’s happening around our school this fortnight.

Curriculum News 👩‍🏫

AEDC Data Collection

Building a national picture of child health

From May 2024, our school, along with thousands of others across the country, will participate in the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC).

The AEDC is a teacher-completed census (similar to a questionnaire) which provides a comprehensive picture of how children have developed by the time they start their first year of full-time school.

The AEDC is an Australian Government Initiative and is completed nationally every three years.

Children don’t miss any class time while the AEDC is completed, and parents/carers don’t need to supply schools with any new information.

The data collected through the AEDC is used by schools, communities and governments to better understand children and families’ needs, and identify the services, resources and support they need.

AEDC data is reported at a school, community, state/territory and national level. AEDC results for individual children are not reported and the AEDC is not used as an individual diagnostic tool.

Some teachers have found that completing the AEDC made them more aware of the needs of individual children and their class, and that the data was useful for planning for transitions to Year 1 and developing programs.

Participation in the AEDC is voluntary, however the AEDC relies on all schools with children in their first year of full-time school participating in the collection. Parents/carers don’t need to take any action unless they choose not to include their children in the census.

To find out more about the AEDC and how it is being used to help children and families visit: www.aedc.gov.au. If you have any questions, you can contact Mrs Maxine Nolan.

Sports News ⚽️ 🏀 🏈 ⚾️ 🎾 🏐 🏉 🎱

A reminder that the ANZAC Day make-up swimming lesson for Prep – Year 2 will be Thursday 16^th May (Week 5).

Wishing our Year 5 students representing our school in the Townsville School Futsal Titles this Friday  the best of luck!

School Events 📅 

Have a wonderful week ahead and please come and say talofa or hello when you see me around!

Rebecca Rowan

AAPA

rrowan6@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Religious Education

Our Lady of Fatima – Feast Day – May 13

The 13^th of May commemorates the apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary to three children in Fatima, Portugal on the 13th of each month from May to October in 1917. Our Lady appeared to Lucia, age 9, Blessed Francisco Marto, age 8, and Blessed Jacinta Marto, age 6, while they were tending sheep; they described her as “a woman all in white, more brilliant than the sun”, and her message was to do reparation for sins that offend God, and to pray constantly for the conversion of sinners.

She asked for devotion to the Holy Trinity, and for praying the Rosary daily for world peace. Word spread, and by the final apparition on 13 October, 70,000 people showed up to witness the Lady and the sign that she had promised; they witnessed the sun make three circles and zigzag around in the sky.

During this holy Season of Easter, may the Easter gift of "grace and mercy" be ours through the intercession of Our Lady of the Rosary; she who is "our life, our sweetness and our hope" - the Mother of the Risen Lord!

Our Lady of Fátima, pray for us.

Rebecca Kershaw

APRE

rkershaw@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

What's Happening in Deadly Learners

With Term 2 now in full swing we have been very busy in the First Nations Education space. Our Deadly Learner sessions have seen us recognise and remember the First Nations Service Men and Women who contributed to World War I and World War II. Did you know it is believed that over 3,000 First Nations men and women enlisted in WWII?

This week classes will revisit and experience the practice of Dadirri. Dadirri is a reflection by 2020 Senior Australian of the year Dr Miriam Rose Ungunmerr-Baumann which means Inner Deep Listening and Quiet Still Awareness. Be sure to check in with your students to hear about their Dadirri experience. 

We are looking forward to recognising many significant dates this term including Sorry Day, National Reconciliation Week and Mabo Day.

Save the date: Please join us for our National Reconciliation Week Liturgy on Wednesday 29th May at 8.40am. We hope to see you there!

Stay Deadly!

Library

Story Dogs

Eisteddfod 2024

Breakfast Club and Running Club

Both Clubs will run every morning. Breakfast Club will run from the Tuckshop from 8:10am and Running Club will be held on the Junior Oval from 8:10am as well.

The Good Shepherd Way

Term 2, Week 3

This week our Good Shepherd Way Gospel in Action value is Endeavour where I challenge myself to do my best.

Our Endeavour prayer is below:

Term 2, Week 4

The Good Shepherd Way Gospel in Action for Week 4 will be Hope where I see good all around me.

Our Hope prayer is below:

The GSCS Way

The GSCS Way is our positive behaviour support program here at Good Shepherd Catholic School.

All in our community are encouraged to:

• Give My Best
• Show Respect
• Compassion and Care
• Safe Responsible and Fair

Each week we focus on a different area of our matrix.

This week we are focusing on: On the playround. 

In Term 2, Week 3 we are focusing on: In the eating area. 

Prep Orientation 2025

Environmental Tips

Garden

Tuckshop

Wednesday - Thursday - Friday

Please contact the school office or Ann-Maree at Tuckshop with any enquiries.

CUTOFF time to order TUCKSHOP
from FLEXISCHOOLS
is 8:30am.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL ORDERS ARE TO BE PLACED ONLINE AT THE LINK BELOW. Please visit the website to set up your account if you are new to Flexischools.

Flexischool How To Guides for Parents and Caregivers
• Online help is available any time at Flexischools via the link below.
• Phone between 8am - 12pm (AEDST) on weekdays or on the parent phone line (1300 361 769). 

How-To Guides for Parents
Flexischool has spent some time over the holidays developing some quick how-to guides for  parents. If you'd like to see these, please click the link below.
They include: 
•    Introduction to Flexischools;
•    How to Register; 
•    How to Top-Up;
•    How to Place an Order. 

Lost and Found

Teacher Contacts

Parent Portal

If you have any problems accessing please send an email to the school office at rsmssn@tsv.catholic.edu.au. 

The Parent Portal allows you to:

View your child’s timetable and the school calendar
View up to date attendance information for your child
Enter details of upcoming absences or explain past absences or late arrivals for your son or daughter
Access your child’s Semester reports
Make bookings for Parent Teacher Interviews
View a news feed of school announcements, alerts and updates
Provide consent for school events/excursions
Communicate by email with your child’s teachers
Update your contact details (email and mobile phone number).

The parent portal is a web-based system that can be accessed by clicking this link:

An app called Compass School Manager is also available for both iPhones/iPads (via the App Store) and Android phones/tablets (via the Google Play Store). When you have installed the app, search for “Good Shepherd Catholic School – Rasmussen”.
The browser version of the Parent Portal contains more features than the app.  Please click the link below to access the Compass website which has an online guide and video for the Parent Portal.

Community News