4 August 2021

From the Desk of the Principal

What a wonderful Catholic Education Week we had last week. Well done to all classes for their wonderful Acts of Kindness (see Mrs Bell's news below).

As part of Catholic Education Week, a Spirit of Catholic Education Award is presented to celebrate outstanding contributions to Catholic Education in Queensland. Our 2021 recipient is Mrs Debbie Hocking. Debbie has worked at Good Shepherd Catholic School for 24 years in a variety of roles which most recently has been as our Inclusive Education Teacher. Debbie is passionate aboout ensuring all students are catered for in their learning and that there are strong partnerships between home, school and external agencies. Debbie was presented with her award at a special ceremony last Wednesday evening. We congratulate Debbie on this recognition and thank her for all she has contributed and continues to contribute to our school community.

Last Wednesday and Thursday Mrs Hocking also lead a number of our students to the Challenge Games. Congratulations to all of these students who attended. I believe a wonderful couple of days was experienced by all!

We are excited to announce that our Tuckshop is being renovated! Due to the renovation and relocation to a temporary space, the Tuckshop will be closed on 12th, 13th, 18th, 19th and 20th August. Please see a letter attached below in the Tuckshop section. A hard copy has also been sent home.

Enjoy the rest of your week.

Glenda Scrase

Principal

gscrase1@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Religious Education

 ST MARY OF THE CROSS MACKILLOP

This Sunday the 8th of August, we celebrate the feast of Australia’s first saint - St Mary of the Cross MacKillop.
Mary MacKillop was born in 1842 in Melbourne, Victoria. 
Mary cared about the people who had no-one to look after them such as boys and girls who just roamed the streets, children in the country who had no school to go to, people who were old and sick and people who had nowhere to live. Mary wanted more than anything to help these people.
Mary went to work as a teacher in a little country town in South Australia called Penola. There she met Father Julian Tension Woods who also wanted to do something for the poor children who could not afford to pay the money needed to go to school.
Together, in 1866, they began the first St Joseph’s School in an old stable. Two of Mary’s younger sisters also taught in the school and other young women came to help them.
On 19 March, 1866 – St Joseph’s Day – Mary started to wear a simple dark dress and began the Congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph. Now as a Sister, she dedicated her life to doing God‛s work. As more and more young women joined Mary as Sisters, they were able to start more schools. All children were welcome at their schools, even if they couldn‛t pay.
In Adelaide they opened a place for women who had nowhere to live, an orphanage for children who had no parents to look after them and a house where poor people could come and stay. The Sisters visited people who were in gaol and those who were poor and sick.
Mary MacKillop died on 8 August, 1909 in North Sydney. Mary helped many people during her lifetime and after she died the Sisters of St Joseph kept on doing the good work she had started.
Mary MacKillop kept her faith in God and bravely challenged those who did not support her vision for a more caring world.
Mary is an important Australian who spent her life helping people, especially children. She is Australia’s first Saint.

Mary MacKillop Prayer 
Ever generous God,
You inspired Saint Mary MacKillop
To live her life faithful to the Gospel of Jesus Christ
and constant in bringing hope and encouragement
to those who were disheartened, lonely or needy.
With confidence in your generous providence
and through the intercession of Saint Mary MacKillop
We ask that our faith and hope be fired afresh by the Holy Spirit
so that we too, like Mary MacKillop, may live with courage, trust and openness.
                                                       Ever generous God, hear our prayer.
                                                        We ask this through Jesus Christ. Amen.

CATHOLIC EDUCATION WEEK
Thank you 1A for leading our Catholic Education Week Liturgy on Friday. They were helped by some of their 3C buddies – Leanne, Charlee and Jay.

As promised last week, here are some more photos of classes engaged in Catholic Education Week Activities……

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Judy Bell

APRE
jbell17@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Administration

Technology is fantastic! It has put the world at our fingertips, and can be a valuable tool in work and education. But it can also create problems, especially for our young people.

According to the eSafety Commission, parents and carers play a key role in guiding their children as they first encounter the online world and begin to learn through exploration, play and social interaction. 
It is a good idea to protect younger children from online risks such as encountering harmful content, contact with strangers or missing out on physical activity. But it is up to you to decide when and how they take these first steps, and how best to support them as they begin their online journey.

eSafety Commission research shows that 81% of parents with pre-schoolers say their children use the internet.

Of these parents, 94% report that their child was using the internet by the age of 4. This might be via a tablet or iPad (92%), a smartphone (85%) or a computer (83%).  

Should your pre-schooler be using online devices? 
Children often have access to connected devices like tablets and smartphones from a very young age. They might be watching a favourite program through streaming services, using educational apps or simply viewing photos with your family and friends. 
If you set some rules, manage access and stay involved, there is no reason why your pre-schooler should not enjoy the benefits of being online. Click the below link to read tips on online safety basics for pre-schoolers.

How much time should my child spend online? 
There is no magic figure. The right amount of time that children should spend online is debated, with recent research suggesting the evidence of harm relating to screen time is overstated. Choosing the right amount of screen time for your pre-schooler will depend on the individual needs of your child and your family. 

When deciding how much time your pre-schooler should spend online, consider the following factors: 
•    your child’s age and their maturity level 
•    their individual learning needs  
•    your family’s routine 
•    your level of involvement and interaction with them while they are online 
•    the quality and nature of what they are doing online 

It can be easy to focus only on the amount of time spent online, but the quality of the online media they are engaging with, and your involvement and interaction with them while they are using online media, is just as important.  

For example, a five-year-old can get a lot out of spending 30 minutes creating an artwork on a screen together with you. An activity like this, involving the imaginative use of shape and colour, can help them to develop their fine motor and conversational skills. 

The eSafety Commission has a guide to managing time online (click on link below) for parents and carers, which can help you work out a healthy balance across your child’s online and offline activities. It also includes the signs to watch out for if your child’s online activities may be having a negative impact on them. The eSafety website (click on link below) also has a range of other resources and free education programs for parents.

Maxine Nolan

APA

mnolan@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

What's Happening in Our Deadly Learners

“Wadda Mooli”. It was a nice start to our term celebrating NAIDOC week with our 2021 theme ‘Heal Country’. The theme has called  on us to take better care of our country just like our first nation people have done so for thousands of years. During the week we participated in many activities, including our annual flag raising ceremony, the NAIDOC Liturgy, tree planting, cooking, guest speakers and lunchtime activities for the students.

A big THANK YOU goes out to Aka Ellen, Athe Andrew, James Tapau, Annalee Pope, Merrin Cox, Luen Sonogan and Adeleah Evans for giving up their time to come in and share their experiences and cultural knowledge with us all.
During the past few weeks, the Deadly Learners have enjoyed some reflection time in our new sacred space ‘Yalga’ and learning to speak and listen from the heart in the new yarning circle. We are so blessed to have these beautiful spaces in our school.

This year Indigenous Literacy Day will be held in Week 8 on Wednesday 8th of September.  At Good Shepherd we will celebrate this day by holding a Great Book Swap in the library. We are asking our Good Shepherd families to donate any preloved books that are no longer being read at home so other students can have the same enjoyment of reading these fantastic books. Students will get the opportunity to visit the library during week 8 to purchase a book with a gold coin donation. All money raised will go towards the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. 

Awards For The Week

Birthdays For This Week

~ Atticus  1A     ~ Harrison  2B     ~ Bella  2C      ~ Clay  3B      ~ Kai  5A     ~ Jaden  6A

Assembly

PrepB will be presenting our Assembly this Friday in the BBC at 8:40am.

Our lucky Praise Note winners for last week were: Lana (PrepA), Averley (1C), Henny (2C), Delaphine (3A), Theo (4A), Ethan (5B) and Lillian (6A).

The Good Shepherd Way

This week our Good Shepherd Way Gospel in Action value is Hope where we are encouraged to see good all around us.

Our Hope prayer is also 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 Compassion and Care: Oval, Library, Toilets, Tuckshop and Office.

Congratulations to our GSCS Way VIP winners last week - Jax, Lane and Finn.

FACE (Family And Community Engagement) Network News

Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday 12 October at 7:00pm in the Staffroom.

We are looking for donations ahead of our Fathers' Day Stall on 1 September. Can you help?

Running Club

Running Club is held each Tuesday and Thursday on the oval and is open to all year levels and age groups. Can you help us get to Tokyo for the Olympics?

Have You Enrolled For Prep 2022 Yet?

Students turning 5 by 30 June 2022 are invited to enroll for Prep 2022. Applications are available from our School Office. Alternatively they can also downloaded from our website at https://www.gstsv.catholic.edu.au/enrolment/enrolment-package/

Tuckshop

Wednesday - Thursday - Friday

Please place your order with Flexischool no later than 8:30am on the day you wish to order. You will find a menu on our webpage. If you wish to place an order of cupcakes for your child's birthday please place your order the week before.

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.

Library News

Playground Competition

Commonwealth School Data Collection Notice

NCCD Fact Sheet for Parents & Caregivers

Environmental Tips

Trees help to filter water, combat salinity, clean the air and increase flows into water catchments. They also provide food and shelter to Australia's unique wildlife and are an integral part of our country’s biodiversity. So, get your hands dirty and get involved in helping our environment.

Dishwashers – Scrape plates well before packing them in the dishwasher. Clean the filter between washes. Run when fully loaded.  Use the economy cycle.

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