24 August 2022

From the Desk of the Principal

Welcome to Book Week! We look forward to celebrating books and characters tomorrow with our annual Book Week Parade. Families are welcome to join us in the BBC from 8:40am.

Professional development is an important aspect of our role as educators. At today's Staff Meeting all staff were reminded of our important role in Student Protection. Next week there is a state wide Pupil Free Day on Friday 2 September. On this day our Teachers will participate in a Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) webinar and then further explore the importance of writing and work on further developing writing experiences for our students. Our School Officers will spend the day further enhancing their knowledge and skills in the areas of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Speech Language Impairment (SLI), Hearing Impairment (HI), Social Emotional Disorder (SED) and Intellectual Disability (ID).

Enjoy the rest of your week.

Glenda Scrase

Principal

gscrase1@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Religious Education

Social Justice Sunday
28th August 2022
Each year, in association with Social Justice Sunday (to be held on 28 August this year), Australia’s Catholic Bishops release a Social Justice Statement on a current concern to promote awareness, discussion of its impact on people, and practical action to address it within various Church settings. This year’s Statement is entitled Respect: Confronting Violence and Abuse, in response to the worrying incidence of domestic abuse and community violence throughout our nation.

The Statement calls our attention to how and why abuse and violence can be found in the home, in the workplace, and within community organisations, including churches and other faith organisations.

It highlights that it is often women and children who are the predominant victims, owing to the abuse of power within relationships that arise from gender inequality. Abuse exists under so many guises, being present physically, emotionally, financially, sexually, and/or spiritually. Its impact can have serious long-term consequences for victims, adversely affecting their health, in all its dimensions, and their potential to create a life of confident well-being.

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus’ way of relating to people of all backgrounds with compassion and mercy stands in stark contrast to episodes of abuse and violence. His support of the woman caught in adultery and about to be stoned (John 8:1-11), is offered as an example of Jesus’ support for justice, his profound respect for women, and his rejection of any abuse and violence to others. Two thousand years later, Jesus expects no less than this same response to any incident of violence or abuse from us as individual Christians and from his Church.

To keep the program going in our school, we are asking families if they could assist by donating a spread or more for the toast (vegemite, jam and squeeze honey if possible) this term. All donations are gratefully received and can be left at the Office. 

Rebecca Kershaw

APRE

rkershaw@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

From the Desk of the Assistant Principal Administration

How come they get to…?

From time to time, we hear comments from families about why another child might “get” to do things differently to their own child. As educators, we are committed to providing what each child needs to be able to succeed, and that means offering alternative methods and adjusting curriculum, learning activities and assessment so that each child can show their knowledge. I think the below image sums it up perfectly:

SchoolTV Special Report: Wellbeing Checklist for Primary

Over the past couple of years, with Covid having an impact on everything from travel to involvement in sports to grocery shopping, many of us have experienced a variety of emotions ranging from fear to anxiety. According to a SchoolTV special report, all of these are considered to be normal and natural responses to any challenging situation that can often result in our minds telling us all kinds of scary stories.

This can be especially true for our young people, for whom uncertainty and disruption is less than ideal. Many of these ‘what if’ stories will often predict the worst and are considered not helpful. It is therefore vitally important for adult carers to remain vigilant for any signs of distress, even though your child may not have any prior history of a mental health disorder. Early intervention, diagnosis and treatment have never been more important.

If you do have any concerns relating to your child’s mental health, you may wish to consider using the assessment tool provided by Beyond Blue. The checklist aims to measure a broad range of social, emotional or behavioural difficulties your child may be experiencing and is suitable for kids from 4 years of age.

Click the link below to access the Beyond Blue Assessment Tool. If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please seek medical or professional help. Click the SchoolTV link to access the SchoolTV Special Report: Wellbeing Checklist for Primary and to access information on a range of related topics. SchoolTV can also be accessed via the GSCS home page, under the “Students” tab.

Maxine Nolan

APA

mnolan@gstsv.catholic.edu.au

Parent Survey

What's Happening In Our Year 2 Classes?

Year 2 students used the book ‘Walk of the Whales’ by Nick Bland to create artworks using recycled material to showcase why it is important to care for our environment.  This is a powerful and entertaining story about the beautiful world we live in and that for every action in nature, there is a consequence. This story connects us to the Gospel Value of Stewardship and encourages us to be more responsible and make better choices to protect God’s wonderful Creation.

Awards For The Week

Birthdays Being Celebrated This Week

~MJ(PrepA)~Bayelli(PrepA)~Elliott(1A)~Lincoln(1B)~Lilly(5A)~Connah(5A)

Assembly

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

Our lucky Praise Note winners last week were: Leo(PrepC), Lillie(1A), Cooper(2B), Caiarn(3C), Dakota-Rose(4C), Ally(5B), Roary(6A). 

The Good Shepherd Way

This week our Good Shepherd Way Gospel in Action value is Love where I share my good heart with others.

Our Love 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: In The Toilets.

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.

Parent Portal

Parent Portal

If you have any problems accessing please send an email to the school office at rsmssn@tsv.catholic.edu.au or call the office on 4774 0477.

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.

Library News

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.

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. 

Environmental News

Threaten species - Be aware of and respect all creatures and their environments.  Avoid products that result in a loss of habitat for threatened species. 137 species of plants and animals are estimated to go extinct each day – that’s 50 000 species each year.

Teacher Contacts

Upcoming Events

Community News