Term 4 Week 2

Prayer

October 7th is the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary; during the entire month praying the Rosary is encouraged. Rosary beads are used to help Catholics count their prayers. Catholics often pray the rosary to make a request to God, some to thank God for blessings received or for requesting a special favour, for example if someone is sick to help them recover.  

Message From The Principal

Staffing 2024

Jason Perry - Principal

Paul Mannion – Deputy Principal

Bianca de Deuge – Student Support Coordinator

Emma Marshall – Literacy Leader/Religious Education Coordinator/Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Key Teacher

Lauren Bartush – Grade 5/6

Jordan Ryan – Grade 5/6

Andrew McCausland – Grade 3/4

Liam Ryan – Grade 3/4

Debra Jones – Grade 2

Tammi Crosswell – Grade 1

Maria Deane – Prep

Madeline White – Kindergarten and St Anthony’s Explorers (Set Up for Success)

Kayla Lockett – Japanese

Nick Stacey – P.E.

Natalie Zegveld – The Arts

While we are very busy this term with all of our end of year events, we have managed to finalise our staffing for next year much earlier than usual and it is my pleasure to announce it to you here.

 Although I have listed Teachers and our Leadership Team here, we will also continue to be supported by our wonderful Teacher Assistants and Support Staff next year.

 There are two new names on the list above. Unfortunately for us, Mrs Nicole McCormack will not be returning to St Anthony’s. I would like to thank Nicole for her five years of service to our school community and we wish her all the best for her teaching moving forward.

 The other teacher leaving is Mr Bob. Bob has been an institution at St Anthony’s, working as a TA, ICT TA, Chaplain, relief teacher and Teacher! Although we are sad to see him go, we understand the need for him to ‘stretch his teaching wings’ and he has secured a position with the Education Department. We will miss having him at St Anthony’s and will miss all that he has contributed but we wish him well for the future.

 Joining us from St Paul’s in Bridgewater will be Jordan Ryan (I know, we’ll have two Mr Ryan’s). Some of you might remember that Jordan did some relief for us a few years ago. He has since taught at St Patrick's College and more recently at St Paul's.

 The other new Teacher is Mrs Deb Jones who comes to us after a year at Our Lady of Mercy Deloraine. Although she is originally from Tassie she has taught for most of her career in Victoria and has held numerous Leadership roles.

 I am really excited to have both Jordan and Deb joining our staff and it is a great sign of our success that we were able to secure them as experienced educators. I know that you will make both Jordan and Deb welcome at St Anthony's.

 Currently our teachers are finalising information for class groupings next year. This year we have engaged a third-party provider to allocate our classes for Grades 3-6. As part of this process, we have asked students for their friendship requests. Please note, however, that we will not be able to facilitate parent requests for teachers.

Jason Perry

Principal

Payment of 2023 School Fees

As we have now begun Term 4, I would like to remind families of your obligation to pay school fees. As per our Enrolment Agreement, and on your monthly statements, fees for the current school year are to be paid in full by the last week in November. If you are experiencing difficulties in meeting your payments, please contact Nikki Quill in the office to discuss.

Yesterday, the Schedule of Fees for 2024 was sent home with students, you may have noticed the addition of the new PAYMENT ARRANGEMENT FORMS. Please return these to the office by Monday 20th November. By returning these forms you are able to choose your payment frequency, the amounts per payment will be adjusted accordingly on your statement. 

From the beginning of 2024, YOU MUST nominate the frequency of instalments on this form or you will be expected to pay in full 30 days after the first statement.

Class Sharing 3/4M: Persuasive texts

In English we have been learning about persuasive texts.

We have learnt about how to be persuasive in our writing, including;

• The Rule of 3, which is when we use three adjectives or 3 facts in a row
• Exaggeration, which is when we exaggerate the truth, such as Mr M has told us a million times to edit our work.
• Appositives, which is when we provide persuasive detail about the subject - St Anthony’s, the best school in the world, is located in Riverside.

We have also learnt about persuasive techniques, such as Rhetorical Questions, Counter Arguments, Anecdotal Evidence and Imagine Statements.

Grade 5/6 Green QVMAG Excursion

Last term, Grade 5/6 Green went on an excursion to the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery (QVMAG) as part of our learning in science about how Earth and other things in our solar system move in relation to the sun. 

We started our excursion by visiting the Planetarium which we really enjoyed! We learnt how the planets, including Earth and its moon, were formed in our solar system. We also got to see how Earth orbiting the sun affects our seasons and how the rotation of the Earth affects day and night. Our guide showed us the different star constellations in our galaxy and how to use the tip of the Little Dipper’s handle to find North.

We also enjoyed playing the space games and activities as well as exploring the rest of the museum. Some highlights for us were pretending we were floating in space and reading the interesting reasons why some convicts were arrested and sent to Australia.

Overall we had a great day out at the QVMAG museum!

Grade 5/6 Green

Holy Communion

Please pray for me as I prepare for my First Holy Communion.

Sacrament of First Holy Communion:

St Francis Church on Saturday 11^th November at 6pm

My New Gallery

Pope Francis' Message for World Mission Sunday 2023

“Hearts on Fire, Feet on the Move" (Luke 24:13-35)

So let us set out once more, illumined by our encounter with the risen Lord and prompted by his Spirit. Let us set out again with burning hearts, with our eyes open and our feet in motion. Let us set out to make other hearts burn with the word of God, to open the eyes of others to Jesus in the Eucharist, and to invite everyone to walk together on the path of peace and salvation that God, in Christ, has bestowed upon all humanity.

Staff vs Gr 6 students Soccer Match

To help support Socktober, the Grade 6s went head to head with the Staff in a game of soccer! Whilst the Staff ran away with the win 3-0 it was a great opportunity for all students to show their sportsmanship and support for one another while also promoting a great cause! Great job to everyone who participated!

Athletics Carnival

CLARE WINS AGAIN – FIFTH ATHLETICS CARNIVAL IN A ROW

The whole school Athletics Carnival was held on Tuesday 17^th October, and on a wonderful spring day all the students were out performing to their best on the day.  A full program of athletic and novelty events kept all students from Kinder to Grade 6 busy for the carnival, running, jumping and throwing with a few falls in the sack and 3-legged races thrown in for good measure.

Congratulations to Clare House who won the house shield for this year completing a remarkable fifth win in succession in the Athletics Carnival.  Despite strong performances from students across all three houses, Clare would not be denied and took out a comprehensive victory by over 100 points.

Many thanks to all the volunteers who helped out on the day to ensure that the carnival ran smoothly, and special thanks to St Patrick’s College who supplied us with 24 Grade 9 students volunteers. They were a credit to the college and we look forward to having them back again next year.  We couldn’t have put the carnival on without your help.

A big congratulations to all those students who will be representing the school at the NIJSSA Athletics Carnival.  This will held at St Leonard’s on Friday 3^rd November and we are looking forward to a great day.

School Visit

A big thank you to Bridget Archer MP - Liberal Member for Bass for presenting us with our new flags, as well as taking the time to engage with our grade 5/6 students! We appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedule, we loved having you join us today!

Footprints of Jesus Awards

Congratulations to all the students who were awarded Footprints at our last assembly. These students display our school values of being: Safe, Responsible, Respectful.

Soirées

Late last term, our student enrolled in the Instrumental Music Program participated in their second and final Soiree for 2024. These are a wonderful opportunity for students to showcase their progress and achievement during the year.

We can’t wait to see them all perform at the big Annual Concert & Awards Evening to be held at St Patrick’s College on Thursday 23 November.

Crazy Sock Day

Wednesday 25th October 2023 was St Anthony’s Crazy Sock Day. Thank you to all those families who donated and those students who wore crazy socks for Catholic Mission.  St Anthony’s raised $204. All money raised will go to Catholic Mission which will help provide essential support for key projects in countries right around the world, including remote Australia. 

World Teacher's Day

Australia will celebrate the teaching profession on World Teachers’ Day on Friday 27 October 2023 and this year the theme is: Hats off to teachers!

This is a day to acknowledge all our awesome teaching staff. As they say, "it takes a village" and we certainly appreciate all that our teachers do in providing the best possible educational opportunities and learning environments that develop the whole child. Let’s celebrate and thank Australia’s teachers for their skilled work in educating, inspiring and supporting our students.

This is your chance to join Australia in celebrating teachers. Share your “hats off” selfie to celebrate teachers and tell us what they mean to you.

On Friday 27 October, you can show your appreciation by posting a “hats off” selfie on social media, either on your own or with family or friends, using the online photo booth https://worldteachersday.edu.au/#photo-booth. Grab your hat – beret, beanie, bucket, bowler – and remember to tag #WorldTeachersDay @aitsl

Perhaps you might take a moment to remember and give a shout out to one of your teachers who you remember fondly and nurtured your learning or inspired you on a particular path.

Mini Vinnies Christmas Treat Bag Appeal 2023

Can you help spread a little cheer to those less fortunate this Christmas? 

 Vinnies are seeking donations of:

• Tinned Ham (450g)
• Tin Instant Gravy mix
• Christmas Pudding or Cake
• Tinned Vegetables
• Fruit mince pies
• Custard (Long-life) (1L)
• 1 packet sweet treats (such as sweet biscuits)
• 1 packet Savoury treats (such as savoury biscuits)
• Chocolates

 Donations need to be at St Anthony’s by Wednesday, 29th November 2023. Donation containers are located in each classroom.

St Patrick’s College Visit

On Wednesday 18 October, we had a visit from St Patrick’s College staff, Mr Simon Austen (Head of Middle School) and Mrs Janelle Mannion (Director of Pastoral Care - Middle School) to talk with the 16 Year 6 students who are attending St Patrick’s College in 2024.

This is the first of a few ‘transition to secondary school’ events. The next will be a Parent Information Evening on 8 November and the Student Orientation Day on Thursday 30 November. 

PAT testing

Over the next couple of weeks, students from Prep - Grade 6 will be participating in the annual Progressive Achievement Tests, also known as PAT. These assessments measure student’s knowledge, skills and understanding in a subject and helps pinpoint where they are in their learning journey. Teachers use the data to measure student growth and also the areas they need to focus on.