Term 2 Week 2 2023
From your Principal
Term Two began with our Power of the Heart ‘HOSPITALITY’ in action. Our wonderful P&F volunteers kick-started our term with complimentary coffee from ‘Kelly’s Coffee Van’ and a healthy breakfast of fresh fruit and home baked muffins and fresh sandwiches. This warm welcome to Term 2 for parents, staff and students has set the scene for a productive term of parent engagement and staff appreciation for the close-knit community that we have the privilege to be a part of.
In Term Two we focus on our Power of the Mind and Power of the Heart to engage students in their learning and daily life at Holy Name. These attributes are recognised in the Student of the Week Awards and our Footsteps of Jesus Award. Family conversations about our ‘Powers’ will encourage our students to be successful learners and to know the loving face of Jesus in all that we do.
Power of the Mind: Communicate
- I can explain where I am at & where I am going with my learning.
- I know my classroom is a safe place to share.
- I can learn from challenges.
- I can stay calm and focused.
Power of the Heart: Hospitality “The proof of love is deed”
- I can invite others to collaborate and play with me.
- I can care for others when I see they need help.
- I can welcome others with what we have.
ENROLLING AT HOLY NAME
I am conducting interviews for the Prep Class of 2024. It is an extremely enjoyable experience to welcome new families to Holy Name and to meet the siblings of our existing students, welcoming them to Holy Name. Our Prep cohort for 2024 is beginning to grow in numbers. If you have friends or family that have a child for Prep 2024, please bring them to our wonderful school. As well as taking enrolments for Prep, I am also interviewing for the other class groups. We have places available in most class groups, so I ask families to promote Holy Name as ‘the preferred school’ in Toowoomba. Thank you to all those parents for the superb advertising of and recommendations for Holy Name. The ‘TCS Parent Engagement Brochure’ is an integral part of our enrolment process. At enrolment, parents will be required to commit to the standards of expectation outlined in the brochure. The Parent Engagement Charter has been endorsed by our School Board and has been adopted as best practice. Please see the Parent Engagement Charter below to read and be informed of the expected standards at Holy Name.
LONG SERVICE LEAVE
I will be away from Holy Name from Thursday of Week 4, taking some of my accrued Long Service Leave. I am looking forward to this time as I am travelling to Canada and Alaska. In my absence, Mrs Manthey will be our Acting Principal. I know our community will work with Mrs Manthey to ensure that our school continues to be the vibrant, active learning community that we enjoy.
During the time that Mrs Manthy is the Acting Principal at Holy Name, Mrs Allison Busiko will take up the position of Acting APRE/ Middle Leader. Mrs Busiko holds the position of Middle Leader: Curriculum, Deputiser and Yr5/6 class teacher at St Francis de Sales Primary School, Clifton. She applied for and has accepted this secondment to join Holy Name staff. Allison has 23 years of teaching experience across multiple educational settings, holding various leadership positions in this time. Allison has completed a Graduate Certificate in Religious Education and a Master of Education- Leadership. We welcome her to our Holy Name team of dedicated and expert educators.
MAJOR EVENTS TERM 2
Literacy Coaching and Parent Information session
Literacy coaching for staff and information for parents will take place in Week 3. Literacy Coach, Mrs Ehmer will be modelling best practices in the teaching of reading to teachers and parents. ‘Dedicated reading at home with a parent / carer is the only homework / home activity that will and can improve a student’s academic progress’
Mother’s Day
The Mother’s Day Prayer Celebration and Mother’s Day Stall is on Friday, May 12. The Yr1 classes will prepare and present the prayer ceremony. All families, relatives, friends, and parishioners are invited to be present to pray with the students.
P&F Mother’s Day Stall - Holy Name students will enjoy purchasing gifts for their mothers, carers, and grandmothers from the P&F Mother's Day Stall. Many thanks to our volunteers for their great work and providing the students with the experience of gifting to their loved ones at the glamorous Holy Name Mother’s Day Stall.
To all mothers, our very best wishes for a very special Mother’s Day on Sunday.
Athletics Carnival
Our annual Athletics Carnival is a day of great excitement and school spirit. Date claimers:
- Wednesday 14 June: Field Events Yr3 – Yr6 students
- Thursday 15 June: Whole school Athletics Carnival
TCSO Inaugural Arts Festival
In the last week of this term students will participate at the inaugural TCSO Arts Festival. Students have been informed and invited to participate in auditions to gain selection to participate in this event. Mrs Manthey is currently conducting the auditions.
SCHOOL UNIFORM
What a superb formal winter uniform is ours at Holy Name! Holy Name students presented this week in the ‘new look’ uniform with a great majority of students wearing the newly introduced blue shirt. This year is a transition year to change from the original white shirt. Feedback from our wider parent community has been extremely positive with parents sharing great accolades about the appearance and practicality of the darker colour. Congratulations to our students and families for their adherence to uniform requirements and to the extreme pride for wearing our correct Holy Name uniform. Please refer to the Uniform Policy below for the list of requirements for the Formal Winter Uniform and Sport Uniform. During the cold weather, students are permitted to add a navy scarf and navy gloves when extremely cold. The school jumper (with school badge) and tracksuit jacket are the correct clothes for warmth. If extra layers are required, please add underneath so it is not seen. All uniform requirements can be purchased from our Uniform Shop. Please check the Sentral Parent Portal announcements for opening times as these change due to the availability of volunteers. We thank our wonderful volunteer, Liz Maxwell for taking on the position of Uniform Shop Coordinator.
NB: Formal Uniform - Monday, Tuesday, Thursday.
Sport Uniform – Wednesday, Friday.
STUDENT PROTECTION AT HOLY NAME
Safe and happy students are our priority at Holy Name. Student Protection is addressed by ensuring that all staff have completed the annual compliance training modules in Student Protection and Code of Conduct provided by TCSO prior to commencing the school year. Holy Name has nominated known ‘Student Protection Contacts’ advertised on posters displayed around the school. The Student Protection Contacts for 2023 are: Mrs Roberts and Miss Hose, supported by Mrs Bliss.
COMMUNICATION
Communication is a vitally important component of the smooth running of each school day. We are ever aware that communication is key. Our main avenues of communication are:
- Newsletter: Published fortnightly. Week 2 and Week 8 will be our formal newsletter communication. Weeks 4, 6 and 10 will be our photo snap shot of learning at Holy Name.
- Parent Portal: Updates to whole school and individual classes delivered via Parent Portal. This is where Student Report Cards are now posted to parents at the end of Semester One and Semester Two.
- Facebook & Instagram: Praise and acknowledgement announcements of student achievement in all facets of learning and school life. Please remember to ‘like’ our Facebook and Instagram posts as this advertises our wonderful school!
- Website: Our new website has been launched and is now live! Our website provides an overall picture of Holy Name where all major policies and procedures for Holy Name and Toowoomba Catholic Schools Office can be found. One important procedure is the ‘Complaints Management Procedure’. We all acknowledge that we do not live in a perfect world and there are times when parents may need to raise an issue and feel heard and valued. This procedure is found via the following link.
DANCE FEVER PROGRAM
All students will attend the ‘Dance Fever Program’ commencing on Friday 21 April and continuing throughout the term. This program is aligned with the Australian Curriculum and provides physical activity, rhythm, and much enjoyment for our students. This program will culminate at the end of this term with a dance presentation from each class group to demonstrate their learning and progress in this section of the curriculum.
We look forward to the term ahead as students, staff and parents begin a new term as partners and team players to engage in productive learning, where each child is supported to achieve academic success and to know and experience the loving presence of Jesus each day.
At Holy Name #welovelearning.
God Bless,
Kathy
Annual Calendar of Events
APRE News
Welcome to Term Two. I hope you enjoyed a wonderful break with family and friends and were able to take some time for prayer and reflection to celebrate the mysteries of Jesus’ Passion, Death and Resurrection.
This term our Mercy Value: Power Of The Heart focus is Hospitality. Hospitality is the creation of a welcoming, inclusive and respectful environment, through both words and actions. Catherine McAuley, the founder of the Mercy Sisters, had such a creative approach to hospitality. Her first sense of the ministry to which she felt called was a ministry of hospitality. She had, throughout her young life, been consistently dependent on the hospitality of others and she looked to return that goodness. When the resources became available to her, she created a place where women and children were welcomed. She took people in – into her house, into her heart into her concerns. Catherine’s lessons of hospitality are best summed up in her maxim, ‘The proof of love is deed.’ This term, students will be explicitly taught this Mercy Value through the use of I can statements:
I can:
- invite others to collaborate and play with me
- care for others when I see they need help
- welcome others with what we have
Thank you to the families who were able to attend the ANZAC Day Prayer Celebration with us on Monday 24 April. Thank you to the Year Three class and Mr Anderson for the moving commemoration service.
Date Claimer
Mother’s Day Prayer Celebration
Friday 12 May
8.45am
MEAC
Blessings
Kerri-Ann Manthey
Horizons
Horizons will now be published electronically. See link below.
Prep News
Welcome back to Term 2!
Firstly, I’d like thank you for welcoming me into your Holy Name family. It was fantastic to meet all the children and hear their stories about what they did over the break. Theresa and I hope you had a lovely Easter break and were able to spend some wonderful time with your family.
Term 2 Curriculum Focus:
In English this term, students will listen to and engage with a range of Fairy Tales with a focus on exploring how language is used to entertain through retelling events. So far we have had fun retelling The Three Little Pigs and Goldilocks and the Three Bears.
In Maths this term, students will have opportunities to develop understandings of:
Number: forwards and backwards counting sequences, compare/connect number names, quantities and numerals
Shape: describe, compare and sort 2D shapes and 3D objects
Measurement: compare and order the length and height of objects
Location: give and follow movement directions
In Science this term, students will develop an understanding of how things move. They will explore the push and pull forces they can use to move objects in ways such as sliding, bouncing and spinning.
Dance Fever
Dance Fever lessons have begun! Each Friday, students will engage in dance lessons. Week One was a lot of fun.
Homework
Please keep up your nightly reading routines and daily sight word practice. We will continue to test sight words on Friday mornings.
Mother’s Day
Save the date!!! Following the Mother’s Day Prayer Celebration on Friday 12th May, all PREP mothers and carers are invited into the Prep classroom for some ‘pampering’. A shared morning tea will be held afterwards with the Year One students. More information to come soon.
We are looking forward to a great Term 2!
Mrs Kauter and Mrs Holm
Year 1 News
Welcome to Term 2
This term students are to wear winter formal uniform on Monday, Tuesday & Thursday and sports uniform on Wednesday & Friday. Please see the P&F for details regarding uniform requirements and opening hours. Please ensure ALL items of clothing are labelled!!
This term we are learning about ‘Past & Present’ in History and partitioning, addition, subtraction & numbers to 120 in Maths. In English this term we are reading, writing, retelling, role playing and adapting familiar narrative stories. Chinese has recommenced and Dance Fever lessons started last Friday.
Weekly timetable:
Monday – Reading on a Rug, formal uniform, weekly homework goes home today
Tuesday – Reading on a Rug, formal uniform
Wednesday – Run Club, Library & PE, sports uniform – Don’t forget your library bag, home readers and yellow home reading diary!
Thursday – Reading on a Rug, formal uniform
Friday – Run club, Dance Fever, Chinese, sports uniform, HOMEWORK DUE BACK
We are excited to go to an excursion to The Empire Theatre on Friday 9th June to see a stage adaptation of the children’s picture book ‘Are We There Yet?’ by Allison Lester. More information to come!
Save the date:
- Year 1 leading Mother’s Day Prayer Celebration on Friday 12th May @ 8:45am, followed by a pampering session in the classroom and shared morning (see flyer below)
- Athletics Carnival Thursday 15th June, Week 9
- Year 1I presenting at assembly on Thursday 22nd June, Week 10
Many thanks,
Mrs Mac & Ms Inskip
Year 2 News
Welcome to term 2! I hope everyone had a relaxing break and enjoyed their Easter. The students have settled back into routine very well and have been enjoying catching up with friends and sharing their holiday stories.
In English this term the focus will be on non-fiction text types. The students will be listening to, reading, interpreting, and writing a variety of non-fiction texts. They will learn about the appropriate structure, sentence types and vocabulary to use when writing information reports. Our English unit integrates with our science where students will be investigating the life cycle of animals and how they grow and change.
In Mathematics this term, we will be focussing on the student’s ability to fluently recall addition and subtraction facts to 20. The students will continue to work on recognising, representing and ordering numbers to one thousand in a variety of ways. The students will also be investigating length and mapping.
This term in Religion we will be analysing some teachings and actions of Jesus from the New Testament, that reveal what God was like. Students will be posing questions about the life and time of Jesus and make connections between his teachings and the way members of the Church community live today.
This term:
- Homework will begin in week 2. It will be sent home on a Monday and is due back in on Friday.
- Library and Physical Education specialist lessons are held on Wednesday.
- Chinese and Dance Fever specialist lessons are held on Friday.
As always, please feel free to contact us via email if you have any questions. We look forward to an exciting term ahead!
Miss Kimmorley and Mr McAllister
Year 3 News
Welcome back to Term 2 in Year 3. It will be a busy term with a few short weeks and carnivals occurring. The first two weeks have been busy with students getting organised with routines in the classroom, ANZAC Prayer Celebration, and cooler days.
Below is a brief outline of the main areas we are looking at this term in class.
RE – We will explore who Jesus is using the New Testament.
English – Literacy rotations and our unit is based around procedures.
Mathematics – number, Space and Measurement.
HASS – Looking at Australia and our neighbouring countries.
Science – Heat and how it transfers from one substance to another.
Health – being healthy and active citizens.
The students enjoy their Dance Fever lesson each Friday. Below are a couple of photos from last week that Mrs Elmes has shared.
Please touch base with me if you would like to discuss any learning areas that your child is finding challenging. I am away next week at Professional Learning at TCS office.
Have a good week.
David
Dance Fever
Year 4 News
It's term 2. This term we are learning about the changes in technology in year 4. On Tuesday in week 3 we are going on an excursion to the Cobb and Co Museum. It will be such a beneficial outing to explore and experience the olden things. We will create an explanation text about a change in technology and explore how it needs our human needs and wants. We are focusing on developing our multiplication and division skills in maths this term.
Homework grids have been emailed out. If you have any further questions please email or phone.
Looking forward to the term ahead.
Miss H
Year 5 News
We are excited to share with you some of the wonderful activities and learning experiences that have and will be happening in our Year 5 classroom over this term.
In Science, we look forward to conducting a range of exciting experiments that will allow us to investigate Our Planet and the Solar System. Our students have been able to develop their scientific thinking skills, including observing, hypothesizing, experimenting, and analysing results.
In English, we have been focusing on persuasive writing and debating. Our students have been learning about the different elements of persuasive writing and how to structure an effective argument. They have also had the opportunity to participate in debates on a range of topics, including the importance of recycling, the benefits of homework, and the role of technology in our lives. We are proud of their efforts to articulate their views clearly and respectfully.
In Maths, we have been working on fractions, including how to add, subtract, multipy, and divide fractions, as well as how to convert between fractions and decimals. Our students have been developing their conceptual understanding of fractions, as well as their ability to apply their knowledge to real-world problems.
We are thrilled with the progress that our students have been making and are grateful for the ongoing support of Year 5 parents.
Year 6 News
Dear Year 6 families,
I hope that you have had a restful Easter break. As we move into the second term of the school year, I would like to take this opportunity to provide you with some important information regarding Term Two.
In English, we will be focusing on the genre of biography writing. This will allow the students to develop their skills in gathering and organizing information about people and events.
In HASS, we will learn about the Australian Government, its structure, functions, and responsibilities. We will explore the three levels of government - Federal, State/Territory, and Local - and the roles of the different branches. Through various activities, students will develop an understanding of the democratic system and how citizens can participate in it.
In Mathematics, we will be covering a wide range of topics, including Cartesian planes, chance and probability, fractions, angles, and graphing. These topics are essential in developing students' problem-solving skills and providing them with a strong foundation in mathematics.
Year 6 students will have the opportunity to visit the school library every Tuesday, where they can access a wide range of books and other resources to support their learning. On Wednesdays, we will have our Physical Education (PE) lesson. Additionally, Dance Fever and Chinese language lessons will take place every Friday.
In addition, I am pleased to inform you that Year 5 and 6 will be attending camp this term. The camp will take place from 5th – 7th of June at Emu Gully and will provide a fun and educational experience for all students. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to learn new skills, make new friends, and develop their independence.
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to express my excitement about the upcoming term. I am incredibly proud of the leadership skills that the Year 6 students have developed throughout Term One. I look forward to continuing to support them in their role as leaders of our school and watching them grow even further in their abilities.
I am looking forward to working with our students and helping them achieve their full potential. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Kindest regards,
Tilly Hose
Year 6 Teacher
The Root Cause
The Root Cause - Advocating for children's health and a sustainable future
Our school is committed to improving the overall health, wellbeing, and academic performance of our students – your children – which is why our school is partnering with The Root Cause and running their Children’s Health Program. The Root Cause is a leading health education organisation which works with parents and schools to empower children to make better food and sleep choices. Since 2013, The Root Cause has worked with over 46,000 students, parents, and teachers at over 188 schools Australia-wide, and has been featured on national television, as well as digital, print and radio media across the country.
As part of our partnership with The Root Cause, we have an upcoming free seminar for parents and caregivers. This will take place on the 17th of May from 5:30pm to 6:30pm in the Library.
This seminar is for you if you:
- Want some quick tips for making better choices at the supermarket
- Feel like you never have time to cook
- Would like meal planning to be easy
- Would like help with quick ways to prepare for the week ahead
- Want to know how to quickly and simply pack a lunch for yourself
In this free seminar, you’ll learn:
- How to navigate the supermarket
- 3 simple steps for better choices
- How to menu plan like a boss
- Tips on preparation
- A formula to pack your own lunch for a week in advance
We look forward to seeing you at this seminar!
The Root Cause Poster
Sport News
Welcome back to Term 2! We have another busy Term in Sport – starting in Week 1 with Daniel Sims – a
former college Basketball player in the USA coming and working with the children – who by all accounts
thoroughly enjoyed – especially his trick slam dunk shots!
Starting in Week 2 PE lessons, we have Renae Reich, a Level 3 High Performance Athletics Coach, coming
and working with myself and the children on their Long Jump, High Jump, Shot Put, Discus and Running
in preparation for our Athletics Carnival which is now being held on Wednesday the 14th of June for Field
Events and 800m and Thursday the 15th of June for our Track Events and Ballgames. Renae is a highly
experienced coach and we are lucky to have her expertise with these events!
Some of our Holy Name students will be attending the Toowoomba Cross Country on Friday the 28th of
April and running for a spot in the Central Zone Team. We wish them all the best and know they will do
our school and themselves proud! Please make sure you have returned your permission notes for this
prior to Friday.
Any sport related questions please don’t hesitate email me on jenna.taylor@twb.catholic.edu.au
Jenna Taylor
PE Teacher