St Francis of Assisi College - Term 1 Week 6 - 2023

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International Women’s Day #EmbraceEquity

Wednesday March 8th was International Women’s Day, with this year’s theme - #EmbraceEquity.

The aim of this year’s theme is to move beyond a focus on why equal opportunity alone isn’t enough and moving to a consideration around what is required for true inclusion and belonging to be achieved.

We Pray…..

Lord, make me an instrument of peace:

Bless all women who daily strive to bring peace to their communities, their homes and their hearts. Give them strength to continue to turn swords into ploughshares.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love:

We pray for all women who face prejudice, inequality and gender disparities. Help us to see and to face the discrimination against women in all the many forms it may take.

Where there is injury, pardon:

Comfort all women who suffer from the pain of war, violence, and abuse. Help them to become instruments of their own reconciliation and peace.

Where there is division, unity:

Forgive all women and men who let differences breed hate and discrimination. Let your example of valuing all of creation help us to see that we are equal partners in the stewardship of your world.

Where there is darkness, light; where there is untruth, truth:

Comfort all women who struggle in the darkness of abuse, poverty, and loneliness. May we stand with them in light to acknowledge their suffering and strive to remove the burdens of shame or embarrassment.

Student Academic Progress

Student Progress Updates will be available through SEQTA at the end of Week 7, this is followed by Student / Parent / Home Group Teacher conversations on Wednesday March 29th in Week 9.

The strength of the teacher and parent / carer partnership is critical to student learning, and I encourage parents and carers to be proactive in contacting teachers if there are any concerns and questions.  General inquiries about your child’s progress can be directed through home group teachers, and specific academic queries can be directed to individual subject teachers.  While we have formal reporting opportunities, please do now wait if you have questions, make contact at any stage.  As a teaching team, we continually emphasise the importance of getting in early, before small issues become big, and in developing a strong relationship with our parents and carers.

Board Annual General Meeting – Wednesday 29 March, 7:00pm

Parents and carers are invited to attend the Annual General Meeting, held on Wednesday March 29th, starting at 7pm in the Collaboration Centre (Year 7 – 9 teaching building).

There are vacancies for the School Board and nominations sought for people interested in serving on the Board this year.

The School Board is responsible for the governance of the School in the areas of policy review, financial management, pastoral care (staff, students and parents), maintenance and development and strategic planning. Elected members serve a 2-year term on the Board and newly elected members will join the existing Board members.

The timeline for nominations and elections is:

• Monday 20 March, 2023 Nominations close 2:00pm
• Tuesday 21 March, 2023 Voting papers sent to parents if required
• Monday 27 March, 2023 Voting closes
• Wednesday 29 March, 2023 AGM of the School Board

Thank you for your time and attention given to the formation of the School Board for 2023.

7-12 Sports Carnival –Friday 17 March, in Week 7

We look forward to the 7-9 Athletics Carnival on Friday 17 March in Week 7. Such days provide opportunities for individuals to test their athletic abilities and contribute to their overall House Group success through participation and team spirit.

Following this carnival, a team will be selected to represent the College at the Combined Catholic Secondary Athletics Carnival in Adelaide on Monday 27th of March, and the School Sports SA Athletics Carnival in Adelaide on Wednesday 12th of April.

I extend a very warm welcome to parents, carers, and family members to attend our Athletics Carnival to witness the athletic endeavours and meet other families who are part of the College community.

Wellbeing Initiative – Classroom Pulse ‘Check-In’

This week all students in Catholic Schools in South Australia participated in an online Classroom Pulse Check-in.

The purpose of the Classroom Pulse Check In is to find out how students are feeling about their experience of school.

Students will each be asked some simple questions about:

• Identity
• Learning
• Relationships
• Belonging

Our aim is simply to “check in” with our students and measure how they are feeling.

Your child’s responses will help us to identify any potential social, emotional, or learning needs that they may have.

They will also be used by Catholic Education SA to help highlight trends across Catholic Schools that may need to be addressed.

You can view sample Classroom Pulse Check Ins below:

https:///www.cesa.catholic.edu.au/files/61884/Classroom_Pulse_Check_In_4-12.pdf

Nathan Hayes, Principal

Tactile Teaching Reading

The College continues to ensure all students are improving their literacy and numeracy learning through investing in professional learning for all staff.  As a literacy focus this year, staff are working on supporting students in their reading in all subject areas to increase student literacy achievement. At a recent professional learning meeting, staff began the Tactile Teaching Reading training. This first workshop provided staff with a host of activities that target reading processes to help students activate background knowledge, clarify vocabulary, monitor understanding, and process what they have read. It also explored the research on adolescent literacy and easy-to-use activities to support students in making sense of what they read in each learning area, by examining the reading processes before, during and after reading.  

Term 1 Student Progress Update Reports:

Student progress update reports will be released through SEQTA on Friday 17 March. To access these reports, click on assessments and the relevant subject.

The aim of this report is to provide parents/carers feedback about their child’s progress before a formal grade is given in the end of semester report. Feedback enables a student to monitor their learning and focus on areas of improvement. It also provides a starting point, for parent/carers to discuss their child’s attitude to learning, to ask about your child’s strengths and how they can be enhanced, to ask which subjects are most challenging for your child and why, and to focus on your child’s learning growth and progression rather than the grade. We hope you find these progress reports valuable.

Student /Parent/ Home Group Teacher Conversations:

Student/Parent/Home Group Teacher conversations will occur Wednesday 29 March from 4pm-7pm at the College. These meetings will involve home group teacher, parent and child. Your child is an important part of this conversation as they reflect on their strengths and needs as they become a capable learner. 

Further details will be provided on how to make a booking with you child’s home group teacher.

Natalie Meuret, Leader of Learning

House Formation

A reminder that if you have any concerns or questions or information to share regarding your child’s wellbeing or academics, please contact their home group teacher in the first instance via email or through the College phone number, (08) 8595 4500.

LifeChanger Workshops

The year 7 cohort have completed two out of their five LifeChanger Workshops this term. In Week 5, students completed the Skills workshop in the LifeChanger Program. They participated in a range of interactive activities and discussions around personal goal setting, communication and developing resilience.

St Joseph’s Wellbeing Expo

What a fantastic event at St Joseph’s Renmark on Wednesday evening! Over 600 school and community members attended the Family Fete and Wellbeing Expo!  Our College had a presence promoting the work we do to ensure the people in our care are feeling valued, have purpose and are thriving! Our Student Leaders were excellent ambassadors for the College (not all Student Leaders were captured in the photo below).

Laudato Si’ Action Group

If any students are interested in joining the Laudato Si’ Action Group, please complete this form using the bar code above.  Or link 

https://forms.office.com/r/ZGAc3cmvX2

BeYou: How to practise mindfulness

Practising mindfulness can help to promote positive wellbeing for you and your learning community. Learn more about how here: How to practise mindfulness - Be You

Smiling Mind has developed a range of tools and resources to support families to build their mental fitness together. They have great online resources and an awesome free app to download on to your smart device. Find out more here: At Home — Smiling Mind

“It takes a little bit of mindfulness and a little bit of attention to others to be a good listener, which helps cultivate emotional nurturing and engagement.”

– Deepak Chopra

Luke Cotter, Leader of Wellbeing

Last Saturday our Rowing Program students travelled to West Lakes to volunteer at the Rowing SA State Championships. This was a 2-day event, which showcased top athletes across the state, from U17's to Open age. We were lucky to watch all boat classes in action, singles, doubles, quads, pairs, fours and eights. Even seeing some past Olympians and Australian Representatives in action!

Students were based down at the 2000m start line where they lay on a pontoon and held boats in place when they entered their lane. They were exposed to what's required to start a rowing race, including; time management needed to travel down to the start line (we witnessed one crew arriving late hence missing their race), working as a crew to manoeuvre into your correct lane, the importance of the coxswain and the process in which a race is called to start. As there was a cross wind, they also got to witness the challenges that come with trying to line up a straight course to steer within their buoyed lane, something that we don't experience on the Murray, but essential when competing.

Mrs Turnbull and Miss Camporeale then attended the Official Function hosted by Rowing SA. There was a lot of appreciation towards our students for taking part in the day, as well as excitement around our program. It was a great opportunity to connect with other Clubs and Schools, as well as Rowing SA CEO Andrew Swift and Rowing SA Board Chair Jamie Grant.  

Overall, it was a fantastic day which provided our students with invaluable exposure to a regatta, which will no doubt benefit our first racing experience in the future! 

Please view a short video of the day - Volunteers in Action

Stephanie Turnbull, Rowing Coach 

Students in Year 8 have been focusing on cultural cooking and this week made Butter Chicken & Naan Bread. Students were put to the test to produce their food from scratch, building on their culinary skills and confidence. Next week students will prepare a store-bought jar of butter chicken and do a comparison of taste, nutrition and convenience to further enhance their learning.

This week we also dived into MABU MABU a Torres Strait saying that means ‘help yourself’, along with this we made traditional damper with the key ingredients of wattleseed and banana leaves. This cultural experience was a lot of fun and incredibly tasty. If you are interested in using native Australian ingredients in your cooking, I highly recommend this Melbourne based business: Mabu Mabu | Indigenous Catering, Dining and Products - Melbourne

[Mabu Mabu | Indigenous Catering, Melbourne]

The Year 9 Food Technology class was also put to the test this week and made homemade pasta from scratch. Each group had a pasta machine to use and chose to make spaghetti or fettucine with their dough. Students learnt the importance of following a recipe and can now add a new skill to their toolbelt. To accompany their pasta, students made their own basil pesto and thoroughly enjoyed the cooking experience.

Mrs Burgess, Food Technology

Our Swim Team, comprising of Hugh Riedel, Louis Brown, Declan Swart and Sebastian Coote, had a fantastic swim meet last Friday, with some outstanding results and all boys doing very well in their various races.  Hugh Riedel winning all five of the Boys U/14 events.  Well done to all of the Team and thanks to their parents for their support. 

Congratulations to River who recently won the Nippy's Loxton Gift for Under 14 Boys. 

This year all students (Years 7,8,9) are participating in the Premiers Reading Challenge. For some students this is familiar to them from primary school, whilst for others it is their first year competing in the challenge. The Premier’s Reading Challenge is a literacy engagement program that was introduced by the Premier in 2004 to encourage students to read more books and enjoy reading and improve overall literacy levels. The Challenge requires students to read 12 books between the beginning of the school year and early September. There is also an additional challenge this year to celebrate 20 years of the Premiers Reading Challenge, which is to read 20 books by early September.

Mrs Trugian, Miss Camporeale and Miss Graney have been pleased with the commitment and excitement that students have shown so far!

If you would like further information or to see the 6-9 reading list please see the link below:

The Challenge | Premiers Reading Challenge SA

10 March - LAUNCH PARTY

Open to ALL High-School aged young people.

A safe, fun, engaging Christian Youth Group.

For more details contact the Riverland Central Church Office on: 0478243685 or message through our FB, Insta pages. Or parents can turn up on the night to register your young person(Emilie Menadue G1 Youth Leader).

RIVERLAND CENTRAL CHURCH, 11 Mortimer Road, Berri SA 5343

2023 Youth Environment Council - Applications Open

South Australian students in Years 7 to 11 who are passionate about sustainability are invited to apply to be in the Youth Environment Council.

Eligible students, in both regional and metropolitan South Australia, are invited to apply.

Why join the Youth Environment Council?

• To share your passion for the environment and sustainability with other like-minded students across the state.
• To develop leadership, team building and public speaking skills at camps, workshops and forums.
• To take action for the environment and make a difference,
• To share your views and actions with government.

Applications are now open. Places strictly limited. Applications close week 5, Thursday March 2.

For more information, email info@yecsa.net.au or visit the YEC website.

5, 6, 7, 8… Ready, Set, Go…. 

Local Riverland creatives in Loxton have been awarded $29k to fund a dance theatre project in the community. 

This initiative is supported by Federal Government’s Regional Arts Fund and Country Arts SA and kindly Auspiced by Loxton Rotary. 

Step by Step Together is a dance theatre project that will be led by Sue-Ellen Shepherdson and Claire Dalzell, who are local creative artists and educators. Sue-Ellen and Claire have a shared passion; to provide quality arts programs and performances while focussing on creating positive wellbeing and opportunities for the youth within their community.  

The project will explore what dance means to our community members, questioning where, why and how people dance, including how technology impacts people and their relationships. With an in depth look at how dance, in today’s technological age, can be used to create connections and deepen relationships, Sue-Ellen and Claire are eager to reach and include all interested community members, irrespective of age or skill and is free to all participants 

This exciting opportunity involves 8 FREE community workshops starting on Mon 6th Feb 2023, that will explore what dance means to the everyday person. The workshops will include getting to know one another, discussion topics and opportunities to participate in dance activities if you wish. You can attend as many or little, of the workshops, as you like.

Please visit our social media sites for more info @

Step By Step Together | Facebook 

Step By Step Together (@step.by.step.together.2023) • Instagram photos and videos

Or contact Sue-Ellen Shepherdson 0404389098 and Claire Dalzell 0407716105

or attend our info session 2.30pm on Sunday the 5th of Feb at Eternal Yoga Studio, 6B Drabsch St, Loxton.