1 May 2024 — Week 3, Term 2
Welcome from the Principal
Dear Families
ANZAC Day is such a sacred and special time when we, as a school and local community, stop and reflect on the notion of self-sacrifice.
On Wednesday 24 April, St Patrick’s School stopped to acknowledge the sacrifice of soldiers from the St Patrick’s Parish. Glengallan under the guidance of Mrs Shooter delivered a highly reflective and emotional tribute to our ANZAC heroes. Using the authentic text ‘One Minutes Silence’ by David Metzenthen and Michael Camilleri, the students were able to write highly reflective responses that were able to capture their feelings in response to the text, as well as understanding the importance of days like ANZAC Day and why we as a community, should never forget the sacrifice of these ordinary soldiers.
In one minute’s silence, you can imagine the bare-knuckled bushmen of the Australian Lighthorse ten seconds away from running at the Turkish machine-guns, turning to each other to say, ‘See ya later, mate…’(One Minutes Silence, p. 16).
Our special guest Flight Sergeant Symon Yeates who spoke about her time spent as a Medical Technician Paramedic in the Royal Australian Air Force also provided an authentic link to our ANZAC values of mateship, endurance and self-sacrifice.
I was extremely proud of the students and staff who marched to represent St Patrick’s School during the annual ANZAC Day march. It was a wonderful turnout! This active participation will hopefully engage all our students in fostering an understanding of the meaning behind the ANZAC Legend. Lest We Forget!
Keith Blaikie—Principal
Keith.Blaikie@twb.catholic.edu.au
General Information
Why is our school so special? Just ask Talgai!!
Staff Spotlight - Mr Christopher Byrne
My name is Christopher Byrne (“Mr Chris”) and I am the School Guidance Counsellor at St Patrick’s School Allora. I grew up on a mixed cropping and grazing farm outside of Moree, was a high school Maths/Science teacher on the Gold Coast, retrained in psychology at Toowoomba, and started as a School Counsellor with Diocese of Toowoomba Catholic Schools mid-2023. I visit St Patrick’s School every fortnight on a Monday (on even numbered school weeks). My role entails a mix of visiting classrooms to talk about mental health, wellbeing topics and supporting students on a one-to-one basis.
On my first visit to St Patrick's School for 2024 I visited all classes to catch up with students and talk about emotional recognition. With Prep and Cunningham, I read a picture book on how everyone feels scared sometimes and chatted to them about what makes them scared, and what they could do for themselves (or their classmates) if they got scared at school. With Dalrymple and Glengallan, we reviewed the Zones of Regulation and discussed ways in which we can help work out what emotion we might be feeling (based on energy level, body clues etc). We also chatted about all emotions being helpful in some situations, and less helpful in others, and how identifying emotions is an important part of being able to self-regulate.
Tuckshop
This is just a reminder about ordering Tuckshop online via the Flexischools app/website for Amy's Cafe. Families were able to place orders up until 5:30am on Friday morning and they were proptly delivered to school in time for lunch at 10:45am. Families will have the ongoing option of ordering tuckshop for their child via Flexischools each Friday of term.
If you have any feedback in regard to Tuckshop please let either Kathryn Hoey (P&F) or Keith Blaikie (Principal) know. This feedback will be given to Amy's Cafe to either steamline or improve the delivery of Tuckshop to our school community.
Sport Updates
Students from St Patrick's School have been busily training and preparing for different teams around the district over the past two months. Please enjoy this brief snapshot of their achievements.
- Skye M and Katelyn P represented Southern Downs at the Darling Downs Swimming Trials in Gatton during Term 1. Congratulations to Katelyn who was also selected for the Darling Downs team. Well done to both girls!
- Dustyn M recently attended Darling Downs Rugby League trials as a member of Southern Downs team.
- Alby M has been selected to attend the Darling Downs trials for Football (Soccer) later this term as a member of the Southern Downs team. Well done Alby.
- A robust squad of 8 runners attended the Central Downs Cross Country in Pilton during Week 1. Our congratulations must go to Oscar R, Lachlan E, Hunter R, Dustyn M and Katelyn P who were selected to attend the Southern Downs Cross Country on Thursday 2 May.
Teaching and Learning
How can I support my child's reading at home?
Every minute counts, even at home! Just make sure there is a wide range of reading material for your child at home, both fiction and non-fiction texts. Try to choose books together with your child. Talking about books will help them feel comfortable and familiar. A new book can be a great treat or present. All of these strategies will support and reinforce the concepts being taught at school. Even 5 minutes every day would add up to an extra 30 minutes over the course of a week.
Internet Safe Education
St Patrick’s School welcomed Mr Brett Lee to the school on Tuesday 30 April. Brett is an expert in the field of Internet Safe Education having served in the Queensland Police Service for 22 years and as a detective for 16 years in the area of child exploitation. This specialisation allowed him an opportunity to work in the United States for the FBI and Department of Homeland Security. Brett spoke with every class and facilitated both a teacher and later, a parent information session. At the end of the day, being safe on the internet is all about making the right choices and looking after the health and well-being of our students.
Over the course of the remainder of Term 2, St Patrick's will provide small snippets of information and resources that will help you as parents, to navigate the challenging space in an on-line world. Our 14 parents who attended the Parent Information Session will also be an invaluable resource if you have any further questions. We also have a number of parents who have heard Brett speak at Assumption College. They will also be a valuable resource if you have any further questions.
5 Key Messages and Actions for Technology: (Internet Safe Education)
- Communicate with your kids
- Set clear rules and boundaries
- Stay up to date with apps and programs
- Consider and use parental controls
- Be the one who makes the final decision.
Information on the latest Apps, Games, Books, Podcasts, Websites or Movies
Common Sense Media - Access the following link for a parent friendly resource https://www.commonsensemedia.org/
Student Reflections (Dalrymple and Cunningham)
Bre R – “Tell an adult if something goes wrong and you don’t feel safe”.
Oceania P – “If you don’t feel comfortable then you should tell an adult”.
Oliver J – “Never tell people your personal information”.
Charlie M – “You can’t text people that you do not know”.
Olivia M – “Talking to adults that you trust if you feel unsafe”.
Jack B – “You can’t talk to strangers on computers”.
Key Takeaway – Mr Brett Lee (Founder – Internet Safe Education)
“If parents were educated, we would not be seeing technology related issues manifest themselves in student lives”.
Religious Life of the School
The Good Shepherd
I had the good fortune to attend Mass recently at St Patrick’s Cathedral in Toowoomba and was able to reconnect with Father Brian Redondo. Many of you would know Father Brian from his time in Allora. His homily centred on the Gospel reading of John which describes The Good Shepherd. Father Brian made the reading relevant and it spoke quite strongly to me.
Father Brian recounted a story about his time in the Philippines and the journey of two teenage altar servers. Both boys were extremely committed to their duties. But as is the case in the busyness of our lives, both boys were rushing to get to Mass to fulfil their jobs as altar servers. Both boys knocked over the chalice, spilling the wine on to the altar. One priest’s reaction was one of complete disgust and horror, giving the young altar server an ultimatum of never been able to work as an altar server again in this parish. On the other hand, the other priest approached the feedback in a completely different manner, providing a conversation that alluded to the fact that we are all human and that we all make mistakes. We just need to learn from the mistakes that we have made. Father Brian highlighted that the life trajectories of both boys took completely different paths. The teenager who was chastised by the priest became an atheist and unscrupulous businessman. The other teenager went on to become a well-respected and renowned Archbishop. Father Brian‘s message was a very simple one. Just by that simple act of kindness in the feedback provided to the second teenager, had a completely different outcome.
Whilst it is human nature to disagree and that we all have confrontation in our relationships from time to time, the important thing is to always find some level of kindness in how we provide feedback. To be a Good Shepherd, let us embrace the call, to love and of humble service. May we emulate them by sacrificing for others and nurturing a community built on compassion, unity and optimism. May the timeless message of Jesus as the compassionate Good Shepherd echo in our hearts.
Upcoming events - May
- Thursday 2 May - Southern Downs Cross Country
- Monday 6 May - Labour Day Public Holiday (School closed)
- Tuesday 7 May - Winter uniform commences
- Wednesday 8 May - P&F Meeting at 6:00pm (Golf and Bowls Day - planning)
- Thursday 9 May - Mothers's Day Liturgy (combined Assembly) commencing at 10:00am in the Church followed by Morning Tea
- Saturday 11 May - P&F Care and Concern Home Visits from 9:00am until 11:00am
- Wednesday 15 May - Newsletter
- Saturday 18 May - St Patrick's P&F Golf/ Bowls Day from 12pm - PLEASE NOTE THE CHANGE DATE
- Date Claimer - Wednesday 5 June - Prep 2025 'Come and Try' from 9:00am until 10:30am
See the Sentral calendar for more information.
Reminders
Uniform Days
Sports
Wednesday, Friday
Formal
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday
Please remember that we are a...
‘Nut Aware’ School.
Times for Mass at St Patrick's Church are as follows:
1st Sunday - 9am 2nd and 3rd Sunday – 5.30pm
4th & 5th Sunday Liturgy of the Word with Communion - 9am
