2 June 2016

Newsletter Articles

From the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

The older I get, it seems increasingly commonplace for a conversation, a piece of writing, or an image to trigger memories of a past event in my life. Only this week when discussing the school policy on earrings with Year 5 (plain gold studs or sleepers only), a traumatic childhood memory sprang to mind. During a particularly vigorous game of 'horses' on the playground, one of my dear friends sustained a nasty injury when her earring became snagged on her woollen jumper and was ripped from her ear. I'm sure you can imagine the impact it had on the assembled crowd, and the events that followed. I shared the story with the students in the hope that it would assist them in their understanding of the reason for this Health and Safety ruling, which I believe it did, but for me it generated a rush of emotions about past experiences and how they have each contributed in shaping me into the person I am today. And, just for the record, I made a very fine horse when I was in Year 5, although I believe I rather resembled a shire horse back then rather than anything of grace and elegance, as I grew to the height I am today by the age of twelve so was considerably larger than any other student in my year level at school.

Another Holy Cross event that conjured up memories of my childhood was Walk to School Day. As I walked briskly from JCU to Holy Cross with a multitude of students, I shared tales with those around me of my childhood walk to school up a very steep hill, past St Peter and St Paul's Church, through the graveyard, past the sheep (avoiding the electric fence) and up the steps to my Primary School. This prompted other parents to share their tales also, and before we knew it, the whole ensemble was deep in conversation about how times have changed particularly in light of the traffic whizzing past us along the way. It was a wonderful morning finished off with a delicious breakfast and a demonstration by Ms Nichola Easton on healthy breakfast choices as part of the Jamie Oliver Food Revolution Day. Ms Easton did the most wonderful job explaining the importance of checking cereals carefully before consumption whilst being broadcast live on the screen in the Multipurpose Area. It truly was the most perfect way to start a Friday!

My reason for mentioning these stories is that we currently have a number of Holy Cross students currently preparing for Confirmation and First Eucharist. Communion celebrations, whether it be our own child or other children in our parish, often send us back to the time of our own first personal meeting with Jesus. When children receive the Sacrament of the Eucharist for the first time, they know, through their preparation, that Jesus becomes food for their soul under the appearance of bread and wine. They are encouraged to receive Communion afterwards, as often as they can, in order to remain in close friendship with Jesus. This is because, when we receive Communion, we receive Jesus and all that he stands for: his compassion toward the sick and disadvantaged, his forgiveness of those burdened by guilt, his call on people to share their wealth, his teaching of the true meaning of love.

The reality for many who made their First Communion at an early age, is that they did not continue to nurture that friendship with Jesus. The friendship will always be there but, for any number of reasons, it is no longer a two-way friendship; Jesus is the only one keeping it going. Maybe, as we mature, work ambitions or perhaps problems and worries can consume our attention and energy and our Spiritual development gets left behind.

Whatever the reason, when our students receive their First Communion, I encourage you to imagine them leading us to recognise Jesus, who has never left the friendship we had with him. In the Mass, Jesus, through the priest, will break bread with us in the Eucharist, and offer us the opportunity to renew or further develop our friendship with him. We keep these students in our prayers as they enter into their own unique relationship with Jesus.

With only one more Newsletter before the end of Term 2, I encourage you to check emails regularly and keep an eye on the Holy Cross calendar for upcoming events.

Wishing you God's blessings now and always,
Sarah Hamilton

APRE News

LITURGICAL LIFE OF THE SCHOOL

Families are invited to be part of a range of Masses and liturgies over the next few weeks. Although there won't be any spare seats for people to attend the Confirmation ceremony on June 7th, it would be great to have lots of families attending at the parish Masses on the weekend of June 11th and 12th. We will have 33 Holy Cross students receiving their First Holy Communion, along with students from St Andrew's and other local schools.

Rev Dr Elio Capra, a priest of the Salesians of Don Bosco, lectures in Liturgy and Sacramental Theology in Melbourne. He is a talented, knowledgeable and entertaining speaker. In an article in Summit magazine, Fr Elio highlights the difference between Baptism and Confirmation, and Eucharist. Baptism and Confirmation celebrate our "new spiritual birth" whilst Eucharist offers nourishment, or spiritual food to help a person grow. You need to be nourished regularly with Eucharist. He explains Confirmation as a "life long commitment to a Christ-like way of life".

The NAIDOC Liturgy in Week 11 will kick off a range of activities. It is usually celebrated in the first full week of July, but as that falls during the holidays, we will recognise the occasion early. NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. NAIDOC Week is an opportunity to recognise the contributions that Indigenous Australians make to our country and our society. It is also a time to experience Indigenous culture and tradition. Our Liturgy will be held in the multi-purpose area, first thing on the Monday morning.

Upcoming Liturgies and Masses

• Confirmation: Tuesday 7th June at 6:00pm St Monica's Cathedral
• First Eucharist: Saturday 11th June at 6:00 pm Holy Cross Church, OR Sunday 12th June at 8:30 am
• Prep, Year 3 and Year 6 Mass: Tuesday 14th June 9:00am
• NAIDOC Liturgy: Monday 20th June 8:30am
• Reconciliation: Tuesday 6th September, at 6:00pm

SACRAMENTAL PROGRAM

Please continue to keep the candidates for Confirmation and First Holy Communion in your prayers as they prepare to complete their Sacraments of Initiation.

PRAYER FOCUS FOR THE WEEK

Confirmation Prayer

Breathe in me O Holy Spirit that my thoughts may all be holy;
Act in me O Holy Spirit that my works, too, may be holy;
Draw my heart O Holy Spirit that I love but what is holy;
Strengthen me O Holy Spirit to defend all that is holy;
Guard me then O Holy Spirit that I always may be holy.
-- St. Augustine

Jacinta Roberts
APRE Holy Cross
jroberts1@cns.catholic.edu.au

APA News

Term 2, the Business End!

As so often is the case, time has yet again passed with such speed and excitement. As we fast approach the business end of Term 2 I thought it timely to provide a rundown of events between now and the final week. As one of the highest pressure times of the term for both students and staff, it is important to be looking after ourselves. As we also approach the 'sick' season, rest, relaxation, a good night's sleep, eating well and a good old hug, go a long way to keep everyone in balance.

Recently I had the great opportunity of attending the National Positive Schools Conference in Brisbane accompanied by Mrs Deb Scarborough. Over two days we heard over twenty key note speakers talk on a variety of topics including the importance of relationships, building cohesive classrooms, loneliness in schools, sweating the small stuff, importance of social emotional learning as well as many other topics on student, staff and community well-being. As always with a conference of this nature, many ideas are already in practise, are simply not a fit to the Holy Cross community, or are great ideas to try to introduce or reinvigorate. I look forward to sharing some of these great ideas and concepts more with you over the coming weeks and terms.

Below is a summary of the key events over the coming weeks. Please keep an eye on the school app for any further details that may come.

SAVE THESE DATES

Outside presenters

Over the next couple of weeks we have a number of outside presenters booked for various presentations in different year levels as units of work come to an end. These exciting opportunities include:

Excursions

The Holy Cross Band and Choir have been busily preparing for the Cairns Eisteddfod and their participation in respective categories. With the Cairns Civic Centre unavailable this year both groups will be travelling to TAS White Rock. We wish them well and no doubt lots of fun. The Band will be at St Andrews Catholic College on 7th June for rehearsals departing Holy Cross at 10:00am. The big Eisteddfod day is on Tuesday 21st June.

Year 4 Orators Night

This event will be held on Thursday 9th June. Always a great night for the students who will practise hard and show off their public speaking and poetic skills for this night. Good luck to all our Year 4 students in their preparation.

2016 NAIDOC Celebrations

Miss Breanna Lyall has been working hard behind the scenes preparing for Holy Cross NAIDOC Celebrations to be held on Monday 20th June. The day will begin with a NAIDOC themed Liturgy at 8:30am. The theme for this year is 'Songlines'. Various other activities are planned throughout the day to immerse students in the culture and theme of NAIDOC 2016.

For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the Dreamtime describes a time when the earth, people and animals were created by our ancestral spiritual beings. They created the rivers, lakes, plants, land formations and living creatures.

Dreaming tracks crisscross Australia and trace the journeys of our ancestral spirits as they created the land, animals and lores. These dreaming tracks are sometimes called 'Songlines' as they record the travels of these ancestral spirits who 'sung' the land into life.

These Songlines are recorded in traditional songs, stories, dance and art. They carry significant spiritual and cultural connection to knowledge, customs, ceremony and Lore of many Aboriginal nations and Torres Strait Islander language groups

Through learning more about Songlines and how they connect people to Country and the Country to people – we celebrate the rich history and diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures - the oldest continuing cultures on the planet.

Congratulations to Week 7 Holy Cross Heroes:

"We were caught demonstrating RESPECT."

Many blessings for the week

Brad Henry
Assistant Principal - Administration

Curriculum News

We learn in different ways

In Year 1, we have been learning about patterning in Maths.

Tayah B and Jack G

We were making colour and size patterns in Maths today. Our colour pattern was red and black and our number pattern was 1, 3, 1, 3. We used our favourite colours to make the pattern and we wanted to have a low, high, low, high shape. We see pattern on signs and in pictures.

Harrison B

I was copying colour and shape patterns. I learnt that drawing hexagons is tricky. We can make patterns with beads.

Liv W and Jakob W

In Science, we have been learning about the phases of the moon. We had to keep a science journal for homework. We had to check the phases of the moon and draw the shape of the moon. Sometimes we didn't see the moon, only clouds and stars.

We learnt that there are 4 phases of the moon: full moon, first quarter moon, new moon and second quarter moon. A new moon is when it is night on our side of the Earth but we can't see the moon because the dark side of the moon is facing us.

The Magic Faraway Tree Day

Name: Lily L-C and William F

Why did you have a dress up day?

We have been reading The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton. Mrs Gubby, Mrs Russell and Ms Green decided that we should have a Magic Faraway Tree Day.

What did you come dressed up as?

Lily – I came dressed as Silky. My favourite activity was making the cupcakes and teacups.

William – I was Saucepan Man. My favourite thing was building the Magic Faraway Tree with blocks.

What fun things did you do?

Each classroom was a different land.

1H was Birthday Land

In Birthday Land we made cupcakes and teacups out of treats. To make the teacups, we had to follow a procedure and use a biscuit for a plate, a marshmallow and half a Lifesaver for the cup. We made birthday wishes by drawing our wish in a star.

1C was Dream Land

We had to design a dream picture like a flying fish or an elephant with pants and rainbow butterfly wings.

1S was Land of Do As You Please

We could choose any activity to make things from the Magical Faraway Tree. We could draw the Magical Faraway Tree. We could build amazing buildings using lego and blocks. We could use boxes to construct the Magical Faraway Tree with doors for all the people.

Technology with Year 2

Name: Matthew M
Class: 2H
What have we been learning in Technology? How to make things that move.
What toy did you make? I made a car.
What parts move on your toy? The wheels move.
Is your toy fun to play with? Yes, because you can push it and the wheels move.

Name: Iva B
Class: 2S
What have we been learning in Technology? How to make a moving toy.
What toy did you make? A moving cat.
What parts move on your toy? The wheels, they were made of wood. I had to stick a straw so the wheel wouldn't come off and the wheels would still spin.

Is your toy fun to play with? Yes, it is cute and awesome to play with.

Name: Makayla S
Class: 2C
What have we been learning in Technology? Toys that move so they're fun to play with.
What toy did you make? Yes. I made a robot.
What parts move on your toy? The wheels. They are made out of lego.
Is your toy fun to play with? Yes, I liked the clothes and the cute hat.

Year 2 developing their ICT Skills

Name: Hayden Fiamingo
Class: 2H

What have you been learning with Ipads?

We've been learning about Google Drive. We have been using it for writing and English. We have been learning how to use capital letters, how to go down a line, and make text bigger. Mr Doherty showed us how he can see what we are doing on the Ipads.

Do you like using the Ipads?

Yes, we do fun things to learn on them.

STUDENT ATTENDANCE

EVERY DAY COUNTS

Student attendance is absolutely vital to the attainment of the best possible learning outcomes. When your child is absent or late they miss schoolwork and regular absences or lateness can have an extremely detrimental impact upon their progress. It is a school requirement to have every student absence explained. Therefore, we ask that you contact the school and inform us if your child is going to be away from school for any reason. If your child is genuinely ill they should not be at school.

STUDENT ABSENCES

When students are absent from school it is a requirement that parents contact the school to communicate the reason for absence either via email to: secretary.trinitypk@cns.catholic.edu.au , by phone 4057 6920 (message may be left if after hours) or via the Skoolbag App. It is important that this information is received early on the day of absence so that students who are not at school can be accounted for.

If after the class rolls have been marked and the school has not been informed of a student absence, the child's main contact will be alerted via text message and be prompted to contact the school to explain the absence.

Absences longer than ten days must be submitted formally in writing to our Principal, Sarah Hamilton, prior to students leaving. The information will be passed onto your child's teacher.

LATE ARRIVAL

The bell to start class rings at 8.25 a.m. Students should arrive at school from 8.10 a.m. so that they are adequately prepared to commence learning at 8.30 a.m.

Late arrival for all students is processed through the school office. Students arriving late to school are required to come to the office with an adult who is to sign them in, giving the reason for the late arrival. A late pass will be issued to students for presentation to their classroom teacher.

EARLY DEPARTURE

We understand that specialist and medical appointments cannot be made outside of school hours. If a student is required to leave school during the day, a listed contact adult must present at the school office to sign the child out. The office staff will then telephone the classroom and request that the child come to the office with their belongings ready for collection. For legal and safety reasons, adults not listed as an emergency contact do not have authority to collect students. In the event of an unlisted adult needing to collect your child, written notification is required from the parent/carer clearly stating the adult's name, and the presentation of photo ID to office staff upon collection. It is important to ensure that your emergency contacts are current.

RECORD OF PARTIAL DAYS ABSENT

Arrival to school after 10.30 a.m. and departure before 1.00 p.m., is considered a half day absence and will be recorded as such on a student's report card.

School News

Holy Cross Health Chef Competition

Please click on the link below for your copy of the Holy Cross Healthy Chef Entry form. Hard copies are also available from the school office. The due date for the return of the completed slip on the entry form is this Friday, 3rd June. The actual competition meal entry date is Monday 6th June at 7.40am at the tuckshop. More detailed information can be found on the entry form.

Cairns Show Photography Competition

Students interested in entering the Cairns Show Photography Competition could be in the running to win $200 for your school. Further information can be accessed on the Cairns Show Association website www.cairnsshow.com.au where you can see the show rules and on-line entries forms. There are two age groups in the photography section and rules that must be adhered to. Should you require additional information, please feel free to contact the writer or speak directly to the Cairns Show Association office. The Show Competitions co-ordinator can be contacted on 074042 6630 or email competitions@cairns-show.com On-line entries are now available on the Cairns Show Website or entry forms can be printed, completed and handed into the Cairns Show Association office before the closing day 1st July, 2016.

Holy Cross Bike Bus

The Holy Cross Bike Bus runs every Wednesday (weather permitting) from Trinity Park Boat Ramp to school and back each week. The route is particularly suited to younger riders because it is flat and there is a very wide shoulder on the road. Please note, however, that younger riders must be competent riders who are able to stop and start with ease. Parents are encouraged to accompany younger riders. Students can be collected and dropped off along the route.

Age Suitability: Prep to Year 6
Morning Departure: 8am
Location: Trinity Park Boat Ramp, Reed Rd
Afternoon Departure: 3pm (ETA at boat ramp is 3:15pm)
Location: Holy Cross Bike Rack

PLEASE NOTE: The Bike Bus will not run if it is wet, or if it looks like it is about to rain.

For concerns or queries, please email Jo Van Ewyk jvanewyk@cns.catholic.edu.au

Host Families Wanted

Holy Cross School is looking forward to hosting Japanese students from Josei Primary School, Osaka, Japan.

20th August 2016 – 26th August 2016 (Holy Cross School)

Would you like to give your child/ren the opportunity to share in a wonderful cultural and educational experience?

• Host international students
• Japanese Primary aged children
• Remuneration: $200/week

For more information or to register your interest, please contact Jack at Sun Pacific College on (07) 4057 2100 or email accommodation@sunpacificcollege.com.au

2016 School Fees and Levies

Term 2 School Fees Reminder

The Term 2 School fees and levies were due for payment by the 23rd May, unless alternative arrangements are in place (e.g. periodic Direct Debits, approved repayment plans etc.), please attend to this payment.

If you are currently paying your fees via Electronic Funds Transfer, please update your amount for 2016. Please ensure that you are using your reference number and school bank account details as it appears on your Term Invoice, for example: 963_ _ _ _ _ _ _

If you currently have a direct debit arrangement in place continuing from 2015 and have not already made contact with our Bursar, Carolyn Mealing, to update the amount for 2016, please do so at your earliest convenience.

The payment of school fees and levies is an important component of the income of the School. The School relies on these payments, in order to provide the high quality education enjoyed by your child/ren. In situations where there is genuine family financial hardship and if you are struggling to pay school fees, you are encouraged to contact the School for an appointment with the Principal and your circumstances will be treated with the utmost confidence.

Tuition Fee Discount Scheme for eligible Means-Tested Health Care Cards/Pension Cards

If you are a holder of an eligible Means-Tested Health Care Card or Pension Concession Card as outlined on the following attachment, please complete an application form below and present your card to the school office for verification. Please note Term 2 discounts have already closed on the 29th April and HCC Tuition Fee Discount Scheme forms received after this date, can only be applied to future invoices.

If you have supplied the school with a copy of your card and it is due to expire please complete a new application form and bring your new card to the school office for copying and verification. If your circumstances change throughout the year and you are no longer eligible to receive the tuition discount, it is the parent/carers responsibility to advise the school of the change in eligibility.

Semester 1 Report Cards

Please note that Semester 1 reports will be to families during the first week of the school holidays for families who are up-to-date with school fees or who have a payment plan in place.

Please notify the school office if you have changed your address details to ensure delivery.

We are happy to provide second copies of school reports, if requested by parents, in the case where parents live apart. If you wish to receive a second report, please fill out the request form below and hand in to the class teacher or the school office by Friday 3rd June 2016.

Library News

Hello everyone,

Monday 16th May marked the start of the Premier's Reader's Challenge, which runs from the 16th May to the 26th August. Students will start to bring home Challenge Recording Sheets to fill out and get signed by parents after they have completed reading a book. This year the challenge for Preps to Year 4 is to read 20 books before the challenge ends and Years 5 and 6 is to read 15.

Last week the Coding Club began at Holy Cross School with a number of budding coders joining me on Wednesday afternoons to learn how to make computer games for the upcoming national STEM competition. I was very impressed with some of the coding already produced by these students and can't wait to see what games they create over the next few months.

Just a reminder that students can borrow E-books books at home from the Holy Cross library on personal tablets using their Catholic Education Account details. You need to have the Wheelers E-platform installed on your device.

Michael Doherty
District Teacher-Librarian

P and F News

P & F Fundraising

Working Bee News

Hello Parents and Carers,

The school community turn out was incredible. Sincere thanks for your contribution of your time and effort.

With the help of all parents, carers and students who attended, we achieved a great deal. We planted new trees along the back fence of the oval, mounted some new car park signs, pressure cleaned and painted the frog pond, pressure cleaned the garden walls between A and B block, manicured the Prayer Garden, weeded the Year 5/6 play area and running track on the oval in addition to some other miscellaneous jobs around the school.

It was a fantastic effort from all. It made me proud to be involved in our school's P&F.

Thanks again for the stellar effort,

Damian Martin-Blakey
P&F President

Entertainment Books

Holy Cross School is very excited to announce that we will be fundraising through the Entertainment Memberships this year! The popular Entertainment™ Books contain hundreds of up to 50% off and 2-for-1 offers from top local restaurants, cafés, take-away chains, attractions, activities and hotel accommodation.

Entertainmentâ„¢ Memberships contain over $20,000 in valuable offers that you and your family can use from until 1st June 2017. In fact, you only need to use your membership twice throughout the year and it will have paid for itself!

These memberships can be purchased as either a book or a digital membership that is loaded to your smart phone. They are great value at only $55, with $1000 of savings inside and something for the whole family. The best part is that we receive 20% from each sale which goes directly to our school.

These can be purchased via: www.entbook.com.au/2703t24 or in our front office at the school.

Thank you for your support.

Tuckshop News

Second hand uniforms available from the Tuckshop.
Plenty of stock, all sizes from 4 to 16 – only $5 per item!

The Arts News

Music Tuition

Drums/Percussion

Are you interested in playing the drums or learning a percussion instrument?

For more information contact our friendly drum/percussion instructor Jen Fengler on ph: 0431461812 or email: jenfengler@hotmail.com

Piano

If you are interested in piano lessons please contact: Paul Brimstone on ph: 40551105

Guitar

If you are interested in guitar lessons please contact: Peter Drazic on email: pjd.guitar@bigpond.com

Sports Notices

Barron River District School Sport Trial Notices

To access Barron River trial dates and regional information for Queensland School Sports please click on the following link at: www.pensport.eq.edu.au and go to District Information / Barron River to view the latest calendar of events.

Please note: For students wishing to trial for Barron River in any sport, parents are required to complete the Parent Consent Form which is found in the sport's trial notice link for that particular sport, as well as the following Peninsula Region Paperwork and bring these with them to the trials.

Rugby Union Trial Notice –(students born 2004 & 2005)

Trial dates: Wednesday 1st June & Wednesday 8th June, JCU Main Oval from 3:45pm to 5:00pm

Click on the link below for more information and consent forms.

2016 Futsal News

"Ah Holy Cross – you've done it again!!!"

* FUTSAL (Spanish: fútbol de salon), a version of indoor football (aka "soccer" = the real "football"), is a team game originally developed in 1930s Uruguay, to be played on both indoor and outdoor basketball courts.

Dear Holy Cross futsal players and parents,

Here are this year's final numbers: 6, 4, 10, 0, 85, 7 and the supplementary number is 4.

To everybody who may have been asleep over the last two weeks and missed out on the excitement, following is a detailed breakdown of the above numbers.

Holy Cross again nominated teams to the Far North Queensland School Futsal Titles for the 6th year running. The titles for primary schools were being held at the Redlynch Central Sports Stadium over 4 consecutive days, from the 16th to the 19th of May. Altogether we had 10 teams competing in the tournament: 7 boy teams as well as 3 girls teams.

A big thank you to our Holy Cross leadership team who covered all registration fees and relief teacher costs, so that our players were left with 0 dollars to pay. Another HUGE "Thank You" goes out to our 7 coaches who provided guidance to your children on different days.

You might think that "directing" little ones from the sidelines is a cushy job, however, let me tell you – it's not! Imagine being bombarded with a constant barrage of, "When is it my turn to play?", "Can I go on now?", and, "Why can't I be the striker!?!" All the while ensuring that the players eat some, but not all of their food (including sandwiches, sausage rolls, chips and 245 "snakes") in their 20-minute break between games. Add to that the constant noise of around 200 children under a tin roof, a dash of parent expectations and a pinch of frustration after a lost game, and you have the recipe for a perfect day.

But back to our numbers: Altogether 85 players were nominated for the games (with only a few withdrawn due to broken arms).

And last but not least, the magic number 4! Holy Cross again was outstanding and won 4 (in words FOUR) of a possible 5 age groups in the boys division, making us the beacon in world futsal! (Okay, maybe not the world but definitely in Trinity Park!)

All our students, boys and girls, displayed great skills and outstanding behaviour on and off the field, turning these exciting days into a lovely event. Another big THANK YOU to all our coaches and parents for supporting our players in this, the most beautiful game of all – the game with the round ball!

Where to from here? Upwards and onwards! I challenge all you players to beat your own record at next year's Far North Queensland School Futsal Titles!

Dear parents, "You're invited!" - come and join us at our Friday morning assembly (on the 3rd June) to celebrate your children's achievements.

With kindest regards
Tilmann Dunn-Oswald

Holy Cross Futsal Coordinator

Rebel Sports Modified School Tennis Challenge 2016

If your child is interested in representing the school as part of the Rebel Sports Modified School Tennis Challenge, please click on the link below for further information and to download a nomination form.

All students representing the school at these events are required to wear their school uniform.

The next challenge will be held on Saturday 11th June at the Trinity Beach Tennis Club, Pecten Close. Start time: 10.00am and expected finish time: 1.00pm.

Nomination closing date for Challenge 2 is Thursday 9th June. Please send completed forms to the school office.

Challenge 1

Congratulations to the following Holy Cross students; Maui R, Thomas C, Nathan C, Matthew C, Max N and Connor G. who participated in the Rebel School Tennis Challenge 1 on Saturday May 28th. The students from Holy Cross were noted due to their excellent sportsmanship and skills on the court. The next Challenge will be held at Trinity Beach Tennis Courts in a couple of weekends time. If you are interested in attending, please download the nomination form or collect a form from the Front Office.

See you next time but until then rally on,
Fred Lay

Parenting Workshops

2016 Safeguarding Children Conference

This year Catholic Education Services is excited to announce that their annual Safeguarding Children Conference includes presentations specifically for parents.

This year's theme is Our Children, Our Communities, Our Future.

We hope that you are able to join us on Saturday, 11 June 2016 at the Pullman Cairns International. Specific parent sessions include:

• Keynote speaker: Andrea Musulin (Safeguarding Project Officer – Archdiocese of Perth)
• Protective Behaviours: everyday teaching moments that encourage safety not fear
• Mental Health: Early warning signs of depression and anxiety, school responses and when should I be worried?
• Social Media: the world our children live in doesn't have to be all digital, but it sure feels that way!
• Help! My child is a teenager!

Please note that there is no registration cost but places are limited.

Conference information and registration details can be accessed via the conference website:

If you have any further queries please contact Professional Standards:

Ms Heidi Williams
hwilliams5@cns.catholic.edu.au

Community Notices

St Monica's College Open Day

St Monica's College will be open to prospective students and their families on Thursday June 2 2016, between 4.00pm - 6.00pm.

Please call the College to register the number of people attending, Ph 40424800. Please use the Abbott St entrance on the day. Thank you.

AICE CLUB

After school Environmental Activity Program for children aged between 7 – 13 years of age.

Fun filled educational activities exploring beautiful places and ecosystems with in our local area.

Runs for 8 consecutive Monday afternoons from 3:00 – 3:15 pm drop off - 5:00pm pick up & 1 full Saturday over each school term.

Enrol your child on a casual basis and come any time or enrol for the term. Afternoon tea is provided & term members get a hat & t-shirt.

Visit www.childrenforchange.org.au for detailed information on activities, fees, dates, times & contact information. Feel free to register your child any time by downloading and returning an enrolment form.

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Click on the link below for a copy of the AICE Brochure for more information.

Cane Train Safety Awareness

"Watch Out – Cane Trains About"

The commencement of the 2016 cane crushing season is approaching. Parents and students are reminded about the dangers of playing on or near cane trains and railway tracks. Please see attached safety message from MSF Sugar.

Host Families required for French High School Students

CEI Centre d'Echanges Internationaux, 1 Rue Gozlin, Paris, France

REQUIRES HOST FAMILIES FOR FRENCH STUDENTS

Students will be attending Smithfield SHS or St Andrews Catholic College

Dates: 11th July – 10th August

We are looking for families to host French students visiting Cairns in Term Three.

This is an 'immersion' program where students attend a local school and live with an Australian family, hopefully with children at the same school or one close by.

Students are in years 9, 10 and 11 and are very motivated to improve their English and experience everyday life with an Australian family. In return they are keen to share their French culture with you and help your children if they are learning French.

This is a wonderful opportunity to possibly make a French friend for life and maybe even receive an invitation back to France one day!

For more information, please contact your school representative

Samantha Weterkamp, sweterkamp@cns.catholic.edu.au or

Joanne Cawood-Smith (Australian Manager CEI) Phone: AH – 03 98573547 Mobile : 0417330045
Email: cawoodsmith@gmail.com

St Anthony's School Dimbulah 50th Anniversary

All past teachers, teacher aides, administration staff, parents, students and community members are invited to attend the weekend of festivities on Saturday 27th August and Sunday 28th August 2016. Click on the flyer below for more information.