Welcome to Term 1, 2025  

We had quite a week as we welcomed our students and helped them settle into the new school year, despite Mother Nature sending down heavy rain. As we prepare to publish our newsletter this week, we have had to close our school due to flooding in parts of Townsville and its surrounding areas. Once the rain stops and our grounds dry out, our students will be able to go outside and release some much-needed energy.

Due to the recent heavy rainfall, it is understandable that some students are wearing Crocs to school. Please ensure that they have their school socks and shoes in their bags so they can change into them once they reach the classroom. On lighter rain days, we are fortunate to have concrete paths throughout the school, so wearing Crocs (along with socks) will not be necessary.

I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all our parents for their understanding during drop-off and pick-up times, especially given the added challenge of wet weather. 

Please remember that our gates open at 7:55 AM, and supervision is from 8:00 AM. The afternoon bell rings at 2:50 PM. Staff will be on duty at the Hatchett Street, Albert St and Church pickups until 3:15 PM.

Additionally, please note that the Admin car park is reserved for staff and visitors only, and the designated disabled parking spaces must remain accessible for individuals who require them. Thank you for your cooperation.

I look forward to partnering with our families in the education of their children, our students.

Nicole

Welcome back to the 2025 school year. It was lovely to see so many smiling faces last week as our families returned to school. A special welcome to those families and students who are new to our school. Each year, our school focuses on a Holy Spirit Mercy Value – Compassion, Justice, Respect, Hospitality, Service and Courage. We also have an additional value – Excellence. The Founder of the Sisters of Mercy, The Venerable Mother Catherine McAuley, is displayed prominently on the side of the Lynch Family Hall as you enter our school.  She was a guiding light with her testimony of faith, holiness and hope as she ministered to the poor and disadvantaged.  Our school was joined by the Sisters of Mercy in 1971 and their charism of mercy and justice is just as important to us today.  Pope Francis said:  ‘People today…need us to bear witness to the mercy and tenderness of the Lord which warms the heart, rekindles hope, and attracts people towards the good.’

In this week’s Gospel, Luke shares the story of Jesus meeting His disciples at the Sea of Galilee. Simon had been fishing all night with no success and was then cleaning his nets. He goes out again, despite his exhaustion, when Jesus tells Simon to put out into the deep water and let down his nets for a catch. We all know that Simon does what is asked of him, and his nets then fill with fish. It is then that Jesus calls Simon and his partners to a new vocation of catching people so that they might live a new mission by following Jesus. This text reflects God’s call to ordinary people to discipleship and mission. We are all called daily to use the gifts God has given us in service to others and to share the good news of Christ in word and deed. As we begin a new year, we pray that our students use their gifts to be people of hope to those around them. 

This week at Holy Spirit we value justice. Justice, for many people, refers to fairness. We should always be looking to discover ways we are called to be people for others. We are called to: show dignity to others; help those in need with the essentials required for a decent life (food, clothing and shelter); pay special attention to the needs of those who are poor; care for one another; care for all that God has made. One way we can do this term will be to support Project Compassion. More information will be shared with our community as we approach Lent. 

On Friday morning, Year 3 – 6 gathered for prayer as well as the commissioning of our 2025 student leaders. A special congratulations to all our 2025 Student Leaders. Our Year Six students have a very important role in developing school spirit as leaders and role models to the younger students. Thank you to all our families and friends who joined us for this special occasion. 

God bless.
Caroline Fuller - APRE

Welcome Back to Term 1 2025 

I hope everyone had a restful break and is now ready for the year 2025! Our staff have been working hard to plan exciting and enriching experiences for our students throughout the year.

The leadership team has visited several classrooms, and it's exciting to witness the enthusiasm of both students and teachers. They are gradually acquainting themselves with their respective classes and establishing routines and structures to enable a successful year of learning.

10 Questions to get your child talking about school

1. Tell me about the best part of your day.
2. What was the hardest thing you had to do today?
3. Tell me about what you read in class today. 
4. Who did you play with today? What did you play? 
5. What’s the biggest difference between this year and last year?
6. What are you looking forward to about tomorrow? 
7. Can you show me something you learned (or did) today? 
8. What made you laugh today? 
9. Which subject did you enjoy most today? Why?
10. What rules are different at school than our rules at home? Why do you think this is? 

NAPLAN 2025 

What is NAPLAN?

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual national assessment for all students in Years 3, 5, 7, and 9 and is the only nationwide assessment that all Australian children undertake.

It’s a measure to see whether or not young Australians are developing the literacy and numeracy skills that provide the critical foundation for other learning and their productive and rewarding participation in the community.

When is NAPLAN?

The NAPLAN testing window begins in Week 7 of Term 1. 

What if my child is absent from school on test day?

If your child is absent on the day of a test, they will be caught up on the day they return to school, except for Year 3 Writing, which needs to be finalised by Monday 17th, as this is still completed on paper. 

How can I help my child prepare?

Rest assured, our teachers are explicitly teaching all content to allow our students to be successful in NAPLAN. However, there is a Public Demonstration Site available that you can work through with your child to allow them to understand how to use the online tools correctly. Your child will sit a practice test before the test schedule in class so that they can understand the NAPLAN experience. Further information can be found here.

If you have any concerns about your child’s participation in NAPLAN, please do not hesitate to contact me via email at kbates@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au or your child’s classroom teacher.

Kristy Bates

Assistant Principal Pedagogy and Learning  (APPL)

Dear Families,

If you have a student who is turning 10, 11 or 12 this year, they are eligible to trial for Townsville and Northern School Sport teams. All nominations must go through the school to be considered at these trials. This year there has been a change in the process for these nominations. Please see the attached information and expression of interest form.

At the end of 2024, we held our annual Holy Spirit swimming carnival. Congratulations to all students who participated on the day and to those who achieved age champion. In week 9 of this term, Holy Spirit will compete at the Interschool Swimming Carnival where a select group of students will compete against students from other schools in the region. More information regarding trials and training for our Interschool Swimming team will be coming out to families via Compass shortly. However if your child meets this criteria:

• Is turning 8 or 9 this year
• Is a competent club swimmer 
• Can swim continuously for 25 or 50m
• Would like to trial for the HSCS swimming team
• Is able to attend trials on Tuesday 18th February 3:00pm at Ignatius Park pool

Please contact Rebecca Lobley at rlobley@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au to be considered for the Holy Spirit swimming team.

Dear Families,
 
In 2025, there have been adjustments to our Inclusive Practice Team to ensure better balance and alignment across year levels. These changes allow us to provide
more consistent and targeted support for students.

The following team members will be supporting each year level:

We appreciate your ongoing support as we complete transitions and handovers. If you have any questions regarding these changes, please do not hesitate to reach out to your IPT contact person. Email addresses are listed below.

Coordinating the Allied Health Provider roster is one of the IPT roles. The roster is now full, and we can only take names for a waitlist.

Wishing you a great 2025! 

Kind regards,

Taryn Pickering - tpickering2@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au 
Gemma McConochie - gmcconochie2@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au 
Angela Bourne - abourne4@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au

Rebecca Lobley – rlobley4=@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au

The Book Fair is coming to Holy Spirit Catholic School! It will arrive on Monday 24th February and be here until Friday 28th February. Come by and support our school whilst getting your hands on the best new children’s books!

We are open Tuesday and Thursday 8am-8.25am in the hall.

Your support with donations of spreads (not nut based) and bread are needed and appreciated, particularly honey and golden syrup, due to the increase in children accessing the program.

Donations can be dropped off at Tuckshop.

Just a reminder: The toasters will be turned off at 8.15am, so bread with spreads will be the choice once the toast runs out.  This allows both students and staff enough time to be ready for the start of the school day. 

Welcome back to all our Defence families and a big welcome to all our new families joining us here at Holy Spirit.

What a start to the year! Unfortunately, due to this weather, I have not been able to meet all our new students yet, but I look forward to seeing them in the coming weeks.
Defence Club will hopefully start up in Week 3 and this will be held in our McCauley Room Hub on Mondays and Thursdays during second break. This is a great opportunity for our defence kids to meet up and have some time together being creative, playing games or just hanging out with new friends.

For those of you new to the school, please reach out to me via email if I can be of any assistance. I am also more than happy to take a phone call and have a chat. Likewise, to our existing families, please get in touch at any time and let me know if there is anything I can do to help with the new school year. If there are any postings or exercise movements pending, that can also be great for me to know so that I can provide support to your children where possible.

Kat Jordan DSM.
kjordan3@hsstsv.catholic.edu.au

Please note the Welcome and information Expo set for this weekend has been cancelled/
postponed.
CANCELLED DUE TO WEATHER EVENT
Welcome and Information Expo – 8 February 2025

Coffee Connections – 13 February 2025

Join us for our first Coffee Connections of the year! Meet fellow Defence
partners and DMFS staff, share a cuppa, and start the year with great
company. Whether you are new to Townsville or have been here for a while, everyone is welcome!
First coffee for adults is on us!
When: Thursday 13 February 2025
Time: 9.30am-11:00am
Where: Twin City Hotel Café, 14 Hervey Range Rd, Thuringowa Central
Tickets: DMFS Coffee Connections - 13 Feb 2025 - Eventbrite

Save the Date - Barra Fun Park Family Day – 22 Mar 2025

ADF members and families, save the date and come along to our Family Fun  

Day at the Barra Fun Park! Make a splash on the Aqua Park, maybe catch a  

Barra, and enjoy a relaxing afternoon. 

When: Saturday 22 March 2025 

Time: 4.00pm-7:00pm 

Where: Townsville Barra Fun Park 

Tickets: Tickets will be available soon via Eventbrite.

If your child is going to be absent, please enter the details through Compass, as this is the most efficient way to inform the school.