2025 Term 1 Week 3 Newsletter
Prayer Focus
From the Principal
Exciting Opportunities
We’ve had a fantastic start to the year! Our students are already thoroughly enjoying the "Time to Learn" unit, while also settling into all of our routines and procedures. They are demonstrating great focus, enthusiasm, and eagerness to learn, making it a wonderful beginning to the year. In addition to the classroom excitement, some other highlights have been Mrs. Cooke's engaging Visual Art lessons, which have sparked creativity, and the launch of our Stage 2 Instrumental Beginner Band program, giving students the chance to explore music and develop new skills. We are excited for all the opportunities the year ahead will bring!
Do you find parking a bit of a challenge at drop off? Why not try parking at the High St oval car park? It takes 4 minutes to walk to school - loads of spaces and no restrictions. I walk every Monday at 8.40am and encourage anyone who'd like a friendly chat on the way to join me!
School Arrival Time
We would like to kindly remind all families that student supervision is only available from 8:30am onwards. Therefore, students should not be arriving at school before this time. In the mornings, our dedicated teachers are focused on preparing lessons to ensure the best possible learning experience for all students. For the safety and wellbeing of your children, we kindly ask that they are not dropped off before 8:30am. We are in the process of establishing an Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) service, which we hope will be available by Semester 2, providing an alternative for those requiring early care. In the meantime, many students attend local Community OOSH Services. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in helping us create a safe environment for all.
Aboriginal Education Worker position
We are looking for an Aboriginal Education Worker (AEW) to work three days a week on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. If you know anyone who may be interested, we would be grateful if parents could encourage them to apply using the following link.
Maldon Place Parking
A friendly reminder for parents who use Maldon Place to drop off and pick up their children.
- Do not park on the grass reserve in Maldon Place.
- Do not park across or in Maldon Place residents' driveways.
We thank you for your consideration of our neighbours.
Attendance Matters
Caroline Lewis
Principal
Faith & Mission
What is Charism?
Charism is a special gift from the Holy Spirit, given to individuals or groups to help them serve others and fulfill God’s mission. Different religious orders have unique charisms that shape how they live out their faith.
At St Francis Xavier School, our charism is inspired by two important influences:
- St Francis Xavier, our school patron, was a Jesuit priest with a gift for evangelization and teaching. From his example, we embrace the values of love and knowledge.
- Sr Margaret, our founding Principal, was a Sister of Mercy. The Mercy Sisters are known for their compassion and hospitality, inspiring our values of peace, service, and respect.
Together, these influences shape our school’s unique charism—guiding how we respond to God’s call to serve others in our school and our community. Every student, parent, and staff member is part of this story, making St Francis Xavier School a truly special place. How awesome is that!
Check out the Charism Corner each newsletter to learn more about school story.
2025 Sacraments
St. Francis Xavier offers in-school sacramental preparation for all baptised students. This program provides students with the opportunity to deepen their understanding of their faith, strengthen their relationship with God, and actively participate in the life of the Church.
Recognising that parents are the primary educators of their children in faith, family support is essential to the sacramental journey. To officially enroll a student in sacramental preparation, at least one parent must attend an information session with Fr. Joy and myself.
What: Reconciliation and First Eucharist
Who: Baptised students in Years 4 or above. Students typically receive both sacraments in the same year.
Dates
Parent information night - Tuesday 4 March at 6pm
Celebration of the Sacrament of Reconciliation - Tuesday 1 April at 5pm
First Eucharist Retreat (school excursion) - Friday 20 June
Celebration of the Sacrament of First Eucharist - Saturday 21 June, St Francis Xavier Church at 8.30am
Please complete the enrollment form by February 26 for Reconciliation and First Eucharist.
What: Confirmation
Who: Baptised students in Years 3 or above.
Dates
Parent information night - Tuesday 6 May at 6pm
Celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation - July 30 or 31 (date to be finalised), St Augustines Church Coffs Harbour at 5pm
An enrolment form for Confirmation will be sent at a later date.
Pancake Day & Ash Wednesday
LENT, SHROVE TUESDAY and ASH WEDNESDAY
Each year during Lent, we are encouraged to PRAY, FAST, and GIVE as we prepare for Easter.
This Lent, we invite you to PRAY with us by attending our Ash Wednesday Mass on March 5.
As part of FASTING, children can choose to "go without" a special treat or activity, such as ice cream or limiting screen time. Before beginning this practice, we will celebrate Shrove Tuesday, where students can purchase a pancake for a gold coin donation.
This leads to our focus on GIVING. All proceeds from Shrove Tuesday will go towards our annual support of Project Compassion. In addition to this, each family will receive a Project Compassion box. Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference, and we deeply appreciate your support.
Katrina Ryan
Assistant Principal Mission
All Things Learning & Teaching
Parent Information Night
It was wonderful to welcome so many families at our Parent Information Night this week. As always, we value your feedback and encourage those who attended to give some feedback about the night.
Michaela O'Shea Miller
Assistant Principal Learning & Teaching
Spotlight on Learning
Welcome to Kindergarten
It has been wonderful to see our students and teachers settling in to their new classes and establishing routines and procedures for learning over the last fortnight. Our Kindergarten children are exploring the playground and making friends and we have been so pleased to welcome them to ‘big school.’
Suzie Coster
Leader of Learning
Sporting Roundup
Recently Max and Ben competed in the South West Rocks Triathlon. Max placed second and Ben placed first. Ned competed in the Sabot Sailing Nationals in Sydney and won first place on handicap.
Well done to the Ross family!
Hannah Howarth
Leader of Sport
School Counsellors Corner
Seasons for Growth
I will be facilitating Seasons for Growth this term for students in Stage 3. Please see below for information regarding the program. If you would like your child to participate in the program please contact the office by email woolp@lism.catholic.edu.au for a consent form.
Seasons for Growth:
Number of Sessions: 8 (not inclusive of celebratory session)
Participants: 6-8
Facilitated by: “Companion” Alessandra Isgro
Seasons for Growth offers children and young people an opportunity to come together and share their experiences of grief and loss. This could include a death in the family, changes in family arrangements including parental separation/ divorce, moving house, the arrival of new siblings or adjusting to other changes that may have impacted their lives. The seasons for growth program uses the seasons of the year as a metaphor that change and loss is a part of life and individuals experience the “seasons” in different ways.
Note: Under the framework of Seasons for Growth, if a referral to the program is in relation to a major change, that a minimum of 6 months has passed before your child is able to participate in the program.
Parent Education Opportunities - Wellbeing
Please click on the link below to complete an expression of interest in Parent Information Nights to assist families in supporting their child's wellbeing.
Alessandra Isgro
School Counsellor
Wellbeing
Stop Think Do
I wanted to take a moment to share a bit about my role as the Student Wellbeing Officer. I will be working in collaboration with our School Counsellor and Leader of Inclusion to run structured play sessions for students who may need additional support, as well as conducting daily check-ins to ensure students feel settled and happy coming to and from school.
In Term 1, I will also be running the Stop Think Do Program, which aims to help students develop positive decision-making skills.
Stop Think Do:
Number of Sessions: Up to 20 (40 min sessions, once a week)
Facilitated by: Hayley Evans
Using the traffic light analogy, STOP THINK DO is an Australian social skills program for students who are struggling and are having social-emotional difficulties. The program aims to build your child’s capacity in the following critical skills including social cues, self control, cognitive skills, behavioural skills, pro-social motivation and utilising support from significant people to continue to implement and develop these skills not only at school but in day to day life. The program also focuses on developing your child’s capacity to problem solve and work through conflicts with peers.
If you would like your child to participate in this program, please contact the office by email woolp@lism.catholic.edu.au for a consent form.
Hayley Evans
Student Wellbeing Officer
School Community Forum
The next School Community Forum meeting will be held on Monday, 24 February at 6.30pm in the school library. There is a Zoom link below for those who are unable to attend in person.
Welcome Swim
Bring your swimmers and a picnic to the Welcome Swim on Friday 28 February, 3.30pm-5.30pm.
Parents are responsible for the supervision of their own children and for pool entry fees.
An RSVP form will be sent via Compass next week.
Fete Date Saver
Salina McIvor
President
Assembly
Gold Token winners
Well done to all token recipients this week and congratulations to our Gold Token recipients! Keep up the great work everyone!
Playgroup
2026 Kindergarten Enrolments
Open Day
Headlice
We have had numerous reports of headlice. Please check your child's hair and treat if you find they have eggs or lice. Please refer to the NSW Health information by clicking on the link below.
Nut Allergies
We currently have many students across the school who are severely allergic to nuts. It's important that we are all mindful of nut allergies as:
- nut allergies can be servere and even life-threatening
- nut allergies are common among children
- nuts can be found in unexpected foods, so it's important to read labels carefully.
We kindly ask that parents avoid sending food with nut ingredients to school. It's important for students to not share food. Teachers will be having conversations with students about this also.