Dearest Our Lady of Lourdes Families, 

As we enter into the middle of Term 2, I want to take a moment to thank you all for your continued support and involvement in the life of our school.

Learning Conferences – Thank You

Thank you to all the families who have participated in our Semester 1 Learning Conferences this week. These Parent-Teacher interviews are a valuable opportunity to strengthen the partnership between home and school. Your engagement supports your child’s learning journey and reinforces the message that we are all working together to help them thrive. A big thank you to our teachers for the time and effort they put into preparing for these interviews. 

Attendance Matters

At Our Lady of Lourdes, we are committed to helping every student reach their full potential—and that starts with being at school every day. Regular attendance is one of the most important factors in a child’s academic success, as it allows them to stay connected to learning, develop strong relationships with peers and teachers, and build positive routines.

Even occasional absences can add up. Missing just one day a fortnight equates to four full weeks of missed learning across the year. Over time, this can make it harder for students to keep up, both academically and socially.

We understand that sometimes absences are unavoidable due to illness or emergencies, and we appreciate your efforts to keep us informed when this happens. However, we ask families to avoid taking holidays during the school term whenever possible, and to make every effort to schedule appointments outside school hours.

Here’s how you can support your child’s attendance:

• Establish consistent morning routines to ensure a calm start to the day.
  
  
• Make sure your child gets enough sleep and is prepared for the next school day.
  
  
• Communicate with us early if your child is facing any challenges with attending school.
  
  

If you ever have concerns or need support regarding your child’s attendance, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re here to help and work with you.

Together, let’s make every school day count!

Changes to Reporting 

As you may be aware, in 2024, Townsville Catholic Education conducted surveys regarding reporting with staff and parents. The survey responses have informed the review of the Reporting Guidelines for Prep to Year 10, which have now been updated. The changes to your child’s report from this semester are outlined below.

• The Learning Areas Comments have been removed. Instead, report cards will contain a Learning Area Statement outlining the key learning undertaken for the semester.

• Application to Learning refers to the students' effort in learning and completing tasks to the best of their ability. It reflects how the student responds to the feedback and demonstrates interest in their learning. This is reported on a 4-point scale: Needs Attention, Satisfactory, Very Good, Excellent.

• A statement indicates that the Working With or C achievement level is the expected end-of-year achievement standard. This level of achievement is highlighted in the explanation.

• In Prep, students are assessed and reported against the English, Mathematics, Health and Physical Education, and Religion achievement standards. The other learning areas are taught; however, they are not reported on.

• One general comment personalised by the classroom teacher is included at the end of the report. 

If you have any questions about the updates to our reporting templates, please contact the School to make a time for discussion with either Sarah Sheahan or myself. 

School Board Executive

Following our Annual General Meeting held on Wednesday 14th May, we are pleased to announce the newly elected members of our 2025 School Board Executive. We warmly welcome Andrew Pollock as Board Chair, Sarah Sheahan as Board Secretary, and Damian Briggs as our Finance Representative. We look forward to their leadership and collaboration as we continue to work together to support the growth and mission of our school.

A heartfelt thank you to our outgoing Chair, Moris Gori, for your dedicated service and strong leadership over the past few years. Your commitment to our school community has been greatly appreciated.