Dearest Our Lady of Lourdes Families, 

After another wet and challenging week for many, we hope everyone is staying safe amid the flooding. We are grateful for the resilience and community spirit shown by our families, students, and staff during this time. Please know that our school is here to support anyone in need. Let’s continue to look out for one another as we navigate these conditions together.

Relationships are at the very core of our Christian belief in our Triune (three persons in one) God. The Holy Trinity is God in relationship! This beautiful theology inspires all of us in Catholic schools to endeavour to be a living Christian community in relationship with God and others. It is essential in such a community that all members recognise and respect their own rights and responsibilities, as well as those of other members of the community and of the school itself.

The responsibility for promoting and upholding these core values of the school community must fall on those with the greatest capacity to reason and control their actions. Therefore, it is the expectation of the school that all parents/guardians/caregivers/volunteers model acceptable behaviour at all times within the school and at school sponsored activities.

As a parent, celebrate that you play a formative role in the development of your child's sense of justice, equity and worth. You are one of the most influential role models within your child's life. Let us all strive to build a harmonious community where students can flourish. There will be times during your child’s schooling where you need to bring your concerns to the attention of the staff at the school. If you have concerns about your child’s learning, please make a time to discuss your concerns with the child’s teacher in the first instance as they are placed to have the initial conversation. The Leadership Team is also here to support you with your concerns. If you are requiring a meeting with a member of the Leadership Team, please contact the office to schedule an appointment. I have attached a copy of the Townsville Catholic Education Code of Conduct for parents and volunteers for your perusal. 

Code of Conduct

Building Community at Our Lady of Lourdes

We are excited to share that our recent Family and Community Engagement (FACE) meeting was a great success! A number of parents attended and contributed valuable ideas on how we can continue to strengthen family and community connections within our school. To ensure we hear from as many families as possible, we will be sending out a short survey - please take a few moments to share your thoughts on the activities and opportunities you’d like to see at Our Lady of Lourdes.

Here are the minutes from our first FACE meeting of the year.

NAPLAN Update

We are pleased to share that our students have successfully completed their NAPLAN assessments for this year. We are incredibly proud of their efforts, resilience, and positive approach throughout the testing period. A big thank you to our teachers and staff for their dedication in preparing and supporting our students, and to our families for encouraging them along the way.

While NAPLAN provides valuable insights into student learning, we remind our students that these tests are just one measure of their growth and achievements. We look forward to using the results to continue enhancing learning experiences at Our Lady of Lourdes.

National Close the Gap Day

At Our Lady of Lourdes, we recognise the importance of National Close the Gap Day, a time to reflect on the ongoing journey toward health and education equality for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This day reminds us of our shared responsibility to work toward a future where all Australians have equal opportunities to thrive.

As a school community, we are committed to fostering respect, understanding, and inclusion. Through education and meaningful conversations, we aim to empower our students to be advocates for positive change. Let us continue to learn, listen, and work together to close the gap for future generations.

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead. 

Many Blessings, 

Jo Desailly

Principal

Dear Families,

It’s been another wet week across the district, but despite the rain, we were still able to come together for a beautiful school Mass in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day earlier in the week. It was a joy to see our school community gather in faith. It has also been wonderful to witness the dedication of families supporting their children on their sacramental journey by attending Mass on the weekends. Just a reminder that Children’s Liturgy takes place on Saturday nights during the first part of Mass, providing a wonderful opportunity for our young ones to engage with the Word in an age-appropriate way.

This year, it is the Jubilee Year, a special time in the Catholic Church for forgiveness, renewal, and reconciliation. The theme, “Pilgrims of Hope”, calls us to walk in faith, strengthen our connection with God, and share His love with one another and all of creation.

Jubilee Prayer of Hope 

God, our loving Father 

In this Jubilee year, you remind us of our call to love creation. Help us to work together to replant, repair and renew. Guide us on our journey as pilgrims of hope. 

Amen 

Harmony Week – Monday 17th to Sunday 23rd March 

Harmony Week is a celebration that recognises our diversity and brings together Australians from all different backgrounds. It is about inclusiveness, respect, and a sense of belonging for everyone. 

Project Compassion Fundraising Boxes 

At the beginning of Lent, students received a Project Compassion box. If your family has donated to Project Compassion, please return your box to the office by the end of this term.  

Pray for all our sisters and brothers in need throughout the world: 

Act as an ambassador for justice, modelling Jesus’ message of love and compassion 

Promote justice and uphold dignity; 

Use your gifts and resources to stand in solidarity with those who are vulnerable.   

Jesus brought the promise of home to all people so that everyone may, ‘have life and have it to the full’ (John 10:10) 

Lent Reflection

Lent is not about keeping score on how well you live out your daily fasting, prayer, and almsgiving commitments. Instead, reflect on how our Lenten commitments lead us closer to our relationship with Christ. What a great message for us to share with our children!

Across the six weeks of Lent, Caritas Australia share stories of resilient people trying to ‘be more’ for their families and communities. 

Second Week of Lent (Week beginning Monday 17 March)

Toefuata'iga - (Toy-foo-ah-tah-ing-ah) is a 13-year-old primary school student from Samoa. Samoa may be a country surrounded by water, but access to clean drinking water is scarce in some areas, with many families facing extreme hardship as a result.

Toefuata’iga’s school community struggled without reliable access to clean water, which impacted students’ education and hygiene. Teachers often had to leave the school to fetch water from nearby homes, disrupting lessons and adding strain to the community. When the water ran out at the school, students were sent home which meant they missed out on valuable learning time.

Thanks to the support of Caritas Australia in partnership with Caritas Samoa, Toefuata’iga’s school now has a 10,000 L water tank through a Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) program. Teachers and students are now able to focus on education and improved hygiene.

“Now that we have the water tank, things are so much better, we can stay at school all day, and I get to spend more time learning and playing with my friends. I’m happy that we don’t have to go home early anymore.” – said Toefuata'iga.

This transformative story is just one example of how Caritas Australia’s Project Compassion creates waves of change around the world.

Watch Toefuata'iga’s story here.

Will you stand with students like Toefuata'iga this Lent?

You can support Project Compassion 2025 through the donation boxes, envelopes or by scanning the QR code above.  

Have a wonderful weekend!

God Bless,

Moris

SPELLING IN THE EARLY YEARS 

AT OUR LADY OF LOURDES CATHOLIC SCHOOL

What is Sounds-Write?

At Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School, we use a proven Systematic Synthetic Phonics program called Sounds-Write to teach phonics.           This comprehensive linguistic phonics program is designed to build essential reading and spelling skills for our students. Sounds-Write begins with what children naturally learn—the sounds of their language—and teaches them how to represent these sounds in writing. It provides a complete curriculum covering the necessary skills, concepts, and code knowledge for children to become proficient readers and spellers.

What will my child learn in Sounds-Write?

In Prep, children begin their phonics journey by being introduced to the ‘Initial Code’ through daily phonics lessons. This phase focuses on the most basic sounds and their corresponding letters, which children will learn to recognise and use. These sounds are taught in a specific, structured order, allowing children to gradually build their understanding of how letters represent sounds in words. By focusing on the sounds first, children develop the ability to decode and blend them, setting a solid foundation for their future reading and spelling skills.

As children progress through Year 1 and Year 2, they extend their phonics knowledge to larger, more complex words. This is when they start to explore the ‘Extended Code,’ which introduces them to a broader range of spellings and more challenging sound patterns. The ‘Extended Code’ helps children understand how letters and combinations of letters can represent sounds in more intricate ways, such as two or more spellings creating one sound. It also explores the rules for using different spellings in different contexts (e.g., how different spelling combinations can represent the same sound, like ‘ai’ in rain and ‘ay’ in play).

This progressive approach ensures that children continuously expand their phonics knowledge, starting with the basic building blocks and moving towards more complex spelling patterns. By the time they reach the end of Year 2, they will have a well-rounded understanding of the phonetic code, which will serve as the key to becoming confident, independent readers and spellers.

When is Sounds-Write taught?

At Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School, students participate in Sounds-Write sessions four times a week, each lasting 30 minutes. Every lesson is structured to ensure a balanced approach to learning, with key components that build upon one another.

The lesson begins with a Daily Review (8 minutes), where students revisit previously learned concepts. This is an important part of the session, allowing children to refresh their understanding and reinforce their phonics knowledge.

A Lesson Focus (12 minutes) follows the review, where new phonics concepts are introduced and explained. This part of the lesson ensures that students continually build their skills and expand their phonics knowledge.

Finally, students engage in Consolidation (10 minutes) through reading and dictation activities. These activities help to solidify the concepts learned during the lesson, allowing children to practice and apply their new skills in context.

How can I help my child to learn to read and spell?

School and home working together support your child’s learning journey. Here are some ways you can help at home:

1. Saying the sounds
   We want your child to understand that letters are symbols that represent sounds. For example, when they see the letters < m > < a > < t >, they should say the sounds /m/ /a/ /t/ and then blend them to say the word ‘mat’. It is important that they pronounce the sounds correctly, saying /m/ (not "muh") when they see the letter < m >.
   
   You can model how to say the sounds correctly by watching this video: Sounds Pronunciation Video
   
   
2. Writing the spellings of the sounds
   After your child says the sounds and reads the word, encourage them to write the word while saying each sound aloud. You can model this by doing the same when writing a word.
   
   
3. Playing games with sounds
   Engage in simple games where you break down words into sounds (segmenting) and blend the sounds back together (blending). For example, ask your child to bring you a /m/ /u/ /g/ or a /s/ /i/ /t/ from around the house. This helps them understand how spoken words can be pulled apart and put back together.
   
   
4. Reading with your child
   When reading with your child, do the usual things like discussing the story plot and characters, and predicting what will happen next. Supporting your child with regular reading practice helps them gain confidence. Your child will bring home specific reading books, called ‘decodable books’, that align with their learnt phonics.

 If your child struggles while reading, you can:

• Encourage them to follow the text with their finger from left to right.

• Ask them to ‘say the sounds and read the word’.
• Help them blend the sounds together if they need additional support.

A Free Course for Parents/Carers

We encourage all parents and carers to access the free online Sounds-Write course to understand further how to support your child with reading and spelling at home. To find out more, please visit Sounds-Write Support for Parents.

If you have any questions about reading and spelling, please feel free to speak with your child’s class teacher or myself. We are always happy to help!

Please enjoy some pics from our Prep classes from their Sounds-Write Lessons this term: