SEQTA Engage setup
Last week you would have received an email to allow you to set up logins and passwords for SEQTA Engage. SEQTA Engage will be the only way to access your child’s/children’s report on Wednesday 11 December. If you haven’t already done so, your code from the email sent last week will now have expired.  You will need to wait for a new code to be issued, which I will do early next week.

Community Libraries
Our community Libraries are now up and fully functioning. A big thank you to Mr Seamons for putting them up! The conversations and excitement about the books have been so wonderful to hear and see. So many children have borrowed and swapped books already. Thank you also to the families who have brought books in.

Once again, we thank the Fuller Family for their generosity to make the boxes.  Their family business, Kitchen Switch would be happy to hear from school families or friends who are interested in having any cabinetry work done.  kitchenswitch.com.au  Ph:  (08) 9303 9800

Free Computer Equipment
The Tech Hub computer room is going to transformed into a classroom space for 2020 to teach STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Maths). Therefore, the computers that are in there now, will be recycled. If families are interested in taking monitors, keyboards or a mouse, you are welcome to come and collect them on Friday 6 December, from the Tech Hub.

Gloria Ward
Assistant Principal
Curriculum

Jordan Anthony DVD
After Jordan Anthony’s amazing visit to Francis Jordan, there were many parents who expressed their regret about not being able to see him sing and speak to our students. Well, there’s good news; Mr Seamons has received permission from Jordan to sell a DVD of the visit that was recorded. If you would like a copy of the DVD, please go to the office to pick up a DVD Order Form or contact Mr Seamons.
Maurice Seamons (FJCS Grounds)
Ph: 0417 416 391

Spotlight on Year Four Literacy Dedicated Time
During our Literacy Dedicated Time, Year Four have been working on the reading skill, Main Idea. The Main Idea is usually the first sentence of a paragraph or it can be the last sentence. The other sentences in a paragraph support the main idea. During our reading rotations, the children worked on various activities using this skill. The guided reading group worked with the teacher to locate the main idea of a text which was at their reading level. Another group worked on developing their fluency and expression by participating in Readers Theatre. Their scripts were based on content being covered in other learning areas. After practising their scripts, the children performed their Readers Theatre in front of the class. Other activities included, independently locating the main idea and supporting details of various Australian animals such as the dingo, koala and numbat.

The students have utilised this skill in their writing lessons, to write an information report on an Australian animal. They began by studying a text about the Tyrannosaurus Rex to learn about the structure of an information report. They completed a sequencing activity and placed facts about the Tyrannosaurus Rex under the correct headings. They distinguished between what information was factual and what was an opinion. A text is made up of informational words, which provide key information about the topic. A text is also made up of connector words, these do not provide information about the content of a sentence however, they are a necessary part.

The teachers modelled how to write an information report and together we constructed one about the Western Lowlands Gorilla. The information was written under the headings of classification, size and appearance, habitat and lifestyle and diet and eating habits. The students were then given a fact file which contained key words about elephants. Working with a partner, they used these key words to write sentences about the elephant, placing them under the correct headings. They then chose an Australian animal to research and individually completed a fact file by locating key information from various sources (books and internet). They began constructing their own information report making sure each paragraph contained a topic sentence (main idea), supporting sentences which contain facts about the topic in logical order and a concluding sentence. The students published their information reports using Word. They inserted images which reflected the content of each paragraph.

To culminate our work on Australian animals, we visited Perth Zoo last for our excursion.
The next step in the process will be to create a PowerPoint and present their information to the class. They are very excited to share what they have learned with their peers!

Mrs Rosina Rennie and Miss Lauren Franchina

Thanksgiving / Graduation Mass
The Graduation / Thanksgiving Mass is being celebrated on Tuesday December 10 at the Saint Simon Peter Church commencing at 6.00pm. Last year, many families were not present at the Mass. We recognise the Mass and other aspects have gone on too long for many of our younger children. This year, we are shortening the format. Please make a commitment to attend this very important celebration in the school year.

Saint Vincent de Paul Christmas Appeal
The response to our call for items to support the St Vincent de Paul Christmas appeal is always fabulous. The generosity of families at this time of the year is incredible. Below in the newsletter is a list of items that could be donated. Please have your child drop the donation into the class basket if you would like to make a donation. A reminder to try to have items in by Friday December 6, as the goods will be collected by St Vincent de Paul representatives early in Week 9.

Family Food Hampers can include:

* packets of pasta * spaghetti sauce * packets of rice
* cans of baked beans/spaghetti * cans of soup
* packets of biscuits/crackers * packets of chips
* bags of lollies * 1.25 litre soft drink bottles *bottles of cordial * packets of cereal (Weet Bix, oats) * packets of sugar *long life milk * packets of tea * jars of coffee * jam/marmalade (not home made)
* tins of vegetables tinned fruit * tins of tuna/ham * deodorant * toothpaste * toothbrushes
* shower wash * quick meals (fried rice, cheese mac, noodles

There can be NO perishable items and NO alcohol.

Please place the food items in the basket placed in your
child’s classroom by Friday 6th December – Week 8.
This will then enable time for the people putting
the hampers together to do so before Christmas day.

Thank you for your continued support.
Hopefully, we can help make someone’s Christmas
a little brighter this year.

Damian Purcell

Assistant Principal
Religious Education

On Thursday the Year Three students went to the Resources Technology Showcase at the Convention Centre.  As you can tell from the photos, they had a fabulous time. After the Showcase they walked over to Elizabeth Quay and looked at the big mining machinery.  They all came back to school with their striking red hats from Rio Tinto.  Thank you Miss Araujo for organising the excursion.

Miss Rachael Araujo, Mrs Dunne and Miss Walker 

Sparks Bake Sale

Using Giftedness for Giving

The Year 5 and 6 Extension program students are working on an assignment called The Passion Project. This project calls students to work together to make the world a better place. Students began the project by examining problems that occur at a local, national and international level. Students decided to assist in areas they were passionate about.

This year students will:

• combat homelessness by making care packages
• purchase colouring pencils to entertain sick children at PCH
• donate blankets to Guide Dogs WA
• collect bottle lids. These bottle lids will be donated and then used to created prosthetic limbs

Students ran a back sale on Monday to raise funds for these causes.

We are proud to announce that students raised enough money to buy 100 packs of colouring pencils for PCH, 15 blankets for Guide Dogs WA and they will create 7 care packages for the homeless.

Thank you to our wonderful community for supporting the Bake Sale this week!

Miss Rachael Araujo

Extension Teacher

END OF THE YEAR CHRISTMAS LUNCH MEAL

FRIDAY 13 DECEMBER 2019

All meals come with a Christmas themed treat & Chill J bubbles

“SANTA’S” SUSHI SPECIAL
“SILLY SEASON” SAUSAGE ROLL
“HAPPY HOLIDAYS” HOMEMADE BOLOGNESE
“HOORAY IT’S SUMMER” HAM & CHEESE TOASTY

This is the only meal available on this day for students PP-YEAR 6 and must be pre-ordered by completing the form below and returning to the canteen or ordering online BY FRIDAY 6 DECEMBER.

NAME:

CLASS:

CIRCLE: Sausage Roll $6 / Toasty $6/ Bolognese $7/Tuna sushi $8 /Crispy chicken sushi $8 /Salmon sushi $8/ Teriyaki Chicken sushi $8 / Combo sushi $8 /Add sauce 50c /Water instead

School Holiday News

There are often a range of community events on offer over the school holidays.  Some children may be interested in:

Quiz Night
A massive thank you and so much gratitude for each and every one of you who attended our 2019 Quiz Night on Friday, 1 November. The night was an amazing success, made even sweeter by the fact that only 7 days prior it was on the verge of being cancelled. We had 132 people purchase tickets for this event, we had over 20 sponsors take part by generously donating their goods, services or vouchers to the cause, but most importantly we had a huge part of our school community come together for an amazing night of laughter and fun. It was a truly fabulous evening.

Congratulations to Amy Booth for taking out the much coveted $1,000 cash in the door prize. Congratulations to our four raffle winners, and congratulations to the winning table, who included staff from Prendiville and St Andrew’s Primary School, I believe.  At the end of the day we raised in excess of $3,100 for our school.

A huge thank you to our incredible Quiz Master, Craig McQueen.
Thank you also to Louise Jennings, Lindy McQueen, Keris Gordon, Sinead Forbes, Naomi Agosta, Danita Hansen, Kellie Hall and Tim Tolley for their assistance in the lead up to the event and for their help on the night.

A full list of sponsors will be placed on the school notice board, near the Pre Kindy classroom, in the coming days. They will also be listed in the next edition of the newsletter.

School Disco
Tickets for the disco are on sale right now. Further information and tickets can be found HERE:

Shannon Britten
P&F President
0417 183 345

britten.shannon@fjcs.wa.edu.au