Dear Parents and Caregivers,

We are now at the halfway point of Term 1. Hopefully, all boys feel settled and on top of the logistical aspects of a new school year. Classrooms are very busy and the boys are producing some outstanding work. The start to the year has been very positive and I encourage all parents to have a conversation with their son about the importance of maintaining that effort into the back end of the term. The next few weeks will require focused learning in readiness for upcoming assessment before camp for both year levels in Week 9 (Year 5) & Week 10 (Year 6).

Reminder

Could I please draw your attention to some of the main issues that impact the boys across both Year 5 and Year 6, listed in dot points.

Connection:

• Developing a strong sense of connection is very important at the start of a new year. These connections are critical for all boys. The connections we strive to build include: Peer connections, class connections, year level connections and connection to the wider the Lauries community.

Consistency:

• All classes are unique and operate in a slightly different way, however; consistency of opportunity, programs, pastoral care and lesson structure are key to providing each boy with a quality experience. Please encourage the boys to share their class OneNote with you and discuss the routines and expectations that they should be familiar with now.

Communication:

• Lauries provides a lot of information and we use multiple communication platforms. It is vital that parents stay on top of all communication to assist the boys with organisation.

Co-operation:

• Boys do best when parents and school work together. We look forward to a strong and productive partnership this year.

Important Notes for Parents

Lost property has already started to build up in the Primary Office. If your son misplaces items, please direct him to check the lost property cupboard at the Primary Office door. All items should be labelled to make returning lost property a quicker process.

Parent Information Night Videos

Please see below the links for the “Primary Information Night”.

PRIMARY

Year 5

Year 6

Procedures for Visitor to the School

It is essential for all visitors to report to the office (Main Reception or Primary Office) during the day. This includes to drop off laptops, food, phones etc. that have been left at home or if parents are collecting sick boys. No visitors should go directly to classrooms without reporting to the office first. I am sure you can appreciate that we need to be aware of all adults onsite to help keep boys safe. This process also prevents unplanned meetings with staff that might stop them from teaching classes or preparing for lessons. Parents are welcome to make an appointment to see staff or leave a message for a return call on the phone, but classroom visits without reporting to the office is not fair on staff or the boys.

Absent from School

It is essential to report your son’s absence from school. If he is not attending, please use the College APP or contact the Primary Office on 3010 1142 or via email primary@slc.qld.edu.au and leave a brief message with your son’s name, class and the reason for his absence.

Lauries Journey Awards

At our Primary Assembly each fortnight, we celebrate and acknowledge boys who have made an outstanding contribution to our community or their class. These students will be presented with Lauries Journey certificates to formally recognise the great things they have done. The awards celebrate the achievements of boys from all classes and are awarded to those who show strong character and/or the desired “Learning Dispositions”, reflecting the Lauries Journey and helping to strengthen our community. Each fortnight the names will be published in this Newsletter. The certificates for these awards will be passed on to the boys to keep in a safe place.

Drop off for Students

Please use the designated drop off zone near Savio Oval (outside the Lauries Shop and Canteen) to drop your boys to school each day. The loading zone on the ERPAC driveway is not a drop off area and is heavily congested in the mornings with hospital and St Laurence’s staff. It can be very dangerous to drop boys off in that area and then try and turn around in the driveway. This is even more important at the moment, with construction adding to the congestion in that area.

Significant Upcoming Events

NAPLAN (13-18 March)

Please see the detailed NAPLAN information in the “Teaching and Learning” section of this Newsletter. Year 5 parents should avoid making appointments during the testing period and ensure the boys have a restful week. We hope this early notice allows Year 5 parents to make any necessary changes to schedules for that period.

Year 5 and Year 6 Camp

In the final two weeks of this term, both our Year 5 (Week 9) and Year 6 (Week 10) boys will go on their annual camp. Please keep a close eye out for notifications on Parent Lounge and return required forms by the due dates.

Grandparents’ Morning

Year 5 Grandparents’ Morning is coming up, on the final day of Term 1 (Thursday, 28 March). Please see the invitation in the “Events” section of this Newsletter. We hope the early notification allows the boys to invite grandparents early. The morning will run from 9:00-10:30am and it includes some classroom time and some morning tea.

Each fortnight the Primary School Leaders will be including a short piece in this Newsletter. They will share their "Spotlight" for the fortnight that they talk about at Primary assembly and ask the boys to support and be aware of.

In this Newsletter you can also read about Curriculum Updates, Music, Events and Lauries Journey winners this week.

Enjoy the next fortnight.

Regards

Cameron Wigan
Dean of Primary

Lauries Primary Curriculum Update-Jon Tracey

NAPLAN Online

Boys in Years 5, 7 and 9 at St. Laurence’s College will be participating in NAPLAN Online testing towards the end of the term (Week 8). NAPLAN testing is intended to complement the existing range of school-based assessment of learning. Students will be tested on their writing, reading, understanding of language conventions and numeracy during the NAPLAN testing period.

Significant planning, development, research, and trialling has taken place nationally to move NAPLAN from paper-based tests to computer-based assessments over the last few years. According to the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), NAPLAN Online provides more accurate assessment, more precise results, and a faster turnaround of information for schools and families.

Students in Year 5 have been participating in practice sessions to become familiar with the testing platform, along with testing processes and procedures. Other reasonable test preparation strategies for the boys that have been taking place include familiarising the boys with the test process, and question and response formats.

The online public demonstration site for NAPLAN Online preparation can be accessed at: www.nap.edu.au/online-assessment/public-demonstration-site. ACARA states though, that the provision of broad and comprehensive teaching and learning programs aligned to the Australian Curriculum is the best preparation that schools can provide for their students (we can certainly be confident that we do this here at Laurie’s!)

For further information about NAPLAN Online, please refer to https://www.nap.edu.au/naplan.

Please see below the NAPLAN schedule for Year 5 2024.

NAPLAN ONLINE SCHEDULE TESTING 2024

Jon Tracey
Head of Teaching and Learning Primary

Music- Ross Capern

Thank you to members of Treblehood who joined the Worship band and other choirs in leading the Opening Mass last week.

TREBLEHOOD (Year 5 and 6 singing group)

Any students interested in joining the Treblehood Choir, please see Mr Brown or Mr Leinenga in the Music Department or just turn up to rehearsal next Tuesday morning 7:15am in ERPAC backstage Music room, meeting outside the back area of ERPAC.

YEAR 5 MUSIC ENSEMBLE PROGRAM

Students have been enjoying their lessons and ensemble rehearsals over the past couple of weeks.

SAVE THE DATES

Our Junior Ensembles will perform at a Breakfast Concert on Tuesday 19 March | ERPAC foyer 7:30am

Ensembles Performing: Treblehood, Concert Band 3, Big Band 3, and String Orchestra 3

LAURIE’S MUSIC SUPPORT GROUP (LMSG)

A reminder that the next meeting will be held on Tuesday 5 March @ 6pm in the Music department room Mu1 (Top floor VAPA Building).

If you need any further information about our music program or any of the above, please contact the Music Department: music@slc.qld.edu.au or telephone 3010 1138.

Strike up the Band
Mr. Ross Capern
Head of Instrumental Music

Mini Vinnies Term 1 – Kate Flanagan

Last Tuesday, the Mini Vinnnies boys were in fine form, running the Pancake stall and selling a huge number of the sweet treats to raise money for Caritas. While our Edmund Rice Society brothers did the cooking, the Primary boys sorted all the serving and finances. Preliminary counting suggests we’ve raised over $800 for Caritas – what a superb effort from all involved. Thank you so much to the Primary families who donated pancake mixes and a big thank you to Mrs Dean and Mrs Vaitsas for helping organise the students in the morning!

Caritas is our focus charity in Term 1. They are a Catholic charity whose mission is to live out the meaning of ‘teach a person to fish and they will eat for the rest of their lives’. Caritas educates communities about how to live more sustainably and provide better outcomes for their families’ futures. In the coming weeks, we will be running two initiatives to raise further funds for Caritas.

The first initiative is our annual ‘Show Your True Colours Day’. To help launch the NRL season next Friday (1st March), boys can bring in their favourite jersey/team supporter shirt in exchange for a gold coin donation. No matter your team loyalty, we would love for all primary students to participate. Boys will be required to wear their uniforms to school and can then change into a jersey when they arrive at school. If choosing to wear a basketball or AFL singlet, students MUST wear this over another shirt, which might be their HPE or cocurricular shirt. Please get involved and show us your true colours!

The second initiative we will run later in the term will be our ‘Guess the Lolly’ competition. Each day at morning tea, students can view the two lolly containers and have one guess for 50c or 3 guesses for a $1. The Mini Vinnies boys will be in the Gallery and happy to help with the guessing.

On Wednesday, the Mini Vinnies students were also presented with their badges in front of the whole school by the Faith in Action prefects. It’s been a very busy start to the year for the MV team!

The primary spotlight for this fortnight is No Playing in the Gallery. This is important because some students are trying to have a quiet break, but they can’t because other students are being loud, running around, and disrupting the peace of the gallery. In this space you are allowed to read, play quiet card games or draw. Also, remember that if you lose your hat so you are not allowed to play on Gair Field or handball in the primary courtyard, don’t make the mistake of then being disruptive in this Gallery space. You can stay on the deck and chat with the other boys.