Good Day, Good People,

Our students have been involved in many activities recently. At a recent interview with a potential teacher she remarked about our Facebook page and how she was impressed by the wide variety of activities our children are involved in. She liked our holistic approach to education.

Last week we had a drama group present to different year levels. They presented some Shakespeare, Animal Farm and The Twits. These were all well received. As you have heard from me on many occasions, students who engage in reading do better at school. I hope your child may have been inspired to read more due to these performances.

Our Teen Vinnies and Mini Vinnies attended an event last Friday evening where they had the opportunity to discuss homelessness. Our older students spent the night sleeping rough while our younger students stayed until 9.15. This allowed them to understand this issue a little better and I thank our supporting staff for attending as well. We also had some guests from the local St. Vincent de Paul visit the group. I take this opportunity to thank Cristina Ciencia-Jeroma, our Chaplain; Rose Fitzsimmons and Rachel Bond, our APRE’s who organised this event.

Tonight many of our Year 12 students will take part in a 24 hour Rowing challenge to raise funds for the Cancer Council. We wish them all the best as they put themselves out of their comfort zones to assist others. This outreach is admirable. Once again, I thank the staff who are supporting this activity.

Our students have been involved in the Townsville Interschool Cross Country over recent weeks. We thank them for representing the College.

Our students and staff are heavily involved with assessment at the moment as we head to the end of the semester. Reports will come out at the end of the semester to allow us all to see how our students/children are travelling.

A big shout out that our College Play is on next week on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Our students have been working really hard on their performance and they deserve a big audience. If you can come along please do. Tickets can be purchased by contacting the Assisi office. Just a little warning that there are a few uses of low level language to give context. It is a very good. See you there!

Sadly, we have had to end our Italian program in our secondary school. We have been unable to source an Italian teacher. This means the College will focus on Japanese at the secondary level.

Finally, I saw this quote from our new Pope and thought I would share it with you.

Barry Horner

College Principal

Good day good people,

It’s been a vibrant and eventful fortnight, with plenty of activity across the campus. Last week, we celebrated Careers Week with a range of engaging and informative events. A big thank you to Mrs McCarthy for her wonderful work in organising such a meaningful and enjoyable program for our students.

Last week, we concluded Reconciliation Week with a thoughtful and moving assembly led by 6E. For us as Australians, it is a significant time to reflect on our shared history and commit to building a more just and united future for everyone.

The coming weeks promise to be full of activity, with St Anthony’s Day, the athletics carnival, camp, and Padua Rocks among the highlights on our calendar. Our students have already been working hard, showcasing their learning through various assessment tasks. As we move through this busy period, we encourage families to support students by ensuring they get plenty of rest, eat well, and maintain regular attendance—essential ingredients for doing their best.

Celebrating Our Amazing School Officers - Wednesday 11 June

On Wednesday, 11 June, we will celebrate the incredible contributions of our School Officers at St Anthony’s. We are truly fortunate to have such a dedicated and caring team that supports our students and staff in so many valuable and diverse ways.

The Importance of Sleep for Growing Minds

We’ve noticed that many students are coming to school tired, which can have a significant impact on their learning, focus, and overall wellbeing. A good night’s sleep is essential for young people—it helps with memory, concentration, emotional regulation, and physical growth. Primary-aged children typically need 9–11 hours of sleep each night to function at their best. We encourage families to support healthy sleep routines at home, including consistent bedtimes, limiting screen time before bed, and creating a calm, restful environment. A well-rested child is better equipped to learn, engage, and thrive at school.

God bless,

Karen Krzelj - Deputy Principal (Acting)

SHINE focus for Week 8:

• URSTRONG – Friendology at Padua Campus

We continue to implement the Friendology program across Prep to Year 6 at Padua Campus as part of our commitment to fostering positive relationships and student wellbeing. Friendology provides students with consistent language and strategies to help them navigate friendships with confidence and kindness.

Through this engaging program, students are empowered to become "Friendship Ninjas" - developing the skills they need to build and maintain healthy, feel-good friendships.

As a URSTRONG School, we encourage families to get involved. Parents can access a FREE Parent Membership, which includes an 8-session video series and a wealth of resources to help support and reinforce the program at home.

• Watch this short introduction video for parents
• Activate your FREE Parent Membership and explore all the resources available to your family.

Together, we can create a school culture buitl on kindness, empathy and connection.

Gracelyn Mitchell
Assistant Principal Administration (Acting) - Padua Campus

Last week we celebrated National Careers Week with competitions in Homeroom, an amazing Careers Expo which the weather did not damper, and quite a few Careers Week Dress-ups on Friday. Planning for this event actually starts in November the year before, so a big thanks to Kathryn and the Careers team at the College. We hope your child/ren have benefited from this week of activities. 

Last week and through to early this week we celebrated Reconciliation Week. At Assembly this week we had a special liturgy with the theme in mind about Bridging Now to Next. About understanding the story of a nation being inclusive of each other. 

Our Year 11s have started Unit Two, which is effectively Semester Two work for us who have been out of school for a while. They should have now made any necessary changes to their course and are set for another 15 weeks. 

This fortnight our Years 10-12 students enjoyed a performance from Shake & Stir which was able to break open the text they are studying a little more. Our Year 11 Business and Year 10 Tourism students spent the day out at the Port seeing the berths and facilities we cannot see as the public. It was finished with a lovely lunch put on by the Beachhouse on the Strand. All the patrons and staff at lunch were very impressed with the behaviour and conduct of our students. Finally our Year 11&12 Design class went out to the Cyclone Testing Station Excursion to have a real life connection to the work they are doing. 

For the first time we had a Vinnies Sleep Out. The students spoke in Assembly about their experience and with empathy for those people who are homeless. Interesting feedback from the event was the use of cardboard to sleep on. This was a reality check for our students of how hard some people do find it. We thank Cristina Ciencia, Rachel Bond, Rose Fitzsimmons, Fr Vinoj, Steve from SVDP and the many other people who helped out on the night to make this possible for our students. We hope this grows to more students in the future. Thank you to the Year 11 students who made the soup for the evening. 

Just about to start is our annual 24 Hour Rowing Challenge. This year it is full of Year 12 students and we wish them the best in terms of keeping the rowing machine going for 24 hours. This year they are raising funds for Cancer Council Queensland

We had the Interschool Cross Country Carnival and the Open Boys AFL Competition last week. We had some good performances however we did not bring home any chocolates. On Sunday the College Play team begin preparations for the 2025 College Play, Stories in the Dark. If you have not yet bought a ticket please do so, we would love to have you there. 

Until next Newsletter or I see you, take care.

Nick Antoniazzi

Deputy Principal - Assisi Campus

Students across the Padua Campus are being encouraged to participate in the Premier’s Reading Challenge, which runs from May 6th to Aug 22nd. The Premier’s Reading Challenge aims to help your child’s learning by boosting the number of books readand encouraging them to read more challenging texts. Record sheets are available from the library. When students have read their 20 books, please return the completed record form to the library so they can be registered online.

Padua Library is open for student borrowing from 8:15am each morning and at lunch breaks. A reminder that all students need to bring their College library bag or waterproof folder when borrowing. This prevents damage to the books from water, food and dirt.

Overdue Library Books
Now that we are almost at the end of Term 2, we are finding many students still have library books that they borrowed back in Feb/Mar. This week we have been speaking to students and reminding them of the titles they have at home, if you could please help your child to find their book we would be very grateful.

Repairing Library Books                                             

Parents/ Carers, we ask that if your child has a library book with the pages falling out, or maybe a page has started to rip, or the glue on the spine has started to let go please do not repair the book at home simply return the book and we will repair it using the correct book tape and glue.

Book Club Issue 4 was due back on Friday 6th June. Orders were closed on this day to ensure that the items will be back before holidays commence.

"Fill your house with stacks of books, in all the crannies and all the nooks." — Dr. Seuss

Sue Keith
Padua Campus Library

On Friday night, our Teen and Mini Vinnies students took part in something truly life-changing - the Vinnies Sleep Out, a powerful and humbling experience that opened hearts and minds to the real and often hidden struggles of homelessness.

The Vinnies Sleep Out was more than just an event… it was a transformative journey. Our young people walked away with more than just memories; they gained a deeper sense of empathy and a renewed passion to serve and stand with those in need.

A heartfelt thank you to all who made this night possible. Your courage to step outside your comfort zone has inspired us all.

Cristina Ciencia-Jeroma

School Chaplain

In this edition of SchoolTV - Sleep

Students today have extremely busy schedules, with ever increasing responsibilities at school and at home. Many kids, especially adolescents, are going to bed later and later and are at risk of sleep deprivation. This affects three areas of a child’s development: psychological, physiological and psychosocial. All three are essential to a child's growth, learning ability and overall wellbeing. Sleep is vital to a child’s overall development and is as important as diet and exercise.

Sleep also strengthens a child’s immune systems and supports their ability to function properly on a daily basis. Children who do not get enough sleep show increased levels of aggressive behaviour, are less attentive and are much less active. Trying to catch up on sleep on weekends is not the answer and can still lead to severe sleep deprivation.In this edition of SchoolTV, parents will learn about the importance of sleep and how sleep deprivation can have adverse effects on a child’s health and wellbeing.

We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this edition of SchoolTV and we always welcome your feedback. If you have any concerns about your child, please contact the school counsellor for further information or seek medical or professional help.

Here is the link to the Sleep edition of SchoolTV
https://sacc.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/sleep

Tickets can be purchased at either Padua or Assisi Offices, CASH ONLY.