Parent Teacher Interviews for all year levels will be conducted via Zoom on Monday 29 April and Thursday 2 May from 3.30pm-8.30pm.

These interviews provide an opportunity for students and parents to hear feedback from teachers on the learning that occurred during Term 1. Interviews are not compulsory, however, they are highly recommended as a means to initiate and strengthen partnerships to support your child’s learning.

The Online Booking System will open on Tuesday 16 April at 7.00am and close on Monday 22 April at 11.59pm. An email will be sent to parents with instructions on how to book interviews on the first day of Term 2, ahead of the booking system opening.

The information below provides an overview of the process:

• Years 5-6 interviews are 14 minutes long and are held with a core classroom teacher.
• Years 7-12 interviews are 7 minutes long and are held with subject teachers.
• We will use the ‘virtual’ interview format, utilising the online meeting platform, Zoom, which has been favoured by parents for these Interviews.
• Students are required to attend the interviews as it is advantageous for them to also hear the feedback.

We look forward to ‘seeing’ you virtually at our upcoming Student-Parent-Teacher Interviews and we thank our teaching staff for their diligence and resourcefulness in providing this opportunity to discuss your daughter’s learning progress in their classrooms.

Ms Lara Morgan
Deputy Principal - Studies

Welcome to Term 2 in the Primary Years!

We hope our Primary students and families have enjoyed a restful break over the Easter Holidays and are looking forward to another exciting term.

Please see below some important reminders for the start of Term 2 in Primary.

Before and After School Expectations

A gentle reminder that all Primary students are required to meet the Primary Years Before and After School Expectations, which can be found in the Primary Years Hub, accessed via the Parent Hub. These expectations are for both Year 5 and Year 6 students in Semester 1.

Year 5 students are also required to follow the Year 5 Afternoon Pick Up Plan, if they are not catching the bus or walking home. This can also be found on the Primary Years Hub.

Term 2 Overviews

Term 2 Overviews for both Year 5 and Year 6 have been published on the Primary Years Hub, accessed via the Parent Hub. Please read through these documents to familiarise yourself with the learning content being taught in Year 5 and Year 6 next term.

On the first page, the curriculum information is listed across all six (6) core subject areas. On the second page, the assessment schedule is mapped out across the term. Please note that final assessment dates will be confirmed on the MySRC Calendar by the start of Term 2. If you have any queries regarding assessment processes, please refer to the College Assessment Guidelines in the policies section of the Parent Hub.

Term 2 Afternoon Schedule

The Term 2 Afternoon Schedule can also be found in the Primary Years Hub. To register your daughter for any of these activities please contact the relevant department. Please use the link below to register for Chess Club and Homework Club. Spaces within these clubs are limited, so please register early to avoid disappointment.

Click here to register for Homework Club (Weeks 3-7)

Click here to register for Chess Club (Weeks 2-9)

The Year 7 debate is scheduled for Thursday 18 April. It's a short preparation debate, meaning participants need to be at the venue 1 hour and 20 minutes before the debate starts. Students from classes 7.1, 7.2, and 7.4 should arrive no later than 5.40 pm, while those from class 7.3 should arrive by 6.40 pm.

To facilitate drop-offs, a staff member will be present so parents can leave their children and return at the designated debate time. Additionally, there will be two coaching sessions during lunch breaks on Tuesday 16 April and Wednesday 17 April. Attendance is mandatory for all team members.

The Year 8 Outdoor Education Camp departs on Monday 22 April, Week 2 of Term 2, to Mt Tamborine. Students eagerly anticipate participating in a diverse array of challenging activities, including the Giant Ladder, Leap of Faith, Mountain Bike Diding, Bush Cooking and other team initiatives. 

Further details are available on MySRC. If you have any questions please email Outdoored@stritas.qld.edu.au

The St Rita’s College Primary library collection consists of almost 2500 physical books including a vast range of non-fiction books and an ever-growing fiction collection. Primary students also have access to a healthy collection of digital books including eBooks and audiobooks via the Wheelers ePlatform.

Accessibility lies at the heart of eBooks and audiobooks, providing instant access to a vast array of titles regardless of location or availability. Whether at home or on the go, students can dive into captivating stories with just a few clicks. Access to a digital library is particularly helpful for travelling and long holiday road trips.

Digital stories cater to a diverse range of reading needs and preferences. While eBooks offer interactive features, interchangeable fonts and adjustable text size, audiobooks captivate readers with engaging narrations and sound effects. Evidence strongly suggests these digital texts also have a place in enhancing fluency, comprehension and vocabulary development (Wolfson, 2008). The social aspect of reading is key to enhancing a child’s connection with literature, whether it involves reading a physical book or eBook together or listening to an audiobook as a family.

By exposing young readers to a wide range of genres, authors, and perspectives, eBooks and audiobooks promote literacy skills essential for academic success and personal growth. They spark curiosity, ignite imaginations, and promote continuous engagement with and appreciation for reading.

All students at St Rita’s College have access to the Wheelers ePlatform. The app is free and students use their school credentials to log-in. Simply download the app, log in using your child’s school Microsoft account, add the St Rita’s Library, and start borrowing.

References

Wolfson, G. (2008). Using audiobooks to meet the needs of adolescent readers. American Secondary Education 36(2), 105–14.

• Monday 15 April: Term 2 Commences
• Tuesday 16 April: Year 11 Digital Solutions Excursion
• Tuesday 16 April: P&F Meeting - All Welcome
• Wednesday 17 April: Year 9 Retreat
• Thursday 18 April: Year 6 Canberra Trip Parent Information Session - Zoom Meeting
• Saturday 20 April-Sunday 21 April: Cross Country Camp
• Sunday 21 April: Netball Gala Day
• Monday 22 April-Wednesday 24 April: Year 8 Camp
• Tuesday 23 April: Year 7 Immunisation
• Wednesday 24 April: Year 5 Excursion
• Thursday 25 April: ANZAC DAY- Public Holiday
• Friday 26 April: Year 11 Retreat
• Monday 29 April: Year 9 Shake & Stir
• Tuesday 30 April: Collins Colour Day
• Tuesday 30 April: Xaverian & Hogan Community Mass
• Monday 3 May: Primary Mother and Daughter Evening
• Monday 6 May: Labour Day-Public Holiday
• Tuesday 21 May: Bands Concert
• Thursday 23 May: CaSSSA Cross Country
• Friday 24 May: St Rita's Day & House Heroics
• Saturday 25 May: Memorial Mass
• Tuesday 28 May: Strings Concert

Before returning to school for Term 2, we kindly ask you to take a moment to check the condition of your daughter's formal hat and the length of dresses and skorts. The formal dress must be worn no shorter than mid-knee in length at all times. The Primary Skort must be worn no shorter than 2.5cm above the knee.

Formal Hats must meet acceptable standards, with no rips in the straw and no fraying on the headband or brim. Parents are asked to check their daughter’s name is still clearly visible under the inside lining on the straw or behind the hat band shadow. Please see the article below for how to care for your formal hat, should it need to be cleaned before returning to school.

Boutique Hours on Day 1 of Term 2

The Boutique will be open for business on Day 1 of Term 2 for all your ‘Back to School’ needs from 7.30am-9.00am & 11.00am-3.30pm. Orders can be placed throughout the holidays via the QKR! App for collection by students on their return.

Term 2

• Tuesday 16 April - P&F Meeting - 6:00pm Stanley Hall Staffroom (opposite the Pantry)​​(all welcome)
• Friday 3 May - Primary Mother Daughter Event
• Saturday 18 May - Mother Daughter Dinner
• Tuesday 21 May - P&F Meeting
• Sunday 26 May - Walkout
• Saturday 9 June - Rita’s Longest Lunch (proudly hosted by the Music SubCommittee)

For a full list of P&F meeting dates and events please visit the Parents & Friends page of MySRC, accessible via the Parent Hub.

The College must be informed of all student absences, including late arrivals and early departures. Permission for late arrival or early departure is only granted for medical or other necessary appointments that cannot be facilitated before or after school hours.

Parents and Guardians are asked to notify the College of their child’s absence, late arrival or early departure before 8.30am via the Online Absentee Form, accessible from the College Website, MySRC and College App. The College does not accept telephone or email advice of absence.

The College takes the possible spread of illness seriously and students who are unwell must remain at home.

• If your child becomes unwell with any illness whilst at school, they will be assessed by the College Nurse and parents/guardians will be contacted for immediate collection of their child if it is deemed they should not be at school. The Health Centre is for temporary respite only.

• Parents are to park in Enderley Road Drop Off Zone and walk into campus to collect their child unless otherwise advised by the College Nurse. Vehicles will not be permitted on campus during school hours.

It is important that parents/guardians and students familiarise themselves with the following policies. This information is available via MySRC on our College website under Our College/Policies and Reports.

• Acceptable Use of Mobile Phone Policy
• Access Arrangements and Reasonable Adjustments (AARA)
• Anti-Bullying Policy
• Assessment Guidelines
• Child Safeguarding Policy
• Child Safeguarding Code of Conduct
• Child and Youth Risk Management Strategy
• College Community Code of Conduct
• College Uniform Policy
• Homework Policy
• Library Guidelines and Textbook Hire Policy
• Volunteer and Other Personnel Code of Conduct Policy

St Rita’s College has a Traffic Management Plan in place, mandated by the Planning and Environmental Court, which addresses traffic issues and formalises school policies in enhancing safety for both school traffic and local residents. Parent and student drivers are requested to drive safely and be particularly cautious of pedestrian traffic at drop off and pick up times.

• Enderley Road has signage installed by Brisbane City Council providing a two-minute set-down zone to separate short term parking from all-day parking.
• Be respectful of our neighbours – don’t park, drop off or pick up across residential driveways.
• Parents are to adhere to the two-minute set-down zone timeframes between the College Enderley Road driveways. Failure to do so is in breach of Council laws. Please do not park or wait in this zone for any period longer than 2 minutes.
• Flashing light school zone signs will be installed on Enderley Road as part of the Queensland Government commitment to improving school road safety. The installation of flashing light school zone signs is proven to improve visibility of school zones, serving as an active reminder for motorists to slow down. Please keep an eye out for the new signs and make sure you stick to the signed speed limit.
• Drivers are not to stop or park in areas which are marked with yellow lines and/or ‘witches hats’, including the yellow lined resident driveways opposite the front of the College in Enderley Road.
• Year 5 parents using the internal driveway pick up system in the afternoons are not to queue across the College driveway nor in Enderley Road waiting for the driveway boom gate to open. If the boomgate is down, please go around the block until it is opened.
• Students are not to be driven into the College grounds. Pedestrian traffic only is permitted (except for delivery and staff vehicles).
• Students must use the Assisted Crossing at the Pool end of Enderley Road to cross to and from the College.
• No students are to enter or exit the College via the Stafford Street entrance as this is a high traffic area with staff cars entering and exiting the College.