St Francis Xavier's School Manunda eNewsletter

From the Principal's Desk

What a wonderful week we have had to end the term. As a principal, this week would be one of my most memorable and I can say that my heart is full!

Our Junior Carnival was a great day on Thursday. Congratulations to our students in Prep to Year 2 for their efforts, achievements and sportsmanship. Thank you to all staff for their organisation and management of the events. We also appreciate the support of the spectators and parents who were able to join us. A special thank you to Miss McGuinness and Ms Donnelly for coordinating our Junior Carnival.

Tuesday was an exciting morning for our Choir Students who performed at CPAC in the Eisteddfod. I was very proud of their performances, and we were humbled to receive places for each performance. Congratulations to all students, Mrs Richardson and Miss Miller for a wonderful outcome after the hard work during the semester.

A highlight of the week was having our dance ensemble perform at assembly in readiness for their performance at CPAC on Thursday evening. Our wonderful dancers achieved 2^nd place out of 15 performances! This was our first time entering our dance troupe and we are bursting with pride at their achievement. There were some very excited students at school today after their experience at CPAC.

Today we farewell two staff members from St Francis Xavier’s School.

We thank Miss Joanie Strattman for the past 7 weeks as our 3A teacher and wish her all the best with her future endeavours.

Miss Erica Savage, our Indigenous Liaison Officer, leaves us after working at SFX the past few years, however she was in this role previously for a longer period. She has a long association with our school and has been instrumental in many initiatives supporting our school and our First Nations students and families. Thank you Miss Erica! Our community will miss you and we wish you all the best for your future.

A reminder that our first week of next term is only 3 days of school. Thursday, July 17^th, is a Pupil Free Day and Friday, July 18^th, is the Cairns Show Holiday.

Enjoy the two week vacation and we will see everyone back on Monday July 14th for Term Three. May you know joy with your family during the holidays!

Narelle Harney

Assistant Principal Administration

The holidays are here! School holidays can be difficult for working families to manage but they are a necessary break for students. Having some down time is important for their brains and development. Current research has shown that from a neurological perspective, having downtime allows children to regulate their emotion, reduce stress levels and improves memory and cognitive function. By allowing children to have that crucial rest and relaxation time during school holidays, they are able to reset their nervous systems and be ready for learning the following term.

On top of rest and relaxation, other ways of helping your child be ready for next term include maintaining bedtime and morning routines or re-introducing them towards the end of the break, have conversations with your child about what they are looking forward to, setting up a home learning space, and making sure uniforms and hair are school ready. This means making sure your uniform is neat and tidy and that there are no extreme hair styles, i.e., coloured hair, mullets or skullets, fades, or tracks. Please refer to our hair and uniform policies on the school website if need be.

The school holidays are also a good time to talk with your child about school and excepted behaviours as this reinforces what we do here. At St Francis Xavier’s School, we focus on being respectful, being responsible and being an active learner. It is important that all students and parents understand what this entails so that we can foster positive relationships between staff and students, staff and families, and between students themselves. The best way to do this is to encourage your child to use kind words and be respectful of those around them. If you do have any behavioural concerns, please contact your child’s teacher in the first instance.

Our ‘Stop, Drop, Go’ areas are important spaces for students and parents. They have been running less smoothly than what we would like the past few weeks. It is extremely helpful if all families have their name signs on the visors of their vehicles, so we know who to call and have them ready. Additionally, these are areas a no parking zones. All drivers are expected to remain in their vehicles and not be there longer than 2 minutes. If your child has not come out after the two minutes, please drive around the block and come back. This helps us to keep our lines moving, ensuring smooth and safe departures for all. Furthermore, the Atkinson St ‘Stop, Drop, Go’ is for students in Prep to Year 2 and their older siblings only. Sydney St is for students in Years 3 to 6. Following these rules also helps with traffic flow and safety.

All the best for the holidays

Mrs Kristina Armstrong

Assistant Principal Religious Education

We have had a busy time in the church over the last 2 weeks. In Week 9, the cohort Liturgies for Year 2 and Prep were wonderful for the students to show what they have been learning about in Religious Education. For Corpus Christi Liturgy, Father Biju showed our Year 3 and 4 students different elements of the church including: Tabernacle, Chalice and Cruets, Thurible with incense, Altar, Lectern, Presider’s Chair and Sanctuary Lamp. Week 10 started with our NAIDOC Liturgy. This was a wonderful way to link the greeting we say to people to our community: Peace be with you, to the way we should be living our lives with all of our diversity - wishing peace to all the people we meet. I would like to thank parents and family that supported all of these gatherings in the church.

What fantastic weather we had for the Junior Sports Carnival on Thursday 26th June. We ran ahead of schedule, as the students and teachers were able to be organised for each race, and all the students gave it a red hot go in their races and novelty events. Each class then rotated between 6 activities, giving the students a sample of some of the events available at the senior sports carnival. The staff and children were ready to finish by the time our last rotation was completed just after 12:00pm. Thank you again to parents and family for coming to support the students for this fun event. These days are ones that we all remember fondly, but they do rely on many hands to be successful - so thank you if you took an active part in the day.

I wish you all a happy and safe break, and I look forward to seeing you all for the start of Term 3.

Debbie McGuinness

Leader of Learning and Teaching

Throughout Semester 2, students will be learning about respectful interactions, private body parts and protective behaviours using resources such as the Daniel Morcombe, Respect and Real Talk programs. Prep to Year 4 lessons will occur in Health with Mrs Bianca Dwyer. The Year 4 puberty lessons, as well as all lessons for Years 5 and 6 will be taught by their class teachers.

Below is an overview of the topics covered:

Prep	Students will learn about body privacy, seeking help from trusted persons, safe and unsafe situations, safety clues and body clues.
Year 1	Students will learn about help-seeking strategies to use if they feel unsafe.
Year 2	Students will learn about personal qualities that contribute to their identity, and how emotional responses around gender stereotypes affect their own and others feelings. They will also learn how to apply protective behaviours and help-seeking strategies to keep themselves and others safe.
Year 3	Students will learn about private body parts and their correct anatomical names, and strategies they can use to seek help when online and offline. They will learn about different gender stereotypes in the community and how gender expectations can impact choices and actions.
Year 4	Students will learn about gender stereotypes and identify some strategies needed when noticing discrimination. A short introduction to puberty will occur; teachers will give you the heads up before the lesson.
Year 5	Students will learn about stereotypes, body language and consent. A broadcast containing further information was sent to Year 5 families on Wednesday.
Year 6	Students will learn about media and cybersafety. They will also learn about the changes their bodies go through during puberty. A broadcast containing further information was sent to Year 5 families on Wednesday.

More information can be found at the QLD government’s Respectful Relationships Education Hub. If you have any questions or concerns, please speak with your child’s class teacher in the first instance.

Meg Donnelly

Leader of Learning and Teaching

Leader of Diversity

This semester, students have been engaging in Reboot, which supports wellbeing and builds resilience; key foundations for becoming confident and capable learners. Through Reboot, students are learning about the Five Faces, a visual tool that helps develop self-awareness, emotional regulation, empathy and compassion. These tools not only help students better understand and express their own feelings but also support teachers in co-regulating emotions in the classroom.

Ask your child about the Five Faces; they might surprise you with how they use them to talk about their emotions!

Coming in Term 3:
Look out for fortnightly updates on how Reboot strategies are being used in our classrooms. Next term’s focus: the Positive Change Highway!

Mackillop Centre

This week in the Library, under the thoughtful guidance of Miss Erica, we proudly celebrated NAIDOC Week. Students engaged in a meaningful activity by decorating leaves with First Nations symbols, contributing to a stunning collaborative tree display that now brightens our library space. The result is a vibrant and symbolic representation of unity and respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

In addition, students reflected on their personal journeys by completing a profile highlighting their strength, vision and legacy - a powerful exercise in self-awareness and aspiration.

As we mark the end of this term, we extend our heartfelt best wishes to Miss Erica as she embarks on her next chapter. She has been a cherished colleague and friend to the SFX library team, and her presence will be deeply missed.

Looking ahead to the school holidays, Cairns Libraries are offering a variety of engaging activities for children, including art and craft sessions, construction projects, music programs, and even tea parties. Please note that parental supervision is required for all activities. For full details on times and locations, please visit the Cairns Libraries website.

Happy reading,

Mrs Ross, Mrs Havill and Mrs Reilly

🌿 Farewell to Ms Erica Savage 🌿

Today we say goodbye to our Indigenous Liaison Officer, Ms. Erica Savage, as she finishes her time with SFX.

Erica has been a key part of our school, building strong connections with our First Nations families and sharing valuable cultural knowledge. She has helped our students learn about Indigenous cultures in meaningful ways, making a lasting impact.

Her kindness, hard work, and care have supported many and helped bring our school community closer together.

As Erica moves on to new opportunities, we sincerely thank her and wish her all the best. Her time at SFX will always be remembered and appreciated.

The staff of St Francis Xavier's school gathered this morning to farewell Erica. During this time Erica made a special presentation to our school of three canvases telling her story of what our school means to her. These will be displayed in our library in the future with an explanation of her artwork. We thank Ms Erica for her thoughtful gift to our St Francis Xavier's School - We will treasure this and remember her impact.

Parent Portal and MYCE App

Accessing the MYCE App

Parent and Caregivers can download the latest version by clicking the following links:

Accessing the Parent Portal

https://sway.cloud.microsoft/jjlLuzLFbAEbPGfC

MyCE_A3_Poster_SFX.pdf

Mary Amongst Us Awards - Week 9 & 10

Prep	Elle-Mae, Issac, Edwin, Daisy
Year 1	Matilda, Lakhi, Reyansh, Jason
Year 2	Myo, Mikoto, Luna, Lenny
Year 3	WHole of 3A, Kaylee, Michelle
Year 4	Ann, Whole class 4B
Year 5	James, Kyle, Madoka
Year 6	Whole Class 6A, Iona, Jahrhys, Zuleika, Aaron

Important Date Claimers!!

Important Reminder for Week 1 Term 3

PE News

At Assembly this week our SFX Students were presented with their Medallions for Age Champions from our Athletics Carnival that we had a Barlow Park at the end of last term. Congratulations to all the students on their achievements.

9 Boys

1^st Remy
2^nd Kai
3^rd Knox

9 Girls

1^st Khleo
2^nd Havana
3rd Kathleen

10 Boys

1^st Kaelen
2^nd Hayden
3^rd Llyle

10 Girls

1^st Verniece
3^rd Lucy

11 Boys

1^st Kyaw
2^nd Nathan
3^rd Peter

11 Girls

1^st Aivah
2^nd Madeleine
3^rd Imogen

12 Boys

1^st Leo
2^nd Zak
3^rd Carter

12 Girls

1^st Yovhante
2^nd Leah
3^rd Maiama

Special mention to our record breakers

Leo 100m sprint - Previous record 14.45 in 2014 new record 14.09 in 2025
Leo 200m sprint - Previous record 29.89 in 2014 & new record 29.01 in 2025
Kheleo - 200m Sprint - Previous record 2024 36.41 Sec - New record 36.09 2025

This term we had Alex from 40 Hoops Program attend out school for basketball lessons. Students had a great time learning basketball skills. Alex will be looking at returning in 2026 for another round of sessions.

Help Needed –P & F Uniform Shop

At the moment, we’re limited in how often we can open the uniform shop each week for our school community.

If you’re able to spare just half an hour once or twice a week to help us get the shop up and running more regularly, we’d love to hear from you.

Please contact our Front Office on (07) 4037 9900 or email us at secretary.manunda@cns.catholic.edu.au.

2025 Term Dates

Prep Enrolments for 2026

Children who were born between 1 July 2020 and 30 June 2021 are eligible to attend Prep in 2026.

Enrolment applications for the 2026 Prep year are currently being accepted! Interviews for placement in the 2026 Prep classes are underway, with offers now being made to families.

A friendly reminder to existing families: please ensure that enrolment applications are completed, and interviews are scheduled for younger children transitioning to Prep. It's important to note that having a sibling at SFX does not automatically guarantee the enrolment process.

For those with family or friends seeking a high-quality education for their children, we kindly urge our school community to share your experiences with St Francis Xavier’s School and the positive impact of a Catholic education. Encourage them to reach out to the school at 4037 9900, explore our website, or visit us in person so that we can engage in a discussion about enrolling their child.

Tuckshop News

Mr Walsh runs our tuckshop to keep our little tummys happy. Tuckshop is open Wednesdays and Fridays each week. Menu is below

Place all your school orders online quickly and easily with Flexischools. Flexischools is a well-established organisation allowing you to place all your canteen orders online at any time.

Download the Flexischools app from the App Store or Google Play for details on how to set up your account. https://www.flexischools.com.au.

Volunteering

Parents, grandparents, and carers are always welcome to come and assist with the preparations in the tuckshop. Please contact the front office on 07 4037 9900 if you are able to assist.