Religious Life of School
St Francis Catholic Primary offers a contemporary learning experience in Religious Education. Based on an understanding of how Catholics Believe, Live and Celebrate, learners are invited into a sense of spirituality in their own lives. Our relationships with one another are modelled on the visions and values of Jesus Christ, honouring the dignity of each person, practising Christian hospitality and proclaiming these Gospel values through word and action.
School Prayer
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
when there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen
Pastoral Care
Positive Behaviour and Wellbeing Framework
We each have an opportunity to contribute to positive whole school community relationships. Every day we have the opportunity to:
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Be respectful
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Be a learner
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Be safe
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Be thankful
'He counts the stars and calls them all by name.' (Psalm 147.4)
As a Franciscan school, we embrace and value the dimensions within a person - physical, cognitive, social/emotional, spiritual, cultural, psychological/personal. Individual identity is fundamental; in the Franciscan Intellectual Tradition it is the unique, different and specific which is important to us. Witness to the Gospel values of our greatest teacher, Jesus Christ, is central as we 'journey as family in peace through love'. As educators at St Francis, we provide a loving environment and a supported social context in which each child can grow.
'When you belong, you connect, when you connect you can learn.'
Authentic relationships among students, staff and families are key to building positive behaviours within a learning environment. "Young children experience their world as an environment of relationships, and these relationships affect virtually all aspects of their development." Building relationships does not happen in a perfect world; it happens in the ordinary-ness and messy-ness that days can bring. The models informing the Positive Behaviour and Wellbeing Framework reflect the unique daily contexts within which we learn and grow.
'Schools that do behaviour well create calm, respectful learning environments, student engagement and respect the rights of students.'
Three statements underpin our pedagogical practices at St Francis:
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We are learner centred.
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We are caring and supportive.
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We are communities of thinking and learning.
Supporting students beyond simply addressing their behaviours provides a student-centred, family-community approach.
Counselling
Counsellors are vital members of Catholic schools. The changing needs of students, parents and staff require counsellors who are skilled in current evidence-based practice. They have the ability to work in collaboration and consultation with others in the school community and external agencies within the community. Counsellors work towards the promotion of mental health and wellbeing. They pursue early identification of mental health difficulties and provide counselling intervention or referral when appropriate. Counsellors work towards reducing the effects of environmental and institutional barriers to students becoming happy, confident and faith-filled learners who will use their knowledge and gifts for the good of all.
Melissa Davey is the school counsellor for St Francis Catholic Primary School and offers support to our students and parents. Melissa comes with many diverse skills in Student Support Services and Tripple P Parenting and is a tremendous support for our school community. If you think that your child would benefit from counselling and you would like to touch base with Melissa, please don't hesitate to contact the Office for a referral form.
Mission Leaders Social Action Group
Action for justice is integral to a Christian way of living and is based on the ministry of Jesus in establishing the Kingdom of God on Earth and for all people.
Student Mission Leaders, along with the APRE, provide opportunities for students to engage with social action initiatives. Based on Catholic Social Teachings and the encyclical of Pop Francis "Laudator si - Caring for our Common Home", our student leaders meet regularly in sacred spaces around the school to reflect on how they can live and promote peace, a commitment to the poor and marginalised, and ecological sustainability within our community and wider reach.
