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Prayer for Harmony Day
O' God you create all people in your image.
We thank you for the astonishing variety of races and cultures in this world.
Enrich our lives by ever widening circles of friendship and show us your presence in those who differ most from us, until our knowledge of your love is made perfect in our love for all your children.
Through your son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
As we continue our learning journey together through the first term of 2025, it is clear that our school community is bustling with activity as usual. Over the past couple of weeks, we have been navigating through the important NAPLAN testing period, which is a significant milestone for our Year 3 students in particular.
We are also excited to kick off Project Compassion, a wonderful annual initiative that takes place during Lent and encourages our students to engage in acts of kindness and charity by fundraising to support people living in poverty, promoting justice and dignity in vulnerable communities worldwide. The fundraising activities are designed by the students themselves and began this week with a ‘come to school wearing green’ for St Patrick’s Day.
The season of Lent
We recently observed Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday, marking the beginning of the season of Lent.
Shrove Tuesday, also known as Pancake Day, is a day of feasting before the fasting period of Lent begins. A free, delicious breakfast of yummy pancakes was the order of the day, with students, parents and friends gathering at the front of our school to savour the sweet treats!

















On Ash Wednesday we receive ashes on our foreheads as a symbol of repentance and reflection.
These events remind us of the importance of self-examination, renewal and preparation for Easter. Lent is a special time for our school community to come together, support one another and grow in faith.
Prep 2026
We have had an unprecedented amount of interest in Prep places at St Michael’s for 2026 already this term. We have so many interested families, we are organising tours and interviews over the weekend!
Places are filling fast, so I encourage families with siblings who will be starting Prep in 2026 to contact our friendly office staff as soon as possible, so that you can secure your child’s place.
Student Leadership Development
At St Michael’s, we believe in nurturing student leadership by encouraging our students to embody the Corporal Works of Mercy. These acts of kindness, such as feeding the hungry, visiting the sick, and helping those in need, are integral to our school’s values. Our student leaders set an example to others by organising and participating in various service projects, fostering a sense of responsibility and compassion within our school community. Through these efforts, we aim to develop empathetic, proactive leaders who are committed to making a positive impact in the world.
Our Year 6 student leaders visited the Seville Centre recently to take part in a day of learning about how they can be good leaders through the Corporal Works of Mercy. By all accounts it was a very productive and interesting day. We are looking forward to hearing from the students about their ideas and comments on the day.

















Road safety reminder
At St Michael’s, the safety of our students is of paramount importance. We kindly ask parents to talk to their children about the importance of road safety. Students should be mindful when waiting for the school bus and ensure they are safe at bus stops. It is crucial for them to remember to cross roads with care, preferably with an adult, and always use a pedestrian crossing. By working together we can ensure the well-being of our students and help them develop safe habits that last a lifetime.
Stop, Drop, Go
Parents, please help us to move traffic quickly and safely through our Stop, Drop, Go Zone by displaying your family name card clearly in your car windscreen or visor. We don’t always recognise which cars belong to which family. This process will help us to quickly identify your vehicle and prepare your child for collection.
Welcome to new staff members
I am delighted to announce that our recruitment process has been completed and we have now appointed a new, permanent teacher for 4A. Ashleigh Fahlstrom is in her second year of teaching and joins us having completed her first year at a nearby Catholic school. Ashleigh attended St Michael’s as a student and is very excited to be returning to the school she has so many fond memories of. Ashleigh will join us from the beginning of Term 2 and will be spending a few days this term meeting the children and preparing to join our school full time. In the meantime, our wonderful Mr Kym Prestwood will continue in 4A until the end of the Term and will work with Ashleigh as she transitions into the role. We are looking forward to welcoming Ashleigh to our St Michael’s family.
In addition we have been very lucky to have found ourselves a new PE teacher for St Michael’s. Mr Grant Shields hails from South East Queensland, where he taught PE in a large Prep to Year 12 school. Grant has over 30 years experience as a PE teacher and is delighted to be working with our teaching team and our wonderful students at St Michael’s. We are very excited to welcome Mr Sheilds and look forward to offering our students top quality physical education and sporting experiences. Grant and his wife have recently moved to Cairns and despite a soggy start to the year, are enjoying life in the far north!
Attendance
Catholic Education Services Cairns recognises that every day of attendance in school contributes towards a student’s learning and that higher rates of school attendance enhance student wellbeing and learning outcomes.
At St Michael’s, we have a responsibility to record student attendance and respond to instances of irregular attendance. It is important for us to investigate the patterns and underlying causes of non-attendance so that we can support families to address the specific type of absenteeism and implement strategies to improve attendance.
Schools, and by virtue of their employment, teachers, are legally required to monitor and record attendance of students in their care on a daily basis, whether absent or present in class, on excursion or at a school-based activity. Legal guardians of children have a legal obligation, as set out in the Education (General Provisions) Act 2006, to ensure a child is enrolled at and attends school.
At St Michael’s School, we strive to support families to ensure that every student has access to quality education all day, every day. Our school has a policy of encouraging 100% student attendance.
If you need help or support regarding attendance, please reach out to your child’s classroom teacher in the first instance.
Emergency Planning
Part of our annual planning for the school year involves review of the mechanisms and processes we have in place to ensure the wellbeing and safety of our students, staff and families.
In order to ensure the safety of all students, staff and visitors to St Michael’s School, each year we update our School Critical Incident Response Plan (SCIRP) and our Cyclone Preparedness Plan.
Each of these documents outlines the procedures for responding to a critical incident (e.g. school closure due to an extreme weather event). Detailed plans include contact information for local emergency responders, the roles and responsibilities of all staff in the event of an emergency and practical information for use in the aftermath of a critical incident. These plans are shared with all staff members and reviewed annually.
And that’s it from me this week. Enjoy the next couple of weeks. Let’s hope the rain eases a bit, just in time for Easter!
St Michael's Community Group - Parent engagement meeting minutes (19th March)
Save the date!
Volunteering At School
At St Michael's our families are welcomed and encouraged to participate in the life of the school in many ways. Whether it be through classroom assistance, supporting events like Cross Country and Under 8s Day, working in the tuckshop or being an active member of the Parent Community Group, all parent participation is valued and greatly appreciated.
If you think you would like to be a volunteer at our school, we encourage you to complete our volunteer induction process early in the year so that you are prepared when the opportunity to volunteer arises.
VOLUNTEER INDUCTION AND STUDENT PROTECTION TRAINING
It is essential that all volunteers within our school complete our two part Volunteer Induction process.
Volunteer Inductions need to be renewed annually and they form part of our Work Health Safety regulations and Student Protection processes.
Part 1. Online session (30 minutes)
The first part of the induction process requires volunteers to complete an online training module relating to Student Protection and Code of Conduct. The training and accompanying quiz can be found here. This can also be accessed through our website.
The online component must be completed before attending an on-site session. The school is notified by email when a volunteer has successfully completed the training and accompanying quiz.
Part 2. On-site session (15 minutes)
Held on-site, usually in our Boardroom, this session will familiarise volunteers with our school site and explain the sign-in process. You will be asked to complete a Volunteer Application form.
This year we are holding sessions each weekday at 8:15am during Term 1, starting Monday 3rd March.
Sessions will be conducted by our administration staff and parents are asked to call the office to book their preferred date and time. Dates are subject to change. Additional sessions may be scheduled throughout the year if the need arises, and these will be communicated by email to parents.
BLUE CARD REQUIREMENTS
Parents are not required to hold a Blue Card when volunteering at their child's school. Other family members and members of the community do require a Blue Card before commencing. Applying for a Volunteer Blue Card is free. The online application can be accessed here. If a Blue Card is already held through another community activity (eg junior sport) the school will register your additional school activity with Blue Card Services. A copy of the physical Blue Card is required prior to volunteering on-site.
Thank you for your interest in volunteering at our school and we look forward to seeing you soon. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to call us on 4258 4100.
Stop Drop Go Zone Reminder
Parent Teacher Student Conferences
Check out our new promotional video
for the school!
We've also posted this amazing video on facebook.
Share if you can!
Prep B
The focus in our Literacy blocks this week have been around reading and writing CVC (consonant, vowel, consonant) words. We explored these words using Phonics Hero, word puzzles and blend it games. We also practice writing words in our whiteboards.
Class 1B
One of the highlights of our week is reading and writing rotations. The students love learning in a small group and having the opportunity to explore different literacy activities. The favourite activity this week was solving word puzzles containing the phoneme /ee/ and writing sentences using those words.
Class 2B
Recently we have been learning about data and the types of graphs we can use to represent this. We have organised different objects such as cars, shapes and skittles and then recorded what we have found.
Class 3B
Congratulations to all our Year 3 students in successfully completing their NAPLAN testing this week. Their dedication and hard work were evident throughout the testing period, and we are immensely proud of their participation. The students approached each test with confidence and enthusiasm, demonstrating their commitment to learning.
Class 4B
4B have been very busy in class completing their own chapter of 'Rowan of Rin'. There is some great work happening. I can't wait to read everyone's final draft.
On Thursday we spent some time at the pool. What a refreshing way to end a busy day!














Class 5B
The term is heading towards an end and the students are settled into routines and completing assessments each day. The curriculum in Year 5 is largely based on deeper level thinking where students are asked to delve deeper into texts, think and explain their thinking or question information. This takes some time to adapt to and is difficult for some students who have never been challenged with these skills of critical thinking.
Both classes are completing assessments for the next two weeks and we need our students to be at school to do so. NAPLAN is completed for the year and all went smoothly.
We have a number of fund-raising activities at school during the Lenton season. Please check the school calendar to see what activities are on.
Week ten, the last week of the term is super filled. Year 5 and Preps have been asked to host the end of term liturgy telling the Easter story. All students will be asked to fill a special part as the Easter story is the corner stone of our religious response. Please feel free to come at 9:45am on the last Friday of the term. Further details will be provided to parents closer to the time. It will be quite a full production.
Parent interviews are coming up. Please check PTO for your timeslot.
Ingrid Drew and Ryan Mafua
Class 6B
6B have been learning a lot about our solar system in science this term. We have seen how the earth spins on its axis to give us night and day, looked at how the tilt of the earth’s axis explains our seasons and looked at the phases of the moon and how this contributes to our tides. Here are some of our work samples explaining the difference between spring and neap tides, when they happen and why they happen. The students have found this a very interesting and engaging topic.
CLASS AWARDS
Student birthdays 10th March to 21st March 2025
Month |
Student Name |
Mar |
Shanae Peverell |
Vienna Stafford |
|
Joseph Alves Kovalcik |
|
Oakley Castini |
|
Avery Jeffs |
|
Nash Daniel |
|
Lucas Sosiak |
|
Dallas Toohey |
|
Kensley Rushford |
|
Savannah Coulson |
|
Olivia Hamann |
|
Logan Azzopardi |
|
Lincoln Mahoney |
|
Ashlee Wagemaker |
|
Brynnli Sluiter |
|
Zylah Borresen |
|
Archie Porta |
|
Breanna Wenning |
Instrumental Music Information 2025
We are pleased to announce that an Instrument Trial for Semester 1, 2025 will be offered through the St. Mary’s Instrumental Program.Grade 2s and 3s will be offered the violin, and grades 4, 5 & 6 will be offered brass, woodwind, percussion, and string instruments. Please see the office or email kjepson@cns.catholic.
Hi everyone! I’m Chandell, Tuckshop Convenor. I’m all about making our tuckshop a lively, fun-filled place, and I’d love for you to be part of it!
How You Can Get Involved:
-
Volunteer: Whether you’ve got an hour or two to spare, or just want to pop in for a quick hello, your help is gold to us! No need to let us know in advance—just swing by and join the fun. Don't forget to complete your volunteer induction first!
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Bake for Us: If volunteering isn’t your thing, we’d love your support through baked goodies. Sweet or savory, your treats make our tuckshop extra special!
Come for the laughs, stay for the community, and help us keep our tuckshop the heart of the school. We can’t wait to see you there!
Thank you!
Many thanks to the parents and staff that baked up a storm for St Patrick's Day!
TROPICAL THEME COMING UP!
Parents can see all of our current Tuckshop items in the Flexischools app.


Volunteers always welcome in the tuckshop!
tuckshop.gordonvale@cns.catholic.edu.au
Cross Country - Week 10!
Students will have the opportunity in Week 9 to walk the Cross Country track during their PE lessons. Parents of children in Years 1-6, please ensure that the walk through permission slip is completed before then.
TCS and Peninsula Sports 10 - 12 year olds

Term 1, 2025 – School Fees & Levies
Please contact accounts.gordonvale@cns.catholic.edu.au if you have not received your Term 1 fee statement.
Please check your junk or spam mail.
Reminder Letters were emailed to families on Friday 14th of March 2025, who may have overlooked their Term 1 2025 school fees and levies. Thank you to everyone who has finalised their accounts. Greatly appreciated.
A phone call to families who have not contacted us by Friday the 28th of March will be made to arrange an appointment with the Principal.
Please do not hesitate to contact accounts.gordonvale@cns.catholic.edu.au for any queries regards to payment plans, direct debits, financial hardship, concessions, or Centrepay.
Levies & Discounts
School fees are made up of tuition fees which are set by Cairns Catholic Education, and the school’s levies.
Tuition Fees
Our school is part of an independent school system. The need to charge fees arises from the policy of governments to deliver significantly lower per capita grants to non-government schools than to state schools. Whilst this necessitates tuition fees and levies, it also ensures we can maintain some independence as a school system and achieve the ideals of the Catholic Church in our school organisation.
The schedule of tuition fees is set by Catholic Education Services.
The current schedule is at the link below.
Levies
School Levies are set and reviewed annually.
- Capital Levy (buildings and maintenance)
- P&F Fundraising Levy
- Resource Levy
- Activities Levy
Please contact accounts.gordonvale@cns.catholic.edu.au, the school accounts department, for current levies.
Discounts
Every attempt is made to make an education at St Michael’s affordable so that no Catholic child is denied a Catholic education because of financial difficulties. Parents are often pleasantly surprised at the affordability of Catholic Education in the Cairns Diocese, especially when compared with other non-government schools (private/independent), or Catholic schools in capital cities.
A sibling discount applies to families where more than one child is attending one or more Catholic schools in the Cairns Diocese.
Holders of a current means-tested Australian government health care or pensioner concession cards receive an automatic 70% discount on tuition fees (does not apply to school levies).
Families who are not concession card holders yet are experiencing financial hardship are encouraged to make a confidential request to the principal for special consideration. Please contact the school’s Finance Officer to arrange an appointment.
Unless prior arrangements have been put in place, failure to follow school policy and procedures may result in the engagement of a Debt Recovery Agency.
2025 Catholic School Fees and Discount
2025 Concession Card Information Sheet
Kind Regards,
Justine Hind | Finance/HR Officer
accounts.gordonvale@cns.catholic.edu.au
Outside School Hours Care (OSHC)
Vacation Care Program
New OSHC Enrolments
or Click here for the OSHC online enrolment form.
2025 Sacramental Programme
Sacrament Enrolment Form and Information
Can you help? Are you able to offer your talents?
Commentator, Reader, Choir, Musician, PowerPoint Operator, Altar Server, Church Cleaning, Trimming Hedge, Helping with Sacramental Program, Hospitality -helping with morning teas after Anointing Mass, Setting up for coffee/tea after Sunday 8am Mass, Assist on Wednesdays with Free coffee/tea Norman Park 3.30-5.30pm.
Contact Rita in the Parish Office 4046 5215 / 4046 5216 / 0409 054 401.
Saturday |
Vigil Mass 6.00 pm, St Michael's Church |
Sunday |
Mass 8.00 am, St Michael's Church Mass 10.00 am, St Therese's Church Mass 5.00pm, St Therese's Church |
Tuesday |
7.00 am St Anthony Devotion & Rosary, St Michael's Church 8.00 am Mass & Exposition of Blessed Sacrament, Holy hour, Benediction, St Therese's Church |
Wednesday |
8.00 am Mass, St Michael's Church (except for the 1st Wednesday of the month: 9.30am Mass with the Sacrament of Anointing, followed by morning tea in the hall) 3.30 - 5.30 pm Cuppa in Park, Norman Park |
Thursday |
8.00 am Mass, St Therese's Church 10.00 am Cenacle (Rosary) Norman Park, 40 Sheppard St, Gordonvale |
Friday |
8.00 am Mass & Exposition of Blessed Sacrament, Holy hour, Benediction, St Michael's Church 5.00 pm Stations of the Cross & Rosary, St Michael's Church |
Parish Newsletter
The evening’s focus will be on emotional intelligence, offering valuable insights for families.