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- Author visit (week 9)
Please go to our school calendar on the website or SZapp for more details.
Last night and also this evening we celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation for many of our Year 6 students. Thank you to the Year 6 teachers, Mrs Stewart and Youth Minister Lachlan Bull for their work in preparing students to more deeply understand the Sacrament they have received. Thank you also to the Parish Team, specifically Marian England and Sharon Greaves, for helping parents to support their children and organising the celebrations.
Tell Them From Me (Reminder)
From Friday 28 May to Friday 11 June we are inviting students, teachers and
parents to provide feedback on their experience of our school using an online survey. The surveys are an important part of our whole school evaluation and planning process.
We would like to invite you to complete the Tell Them From Me (TTFM) Partners in Learning survey. As we value the role of parents and carers within our school community we would greatly appreciate your feedback. The information you provide will be used to maintain our commitment to working together in partnership to further improve student learning and well-being at St John the Apostle Primary School.
The survey is anonymous and will take approximately 20 minutes to complete. This morning we sent out a link directly to you via SZapp to enable your access to the survey. If you didn't receive this then please contact our Front Office for the URL link.
Reconciliation Week
This week we celebrated Reconciliation Week. We began on Tuesday morning with an Acknowledgement of Country being read out by Aston (Year 3) and an introduction by his mother Belinda. I would like to thank Belinda for sharing her story and what Reconciliation means for her. It is was a deeply personal sharing told simply and kindly to all of our students. It was a privilege to hear.
Each day this week every class also listened to a picture book written by an indigenous author and read by one of our staff members. Thank you to Mrs Love, Ms Brown, Miss van Kemenade and Miss Norris for reading the stories. The reading of each book was then followed by a question for the class to discuss. You can view the reading of the picture books here:
Finding Our Heart by Thomas Mayor (read by Mrs Love)
Respect by Aunty Fay Muir (read by Ms Brown)
Kick with My Left Foot by Paul Seden (read by Miss van Kemenade)
Coming Home to Country by Bronwyn Bancroft (read by Miss Norris)
School Uniform
With the onset of winter, and very cold days, we are speaking with all students about the second and third term uniform requirement of long pants. A small number of our students, particularly boys, have been wearing shorts on normal uniform days. There are plenty of sets of new and second hand long pants available for families at the Uniform Shop, open every Friday morning before school and available for ordering on Qkr. If you are experiencing a specific difficulty in having your child wear long pants then please contact me and I am happy to assist.
School Photos
The School Photos taken and ordered last term went home this week. We're very pleased with the outcome of these photos. We receive a digital copy of each student's photo that can be used on our digital record systems in the Front Office and Library.
Late arrivals
I would like to remind parents that if you drop your child off to school after school has started you will need to come into the front office to siogn them in.
Matthew Garton
Principal
Enrolments for 2022
We are now in the enrolment period for 2022.
If you have a child currently in pre-school and will be enrolling them for Kindergarten then please be sure to do this before 28 May. Please go to our school website to lead you through how to do this or contact Leanne at the Front Office with any questions.
If you have a child in Year 6 and look to enrol them in St Francis Xavier College for Year 7 then you will need to do this by 28 May. Please go to their website for all of the information you need.
Playing our part to build a national picture of child health 
In early 2021, our school, along with thousands of others across the country will begin preparations for the fifth Australian Early Development Census (AEDC).
The AEDC gives us a national picture of the development, health and wellbeing of children in their first year of full-time school. Since 2009, the census results have helped communities, schools and governments plan services and develop better policies to target support for children and families.
Children don’t miss any class time, and parents/carers don’t need to supply schools with any new information for the census. The AEDC gives us data at a school and community level - it isn’t an assessment of individual children.
Some teachers have also noticed that completing the assessments made them more aware of the needs of individual children and the class as a whole and that the census results are useful in planning for transitions to Year 1 and developing class programs.
Participation in the AEDC is voluntary. Parents/carers don’t need to take any action unless they choose not to include their children in the census.
To find out more about the census and how communities are using the data to help children and families visit the AEDC website: www.aedc.gov.au.
If you have any questions, you can contact Matthew Garton on 02 6258 3592 or Matthew.Gartop@cg.catholic.edu.au.
The Science of Reading
For the past four years, students in Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2 have been engaging in Sounds~Write sessions. This year we were able to purchase enough decodable home readers for students from Kindergarten to Year 2 and sets for guided reading sessions at school.
We continue to refine our Sounds~Write sessions, use decodable readers and have started to use daily review and review practices to increase students phonic knowledge and other areas of reading knowledge. The purpose of all of these areas is to ensure that our K-2 students are expert at decoding words. Decoding (word recognition) to increase automaticity is one of the most important areas for a child to master when learning to read.
Scarborough's Reading Rope
"The genesis of the Reading Rope dates back to Scarborough’s lectures for parents on the complexities involved in learning to read. Originally, she spoke of skilled reading as resembling the “strands” of a rope, using pipe cleaners to illustrate the interconnectedness and interdependence of all the components" (Heggerty, 2020).
Word recognition is the area that Sounds~Write, decodable readers and review processes focus on.
Videos for parent on learning how to read
Is my kid learning how to read? Part 1
Is my kid learning how to read? Part 2
Rebekah Brown
Assistant Principal and Inclusion Coordinator
What the students are learning about
It has been a busy week at St John the Apostle!
Year 6 Confirmation
Confirmation Retreat Day was run by our wonderful Youth Minister Lachlan Bull on Thursday. Year 6 enjoyed the day and 15 of them went to the church to celebrate their Confirmation last night. The second group will be at the church tonight.
All students partipcated in the preparation for the Sacrement. They have done so in a respectful and reverent way that has produced some deep questions and excellent discussions.
Here is last night’s group proudly showing their certificates (and a very excited and proud Lachlan too!)
Kindergarten Liturgy of the Word
I happened to be in the corridor as the Kindergarten students were walking up to the chapel see Father Michael. They were very reverant and excited!
Father Michael was impressed with their enthusiastic singing and dancing!!!
Being part of a liturgy is so important for children to begin to understand the rituals and rhythms of the church.
Well done to Kindergarten for a great start!
Catholic Life and Reflection
In his Homily last night, Father Kimi, reminded us that the disciples were ordinary people. Just like us, they needed the Holy Spirit to do God’s work.
We are all so loved by God that he sent the Holy Spirit to help us navigate our lives with courage, right judgement and wisdom. We don’t have to have all the answers, we just have to have faith in God.
It reminded me of one of my favourite quotes from the roguish St Augustine.
God bless,
Stephanie Stewart
Religious Education Coordinator
Happy birthday to Lovette E, Otis H, Benjamin B and Harvey I who celebrated their birthday this week.
Please note that we ask students to not bring home made cupcakes to share with the class for their birthdays. This is a precautionary measure for health and hygiene. The Canteen offers a number of options to share with the class. Purchases can be made through the QKR app.
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Find out what is happening in our School Library Community June 2021 |
Welcome to June! We have started this month with a celebration of Reconciliation. The students explored Indigenous books, and watched a BTN report on the history and meaning of the Aboriginal flag. There are plenty of books on display for students to borrow or browse through.
Family Borrowing - Wednesday 2:50 -3:30
The Library is now open every Wednesday for Family Borrowing time. We hope to see you there! We have some lovely new books in the Library and a range of parenting and helpful books that parents and carers can now borrow.
Scholastic Book Fair
We’ve had a few inquiries from parents and students regarding the Scholastic Book Fair. This will take place in Term 3. Watch this space for more information!
Happy Reading,
Lauren Hudson (Teacher/Librarian) lauren.hudson@cg.catholic.edu.au
Kirsty Vera (Library Assistant) kirsty.vera@cg.catholic.edu.au
Author Visit – Nicole Godwin
Local author, Nicole Godwin, will be visiting St John the Apostle on Tuesday 15 June. She will run interactive sessions and writing workshops with many year levels. Her sessions focus on ocean conservation and the book creation process.
As part of her visit, Nicole offers an opportunity for families to purchase signed books at a discounted rate of $20 (RRP is $24.99). If you would like to purchase a copy of Jelly-Boy, Billie or Ella, please go to www.tuskbooks.com and pay online. Please note that we will not be accepting cash at school. The individual books on offer (not the book packs) will be discounted to $20 each with no shipping payable if you enter the coupon code ‘florey’. Please add extra information in the notes field at www.tuskbooks.com to ensure we know who the books are intended for.
About Jelly-Boy – What happens when a jellyfish falls in love with a plastic bag? He is big and strong and so very brave but hides a dangerous truth.
About Billie – Join Billie the dolphin on this perilous adventure, as she sets off to find the biggest wave. Billie travels the ocean, saving new friends from pollution, drift nets, whaling and much more. This eye-opening story draws attention to the human-made dangers for dolphins and other marine wildlife.
About Ella – Little Ella the elephant dreams of seeing her mum again. But can she escape? Is she even brave enough to try? This book provides a glimpse into the lives of elephants being used in the tourism industry.
You can learn more about her books at www.tuskbooks.com.
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Personally signed copies of picture books
Student name for delivery of books ________________________________________________________
Class _____________________
Number of Jelly-Boy books _____________________
Number of Billie books _____________________
Number of Ella books _____________________
Please sign my book(s) to: _________________________________________________________________
Please return form to library and make payment online through www.tuskbooks.com
This term our students have been exploring waste. Students have been demonstrating what items go in the correct bins such as plastic zip lock bags go in the red landfill bin, tin cans go in the yellow recycling bin, paper and cardboard go in the blue bin and leftover fruit and vegetable scraps go in the green organic waste bin.
We are also exploring how waste can be turned into something useful like compost. We have purchased two new compost tumbler bins for our students to use. Mrs Monaghan from SFX has kindly offered for some students to come and help build our new compost tumblers. They should be ready to use by the end of this term. We are very excited to be using these throughout the year as students continue to learn about what ingredients make compost.
World Oceans Day is Tuesday the 8th of June. Students will begin exploring how pollution gets in our waterways and into the ocean, along with the impact this has on our environment. Students will be helping design a whole school mural made from reusing plastic bottle top lids to spread awareness of the harm plastic has on our oceans.
If you have any plastic bottle top lids from milk bottles, water bottles, soft drink bottles and even long life milk containers we would really appreciate them being donated to use as part of our mural. You can drop off clean bottle top lids at the front office.
Let’s keep making St John’s a great place.
Mrs Allison Lock, Years 3-6 Sustainability Teacher
Mrs Rebecca Neiberding, Years K - 2 Sustainability Teacher
Thank you for everyone’s patience as we roll-out the new school uniforms with some items remaining on back order.
Sale
We are having a sale on ALL the older style uniforms with the following items priced at $10 each.
· Maroon Tracksuit Pants
· Maroon Shorts
· Maroon Skorts
· Royal Blue Sport Shirts (short and long sleeve)
· Pale Blue School Shirts (short and long sleeve)
Sizing is limited and we ask that you please come into the Uniform Shop to purchase these items as Orders for delivery are unable to be used for sale items.
Sky Blue Polo Shirts
The new Sky Blue School polo shirts in size 6 and 8 are still on back order. We thank you for your patience and our supplier has advised at this stage we are likely to receive them early July.
Hats
We thank those who have placed orders for the new hats (with logo). Orders already placed will be sent to the classroom once we receive them, we are working hard with the supplier to get an expected date for delivery. We will keep you posted once we know more.
Uniform Donations
The Uniform Shop is always seeking donations. We kindly ask if you to consider donating any uniforms at home that no longer fit. The money from 2nd hand uniform sales goes directly back into the school. Baskets are now placed out the front of the drop off gate on Friday mornings, otherwise they can be handed to the front office or the uniform shop. We ask that you please wash any uniforms prior to donating.
Volunteers
Whilst the Uniform Shop is run by volunteers, we appreciate your politeness and patience as we do our best to assist you. Please note that Orders for delivery will be filled each Friday morning. We will prepare them and send them to the front office for distribution to your child’s classroom. We kindly ask due to the way QKR orders are received, please place any orders a minimum of 48 hours prior to Friday’s if you want the order filled that week, if not it will be filled the following week. If you are buying items for multiple children, please do the one order, as this will make it easier to prepare the order.
If you have any further questions or concerns, please email stjohnsclothingpool@gmail.com
The Uniform Shop
Belinda & Michael
