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Please go to our school calendar on the website or COMPASS for more details.
Term 3
- Brag Tag Celebration (week 2)
- Book Week Parade (week 6)
- Fathers Day Breakfast (week 7)
The school positive behaviour focus this week was:
Cooperate with each other.
The school "Yerrabi" fact this week was:
Dhari - means: 'stand'.
Dear St John the Apostle community,
Welcome to all of our new families this term. Welcome to our St John the Apostle school community. We look forward to getting to know you and to watching your children learn and grow. Thank you for choosing to be part of our school story and allowing us to be part of your family story. It is a genuine privilege.
Welcome new staff
We welcome Mrs Veronica Ellis who will teach Visual Arts to every class for the remainder of the year. Today I walked past a few students who were overheard to say "I really like Visual Arts. It's going to be fun." Mrs Ellis is already having such a positive impact!
Welcome also to Miss Chloe Neven who will teach in Kindergarten Blue two days each week. Ms Mel Watson-Gardner is Acting Coordinator for the remainder of the year and will be an excellent addition to the Executive Team. Ms Neven already knows the Kindergarten students well.
Supporting positive friendships
Did you ever watch the movie 'Mean Girls'? The movie was based on Rosalind
Wiseman's book called Queen Bees & Wannabees about a specific kind of bullying that happens among friends called relational aggression.
On Wednesday 2 August our Community Council are inviting all parents to an evening to learn more about relational aggression, how it can happen from as young as 3 years old and continue right into adulthood. We'll also talk about how parents can help their child respond to it and hopefully prevent it among their friends.
Boys and girls both experience relational aggression and this night will be targeted specifically at parents of boys and girls at a primary school age. A separate invitation and RSVP will go out in the next few days. Replying will help us ensure we have enough nibbles and refreshments for everyone.
New finance system
During the last few weeks a number of us have been learning about a new finance system our school will move across to in a few weeks. It involves a number of significant changes for the school and a few for parents, particularly around making payments to the school. We will communicate regularly in the next few weeks about any changes for families.
Term Overviews
On Monday we will send out our year level Term Overviews. These provide parents with a broad summary of the learning in each year level this term. If you have any questions please be sure to contact your child's teacher.
Matthew Garton
Principal
Welcome Back to Term Three!
NAIDOC Week Mass - Catholic Education
Today, I had the honour of attending the NAIDOC Week Mass with Miss Tabitha-Jane Wormald and two of our students, Zak in Year Two and Bronson in Year Five. We entered the Church with a smoking ceremony by the Wiradjuri Echoes. The Mass was led by Archbishop Christopher Prowse. We reflected on the 2023 NAIDOC Week theme of "For Our Elders'' and Reconciliation. The Mass concluded with NAIDOC Awards for staff and students from schools across our Archdiocese. These awards celebrated and recognised students, staff and community members who have made valuable contributions in their school communities and at the same time promoting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures. It is always a privilege to be a part of this Mass.
NAPLAN Results
The Year Three and Year Five 2023 NAPLAN student reports will be provided to our school for distribution to parents/carers from Tuesday 25 July. Please find below a NAPLAN information brochure for parents and carers.
Rebekah Brown
Assistant Principal and Inclusion Coordinator
It is lovely to be back at school. The time I needed to help my husband recover was much longer than expected. I am so grateful for all the support I received. Rebecca Stevenson led Religious Education with passion and grace. Many thanks Bec.
What Students are Learning About.
Over the next two weekends, Year 3 students will make their First Communion. On Thursday students were provided the opportunity to participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation with Fr Chung. He was generous enough to come to school and sit in the teacher’s workspace to speak with the children. In true MSC fashion, he was kind, compassionate and understanding, especially to those students who felt a little overwhelmed. We are blessed to have such committed and caring priests in our Parish. Please keep the students who are making the Sacrament for the first time in your prayers.
What Staff are Learning About
We were able to spend some time together on Monday morning, during the people free day, with Mr Garton. He shared some of his incredible photos from his pilgrimage early last term. It was wonderful to see many places in the bible including the mountain where Moses stood looking into Israel after wandering in the desert for 40 years and the burial place of Jesus.
He purchased two new crucifixes for the wall in the foyer, one from Jordan and one from Jerusalem. Keep an eye out for them when you next come in.
Catholic Life and Reflection
The pace of life is very different when your focus is your family and recovery. I had lots of time to think. I will admit that having some space made me realise how challenging school can be. So I, quietly, pondered a career change.
It didn’t take long for God to intervene. One of our students who found reading illusive needed an assessment. Earlier in the year, we had spoken to her parents and made some suggestions about how best to support her. Although, at the time, they were a little surprised at the suggestions, they trusted our advice. She continued to be supported by our incredible inclusion team with specific and targeted interventions.
I started the assessment where I thought she would be, six months further than the last time, about the end of Year 2. As I continued to read with her, she reached the mid-year benchmark for Year 4. I got goosebumps as I realized what was happening. I admit, I cried and jumped around like a bit of a crazy person. In that moment I knew that I am teacher and always will be. School, the classroom… with students is where I belong. It is where I can grow and be the best version of myself, amongst learners and believers. I was reminded that God always has a plan, look to him when you are unsure.
Jeremiah 29:11
11 For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.
God bless,
PS A heart felt and loving thank you to every student who has come through my classroom door, it is because of you that I started my career and because of you that I stay.
God bless,
Steph Stewart
Happy birthday to Joseph H, Isabella S, William M, Nathaniel G, Chelsea B, Asher M, Riley M, Sophia C, Lorenzo S, Sophia Y, Alexander R, Thomas J, Anthony M, Abel W, Vincent N, Alisha S, Sophie C, Darci D and Tymon A who all celebrated a birthday over the last week.
Building Fund statements were sent out via email on Wednesday morning.
If you did not receive one please contact Debbie Milne finance.sjaps@cg.catholic.edu.au.
Camp payments for Year 6 are past due please pay on QKR promptly. Cost of camp is $420.00.
Year 5 camp payments are due Friday 22nd September and can be made via QKR or at the front office or over the phone. Cost of the camp is $230.00.
A reminder to families on direct debits that in August we will be going to a new finance system and direct debits are not supported in this new system. Please cancel your direct debit and put a recurring BPAY in place.
All families will receive a new BPAY ID when we migrate and will be requested to use this for payment of fees.
The next competition is on July 28. I have sent home a set of practice questions to help prepare the students for the next competition. These questions are designed for a 'guess, check and refine' strategy - this involves making a reasonable guess of the answer, and checking it against the conditions of the problem and refine the reasonable guess. An incorrect guess may provide more information that may lead to the answer.
These are the answers:
A 6 B 4 C Olive D 15 E 3
The Uniform Shop Opening Hours
Friday 28 July - 8.30-9.30
If you have any questions or concerns please email the uniform shop on stjohnsclothingpool@gmail.com
