Dear St John's families,

Wow, what a term!

We finished the term on a very positive note with our Talent Quest. After providing the opportunity for every child to perform in front of their class earlier in the week, it was fun to see a selection of these students in front of the whole school today. I loved their confidence! Well done to all who auditioned. 

Staffing

We farewell Mr Spencer in 3 Maroon at the end of this term. He is taking leave to spend time with family. Welcome to Ms Pearson who will be the full-time 3 Maroon teacher for Term 4.

Term 4 Dates

Next term begins on Monday 9  October. There is no Pupil Free Day for the beginning of fourth term. The last day of school for the year is Thursday 14 December.

I hope you all have a rest from the school routine over the coming holidays and have the opportunity to spend time with each other in the beautiful spring weather.

I look forward to seeing everyone for our final term of 2023.

Matthew Garton

Principal

Awards

Congratulations to all of our award recipients over the past two days. It is always so lovely to celebrate student success. 

I hope everyone has a restful holiday.

Spelling Mastery and Maths Mastery Awards

End of Term Awards

Rebekah Brown

What Students Are Learning About

As part of their unit on Prayer, Year 4 went to Floriade on Monday.  As well as enjoying the glorious weather, entertainment, and stunning flowers they took some time to create artworks.  They had copies of quotes from the book Grandad’s Prayers or the Earth and used those to inspire their art.  Praying while surrounded by the beauty of God’s creation is a special experience.

What Staff Are Learning About

On Friday last week I was lucky enough to take part in the early career faith formation day. We began the day with a Christian mediation, this was a beautiful way to begin the day and have a moment to stop our busy minds and be in the presence of God. We then were taken through the most spiritually uplifting day and got to encounter God many times and speak about our journey and our vocation to God. Our vocation to God is to spread his message and as a teacher I have the greatest power to do so. We got to attended mass at the beautiful cathedral in Manuka and listened to a gospel all about loving one another and opening our hearts up to live like Jesus did. 

As a teacher we have a blessing to instill God's values into the lives of our students, I have the greatest blessing of being a kindergarten teacher and for some, I am the first one to teach them about our catholic faith. We heard from the Archbishop who put it so simply and beautifully, not everyone is on the same spiritual journey and that it is okay, God has open arms for everyone, and we all get the chance to experience his love no matter how much or how little faith we have. When we have knowledge, we have power and power is knowledge. My faith has been a rocky journey but I am proud to have found my place and being at Saint Johns has helped me to express it in many ways. Through the love I feel when I walk in the door every day, through my students being kind to one another, caring for one another and helping each other, through my colleagues lifting me and being there for me in times of need and through the parents trusting me with their little ones everyday. 

At Saint Johns, our community and the love we see everyday is based off the faith and values given to us by God and this is why I chose our school. The faith formation day made me realise how lucky I truly am to have these values and be an advocate for God. I am grateful I always have someone up there looking out for me. We are so blessed to be brought together by God, his values are the reason our students are so beautiful, welcoming and kind. How lucky are we to be loved by such a special being. 

Miss Kennelly
Kinder Maroon Teacher

Catholic Life and Reflection

It was such a beautiful day for the Year 4 Floriade excursion.  Several students in my class had asked me to come and at the last minute. I was able to slip away and surprise them.

When I got there the teachers were quietly sitting by, and the students were chatting and laughing whilst they ate their recess in the cool shade. When they were asked to line up there was no rubbish left behind and happily made two lines. They greeted people as they walked past and made way for parents with prams. They proudly wore their uniform and made sure some of our less confident students were taken care of.

Our school, even when we are in public, has a sense of community and togetherness. That was clear today. They were on earth the hearth God, just by doing what they always do. 

God bless,

Stephanie Stewart

Religious Education Coordinator

Notices from the Parish

Latest Parish Compact - 24 September 2023

Happy birthday to Ajak A, Harry M, Charlotte S, Andrew S and Marian L who all celebrated a birthday over the last week.

Year 2 have been learning about life cycles and they planted their own climbing bean seeds from scratch. They predicted what might happen and discovered that the bean stalks grew approximately 1cm tall each day. Year 2 gave them nutrient rich soil, water, sunlight and of course love and care as plants are living things! They are taking them home in the Spring School Holidays to transplant and produce their own delicious beans to eat! Miss Mac has asked if they can continue to monitor and  care for their plants. They might even like to share some pics or some delicious bean recipes with St John's! 

Transport Canberra has announced today that a new bus timetable will be implemented from Monday 9 October to align with the start of the school Term 4. 

The timetable features more frequent weekday bus services, most of which will run at least every 30 minutes throughout the day.

A return to 30 minute daytime frequencies will ensure improved off-peak services can be provided between 9.30am and 3.30pm, while maintaining reliability. The increased frequency has resulted in changes to the first and last service times for some bus routes.

Some refinements have also been made to 14 school services based on school and community feedback, and to align with updated school bell times.

The new timetable does not include changes to weekend bus services and there are no changes to light rail frequency.

School packs and timetables

Updated school packs and timetables are now available online to view and download.

Further information on the new bus timetable can be found on the Transport Canberra website.

Keep in touch

Stay up to date with important Transport Canberra news, including changes to services and the latest project and event information. Sign up to our weekly e-newsletter or you can like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Congratulations to the following students who received the End of Term Awards. 

The Uniform Shop Opening Hours

Friday 6 October - 8.30-9.30 (School Holidays)
Monday 9 October - 8.30-9.30am

If you have any questions or concerns please email the uniform shop on stjohnsclothingpool@gmail.com