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Dear St John the Apostle families,
Last week a small band of Year 4 students began an Origami Club in the Library each Wednesday for Years 2 to 6 students. I wanted to support their community spirit and willingness to share their intersts and talents with others. I helped them access the paper they needed and make their announcements at morning assembly.
Over the course of this week I have now had many, many groups of students come to me to ask to start their own club. We've had suggestions for book-making, arts, star wars, minecraft and next Wednesday begins a drawing club for K-2 being run by Year 3 students.
At this time of year, when all of our students are a little tired, its great to be able to provide them with the opportunity to share their intersts with others and give to their community. I will listen to them all and help them help each other.
Welcome to OSHClub
Yesterday I announced that following a rigorous selection process a new Out of Hours School Care provider, OSHClub, will begin running our Out of Hours School Care program from 2021.
I met with Nicole and Lee from the OSHClub team yesterday to plan the transition. Information about their program and the booking process will be made available next week.
End of Semester 2 reports
Written reports will be distributed next Wednesday 25 November and these are followed by Parent-Teacher Interviews the following two weeks. Written reports and parent-teacher interviews work together to provide a more complete picture of each child's acheivements and goals. We would like every family to participate. Teachers have prepared information to share as part of the interviews. Parent-Teacher Interview times can now be booked following the link below.
Have a lovely weekend everyone.
Matthew Garton
Principal
What Staff Have Learnt About this Week.
This week the staff met for their final faith formation. At the very beginning of the year I was concerned about how people were feeling after fires and hailstorms had caused so much damage.
Little did we know in early February what was to come in 2020.
Drawing inspiration from scripture we focused on Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God.” In the first meeting we drew out what the “know” meant. God has a plan, we should stop trying to BE God and let God BE in our lives. We are NOT God, He is!
This week we focused on BE STILL. There was no way of knowing in February what 2020 would bring forth but we do know that the offerings of stillness and prayer has been needed so much this year.
In our meeting the staff rekindled their understanding of the depth that can be reached during Christian Meditation. It was a powerful experience to be in a room full of people praying together in silence. Many approached me afterwards to let me know how much they needed that prayer time.
In 2021 St John’s will be reconnecting the students with Christian Mediation as well. I am so excited to bringing this experience back.
What the students are learning about.
Year 4 have been doing amazing work with Sustainability. They diligently go out after lunch to pick up any stray rubbish. They have installed new, clearly labelled bins to encourage good recycling habits. In their assembly presentation they talked about how they must be stewards of God’s creation. They are showing us how to ‘be on the earth the heart of God’ by living their faith every day and taking care of our environment.
Catholic Life and Reflection
The understatement of the year is “I am so busy!” just like everyone else at this time of year. Father Gerard always said that this time of year, particularly Advent, is slow time. After he would say this, he would look at me and smile, as if to say “I know!”
School is always busy but there is a certain buzz that occurs as reports are finalized, concerts are filmed, and ceremonies are planned. I have to remind myself (a lot) to take care of myself during these extra busy times. I am not actually able to run on “the smell of an oily rag” as my dad would say.
So, I am reminding all of you to do the same. Enjoy some sunshine, have the extra cup of tea, chat to your friends, reconnect with prayer. Do a little of what makes your soul happy.
1 Corinthians 3:17
17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.
God bless,
Stephanie Stewart
Religious Education Coordinator
Notices from the Parish
Celebrating Christmas Masses 2020 Style
* Family Mass - 7pm
* Youth Mass - 9pm
* Midnight Mass
* Christmas Morning - 9am
Happy birthday to Penelope P, Aluel A, Amelia N, Lila W and Georgia S who all celebrated a birthday over the last 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.
Congratulations to the following students who received an award for the fortnightly Positive Behaviour Focus. To watch the online video presentation login to your child's Google Classroom.
| Class | ||
| KB | Alexander N | Rylan R |
| KM | Jessica G | Samuel O |
| 1B | Luca V | Samiya C |
| 1M | Roman D | Aravindya P |
| 2B | Nate S | Denzil W |
| 2M | Rose H Keijo K |
Abbey W |
| 3B | Thomas J Faith L |
Dante L Indiana E |
| 3M | Alek S | Aisling S |
| 4B | Emilio C Arman M |
Evan M |
| 4M | ||
| 5B | Rudraansh D | Ronan H |
| 5M | Diamond M | Natalie S |
| 6B | Oscar P Abbie M |
Sienna V Aditya K |
| 6M | Keanan D Thomas G |
Matilda M |
| Performing Arts | Samson S (5M) | Marian L (KM) |
A reminder that school fees are past due and prompt payment would be appreciated. If you are paying by direct debit please ensure your fees are paid in full by the end of the school year.
If you are experiencing difficulties please contact Debbie Milne our finance officer either by phone or email finance.sjaps@cg.catholic.edu.au
Steward God’s Creation
We are called to be good stewards of the Earth and not to waste and to care for the environment
“And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light ‘day,’ and the darkness he called ‘night.’ And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.” -Genesis 1:3-5
This verse shows that God cares for his creation and expects us, at St John the Apostle, to do the same.
Who Are We?
We are the Year 4 Sustainability Team making positive changes with our recycling at St John the Apostle. Our amazing Year 4 students have been working hard to support and inform the whole school about positive recycling habits.
Nudie Lunch Week 8
In Week 8, as a whole school, we are going to try Nudie Lunch week. This means we would like all students at St John the Apostle to bring their recess and lunch to school with no wrappers at all. Some great ideas of how you can reduce the rubbish and pack a healthy Nudie lunch.
Recycling Mobile Phones
At the front office there is a green cardboard box where you can recycle your old mobile phones. If you know anyone who has an old mobile phone they are not using, please bring it into the front office and place it in the box. Once the box is full Act Smart will collect the box and the mobile phones will be reused.
Modelling self-kindness
This has been a tough parenting year. On a personal level it’s been challenging, but when you add the extra difficulty of helping children and young people navigate this year, you’d be forgiven for feeling like you’ve had enough.
It’s timely to look at US-based academic Dr. Brene’ Brown’s research that informed her book The Gift of Imperfect Parenting. Brown’s core finding was that the best parenting strategies rely on modelling for them to be adopted by children. That’s a little scary as it means we need to be the adults that we want to our kids to become.
There is great power in kids watching us practise how we manage hardships, frustrations and difficulties. Whether we use self-kindness or self-put downs, either will leave an impression on our kids. Not only do they see how we react when we stumble or make mistakes, but we give them permission to act in the same ways.
It’s hard to be self-kind
If you’re a goal-oriented type of person, highly-judgemental or someone who likes to get things done, then self-kindness can be difficult to befriend. It goes against the grain to laugh at your mistakes or miss a deadline, even though it won’t be the end of the world as you know it. If you recognise this type of rigid approach then it may be time let go of some old ways. Inflexibility is the enemy of healthy wellbeing, which thrives on adaptability and self-forgiveness.
Let them hear the process
Giving a child or young person insight into your thinking is a powerful parenting strategy. Sharing your struggles and mess ups with kids in age-appropriate ways takes vulnerability and promotes empathy. It takes courage to share a comment such as, “I keep putting myself down, which is not helpful. I’ve got to talk to myself as if I’m talking to someone I love.” Disclosing this type of self-talk is only useful if it’s done in a safe, matter of fact way and a child is comfortable with the message.
Self-kindness means acting compassionately toward yourself when you are struggling to meet your own expectations, meeting with unexpected difficulties and/or met with failure. It’s time to drop the stiff upper lip, put aside the strict schedule and stop berating yourself. Instead say to yourself, “This is really tough right now. How can I take some comfort and look after myself?” This is a message worth modelling particularly, if you are living with a perfectionist or a child with tendencies toward anxiety.
Michael Grose
Michael Grose, founder of Parenting Ideas, is one of Australia’s leading parenting educators. He’s an award-winning speaker and the author of 12 books for parents including Spoonfed Generation, and the bestselling Why First Borns Rule the World and Last Borns Want to Change It. Michael is a former teacher with 15 years experience, and has 30 years experience in parenting education. He also holds a Master of Educational Studies from Monash University specialising in parenting education.