Filter Content
- Didgeribone Performance (Kinder - Year 6) (Week 5)
- Swimming Carnival Ribbon Presentation (Week 6)
- Belconnen Swimming Carnival (Week 7)
- Working Bee (Week 7)
- Cross Country Sausage Sizzle Lunch (Week 8)
- Special End of Term Lunch (Week 9)
- Belconnen Cross Country (Term 2, Week 6)
- Belconnen Athletics Carnival (Term 3, Week 6)
Please remember that the term dates are different across the ACT this year. Our first term is only 9 weeks long. The middle terms are 10 weeks long and the last term is 11 weeks long. The first day of Terms 2 and 3 are both pupil free days for professional learning for staff. OSHClub will be available on these days.
Please go to our school calendar on the website or SZapp for more details.
Monday was another welcome opportunity to gather again as a school at our swimming carnival. Our students who were so well behaved and very supportive of each other. Thank you to the parents who attended and helped in various roles. We couldn't have provided the opportunity without you. Thank you also to the Year 3 and 4 teachers who organised the carnival.
The ribbons for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place winners of the carnival will be handed out at the morning assembly on Friday 12th March.
Creating a safe and calm learning environment
There are many ways we create a positive and safe learning environment. It includes our learning routines such as Literacy Daily 5 and Maths Daily 3, providing support staff for students with more complex needs and having a culture of positive and clearly defined expectations every day.
Our community all know that our three fundamental rules in the school are Respect Others, Respect Self and Respect the Environment. Our students are able to recite it. Each week we have an example of how we do this in our community as a focus. Our focus each week is shared with you at the beginning of the Newsletter.
This year we are spending more time consistently teaching and expecting simple and reasonable respectful behaviours from students. We're beginning with the times we gather: morning assembly, lining up after recess and lunch, Thursday afternoon assembly and the 5 minute afternoon gathering.
During these times we're expecting:
- silence and listening
- being at the lines on time
- walking from the gathering to the classroom in a silent and orderly way
When this doesn't occur a student will have a brief conversation with an Executive Team member and then a 10 minute Time Out at lunch time (no Time Out sheet will be sent home at this time). If it involves a whole class then the entire class will return to the Rainbow Top at lunch time for a two minute practice.
This may seem pedantic. To be honest, we actually don't mind that word. What we know is that for students to learn effectively at school, they need to feel calm and safe. Students feel calm and safe when they know exactly what's expected of them, that these expectations are simple and within their capacity and they know exactly what will happen when they don't meet these expectations. Clear boundaries and consequences, based on core values such as respect, and well known by everyone, create a safe and happy environment for learning.
Over the course of this year we'll focus on other areas where we can show respect for others, ourselves and our environment.
Student technology use
Implementation of our Year 4 1 to 1 Chromebook Program beginning in Year 4, and all other technology use by students, has been slowed a little due to some reconfiguring of student log in credentials across our system.
Students are just starting to get on to technology now and we expect all students online next week.
Pick up in our car park
The afternoon drive-thru pick up area is running more smoothly thanks to the section of curb that was cut out over the holidays. To ensure all students are safe in such a busy space we have created dedicated sitting areas for each year level. Students must stay in that space until they are called up. The two teachers on this duty cannot supervise the entire length of the curb so the last three places are the designated drive through pick up areas. Students are not to go to cars before this point. Three spaces appears to be enough to keep up with the capacity to exit the car park afterwards.
We're having a kitchen garden working bee!
We'd like to get the kitchen garden ready for winter planting and it needs a little tidy up that really only adults can do. Our Working Bee will be held on Sunday morning 21st March, 9.00am to 11.00 am. We'd love to have as many people as possible. If you can make it please register below. Children are welcome to come with parents or grandparents to either help or play nearby. Refreshements will be provided.
God Bless,
Matthew Garton
Principal
Kitchen Garden Working Bee 21st March 2021
Three Way Conferences
In Week 6, we are holding Three Way Conferences. A Three Way Conference actively involves parents, students and teachers reflecting on student growth. It is an opportunity to look at student learning and for students to talk about and share their learning growth with their teacher and parents.
Three Way Conferences strengthen the connection between home and school and allow students to see their teacher and parents working together. It is an opportuntiy for students to share what they have learnt so far this year, the goals they are working towards, what support they need from their teacher and parents and how they will achieve these goals. It is the role of the student to facilitate the conference and of course, the teachers are there to support them when needed (especially our younger students).
Throughout the Three Way Conference, parents and teachers are encouraged to provide feedback and ask questions. Overall, Three Way Conferences provide a forum to develop student agency. It is also an opportunity for teachers and parents to acknowledge student progress and achievement.
The Three Way Conference will take 15 minutes.
On Monday afternoon, we will send out Session Keeper links for you to sign up to a Three Way Conference time slot.
We look forward to seeing you all at the school during Week 6.
Rebekah Brown
Assistant Principal and Inclusion Coordinator
What are students learning about?
Teachers are working to ensure our conceptual inquiry units are fresh and engaging. The final parts of the new Brisbane Religious Education Curriculum are being added. This has generated a lot of discussion about how Science and Religious Education can be taught in the same lesson.
In his 2016 encyclical Laudato si, Pope Francis encourages us to use science as a way to understand the world around us. Notably, his encyclical has urged people to care more for the environment and climate change.
Today, Pope Francis is quite open about his belief in evolution, albeit as a means by which God created humankind.
Tweet
God gave us the earth “to till and to keep” in a balanced and respectful way.
We want to help our students understand that creation is a continuing cycle, begun by God, and our responsibility is to care for it. Science and faith can work together to deepen this understanding.
In Sustainability lessons, with Mrs Lock,Years 3 - 6 looked at the Amazon rainforest. They were excited to find out information that included statistics on oxygen generation and land size. Learning about precious resources all over the world helps students to understand the importance of balance and harmony in our environment. Using scripture as a starting point, students see that we are called to be stewards of Creation.
Catholic Life and Reflection
This is the first reading from last Sunday. It is a familiar story, Noah and the rainbow. Fr Kimi drew our attention to the word covenant. He suggested that we were, in that very moment, connected by a covenant to God for all eternity. That our work, especially during Lent, but actually throughout the whole year, is to establish, build and maintain our own covenant. For each of us it is different. Each day we need to be aware of and work towards maintaining it.
The children make a Lenten promise each year, write it down and put it in an envelope. The staff use that terminology too. Sunday reminded me that we can’t live our faith the same way we did when we were children. Moving from Lenten promise to covenant is another step in the journey of growing our faith.
Genesis 9:8-15 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
8 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, 9 “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark.[a] 11 I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” 12 God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: 13 I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh.
May God continue to bless all of our students and families.
Stephanie Stewart
Religious Education Coordinator
Notices from the Parish
Clean Up Australia Day - Sunday the 7th of March.
Our sustainability teachers are working with our students to develop the knowledge, skills, values, and world views necessary to contribute to more sustainable patterns of living. While our students are learning, exploring, and acting on making a change within our school, we encourage our St John’s community to step up and help make a difference also. Head out to local gardens, parks, playgrounds, rivers, and bushland to clean up and collect rubbish polluting our environment. Invite your friends and families to join you so we can all make a difference. Remember to wear safety gear such as gloves, closed shoes, sunscreen, and hats. If you would like to share photos of you and your family participating that we could include on our school Facebook page or Newsletter, please send them to us by email to office.sjaps@cg.catholic.edu.au. You can find out how to join a local community clean up by going to the Clean Up Australia Day website.
School's Clean Up Day
St John’s will be holding their own Clean Up Day as a whole school on Friday the 5th of March. Students will be cleaning up any rubbish within our school and our surrounding footpaths, serving our community and environment.
Students must bring:
- School hat
- water bottle
- sensitive sunscreen if required
In an effort to be more sustainable and reuse items, we would really appreciate if students could bring in:
- plastic bags
- old gardening or rubber gloves
- tongs
- Any other items useful to assist students with safely collecting and picking up the rubbish found around our school
This will help reduce the number of disposable gloves and plastic bags purchased and reuse old items instead.
Students will be washing their hands with soap when returning to the classrooms after the big clean up and there will be sanitiser available.
After the event we will be compiling the bags of rubbish and looking at how much was collected as a whole school. Throughout this term there will be further discussions with students during their sustainability lessons about how we can pledge to make some changes at reducing waste at St John’s and within our community.
Rebecca Neiberding & Allison Lock
Sustainability Teachers
Happy birthday to Lucius H, Ryan S, Samuel O and Alexa C who all celebrated a birthday over the past 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.
Grandparents as carers
At school pick up time it’s common to see people in their ’60s, ’70s and older greeting young children after school. In secondary school many students are welcomed home by someone in that age group. You may well think that these are grandparents doing a spot of childcare while parents are at work, but increasingly grandparents and relatives of a grandparenting age are caring full-time for children.
A time of mixed feelings
Grandparents who care full-time for children usually do so following a family crisis or loss. Becoming the full time carer can come as a shock. Many grandparents report that their world is turned upside down when they take on full time parenting roles. Not only are they prevented or restricted from participating in their ongoing interests, many experience their life in limbo as they may not know whether the parenting role is permanent or temporary.
While grandchildren may feel safe being with grandparents after a crisis or experience of loss, it’s difficult to move from a highly relational grandparent mode to be the person who sets boundaries, makes sure homework is done and gets kids to school on time each day. On top of this many grandparents experience a mixture of emotions including grief for the death or disappearance of a child, anger for being placed in a situation they didn’t want or shame for a difficult family situation.
The benefits of being grandparent carer
Conversations with grandparent carers reveal that many grandparents cherish the opportunity to be close to their grandchildren. For men, in particular, the chance to make up for time and milestones that they missed with their own children helps make their time looking after grandchildren worthwhile. Some grandparents also report finding a new lease of life when they become carers.
Mark, a grandparent raising four primary-aged children appreciates the benefits that experience provides. He claims, ”I don’t stress nearly as much as I did when I was bringing up my two children. Some of the things I used to fight over with them seem ludicrous now. I’m more patient, more understanding and more fun to be around now with this lot. I laugh more now too.”
Looking after yourself
According to the Raising Children Network, grandparents who care for children “have higher levels of depression and anxiety and (experience) more physical and emotional health problems than grandparents who aren’t carers.” The extra responsibilities that come with being a grandparent carer such as dealing with money worries, facing legal issues and lack of peer support means that grandparent self-care is paramount. Age-related exercise, social interaction, a good diet, enough sleep and regular medical check-ups need to be part of the wellbeing regimens for grandparent carers.
In closing
Like parents, grandparents benefit from being part of a school community. A welcoming school community can be a wonderful asset for those who are raising children the second time around.
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.
