Term 2, Week 8, 16 June 2022
Principal Message
We only have a couple of weeks to go, with plenty of learning left to do and community building events to participate in.
We have our silent disco coming up on Wednesday 29th June. There is further information about this below.
We also have our School Atheltics carnival on Monday 27th June. With more information to be sent out.
The last day of term 2 is on Friday 1st July. We invite all parents and caregivers to join in on the celebrations of this day - we will have a whole school Mass at 11:30am followed by a celebration of learning (open classrooms) and extended recess. Parents are welcome to take their children at 2pm after recess.
Term 3 will commence on Tuesday the 19th July.
Key Dates for Term 2
Please find below key dates for the remainder of Term 2 at this stage. Any additional dates will be communicated as they arise during the term.
- Friday 17th June: Vinnies Sleep out- Stage 2 and 3.
- Monday 27th June: School Athletics Carnival.
- Wednesday 29th June: Report Cards released to parents on Compass
- Wednesday 29th June: St John's Silent Disco 5:30pm-7:30pm (Parent Forum Event).
- Friday 1st July: Last Day of Term 2. Whole School Mass and Celebration of Learning.
Ongoing items to be conscious of during the term:
- School Assembly is taking place every Monday at 2:15pm. Parents Welcome
- The School newsletter will go out on Thursday in Weeks 2, 4, 6, 8, 10.
- Family Connect Worker Lisa Wood is in every Monday.
- School Tuckshop will be open every Friday.
Silent Disco
On Wednesday 29th June our amazing Parish School Forum have organised a Silent Disco for our community. This is an opportunity for the kids to join together for some fun, but also for the parents to get together and socialise.
The Silent Disco will start at 5:30pm and go through to 7:30pm and will take place in the School Hall. There are some great food options for both adults and children that can be pre-ordered on the form below. The delicious food will be provided by Spice It Up Thai in Mullum. There will also be some water and soft drinks for the children to purchase and alcohol for the parents (which can only be consumed in the designated adult area). To cover some of the costs involved in the hire of equipment, there will be a $5 per student entry charge.
Please fill out the form below and return it to the school by Friday 24th June. If you are using cash as payment, please include it in an envelope.
WHAT A DAY!
Thank you to our community for their book donations and to those senior students, parents and staff are who assisted at the Old’n Gold festival in Bruns on Saturday.
The St John’s parish and school combined stall raised about $1500 for flood relief charity!
Bravehearts' Ditto
This week our Kinder and Stage 1 students had the opportunity to experience Bravehearts’ personal safety education program 'Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure Show'.
Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure show has been educating Australian children since 2006, providing them with personal safety tools and strategies while supporting positive self-esteem and resilience-building.
The Ditto show is a live, interactive 35 minute performance starring Bravehearts’ mascot ‘Ditto’. It includes song, dance, and easy-to-remember messages about personal safety. These songs and messages were written by Bravehearts’ professional educators and child psychologists and are developmentally appropriate for your child’s age group.
Music Program at St John's
The Northern Rivers Conservatorium are currently still taking bookings for the music program here at St John's. Once enrolments in this program are finalised, we will organise a start date.
To enrol your child in these instrumental lessons please click this link - https://enrol.nrcac.edu.au/music-in-schools/new/ There is a drop down menu where you choose the school, so please choose St John's Primary School.
Please note that Daniel will still be conducting Piano lessons and as such, the program offered by Northern Rivers Conservatorium will not include Piano. If you would like to find out more information about the Piano lessons that we already currently offer, please give the office a call.
St John's After School Care & Vacation care
Council are seeking feedback about the St John's After School Care and Vacation Care service. Obviously we would love to keep it here at St John's as we do have families who rely on it!
If you intend to use it at any stage, or wish for us to keep it at St John's, please fill out the survey below. If you have already completed a paper copy from a couple of weeks ago, please complete again online as the questions have changed.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/
Attendance
From time to time, it is important for us to reflect on attendance.
The statistics surrounding missed days of school and the impact that this can have on a child's learning and development is alarming.
Please have a look through some of these statistics in the pictures below.
Kind Regards,
Dave Bermingham
Principal Awards - Week 8
Assistant Principal Message
Students have a Blast at Space Club
St John’s students making the school even greater!
Earlier this year three year three girls (Alaria, Sybella and Mia) started up a lunchtime club called the Space Club. Inspired by a love of and curiosity about the universe with all of its mystery and wonder. The club’s popularity has exceeded all of the girls expectations.
They have had up fourteen students attend the lunchtime sessions which have included, finding out about and space in many different ways including: watching videos, painting, reading information articles and conducting experiments. One of the most popular activities was the space rocket experiment in which children designed and decorated their own rocket before counting down and blasting of into space.
This has been a fantastic initiative: children coming up with ways they can use their passions and interests to make the school more interesting and fun for everyone. I can’t congratulate the girls enough on their efforts.
School Leaders Help Out with Recycling
Kodi, Shanti and Mia have been assisting the students with recycling each Friday. Recycling is at times a challenging decision making process. Children have to work out just where each item of rubbish needs to go: landfill(red bin) general recycling(yellow bin) bio-degradables(compost bin) pizza boxes(tub for a green bin) and finally milk bottles are rinsed out and put in the refundables tub with the Poppers. The girls are very happy with the efforts of all the younger children and they give them feedback each Monday at assembly.
TEACHING & LEARNING
Clarity -Being Clear About Our Learning
Over the last couple of years, we have had a major focus on writing in our school. As teachers, we continually engage in professional learning about current practices to improve writing outcomes for our students. Walking from room to room it is clear that teachers are embedding current evidence-based practices in their classrooms.
This week I conducted a Learning Walk to S3. It was not a planned visit so the students answered my questions without preparation. Watch the video to hear about what they are learning; how they are going, how they get feedback about their learning, how they can improve and where they go for help. This is a snapshot from one classroom but it indicates that our students have a very clear understanding of their learning.
RE NEWS
Vinnies Winter Appeal Sleep Out
On Friday the 17th of June, Stage 2 and 3 will be invited to participate in a Vinnies School Sleepout.
Why? To gain a deeper understanding of homelessness, raise awareness of the realities faced by people experiencing homelessness and raise funds to support Vinnies homeless services in the local community.
More than 17,000 Australian children under the age of 12 have no permanent home.
Help St John’s fight homelessness by donating: https://my.fundraise.vinniesnsw.org.au/vinnies-school-sleepouts/st-john-s-vinnies-sleep-out
Your donation can help in the following ways:
$15 pays for a day’s meals for a family struggling to put food on the table
$30 provides someone a bed for the night
$50 provides school supplies and excursion fees for a child experiencing disadvantage
$80 pays for a course in life skills such as cooking, preparing for job interviews or basic computer skills at TAFE.
Donations Needed!
We are seeking donations of toiletries and hygiene products which will be used to put together care packages for the homeless. The care packages will be taken down to the Mullumbimby Community Neighbourhood Center. Please hand any donations to your classroom teacher. Please see a list of items below; toothpaste, nappies, toothbrushes, feminine hygiene, travel size shampoo and conditioner and other personal hygiene products that families in need will really appreciate.
Gift Shop Opening at St Vincent's Hospital, Lismore (branch of the Catholic Book and Gift Shop)
A pop up gift shop will be opening at the Dalley Street entrance to the hospital on Monday 27th June, from 9am to 4pm week days. It will be on the Mezzanine floor of Friends Coffee lounge, and can be accessed up the stairs in the Coffee lounge (purchase a takeaway coffee and take up with you). However, the easiest access is through front entrance, around to lift, up to level 2, exist lift and you will see a sign to Gift Shop. Please enter sign on door. NO STAIRS TO NAVIGATE. Volunteers will be supervising and will assist you.
Usual religious gifts available for all occasions particularly baptism, confirmation, communion and Easter and Christmas. General gifts also available, toiletry gift packs, soft toys, books, confectionery etc.
Please come and have a look. Tables and chairs are available for you to relax and have morning and afternoon tea or a light lunch. Eftpos available. All proceeds to the purchase special projects and equipment for the comfort of patients at SVH.
Enquiries: (02) 66279340 Gift shop from 27th June (02) 66279229.
Around the Stages -
Stage 3 AFL
Stage 3
STAGE 2
Students began constructing their Science Design tasks last week. They are making models of traditional Aboriginal shelters as part of the "Design and Production Processes" component of the K-6 Science and Technology syllabus. Each student has designed their model on paper and is now creating the model from authentic natural materials. Once completed the students will conduct a series of tests prior to deciding where to place the models in the playground so that a) shade is maximised inside the shelter during the heat of summer and b) the shelter provides protection from cold winds during the winter months.
Science Design - stage 2
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU"
Our birthday people
Joey & Cody
Piano Lessons
Piano lessons are available at St John’s, during school hours and after school.
For further enquiries please call Daniel Holland 0401 071 667
COMMUNITY NEWS
