Term 3, Week 2, 27 July 2023

Principal Message

Dear Parents, carers and members of the St John's community,

A warm and heartfelt welcome back as we embark on an exciting journey into Term 3! We hope that this newsletter finds you refreshed and rejuvenated after a well-deserved break. As we step into this new term, we are filled with anticipation for the many wonderful opportunities and experiences that await us.

A Time for Growth and Learning

At St. John's, we believe in fostering a nurturing environment where every child can flourish academically, spiritually, and socially. Term 3 will be a time of growth, exploration, and continued learning. Our dedicated teachers have been busy preparing engaging and enriching lessons that will inspire creativity and critical thinking in our students.

Faith and Values

As a Catholic school, we place a strong emphasis on faith and values. We encourage our students to embrace the teachings of Jesus Christ and to demonstrate kindness, compassion, and respect towards one another. Throughout this term, we will continue to integrate these values into our daily activities and lessons, reinforcing the importance of love and understanding within our community.

Exciting Events and Activities

Term 3 promises to be full of excitement and memorable moments. We have a range of events and activities planned that will not only enhance learning but also create lasting bonds among our students and families. We have already had an amazing NAIDOC Week and our Kindergarten students have recently celebrated their first 100 days of schooling (with 2500 to go!!!) there will be plenty of opportunities for our students to showcase their talents and give back to the community.

Parent-Teacher Collaboration

We believe that open communication between the school and parents is crucial to a child's success. We encourage parents to actively participate in their child's education journey by engaging on SeeSaw, attending parent-teacher meetings, school events, and staying connected with their child's progress. Working together as a team, we can provide the best support and guidance for our students.

Safety and Wellbeing

The safety and wellbeing of our students remain our top priority. We will continue to uphold rigorous safety measures and adhere to the health guidelines to ensure a safe learning environment for everyone. Additionally, our school counsellor and pastoral care team will be available to provide support to students who may need extra assistance during this term.

Gratitude

Lastly, I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to our incredible staff, parents, and students. Your unwavering support and dedication to the values of our school community make St. John's an exceptional place of learning and growth.

As we begin this new term, let us keep in mind the words of Saint Augustine, "Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe." Let us approach Term 3 with faith, hope, and enthusiasm, knowing that together, we can achieve greatness.

Upcoming Dates

Please find below a list of dates savers below of events that are occuring this term. 

• Friday 4th August - Colour Run @ 1:15pm
• Tuesday 8th August - St Mary of the Cross MacKillop Feast Day Celebrations
• Wednesday 9th August - Stage 2 & 3 at the Byron Writers Festival
• 21st August - 25th August - Science & Book Week Extravaganza!
• Friday 25th August - Stage 3 Gala Day
• Wednesday 30th August - Cyber Safety event for Stage 3 @ 2pm
• Wednesday 30th August - Cyber Safety event for Parents @ 6pm
• Friday 1st September - Father's Day Breakfast @ 8am
• Sunday 10th September - First Holy Communion Sacrament Mass @ 5pm
• Friday 15th September - School Silent Disco @ 6pm
• Saturday 16th September - Chinny Charge (St John's Team)
• Friday 22nd September - Last Day of Term 3

St John's FREE Cyber Safety Workshop - AUGUST 30TH

Please find below a flyer with information about a FREE Cyber Safety Parent Workshop with Brett Lee from Internet Safe Education. Child Minding is available!

Brett will conduct a session with our Stage 3 Students in the afternoon and the Parent session will take place in our Hall from 6pm that evening. 

I have personally attended a number of Brett's sessions as a parent and educator and found them extremely practical. Brett Lee founded internet safe education in 2008 and has been working tirelessly in schools to educate parents and students about technology. Brett has worked as a Queensland police Officer for 22 years, 16 of those as a Detective in the field of Child Exploitation. In the 5 years prior to his retirement from the QPS, he was a specialist in the field of internet child exploitation investigations. This experience gives him great insight into how to keep kids safe online. 

Incorrect Uniforms

At this stage of the year, we find it essential to emphasise a vital aspect of our school's identity and faith: our uniforms. Our commitment to maintaining a consistent and proper uniform appearance not only reflects our Catholic values but also fosters a sense of unity, pride and equity within our school community.

Uniforms are more than just clothing; they carry a sacred symbolism that resonates deeply with our Catholic ethos. They signify equity and unity, reminding us that we are all equal and part of a loving and supportive community, guided by the teachings of Christ. Whether within our school premises, representing our institution at events, or engaging in outreach activities, our uniforms symbolise our shared commitment to living out our faith every day.

Recently, we have noticed some variations in our uniforms, and while these may seem minor, they hold significant importance in the context of our Catholic identity. A well-maintained uniform appearance reflects the virtue of order, and in our case, it serves as a reflection of the love and reverence we hold for our faith and school community.

With the aim of fostering a greater sense of unity and promoting our Catholic identity, we are introducing a new procedure regarding uniform adherence. Starting from next week, any student found wearing incorrect uniform items will receive an Incorrect Uniform Notification. This notification (attached below) is not intended as a form of reprimand, but rather as an opportunity for growth and understanding of the importance of adhering to our uniform policy.

We have also developed additional resources, especially in relation to shoes which alings with the uniform policy. Please see thie shoes guide poster below. 

Thank you in advance for your support. 

Kind Regards, 

Dave Bermingham

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

Starting the Term with Learning.                                                        The teachers started their term with professional learning around the new NSW Mathematics Syllabus for years 3-6. In 2023, teachers engage with the syllabus, plan and prepare for implementation of the curriculum for Mathematics and English. In 2024, implementation commences in schools for years 3-6.
Our school improvement plan has a focus on problem solving. We have noticed this is an area that is challenging for many students. Through our weekly planning meetings we look for ways to improve student’s abilities to problem solve. In our early years students have been writing and drawing their own problems this week. Stage 2 have been focusing on money problems and S3 are delving into strategies that can support students to work mathematically and find creative solutions.

This week I’ve had the opportunity to work with S3 and have been impressed with their ability to
find multiple solutions, use different strategies and represent with concrete materials. They
demonstrated stamina when engaging with tasks and resilience when they were challenged. S3
were exploring ways to write, represent, read, order and compare larger numbers using their understanding of place value.

It has been great to teachers and students starting the term with some wonderful learning experiences.

Leader of Pastoral Care and Wellbeing

NAIDOC Celebrations 2023 a Huge Success

On Wednesday the 19th of July, we celebrated NAIDOC Week at our school. We started our day with an assembly, a welcome to country by Aunty Larissa Smyth, a flag raising and a morning tea for our special guests. Savannah Browning and I (Ella Browning) also did a speech on why NAIDOC is important to us.

We had a rotation of activities led by many community members, these included, Koori Games, Face Painting with Aunty Sha, Native plant talk with Aunty Lee and Uncle Shane, Dharnbul (bread) making and tasting with Aunty Barrie, Aunty Tina and Maleah, Painting and Storytelling. 

We would like to thank all of the volunteers who gave up their time to help us celebrate NAIDOC Week and we would also like to thank Aliya King our IEW for organising this special day.

By Ella and Phoenix      

Naidoc Celebrations

Naidoc celebatons

Does your child show unhelpful thinking patterns?

Unhelpful thinking patterns often called ‘cognitive distortions’ can cause anxious behaviours in children. The anxious behaviours look like refusals, baulking at things (eg not wanting to come to school), locking down on a hard ‘no’ and withdrawing. The opposite of anxious behaviours are resilient behaviours.

See the youtube clip below for an explanation of some common cognitive distortions.

Cognitive distortions explained

These thinking patterns can be challenged by adults who take on the role of the child’s coach. The coach intervenes and uses questions to help the child:

• reframe their thinking- is it as bad as I’m making out?
• refute their thinking- perhaps that’s not even true
• Rethink their thinking- let’s think again about my approach here
• Prompts the child to problem solve
• Helps the child to develop calming strategies

If you’d like more information on unhelpful thinking patterns and/or how to be your child’s coach please contact me at school or via email.

greg.flint@lism.catholic.edu.au

We have some great resource books in the parent library at school and there is currently an opportunity for parents to do a free online course (with Parentshop) to develop their coaching skills in the resilience and and anxiety space.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Yours in wellbeing,

Greg

Leader of Mission

Welcome back to term 3! 

This term some of our year 4 and 5 students will be preparing for the Sacrament of First Holy Communion. 

Important dates for Holy Communion

1st session - 15th August at 5pm - 6:00pm, St John's Primary School  2nd session - 22nd August at 5pm - 6:00pm, St John's Primary School  3rd session - 29th August at 5pm - 6:00pm, St John's Primary School 4th session - 5th September at 5pm - 6:00pm, St John's Church for a practice run through.

Sacrament, Sunday 10th September 8am, St John's Church        Cost is $10. 

Lord God,                                                                                                                                                                                        We thank you for all the goodness you offer. May we come to know deeper and appreciate the Sacrament of the Eucharist in our own lives and in the lives of our children. We ask this in your name, 

Amen. 

SCHOOL INFORMATION

KINDER  celebrates 100 day

On the 27th of July in Kindergarten we celebrated 100 days of being at school. Firstly we had a visit from Mrs Gordon who had a strong family resemblance to the O’Dwyer family! Mrs Gordan showed us what the number 100 looks like using a very long bead string. Next we had our school captains and vice captains join us to do some fun activities. We made unifix towers 100 cubes high and we made bookmarks to commemorate 100 days of learning. Then we used 100s and 1000’s to make fairy bread. In the afternoon the Kindergarten families joined us in prayer. Lastly we finished the day with a lovely sponge cake from the Mullumbimby bakery. 

Well done to the Kindergarten students “from small seeds we blossom”.

100 days of Kinder

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU"

Our Birthday people:-  

 Chase, Remy, David, Ivy & Ainslie 

Miss Guinea & Anastasia

BOOKFAIR - Save the date

We will be holding our annual Book Fair in Book Week 6                                 21st - 25th August. Please put the dates into your calendar.                                            The theme this year is "Read, Grow, Inspire". 

Jumpers & Hats 

Lots of jumpers being handed into the office with no names.                    Please make sure all clothing is labeled,                                                                  Second hand jumpers to purchase for $5.00  

Please make sure that your child has their hat each day.  

COMMUNITY NEWS