Term 3, Week 4, 5 August 2021
Principal's Message
Part of our the reason St John’s School exists is thanks to the Sisters of St Joseph. In 1910 three Sisters of St Joseph arrived to teach 28 children in room adjoining what was then the new brick church. Eventually a new wooden convent was built on the hill above the church about 1915 where the sisters moved in.
In acknowledging this history we celebrate Australia’s first saint Mary of the Cross MacKillop (Mary MacKillop). Mary founded the sisters of St Joseph. Mary MacKillop was very conscious of the plight of the poor and needy. She worked with families that lived in isolated areas of Australia. As a result, Mary MacKillop pioneered a new form of religious life in Australia and commenced a “system” of “Josephite" schools that would provide education, especially for the children of the poor. In 1873, Pope Pius IX gave Papal approval for the Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Joseph. Even today, many Australians can say that they too have felt the impact of the enormous work started by St. Mary of the Cross (MacKillop), having been educated or cared for, by the Sisters of Saint Joseph. She was noted for her trust in the providence of God and miracles of healing have been attributed to her. She was declared a Saint by Pope Benedict XVI on the 17th October 2010.
Next Monday, Stage 3, Mrs Bottle and Mrs Loane will be leading a Liturgy to celebrate her Feast Day (Aug 8th). During the Liturgy students will be reflecting on the renowned characteristics of commitment to helping the poor and helping those in need. Students will be thinking about how they can emulate these traits in their own life. “Never see a need without doing something about it”
Canteen Last week at our assembly, we welcomed Nicole Bishoff our new Canteen Manager. She has received a handover from Jacki and hit the ground running last Friday for her first day managing the canteen. She managed well. We welcome Nicole to her new appointment knowing she will be a great asset to the school.
Compass I really wish to thank all our families for their help and patience during the roll out of Compass. We were unable to offer face to face training and as such you have been navigating this with minimal training. I am also thankful to those who have called to highlight any issues such as difficulty making payment. The person who has had to make the biggest transition is Tundra and not only has she been learning as she goes but she has been supporting the families too. Thanks Tundra and everyone for your patience. Our next phase is to roll out the canteen function of being able to pay via the app. We will update once we are ready to roll.
Community Our Senior students have begun writing letters to one of our local childcare centres. They have loved the opportunity to have a real purpose for their writing and are excited to get some mail in return. It is so nice to be actively seeking connections in the broader community. Thanks to Mrs Bottle and Mrs Loane for their assistance to get this up and running.
Celebration Time!!! The staff have been working hard at ensuring our students grow in their understanding of Place Value in Mathematics. It can be a challenging concept and we have been working hard at introducing engaging tasks that are designed to target this area. We even went on an instructional walk which is where each teacher observes other teachers and offers feedback on their practice. With all that said we are seeing great growth across the school and this is fantastic. The hard work from our staff but most of all our students is paying off!!! Congratulations.
Blessings for the week ahead,
Renay
PRINCIPAL AWARDS
Week 2
Week 3
Assistant Principal's Message
Congratulations
100 Days of School in Kindy! It is always a pleasure to spend time with the Kindy children in their wonderful learning space. However, today the excitement was palpable in the classroom as the children prepared to celebrate 100 days of school life and learning in Kindy at St John’s.
Malaki captured the feeling beautifully when he explained, “that he had to be brave on the first day, but now he feels proud of making the 100 days.” Cloudy chimed in saying “that she was both excited about the cake and proud of reaching the big 100 days.”
Mrs Bailey has ordered a special cake from the bakery and fairy bread will be added to the celebratory food menu.
Congratulations to all of the kindy children, to Mrs Bailey for her tireless and creative work in shaping them into such switched on and connected group of little learners and of course the parents who are constantly doing all the hard work behind the scenes ensuring the children arrive each day refreshed and ready for the new challenges of another day of life and learning at school.
Garden News The school vegie patch is growing beautifully. Last week Jack and Chase helped me harvest a small bunch of bananas which will be sold in the tuck-shop this Friday. All of the salad greens are enjoying the recent spate of sunshine and warmer days.
Sporting News Tweed Zone Athletics Carnival has been postponed again unfortunately. The organisers are hopeful that the carnival will be held sometime early in term 4.
Elective sport this term for stages 2 and 3 has been a resounding success with the children enjoying touch footy senior and junior, tennis and Gaga each Thursday morning. It is great to see the children enjoying sport simply for the pleasure of participating and playing with their peers and not being fixated on winning.
The senior touch footy games have been played at a very high standard. It is really inspiring to see our senior boys and girls engaging in their sport in such a positive way. Keep it up.
TEACHING AND LEARNING
A Hive of Activity - The Joy of Play
One of the most important ways that children's brains learn is through play. Play develops a whole range of skills and it is certainly happening on our playground at the moment! Students of all ages are actively engaging in imaginative and constructive play. Our playground offers a wealth of opportunities to facilitate this. We are certainly blessed to have creative, outdoor spaces which encourage our children to engage in role play situations.
Through play opportunities the children are developing empathy, social skills and skills in conflict resolution. We have gardeners, architects, rock builders and bashers and ochre makers. There are cubby houses, beautiful gardens, shops, hiding games, rock factories, imaginary spaces and even a landscape gardening business! Students are harnessing what is in their environment and using these materials to build something new, create a role play or act out stories or scenarios.
There are a variety of construction methods which enhance their physical skills, problem solving, perseverance and their ability to plan and test ideas.
The photos speak for themselves! It is great to see our children so engaged in their play having fun and spending time with their friends.
PLAY
RE NEWS
Making Jesus Real (MJR) The Spirit of Jesus is closely linked with the the mystery of the resurrection. Jesus said, “I will be with you until the end of time.” The Spirit of Jesus lives in our hearts in the here and now of our lives. By being switched on to God’s presence - we can see God’s loving presence has been in the nitty gritty of our daily lives.
Your Mission…
Over the next two weeks go under cover and see if you can see Spirit of Jesus moments happening around you.
The Feast of Mary McKillop
Along with, Fr Tenison Woods, Mary MacKillop founded the Sisters of St Joseph. Responding to the isolation of colonial families, she pioneered a new form religious life to provide education for their children. She and her sisters shared the life of the poor and the itinerant, offering special care to destitute women and children. The Sisters of St Joseph founded St John’s School. The Feast Day of St Mary of the Cross McKillop is the 8th of August.
On Monday the 9th of August, Stage 3 have prepared a Liturgy that we will celebrate as a whole school.
Mary McKillop Fundraising
To celebrate Mary MacKillop’s Feast Day, we have registered our school with Mary MacKillop today and will fundraise to give vulnerable children in Fiji access to early education.
Cake Stall On Tuesday the 10th of August, Stage 3 will be holding a bake sale in the canteen. Students are invited to bring in $1-$2 to buy cakes and cookies.
Olympic Dress Up On Friday the 13th of August students will be invited to bring a gold coin donation and dress in their best Olympic dress. We will be having an afternoon of Olympic themed activities and games.
Around the Stages!
Stage 3 Dance
Stage 2 Dance
Kinder & Stage 1 Dance
Stage 2 Writing
Stage 1 students created their own balance and flexibility exercises during PE lessons, this week.
Book Fair 2021
The book fair this year will be held from Monday 23rd to Friday 28th August. Teachers will take students to the school library during class
time early that week so the children can browse and fill in a wish list.
They can then purchase books with cash that week or the credit card
details on the back of the wish list for a credit card payment.
Canteen News!
I would like to introduce myself as your new canteen manager. My name is Nicole Boshoff. I have 2 sons here at St John's, William in year 4 and Charlie who will be starting Kindergarden next year.
The Canteen will now only be open on a Friday. I will continue to provide tasty, fresh options in the canteen. We are growing some wonderful fresh produce in our garden which I will incorperate into the menu.
If you would like to volunteer to help in the canteen on a Friday, please could you let myself or Tundra know.
If you would like to order Sushi on Friday, please send in the order to school with your child or phone/email Tundra at the office and place your order. All orders would need to be in by 2pm each Thursday. If you would like this to be a regular order, please advise!
I look forward to serving you all in the canteen going forward.
Nicole
SCHOOL NEWS
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Our birthday people
Ivy, Evie, Ainslie, Luke, Xavier & Anastasia
Lost Property
Please make sure that your child's property is clearly labelled with their name.
Piano Lessons
Piano Lessons are now available with Daniel Holland. Daniel is Conservatorium trained and has extensive teaching experience to students of all ages, from beginner to advanced.
Lessons are available here at our school on a Thursday, during or after school.
Please phone Daniel directly for more information. 0401 071 667
COMMUNITY NEWS
Enjoy playing tennis in Term 3
Red Hot Tennis
Riverside Tennis Club Mullumbimby
Enrolments now open
Ph: Justin 0403 841 241
