Dear Parents and carers,

Tonight, we celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation, and with Bishop Brian Mascord currently in Rome, Fr Bernard Gordon (Vicar General) will confer the Sacrament upon the children of our Parish community. 

The Sacrament of Confirmation builds on what was begun in Baptism and what is nourished in the Holy Eucharist. It completes the process of initiation into the Catholic community and empowers those confirmed, to live a faith-filled life, inspired by the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Confirmation means accepting responsibility for your faith and your destiny. The focus is on the Holy Spirit, who came upon the apostles at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4) giving them the strength and courage to practice their faith. For Catholics, Confirmation is a sacrament of empowerment. It gives the strength to follow Jesus and to become involved in the mission which Jesus left to the Church. 

The children, along with their families, have been preparing for the reception of the Sacrament and I congratulate them for their commitment during this most significant time in their faith journey. Thank you to Father Francis for his guidance and support and also Mrs Crowe (REC) for her exceptional work in planning and coordinating the Sacrament.

I ask that you please keep the children and their families in your prayers.

Yours sincerely
Andrew Heffernan (Principal)

Parish Weekend Mass

Sunday 16 June 2019

Thank you to the many families who were, despite the weather, able to join us for the Celebration of the Eucharist on Sunday. A special thanks to Andrew Chinn for once again coming to enhance our liturgy. Congratulations to Evie (5R) and Miriam (4G) for their beautiful singing.

Confirmation

Wednesday 19th June 2019

Tonight 61 children from our parish will be receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. Please remember them in your prayers as they become mature members of the Catholic Church.

Loving God,
You are the giver of all we possess, the source of all of our blessings.
Thank you for the gift of our children.
Help us to set boundaries for them, and yet encourage them to explore.
Give us the strength and courage to treat each day as a fresh start.
May our children come to know you, the one true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
May your Holy Spirit help them to grow in faith, hope, and love, so they may know peace, truth, and goodness.
May their ears hear your voice, may their eyes see your presence in all things,
May their lips proclaim your word, may their hearts be your dwelling place.
May their hands do works of charity, may their feet walk in the way of Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord.
Amen.

Fr Francis' Birthday

Friday 21st June 2019

Happy Birthday Fr Francis!!

Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ — Corpus Christi

Sunday 23rd June 2019

This Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ is like a summary of Christian life, the way Jesus wants us to live. Jesus was welcoming and open to everyone, especially those who are neglected. He showed what God's kingdom was like in his own conduct, in the way he treated others and cared for them. Jesus was attentive to all the ‘hungers’ that people had within them: he cured those that were sick, comforted the sad, gave hope to those who had no hope.

Jesus gave us the great sacrament of his Body and Blood so that he could do the same for us, and so that we would be able to do these things for those around us.

Nativity of John the Baptist

Monday 24th June 2019

Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

Friday 28 June 2019 

The feast of the heart of Jesus invites us to consider our own sense of being in relationship with God. Are we able to see with the ‘eyes’ of the heart and know ourselves as loved by God? Do we really believe in the enormous love of God for us; for me? Can we imagine ourselves held and carried by God as a shepherd carries and cares for a lost or straying sheep?

Dates for your Diary

• Friday 21 June, 9:30am - PARISH MASS - Kinder attending
• Friday 21 June 11:15am - RECONCILIATION - 4R attending
• Friday 28 June, 9:30am - PARISH MASS - Year 1 attending, celebrating the Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
• Friday 28 June 11:15am - RECONCILIATION - 5R attending

Parish Celebration of the Eucharist

A reminder of weekend Parish Mass times for St John the Evangelist, Dapto.
Fr Francis loves to see our families there.

• Saturday Vigil 5.00pm
• Sunday 7.30am
• Sunday 9.30am
• Sunday 6.00pm

Prayer Intentions

We pray for all families in our school community who are in need of our prayers.          
St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, pray for us.
St John the Evangelist, pray for us.

Kylie Crowe – Religious Education Coordinator

Today, semester 1 student reports (Years 1-6) are available via the Compass Parent Portal. As previously explained, the Catholic Education Office has introduced a new Student Information System, known as Compass. The Compass Parent Portal requires all parents to log in, so as to access their child's report and to book a Learning Conversation (Parent Meeting) time. 

1. Please use the following instructions to access the Parent Portal.

2. To access Semester 1 Reports via the Compass Parent Portal and to book a Learning Conversation.

3. To access Semester 1 Reports via the Compass App and to book a Learning Conversation, please follow the instructions below.

If you have difficulties booking online, please contact the school office.

As you review your child’s report I ask that you remember, your reactions to their report can affect the way see themselves as a learner. Are your expectations in line with your child’s ability? It is important that you don’t make a comparison with siblings, peers and even yourself at the same age. All children learn at different rates, so look for individual progress. The following may be helpful when you read your child’s report.

1. Sit down with your children and review their report together.
2. Check with them first. What do you think your report will say about your learning so far, this year?
3. Look for strengths, taking into account their effort and attitude to learning.
4. Discuss with your child what they need to do to improve. It is their report and they need to take ownership of their progress.
5. Praise them for what they can control, that is the amount of effort they put into their learning.

Learning Conversations (Parent/Carer – Teacher Meetings) commence on Monday 24 June for all students Kindergarten to Year 6. This will involve a ten-minute meeting with your child's classroom teacher to discuss their learning progress. As per last year, students in Years 4–6 are required to attend with their parents/carers and will lead the learning conversation.

Learning Conversations Interview times will need to be booked online via the Compass Parent Portal. You will need to use the same login details that you use to access the Semester 1 Reports. The registration window for booking interviews online is currently open and will close on Sunday 23 June.  To login to the Parent Portal go to: https://sjddow-nsw.compass.education

Kindergarten students do not receive a written report for the first semester of school, only an end of year report. This is an agreed practice in Catholic schools within the Wollongong Diocese. Learning Conversation interviews will take place providing oral feedback for the first half of the school year. It is expected that all Kinder parents will meet with their child’s teacher.

SPB4L is an evidence-based framework that emphasises school-wide systems of support for all students and staff. These include proactive strategies for defining, teaching and supporting appropriate student behaviours. Positive behaviour supports are implemented for all students, across all school settings, by all staff, at all times. This continuum of support ensures students’ academic and social outcomes.

All student behaviour expectations are founded on our three school rules that are:

School Spirit Awards will be presented to the following students at this Friday's assembly:

At St John’s there is an ongoing commitment to the professional development of staff. Throughout the school year staff engage in professional learning aimed to further develop their knowledge, understanding and skills in providing quality learning experiences to support the needs of students in their class and the school.

As a systemic catholic school, the Catholic Education Office also provides professional learning, requiring school representatives to be in attendance. The systems strategic plan informs professional learning delivered and includes matters of compliance and policy implementation.

All teachers must to be accredited with the New South Wales Education Standards Authority (NESA). Accreditation requires ongoing maintenance in which a teacher demonstrates how their practice continues to meet the Australian professional Standards for Teachers. The maintenance period for teachers working full time is 5 years and includes 100 hours of professional learning to support their practice and ongoing professional growth.

Therefore, teachers across the school will attend professional learning opportunities as a requirement of their employment. Every attempt is made to ensure consistency with replacement teachers, but this is a daily challenge and at times the availability of casual teachers, across the system of schools, impacts on our efforts.

The following staff will be attending professional learning:

Thank you to all those families who have finalised their fees for Term 2 and 2019.

NAIDOC Week 2019 will be held nationally from Sunday 7 July and continue through to Sunday 14 July which is during the school holidays. St John’s will be celebrating NAIDOC week before the school holidays and so we would like to warmly welcome our community and invite you to our NAIDOC week liturgy on Monday 1st July at 1:50pm in the hall.

This year's NAIDOC 2019 theme is Voice - Treaty - Truth. The reforms set out in the Uluru Statement from the Heart can be expressed in three key goals:

Voice – Treaty - Truth

Naidoc Week 2019 takes inspiration from these three aims which represent the hopes and dreams of First Nations Australians. 

During NAIDOC, we remember in our thoughts and prayers the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of our country and celebrate their rich cultures and inspiring contributions to Australia.

This initiative from Overdrive allows all students (and staff) to borrow any title from the Chill Out and Read Collection until 15th August. The Collection appears at the top of the page from the Explore tab. Each title can be borrowed by all 250,000 students in our Inter Diocesan group (called ACEN) at the same time until 15th August.

To access these ebooks you will need to Download the Sora App from the App Store: (tip: if you search for the app, type Sora by OverDrive)
https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/sora-by-overdrive/id1376592326?mt=8

This video tutorial will help you setup and use Sora.
http://overdrivedow.weebly.com/getting-started.html

The Parents and Friends Association will be holding a school disco on Thursday 4 July. For children in K-2, the disco will take place between 4:30 – 6:00pm and for Years 3-6 from 6:30-8:00pm. The cost is $5.00 per child and includes a drink and snack. The disco is for students enrolled at St John’s only.

Parent helpers are needed to assist with supervision at both discos. Please contact Jodie Maloney - 0404 846 106 or Therese Ly - 0405 200 819 if you can offer support.

On Friday 5 July we will be having a mufti day to support i98FM Illawarra Convoy. This year Charlene Ebbs and Baz Rodgers will be raising funds for "Team Dandaloo Boys" by participating in a fundraising cycling event. Charlene will be cycling 300km and Baz 1000km to raise money to support families of the Illawarra suffering from life-threatening illnesses. All students K-6 are encouraged to wear mufti (casual clothing) with sports shoes on the day in exchange for a gold coin donation. Students who own Convoy merchandise are welcome to wear it on the day. We look forward to your support.

Did you know that more than 116,000 Australians experience homelessness on any given night of the year? The face of homelessness is changing and now sadly encompasses an increasing number of women, families and children.

44% of those experiencing homelessness are women, and more than 17,000 children in Australia under the age of 12 do not have a stable place to call home.

As we begin our winter season, we're reminded that the needs of our communities often grow during these colder months. Sadly, a number of members of our school communities have experienced and continue to experience degrees of homelessness that impact significantly on the wellbeing of families and students in our care.

You can help make a difference.

This year, representing our educational community will be CEDoW’s Head of Service, Catholic Life, Education and Mission, Ken Bryant. Ken will be joining leaders from around Australia to take part in the 2019 Vinnies CEO Sleepout on 20 June, raising awareness and vital funds to support services for the thousands of men, women and children experiencing homelessness across the country.

This is the second time Ken has participated in the CEO Sleepout, and the fifth year the Diocese has been involved in the event - raising more than $32,000 to date.

It is up to all of us to respond to homelessness and help the most vulnerable in our society from becoming another statistic.

You can support Ken’s night out in the cold by DONATING HERE. 

With donations open until Wednesday 31 July, Ken hopes to raise $5,000 to contribute to the collective Wollongong CEO Sleepout fundraising target of $200,000 – there’s a way to go, but we know our community is up for it!

Please visit CEO website to find out how your CEO Sleepout donations help local Vinnies’ services.

Thank you for your support.