Dear Parents and Carers

Thank you for your ongoing patience and support throughout Term 3 as we continue to provide a COVID safe and supportive school community. As challenging as this time has been for us all, learning has continued to be a strong focus and as Term 3 draws to a close, we have much to celebrate. 

This week we had planned to be relocating students into the newly refurbished classrooms however, unforeseen delays have meant that this will not be the case. A revised project completion date is yet to be confirmed by the contractor. Therefore there will be no changes in our school operational procedures and practices when school returns in Term 4.

Amalgamating the two campuses is a very exciting time for our school community and when we work together with a positive mindset, the transition will be relatively seamless. Teachers and support staff are working hard to prepare for the move as well as support all students (K-3) in preparing for the change. You too can assist by engaging in positive conversations with your children that will provide further reassurance.  

A comprehensive plan for the relocation of classes will be communicated to the school community once confirmed, early next term. At the same time, a new traffic management plan will be included, following consultation with Wollongong City Council, so as to improve congestion and traffic flow at peak times.

Yours sincerely
Andrew Heffernan
Principal

SACRAMENTS – FIRST HOLY COMMUNION

Congratulations to the 59 children from our school and parish who have just celebrated their First Holy Communion.

“Communion with Christ gives us our strength, our joy and our love.”

A reminder that Communion booklets were due last week. If your child has not handed theirs in, please do so as soon as possible. They can either be handed in at school or at the Parish Office.

SACRAMENTS – CONFIRMATION

Enrolment forms have been handed out to students in Year 6 wishing to make the Sacrament of Confirmation. Children must have made their First Holy Communion to be able to make this next Sacrament. Forms were due back last Friday. If you have not returned an enrolment form and you wish your child to make their Confirmation, please contact the Parish Office as soon as possible.

DIOCESAN CHRISTMAS ART STORY COMPETITION

Congratulations to all Year 5 and 6 students who have been working on the Diocesan Christmas Art Story Competition.

The Christmas Story Art Competition and Exhibition is an initiative of the Catholic Education Offices in Wollongong and Sydney, designed to celebrate and explore children’s creative and artistic ability in illustrating the Christmas story. This exhibition and competition provides the opportunity for Years 5 and 6 students to share with the wider community a greater awareness of the role of the arts in Religious Education. Children can develop deeper appreciation for their talents and recognise the value of the arts in expressing understandings of the Catholic faith. A written explanation of each artwork is also necessary.

Each school is allowed to submit 6 finalists. Congratulations to the following children chosen at St John’s:

CELEBRATION OF THE EUCHARIST

Masses have resumed at normal times in our Parish but are still limited to 100 parishioners at each mass. It is essential to register for weekend masses as we need to ensure that the maximum capacity is not exceeded. To register for mass please call or email the parish office.  Alternatively, you are able to register your interest to go to mass at the following link:  https://www.dow.org.au/registration

Once your interest to register for mass is received by the parish office, you will need to wait for confirmation that you can attend the mass.

Don't forget that you can also participate in one or more of the many online Masses live-streamed throughout our diocese. Check out our diocesan website for all the links.   

ADULT SPIRITUALITY

“Ripples: Inspired Voices, Treasured Stillness”

In response to the current Covid-19 situation, a significant initiative has been developed by the Catholic Education Office CLEM (Catholic Life, Education and Mission) team for staff and parents to support our ongoing personal spiritual formation. It is a new podcast series entitled ‘Ripples: Inspired Voices, Treasured Stillness’. Ripples seeks to offer a space where people can draw on the wisdom of a series of guest speakers and can experience some treasured stillness through meditation. New Episodes and Meditations are being added regularly. Practices like these create a ripple effect. They have the potential to impact the way we respond to family, friends, colleagues, to others in our world, to creation and to our loving God.

https://ripples.dow.catholic.edu.au/p/introduction-1588201803/

PRAYER INTENTIONS

We pray for all families in our school community who are in need of our prayers, as well as our country and world.

St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, pray for us.
St John the Evangelist, pray for us.

Kylie Crowe
Religious Education Coordinator

PB4L 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: Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Safe.

If you know that your child will not be returning to St John’s in 2021, would you please notify the school, in writing, as we require this information to assist with our planning for the new school year. 

School fee statements were sent home in Week 7. If you have not received your account, please contact the school office to request a copy. Accounts are due 30 days after the date of invoice, unless you have either a School Fee Agreement or Fee Concession/Deferment arrangement in place. Can all families please ensure they finalise their school fee accounts by the end of term 3. Payment can be made via BPAY or credit card. The Compass Parent Portal can be used to make credit card payments using the School Fees tab.

As previously communicated, the planned Term 3 pupil free day was postponed due to COVID-19 restrictions. Therefore, it has now been confirmed that Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 October will be pupil free days. All students (K-6) will return to school on Wednesday 14 October, Term 4.

During Term 3, the students of Stage 3 took part in the Annual My Place Writing Competition. This competition is presented by ALEA (Australian Literacy Educators’ Association) and the ACTF (Australian Children’s Television Foundation) and is open to all students across Australia.

The 2020 My Place Competition asked students to reflect on this moment in time and share their thoughts, observations and experiences through creative writing. The entries were shortlisted and then Nadia Wheatly, the author of My Place, judged on the winning entries.

It was very exciting to receive the news that Nadia Wheatly awarded 2^nd Place in the Special Education Category to Izaac of 5 Blue. Izaac received a selection of books from Walker Books and a copy of My Place signed by Nadia Wheatly. He was also awarded a $100 voucher for the Australian Children's Television Foundation shop.

Congratulations to Izaac on his fantastic achievement!

This event is a wonderful celebration of the spirituality and creativity of Year 5 and 6 students, highlighting the role of the arts in Religious Education, and provides an opportunity for the students to reflect upon their understanding and interpretation of the Scripture of Advent and Christmas from the Religious Education Curriculum.

Thank you to all of our artists who submitted their artworks —congratulations to all the entries. It has been a very difficult task to select only three from Year 5 and 6 to represent St John's at the DOW Christmas Story Competition to be displayed at the Wollongong Art Gallery in Term 4 (Open to the public on 13th Oct).

Congratulations to the 6 Finalists selected from Year 5 and 6, and the artworks that were shortlisted, you are all such great young artists. Well done!

Year 5 Finalists

Year 6 Finalists

Shortlist — Year 5

Shortlist — Year 6

A quick walkthrough of the MacKillop Building — nearing completion.

On Friday evening last week, after the First Communion Mass, a bracelet was found just outside the Church. If you or a family member has lost a bracelet, please contact Mrs Crowe.

To the following students who are celebrating their birthday in October — we wish you a very happy birthday and hope you have a great day.

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Dr Seuss

Tracey Scapin, Maree Kissell and Peta Idstein
Organising teachers

As we continue to ensure the safety of our students, staff and parents/carers during COVID, restricted access to the school grounds remains unchanged. The main pedestrian gate at the front of the school has a video camera and automatic opening function to reduce the wait time and further enhance security.

Please press the Intercom button to contact Reception to open the gate.

As the weather becomes warmer our collection of lost property becomes larger. Please take time this week to re-label your child’s clothing. The official date for the children to change over to summer uniform is Wednesday 14 October (Term 4 Week 1). The summer uniform may be worn prior to this date if the weather becomes warmer. Children must not wear a combination of both; rather it is either one or the other (summer or winter).

Thank you for your support.

Sports Uniform

There will be a few changes to sport uniform days for next term. These changes impact on Year 1 and Year 2. Sports uniform days for next term will be as follows:

Tuesday - Kindergarten, Year 3 and 2 Green
Wednesday - Year 5, Year 6 and 2 Blue 
Thursday - Year 1, Year 4 and 2 Red
Friday – Whole school

A reminder, school resumes on Wednesday 14 October

Have you considered volunteering your time at the School Canteen? The Canteen is run by parents, carers, friends and volunteers, with all profits going back into the school.

The Canteen requires volunteer helpers for:

• Thursday 22 October
• Thursday 29 October
• Thursday 19 November
• Thursday 26 November

If you are able to volunteer your time, please email Dana Norris norrisd02@dow.catholic.edu.au

Lake Illawarra Police District are urging the community to take extra care when securing their vehicles coming into the school holidays. When you leave your vehicle, even for a short period of time, close all windows, remove the keys from the ignition, lock all doors and windows. Ensure you have removed all property, especially mobile phones, iPads, laptop computers, wallets/purses, bags and money in the console. Use caution when taking goods to your motor vehicle in shopping centres, thieves watch you drop off items to your vehicle and steal them when you continue to shop. Report suspicious activity, people walking around trying door handle to find unlocked vehicles, and looking into windows. Tradespeople who are unable to remove items need to secure their tools and equipment in locked cabinets and /or fit a locked cabinet to their trays.

Surf Life Saving Illawarra are looking forward to welcoming students and their families back to Nippers this season! Due to the restrictions in place for community sport due to COVID-19, we know that Nippers will look different this season.

As always we would love for more people to join our iconic organisation.  If you could kindly promote our attached poster on your website/newsletter that would be greatly appreciated.

Surf Life Saving is a great activity for growing a child's confidence, knowledge and skills in the beach environment. Not only will children have fun and meet new friends, they will become part of an iconic organisation that has served the Australian community for over 100 years.

Surf Life Saving clubs are committed to keeping all members of the club safe, and we thank everyone for their continued support and understanding in these changing times.

We hope to see you on the beach this summer!