Dear Parents and Carers,

Thank you for your ongoing support as we continue to settle into the new school year. Right across the school, there is a settled and calm atmosphere with the children ready to engage in new learning. Kindergarten has been impressive in how quickly they adapted to the routines of ‘big school’. Tonight, an information meeting for kindergarten parents/carers will take place, in the school hall at 5:30 pm. In keeping with our COVID Safety Plan, only one parent/carer representative is permitted to attend.

It was an absolute pleasure to welcome parents and carers at the parent/carer information meetings last week. Thank you for making time to attend, listen to what is planned for the year ahead and allow us to showcase our beautiful new school facilities. Our school facilities are impressive and while there is still further work (landscaping, signage and playground equipment) to be undertaken, the children and teachers alike are thoroughly enjoying our new one campus school.

Last Friday, we officially commissioned our 2021 Student Leaders and Mini Vinnies Team with a special liturgy. Fr Francis warmly welcomed the Stage 3 students and teachers and reminded us all, that it has been almost 12 months since we have been able to gather in our parish church. As always, Stage 3 students were exceptional in how they engaged in the liturgical celebration, demonstrating a deep sense of prayerfulness and reverence.

Following the commissioning liturgy, refreshments were provided for the student leaders to acknowledge and celebrate this special day in the life of our school.

Sincere thanks to Fr Francis and Mrs Crowe for planning and organising the liturgy as well as Mr Downes and Mr Madaschi and the Stage 3 students for their prayerfulness and reverence. It was a beautiful way to induct the 2021 student leaders and commence the new school year.

Car lines in both Jerematta and Werowi Street offer a convenient and safe drop-off and pick-up for families. To maximise the benefit of this arrangement, there is a need for all parents/carers to adhere to road rules and our school practices, which have been developed with safety at the forefront of our planning. It is important that families accessing the convenience of car lines do so in a responsible and safe manner. Therefore, parents and carers are requested to;

• Display your family name upon approach.
• Follow the directions of staff at all times.
• Always move to the furthest most point in the designated drop-off and pick-up zone.
• Not queue, blocking traffic flow in surrounding streets and round-a-bouts.

Importantly, our school day ends at 2:40 pm. Presently, we have parents/carers parked in Jerematta and Werowi Street as early as 2:00 pm. Regular police patrols are intended to ensure the safety of all in and around school zones, if you are parked in a school drop-off and pick-up zone, you risk a substantial fine.

I strongly encourage parents and carers to arrive after 2:40 pm. All children will be supervised by staff, congestion is greatly reduced and there is a limited wait time.

To request a family nameplate, parents and carers are invited to complete the online form, by accessing the following link https://goo.gl/forms/L1KuKhqKB9Kj49wq1

Yours sincerely

Andrew Heffernan
Principal

“Seek first the poorest and most neglected of God’s vineyard.”
Mary MacKillop 1900

THE SEASONS OF LENT

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Church Season, Lent. The use of ashes on Ash Wednesday is an expression of our faith and a sign that we are asking God for forgiveness.  Lent is a time of prayer, fasting and giving to others. When we pray, we come closer to God so that we are better able to realise our baptismal promise to live justly as Jesus teaches us. Fasting helps us remember the needs of the poor, who often have no choice but to go without basic needs such as food, water and shelter. Giving to the poor, or ‘almsgiving’, is a sign of our commitment to justice. It reminds us of our blessings and allows us to give thanks for all that God has given us. As we move through Lent, preparing ourselves for Easter, the most important time in the Church’s calendar, let us remember Jesus’ messages of love and mercy, and ask God to bless us so that we can ‘Be More’ in our own lives and in the lives of others.

Stage 1 – Ash Wednesday Liturgy

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK

This year, Catholic Schools Week (CSW) will be held from 28 February - 6 March. The theme for 2021 is ‘Faith in the Future’. This theme is shared with dioceses across the country as together we celebrate 200 years of Catholic education in Australia.
Throughout Catholic Schools Week we reflect on the precious gift of Catholic education, we remember the intergenerational contributions that preceded us and that we continue to build upon. Since the very first Catholic school was established, countless children and young people have benefitted from the dedication and commitment of parents and staff in our Catholic schools.

Keep an eye out for further details of how we plan to celebrate this week, in a COVID safe manner, at St John’s.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION IN THE CLASSROOM

2 Red as part of their Visual Arts program, have been working hard on representing our school motto, Love One Another. They should be very proud of the wonderful crosses they have designed.

CELEBRATION OF THE EUCHARIST

Masses have resumed at normal times in our Parish but are still limited and therefore it is essential to register. This includes Christmas masses. 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 livestreamed 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:

On Friday 12 February, we celebrated a beautiful Liturgy with Father Francis and our Stage 3 students at which our student leaders were officially inducted. Congratulations to the following students:

School Captains - Libby & Will,
Vice Captains - Millie & Jacob,
SRC - Isla, Halle, Anaya, Tru, Dhyllen, Flynn, Riley, Matthew, Kye, Nash, Joel.
Sport Captains - (Ward) Martin, Dakota. (Joseph) Jacob, Emily. (McCabe) Roman, Mikayla. (MacKillop) Isacc, Zara-Jade.
Mini Vinnies: Charlotte, Sam, Ruhara, Ethan, Georgina, Evana, Phoebe, Lilly, Jacob, Ruby, Abbey, Catriona, Jessica, Oliver, Matilda, Cadence, Nayte, Miriam, Michaela, Mia, Evie, Reaghan, Cosmo.

We wish the following students good luck at the up and coming Diocesan sporting Trials:

• Will G 6G: AFL, Rugby League
• Cooper T 6B: Touch
• Quade S 5G: 11years Rugby League
• Oliver R 6B: Hockey
• Curtis McW 6G: Rugby Union
• Halle B 6G: Netball
• Emily H 6G: Soccer
• Jesse G 6G: Softball (Mackillop trials)

This is a reminder that school fees are due to be paid in full by 28th February 2021, unless you have entered into an agreement. Can all families please look at settling their accounts by the due date. Payments can be made via the Compass Parent Portal, BPAY or in person at the office. If you would like to discuss your account, please call the office on 4261 4611.

Whilst we appreciate parents contacting the office via phone to advise of a student absence, a note must still be produced within 7 days of the occurrence of the absence.  This can be completed on the Compass Parent Portal by adding an attendance note on your home screen. Failure to do so will result in the student absence being recorded as “unexplained or unjustified” in accordance with NSW Attendance Register requirements.  

Parents do not need to apply for an EXEMPTION FROM ATTENDANCE for absences of less than 10 school days.  A letter explaining the absence is required by the Principal and the child’s class teacher prior to leave being taken.

Planned absences for more than 10 school days require the completion of an EXEMPTION FROM ATTENDANCE form which is available from the school office or can be downloaded from the school webpage: www.sjddow.catholic.edu.au.  Please note, requests for absences of more than 10 school days during school terms will only be approved for exceptional or extenuating circumstances (this does not include extended absences due to illness). Absences granted by exemption will be included in the total student absences for the year. These protocols are in accordance with Department of Education and Catholic Education Office Policies.

If your child is required to leave school earlier than the afternoon dismissal times, there is no need to complete an attendance note on Compass, the office staff will action this for you.  Please provide a note to the class teacher advising of the time your child is being collected, the reason for their early departure and the name of the person collecting your child. Your child will be sent to the office at this time to await collection. Please be mindful of our recess and lunch times and try to collect your child outside these times as this can cause delays in ensuring your child is ready at the requested time.

Transport for NSW and Premier Illawarra have notified us that the moratorium period for students without an opal card, expired on Wednesday 10th February 2021.

Students that do not have a working opal card are required to pay a fare to travel to and from school on our buses. Students can apply for a Child/Youth opal card if their school opal card does not work or they have misplaced it. They can also use this card to pay their fare, or they can pay using cash.

Students that are not eligible for the free travel can apply for a student term card (current cost is $55) or use a Child/Youth opal card or pay cash.

Students without a working school opal card, term card, Child/Youth card or cash money will not be given travel and will be told to go to the school office for the school to organise parent contact.

PLEASE BE ADVISED that the School Opal card is only for travel to and from school on school days and doesn’t cover travel to After School Care, school excursions, sport and other activities away from school.

If students or parents have any questions regarding Opal cards and travel to/from school, they can contact Opal on 13OPAL (136725) or at www.opal.com.au

Thank you for your assistance.

Flexischools setup instructions

How to Cancel your order

The P&F Annual General Meeting will be held in the Library on Tuesday 23 February at 7 pm. The primary purpose of the P&F is to provide an opportunity for parents to be involved in the school through social events, fundraising and support for school initiatives.

At the meeting, all positions will be declared vacant and an election will take place. If any parent wishes to nominate themselves or someone else for any of the positions, please complete the form (link below) and return it to the school office by Friday 19 February addressed to the Principal. I look forward to seeing you all at the meeting.

The following dates have been planned as Staff Professional Development Days for St John’s this year. Being Staff Development Days they are pupil free days, so children do not attend school.

WANT TO WIN A $250 or $25 Fuel Gift Card?

Take the Transport for NSW Back to School Road Rules Quiz to go in the draw.

Click on the link to get started: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SCHOOLQ

This competition will close at midnight on 14^th March 2021. Winners will be drawn within 7 days.