Dear Parents and Carers,

I’m confident that you have read the earlier Compass alert from the Director of Schools regarding my principalship at St John’s. I have included the announcement below to ensure that all members of the school community are informed.

It is quite a time of mixed emotions for me, as the Director’s announcement is now made known to the school community; I have loved my six years as principal at St John’s. Together, we have achieved so much, working in partnership for the betterment of our school community. Thank you for your support, trust and respect shown to me throughout my principalship. It has been an absolute honour and privilege to lead such a wonderful school community, for which I am deeply grateful.

I’m delighted that Mr Downes has been appointed Acting Principal for 2023, a well-deserved acknowledgment of his leadership over many years as Assistant Principal. Further announcements will be communicated regarding the school leadership team in the coming weeks. 

School Enhancements

New school identity signage will be installed over the student vacation period to further enhance the visual presence of the school within the community. Considerable work has been undertaken in the planning and designing of the new signage and will include, gate numbering to more readily direct visitors and deliveries to the school administration.

A new shade area will also be constructed early in Term 1 2023 on the Fr Ward Playground. Currently, the seating area in this playground offers no sun protection and new shade will not only be an area for students in the summer months but also greatly enhance the playground area. Through their fundraising initiatives, the P&F will be making a significant contribution to the cost of the new shade area.

New School Bag

A new school is now available for purchase from Poppet's School Wear and very soon Lowes, Dapto Mall. The cost of the bag is $65.00 and is of high quality and features our school crest. For your convenience, a sample bag is on display in the school office. The school bag is optional but encouraged as a more cost-effective and long-term option for families.

Yours sincerely
Andrew Heffernan
Principal.

Always remember to love one another.
Mary MacKillop (1888)

Second Week of Advent begins Sunday 2nd December

The second Sunday of Advent gives us the opportunity to prepare our hearts in faithful waiting, celebrate the birth of Jesus, and ready ourselves for his second coming. The second candle is lit on this day along with the first candle. It is the Bethlehem candle, reminding that Jesus was born in Bethlehem.This week, we pause to remember who God is and what He has done for us. As we prepare our hearts for the celebration of Jesus’ arrival as a gift to all humanity, let’s stir up in our hearts and homes a sense of anticipation. May God’s spirit transform the days leading up to Christmas into a time of holy anticipation; preparing our hearts, as we faithfully await the chance to celebrate the arrival of our king.

Third Week of Advent begins Sunday 9th December

The third Sunday of Advent is traditionally called Gaudete Sunday. Gaudete is the Latin word for rejoice, and this Sunday is the time for us to rejoice because Jesus came and died so that we may live forever with him! We are invited to reflect on the joy we have access to because of our faith in Jesus. The tradition for the third Sunday of Advent includes lighting a third pink candle, as a symbol of joy. This third Sunday of Advent we read, pray, and reflect on the joy that God’s plan gives us (foretold by the prophets and fulfilled by the life and death of Christ), and we meditate on the promise of Christ’s coming glory-filled return.

The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Feast Day 8th December
This day celebrates the conception of the Virgin Mary in the womb of her mother, Saint Anne. The feast day does not have any special relationship with Advent. It was fixed on December 8 in order to separate the feast by nine months from the date of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin (Mary’s birthday) on September 8. However, in celebrating this feast we may easily enter into the spirit of Christmastide, for Mary draws us ever closer to her son, Jesus. Mary is our hope, guide, and mother along the path of salvation.

Vinnies Christmas Appeal

We encourage families to donate items to the Vinnie’s Christmas Appeal by Friday 9th
December 2022.
 
Items to bring in:

Staff
Serviettes / Napkins / Bon Bons 

Gunyah
Tinned fruit

Kinder
Christmas Cakes / Christmas Pudding / Mince Pies 

Year 1
1B — Sweet Biscuits — shortbread, scotch fingers, wafers, ginger biscuits, etc.
1G — Savoury Biscuits — Jatz, Ritz, Sakatas, Shapes, Cheese Twists, etc.
1R — Cake/muffin/pancake mix / Packets of Jelly 

Year 2
Chips / Lollies

Year 3
Chocolates — Christmas stockings, Block chocolate, Box chocolate 

Year 4
4B — Long Life Custard
4G — Spreads — Nutella / Honey / Jam / Maple Syrup / Vegemite 
4R — Pretzels / Rice Crackers / Nuts

Year 5
Tea Bags / Coffee / Hot Chocolate Mix / Cocoa Mix / Marshmallows 

Year 6
Drinks — Cans / Bottles / Cordial / Poppers 

Thank you for supporting St Vincent de Paul and the wonderful work they do.

Christmas Concert

Our Christmas Concert will be held on Wednesday 14th December at 1pm in the COLA. Students are encouraged to wear Christmas Mufti on the day. We look forward to seeing you at the concert.

Dates for your diary

• Fri 2nd Dec – Reconciliation (Half of Year 4)
• Sun 4th Dec – 2nd Sunday in Advent
• Thurs 8th Dec – The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Feast Day
• Fri 9th Dec – Reconciliation (Half of Year 4)
• Thurs 8th Dec – Year 6 Graduation Liturgy 5:30 pm
• Sun 11th Dec – 3rd Sunday in Advent
• Wed 14th Dec – Christmas Concert in the COLA 1:00 pm
• Fri 16th Dec – Whole School End of Year Mass 9:30 am

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.

Renee Maguire
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 – Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Safe.

The school fees for 2023 have been approved by Bishop Brian Mascord and all fees will be billed at the end of January 2023:

Tuition Fees

The Primary tuition fee (per annum) for 2023 is: $1,781 per family.

SEDSO Building Levy

The SEDSO Levy (per annum) for 2023 is: $1,187 per family.

Resource Fees

The Resource Fee (per student) for 2023 will be:

• Kindergarten - $180
• Years 1 and 2 - $170
• Years 3 to 6 - $190

Additional Costs

The following are additional costs (per student) for 2023:

• Sport Levy - $20
• Life Education - $7
• Kindergarten Excursion - $44
• Year 1 Excursion - $35
• Year 2 Excursion - $45
• Year 3 Excursion - $35
• Year 4 Excursion - $47
• Year 5 Excursion - $7
• Year 5 Camp - $352
• Year 6 Canberra - $220
• Year 6 Excursions - $97 (Jamberoo $65, Mass with Bishop $16, Activate Fire $16)
• Year 6 Jersey - $46.00
• Year 6 Leadership Program - $13.00

School Fees are invoiced to families at the beginning of each year and are due 30 days from the date of invoice.  Families may choose to pay the total when they receive their invoice or alternatively take up the option to pay by instalments over the school year.  

Should you wish to pay by instalments a Request To Pay By Instalment form which must be completed can be emailed directly to instalments@dow.catholic.edu.au or lodged at the school office.

If you have already completed a form and have instalments listed on your fee statement then you do not need to complete another form.

IMPORTANT:  Please note that if you currently have a child or children at another school in the Diocese and you are paying by instalments at this location, you will not need to complete another Request to Pay by Instalment.  The instalment request carries over from school to school with the same frequency of payment e.g. Weekly, fortnightly, Monthly or Quarterly.

Student learning progress is formally reported to parents and carers on Wednesday 7 December (Week 9), via the Parent Portal in Compass. Please ensure that you have the app downloaded and up to date on your device.

The Kindergarten to Yr. 6 Semester 2 reports, are standards-referenced, which in NSW means reporting based on the Common Grade Scale. Standards-referenced reporting requires teachers to consider the performance of each student according to the standard detailed at each level (A-E) of the Common Grade Scale for each Key Learning Area (KLA). Students are then awarded a grade based on the evidence teachers have of their learning in that particular KLA and the standard it reflects. According to the Common Grade Scale a ‘C’ grade is considered sound. That is, if awarded a C in a particular KLA the student has demonstrated that they have gained the knowledge, skills and understanding expected of them at that point in time.

The Common Grade Scale

The Common Grade Scale describes performance at each of the five grade levels.

OTHER REPORT FEATURES INCLUDE:

Overall grades

Each KLA has an overall grade that is determined by the teacher following consideration of the evidence of each student’s learning and the standard on the Common Grade Scale that it reflects. Overall grades are not determined by averaging student performance in strands within a KLA. It is not unusual for a student’s overall grade to change from one reporting period to the next, as the knowledge, skills and understanding they encounter in each KLA will vary from one reporting period to the next. The Common Grade Scale is a feature on your child's report.

Commitment to Learning

Commitment to Learning captures the student’s attitude to the particular KLA and their skills in managing their work, persisting when challenged and working to their potential. A scale explaining the three standards used in Commitment to Learning is also included with their report.

Parents and carers are reminded that the area surrounding St John’s is designated as a School Zone. Police and Council Rangers constantly patrol the area and they will have no hesitation in prosecuting drivers for driving offences.

All NSW school zones are sign-posted with regulatory signs that list the operating times of the school zones. 

For the safety of all, please ensure that you adhere to the signage and follow the directions of our School Crossing Supervisor. Please show consideration and patience for others while picking up your child/ren.

Full list of School Zone offences are available from the RMS website.

The Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) Lighting the Way Faith and Learning Recognition Awards acknowledge the outstanding efforts of individual staff in schools and the Catholic Education Office who, in the course of their work, have been exemplary in one or more particular areas of educational endeavour.

Proudly supported by the Catholic Development Fund, the awards promote the value of professional and personal accomplishment in the ministry of Catholic education, celebrating excellence, passion, dedication of service, a love of work, and a commitment made to young people. 

Congratulations Jo Ball on receiving the CEDoW award for 'Engaging and working with the community'.

Dear Parents/Carers

The safety and wellbeing of students is always our first priority. This includes protecting their privacy and respecting the wishes of parents and carers regarding the use of student photos, images and works at all times.

At the start of each school year, you are asked to complete a paper form to provide your consent for images of your child to appear in various places (e.g. in school newsletters, social media and promotional material).

From 2023, this form will become digital and will be shared with you as an event in Compass. In the same way that you provide consent for your child to attend an excursion, you will now be able to simply reply to a Compass event to provide (or decline) consent related to the use of your child’s image or works. 

What do you need to do?

During the Christmas vacation period, you will receive a new image consent event in Compass. Please read the details of the event carefully, discuss it with your child, and once you have made your decision, either provide your consent or decline to provide consent.

To ensure that no child misses out on having their photo taken as part of school life, we will occasionally send reminders to parents and carers who have yet to complete the event.

If you have any questions about this change, or the image consent form in general, please contact the school and we will be happy to discuss this further with you.

Over the holiday break all students, Kindergarten to Year 5, are invited to take part in the Holiday Reading Challenge. Reading is a very important and necessary skill that we use every day.  It is a skill that we use when reading books and magazines, watching TV, shopping and playing games. When children stop reading for extended periods of time they often take a few steps backwards. This school initiative is intended to help maintain student reading abilities and continue to foster their love of reading over the Christmas holidays.

By participating in the Reading Challenge your child will be practising the skill of reading on a regular basis, reinforcing good reading habits. Parents and carers are encouraged to help their children find fun and interesting books, fiction and non-fiction.  It is important for your child to read aloud to someone and just as important for them to listen and enjoy stories being read to them. 

Next week, children in Kindergarten to Year 5, will be provided with a Holiday Reading Log. Children are encouraged to record the time they spend reading during the holidays into the Holiday Reading Log. Early in 2023, Diamond, Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards will be presented based on the number of hours spent reading. 

We all know that reading is one of the most important fundamental skills children must master to succeed; almost everything we do involves reading of some form. Hopefully, this challenge will help motivate your child to continue reading on a regular basis during the holiday break.

Matthew Downes
Assistant Principal

* We would love parents, carers and family to join us for these events.

Through the Parent and Friends Association, it has been decided that from next year an optional school bag will be available for families to purchase. The bag will cost $65.00, comes with a lifetime warranty and can be purchased from Poppets School Wear and coming to Lowes soon. It is navy blue in colour, with light blue piping and features the school crest. Manufactured by Spartan, it is a high-quality, lightweight school bag that will last for the duration of a student’s primary school years. A sample bag is on display in the school office.

As the term draws to a close, the children become increasingly excited about the approaching Christmas season. At school, it is important that we keep firmly focused on learning and maintain our school routines throughout Term 4. When Christmas cards, candy canes arrive too early, the children tend to ‘switch off’ from their learning. While it is acknowledged that children love to share the spirit of Christmas with their friends, it can be quite disruptive and unsettling for the children, particularly when a child does not receive a card. It is for this reason, and in keeping with the season of Advent, Christmas cards are not to be brought to school until Monday 12 December. This will give the students time to exchange cards and share this special time with school friends. Thank you for your understanding and support.

The students of 1R created some artwork for Sister Narelle last week when she celebrated her birthday, she came for a visit, they sang happy birthday, and she stayed for a chat. They also did some great artwork on the Angel Gabriel visiting Mary.

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