Phone: 6882 - 2677

6882 - 2653

Fax: 6884 - 4500

VISION STATEMENT

St John’s Primary School strives to foster a community of faith that is centred on the teachings of Christ, where

love and concern develops the whole child, empowering each individual to realize his/her potential.

Term 3 Week 9 7th September, 2015

ST JOHNS PRIMARY SCHOOL NEWSLETTER

www.stjohnsprimarydubbo.catholic.edu.au

138 Sheraton Road

P.O. Box 4914

S C H O O L M A N A G E R F a t h e r G r eg Ken n ed y

S C H O O L C H A P L A I N F a t h e r G r eg Ken n ed y

P R I N C I P A L M r . A n t h on y O ’ L e a r y

A S S I S T A N T P R I N C I P A L M r . A d am F o l e y

R E C M r . D a v i d S c h w ag e r

PRIMARY COORDINATOR

Mrs. Angela Benton TEACHING STAFF:

KINDERGARTEN Mrs. Teagan Hoper. Mrs. Karyn King / Mrs. Sarah Davis

Mrs. Maria Brice

YEAR 1

Mrs. Kim English/Mrs. Paula Clifford Miss Louise Lindsay

YEAR 2 Mrs. Gabrielle Jones/Mr. David Schwager

Mrs. Michelle Noonan

YEAR 3

Miss Anna Veech Mrs. Angela Benton/Mrs. Amanda Shields

YEAR 4 Mrs. Judith Gibson/Mrs. Aimee Rose

Ms. Carmel Reidy/Mrs. Paula Clifford

YEAR 5

Miss Emma Bolton Mrs. Katrina Isbester

YEAR 6 Miss Maddie Redden Mrs. Mickaela Wright

SPECIAL EDUCATION: Mrs. Patricia Toohey, Mr. Adam Foley

Mrs. Amanda Shields. Mrs. Deanna Swanson

TEACHER’S AIDES: Mrs. Harper, Mrs. Sissian, Mrs. Duncan

Mrs. Amoranto, Mrs. Montague, Mr. Thomas, Mrs. Campbell, Mrs. Scott, Mrs. Mehta and Mr. Doolan

LIBRARIAN: Mrs. Maree Williams

ABORIGINAL EDUCATION WORKER:

Miss Kristie Daley.

CREATIVE ARTS:

Mrs. Maggie Dunn SCHOOL SECRETARY:

Mrs. Margo Green CANTEEN MANAGER:

Mrs. Cathy Dries

GENERAL HAND :

Mr. Mark Bradford CLEANER: Mrs. Kerry Iverach

P&F MEETINGS: 3rd Tuesday every month PARENTS/GUARDIANS Please note that photographs of students may be used in this publication. Please advise the School if you do not approve of your child’s photo being used.

From the Principal’s desk…

Welcome to Week 9. I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend and for those who could,

enjoyed celebrating with their Dads. My Dad is away

at the moment chasing the Northern Sunshine, so I

reflected not only on how lucky I am to have such a

great Dad, but also the other significant male role

models I have had. From my Martial Arts coach,

League coaches and mentors at work etc. I have been

very fortunate. But some of my of most cherished

memories are about my Grandfather Jim O’Leary. He was a great man, a farmer and Dad,

Father’s Day is much more than just Fathers. I often think of the adage of walking in the

footsteps of others who went before us. This certainly applies to Father’s Day. A huge

note of thanks must go to the P&F and dedicated staff that put together the Father’s Day

Breakfast last Friday. A huge roll up – THANKYOU!

Just a reminder that the next P&F meeting is tomorrow commencing at 7:00pm.

You will be made to feel very welcome at the meeting.

This week is a significant week for our school as we host the Bathurst Diocese Christmas

Art competition. Our hall will transform into a gallery of excellent student made art. We

will also be celebrating a Liturgy with Bishop Michael in attendance. The aim of

competition is engaging students with Scripture in a

creative way, participants in the competition were

asked to reflect on a number of Advent and Christmas

verses from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke for

inspiration for their art. The art will be open to the

Public from on Friday , Monday and Tuesday.

Bishop Michael has once again made an appeal in support of the dedicated Retired Priests in our Diocese. To that

end, fliers have been prepared for distribution through our parishes and Diocesan Schools. Parents will be able to

complete and forward donations in a number of ways listed on the flier. The Bishop has asked that we reflect upon

the following key points:

Provision for aged and infirm priests is the privileged responsibility of the faithful, to whom these men have

given their lives;

Having borne the heat of the day in pastoral service, their modest needs should now be addressed with

dignity and respect;

With 13 priests currently retired and a further 3 reaching the age of 75 or over by 2020, the need is obvious;

and Acknowledging that these men have journeyed with parishioners and their loved ones in joy and in

sorrow, financial support for them can be an expression of gratitude by all those whose lives they have

touched.

Weekend of 6 September 2015 - 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time | Year B Mark 7:31-37

Returning from the district of Tyre, Jesus went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, right through the

Decapolis region. And they brought him a deaf man who had an impediment in his

speech; and they asked him to lay his hands on him. He took him aside in private, away

from the crowd, put his fingers into the man’s ears and touched his tongue with spittle.

Then looking up to heaven he sighed; and he said to him, ‘Ephphatha,’ that is, ‘Be

opened.’ And his ears were opened, and the ligament of his tongue was loosened and

he spoke clearly. And Jesus ordered them to tell no one about it, but the more he

insisted, the more widely they published it. Their admiration was unbounded. ‘He has

done all things well,’ they said ‘he makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.’

Reflection: There is great symbolism in the Jesus’ curing of the man who was deaf and who had a speech

impediment. Jesus opened the man’s ears and loosened his tongue so he could speak. Hearing and speaking go

together in the mission of Jesus. Prayer and spreading the good news should be inseparable. In his last interview

before he died in 2012 Cardinal Carlo Martini of Milan made some statements that caught media attention around

the world. The statements that interested the media were only a few; they were not interested in his other

observations, which included these beautiful sentences:

“The Word of God is simple, and seeks out as its companion a heart that listens. ...”

“We need to be with people who burn in such a way that the Spirit can spread itself everywhere.”

For sure, the man whose ears were opened listened intently to everything around him, including the voice of

Jesus. The Word of God seeks a heart that listens – that heart has to be open to hearing, without preconceptions

or attitudes which will filter out the Word of God.

All the best of luck to our Year 6 students who will be showcasing the results of their research into notable people

this week. Having visited their classrooms over the last few weeks, I have been most impressed with their research

techniques. The highlight this year will be the use of technology in the displays. Well done Year 6 and their won-

derful teachers.

Congratulations to our students who performed at a very high level at the Polding Athletics Carnival last week.

Beth Clarke, Elle Mulholland, Kayla Strudwick, Lily Crowley and Bianca Simpson have all made it through to the

State Carnival and will be representing the Polding team. What a great effort.

This week I would like to introduce to our school community as relieving AEW Miss Kristie Daley, and Mr. Isaac

Doolan as class aide. Welcome to St John’s Primary School.

Wishing you all a wonderful week.

Anthony.

Important Dates to Remember.

8th September - P & F Meeting 7pm - Everyone welcome.

9th September - Year 6 Night of the Notables in the Year 6 Classrooms.

10th –16th September - Christmas Art Exhibition - School Hall.

16th September - Year 2 Mass- St Laurence’s Church. (full winter uniform please)

COMBINED CATHOLIC SCHOOLS FEES & FAMILY SUPPORT OFFICE We are in the process of finalising the preparation for the Term 3 statement run. You should receive yours in the mail the first week of September. Please open and check your statement and if you have any concerns please ring or email me. It is also a good idea to check against your bank statement. We do not keep copies of statements. Therefore, it is very important that you file in a safe place for future reference.

Yr 12 must be cleared by Graduation Date unless you are on an approved payment plan.

Remember, you now have the option to pay by BPay. If you currently pay by direct deposit from your end you might consider transferring to BPay. Your BPay reference for your individual account is shown at the bottom of your statement. The BPay Biller Code is 178103.

If you are still to do your latest Tax Return, please be reminded that the Capital Works Levy cannot be claimed on your tax as it is a Compulsory Levy.

Please also be advised that this office will be relocating to St John’s Primary in the near future whilst major building work is being undertaken on the Administration area of St Johns College. I will notify via the newsletter when this has happened. Phone, fax and email contacts will remain the same.

If you are experiencing any sort of difficulty meeting your fees commitments it is very important that you let me know as soon as possible. All contact of this nature is confidential.

Regards

Karen Meredith k.meredith@bth.catholic.edu.au Manager 6882 6152

Religious Education News Term 3 Week Nine 2015

2015 Christmas Storytelling-

Art Competition and Diocesan Exhibition

From Thursday 10th September to Tuesday 15th Sep-

tember, St John’s Primary School will be hosting the

annual Diocesan Christmas Storytelling Art Exhibi-

tion in our school hall.

This exhibition and competition provides the opportunity for teachers to select Stage 3

artworks to share with the wider educational and international community. Participants

help to create a greater awareness of the essential role of the arts in Religious Education.

Students can also develop a deeper appreciation for their talents and recognise the value

of the arts in expressing understandings of our Catholic faith.

This Thursday, St John’s will be hosting the Opening of the exhibition with a liturgy and a

morning tea. Dignitaries attending include our Bishop Michael McKenna, Executive

Director Jenny Allen, Head of Religious Education Angelo Belmonte, Mayor of Dubbo

Matthew Dickinson and Pastor of our school Fr Greg Kennedy.

Parents are very welcome to come and view the artworks on Monday and Tuesday of next

week.

Kind Regards, David Schwager

POLDING ATHLETICS CARNIVAL 2015 Last Friday, 4th September, some of St John’s Primary schools talented athletes went to the Hunter Sports Stadium Newcastle to represent

our great school and the Diocese of Bathurst at the Polding Athletics Carnival.

Our students were competing against students from the other Polding Catholic Diocese’s of : Broken Bay, Maitland – Newcastle, Lismore,

Armidale & Wilcannia – Forbes. These Diocese make up the Northern half of NSW.

Notable performers at this carnival from St John’s Primary were

Bianca Simpson: 3rd 11 yr. Girls Shot Put.

Elle Mulholland, Kayla Strudwick, Beth Clarke & Lily Crowley : 3rd Sen Girls 4 X 100m Relay.

Beth Clarke, Elle Mulholland, Lily Crowley, Kayla Strudwick and Bianca Simpson.

These performances have earnt our athletes a place in the Polding Athletics Team which will compete at the NSW PSSA 2015 State Athletics

Championships at Sydney Olympic Park on the 14th & 15th October. Great work Girls, Train hard and have fun, we will all be cheering.

All of our Athletes that made the journey to Newcastle – Jamison Auld, Nick Peters, Annabelle Whiteley, Makayla McKeown, Isla Cole &

Bridie Morrow were fantastic representatives of our school and Diocese, well done.

Mr. Adam Foley—Sport Co-Ordinator.

Aboriginal Education Worker.

Hi, My name is Kristie Daley,

I would like to take the opportunity to introduce myself as the relieving AEW here at St John’s Primary.

I am a proud Wiradjuri woman and over the last eight years I have worked with indigenous youth in various roles.

My role at St John’s will be to support our indigenous students in the classroom and community and also to engage with

parents and community and to organize cultural events and activities.

Please feel free to call in anytime and introduce yourself to me, or call if you

would like to have a chat.

Regards Kristie.

6882-2677

WEEK 8 TERM 3 MERIT AWARDS

Congratulations to the following students who were presented with

Merit Awards at the Week 8 Term 3 School Assembly.

Kinder Gold. - Will Smith, Sneha Thapa.

Kinder Blue. - Andreas Rauca, Grace Ray.

Kinder Red. - Ashton Coe, Lachlan Andrews.

1 Gold. - Alex Funt, Naarah Childs.

1 Blue. - George Murphy, Ben Polley, Dusty Maskey.

2 Gold. -

2 Blue. - Caitlin Scott, Rori Miller, Christopher Greentree.

3 Gold. - Tori Kearns, Saxbii Shaw.

3 Blue. -

4 Gold. - Gemma Jackson, Charlie Smith.

4 Blue. - Sarah Marsh, Jack Walsh.

5 Gold. - Charlie Tudor, Shyanne Daley.

5 Blue - Blake Fox, Noah Smith.

6 Gold. - Samuel Harland, Xavier Ryan.

6 Blue. - Ashleigh Young, Zane Foley.

Students from St John’s Primary School recently achieved outstanding results when they participated

in ICAS this year. Those students were rewarded with Certificates of Merit, Credit, Distinction &

High Distinction.

Following are the results for the Writing examinations:

WRITING

Distinction Awards:

Yr 3: George Ashcroft

Yr 5: Jack Cowper

Yr 6: Julia Dickerson

Credit Awards:

Yr 5: Isabella Gibson, Keira Bussey

Eva Lordan

Yr 6: Jessica McCarthy

Merit Awards:

Yr 4: Ellie Driscoll

Sarah Marsh

Yr 5: Milla Polley

Participation Awards:

Yr 3: Jonas Bealing, Ella Graham,

Jiya Hapani, Lainey Hodges

Abby Osborne

Yr 4: Georgia Brydon

Eva Osborne

Yr 5: Caitlin Ashcroft, Indianna Bealing

Jade McKeown, Paige McMahon,

Emily Murray, Eoin Quigley, Makayla Tink

Yr 6: Mackenzie Davis, Claire Joshua,

Madalyn Sampson

Fathers day

Breakfast 2015

WOOLWORTHS EARN AND LEARN.

Please send your stickers in as this is the

final week.

Thank you to everyone who has been sending stickers in.

Canteen News Week 9

Pencils for Fruit and Veg month are still really popular. To win a pencil, children need to purchase fresh fruit or an item with salad on it (i.e. chicken burger with lettuce or a salad sandwich or a cheese and tomato toasty etc.). They will receive an entry form and a sticker.2 stickers gets you a pencil, with 7 colours to choose from. This promotion runs until the end of term. To help the kids along this week oranges are just 50c.

Thanks Cathy 0458550747

St John’s Primary

End of Year

Christmas Carols

Will be held

Monday 7th December 2015

COME AND JOIN THE CHRISTMAS COMMITTEE

TUESDAY 8th SEPTEMBER 2015

6pm Teachers Staff Room

Everyone Welcome. If you cannot make it but have ideas please

send to stjohnspandf@gmail.com

Father’s Day Breakfast Lucky Prize Winner.

Congratulations to Mr. Jaycen Huckel for being

the lucky winner of our Fathers Day Draw, and to

Mr. Simon Etcell for winning second place.

P&F Committee.

Community News

Community News