Junior School News
From the Head of the Junior School
“GETTING TO KNOW YOU” MEETINGS
Next Monday or Tuesday, we invite you to meet with your son's teacher online to share any important information that will help us best support his learning. These short, 5-minute meetings are an opportunity for you to provide insights about your son (distinct from the Parent-Teacher meetings later in Semester 1, which will focus on his academic progress).
Bookings can be made via Sentral and close tomorrow (Friday 14 February) at 5:00 pm.
CONTACTING JUNIOR SCHOOL STAFF
To contact the Junior School, please call 9411 4733. On occasion, staff may need to reach out to you from their personal mobile phones; however, you are asked not to contact teachers via this method. All phone communication should be directed through the front office.
LEADERSHIP ROLES IN THE JUNIOR SCHOOL
Congratulations to the following students who have been recognised for their Leadership capacity and appointed to Class Captain, House Captain or House Vice Captain:
YEAR 6 CLASS CAPTAINS (for the term)
Archer Richardson (6 Blue), Cristian Fajardo (6 Green),
Dylan Fok (6 Red), Isaiah Byak (6 Gold)
YEAR 6 Treacy House (for the year)
Emilio Calcarao (Captain)
Daniel Tully (Vice Captain)
YEAR 6 Barron House (for the year)
Cristian Castorina (Captain)
Charlie Swete (Vice Captain)
YEAR 6 Purton House (for the year)
Archer Low (Captain)
Dante Mirenzi (Vice Captain)
YEAR 6 Rice House (for the year)
George Tchaprazian (Captain)
Cameron Librilla (Vice Captain)
YEAR 5 CLASS CAPTAINS (for the semester)
Maximus McDonald and Finn Treder (5 Blue), Jack Cross & Hugo Farmer (5 Red),
Aedan Taylor and Christian Tully (5 Green), Kent Sobey and Andrew He (5 Gold)
ENRICHMENT MATHEMATICS CLASSES
We are excited to introduce an Enrichment Mathematics class for Junior School students who have demonstrated a strong aptitude for Mathematics. From Week 5, Mr Makhoul (Year 5) and Ms Shaba (Year 6) will deliver a program designed to extend and challenge high-achieving students, providing them with opportunities to explore complex mathematical concepts, develop advanced problem-solving skills, and engage in deeper mathematical reasoning. The enrichment classes will foster a stimulating learning environment where students can collaborate, think critically, and apply their mathematical understanding to real-world contexts.
Students in the Enrichment Mathematics classes will move to Mr Makhoul and Ms Shaba’s classrooms for Mathematics lessons. Students in 6 Blue and 5 Red who are not participating in the Enrichment classes will be allocated to an alternate Mathematics classroom. You will be advised as to these changes. Please note, Ms Taylor, Ms Hodges and Mr Montgomerie’s Mathematics classes will be mixed ability (ie not ‘streamed’) and will continue to be differentiated to meet the diverse learning needs of the students in those classes.
Students have been selected based on an analysis of standardised assessments (Academic Assessment Services and Essential Assessment). Mr Makhoul and Ms Shaba will contact relevant students’ families on Monday by email.
Please contact your son’s classroom teacher if you have any questions.
OXFORD FALLS STUDENT COLLECTION AREA
Please ensure that you collect your son/s from the area indicated. Students are not permitted to walk to parents in the carpark due to the amount of traffic in the carpark at 2:20pm.
Students who have not been collected by 2:30pm will return to the college on the bus and will need to make their way home from there.
DATES FOR THE DIARY
Thank you for your ongoing support of the Junior School
Mrs Jill Greenwood - Head of Junior School
Junior School Sport
Fixtures
Please see attached this week's fixtures.
Thursday Sport
Swimming Carnival
Our Junior School House Carnival will take place tomorrow, Friday 14 February at Macquarie University Aquatic Centre and parental support and assistance IS greatly appreciated. Please use the following link to sign up. Thanks to the parents who have already signed up. https://forms.office.com/parenthelpers. Further information regarding the event will be shared to families this week.
Sport Choice 2025
This is a repost from last week to remind families to access Clipboard and complete their registrations.
The final draws and schedules for basketball, touch football, and softball are being finalised for the Term 1 IPSHA Saturday sport competitions.
New families should now have received a link to access Clipboard accounts. If you need assistance with this please reach out to myself, jbourke@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au or Merryn Dodd mdodd@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au
Please ensure your son's registration is completed in Clipboard before next week's trials. Registrations for Term 1 summer sports will close on Friday, 14 February. Winter sport registrations will open later this term.
Summer Sports Uniform
For the summer sports of basketball, touch football, and softball, students are provided with a playing shirt prior to the first match on Saturday 15 February.
For tennis, however, students are required to purchase the official playing shirt from the Uniform Shop.
Accessing Fixture Information via Clipboard
To stay up to date with training schedules and game fixtures, please ensure you regularly check the Clipboard app. Fixtures are accessible directly within the app, and any changes will be updated there as well.
Important Reminder: To receive timely updates and notifications regarding changes to fixtures or training sessions, please ensure:
Notifications are enabled both within the Clipboard app settings and on your mobile device.
You regularly review the app for any schedule updates.
Fixtures will be initially entered as UNCONFIRMED, by Thursday each week they will be CONFIRMED by opposition schools and a notification will be sent to families.
Please check clipboard regularly for any changes to the schedule.
Logging an Absence
If your son is unable to attend a Saturday fixture due to sickness or injury, you can log his absence directly through Clipboard by following these steps:
Log in to Clipboard using your parent account.
Navigate to the Calendar page.
Click on “Log an Absence” and follow the prompts to submit.
As a courtesy, please also email Mr Bourke at Jbourke@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au prior to the fixture, if possible by Thursday. For all other absences a request needs to be sent to Mr Bourke for approval.
For normal school day absences, please continue to follow the standard school process.
SPX App
If you haven’t already, please download and familiarise yourself with the SPX App.
Swimming Squad Training – Term 1, 2025:
Our swim squads are up and running again for 2025. Squads are open to any keen swimmer in the Junior chool who is aspiring to qualify for the IPSHA carnival later this term. Students wishing to take part are expected to attend majority of the sessions, as we strive to build a strong squad culture. Either Ms Proc (Senior Swimming Coordinator) or myself will be in attendance during each session.
For any new student wishing to join the swim squad training and for those wishing to continue, please complete the following form via the link:
https://forms.office.com/SwimSquadTraining
Training details:
7:10 am at Fitness First, Chatswood (24 Endeavour St, Chatswood)
Suitable swimwear, goggles and swim cap are all essential (no cap, no swim)
Students wear PE/ Pius Sports Uniform to the sessions. At 8:15 am the students are walked back to school by staff. They then change into school uniform. A snack/breakfast is also recommended at this point.
Training days/dates:
The Armidale School Rugby Carnival:
Thank you to those who have expressed interest in the Prep Rugby Armidale Tour. We appreciate your enthusiasm and support for SPX Rugby.
Based on our current numbers, we will now be opening an expression of interest for Year 5 students.
Below is the expression of interest. https://forms.office.com/ArmidaleTour
Depending on the level of interest, we may hold a trial next Thursday during sport to help determine the next steps. We appreciate your patience as we finalise these details. We are specifically looking to fill the following positions:
- 3x Forwards
- 2x Backs
Thank you again for your support, and we look forward to an exciting tour ahead.
Cross Country
The Junior School Cross Country will take place next Thursday at our Oxford Falls (OXF) campus. Students will also have the chance of training for their summer co-curricular sport.
The course will be set around the OXF campus, with support from staff and Year 10 students. Junior School students who meet the qualifying time will have the opportunity to represent the school at the IPSHA Carnival later this term at The King’s School—more details will be provided soon.
Additionally, morning squad training with the Senior School will be introduced following next week’s event. Further information will be shared soon. Training takes place at Beauchamp Park Oval.
Mr James Bourke - Junior School Sport Coordinator
Junior School Chess Competition
The NSW Junior Chess Competition is pleased to invite the SPX Junior School to take part in the 2025 Primary Schools Chess Teams Competition.
WHY CHESS?
There are tremendous benefits for children involved in the competition – new outlook, new friends, intellectual stimulation, improved concentration, a new reason to develop self-esteem.
To express your interest in Chess please complete the following form: https://forms.office.com/r/p4BcLMNYN6.
Registration closes 21 February. Further details will be shared regarding trials to select teams.
The competition takes place on Friday afternoons from 4:00 pm, during Term 2. Students compete in the competition, and it is the responsibility of the parents to transport them to various schools within the zone. Students are also required to attend training provided by the Sydney Academy of Chess on a Tuesday morning at 7:30 am in the Junior Resource Centre. Four teams will be entered into the competition, numbers are limited. Training begins, Tuesday 21 March at 7:30 am in the Junior Resource Centre. Once teams are selected, Clipboard will be opened for families to formalise their registration.
Mrs Elena Martin - Junior School Chess Convenor