Junior School News
- From the Head of the Junior School
- Junior School Sport
- From the Junior Resource Centre
- Junior School Rehearsal Schedule
From the Head of the Junior School
NAPLAN
The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a Literacy and Numeracy assessment that students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 sit each year. NAPLAN assesses Literacy and Numeracy skills that students are learning through their regular school curriculum. Students sit assessments in Writing, Reading, Conventions of Language (Spelling, Grammar, and Punctuation) and Numeracy. The questions assess content linked to the Australian Curriculum: English and Mathematics.
If your son is in Year 5, please remember to send in a pair of headphones on the testing days.
For more information on NAPLAN 2024, click here https://www.nap.edu.au/naplan/for-parents-carers
A well-known 'Letter from a Principal' regarding NAPLAN has circulated for many years and I have adapted it here. You might like to take the time to read it to your son before he sits his NAPLAN assessments.
A Letter to all Students who sit NAPLAN this year:
Soon you will be sitting the NAPLAN assessments. All we ask is that you try your very best.
I’d like you to remember that these assessments are not a measure of what it is that makes you the valued person who you are. The people who have created these tests and those that mark them don’t know you as well as your teachers know you and certainly not the way your family and friends know you.
They don’t know that many children at St Pius X speak one or more languages other than English. They also don’t know that you may be a great singer and dancer or that you can play a musical instrument really well. They also don’t know how well you can draw beautiful pictures.
They don’t know that you have a sense of humour which can bring a smile to your friends’ faces and make them laugh or that they can rely upon you to support them when they need a kind and encouraging word. They wouldn’t know that you can write poetry and stories, play all types of different sports, and have interesting and enjoyable hobbies.
They also don’t know that you probably accept responsibility for taking care of your brothers or sisters from time to time. They don’t know that you have travelled to, or come from, fascinating places and had amazing experiences.
They don’t know how much you love spending time with your family and your close friends, and they won’t know how much you are appreciated and loved by them.
The NAPLAN test results give you some very specific information about yourself, but it can’t say everything about who you are and what you have achieved.
You are trustworthy, kind, and thoughtful and you try to do your best every day. Do they know that?
PAUL FLETCHER VISIT
Year 6 enjoyed a visit from Federal MP for Bradfield, Mr Paul Fletcher last Friday. Mr Fletcher explained our parliamentary system and answered some very insightful questions from Year 6. This was a fantastic way to introduce the students to what they are currently experiencing on their Canberra tour.
On Wednesday the 28 February, Year 6 students participated in a Chinese New Year presentation at the Sarto Centre. The amazing performers from Lion Dance Kids taught Year 6 students about the origins of Chinese New Year. They learnt about the various symbols used in the New Year Lion Dance. The presentation was incredibly engaging and fun. The educators allowed us to use the Lion Dance puppets and cymbals. This was a breathtaking experience, and we would highly recommend it to all Stage 3 students. We would like to thank Ms Lee and Lion Dance Kids for organising this experience.
by Nic Lindsell and Josh Hollier 6 Green
6 RED FINANCIAL LITERACY
Ms Shaba has been using an online financial literacy tool called BANQER with 6 Red as part of her commitment to acknowledging positive and responsible behaviour with positive reinforcement. As of 5 March, 6 Red has a total of $109,339 in their BANQER class economy – an incredible achievement! 56% of the class now own transportation, and this percentage is expected to increase over the remaining few weeks of term. 6 Red have also been busy completing financial literacy quizzes and purchasing transport insurance. The students are eagerly awaiting the release of the term deposit and employment modules in a bid to increase their net worth!
YEAR 6 CANBERRA TOUR | 6 – 8 MARCH
By the time you are reading this, our intrepid Year 6 students will be well into Day 2 of their tour of the nation’s capital. After an early start yesterday, students made their way to Canberra where they visited a number of significant attractions (each of the three coaches has a different itinerary) before making their way back to the motel for dinner and an early night. Venues and attractions on the tour include Mount Ainsely, Parliament House, the Institute of Sport, the Australian War Memorial, Yarralumla, ANZAC Parade, the National Museum of Australia, and Questacon.
Tonight, the staff and students are in for a very special treat – a tour of the city lit up for the Enlighten Festival.
Coaches are due back on Friday at 4:00 pm, but you will receive an updated time of arrival via the Pius App when the coaches are enroute. Make sure you have notifications turned on!
Can I please ask that you allow room for the students to get off the coach and get their bags. If you stay down near the sliding glass doors, your sons will come down to you. This alleviates a crush on the footpath as the students are trying to get their bags from underneath the coach. Thank you!
YEAR 5 BROKEN BAY CAMP
Preparations are well underway for our Year 5 Camp to Broken Bay. We know that Camp can be a source of anxiety for some students (and some parents). Rest assured that our team of teachers are very experienced tour leaders, and they know how to care for even the most anxious little campers.
If you think it would help, you might like to have a look at the website with your son: https://www.think-outside.com.au/broken-bay
OPEN DAY
On Saturday 16 March, we welcome hundreds of potential new families to the College. This is a wonderful day where we can showcase everything St Pius X has to offer. Every year, when I interview new families, they all talk about the wonderful young Junior School students who took them on the tour – how articulate and confident they were.
Tour bookings are essential via the college website and can be found below:
Student volunteers are also required for Open Day. The form to volunteer is found here
P&F COCKTAIL PARTY - THIS FRIDAY
The P&F Cocktail Party is a highlight of the St Pius X social calendar and an excellent way to make new friends and catch up with old ones. Click here to book your tickets asap!
HOMEWORK HELP
Available on Tuesdays at lunchtime in the Junior School.
ACADEMIC ANNEXE
Homework Help and study time in the Senior Resource Centre (Senior Library) on Monday – Thursday afternoons from 3:30 pm – 5:20 pm for students in Years 5 – 12.
JUNIOR SCHOOL SPORT
Congratulations to those students who competed so successfully for St Pius X at the IPSHA Swimming and Diving carnival on Tuesday and thank you to Mr Bourke who organised and hosted this wonderful day out for them. More details in Mr Bourke’s Sports wrap below.
JUNIOR SCHOOL BIBLE LITURGY
To avoid a clash with NAPLAN we have rescheduled the Junior School Bible Liturgy to Tuesday 9 April in Week 11.
DATES FOR THE DIARY
Thank you for your ongoing support of the Junior School.
Mrs Jill Greenwood - Head of the Junior School
Junior School Sport
FIXTURES 9 MARCH
CLIPBOARD APP
Please download and familiarise yourself with the Clipboard App. All updated fixtures and team information are conveniently found on these app. Thank you to the parents who have provided feedback about the accuracy of ‘notifications’ posted on a weekly basis. We have contacted the program provider and will have the issues corrected asap. In the meantime, please continue to refer to Clipboard for the most accurate fixture information, including times, venues and team placements.
ARMIDALE RUGBY
Thank you to those families who have expressed an interest in their son attending the Rugby Carnival from Friday 12 April to Sunday 14 April. It is a fabulous event with great history and tradition behind it. The carnival is a perfect opportunity for boys and their families to connect, bond, and enjoy all that Rugby has to offer. Further details will be shared in the coming days with families that have expressed interest. If you did not register but would like further details, please contact jbourke@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au.
IPSHA SWIMMING
This week the College represented at the IPSHA Swimming Carnival at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre (SOPAC). Following a very early start and a warm-up in the pool, several boys were straight into the water for their first few events. Whilst there is plenty of time in between races, as is often the case with these bigger meets, it was a great opportunity for the team to soak up the atmosphere and support their mates competing.
I was very proud of all swimmers who took part; they represented the College with distinction, with many achieving top four placings within their heats. Thank you to the parents/carers who attended to support their son as I am sure they valued your presence. Whilst no boy progressed to the next round, all boys gave their best effort and took plenty from the experience. We congratulate the following boys for their commitment on the day.
IPSHA CROSS COUNTRY
A reminder that the IPSHA Cross-Country Carnival is on 1 April at The King’s School, Pennant Hills Road, North Parramatta, commencing at 7:30 am until 12:30 pm. Boys who are in with a chance of competing at this event have been informed. A final squad will be announced next week.
THURSDAY SPORT
REGISTRATION OF WINTER SPORT
For those families that still need to finalise their Winter Sport Registration, this needs to be completed asap to confirm your son’s place. Can this please be addressed as soon as practically possible. If you have any issues completing this process, please contact Mr James Bourke jbourke@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au.
CO-CURRICULAR CLASHES
A reminder that if there is a clash with Co-curricular sessions, students should prioritise all other commitments before morning sports training sessions. Missing training sessions due to other school commitments will not impact on team selection. Please also log the clash as an absence in Clipboard, to assist with keeping accurate attendance data.
Basketball
Touch Football
Softball
Mr James Bourke - Junior School Sports Coordinator
COERVER Football Camps
In preparation for the Football season, the College is offering a St Pius X student only COERVER Camps.
ST PIUS X APRIL HOLIDAY CAMPS
Monday 15 - Thursday 18 April
9:00 am - 12:00 noon each day.
Bus transport to and from is available with details provided in link prior to registration.
Active Kids Vouchers accepted.
Age : 9 - 16
Coerver Coaching holiday camps offer a fun filled soccer experience for children aged 9-16 years. Each day will include Coerver® SKILLS competitions and challenges, Ball Mastery, Coaching sessions focusing on developing effective use of skill, small sided Coerver® Games, and mini Coerver Cup Tournament to keep players active.
TECHNIQUE
The cornerstone of our curriculum is technical development. We utilize the Coerver® Method of ball mastery and graduated pressure to build technical competence and play carefully selected games to build functional success.
PLAYER CONFIDENCE
We foster creativity by providing the players technical building blocks & encouraging creative actions in developmentally appropriate games. Our games are designed to be fun, challenging and to reward success and risk-taking.
TEAMWORK
Small group tactics and principles of play are taught in attack and defence by utilizing the structure of the many small sided games, which have made the Coerver® Curriculum so unique and recognised as the world’s leading technical football program.
SPORTSMANSHIP
We value winning but not more than character and effort. We encourage paying respect to players, parents, coaches and referees. Sportsmanship is emphasized to develop the whole person and not just the player.
With 2, 3 and 4 day options available, this is the perfect pre and early season preparation for St Pius X students looking towards a successful season. It is also a huge amount of footballing fun!
Bookings can be made using the following link: Coerver course | Coerver Coaching
Mr Simon Yue - Senior Football Convenor
NSTA Tennis
We are only at Week 3 and already big improvements can already be seen. Alex Seifert, Thomas Shoudra and Daniel Thomson (SPX 30) were pretty evenly matched with Xavier Korkor, Connor Huynh and Nathan Hon with both teams finishing on 13 games each. These boys had some amazing rallies and should be very proud of themselves. Micah Chan and Henry Auer (SPX 2) dominated the match winning 18 games to 1 against SPX 24.
A few spots of rain didn’t stop play at 10:00 am and some great matches and excellent sportsmanship was shown by all. The Anderson twins, Cooper and Spencer, (SPX 4) went down in the doubles but fought back to win both singles. Spencer’s match coming down to a tie break where he won 7-4. Aiden Chan and Ryan Chung (SPX 8) played some excellent tennis winning 18 games to 7 against SPX 9.
Thank you to our umpires last week Yuri Kim, Lucas Halim, Lachlan Yu, Lucas Halim and Jake Yu, your assistance was much appreciated.
Don’t forget to check the Xpoint website for an up-to-date draw as well as the weekly results table. https://www.xpointsports.com/region/325/currentEvents
Mrs Samantha Iwatani - NSTA Convenor
From the Junior Resource Centre
2024 CBCA Notables
The CBCA notables have been announced. What a fabulous collection. Congratulations to all the wonderful people involved in making these beautiful books. Over 100 high-quality recommended reads from the experts.
https://cbca.org.au/notables-2024
Premier’s Reading Challenge – The PRC is well under way. All the boys have managed to READ ON and ON! This week the boys read Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
This book is on the PRC. Here is the number: 582876
Mrs Martin’s Book Trail: It’s The Sound of the Thing by Maxine Beneba Clarke
What to give that primary school student who has everything, OR that primary school student who doesn’t? Poetry, of course. What a fantastic collection of poems Funny, current and so relatable covering a great range of poetry styles. It has an index at the back with descriptions of each poetry form used. An excellent addition to schools. #mrsmartins booktrail2024
Mrs Elena Martin - Teacher Librarian
Junior School Chess Club
Selection for the 4 Chess teams has been postponed to Week 7 due to Mrs Martin and Ms Boyle’s absences. This is held at lunch time in the JRC. Here students will be chosen to represent the school in the NSW Junior Chess league. When the Chess season begins, Mrs Martin will oversee the Chess training on a Tuesday morning at 7:30 am in the JRC, emartin@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au and Ms Boyle will oversee the chess competition on Friday along with the organisation of drivers to the venues, rboyle@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au.
Mrs Elena Martin and Ms Raelene Boyle - Junior Chess Convenors