Winter Prayer

Lord,

In the midst of winter, when the days are cold and the wind can pierce,

remind us of the warmth of your love.

In the midst of winter, when days are short, dawn comes late, and dusk arrives early, remind us that in the darkness, your light still shines.

In the midst of winter, when the flowers of spring still lie hidden in the earth,

when leaves are off the trees, and the world can seem bleak,

remind us that blossom is but a short time away.

And Lord, as we endure the challenges of winter, help us to remember the hope

and renewal that each new season brings,

guiding us to appreciate the beauty and blessings in every moment.

Amen.

Dear Families,

Homeless Week - Coat Drive

Next week is Homeless Week - Empathy and respect for human dignity are especially important for Catholics during Homeless Week (5-11 Aug). To support those experiencing homelessness in our local communities, one of our parents, Leanna, has suggested we run a coat drive. If you have any coats (adults and/or childrens) that you no longer need but are still in great condition, please leave them in the box provided in the office. We will donate these coats to a nearby outreach program, such as Thread Together.

One third of clothing goes from factory to landfill, whilst one in eight adults and one in six children do not have adequate access to essential clothing.

Thread Together addresses this uncomfortable truth by saving clothing from going to landfill and providing these clothes to people in need.

Thank you to Leanna and Frankie for your thoughtful initiative and for encouraging our community to come together in support of those in need as well as reduce our landfill.

Together with our Social Justice and our Environmental leaders we can make a difference!

Congratulations - Semester Two SRC Students

Thank you to all the students who put themselves forward as candidates for the Semester Two Student Representative Council (SRC) positions. We appreciate the care and effort they put into preparing and presenting their speeches. It was wonderful to see so many proud family members attended our assembly on Monday.

Congratulations to the students elected for the SRC positions for Semester 2, 2024:

PD: Emilia
PWG: Arianna
1M: Thomas
1D: Ollie
2CF: Michael
2O: Mason
3JC: Emerson
3H: Mason
4P: Malin
4MT: Victoria
5B: Charli
5L: Josh
6G: Sophie
6T: Filip

The staff look forward to supporting these students as we further develop student voice and leadership at St John’s.

House Athletics 2024

Congratulations and thank you to Ben Friggi, our Physical Education Teacher and Sport Coordinator, as well as our Year 3-6 staff and Learning Support Officers, for a very successful House Athletics Carnival 2024 on Wednesday. Despite the chilly weather, the high levels of enthusiasm warmed us all up. It was wonderful to see and hear our students encouraging others and trying their best.

Thank you to our parents and carers for their volunteer support, and to the OLMC Year 12 students who provided additional help as St John’s students participated in the athletic events.

I think I better start practicing for the 2025 parent/teacher/student race!

Preps Celebrate 100 Days of School

We congratulate our Prep students and parents as they celebrate 100 Days of School on Monday 5 August. This significant milestone highlights the wonderful learning achievements of our students and the important partnerships between parents, teachers, and school staff in the students' growth and development.

A big thank you to our Prep Team - Chantelle Wegner, Marianne DiFabio, Rebecca Georgiou and the Learning Support Officers, as well as all the parents and carers, for their efforts in making the 100 Days Celebration truly special for our students.

Book Week Better Buddies Day - Parade and Grandparent / Special Persons Day 2024

This year, BOOK WEEK at St John's will be celebrated from Monday, 19 August to Friday, 23 August. The theme for Book Week is "Reading is Magic." This annual event highlights the importance of reading and draws on the joy of stories and the creativity of Australian authors with a Parade and Grandparents Day celebrated on Friday 23 August. What a huge day this will be!

On Friday, 23 August, we will celebrate Book Week with a Book Parade at 9 am in the bottom yard. Grandparents, parents, and special persons are invited to attend the parade. After the parade, grandparents and special people are welcome to join their family members in the classrooms to enjoy some learning time together. Following this, adults are invited to a morning tea hosted by St John’s PIC at 10:00am in the hall.

Students are asked to dress in a costume either related to the theme "Reading is Magic" or as a book character of their choice. It would be wonderful if they could bring along the book on which their character is based. Please note, there is no expectation that students hire or buy costumes; this is a great opportunity to be creative and make a costume from things you have at home.

Dodgeball Dreamers Tickets

We will be reopening the ticket sales for our school performance Dodgeball Dreamers on Monday, 5 August at 10:00am for those who wish to purchase additional tickets. You have the opportunity to purchase up to 3 more tickets at $20:00 each. Please do not purchase more than this as we are trying to be fair to all families. The 7:00pm sessions are nearly sold out but there are more seats available on Thursday 29 August at 4:30pm.

School Fees

Thank you to the families who have paid their fees in full or are keeping up to date with their installment payments. If you would like to discuss your family's fee account, please do not hesitate to contact me or see Melanie and Leanne in the office.

MACSSIS Survey - Parent and Student survey

Feedback is crucial for any organisation, and it is especially important to us at St John's. The Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic School School Improvemnet Survey (MACSSIS survey) provides an opportunity for our community to share their thoughts on various aspects of our school community. We will be sending out survey links and personal codes soon and encourage you to take some time, perhaps with a cup of tea, to complete the survey.

Additionally, we will be hosting a MACSSIS Morning Tea for parents and carers who wish to complete the survey on site. Further details will be provided soon.

Toastie Day - Thursday 8 August

There's nothing better than a toastie on a cold Winter's day! Thanks to PIC for organising this special food day. If you would like to order a toastie for your child, please follow the instructions provided by PIC.

First Aid Notification

Please note St John's has transitioned to electronic notifications via email for First Aid incidents. The email will be sent to one of the addresses provided in your child’s enrollment forms. This email will include the date, time, reason, and type of first aid given. Please note that this is for your information only; there is no need to call the school. Rest assured, if your child experiences a head injury, serious injury, or illness we will contact you by phone, as per our current practice.

Year 3-6 Parent Engagement Night - Wednesday 7 August

We are excited to invite Year 3-6 families to a Parent Engagement Information Session on August 7 at 6:30 PM. This session will provide insights into how your children learn in Literacy and Maths. We will discuss the MACS “Vision for Instruction” and what it looks like in Years 3-6. We are doing wonderful things in these areas to support your children’s learning. We encourage all families to attend to learn more and ask questions.

Special Mass - St Mary MacKillop Blessing

On Saturday 10 August at 6:00pm the Archbishop Rev Peter Comensoli will join us for mass and the blessing of our new statue of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop on the side Chapel. You are ALL INVITED to attend and make this a special night for our parish. A light super will be served in the hall following the mass. If any students would like to participate in singing at the mass, please email Alison Dean, Principal. principal@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au

Congratulations

Congratulations to Jis Maria and Jijo on the arrival of a beautiful baby brother for Eric in 1M. We wish them joy and blessings as they welcome their newest family member.

Also, congratulations to Sasha and Roger, and their son Kai in Prep WG, for becoming a big brother to Liana. We hope Kai enjoys his new role and that Liana feels right at home in our community.

We warmly welcome these new additions to our school community and look forward to getting to know them.

Holiday news from William in 2CF and Emma in 5L

William from 2CF and his sister Emma in 5L have been traveling around Australia since April. Given the cold weather we've been experiencing, 2CF thought you might enjoy hearing about the warmer parts of Australia.

This week, Mrs. Carrick and 2CF had a Google Meet with Will and his mom, Sara, to catch up on their adventures. The family has traveled through South Australia and the Northern Territory, and they are currently in Western Australia. Will created a slideshow of photos and videos from their trip so far and shared his experiences with the class.

A 15km bike ride around Uluru
Exploring the underground life in Coober Pedy and looking for opals
Mud crabbing in the Dampier Peninsula, WA
Riding a camel in Cable Beach, Broome
A helicopter ride over Mitchell Falls, WA
Snorkelling and swimming with whale sharks in Ningaloo Reef, WA

We wish Will, Emma and his family enjoyable and safe travels for the rest of their time away.

Thank you for another wonderful week at St John's.

Kind regards

Alison Dean

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to the following students