Dear Families,

The entire school community has settled back into life at school for Term Four; the staff , including the Principal, are all re energised and the students seem very well rested as learning commenced in fine form from day one. Our Year Six students are focussed on a combination of new learning, revision of learnt concepts, preparation for their end of year celebrations and of course, the writing and production of their memory books.

We have an array of exciting extra curricular activities planned both whole school and class level focussed. Throughout the term we will enjoy; Twilight Sports (this year is actually afternoon sports 1 - 4pm), Swimming Lessons, School Book Fair, District Athletics, Bike Ed, Water Safety Program to name a few.

School Book Fair

The Scholastic Book Fair is Here!

Get ready! Our school's Scholastic Book Fair kicks off tomorrow! It is a fantastic opportunity to discover new books, cultivate a love of reading, and support our school.

With Christmas just around the corner, this is a wonderful, hassle-free opportunity to stock up on presents and stocking fillers!

Did your child bring home a Wish List today?

Some students visited the fair today (Monday) to preview the books and may have filled out a Wish List. If you cannot attend the fair in person with your child, you can use the online Pre-payment option located on the back of that Wish List. Simply pay online via the Scholastic portal, write the 8-digit receipt number on the form, and send the completed form back to school with your child so they can collect their books!

Book Fair Opening Hours:

TUESDAY 13/10:
Morning: 8:30am – 9:00am
Afternoon: 3:20pm – 3:45pm
WEDNESDAY 14/10:
Morning: 8:30am – 9:00am
Afternoon: 3:20pm – 3:45pm

THURSDAY 15/10:
Afternoon Only: 3:00pm – 3:45pm (Please note: No morning session)
FRIDAY 16/10:
Morning Only: 8:30am – 9:00am (Final session!)

A huge thank you in advance to all families who support our fair —a portion of all sales is donated directly back to our school library to purchase exciting new resources for our students! Purchases made in person can be made via EFTPOS (Cards/Smartphones) or Cash.

We look forward to seeing you there and sharing the magic of reading!

Swimming & Water Safety

Our Prep to Yr 4 Swimming Program will begin on Monday 16th November to Friday 27th November. This will be a nine day program due to the School Closure day on Friday 20th November. Further details for swimming will be shared with parents via nForma in the coming weeks.

Our Water Safety Program for our Year 5s will take place on Monday 23rd November and for our Year 6s on Thursday 26th November. Further information to follow.

Parish Fete Raffle Tickets

If everyone sells their raffle ticket book, St James will raise over $3,500 towards the new artificial surface for the grasses/mud/weed area near the adventure playground. 75% of all ticket sales comes back to our P & F and will contribute towards the cost, enabling this project to move closer towards commencement.

Raffle tickets were sent home on Friday and need to be returned by 30 October.

Additional books can be obtained from the school office if you are able to sell more tickets.

Prizes include:

$1500 Gift Card

$700 Gift Card

$500 Gift Card

$200 Woolworths Gift Card

AFL Official Sherrin Match Day Football

Rebel Sports Voucher

Early bird entries will go into a draw to win a $50 gift card to be drawn this Friday, 16th October, so get your tickets back quickly to be in with a chance to win!

2nd Hand Uniform Shop

Our wonderful second hand uniform volunteers will run the second hand uniform shop at the next Prep Transition morning on Wednesday 21 October from 8:45am - 9:15am. In advance of this we are looking for donations particularly the smaller sizes, 6, 8 and 10. Please drop any donations you have in to the office.

Mangos

Our Mango fundraiser is live on CDF pay. Please support our fundraiser and stock up on some delicious Mangoes!

2027 Classlists

Over the coming weeks, we will begin the process of organising student class placements for 2027. Our staff invests a significant amount of time, care, and thought into this lengthy process to ensure the best outcomes for every child.

If you have a specific request regarding your child’s social or emotional development, please email me directly at principal@sjvermont.catholic.edu.au no later than Monday, 26 October. To be considered, your email must include the valid reasons behind the request. Late requests cannot be considered.

Please note that these requests are strictly for well-being needs, not for selecting specific teachers. Furthermore, because students are divided into just two classes, requesting a separation from certain peers may inadvertently separate your child from other supportive friends who end up in the opposite room.

My advice is to trust our judgement, because we know and observe the students for many hours in many settings each week of the year.

Term Four Uniforms

As usual we will have a two week optional period where parents may choose the most appropriate uniform, then as of Monday 19 October, we will officially change to Summer Uniform.

Please also remember the following:

Permitted earrings: Only plain stud and sleeper earrings are allowed to be worn to school.
Other Jewellery Items: Any other jewellery items should be kept at home for safety and consistency across the school.
Runners & Shoes: School shoes should be worn every day expect for: (1) runners to be worn with sports uniform, (2) runners may be worn and kept on if attending Marathon Club
Sports Socks: These should be plain white (no logos) and visible above the runners.
Shorts and Dresses: Uniform shorts and dresses should fit comfortably and offer appropriate coverage
Hats: Are to be worn every time students are outside playing , at Phys Ed lessons or participating in other outdoor activities
Sunscreen may be applied prior to school and provided in the child's bag for self-application if and when required.

2027 Prep Information

We held our Parent Information Session last Tuesday, followed by the students' first transition morning on Wednesday. The fifty Preps we have enrolled for 2027 all seemed so well settled. We look forward to the next Transition morning on Wednesday 21 October.

Baptism Congratulations

Congratulations to Nayan, Vikram, Ridhi who were baptised on the weekend at our St John's church.

AFL Footy

We are pleased to announce that the AFL will be running an AFL Superkick program at St James in Term 4.

ST JAMES VERMONT PS SUPERKICK CENTRE

Season Dates:

Wednesday 4th November 3:40pm - 4:40pm

Wednesday 11th November 3:40pm - 4:40pm

Wednesday 18th November 3:40pm - 4:40pm

Wednesday 25th November 3:40pm - 4:40pm

The St James Vermont PS Superkick Centre is open for those who are in Prep through to Grade 6. As part of your registration for the program, participants will also receive a FREE football valued at $30. The cost of the program is $55.

We have on offer both a Mixed group and an ALL Girls Group (if numbers allow)!

Participants can register for the 4 week program either via the link below or via the QR code attached to the flyer. Register here now:

https://www.playhq.com/afl/register/6f5847

Child Safe Standards

With the importance and commitment that we place on student safety as a school system, please take the time to read and familiarise yourself with the information in the Child Safe Standard Eight Parent/Carer Newsletter.

Dad's Night Out - Friday 16th October

Please book your place on CDF Pay, we’d love to see all the Dad’s there!! See flyer below for details.

Help needed at the Farm

We urgently need helpers on the following dates:

Saturday 7 & Sunday 8 November
Saturday 14 & Sunday 15 November

Please contact Jo at joanne.magnik@sjvermont.catholic.edu.au to lock in your preferred dates.

St John's Fete - 21st November

St Johns Fete is fastly approaching. We are looking for volunteers to help make this event a success. Please refer to the St John's Fete page.

Have a great week,

Dave