Principal's Message
Giant Dofleini Octopus - Sea of Japan
Dear St John's Community,
Enrolments for 2027
We have been taking a number of tours this year for enrolments for 2027, however, we really want to make sure we have our two classes for 2027. We have an open day coming up later this term, so if you know anyone looking for a school, please let them know about us and direct them our way! Link to Group Tour or make a booking!
Learning how to Learn
In the last few years, schools around the world have made significant strides in improving the quality of teaching and incorporating the latest findings in cognitive science and neuroscience into teaching practices. In short, teachers are better informed than they were even ten years ago, and signficantly better informed than they were 20 or 30 years ago. Evidence-based strategies like Explicit Instruction have brought greater clarity to the classroom. Lessons are more purposeful. Expectations are more explicit. Students know what success looks like for them and, more often than not, they’re achieving it. However, as one expert puts it,
'They’re completing the curriculum. They usually meet the standards. In many cases, they’re achieving what teachers refer to as 'one year’s growth in one year’s time...But...'
The 'but' is that despite all this we are still seeing the same patterns. Students return to the classroom the next day needing the same level of support they needed the day before. They are still relying on teachers to provide scaffolds. They still wait for the teacher to model what needs to be done. They still need to be prompted before they act on feedback. And many still avoid anything that seems or feels too difficult for them. Many students are doing the work. But they’re not becoming more capable of doing it on their own.
We know that teaching matters, and that good teacher matters enormously. But learning doesn’t happen just because the teacher teaches something. It happens because the student (the learner) actively engages in the process. So what we then see, and we are seeing it in classrooms today, are students who can reproduce what they’ve been shown, but struggle when asked to adapt, transfer, or extend their thinking.
"If students are only successful when the conditions are perfect—when the teacher is present, the task is clear, and the next step is modelled—they haven’t grown as learners. They’ve grown as performers." (James Anderson, 2026)
Teachers teaching well, by itself, doesn’t create growth in students. The kind of growth that makes students think deeply, be more adaptive, and more capable of tackling future challenges without being led step by step through them. Those are skills that also need to be taught, and students need to learn them. We have been working closely with different experts over the years to develop skills and strategies to teach our students how to think and to develop students who know how to engage with challenges, act on feedback, and grow over time. The hardest part, still, given all the distractions in the world today, is encouraging them to do it for themselves!
Prayer for First Communion Candidates
Please keep these children and their families in your prayers in the coming weeks.
Dear Lord,
We thank You and praise You for the most precious gift of the Holy Eucharist. We ask You to bless all those who are preparing to receive Your Body and Blood for the first time.
You have provided for us through these gifts. Receiving the Holy Eucharist is a tremendous blessing, and we ask You to help all who are preparing to make their First Holy Communion. Help them to grow in love for You each day of our lives.
Help them to always appreciate the great gifts You have given us.
Amen
Staff News
We saw goodbye and good luck to Mrs Emma Clarke this week who is embarking on her first steps into motherhood!
Mrs Clarke will be replaced by Mrs Kristy Peddell for the rest of the year.
Canteen
Thank you for all the well wishes for Jude's speedy recovery. Unfortunately the canteen will be closed next week as well (Week 7) and if there are any parents able to help out the following week we can get it reopened again. Please let the office know if you can help in Week 8.
Congratulations to the students who represented St John's at the recent Hoop Time Challenge day. Both teams played their hearts out on the day and had a great time doing it. Well done everyone!
The Jaguars are looking for new members, especially in the junior levels (Prep & Grade 1) and under 12s. If you're interested, contact them through this email: admin@stjohnsbasketball.com
Round 9 Results, Top 10!
Its tight at the top!
Ezndaz 75
HenryDR 75
Dezzabr 75
ToonAussie 75
Nanette-C 74
AshFoudy 74
Dlefebvre 74
Caleb5 74
Jessa1923 73
MasterONG2016 71
Have a good weekend! Remember, there's a long weekend coming up!
Kind regards,
Derek Bruitzman
Principal
Jokes of the week:
Q. If Friday or Saturday had a fight, who would win?
A. Saturday, because Friday is a 'weak' day!
Q: What do cows do on Friday nights?
A: Go to the mooooovies.
Q: What did Friday say to Saturday and Sunday when they were about to give up?
A: Come on! Weekend do it!
Fun facts of the week:
If you visited Point Nemo in the Pacific Ocean, the astronauts on the International Space Station would be closer to you than any other human on Earth!
We know more about Mars than we do about the bottom of Earth's oceans. Why? Because there is no light in the deep ocean.
I've said before that an Octopus has 3 hearts, but did you know that one heart stops beating as it swims!
Parents - St John's Facebook page
Search: Parents @ St. Johns
Note: You will be required to answer several questions to be allowed access to the page.
St John's Playground Fundraising
Latest total : $9018
Goal: $25000