Principal's News

Heavenly Father,

You called Simon Peter, James and John to leave their nets and follow You. In their moment of doubt, You filled their boats with abundance, showing them Your power and love.

Lord, like them, we often toil without success, relying on our own strength. But You remind us that when we trust in Your word, miracles happen. Teach us to listen to Your voice, to cast our nets in faith, and to surrender our fears to You.

Give us courage to leave behind what holds us back and to follow You wholeheartedly. Make us fishers of people, sharing Your love, mercy, and truth with the world.

Lead us, Lord, wherever You call us to go.

Amen.                         From Sunday's Gospel

Dear Families,

It is wonderful to see the students back at school, playing and reconnecting with one another in the yard. Play is an essential part of a child’s development, helping to build social skills, resilience and creativity. Through play, students learn to collaborate, solve problems and develop friendships, all of which contribute to a positive school experience. As we settle into the new school year, we encourage our students to engage in active play, explore new interests, and enjoy the sense of community that comes with shared experiences.

Welcome Picnic

Thank you to the families who supported our school community by attending the Welcome to the School Year picnic. It was a very hot afternoon, but the great company and fun atmosphere made it enjoyable. For those who were brave enough to come out in the heat we had a wonderful time connecting with one another and making new friends.

School Leaders

On Monday, we held a special assembly to formally commission our new Year 6 Student Leaders for the year ahead. It was wonderful to see so many families attending. This important event recognised the dedication, responsibility and service our leaders will bring to the school community. We look forward to supporting them as they take on their roles with enthusiasm and integrity.

Staffing news

Anna O'Grady has decided to step away from teaching to spend more time with her family as they transition to life in Australia. We wish her and her family all the best in this new chapter.

We are pleased to announce that Clare Manthos will be teaching 5L on Thursdays. We will confirm the new Prep W teacher shortly. In the meantime, Chantelle Wegner will be teaching the class full-time.

We are also very excited to welcome three new Learning Support Officers (LSOs) to our team. Their skills and dedication will be invaluable in supporting our students and enhancing our programs:

• Mr. Charlie Gravell – Pre-service teacher (Monday and Friday)

• Miss Charlotte James

• Ms Cinzia Curti 

Their support will play a key role in enriching student learning and strengthening our educational programs. We look forward to the positive impact they will bring to our school community.

Contact Details and Medical Action Plans

Please send an email to the office@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au if your contact details have changed over the summer break. This will ensure efficient and effective communication with you by school staff. 

We also require a current or updated Medical Action Plan, if applicable for your child. This includes action plans for asthma, anaphylaxis and other allergies. If your child’s medication has expired or medical requirements have changed, you are urgently required to provide the office with new medication and inform of any changes. 

Advertising and Promotions

We would love your support in promoting St John’s 2026 enrolments to the community. Please contact the office if you can advertise a flyer at your business/workplace or are willing to do a letter box drop off in your local area.

Open Days and School Tours

We are very grateful to all of our parents for advocating for our school in the local community. We have had a number of enquiries already for Prep in 2026, which is a really positive sign for our school. This year, we will be holding school tours, where prospective families can come and tour our school to see and hear from the students and staff. The dates for school tours are below:

• Friday 21 February - 9:15am
• Monday 24 February 24 - 9:15am
• Wednesday 5 March - 9:15am
• Tuesday 11 March - 9:15am
• Thursday 20 March - 9:15am
• Monday 24 March - 5:00pm
• Wednesday 26 March - 5:00pm

If you have a child starting in 2026, please fill out the enrolment forms and return it to Melanie in the office.

Parent Helper Course - Child Safety  Induction Program

This year, we again welcome the support of parents / carers to assist in our classrooms. As a school we value strong partnerships and believe that your support is invaluable. All parents / carers are welcome to help. We require that all helpers assisting in the classrooms are fully trained and have a current Working with Children Check. There will be a compulsory training session (approximately 1 hour) for all new  parent helpers. The training session will be run Friday, 14 March at 2:30pm. Please contact Elizabeth on ewhiting@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au to confirm your interest.

School Advisory Council

Role and function of the School Advisory Council : The School Advisory Council acts as a forum for discussion on matters concerning holistic education within the school. It brings together in a spirit of cooperation, the Parish Priest, Principal, parent representatives and teachers from the school, so that responsible and informed advice can be given to the Principal. Through membership on the School Advisory Council, each member assumes an important role in the ministry of the school. 

We are very pleased to announce the SAC members of 2025.

Fr Vinh

Alison Dean

Elizabeth Whiting

Catherine Carrick- Staff rep

Aidan Depetro

Kate Rudell

Melinda Mahady

Silvana Micallef

Laurette Kairouz- Parish rep

 SAC Meetings for 2025 are to be held in the staffroom at 6:15pm

19 February

11 March

6 May

3 June

29 July

19 August

9 September

7 October

We look forward to working in partnership with families in support of the best outcomes for your children throughout 2025.

PIC Partners In Community

Term Meeting Dates

Term 1: Feb 18 (6:30 PM), March 18 (9:00 AM) 

Term 2: April 29 (6:30 PM), June 10 (9:00 AM)

Term 3: July 22 (6:30 PM), Sept 9 (9:00 AM) 

Term 4: Nov 18 (6:30 PM, AGM)

Class Parent Representative

The purpose of the Parent Rep is to assist in the continual building of our school a welcoming and inclusive community. The Parent Representative provides another means of strengthening the links between families for the enhancement of learning  for all children. 

Role Description

The role may include some of the following tasks: 

• Compiling a class list of parent email contacts from details supplied by the school
• Sending out an email at the start of the year to the  parents in their class to introduce themselves
• Liaising with the other Parent Representative of the same year level, to coordinate  simple social events for families to help them get to know each other outside of  school eg. family picnics or parent get togethers
• Welcoming and introducing new families to the school community throughout the  year
• Monitoring the Class/Year level Whatsapp group messages to ensure all are following the school protocols and Parent Code of Conduct

Thank you to the parents who have volunteered to be Parent Representatives for your child’s class. The teachers truly appreciate your support.

If your child's class does not yet have a representative and you are willing to take on this role, please inform your class teacher.

Class Reps are invited to attend a meeting on Wednesday, 26 February, at 2:30 PM to go through the role expectations and responsibilities. Please let Alison know if you can attend- adean@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au.

We appreciate your time and commitment!

St John’s Swimming Trials - Yr 3-6

Thank you and congratulations to our Sports Coordinator, Ben Friggi, for successfully organising the St John’s Swimming Trials at Buckley House, Ivanhoe Grammar, tomorrow, Friday, 14 February 2025, from 1:30 PM to 3:00 PM.

We wish the Year 3–6 students who have volunteered to participate the very best of luck!

Students who qualify will advance to the Ivanhoe District Swimming Carnival at Northcote Pool on Monday, 24 February 2025, from approximately 9:30 AM to 12:00 PM.

Good luck to all participants! St John's is proud of you.

Driving safely at drop off and pick up

We kindly ask all families to drive safely and responsibly around our school area. There have been reports of unsafe driving practices, including making U-turns near the drop-off zone, parking in the teachers’ or church car park, and double parking. These behaviours create significant safety risks for our students, staff, and other families.

To ensure the safety of everyone:

• U-turns near the school drop-off zone are not permitted.
• Parking in the teachers’ or Parish car park is not allowed.
• Double parking is strictly prohibited.
• The drop-off zone is for quick drop-offs only – parents may not park and walk their children into the school.

We all share the responsibility of keeping our school community safe. Thank you for your cooperation in following these guidelines.

Word Of The Week  Anastasia- 6G

...procrastinate...

Do you know what that means fellow students?

My definition: This is what you do when thinking of other things you might be able to do, instead of the important thing that you have to do!!  For example, you might have to go to bed and you say to your mum...oh...I need to clean my room now, or I need to read a book...how about I help you clean the kitchen...anything but bed!! - Year 5

Can you think of a sentence that has the word PROCRASTINATE in it?

If you have a word of the week please let Anastasia (Year 6G) know and we can add it to the newsletter.

Naplan Dates

NAPLAN assesses the literacy and numeracy skills that students are learning through the school curriculum and allows parents/carers to see how their child is progressing against national proficiency standards. 

NAPLAN is just one aspect of a school’s assessment and reporting process. It does not replace ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance but does give a snap shot of student learning.

If any families in Year 3 and Year 5 do not want their child to sit Naplan please email the office or Alison and parent will be provided with the necessary forms.

For more information: https://www.nap.edu.au/docs/default-source/default-document-library/naplan-information-brochure-for-parents-and-carers.pdf

At St John's we will completed NAPLAN on the following dates:

Wednesday 12 March - Year 3 & Year 5 Writing (Year 3 students do the writing test on paper on Day 1 only while year 5's do it online)

Thursday 13 March      - Year 3 & Year 5 Reading

Friday 14 March             - Year 3 & Year 5 Conventions of Language

Monday 17 March         - Year 3 & Year 5 Numeracy

OLMC Music Lessons

OLMC private music lesson enrolments are now open. Lessons are available in Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone, Trombone (Year 5/6 only), Trumpet, Violin, Viola, Cello, Drumkit and Piano (new for 2025). Application forms are available from our school office.

Reminders of upcoming events:

Beginning of the Year School Mass - Friday 21 February 12:30pm. Here we will welcome all our new students and staff whilst also commissioning all staff members to the new school year.

New Families and Prep Welcome Night -  Friday 21 February -7:30pm at Alleyway. Refer to invite. Please see the office for further details.

Inform and Empower Parent Webinar - "Raising Kids in a Digital World"

online parent / carer Thursday 20 February 7:30pm (for 90 minutes)

Principal Retreat 

For the next two days, I have the privilege of attending a Principal Retreat facilitated by Fr. Steven Rigo. Alongside other principals, I will be engaging in reflection on the question, "What is my purpose?" and exploring the Framework for Formation for Mission in Catholic Education. This retreat provides a valuable opportunity for deepening our understanding of leadership in Catholic Education and strengthening our commitment to our mission. I look forward to sharing my learning  with staff and our community.

God Bless

Alison Dean