General Information

STATE ATHLETICS WINNERS

Congratulations to Luca, Dominic, Liam and Dylan for your outstanding efforts at the recent State Athletics Finals. The boys competed in the following events: Relay, 100 & 200 metres and Hurdles. To have four students make it to this elite level of competition is incredible and the boys are to be congratulated on their sterling efforts. In particular we congratulate Dominic and Luca for the individual medals they received. 

YEAR 6 SCIENCE INCURSION

On Tuesday 28th October the Year 6s participated in a science incursion at school.  The day was facilitated by staff from Tripod Enterprise Education.  During the day the students were involved in chemistry activities to discover how science is woven into every part of our lives, from the food we cook to the everyday products we use.  The students worked in teams to conduct a series of experiments to reveal the science behind materials and how they interact.

 CULTURAL WEEK PARADE

Last Wednesday we started our Culture Week celebrations with a Parade of Nations.  Thank you to all the parents for the time and effort you put into the outfits worn by the students.  During the Parade over 27 Nations were represented, which is a reflection of our truly multicultural St John’s community.  Below are pictures from each class:

SCHOOL DISCOS

Last Thursday was the second day of our Cultural Week celebrations.  Throughout the school day we celebrated by holding discos for students from Prep to Year 3.  In the evening students in Year 4 - 6 had a terrific time at our twilight disco.  Below are some images from the discos:

CLOSING CELEBRATIONS OF CULTURAL WEEK

We finished Cultural Week last Friday 7th November with a day of cultural performances and acknowledgments. This began with a special Acknowledgement of Country and the presentation of new Australian and Aboriginal flags. We had performances representing many countries including Ethiopia, the Philippines, South Sudan and Samoa.  We were also treated to some Korean K-Pop dancing. 

MUFFIN TREAT DAY

Thanks very much to the members of our Parents & Friends for organising last week’s Muffin Day.  The blueberry muffins were enjoyed greatly by the students as you can see from the images below.  

YEAR 6 GREAT CYCLE CHALLENGE

Our Year 6 students participated in the Great Cycle Challenge Australia during October, raising $853.  Students maximised their ride time during Bike Ed classes and participated in our very own St John’s Riding Relay Challenge. Our relay challenge was held on Thursday 30th October, with the students riding a staggering 1053km throughout the day.  Individually we had eight students who rode over 30km each and a further two students who each rode over 20km.  Mrs Borg dropped in with baby Boston during the day, to cheer everyone on.  Below are some photos from the challenge:

OPEROO TO STOP

Operoo is ceasing operations in Australia at the end of 2025.  Schools have been advised to transition to an alternative platform to communicate with parents.  During November we will begin to use the nForma for Parentsplatform to manage all student information, collect digital permission forms and send any messages or updates to parents.  Parents will also be able to use the App to easily update the school about student attendance and absences.  

Most parents will already have the nForma for Parents App as this is the platform you receive your child’s Semester Reports through.  Once the transition from Operoo to nForma for Parents has been completed we will notify families.  After this parents will receive a notification on the App asking them to confirm we have your current details.  It is important that the email being used to log in to your App is the email that is linked with the school. For those who do not have the App currently, please see the downloading instructions below:

PARISH FAIR RAFFLE TICKETS

Join the Parish for a fun-filled day at the St Andrews Parish Fair on Saturday, 22 November 2025! Enjoy delicious food, exciting rides, games, live music, and a chance to win amazing raffle prizes.  Raffle Tickets can be purchased from the School Office for $2 (cash only) and will be on sale until Wednesday 19th November.  Purchase your raffle tickets for a chance to win exciting prizes generously donated by the Parish community partners!

GRAND PRIZE – $1000 Peninsula Hot Springs Voucher

2nd PRIZE – 50 Inch TCL TV

3rd PRIZE – Italian Sports Club of Werribee $150 Voucher

4th PRIZE – Shadowfax Winery Werribee $150 Voucher

5th PRIZE – Brothers on K Werribee $125 Voucher

6th PRIZE – Brothers on K Werribee $125 Voucher

Scroll through the images below for more information about day:

PROPOSED FEES 2026

Below is an outline of the proposed school fees for the 2026 school year.  The increase in amounts has been unavoidable and reflects advice given to St John’s by MACS (Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools), our governing body. 

Student Levy - $420 per child 

Capital Levy - $300

General School Fees - Expected to be $1940 per family (unlimited children)

Parish Support (Stewardship) $5 a week  (which would be $260 annually)

CHILD SAFETY - ANIME GACHA

The Linewize platform helps schools, students and families to develop better digital habits, while also monitoring and tracking digital usages.  With St John’s now working in partnership with Linewize, our parents have access to an Online Safety Parent Hub, via the school’s website. This Hub has a wealth of tips and information for families. 

Below is a link to a very interesting article titled ‘Anime Gacha!’.  The article has been written by Child Wellbeing Specialist and Online Safety expert Teodora Pavkovic.  This article will help parents to understand this anime-style app which is based on the Japanese ‘gacha’ gadget games that automatically dispense manga and anime characters.  The short article includes information on:

• Features of the App
• Known Risks
• Things Parents Need To Know about the App
• Tips and Tricks for safe and responsible use of the App
• Some Basic ‘How Tos’

ASSEMBLY LIVE STREAM  

Each Friday the students gather for a whole school assembly in the Hall.  This event is usually streamed to our Vimeo channel.  Families can view the assembly by clicking on the link which is emailed via email using your Operoo profile. The email only goes to those parents who have “receive correspondence” checked in their settings.