Junior School News
- From the Head of the Junior School
- Junior School Sport
- From the Junior Resource Centre
- Junior School Rehearsal Schedule
From the Head of the Junior School
It’s been another busy week in the Junior School, but the students continue to impress us with the way in which they have settled into life at the college. Thank you to everyone who was able to meet with their son’s teacher on Monday or Tuesday; the information you shared will enable your son’s teachers to better understand and support him. Please continue to send any questions you have to your son’s classroom teacher – we know there is a lot of information to absorb when you start at a new school – we are here to help you find your way.
TEACHING AND LEARNING IN THE JUNIOR SCHOOL
SCIENCE
Year 5 students continued their investigations into the human adaptation of opposable thumbs. Experiments included trying to use scissors with and without the use of thumbs.
MATHEMATICS
In Mathematics, 5 Red students had a fantastic time creating and launching their own paper rockets with a focus on collecting and graphing data.
ASH WEDNESDAY LITURGY
The Junior School celebrated the start of Lent with a moving Ash Wednesday liturgy prior to heading off to the Swimming Carnival last week. Thank you to Mr Petrie, Mr Di Sano and Mr Balboa for leading the liturgy for the Junior School.
MS BOYLE’S READING GROUP
Ms Boyle’s Before School Reading Group used the class text Storm Boy to assist students with language features and comprehension while enjoying a delicious warm chocolate drink. Boys are adding some valuable words to their vocabulary and working together to appreciate the novel.
COVID
We have had a number of cases of COVID in the Junior School this week. We ask for your support in keeping your son home if he has any cold or flu symptoms. Students who are unwell or who have cold and flu symptoms will be sent home to rest and recover.
CANVAS – PAIRING
Are you having trouble connecting to CANVAS? If you had a son at Pius and now you have another son who has started at the college, you may get a “pairing” error when you try to connect to CANVAS. If this happens, please email Mrs Jennifer Walsh jwalsh@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au with your name and the problem and she will fix the pairing issue. If you have any other questions related to CANVAS, please contact your son’s classroom teacher.
JUNIOR SCHOOL LEADERSHIP PROGRAM
Congratulations to those students who were voted by their peers to be Class Captains for Semester One.
5 Gold Coby Ching, Darcy Gray
5 Red Alexander Ruff, Benjamin Newton
5 Blue William Aldons, Rocco Guerrera
5 Green George Tchaprazian, Ronan Orr
6 Gold Massimo Guerrera, Ashworth Hilton
6 Red Brandon Abram, Maverick Sheriff
6 Green Nick Lindsell, Nick Belov
6 Blue Connor Koruga, Hugh Slack-Smith
These students will participate in a new Leadership program, facilitated by Mr Buda. Our Sport and Class Captains will lead Junior School assemblies, have a role at sporting events, engage in a Leadership Workshop fortnightly on Tuesdays, and engage in initiatives that promote the values of service in the Junior School. The Leadership Program began during lunch on Tuesday and will continue fortnightly in the 6 Blue classroom.
On Monday 26 February (Week 5), our 8 class captains will spend the day at Oxford Falls with a number of other school leaders as part of the Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA) Student Leaders Forum. This is a fantastic opportunity for our young student leaders to meet student leaders from schools across the state.
WHAT WEEK IS IT?
The school term starts in Week 1. We are currently in Week 4. The odd weeks (1, 3, 5 etc) are Week A and the even weeks (2, 4, 6 etc) are Week B. Trust me, you will get used to it, and more importantly, it becomes second nature to your sons.
Week A – Weeks 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11
Week B – Weeks 2, 4, 6, 8, 10
WHERE IS MY SON’S TIMETABLE?
All students have their timetable printed out and in their diaries. If your son’s timetable is not in his diary, please email his classroom teacher.
LOST AND FOUND
Please ensure that all items of clothing, pencil cases, shoes, EVERYTHING is labelled with your son’s name. Items that aren’t labelled are placed in the 'Blue Bin' – a clean, blue, wheelie bin on the veranda near Student Reception. Labelled items that don’t make their way to the Blue Bin, will be returned to your son. It is your son’s responsibility to search the Blue Bin, but, as you can imagine, if there is an unlabelled cap in the Blue Bin and anyone is looking for a lost cap – well, you can see what might transpire.
There is another Blue Bin at Oxford Falls (near the Sports equipment room). All the students saw the bin on their tour of Oxford Falls in Week 1.
Please do not email teachers regarding Lost Property. If a teacher has Lost Property, they will return it if it’s labelled and if it’s not, they will put it in the Blue Bin.
From experience, most property that is lost at school is returned (if labelled) and if it’s labelled and not in the Blue Bin, it has most likely been left on a train or bus.
SPORT UNIFORM
Just a reminder that your son is now allowed to wear his sport uniform on Thursdays AND on the day he has PE. To make things easier for those of you who are still getting used to our 10-day cycle, I’ve created a Term 1 schedule for the fridge!
STUDENT SAFETY
I have now spoken to the Junior School students twice about the expectation that they come straight to school and go straight home after school. Students are not allowed to go into any shops on their way to or from school (for example, Westfield, Chatswood Chase, Good Games etc). They are allowed to purchase food and drink from shops that face onto the mall or at the Interchange (they would understand this as 'shops that have a counter that you can walk up to'). We ask for your support as we endeavour to ensure your sons’ safe transport home. Students are, of course, allowed to enter shops under the supervision of their parents.
CLASS PARENTS
Thank you to those parents who have volunteered for the very rewarding role of Class Parent.
5 Blue, 5 Red, 5 Green, 6 Gold and 6 Blue only have one parent so far – it would be fantastic if those parents could work alongside one or two others; and we are still looking for volunteers in 6 Red.
YEAR 6 EXCURSION TO CANBERRA 6 – 8 MARCH
Plans continue in earnest for our trip to Canberra. The itinerary and details regarding what to wear and what to bring will be emailed next week.
HOMEWORK HELP | TUESDAY LUNCHTIME
Mrs Barrett’s Homework Help is available every Tuesday lunchtime in the 6 Green classroom. Please encourage your son to come along if he would like some extra help or just some additional time, to complete homework.
MR MAKHOUL’S MATHS MEGAMINDS | WEDNESDAYS LUNCHTIME
Students who are interested in being challenged by complex mathematical concepts, are keen to develop flexibility in problem-solving and who would like to participate in the Maths Olympiad competition are welcome to join Mr Makhoul’s Maths Megaminds group on Wednesdays from 12:45 pm – 1:15 pm in the 5 Red classroom.
MRS GREENWOOD’S CREATIVE QUILLS WRITING SKILLS GROUPS
Students who have shown an aptitude for Writing at a high level will be invited to join my Creative Quills Writing Skills groups. A Year 5 and a Year 6 group will meet once a week during English lessons.
MS SHABA & MRS GREENWOOD’S DEBATING TEAMS
Monday 26 February Year 5 Debating team trials (Ms Shaba)
Monday 04 March Year 6 Debating team trials (Ms Shaba)
BLAZER FITTINGS
Took place on Wednesday morning for those students needing a blazer, or a new blazer.
SWIMMING CARNIVAL
A great day was had by all last Wednesday at the Swimming Carnival – thank you to those parents who volunteered to help and to Mr Bourke for his organisation of the day.
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Thank you for your ongoing support of the Junior School.
Mrs Jill Greenwood - Head of the Junior School
Junior School Sport
Fixtures
SPX App and Clipboard Apps
If you haven't already, please download and familiarise yourself with the SPX App and the Clipboard App. All wet weather announcements, updated fixtures and team information are conveniently found on these app. Having 'Notifications' turned on will also provide you the most accurate updates as information is shared.
Swimming Carnival
Our Junior School House Swimming Carnival took place on Wednesday 14 February at Macquarie University Aquatic Centre. A tremendous day of participation, competition, and fun. The House Spirit on display ensured that all boys, and particularly those new to the College left the pool knowing that they were part of a rich tradition at St Pius X. Thank you to all staff involved, and a warm thank you to the parent helpers and supporters on the day.
Age Champions
- 10 yrs - Dylan Fok
- 11 yrs - William Aldons
- 12 yrs - Ethan Leong
Overall House Champions – Purton House
Upcoming Event: IPSHA Swimming Carnival – 5 March.
We wish those boys selected in the IPSHA Carnival the best of luck as they compete at the next level on Wednesday 5 March at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre. Further information will be distributed to these boys and their families.
Cross Country Training
Today we held our annual Junior School Cross-Country races. Details regarding winners for each age group, will be shared in next week's article.
A reminder also about before school training:
- When: Monday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings
- Where: Beauchamp Park, Chatswood
- Time: 7.15 am – 8.15 am
- Who: All Senior and Junior School students are welcome
Meet at the Beauchamp Oval Grandstand in comfortable running gear and with a water bottle. Bring your school uniform to change into afterwards back at The College.
You don’t have to aspire to run in the IPSHA Carnival - all students and abilities are welcome.
And around the grounds…
Mr James Bourke - Junior School Sports Coordinator
NSTA Tennis
It was great to see some sunshine for the start of the NSTA summer season for 2024. The 8:00 am matches started the day with a bang. There is always a lot of chatter and laughter at the 8:00 am games and this week was no exception. It is great to see the boys on the courts really enjoying the games, despite the heat!
It was exciting to see SPX 31, Xavier Korkor, Nathan Hon and Connor Huynh secure their first win as a team: 18 games to 3, it was an impressive start! SPX 30, Tom Shoudra, Alex Seifert and Daniel Thomson also played some exciting matches. Daniel Thomson and Luca Hellmich’s (SPX 29) match came down to a tie break with Luca just pipping Daniel at the post. SPX 26, Henry Auer, Micah Chan and Oliver Willems proved to be a difficult team to beat winning all 3 sets.
The 10:00 am matches were no exception, our top 2 teams battled it out in the first round, with SPX 1, Boston Bannister and Jake Yu beating SPX 2, Lucas Halim and Yuri Kim, 18 games to 1. Cooper Anderson and Ethan Li, SPX 4 played superbly and although they lost in sets, they won in games. Lachlan Yu and Lucas Korth (SPX 7) started the season off well with a 3-0 win. Both boys played some excellent tennis and the sportsmanship shown by them and their opposition, Redlands 6 was exceptional.
Just a reminder that only the boys who play the singles will have their names recorded on Xpoint. Please ensure that you are checking Xpoint each week to see your scores, your positions and where you will be playing next week.
https://www.xpointsports.com/region/325/currentEvents
Finally, thank you to the senior boys: Boston Bannister, Lachlan Yu, Jake Yu, Kody Tabalon and Alex Dal Molin who helped with umpiring this week, your guidance is invaluable to the younger players.
Mrs Samantha Iwatani - NSTA Convenor
From the Junior Resource Centre
This week the students in Year 5 and 6 researched our local public libraries. Including Willoughby City Library and the State Library of NSW. Enjoy the best of what the library has to offer by joining our online community and signing up for a library card, or becoming a Friend. The links are below:
State Library of NSW: https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/join
Willoughby City Library:
https://willoughby.spydus.com/cgi-bin/spydus.exe/MSGTRN/OPAC/JOIN
Premier’s Reading Challenge begins on 26 February
Art work by Sami Bayly
This artwork features a host of Australian flora and fauna that feature in Aussie stories.
Sami has set a challenge for viewers to find and name them all. How many can you name?
The PRC is a great way to get students motivated and excited about reading for pleasure.
Year 5 and 6 students need to read 20 books at this level. They have 10 choice books and can read up to 5 books from the same series. Books in the JRC have purple PRC stickers on the spine. Students can also read from the Year 7 - 9 level. These books have a blue PRC sticker on the spine. Students enter their own books for this level. They are given time a few times throughout the challenge to enter their books. PRC login and password details will be sent to the students shortly.
Students enjoying the tranquillity of the JRC
Library Monitors – Semester 1
Introducing our new Library Monitors for Semester one 2024. James Ulevik, Nicholas Halim, Harrison Bougas, Ryan Da-Fina, Hugh Slack-Smith, Connor Koruga and Isaiah Byak. Congratulations and welcome to a fun-filled year in the Junior Resource Centre.
New Books in the JRC
Check out the new Fiction books that have arrived in the JRC. Teddy and I enjoyed the weekend getting these books ready for the students to borrow this week. Great to see the boys enjoying new titles. #JuniorResourceCentre
Mrs Martin’s Book Trail: Foxlight by Katya Balen. Published by
@bloomsburypublishing.
Quite the most extraordinary story telling. Twin sisters Fen and Rey are found curled next to foxes on the edge of the wildlands. They crave to know their mother and their identity. The sighting of fox from The Lighthouse, where they live at the edge of the wilderness is a sign to seek the truth, and their family, sisters and love. The writing is lyrical, poetic, endearing and utterly enticing. The front cover illustration and subtle details are beautiful. I loved it.
Ms Elena Martin - Teacher Librarian
Junior School Rehearsal Schedule
Junior School Chess
Thank you to students who have registered on Clipboard to possibly represent the college in the NSW Junior Chess League Competition. To help with the organisation of transport on Fridays, would you kindly fill in the attached form. Please detach and bring it into Mrs Martin by Monday 26 February. Selection for the 4 chess teams will begin in Week 6 at lunch time in the JRC. Here students will be chosen to represent the school in the NSW Junior Chess league. Mrs Martin will oversee the Chess training on a Tuesday morning at 7:30 am in the JRC, emartin@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au. Ms Boyle will oversee the chess competition on Friday and the organisation of drivers to the venues, rboyle@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au.
Mrs Elena Martin and Ms Raelene Boyle - Junior School Chess Convenors