Around The Primary

Dear Families

Sport and physical education are crucial for maintaining each student's health and well-being. Furthermore, research demonstrates that children who are more physically active learn better.

Our sports and physical education classes are designed to get the most out of students while they practice fundamental movement skills and play games. Teamwork and the development of good sportsmanship are given a lot of importance. Our goal is to give our students the skills and confidence they need to continue participating in sports and physical activity throughout their lives.

We are very proud of the Kindy to Year 2 students who took part in the Junior Primary Athletics Carnival on Thursday. It was wonderful to see the efforts made both on the track and during the team games. At the same time, the carnival's absolute highlights were the "high fives" they gave each other, the compliments they gave to one another, and the smiles on their faces after participating in a race or game.

A special thank you to Mr Williams for everything he did to make this event such a huge success. We would like to express our gratitude to all the staff, parent volunteers, and Year 6 leaders for their tireless efforts on the day to ensure the carnival ran smoothly. Finally, we would like to extend our gratitude to the family cheer squads who showed up in full force to support our young participants. 

Today we celebrate World Teachers’ Day and this is a special opportunity to recognise the professionalism, dedication, and expertise of our wonderful team of educators. We would like to express our appreciation to the families that provided a delicious treat for the staff morning tea.

The Year 5 Assembly was an excellent way to conclude the week. Congratulations to the students in Year 5, Mrs Fontaine, Mrs Reddell, Mr Edwards and Mrs Haydon for preparing this informative and entertaining Assembly.

Kind regards

Antoinette De Pinto

Head of Primary

Dates to Remember

Please check the College website to note all the important Primary school events for your family calendar. http://www.johnxxiii.edu.au/view/for-parents/calendars

By subscribing to the College calendar, you are automatically alerted when details of an existing event are changed. 

2025 Term Dates

The term dates for 2025 have now been published on the College Website and can be accessed using this link Parent Information | Term Dates | John XXIII College

Inspire Workshop

The Parents' Association is committed to providing valuable educational experiences through our 'INSPIRE' program, which focuses on parent education through presentations, forums, and interactive sessions. Our program funds a range of speakers and educators who address health and wellbeing issues affecting young people and their families. In this interactive workshop, we invite parents and guardians to come together and brainstorm potential topics for our 'INSPIRE' events in 2025 and beyond. Your input will be important in helping us identify the most relevant subjects that will benefit our community. By attending this workshop, you will be part of a proactive community that is dedicated to the educational and emotional wellbeing of our children. Together, we can create a robust and relevant program for 'INSPIRE' into the future. 

We look forward to your participation and contributions.

• Date: Tuesday 12 November 2024 
• Time: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
• Location: Thomas More Exhibition Centre

Super Stars

Well done to all the students who received a certificate at today’s Assembly:

Magnificent Mathematicians

Last term 36 students from Years 3-6 participated in the Australian Mathematics Competition.  Our congratulations are extended to all participants.

Special mention to the following students in Year 5 who achieved High Distinctions, placing them in the top 3% for their year level across Australia.

• Finnbar Bourke
• David Chan
• Elizabeth Cawley

Elizabeth also achieved the ‘Best in School’ Award for the best overall result in the Primary school.

We are so proud of our students. 

Andrew Edwards

Assistant Principal, Primary 

Sports News       

What a fabulous day we had for the Junior Primary Athletics Carnival. It was lovely to see so many families and friends there to cheer on our little superstars and make it such a special day for them.  We have been talking to the students a lot about being gracious in victory and defeat and being proud of trying your best, and every student should be extremely proud of themselves!  Special thank you to all the parent volunteers who helped out at the finish line and to all the parents who took part in the parent races.                                                            

If you have any queries about anything sport-related, please don’t hesitate to contact me via email: steve.williams@johnxxiii.edu.au

Steve Williams

Primary Sport Coordinator

Music News

Primary Choir and Instrumental Ensemble Rehearsals

Save The Date

Please note the following music performance dates for this term:

Primary Instrumental Recitals

The Primary Instrumental Recitals held on Monday, 25 November, are an exciting opportunity for students to show off their hard work from throughout the year. 

This performance opportunity is open to students who learn an instrument at school or privately. Students are invited to play one piece in the appropriate recital category (either a solo or group piece). Students may perform in multiple categories (for example, piano and strings) if they learn more than one instrument. These recitals will be divided into groups based on student year groups and the number of entries with family members invited to watch the performances. Timetables will be emailed in the week commencing 18 November.   

Students who learn an instrument at school do not need to complete an entry form as they will be entered by their tutor. Students who wish to perform but have external lessons are required to use the form below. Entries are due by Wednesday, 13 November.

If you have any queries regarding Primary Music, please contact me via email: catherine.haydon@johnxxiii.edu.au

Catherine Haydon

Primary Music Teacher

Counsellor's Corner

This term Primary students will continue to participate in lessons from the Keeping Safe Curriculum, with a focus on strategies to stay safe.  This includes learning about community services which can help like 000 and a range of problem-solving strategies using relevant age-appropriate scenarios. 

Assertive communication, persistence and resilience are all explored, and persistence is reinforced so students understand that they need to keep telling until someone listens and takes action.

Students are also participating in lessons about the URSTRONG program. URSTRONG is an internationally recognized Social Emotional Wellbeing program, that empowers children with the skills, language, and self-confidence to be better friends and develop healthier relationships. Friendship is such an important part of children’s lives and across the primary school children are learning practical useful strategies to help make this a positive, happy part of their life.

Families are invited to take advantage of a FREE Parent Membership to access URSTRONG resources, including an eight session video series. This will allow you to learn the same language and strategies being taught in the classroom through the Friendology 101 curriculum. Just follow the link FREE Parent Membership

John XXIII also has a membership to the Happy Families website which offers a variety of parenting resources.  To access free just log in using these credentials:

https://schools.happyfamilies.com.au/login/jxc

Password: happyjxc

Please contact me via email with any questions – anne.murphy@johnxxiii.edu.au 

Anne Murphy

Primary Counsellor

Metro pipe renewals close to John XXIII College

Water Corporation has planned water pipe replacement work in Pine Tree Lane, close to John XXII College, scheduled to commence mid-November 2024 and be completed by mid-December. The work will improve the reliability of the local water supply and prevent future leaks and breaks.

The exact location of the work is in the map below. Work will take place from 7am to 5pm, Monday to Friday and some Saturdays when required.

You may notice the impact of the work largely through extra traffic management in the area; however, given the work will be within verges, no roads are expected to be closed. Water Corporation do expect some potential traffic delays within the area for parents; however, again, this is expected to be minimal.

For more information, please visit their website.