Principal's News

Dear Families,

Welcome back to Term Three! 

I hope all of our families enjoyed a relaxing and refreshing holiday break and had the opportunity to spend some quality time together.

One of the highlights of Monday was watching our students rush into the school yard, excitedly sharing stories of their holiday adventures. One child even came up to me and said, "I love coming back to school—holidays are great but I like being back."

We are looking forward to another wonderful term of learning, growth and celebration at St John's. Thank you for your continued support and partnership.  Please note all the events outlined in the calendar for the term, including closure days. We wish all of our students and families a fantastic Term Three.

Farewell Fr Geo

I wish to let you know that the Archbishop has appointed Fr Geo as Assistant Priest of St Francis of Assisi Parish, Mill Park. Fr Geo will commence his ministry in the new parish from 6 August 2026. We give thanks to Fr Geo for his generous service and presence among us over the past 15 months. We are grateful for all that he has contributed to the life of our school parish community.

Please join me in congratulating Fr Geo on this new appointment and wishing him every blessing as he begins this next chapter of priestly ministry. 

School Painting Program

We are pleased to let you know that over the school holidays, painters were on site giving our school a fresh new look. The upstairs and downstairs hallways have now been repainted, creating a brighter and more welcoming environment for our students, staff and visitors.

As part of our ongoing maintenance program, we will continue to paint a number of classrooms during each school holiday period. By completing this work in stages, we can minimise disruption to learning while continuing to improve our learning spaces.

If anyone would like to have a walk around the school and see the recent refurbishments and painting please let me know.

National Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD) 

Each year, our school participates in the National Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD), which takes place during August. The NCCD helps schools and governments better understand the learning needs of students who receive adjustments to support their education. The data also informs funding provided to Catholic schools to help ensure students who require adjustments can access the support they need to participate and learn successfully. Please read the information below to learn more about the NCCD and what it means for our school community. 

 Please see the end of this newsletter for further information about the NCCD.  

School Performance- 'Painting Outside The Lines'

'Painting Outside The Lines' is a wonderful opportunity for all of our children to be involved in something truly special. It provides every student with the chance to develop confidence, work collaboratively, showcase their talents and experience the excitement of performing on stage. We believe it is an experience where every child can shine and create lasting memories.

As this is an important whole-school event, we ask that all students attend the three performances. If your child is unable to participate due to exceptional circumstances, please notify your child's classroom teacher as soon as possible so we can make the necessary arrangements.

Please refer to the Performance page for more details about tickets sales (which open tomorrow).

Naplan results

Year 3 and Year 5 Students will recieve their Naplan results on Friday. Please keep these in a safe place as Secondary schools will ask for them.

Feedback from your child's teacher

 At St John's, our dedicated teachers know your child well and are committed to supporting their social, academic and spiritual growth. While our formal Three-Way Conversations provide an important opportunity to discuss your child's progress, we value ongoing communication with families throughout the year. If you would like to speak with your child's class teacher at any time, please contact them via email or speak with them to arrange a suitable appointment. We kindly ask that appointments are not requested on Tuesday or Wednesday afternoons, as these are designated staff meeting and professional learning evenings.

While walking around and speaking with families, I asked for feedback about the structure of our Three-Way Conversations. Overall, parents responded extremely positively. They particularly appreciated hearing about their child's results from recent assessments and valued receiving their child's report before the Three-Way Conversation, as it allowed them to come prepared with questions and discuss their child's progress in greater depth.

Parents also appreciated having the choice of bringing their child to the meeting or having a more private conversation with the teacher, depending on what best suited their family's needs.

If you would like to provide additional feedback, please contact your SAC representative.

Please provide feedback to myself - principal@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au or email a SAC member.

Prep - Leon Stavrou - prepsac@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au

Junior - Aidan Depetro - year12sac@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au

Middle - Mel Mahady - year34sac@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au

Senior - Mary Molloy - year56sac@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au

Additional Parish School members - parishrepsac@sjheidelberg.catholic.edu.au

Laurette Kairouz, Wendy Hernandez

Year 4 D - Three Way Conversations will be held Friday 24 July

Three-Way Conferences for Year 4D will be held on Friday 24 July, between 8:00 am and 5:00 pm.

Please make a booking through School Interviews   https://www.schoolinterviews.com.au/using the code: 8uujw

Bookings will open Friday at 10am

Marianne Di Fabio is looking forward to meeting with you and your child to celebrate their learning and discuss their progress.

Celebrating Your Involvement in Your Child's Learning

Over the past 12 months, when have you been part of your child's learning journey?

At St John's, we value the important role families play in supporting children's learning and development. Learning is strengthened when families and the school work together, and there are many ways you can be involved — whether it is helping with classroom activities, sharing your knowledge and experiences, attending school events, reading with your child, supporting learning at home, or simply taking the time to talk with your child about what they are learning.

We would love to continue building strong partnerships with our families. If you have a skill, interest, cultural experience or idea that you would like to share with our students, we would love to hear from you.

Your involvement, no matter how big or small, makes a difference and helps create a rich and connected learning experience for all students at St John's.

St John's Multicultural Da-Grandparent/Specila Person Day

This year, on 19 October we are excited to celebrate the rich diversity of cultures within our St John's community through our St John's Multicultural Day. This will also be our Grandparent/special person day.

We would love to involve as many families as possible in making this a memorable celebration. If you, a family member or a friend would like to contribute, we would be delighted to hear from you. There are many ways you can be involved, including:

• sharing traditional cooking or running a cooking demonstration
• being a guest speaker and sharing your cultural experiences
• teaching or demonstrating traditional cultural dances, music or games
• displaying traditional clothing, artefacts or artwork
• running a cultural activity or craft
• or sharing any other ideas that celebrate your culture.
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Every contribution, big or small, will help make this a wonderful opportunity for our students to learn about and appreciate the many cultures that make up our St John's community. If you would like to be involved, please email Alison. I look forward to hearing your ideas and working together to make this a truly special event.

YEAR 5 ENROLMENT TIMELINE FOR YEAR 7

Families with a child in Year 5 this year are reminded that enrolments for Catholic secondary schools for Year 7 in 2028, close in August this year.  If you are hoping to secure a place at a Catholic Secondary school for your child for Year 7, we strongly recommend you organise a school tour asap and attend the parent evening nights. Information on these can often be found on the school's website. 

Congratulations to Ms Cristina Menegas and Jack on their recent wedding. On behalf of the St John's community, we wish them every happiness as they begin this exciting new chapter together. They chose the perfect day- the sun was shining.

Have a great week and it is lovely to have you all back at school.

God Bless

Alison Dean