Junior School News 

• From the Head of the Junior School
• Junior School Sport
• Tennis
• From the Junior Resource Centre

From the Head of the Junior School

IMPORTANT DATES

Monday 27 November | 9:00 am Year 6 Reflection Day at Oxford Falls (students only) | 12:45 pm Year 6 Graduation Liturgy at Oxford Falls

Thursday 30 November | 'Normal' Thursday – 2 periods at school and then off to Oxford Falls after Recess

Monday 4 December | 10:00 am The Road to Bethlehem Liturgy

Tuesday 5 December | 10:15 am Whole-School Academic Awards Presentation at Oxford Falls 

TEACHING AND LEARNING

Students in Year 5 are investigating the different states of matter (liquids, solids, gases etc).  The students learnt how to make a slushie using salt and ice.  You might like to ask your son how this works!

YEAR 6 | MATHEMATICS

Students in the 6 Green Mathematics class have been working through a variety of open-ended learning tasks this year. This is a recent task that was completed by the students.  Note:  WALT stands for:  We Are Learning To …

Winners of the Chocolate Competition (Harry L and Carter N)

Runner up in the Chocolate Competition (Nicholas C) 

ROBOTICS

Year 5 continue to enjoy their Lego Mindstorm Robotics programs with Mr de Silva.  Ms Boyle went along last week to see students learning to program an EV3 Lego Mindstorm so that it could navigate a driving challenge.

SURF/SWIM PROGRAM

Thursday sees our last session in our Surf Education and Swim programs.  We have been absolutely blessed with beautiful weather, so hopefully Thursday will be the same.  Please ensure your son has everything he needs for the day – hat, drink bottle, lunch, sunscreen, goggles and a rashie.

MERIT AWARD WINNERS

Congratulations to those students who impressed those around them last week!

JUNIOR SCHOOL SPORTS AWARDS

Thank you to everyone who was able to join us to celebrate the Junior School students' 2023 sporting achievements on Tuesday at our Junior School Sports Awards Ceremony in the College Gymnasium.  Special thanks to Mr Ryan for his preparation of the event and to Mr Sismey and the Junior Concert Band for their performances.

YEAR 6 GRADUATION LITURGY AND AFTERNOON TEA

Thank you to those Year 6 families who have taken the time to RSVP to the inaugural Junior School Graduation Liturgy and Afternoon Tea on Monday.  If you haven’t had a chance to respond, but are planning on joining us, you are, of course, most welcome and we look forward to seeing you in the Christian Brothers’ Centre (the blue building with the two basketball courts) for a 12:45 pm start. Afternoon tea will take place from 1:45 pm until 2:15 pm at which time you are welcome to take your son/s home, after they are checked off the roll by his teacher.  Students who are still at Oxford Falls at 2:20 pm will return to the college by bus. 

We are still looking for Year 5 mums and dads to volunteer to help with serving afternoon tea.  If you are willing and able, please contact Ms Fromager at hfromager@stpiusx.nsw.edu.au as soon as possible.

Thank you everyone for your continued support of the Junior School.

Mrs Jill Greenwood - Head of the Junior School

P&F End of Year Celebrations

Junior School Sport

Thursday Sport: 

Our swim/surf program concludes this week with their fourth and final session during Thursday Sport. The boys were met with beautiful conditions at Dee Why and enjoyed a variety of activities and sand-based challenges. Our Year 5 boys continued to develop their confidence in the water and extend their competence in stroke technique. A reminder of some key details:

• Boys are to arrive at school with their swimmers/speedos already on (underneath their PE uniform); it is preferable that time is not spent having to get changed at either venue. After their session, they can dry off as best as possible and put their PE shorts back on over their swimmers for the journey home.
• Hats are compulsory and sunscreen will also be provided by the College
• In a small bag, boys can also bring their towel, water and lunch, as no food may be purchased at either venue
• It is recommended that all boys wear skins or speedos, as boardshorts can make it difficult to swim
• Year 5 students will also need goggles and a rashie (compulsory)
• Year 6 students will be provided with a rashie, but are welcome to bring their own.

Boys will be bussed back to school for dismissal at normal time or alternatively, may be collected from the pool/beach by 2:10 pm. Boys not collected will return to school on the bus. Parents will need to contact their son’s teacher prior to the day to make the appropriate arrangements. For further details on each program, please refer to the letter distributed earlier this month.

Sport Awards Ceremony:

A sincere thank you to all families who were able to join us yesterday for the Junior School Sport Awards Ceremony. Equally I thank all families for supporting your son’s engagement with a whole range of sports and activities throughout the year. Yesterday's ceremony provided us with the opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate close to one hundred boys who received accolades in their chosen field. It was also timely to be able to celebrate how truly talented all our Junior School boys are as they hone their skills under the care, guidance and expertise of a fantastic team of coaches, teachers, and support staff.

Saturday Sport:

Last weekend saw the final round of IPSHA Saturday fixtures and I thank all those involved in ensuring this term’s sporting participation has been outstanding. Since this was the final round, please take note of the following in relation to the collection of Pius sport apparel that has been loaned to the boys.

Basketball, and Touch Football Tops:

Thank you to all those who handed in their basketball or touch football top on Saturday. For those boys who yet to return their top I would ask families to do so by the end of this week (24 November). Boys can either hand their singlet to me or leave with their class teacher if I am not around.

Distribution of tops/singlets will then again take place prior to Round 1 in 2024.

Results from Round 12:

Cricket:

SPX U13 Black had their first game at Oxford Falls, against St. Augustines. Batting first, we were in a little trouble early at 2/9 before a great partnership between Luke Steptoe & Felix Keeler wrestled the momentum our way and got us to 2/76. Two more big partnerships between Freddie Gosling & Will Tully, and Luka Hilton & Luke Steptoe got us to 192 from our 30 overs. Star with the bat was Luke Steptoe who ended up 55*. 

St Augustine's started their chase strongly, before wickets to Cameron Cheah, Nick Forwood & Freddie Gosling, along with suffocating bowling from Ben Costain, Eddie Harkin & Will Tully pegged them right back. Felix Keeler & Riley Silver then took wickets to put us well on top, and we won by 39 runs. A highlight was our fielding, with the boys' energy matching the Aussie's at the World Cup! It was great to see them support each other so well.

The Armidale School Rugby Carnival 2024:

For Year 6 (2024) families interested in their son attending The Armidale School Rugby Carnival 2024, please click on the link below to express you interest. This is not binding for families but merely an opportunity to seek interest. Mr Morris will hold a meeting with those who played rugby this year in the Year 5 group to speak more about the tour and the brilliant opportunity this brings.

https://forms.office.com/r/8Mx2MH9cBc

SSA Track and Field

This week we wish Cristiano Calcarao (6 Red) all the best as he competes for NSW PSSA in the School Sport Australia Track and Field Championships in Tasmania. It is fitting that our 2023 Sportsman of the Year is still involved in high level sport so late in the year. 

Cristiano will be involved in the 800m and 1500m events, competing against the very best from around Australia. We look forward to hearing about, and reporting on, his endeavours upon his return.

Mr Ben Ryan - Junior School Sports Coordinator

Tennis

Fixtures 25 November 2023

With half the games in Round 5 being St Pius vs St Pius matches, there was bound to be friendly rivalry on court. This was the case in a marathon doubles match which lasted 80 minutes between Javien Foo and Jimmy Layton (Team 29) and James Ulevik and Kairav Singh (Team 31). This gruelling game eventually ended in a tie breaker with James and Kairav, triumphant. Similarly, in a singles match, Brendan Marr (Team 10) with 5 games to 2 games up looked certain to win. However, Lachlan Chan (Team 9) down, but not beaten, fought back take the set in epic style. Another, close Pius vs Pius match is shown in the scores between Team 11s Isaac Ip & Mathew Liang who with 1 set 14 games were defeated by Team 13s (Robert Ponniah, Oscar Roberts, and Daniel Harper) with 2 sets 13 games. 

The table shows Saturday’s results as well as Ladder positions and points. For the last round, teams are either playing:

1. Grand Final (1 vs 2) or Playoffs (2 vs 3, 4 vs 5) 
2. Round 6. For divisions of 4 teams, teams play 2 rounds x 3 matches, so everyone plays each other twice. The winners and runners may be relying on matches to determine placings, however, in some cases the winner/runner up has already been decided.

Below is the list of teams in medal contention, points are shown in brackets. This comes with the a spoiler alert on the likely predictions for the Round 6 matches based on points.

Teams in the Grand Finals:

Cammeraygal 3 (25) vs Team 9 (18)  

Team 16 (22) vs Team 15 (20)

Reddam 5 (19) vs Team 21 (17.5)

Reddam 8 (19.5) vs Team 22 (14.5)

Teams playing for Winner and Runner-up, Round 6: 

Team 2 (10) vs Team 1 (24) with Team 1 “Minor Premiers” and clear winners of Division 1

Team 4 (18.5) vs Team 3 (15.5) playing for Winner and Runner-up

Team 17 likely runners-up

Team 19 (20) vs Team 18 (22.5) playing for Winner and Runner-up

Team 25 likely winners

Team 27 (13.5) vs Team 28 (10 pts) playing for the Runner’s up

Team 29 likely runners-up

Team 32 likely winners

Not only did we appreciate the perfect weather for tennis play, but we also appreciated a visit by Mr Ronchetti to cheer us on! Also, we were impressed to learn that our principal is a sporting all-rounder, proving just as competent with the tennis racquet as with the basketball and cricket bat. Ben and Thomas Shoudra enjoyed a warm-up on court with Mr Ronchetti. 

Results 18 November:

Mrs Karen Keighery - NSTA Tennis Convenor 

From the Junior Resource Centre

This week’s Highlights: 

Reading is a passport to empathy and understanding, and school libraries are the gateways! They unlock the power of diverse stories and perspectives, and open the doors to a more compassionate world. How are you opening doors this week?

Digital Citizenship

Year 5 and 6 have been discussing and learning about Digital Citizenship and their Digital Footprint during their library lessons. What is a footprint? Where do we leave footprints? Have you ever heard of a digital footprint?

Guinness World Records 2024.

This year’s edition compiles the very best of the thousands of new records approved over the past year. Take the plunge with our opening BLUE PLANET chapter, celebrating watery wonders from rivers, lakes and oceans to icescapes and hot springs.

HISTORY is a new feature chapter for GWR 2024. Egyptians, pirates, catapulting knights, vampires and ghosts all vie for your attention in this crazy chronicle of the past 2,000 years. 

In the poster-like Explainers, 3D artist Alex Pang peels away the layers of some iconic record breakers. Have you ever seen inside an octopus’s head? Or wondered how the dinosaurs of Jurassic Park are brought to life? Finally, the book ends with every significant sporting achievement logged in the 30 – page SPORTS chapter. A fantastic Christmas present for keen GWR readers.

International Games Month – November 2023.

Would you like a space to relax and to discover fun ways to connect with friends? The library has a range of educational and recreational games for you all to enjoy before school and at lunch time.

Mrs Martins Book Trail: My First Christmas Cook Book by David Atherton.

Jam-packed with delicious festive recipes for young cooks.

This cook book will teach you how to bake and decorate delicious biscuits and sweets, perfect party food and showstopper cakes – and then turn your tasty treats into stylish Christmas gifts. #mrsmartinsbooktrail2023

Mrs Elena Martin - JRC Teacher Librarian