Principal's Page

A Message from the Principal

At St John's we are part of such a dynamic community which includes the secondary schools that we are a direct feeder school to.  We always enjoy collaborating with these schools and last week our Year 4 and 5 students had the opportunity to attend the Emmaus College Musical production of "Funny Girl" at The Round, Theatre. I was fortunate to be able to attend the production in the evening, to experience the incredible musical talent of students from the College. It's encouraging to see our former students performing, including Aiden Puls who had a lead role and Kiera Butterworth in the chorus, both displaying great confidence, talent and stage presence. I was certainly proud to see the amazing talents of our past students, knowing that all of our current students will one day be shining in whichever field they pursue.

I was able to represent our school community at the recent Whitehorse Community Dinner, held at the Round. There were representatives across all community groups, schools, sporting and recreational clubs that operate in the city of Whitehorse. We are certainly part of a thriving and proactive council.

Our Parent's Association are busily preparing for our major community event, the upcoming Disco Bingo. Be sure to organise your tickets soon, to connect with other school families and support the great work of the Parent's Association.

Our Parent/Teacher/Student Learning Conferences held last week were another successful way to welcome our community into the school, celebrating the great achievements, growth and goals of our students. I am grateful to my incredible team of class teachers for the preparation and time that they give to these conferences and the commitment that they make to the education of your children.

To cap off a fun and engaging week at school our very talented Year 5/6 classes surprised us each day, at the end of the breaktimes, putting on a Flash Mob. The music started and in small groups the year 5/6 students joined in dancing, culminating in a whole class dance then an open invitation to the whole school. It certainly brought great to joy to us all.

Aus Bike Incursion

Today our students in Years 3 to 6 were involved in the Aus Bike Incursion. They were guided by Mary, a professional bike rider, with their learning focused on safety and maintenance skills for their bikes.

They learnt to do a safety check of their helmets following a 3 point safety check. All parents are encouraged to check their child's helmet, to ensure that it fits correctly.

For Bikes there is the ABCD safety check.

A - Check the Air in your tyres

B - Check your Brakes

C - Adjust your Chain

D - Drop your bike to ensure the tyres bounce and the chain doesn't fall off.

We were fortunate to reschedule another Aus Bike Incursion on Monday 21 October to enable the students to ride their bikes and to practice their safety and maintenance skills.

St John's Community Fete

Preparations are underway for the 2024 St John's Fete. Last year many of our families volunteered to support the St John's fete in a variety of ways and this year we will be seeking your support again. Thanks to your generous contributions last year, the fete was a huge success, raising $42,000 for our Parish Community. Our school benefitted, receiving $7,500, which helped us to buy our new literacy kits and programs.

This year, as a fete committee, we are discussing the possibility of asking for volunteers to sign up earlier than in the past to help avoid that last minute panic. We also need more help with the setting up and packing up. This year's fete will be on Saturday, 16 November. All families are expected to contribute to our fete in some capacity.

Confirmation

Our Year Six candidates for Confirmation participated in their Retreat Day last Friday, as part of their Confirmation preparation. Students met with the Bishop and took part in a variety of tasks and experiences, deepening their knowledge and understanding of the Holy Spirit. The Confirmation celebration will be on Saturday, 10 August, 3.15pm, at St John's Church. This will be the final step of initiation in our student's sacramental journey.

Interrelate

Every two years St John's School conducts a personal development program for the Years 3,4,5 and 6 which is facilitated by experienced professionals from Interrelate. I encourage parents to attend and select the appropriate sessions for their child/children by clicking on the CDFpay link below. 

"Relationship and Puberty Education Evening" is on Thursday 8 August, 2024. There are two sessions and each one is designed to be age appropriate. 

("Go to St John's School Payments" in CDFpay)

Catholic Secondary College Enrolments

Current Year 5 Students

Any Year Five students who want to enrol at a Catholic Secondary College need to have their enrolment forms in soon. Enrolments close on Friday, 16 August. 

St John's is a direct feeder school to Our Lady of Sion College, Whitefriars College, Emmaus College and Aquinas College. If you need any support with this process please contact our school Office.

Disco Bingo Evening 

Parents are able to book their tickets for the 2024 Major Fundraiser by clicking on the link.

Further information is on the Parent's Association page of this newsletter. 

Dr Justin Coulson at St John's Mitcham

We are delighted to be hosting a Parenting Seminar about Raising Children in a Digitial World with Dr Justin Coulson, in collaboration with Gloryland Kinder. 

Please join us on Thursday, 22 August and invite your friends and family to come along for this very important event.

Registration is now open. Please book in using this link https://events.humanitix.com/gloryland-drjustin-coulson-safe-spaces

School Closure Day - 12 August

A reminder that on Monday, 12 August, we will be having a School Closure Day. This is a Professional Learning day for our staff. The focus for the day will be on Literacy and Numeracy in light of new research around the Science of Learning. Camp Australia will be running a full day program for any families who require this service.

Feed Our School Fundraiser by Farmers Pick

Each Tuesday afternoon our boxes of fruit and vegetables have been delivered to the front office by Farmers Pick. Farmers Pick offers sustainable fruit and vegetable boxes on a subscription basis for the whole family. Every box is packed with a wide variety of farm fresh seasonal produce that has been rescued from lesser outcomes, originally rejected by unrealistic beauty standards.

1. Go to farmerspick.com.au/feed-our-school and find your school.
2. Use code STJOHNS20 at checkout to receive 20% off your first box
3. No lock-ins... Ever!
4. Choose one of our flexible box sizes and customise your box with an exciting selection of pantry items. 
5. Your delivery will arrive at School on Tuesday, ready for you to collect.

St John's Joke of the Week

Enjoy your week ahead and please let me know if there is anything that I can do to assist you or your family.

Verona Gridley

Principal 

vgridley@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au