Head of Junior School 

Welcome to Week 2 of Term 4. This term promises to be an incredibly busy one with many events taking place. At the end of this article, I have listed all important dates and times. Most notably are the events taking place in the final week of school. 

Today at the Junior School we were thrilled to welcome our grandparents back onsite for Grandparent's Day. This morning has been an incredibly special one for us all. We commenced the morning in the Cathedral for a wonderful Liturgy. We had so many in attendance there was not a spare seat in sight. Grandparents then spent time with their grandson or sons in classroom, meeting teachers and completing some fun activities. In the hall, Devonshire Tea was provided, courtesy of our Year 9 and 10 Hospitality students, Mr Aaron Lucas, Ms Natalie Reid and Mr Chris Tsakiris. We would like to thank them for providing a fabulous morning tea with delicious scones topped with jam and cream.  

Swimming Program: Weeks 3 and 4

We are looking forward to the commencement of our annual Learn to Swim Program this year. Classes: Prep, Year 1, and Year 3 to 6 will be participating in the Learn to Swim program at the Collegiate Pool. Our boys in Year 3 to 6 will be walking to and from the pool. Our Prep and Year 1 classes will be transported on the school bus. Please refer to details that were communicated in an EdSmart notification about this. 

Please remember that there are no lunch orders during the two-week swimming program. 

P&F Donations

You might be curious about where all the money we have been raising, and the monies you have donated, have been going to. This week the Junior School took possession of a TCL 85-inch television screen. This has replaced the projector in the Junior School Hall, that has now reached the end of its use by date. A TV screen is far more practical for everyday use in the Junior School and has now been installed with ViVi. Its official installation, when it will be mounted on the wall, will take place next week. 

Children's Week Morning Tea

Year 6 students Gurtegh Shergill and Angus Cupit are representing St Virgil’s at the Children’s Week Morning Tea with the Lord Mayor of Hobart today, Wednesday 25 October. The boys’ manifestos about what they would do if they were the Lord Mayor of Hobart are on display. Gurtegh has written about tackling homelessness in the Hobart area and Angus has written about the development of grass roots sports in Hobart, particularly rugby.

World Teachers’ Day

Morning tea for all staff at the Junior School was provided by our very supportive and generous Parents and Friends Association on behalf of you, our parent community. The occasion was to help celebrate World Teachers’ Day but also to thank the wonderful contributions our staff make daily as well as their unwavering support of your sons.

Southern Regional Basketball Championships

Our two Year 5-6 teams will be competing in the Southern Regional Basketball Championships this weekend. Ahead of the championships we would like to express our gratitude for the time and effort that our volunteer coaches have put into preparing their teams: Mr James Nadler (our Year 5-6 A team), Mrs Nicole Read (our Year 5-6 B team) and Mr Aaron Debnam (our Year 3-4 team). Our Year 3-4 team will also be competing on the second week of November. We wish all boys the best for their upcoming games.

Year 5-6 A Team: Harrison Nadler, Mitchell Banks, Alexander Schulze, Charlie Booth, Parker Fraser Gray, Jesse Mackey, Oliver Clark and Thomas Brown.

Year 5-6 B Team: Henry Geeves, Qataiba el Saouda, Charlie Bugg, Alex Mizzen, Hamish Young, Oscar Henley, Jacob Hayes, Max Drew.

Year 3-4 Team:  Edward Gray, Nate Debnam, Edward Hickey, Archie Argyropoulos, Youssef Assi, Archie Bugg, Lochie Johnstone and Angus Saunder.

STCPSSA and JSSATIS Athletics Carnivals

In the next couple of weeks, the athletics team will be competing at the STCPSSA and JSSATIS athletics carnivals on Friday Nov 3 and Thursday Nov 9 respectively at the Domain Athletics Centre. Mrs McCullagh, Mr Beard and Mrs Read will be accompanying the boys. We wish them all the best for the events they will be participating in.

Upcoming Calendar Events

Monday 30 October: Swimming Program commences.

Friday 3 November: STCPSSA Athletics Carnival

Thursday 9 November: JSSATIS Athletics Carnival

Wednesday 16 November: Caritas Just Leadership Day (6 x Year 5 boys)

Monday 27 November: Orientation Day: Whole day: Prep to 6

Tuesday 28 November: Year 6 Canberra Trip (return Friday 1 December)

Wednesday 29 November: Year 5 Camp (return Friday 1 December)

Monday 4 December: End of Year Assembly: SMC Nagle Centre: 9.30 am – 11.30 am

Tuesday 5 December: Kindergarten Nativity: 9.30 am, St Joseph’s Church

Wednesday 6 December: Whole school attending Pantomime at Botanical Gardens

Monday 11 December: Year 6 Thanksgiving and Prize giving: SMC Cathedral, 6.00 pm

Tuesday 12 December: Last Day for students, whole school picnic at Tynwald Park; Guard of Honour for Year 6 students, 2.45 pm