Around The Primary

Dear Parents

This term it has been wonderful to have so many parents and grandparents involved and engaged in the wide variety of activities and events which have enriched the experiences offered to our students. This has varied from assisting in classrooms or on excursions, attendance at assemblies or liturgies, assisting in the Mary Ward Garden, helping with the Primary Musical, supporting your children to dress up as their favourite book character and your presence at musical soirees and sporting events.

The engagement, commitment and enthusiasm from our parents and families was evident today at our Interhouse Athletics Carnival.  It was a great a day of sport and fun with our Year 3-6 students participating and competing in a variety of events and team games. We are so proud of the way the students conducted themselves throughout the day. The compliments they gave to each other were delightful and the smiles on their faces after completing a race or event were great to see. 

Congratulations to Mr Williams for coordinating such a successful event. Special thanks to all the staff who motivated the students and encouraged team spirit and teamwork throughout the day.  To all parent volunteers thank you for your wonderful assistance.  I also had the pleasure to witness first-hand our Year 6 Sports and House Leaders in action, they did a great job helping in the bays and leading the cheering. 

Congratulations to all the Houses.  Results will be published next week.

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 and subscribe to the Primary Calendar.

Dance Showcases

Our Dance Showcases will be held in the Gym are scheduled for:

• All students are required to wear their sports uniform to school on their allocated Dance Showcase days.  They will change into their dance t-shirt and accessories before the Dance Showcase.  They can wear their accessories (ribbons, coloured socks, headbands, hair elastics) to school on the day.
• All students need to bring their dance t-shirt to school on their allocated Dance Showcase day.  Please label the t-shirt.
• ALL Year 4’s will perform a song/dance from their Musical on both Dance Showcase days.

Parents are very welcome to join us for the Dance Showcases.  Please wear your Parent Badge. 

Have Sum Fun

Last Saturday, the Year 5 Problem Solving students participated in the ‘Have Sum Fun’ Mathematics competition hosted by Penhros College and the Mathematics Association of Western Australia (MAWA). 

The students competed against 30 other teams of Year 5 & 6 students from a variety of schools. Over 4 rounds, they worked collaboratively to solve problems across all Mathematics strands. Although many of the questions challenged their thinking, the Year 5s were able to apply their Mathematical knowledge and understanding of problem-solving strategies to find solutions. 

It was a pleasure to see the students smiling, laughing and enjoying themselves, proving that Maths definitely can be fun! Thank you to the following students for representing John XXIII College pride at the Competition:

Mrs Talea Standing

Assistant Principal, Primary

NAPLAN

The students’ NAPLAN reports have arrived and will be sent home on Monday 12 September, along with an explanatory brochure. 

Literacy and Numeracy are fundamentally important for all students, and our main message for parents, is that these NAPLAN results are ‘a point in time’ snapshot of your child’s achievements in Literacy and Numeracy.

Sports Update

It was a fantastic day of Athletics.  Well done to all the Year 3, 4, 5 and 6 students taking part in the team games and the track and field events.  There were some outstanding individual and team performances, most impressive was the sportsmanship and House spirit that was on display. Well done to all! Results will be published in next week’s Newsletter. 

Congratulations to Grace Czajko who won gold in the 50m breaststroke and silver in the 200m breaststroke events at the WA Junior Short Course Swimming Championships.  Well done, Grace!

If you have any queries about anything sport related, please contact me via email steve.williams@cewa.edu.au 

Mr Steve Williams

Primary Sport Coordinator

Primary Music

Choir Rehearsals

Please see below for rehearsal times next week. With the choirs working on new repertoire, it is a great time for new members to join. Students who are interested do not need to register prior interest, simply attend the rehearsal next week in the Osborne Room.

Australian Girls Choir

The Australian Girls Choir runs several choirs for girls of various ages and abilities in Perth. Representatives from the Australian Girls Choir will be visiting the College on Wednesday 21 September during lunchtime to hold an assessment workshop. This assessment enables the representatives to determine the choir that each girl may join (if they so choose). 

Permission slips have been sent home with all girls from Pre-Primary to Year 6. If your daughter is interested in taking part in this assessment, please return the permission slip to Mrs Petsos in Main Administration by 9am on Friday 16 September.

Music Eisteddfod Awards

The award winners for the John XXIII College Music Eisteddfod will be presented at next week’s Primary Assembly on Friday 16 September. Parents of award winners are very welcome to attend this Assembly. 

Year 6 Music – Pokemon Piano!

The Year 6 students have been learning how to draw keyboards and the process of moving up and down the keys in tones and semitones. The students particularly enjoyed playing ‘Pokemon Piano’ to reinforce these skills. 

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

Mrs Catherine Haydon

Primary Music Teacher

Sacramental Certificates

Parents are requested to email a copy of their child’s Sacramental Certificate (Reconciliation, Eucharist or Confirmation) to Mrs Petsos in Main Administration nancy.petsos@cewa.edu.au for our College records.