Junior School News
- From the Head of the Junior School
- Junior School Sport
- From the Junior Resource Centre
- Junior Chess
From the Head of the Junior School
REFLECTION
In this term’s Year 6 Religious Education unit, students are learning that the Reign of God is something we are working towards as we continue the mission of Jesus. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Jesus reached out to others. Jesus’ mission was a response to his relationship with his Father. Enlivened by the Holy Spirit, the Church community continues Jesus’ mission. The work for justice and peace is very much the building of God’s reign or God’s kingdom. We pray in the Our Father, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.” It is the Holy Spirit that acts within us to build the Reign of God.
Jesus’ dream was to create the Reign of God on earth. It is a mission, a journey, we continue as Christians. We have the same hopes and dreams in the fullness of the Reign of God. Jesus, the saints, and Christian heroes give us a lived example of ways to participate in this dream for the fulfilment of Jesus’ mission to establish the Reign of God. It is important to continuously note that it is not our work but the work of the Holy Spirit through us.
DA VINCI DECATHLON
In Week 5 of Term 2, students from Years 5 and Year 6 competed in the da Vinci Decathlon Competition. The da Vinci Decathlon is a competition designed to challenge and stimulate minds. During the decathlon, students worked collaboratively on tasks, both written and hands-on. The decathlon events include engineering, mathematics and chess, code breaking, art and poetry, science, English, ideation, creative producers, legacy (general knowledge) and cartography. Thank you to Mrs Iwatani for helping to prepare our students for the event. They focused on developing an understanding of effective teamwork, respecting one another, and collaborating with common goals. The da Vinci Decathlon was an engaging, challenging, and inspiring experience for all students involved and we were thrilled to present the boys with their certificates at assembly last week.
CRISTIANO CALCARAO
It was with great anticipation and excitement that students and teachers in the Junior School stopped to watch our talented cross-country runner, Cristiano Calcarao racing at the 2022 NSWPSSA and NSW All Schools Cross Country Championship at Eastern Creek last Friday. He cruised through to win by a large margin and is now a State Champion! We are so proud of him and can’t wait to see what he can achieve when he gets to run in the Nationals. More from Mr Carroll in Sport … but if you’d like to see Cristiano coming across the line (@ 1:32:30) or receiving his gold medal (@ 1:41:30), just click on this link:
MONDAY MORNING ASSEMBLY
It was a celebration of Junior School student achievement at Monday’s whole-school assembly with the whole College applauding Cristiano’s gold medal cross-country effort, and the Junior School Tamworth Football Tour team’s Spirit Award.
FLETCHER K
Anyone watching television over the last few months could not have missed the home insurance advertisement where the front of a house falls off – it had a particularly frequent run during the State of Origin. Well, the young man left in the house with his 3D goggles on is none other than Year 6 student and actor, Fletcher K! We all love having a celebrity in Year 6 and we can’t wait to see Fletcher in a movie one day soon.
AUTHOR VISIT
Year 5 were thrilled to be visited by best-selling Australian author Ashleigh Barton on Monday afternoon. More about this visit in Mrs Martin’s piece below.
JUNIOR SCHOOL ASSEMBLY
Our Junior School Assemblies have moved to Friday mornings so that we can use the last period on Friday for teaching and learning. Please ensure your son is at school is at school in time for assembly on Fridays, commencing at 8.37 am.
UNIFORM REMINDERS
Caps/Hats
Junior School students are required to wear their College cap or hat when in the playground at recess and lunch. Can you please check that your son has one, and if not, please purchase or order one through the Uniform Shop (link below). I spoke to many students today who had either left it at home or had lost it. It is also recommended that you put your son's name in their hat so lost items can be returned to their owner.
Blazer buttons
Whilst you are checking on the College cap, you might also like to check the buttons on your son’s blazer. If the buttons are missing, they too can be purchased at the Uniform Shop.
Thank you for supporting the College’s uniform requirements.
https://spxchatswood.formstack.com/forms/uniformshop
Thank you for your support of the Junior School
Mrs Jill Greenwood - Head of the Junior School
Junior Maths Drop-In
Junior Maths Drop-In sessions will run on Friday mornings from 7.40 am - 8.30 am in The Learning Enrichment Room in the Junior School.
This is an ideal place for extra revision or taking the time to get support if needed. Come along and be part of the team.
Mrs Amanda Fileman - Junior School Teacher
Junior School Sport
Thursday Sport: Winter Sport training will commence this week for AFL, Football and Rugby. Term 3 program is as follows:
Round 9 Fixtures – Saturday, 30 July
Athletics - Training: Training commences this week for all athletes, taking place on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons at Rotary Athletics Field, Mowbray Rd West, Lane Cove. After school dismissal, the College will transport the students to the venue by private bus, and the sessions will run until 4.55 pm where a bus will return the students to Chatswood. If you wish to collect your son from the venue, please be there no later than 4.50 pm.
Athletics - 1500m Event: Anyone wishing to join the athletics squad in the 1500m event can attend training where a time trial will be held. Please consider the following minimum standards used for qualifying:
10’s: 5m 37s
11’s: 5m 22s
12’s: 5m 14s
Cross Country: We were very proud to see Cristiano Calcarao (5 Red) continue his winning form at representative level last Friday. His latest feat, winning the NSW All Schools U11 event has him now ranked first in NSW – what an achievement! To relive Cristiano’s famous victory at the All Schools, just scroll back up to the link provided in Mrs Greenwood’s section. It was quite a special moment to hear the announcer utter the words, “…and our gold medal winner, representing St Pius X College / CIS, Cristiano Calcarao!”
Cristiano now moves on to the Nationals to be held in Adelaide at the end of August, where he will lead the NSW runners against the best runners that Australia has to offer. We wish Cristiano all the best with the Nationals and congratulate him on what he has already achieved.
Mr Glen Carroll - Junior School Sports Coordinator
From the Junior Resource Centre
This week's highlights:
Library and Information Week 25 – 31 July 2022
This week we are celebrating Library and Information Week and I am encouraging all students and staff to engage with the library.
For students – We would love you to share with us what you most enjoy about the Library – is it a particular club, or a particular genre you like to read, or the help you get from the Library team? Please come down and share your highlights on the posters in the Library so we can include them in our display.
For teachers pop down to the library and pick up your package. We hope you enjoy the surprise.
Author Tour celebrating the release of:
"Solomon Macaroni and the Cousin Catastrophe" by Ashleigh Barton
Year 5 had a very informative and 'fangtastic' afternoon with upcoming middle grade author Ashleigh Barton.
To purchase a signed book please use the link below.
Author Tour celebrating the release of:
What about THAO? by the bestselling author of Thai-riffic Oliver Phommavanh.
SAVE THE DATE – 4 August at 9:00 am. Year 6 will have the opportunity to purchase signed books - books are all presigned and will be forwarded to the students BEFORE and AFTER the presentation - students are welcome to order at any time and books will be delivered to the school in a bag with their name on the bag.
The fabulously diverse and heartfelt duo, Thao and Kadir face sometimes hilarious and sometimes heart-wrenching dilemmas of culture and belonging in a remote rural community.
The link for purchasing is below.
Library Monitors – Semester Two
Introducing our new Library Monitors for Semester Two. Welcome to the team. We look forward to working with you all.
NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge.
Have you checked out the new books added to the NSW PRC booklist? Don’t forget to finish your student reading record before 19 August.
Mrs Martin’s Book Trail: Library and Information Week 2022!
Engage with your library and see how immersing yourself in stories, resources and collections can have the power of expanding our world – view and perspective. This year’s theme of ‘Rewrite, Renew, Reimagine’ showcases the many amazing reimagining’s of classic, familiar stories in ways that embrace a diverse range of voices and perspectives. In "Daughter of The Deep”, Rick Riordan gives a modern take on 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Ana discovers she is the descendant of the infamous Captain Nemo and must harness the use of his futuristic technology to save herself and her classmates from enemy attack.
#mrsmartinsbooktrail2022
Mrs Elena Martin – Teacher Librarian
Junior School Chess Club
Chess Competition continues this Term 3 Friday 29 July . It will be an AWAY game for all players. This will be the last game for the season. A big thank you to all the Chess participants for their amazing efforts this term. A big shout out to all parents for their help with transportation during the season.
Mrs Elena Martin - Junior School Chess Convenor