Junior School News

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

From the Head of the Junior School

MONDAY MORNING ASSEMBLY

Last Monday 6 Blue led a beautiful prayer online for the whole school assembly.  They read a beautiful Beatitudes prayer.  The first part of the prayer was dedicated to Year 12 and Eddie Moss read this part as his big brother, Ryan, is in Year 12.    The other readers were Alex Higgins, Rohan Chang, Archie Turner, Liam Kelly and Christian Shahinian.  Well done to Mrs Iwatani and the boys.

PRAYER 

Have you ever looked at the Beatitudes as Be Attitudes? What kind of attitude should we have when life gets difficult? We take a moment to think about our Year 12 students who begin their HSC trial exams today. This year hasn’t been an easy one for them but they have continued to work hard to achieve their best.

Jesus spells out this special message for each of us in the opening of his Sermon on the Mount. After a night of prayer, Jesus selected his 12 disciples. He taught them how to live in the Kingdom of Heaven right here on earth. This sermon begins by telling us how to be happy and the rewards for being happy.

Let’s begin with the sign of the cross

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, 

for they will be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 

Blessed are the clean in heart, for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,

for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

Blessed Edmund Rice – Pray for us

St Pius X – Pray for us

Live Jesus in our Hearts – forever

THIS WEEK IN THE CLASSROOMS

As we approach the mid-point of the Term, I would like to assure you that there are a lot of interesting learning experiences occurring in the Junior School.  Following are a few of the various learning experiences that are occurring. Mrs Martin is doing some wonderful Science literature with interesting links. The boys should have a browse of the library website.  Please read Mrs Martin’s section below.  I also know Mrs Martin’s and Mrs Spanyik’s literacy classes will be doing a virtual Shakespeare tour.

This is officially Science Week.  Year 5 are studying solids, liquids and gases.  At the moment they are exploring solids and as part of their learning they are working in groups to explore the properties of paper to create the strongest bridge they can.  They are having a lot of fun trying to make a bridge that can hold the most amount of weight.  (helpful hint: remember triangles are a strong rigid shape)

Year 6 are investigating natural disasters in science.  They have been looking at the geological timeline. This week the boys are looking at Earthquakes.  In Year 6 drama the boys are doing tsunamis and freeze frames.  Please look at some of Year 6 Blue's freeze frames below. They have been concentrating on body language and facial expression to show emotion.  I think you will agree that they have been successful in this endeavour. 

Earlier this year our students in Year 5 missed out on an excursion to the Rocks where they would have gone to the Observatory and participated in an excursion entitled ‘Pieces of the past’ at the ‘Big Dig’. On Friday, Year 5 are in joining a free trial of a ‘Pieces of the Past’ virtual excursion. 

So as you can see there is a lot of great learning going on around the College. 

THURSDAY

We will follow the same format as last week. All boys will attend school for the first two periods and then we will bus (5 buses) down to Oxford Falls for recess, sport and lunch.  If you choose to pick up your son, it will be from 1.30 pm to 1.45 pm in front of the Christian Brother’s Centre. This is the plan for the remainder of the term unless you are informed otherwise.

SATURDAY SPORT AND TRAINING

Unfortunately, the sport has been cancelled for the remainder of the winter season.  We will still have Thursday sport and Mr McBrearty has come up with a way for some of the boys to have small-sided games at our before and after school sessions.   Please ensure you read his Junior School sports section so you are aware. 

FUTURE EVENTS

Please remember that we have a St Pius X Patron Saint Feast Day holiday on 31 August. You may need to work out supervision for that day.  We have Winter Sports photos on Thursday 3 September so please ensure your son comes in his normal school uniform and brings all his necessary uniform including his boots.  Shin pads and mouthguards are not required.  Mouthguards wouldn’t be good for your son’s beautiful smiles!

Don’t forget about Father’s Day on Sunday 6 September.

WALKATHON

In last week’s Woodchatta there was a letter regarding the Junior School Walkathon.  It explained where all the money will go.  The concept is for the boys to put themselves out for those less fortunate than themselves. We are walking for others.  When they get older and COVID-19 isn’t an issue they can physically go and assist at places such as Matthew Talbot.  Your support of this social justice initiative would be appreciated. 

Several years ago I took a group of Year 10 boys up to Bowraville for an immersion.  It was a great experience and during that week, we fed the school a meal.  This is a daily ritual so that the children get a good meal.  At the time the Principal told me they were down to their last couple of thousand dollars, as the food program is not funded and relies on donations.  St Pius now sponsor the uniforms for the school children and any other money goes to the food program.

As stated last week, the children are to ask only friends and family, please remember ‘stranger danger.’  This is a reminder of last week's letter regarding money collection

‘The concept is for the boys to earn the money. This is an invaluable learning lesson about doing something for others, less fortunate than ourselves.  It also has the added advantage of promoting fitness.  I realise that these are unusual times and possibly your financial circumstances have changed so please don’t feel pressured.  In the past we encouraged the boys to ask friends/relatives for a gold coin donation and in that way, they could raise a considerable sum without putting financial stress on anybody.’ 

BOXERCISE

At our online Merit assembly last Friday, Luca Della Franca and Liam Cooney spoke to the boys about Boxercise. They did a good job of encouraging participation before school on a Thursday and Friday.  Thursday is the perfect day as they are already in their sports gear.

THOUGHT TO PONDER

From Vital Staff Newsetter

Stay Safe as we are all in this together

Thanking you for your support,

Mr Tim Long - Head of Junior School

Junior School Sport

News: 

Before and After School Training Week 5 & 6 

The following sessions will be at Beauchamp Oval to allow those interested the chance to continue with winter sport. These sessions are open to all Rugby players and all A & B Football (Soccer) players as we have limited numbers due to COVID-19 restrictions. 

Wednesday 19 August: 

3:15 pm - 4.30 pm (Football and Rugby) 

Tuesday 25 August: 

7.15 am - 8.15 am (Football) 

3:15 pm - 4:30 pm (Rugby)

Wednesday 26 August:

3.15 pm - 4.30 pm (Football and Rugby)

Sessions will be games based and centred around developing skills in game situations. First aid officers and external coaches will be in attendance in addition to teacher coaches. 

Please use Rose St for easy drop-off and pick-up location.

Thursday Sport: Training for AFL, Football and Rugby. 

AFL

Grateful the game went ahead but poor ground conditions, due to overnight rain, made for a tough game. SPX were ahead on the score board leading into three quarter time, but Redlands finished more strongly in the last quarter to run out winners. The team again showed solid improvement from the previous game and this is something the boys should be proud.

Athletics

Training is on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons at Rotary War Memorial Athletics Track: Mowbray Rd West, Lane Cove West from 4.00 pm - 5.00 pm. Training is a “come to what you can” basis. Priority goes to other school sport where there are clashes. 

Buses will transport students to and from Chatswood after school with a 5.00 pm pick-up option at the venue. Students should return to Chatswood by around 5.20 pm. Training will go until the end of Week 6. 

Training Dates

Monday: 24/8

Wednesday: 19/8, 26/8

Thursday: 20/8, 27/8

Football

Rugby:

Mr Benn McBrearty - Junior School Sports Master

Junior Resource Centre News

This week's Highlights: 

This week in our non-fiction collection our spotlight is on the 400’s   Check out some of the most borrowed books in the 400's. #SPXJRC 

National Virtual Science Week 2020 in the JRC!

National Science Week 2020 is here! August 15 – 23. 

Virtual tours, online events, DIY science and more all across Australia from 15 - 23 August, 2020. Just click on the link, https://www.scienceweek.net.au/ type in your postcode to find free online events.

The school theme of National Science Week 2020 is Deep Blue: innovations for the future of our oceans.

Alex and Darcy from 

Year 5 exploring Science equipment in the JRC

Year 6 Literacy – Virtual Shakespeare Excursion with the State Library of NSW.

Today Mrs Martin and Mrs Spanyik’s Literacy classes participated in a Shakespeare virtual excursion. Here they were able to visit the exquisite Shakespeare Room on a virtual tour and engage closely with Shakespeare’s first folio – the only copy held in Australia! The boys also learnt about the Globe Theatre and saw a very special model held at the Library. We hope this interactive experience has inspired the students to learn more about the great playwright, William Shakespeare! 

New Library Monitor for Semester Two 2020

Introducing Daniel from Year 6

Zoom Virtual Author Visits

Sue Whiting 26 August, 2020

We may not be able to have our favourite authors visit the school, but I have a solution! Author visits via Zoom! Our first will be for Year 6 with Sue Whiting.

Sue Whiting – The Book of Chance.

The Book of Chance is an exploration of the meaning of family, the roles of social media, reality TV, and investigative journalism in our society, and the impact of secrets.

If you are interested in purchasing the book, click on the link below for the order form.

NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge.

This week we read the following book, ready to be added to the PRC Challenge. 

Do not Lick this Book by Idan Ben Barak - PRC ID 4449.

Have you checked out the new books added to the NSW PRC booklist? Don’t forget to finish your student reading record before August 28!

https://online.det.nsw.edu.au/prc/home.html

Library Monitor’s Book Reviews.

Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne

Graphic novel

This book is a fantastic book by Jules Verne. I like how the author has an exciting imagination for example you can see prehistoric creatures from the Jurassic period and there are giant geysers, giants, and woolly mammoths. The book made it obvious that the characters are smart and have good connections with different languages. There is room for improvement, why did he walk away from his uncle and Hans - he could have been okay just sticking with them and why would they leave without him? I recommend this book for people who like books of H.G. Wells.

Reviewed by Ben Year 5.

The LIST by Patricia Forde

The List is a sci-fi story about what the past has done to Earth. Letta, the wordsmith has a job of shortening the list for John Noa, the president of the Ark. With the list down to 500 words Letta needs to find a way to bring language back to life. I would recommend this book to people who love dystopian themed books or people who like reading a nice book. This book is the first book out of the 2 of the series and I love this book as a good read. 

Reviewed by Noah Year 5

Mrs Martin's Book Trail:  Rowley Jefferson's Awesome Friendly Adventure by Jeff Kinney. From the author of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, comes a brand-new adventure! Join Roland and his new best friend, Garg the Barbarian, as they leave the safety of their village and embark on a quest to save Roland’s mum from the White Warlock. Will our heroes survive this adventure? Find out in this side-splitting tale for kids aged 8+ 

#mrsmartinsbooktrail2020

Mrs Elena Martin - Teacher Librarian, Junior Resource Centre