Principal's Post

Dear Families,

I hope all of our St James' mums and grandmothers had a sensational Mothers' Day yesterday and were spoilt by your children. It's nice to have the opportunity to stop and reflect on the wonderful influence our mothers have on our lives in not only caring for us but shaping us to grow into the people we are.

A pillar of strength the pure meaning of Love

A Divine gift from our Lord up above

As gentle as rain on the petals of a rose

To kiss away fears and to hug away woes 

A Doctor when tending a cold or a scrap

A Chef when making cookies or frosting a cake

A Tailor, A Chauffeur, A Fairy God Mother at times

But never to busy for a child's nursery rhymes 

A source of Wisdom that comes from inside

A Manager, A Book Keeper, and a Private Tour Guide

The one that knows just what to say

When a child is having a difficult day 

The maker of dreams and the setter of goals

As a pile of laundry she sits and folds

When strange noises go bump in the night

It's her loving hand that turns on the light 

All things to family she feels she must be

Although her family may not see

In our Lord's kingdom the one that will fare

Is the one we call Mother. No others compare! 

By Barbara K. Cox

Grandparents' Day

It was so lovely to be able to welcome so many grandparents onto our St James site and into classrooms. There was such a great vibe and buzz within the school on Friday morning as so many grandparents and special friends moved about classrooms, Nonna's Cafe and outdoor areas in a COVID safe way. Thank you for bringing such joy into our community and into the lives of your grandchildren.

Catholic Identity Surveys

Thank you to the 15 families who have completed the surveys so far.  We have 85 families to go to reach our targeted sample of 100 families.

Please see 'Education in Faith' for further information and access to the surveys.

Email me when you have completed the survey so that I may provide your children with a thank you reward for your time. 

principal@sjvermont.catholic.edu.au

Walk to School Day

This Friday is National Walk Safely to School Day. This campaign encourages all primary school children, their parents and carers to walk safely and regularly to school. The event seeks to promote road safety, health, public transport and the environment.

Apart from walking all the way to St James from your home here are some other options; drive part of the way and walk the rest of the way, ride to school, meet some other families at a certain point and walk together.

All students who walk to school will receive points for their House Colour.

Board Shorts

This will be the final edition of Board Shorts because under the governance of the Melbourne Archdiocese of Catholic Schools, MACS, Education Boards will become School Advisory Councils. For us here at St James, the main change will be that of the title of the group. Many of our current practices are in line with the new operating guidelines.

Here are a few points that were discussed at our Board Meeting last Tuesday.

• Changes to our Reports we send home at the end of Terms Two and Four. These will be sent digitally rather than sending a hard copy home. There will be more specific detail about student achievement specifically related to the Victorian Curriculum and Standards for each grade level. More information regarding these changes will be sent home later in the term
• MACSpolicy updates were presented - Attendance, Duty of Care, First Aid, Abuse, Reportable Conduct
• COVID guidelines and procedures update
• Our St James 50th Anniversary celebrations which were put on hold due to COVID are planned for Sunday 25 July. Any parents interested in joining the organising committee are invited to email the school office by this Friday.
• P & F Update including: Bunnings BBQ, Mothers Day Stall, Major Social Event/Fundraiser on Sat 5 June, Entertainment Books and the pending change over to CDF Banking for electronic transactions for future events.
• Please us your Board members as a source of information and communication regarding our St James school

A few brief updates/reminders

• About Real Life Child Parent Evening for students in Yrs 4 - 6, this Thursday here at St James - see the Student wellbeing Page for registration details
• NAPLAN is on this week for all Year Three and Year Five students.
• Special accolades and thanks to Dylan and his team who hosted the Bunnings Barbeque at Vermont South on Saturday. Many were keen to get involved and happily took their turn. Much appreciated.
• Don't forget that any grandparents who would like to be involved, perhaps in our Gardening initiatives are very welcome. Contact Tim Flintoff: tim.flintoff@sjvermont.catholic.edu.au
• PS to Dads: There are a few outstanding $5:00 IOUs from children who came to the Mothers' Day stall and forgot their money. If that's the case, can you please pop it in an envelope and send it to the office? Thanks!

Dave