Junior School News & Sport

• Junior School News and Information
• Highlights from the Junior Resource Centre
• Learning Enrichment Notices
• Junior School Sport

Prayer/Reflection:  

Last week Mr Long said goodbye to his mother, Joan Long. As Mr Long held his mother’s hand she passed peacefully into the arms of Our Lord. Let us pray this week for Joan Long and those near and dear to us who have passed.

O God, Creator and Redeemer

of all Your faithful people,

grant to the souls of

all our faithful departed

Your mercy, light and peace.

Lord, we pray that those we love

who have gone before us in faith,

may know Your forgiveness for their sins,

and the blessings of everlasting life,

in company with the Virgin Mary

and all the angels and saints in heaven.

Amen

THE WEEK THAT WAS:

I was so lucky last week that I was able to join Year 5 on their camp to Milson Island. The boys were very lucky to have such amazing weather as well as the opportunity to go away with their peers. The camp was a chance for the boys to make new friends and a chance to push themselves out of their comfort zones and try new things.

Unfortunately, Open Day could not go ahead but thank you to all the boys and teachers who worked so hard to ensure that the Junior School looks so amazing. It is great to see so much of the work from the boys up in the classrooms and corridors, the boys are very lucky here to have so many opportunities and wonderful learning experiences.

All boys who played summer sport were involved in team photos today, order forms will follow and need to be returned to the College as soon as possible.

THIS COMING WEEK:

With the current situation that we are facing, the upcoming week is fairly quiet due to many events being cancelled. This will give the students an excellent opportunity to focus on their learning.

We are very lucky here at St Pius that each student has their own device and we have started to look at different ways that we can use our PLDs for learning. The boys are really taking this in their stride and are enjoying the different methods of class delivery as well as the independence in learning that these methods provide.

It has been funny to talk with the boys about what might happen if there were any school closures and there have been some interesting questions asked, of course important to 11 and 12 year old boys, especially the second one!

“Will we have to ask if we need to go to the toilet?”

“What will happen if we want to have something to eat?”

“Will we have to wear out uniforms or can we just stay in our pyjamas?”

Please note that our Year 6 Class Captains who had been invited to take part in a CSO Leaders Mass next Thursday will not be attending due to the current situation.

Year 5 Camp

The trip to the island from Kangaroo Point was a first for some boys as they got to ride on a ferry. After arriving, the hike up with the hill was the first of many steep tracks we would navigate over the three days. Following the welcome and introductory talk the boys were led to the dining hall where they made their own sandwiches. The cabins were then assigned and the boys got to meet their roomies for the next 3 days, new friends were made and there was a lot of excited chatter.

Over the next three days the boys participated in a range of activities:

• Archery
• Raft Building
• Fencing
• Damper Making
• Giant Swing
• Low Ropes
• Kayaking
• Fishing

The camp was a wonderful chance to see the boys working so well together, helping to put harnesses on each other to go on the big swing, building a raft together that they could ride across a pool, working with a partner to manoeuvre a kayak along the Hawkesbury River, cheering each other on when they were trying something new, spotting each other to ensure everyone was safe on the low ropes, the list could go on.

I hope that the boys had lots of stories to tell their families, I know that I thoroughly enjoyed myself and the chance to get to know the Year 5 boys better. I must again thank the teachers who were involved and gave up their time to accompany the boys on the camp: Mr Patterson, Mr Cummins, Mrs Williams and Mrs Doheny (who also went on the Year 6 camp!).

P & F EVENTS

Please see the P & F page for upcoming P&F events.

TERM 1 DATES

I attach the calendar for this term below.  Junior School information is highlighted in RED.

A THOUGHT TO PONDER

Be kind.

Raise your head and laugh loudly.

Stand and be brave.

Real happiness is found in the pursuit of other things.

Peter Dunne

Thanking you for your support.

Mrs Samantha Iwatani  - Acting Head of Junior School

Highlights from the Junior Resource Centre

March is a long month my friends!  Use that extra time to read more books.  Books should be in the hands and homes of our students, not sitting on library shelves locked up!  I am increasing the number of books students can borrow and renewing books already borrowed.  Let's clear the shelves!  #library

 Accessing ebooks and audio Books

Mrs Martin’s Top tips and go to sites for easy access to texts. The school has a subscription to ebook platforms such as Wheelers. https://stpiusx.wheelers.co/  These can be accessed through the student portal. Students can also download the BorrowBox app, they can select their local library (assuming they are a member, if not a member, very easy to join online).

Premier's Reading Challenge

Opened on Monday 2 March.  Please check that your son has received their username and password.  (This was emailed to them last week.)  If there are any problems, ask your son to contact Mrs Martin.

Mrs Martin’s Book Trail – Jane Doe and The Key To All Souls by Jeremy Lachlan

Another new arrival for 2020 has arrived, and what a beauty it is! I have already sunk my teeth into this next instalment of the hero Jane Doe, and it is everything and more compared to the first. Another awesome Australian novel that rivals the legendary Indiana Jones. Get your hands on it today.#mrsmartinsbooktrail2020

Mrs Elena Martin - Junior Librarian

Learning Enrichment Notices

da Vinci Decathlon Postponed

Thank you to the boys who trialled for the da Vinci Decathlon, however it has been postponed. This decision has been made by Knox Grammar School due to the recommendation that large gatherings are to be discouraged.  Any further information will be updated via Woodchatta.

Mrs Bettina Spanyik - Learning Enrichment Teacher

Junior Sport

Thursday Sport: Thursday Sport has been cancelled for this week only in order to prepare for off-campus learning.

With the fluid nature of things in the current climate, please ensure you are set up to receive notifications from the SPX app for Junior Sport and Twitter to stay across the latest information.

Basketball: Well done to all players for the first half of the season. We break now for winter before re-trialling in Term 3 in preparation for the Term 4 season (Rds 7-12).  

Touch Football:  We break now for the Winter season before re-trialling in Term 3 in preparation for the Term 4 season (Rds 7-12).

Football: In 2020 Pius X College will field 5 graded U10/11 combined teams (A-E) playing 9 per side and 4 graded U12/13 teams (A-D), playing 11 per side. Boys play in the age group that matches the age they turn in 2020, with the exception of Yr 6 players who turn 11 but qualify for the Prep 1st XI team due to their strong ability. Our trial matches scheduled for Saturday 28 March at Oxford Falls have been cancelled. Players will be assigned a squad during internal trials at Thursday Sport. Each player will require a full change of gear, including boots and shin-guards (does not have to be school issue strip for training).

Rugby: As per Australian Rugby’s Statement, the trial matches scheduled for Saturday 28 March at Oxford Falls have been cancelled.

Mr  Benn McBrearty - Junior School Sports Master

NSTA Tennis:  Please check under NSTA Tennis in the Senior School Sport and Co-curricular section for future correspondence.

IPSHA Tennis:  It was a very cold, wet and windy day last Saturday for the final round of the IPSHA season. The B team who were playing at Barker played through the wind and freezing rain. I’m so proud of these boys seeing how far they have come since the beginning of the season. They played their best in all singles and doubles matches and were great ball boys and umpires off the court.

Team As last round against Cranbrook was a competitive one with the teams well matched. Spectators enjoyed some sensational sustained rallies in both the singles and doubles matches. Congratulations to Marco Akdagcik for a nail biting 3-2 singles’ win. Congratulations to Ryan Chung for speaking so confidently on behalf of the team in thanking our opponents for the great matches played. Congratulations to every team A player for their sportsmanship and gallant tennis play; I was extremely proud of the team.

Unfortunately the boys weren’t able to win overall in the A or B division throughout the season but they always turned up with a smile on their face and showed great sportsmanship and determination each week. Well done to all the boys who were involved in this competition this term!

Mrs Samantha Iwatani - IPSHA Tennis Convenor

SPX Rugby Supporters' Club - Annual Dinner - has been postponed.  A new date will be advised early next week.

Mr Paul O'Neill - President, SPX Rugby Supporters' Club

Junior School Chess Club

Junior School Chess training has been cancelled for this term. Sydney Academy of Chess will be posting online training and quizzes for the students. Watch this space. As soon as I receive the link I will forward this on to the students.

Mrs Elena Martin - Junior School Chess Convenor