16 August 2024

Our Mission @ SJM

St James’ Primary School community excel in education through living and learning in Christ.

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Principal’s Message

Book Week

We would like to extend our deepest gratitude to everyone who contributed to making this year's Book Week Parade a spectacular success!

A big thank you to our dedicated library staff, Mrs Wilson & Mrs Douglas, who worked tirelessly to organise and coordinate the event. Your enthusiasm and creativity brought the parade to life and made it an unforgettable experience for everyone involved.

To our amazing students, you dazzled us with your imaginative costumes and your passion for reading. It was inspiring to see so many of you embrace the spirit of Book Week with such energy and joy.

A special thanks also goes to our supportive parents here @ SJM. Your involvement and encouragement are vital to our school community, and your support made this event even more special. We appreciate all the time and effort you put into helping your children.

We hope that Book Week has sparked a renewed love for reading and storytelling in our school. Remember, the magic of books continues beyond the parade, and we encourage everyone to keep exploring new stories and adventures.

Olympics

As we conclude our celebration of the Olympics, let’s take a moment to reflect on the lessons learned and the positive energy generated by the Games. Whether it was learning about a new sport, cheering for our favourite athletes, or discussing the values of the Olympics, we have all gained something valuable from this global event.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our SJM Lunchtime Olympic activities. A lot of fun and camaraderie occurred across the last few weeks. I will let you know of our winning country next week.

Here’s a challenge for our SJM community - Let’s keep the spirit of the Olympics alive by continuing to strive for excellence, support one another, and embrace the values of perseverance, respect, and inclusivity in our daily lives.

Trivia Night

It’s not too late to join us for our upcoming School Trivia Night, a fantastic opportunity for families to come together for an evening of fun, friendly competition, and community spirit!

Test your knowledge across a variety of categories, from general knowledge and pop culture with great prizes up for grabs.

We will also have several auction items up for grabs, including:

• Class Artworks
• Car Fridge/Freezer
• Gym Membership
• Tigers Jersey – current bid $750

Tickets sales closes on Monday 19^th August, so if you haven’t got your tickets do so ASAP on the QKR App.

Mr Aaron Moon
Principal

Assistant Principal

Can you believe that we are almost halfway through this term? It has already been filled with laughter and learning, and we hope to continue this throughout the remaining weeks. It has been great seeing the amazing learning that has been happening in our classrooms. Our classrooms are very busy places, and I am so grateful for the hard-working staff who know our students so well and can cater for their needs and interests. Keep up the great work everyone.  

The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference (ACBC) Survey

Don’t attend Sunday Mass regularly? Tell us why

The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference (ACBC) is running a survey to investigate why some Australian Catholics do not participate regularly in Sunday Mass.

As the Diocese embarks on a journey of mission and evangelisation, share your views to help the ACBC and Church leaders understand why Catholics don’t regularly attend Mass.

This is an opportunity to share your experiences, and we encourage you to share your feedback. Complete the anonymous survey in 10 minutes.

The survey will close on 20 August 2024.

National child Protection Week

National child Protection Week will take place between 1 – 7 September 2024.

This year, the theme is: ‘Every conversation matters.’

WHAT PART CAN YOU PLAY?

We can all play a part by creating stronger, safer neighbourhoods. This can be achieved by talking to your neighbours, checking in with friends, being a good role model, supporting and being kind to parents rather than judging or being competitive, offering to assist where possible, and speaking up if you see something that is unsafe.

It is important that we listen to, and value, what children have to say. Where possible, include their voices in decision-making and be advocates for their best interest. 

By speaking regularly with children about their personal safety and how they can protect themselves, as well as “tuning in” to their worries, children are more likely to trust us and feel comfortable to talk with us when something big is going on.

Make your influence positive; start a conversation today with your colleagues and families about listening to and valuing the voice of children and young people.

Decorate Your Space: National Child Protection Week 2024

We have been invited to decorate our space that uniquely reflects our commitment to children’s safety and wellbeing in line with the theme of National Child Protection Week ‘Every conversation matters’. Mrs Gavin and I will be busy decorating the hall foyer….so watch this space!

Winter hygiene 

As we continue with the cooler weather, I remind everyone of important winter hygiene practices, including nose picking and disposing of tissues into the bin. It would be great if you could work with us, by having a chat with your children about the importance of hygiene and the potential spread of germs if we don’t keep our hands clean. We still encourage lots of hand washing or use of hand sanitiser here at school, so please build this into your conversation and remind your child that this is an important part of the process to keep everyone well.  

Illness and absences 

Just a reminder that we ask you to keep your child at home if they are unwell. We have lots of students coming to school with coughs and colds, as well as complaints of tummy aches and headaches. If you know your child is unwell, please do not send them to school. We ask that you keep your child at home until they are well enough to return to school. If your child has a tummy bug, we ask that you keep your child at home at least 24-48 hours after the symptoms have ceased. If your child is absent due to illness, we ask you to add the attendance note via Compass, or call or email the school to let us know so that we can add the attendance note for you. 

Mrs Jane Jacobs
Acting Assistant Principal

Religion

Last week we celebrated the feast day of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop. St Mary MacKillop is our first Australian saint and holds a significant place in all our hearts. She was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1995 and was canonised on the 8^th August 2010. St Mary MacKillop was an advocate for those less fortunate in our community and the rights of education for all. Along with Fr Julian Tenison Woods Mary opened a school in Penola, South Australia for underprivileged children. From there many other women came to join her and Fr Julian and Mary founded Australia’s first religious order The Sisters of St Joseph.

Mary especially focused on serving those in rural areas of Australia and living amongst those she served. She was a remarkable woman whose compassion, empathy, strength, determination and dedication should be an example for us all.

On Sunday 18^th August we also celebrated the Confirmation and First Holy Communion of several of our St James students. Bishop Michael Kennedy and Fr Victor presided over our mass and presented: Sophie and Jacob Lane, Abigail Acosta, Prestyn Boyle, Emmet O’Riley and Harley Eusebio to our St James Parish community. It was a wonderful celebration, and we are so proud of these students for completing their initiation into our church community. Many thanks must also go to Mrs Jane Jacobs for guiding students in their sacramental journey and her ongoing commitment.

Mrs Lauren Gehrig
Acting Religious Education Coordinator

What's On @ SJM

Merit Awards

Class News

ES1

In math this term we have been developing our knowledge of numbers up to 30 and being able to add two numbers to make a bigger number. Kindergarten is working on recognising the difference between teen and ty (20) numbers. We have had to practice what is the number before and after, sometimes we get it mixed up. This is something you can play at home.  Students are getting clever at recognising number bonds to ten. We have learnt lots of new card games to practice all these skills. 

Mrs Donna Smith (KG) and Mrs Trishelle Threadgate (KM)

Stage 1

Dear Stage 1 Families,

Wow – haven’t the first 4 weeks of Term 3 flown by! Years 1 and 2 have well and truly settled back into routine at school, trying their best each and everyday to learn, laugh, and have fun at school.

Students are well underway with learning the exciting units of work that their teachers have planned for this term.

In Science, Stage 1 are currently learning all about digital technologies. We have studied hardware and software, inputs and outputs, and have touched on cyber safety. We praise Stage 1 for their keen interest and engagement in Science thus far. We are excited to move onto learning about Life Cycles in the last half of this term!

Geography has seen students learning all about the world’s continents and oceans. They are gaining geographic knowledge through fun and exciting songs and activities in their lessons.

Year 2 enjoyed a valuable yarn with Aunty Wanda about their upcoming excursion to Baiame Caves. If you haven’t already, please RSVP via COMPASS to let us know if your child will be attending our excursion. We thank Aunty Wanda for her invaluable knowledge, and we are very excited for a fun and adventurous day on our excursion (Friday Week 6).

We absolutely can not wait to see Stage 1 dressed in their Book Week costumes this Thursday at our ‘Reading is Magic’ book week parade!

We are very much looking forward to the next two weeks, eager to witness students’ love of learning both inside and outside of the classroom.

As always, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s classroom teacher.

Thank you for your ongoing cooperation and collaboration with your child’s education.

Kind Regards,
Mrs Baker & Mrs Ballard (1G), Mr Sabotic & Mrs Whithead (1M), Miss Becus (2G) & Miss Cooper (2M)

Stage 2

Welcome to week 4, students have made an excellent start to term 3. The Olympic Spirit at St James has been palpable. It has been amazing to watch the sportsmanship and comradery grow over the mini-Olympics. There is still one week left of competition at SJM Year 3 are cheering for France and Year 4 are cheering on China.

There is a lot happening over the next two weeks. Today (Tuesday the 13^th) students were asked to wear purple to raise awareness about the Bulling No Way-National week of action which finishes on the 16^th of August. Each Wednesday in August will also be a Whacky clothing item, adopting Whacky Wednesday. This Wednesday students are to wear a crazy hat. The following Wednesday is crazy shirt day.

This Thursday is book week, students can win a prize, by performing their best magic trick for Mrs Wilson as the theme for book week this year is, “Reading is Magic.”  We will hold the book week parade on the 15^th of August at 9:15am in the SJM Hall, students can come dress as any mythical creature from their Favorite book.

This week students have been exploring Terrariums in Science, building their own self-sustaining ecosystem. Students have learnt about the water cycle, introducing key terms such as evaporation, condensation and precipitation. We will also examine the life cycle of plants, and the necessary materials required to support life.

Students have been developing their public speaking skills in English, moving onto creating and presenting a persuasive speech. This is to support students in the upcoming SJM public speaking finals which will be held on the 22^nd of this month.

Please do not forget about our SJM Trivia night which will be held on the 23^rd of August. Tickets are still available via the QKR app, we hope to see you there.

Miss Fitzsimmons (3G), Miss Maher (3M), Miss Dafter (4G), Mrs Jane Jacobs & Mrs Mary Ballard (4M)

Stage 3

Stage 3 have been busily practising their public speaking skills. Students have completed their final prepared and impromptu speeches last week. Finalists for the stage will be notified for the upcoming Stage Finals. We have been very impressed by the quality and improved confidence of many students.

Stage 3 students have been exploring our new Science unit ‘Changes to Earth’s Surface’ with Miss Lamont during RFF time each fortnight. The students have been taking their ‘geology passport’ and researching and finding we ways we can minimise the devastation during earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions. This has been quite the task! We look forward to seeing students’ findings!

A big thank you needs to be given to students who have put their hand up to play in the St Catherine’s Catholic College Netball Gala Day. This day has been postponed to a later date, but the commitment and willingness of the students to train during lunchtimes is to be commended.

Mrs Gehrig & Mrs Somerville (5G), Miss Brimble (5M), Mr Sweeney (6G), Mrs McLennan (6M)

What’s on in the Library

Book Week Parade

Congratulations to the students, parents and teachers of St James’, who put such a wonderful effort into dressing up for our Book Week Parade. The costumes represented the Book Week theme, ‘Reading is Magic…’. Thanks to the staff who took part in the play of the book, ‘One Little Duck’. We all loved it thanks. A magical time was had by all!

Whilst all children were winners on the day, congratulations to the following students who won a prize. 

*Please see our SJM Facebook page for all Book Week photos.

Magic Show

Thanks to the students who performed a magic trick at our Magic Shows this week. You have well and truly entertained Mrs Douglas, Mr Moon and Mrs Wilson. Congratulations to our winners.

Kinder/Year 1: Myla Smith, Ripley Dempster and Diamanda Mensah.

Year 2: Letti Asara, Maksimus Cox and George Boyle

Stage 2: Henry Pettman, Edie O’Hara and Zavier Elphick

Stage 3: Amelia Fleming and Melody Lawley

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Book Week Displays

A huge thank you to Mrs Douglas for the wonderful displays she has created for the Book Week theme in our school library. The students and Mrs Wilson really appreciate your efforts and creativity.

Lisa Wilson
Teacher Librarian

Nadene Douglas
Library Assistant

St. James’ P & F Association

P&F Committee Contacts