27 June 2025

Our Mission @ SJM

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

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Principal’s Message

Term 2 has been another busy and productive term. I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to all the students and teachers for their dedication and hard work each and every day.

Highlights of the term include:

• ARTC Rail Safety Presentation
• Infants and Primary Athletics Carnivals
• Sports Trials
• Liturgies
• Year 6 Visits to Vinnies
• Podcasts
• Taekwondo
• Mother's Day celebrations
• Horse Sports
• Singleton Ag Education Day
• Musica Viva
• World of Maths
• COGAT testing for Year 2 & 4
• Visits from St Nick's
• Upper Hunter Scriptwriters
• Cross Country
• National Sorry Day
• Year 6 Middle Schools Day
• Catholic Schools Week
• School Photos
• Spelling Bee
• School Disco

In addition to these events, our students have been engaged in their daily lessons, showing great enthusiasm and commitment to their learning.

As you can see, there is a lot that happens in a school term. Thank you once again to everyone for making Term 2 a success. We look forward to continuing this momentum into Term 3.

School Reports

As we approach the end of Term 2, I would like to inform you that student reports will be available on COMPASS this Friday . These reports provide valuable insights into your child's progress and achievements throughout the semester.

I would also like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our teachers for their careful assessment and reporting. Their dedication ensures that each student's progress is accurately reflected and communicated.

Additionally, we will be holding Parent-Teacher Interviews next week. This is a wonderful opportunity for you to discuss your child's development with their teachers and address any questions or concerns you may have.

Thank you for your continued support and involvement in your child's education. We look forward to seeing you next week.

Changes to Staffing for Term 2

This week, we farewell Mrs. Elda Meyer as Learning Support Assistant. Thank you, Elda, for your contributions and dedication to our school community. We will confirm her replacement next term. Mrs. Marco is taking leave from Learning Support in Term 2. We will confirm her replacement next term as well. Finally, we would like to thank Catholic Schools for adding an additional onsite casual position at SJM one day per week for the remainder of the year.

School Lockdown

As discussed last Thursday, we had a school lockdown. We implemented this measure to ensure the safety of our children. I want to make it clear that this was an internal lockdown, not due to any external factors. I apologise if my previous message caused any unnecessary concern.

I am proud to say that the children and staff did an amazing job during the lockdown, showing great resilience and cooperation. We have since debriefed with both groups to ensure everyone feels supported and understood.

If you think your child needs a check-in with our pastoral care worker or school counsellors, please do not hesitate to contact me. We are here to support your child and ensure their wellbeing.

Thank you for your understanding and support during this time. Together, we can continue to create a safe and nurturing environment for our children.

Wishing you all a relaxing and safe school holiday. Take this time to unwind, enjoy quality moments with your loved ones, and recharge for the upcoming term. A reminder that school will resume on Tuesday, 22nd July. We look forward to welcoming everyone back refreshed and ready for another exciting term.

Mr Aaron Moon
Principal

Religion

Friday 27^th June marks the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. This feast is a prominent Catholic devotion, honouring the physical heart of Jesus as a symbol of God's boundless love for humanity. Today students had the opportunity to reflect upon the importance of this day with Fr Victor as he celebrated Mass with us here at St James.

On Wednesday a couple of students also celebrated the Sacrament of Reconciliation at St James’ Church. The Sacrament of Reconciliation, also known as Confession or Penance, is a profound expression of God's mercy and forgiveness. Through this sacrament, the students restored their relationship with God by confessing their sins, expressing genuine remorse, and receiving absolution from a priest. This sacred practice invites us to reflect on our actions, seek forgiveness, and embrace a renewed sense of peace and grace. Well done to Noah and Dominic who have now received the Sacrament.

If there are any students who would like to partake in the Sacramental program in 2026 please come and see Mrs Gehrig and I can assist you in the process.

Wishing everyone a wonderful final week of Term and a restful holiday break. When we return we have many exciting celebrations taking place including the Feast Day of St James.

Mrs Lauren Gehrig
Religious Education Coordinator

Merit Awards

Class News

ES1

Dear Families,

Can you believe we have almost completed half a year of Kindergarten?! As the Term ends, we have still been busy learning, playing and having fun. So far, we have learnt many new tricky words in English, including were, has, that, they, me, be, she and he. We have now learnt 17 sounds and are using our knowledge of sounds and words to read and write sentences!

We had lots of fun at the school disco, singing and dancing. We had many tired faces at school the next day! This week, we were also visited by the World of Maths, an incursion with lots of hands-on Maths experiences. The children enjoyed challenging themselves to count forward and backwards at various stations and tried to add numbers as they went. In Maths currently, we are learning to write addition problems and differentiate between the plus and equals sign.

Finally, there will be no homework going home in Week 10, as it is the last week of school. We are eagerly looking forward to our Kindergarten Fairytale Dress Up Day next week as well as End of Term Reward on Friday.

Mrs Smith (KG) & Miss Maher (KM)

Stage 1

Term 2 has absolutely flown by, and the students have worked hard to ensure they are optimising their learning.  Week six was a time to focus on us and our own wellbeing. Students were encouraged to pause and take time out of their day to engage in some mindfulness activities organised by classroom teachers. Drawing, playdough, colouring in and bubbles were among some of the activity's students participated in and thoroughly enjoyed. In the classroom students have been working hard exploring the properties of materials and engaging in some exhilarating experiences. Planning and construction of boats and lava lamps were a hit across stage 1 and allowed students to implement their critical and problem-solving skills. During music, students have had the opportunity to explore beats and bars, and create their own musical composition based off sounds they hear in the school yard. Finally, students have enjoyed exploring different celebrations they might engage in at home, school or in the church. Our End of term reward is Laser Tag which the children are looking forward to.

Kind Regards,

Mrs Mitchell (1G), Mr Sabotic (1M), Mrs Ballard/Miss Pritchard (2G) & Mrs Threadgate (2M)

Stage 2

Stage 2 students have been diving into some exciting topics in English this term! Year 4 have been exploring the wonders of space, while Year 3 have been learning all about dingoes and their role in the Australian environment. In Mathematics, students have been busy identifying and working with 2D and 3D shapes, building their understanding through hands-on activities and creative tasks.

Last Friday, students attended Mass with Fr Victor, showing great respect and participation throughout the service. We’re also incredibly proud of everyone’s efforts at the sports carnival—what a fantastic day of fun, teamwork, and school spirit!

Congratulations to all the students who made it through to regionals—what an amazing achievement!

Mrs Sylvester (3G), Mrs McLennan (3M), Mrs Gavin/Mrs Jacobs (4G) & Miss Cooper (4M)

Stage 3

Science has been a blast this fortnight! No pun intended. Students have been learning about mixtures and were lucky enough to participate in an experiment involving mentos and coke. They wrote a procedure about the experiment and the reaction that occurred.

Our Disco was a hoot! Thanks to DJ Moon for spinning the tunes on the night. It was very memorable, especially for Stage 3 as their primary disco years come to an end.

Our Athletics Carnival was an enjoyable day for all; it was great to see the sportsmanship and support from all students. Congratulations to everyone who participated in the events.

Mr Sweeney (5G), Miss Becus (5M), Mrs Gehrig/Mrs Somerville (6G) & Miss Dafter (6M)

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