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| DAY | DATE | EVENT |
| Thursday | 12th September | ICAS Writing Years 3 & 4 |
| Friday | 13th September | Year 2 Excursion to Science Centre and Planetarium |
| Friday | 13th September | Primary Assembly 2.30pm |
| Tuesday | 17th September | ICAS English Years 2,3 & 4 |
| Wednesday | 18th September | ICAS English Years 5 & 6 |
| Wednesday | 18th September | Launch Catholic Mission - Mrs Webb and Year 6 Representatives at St John the Evangelist, Nowra |
| Wednesday | 18th September | BYODD Meeting for Year 3 2020 parents 6.30pm Tiered Learning Space |
| Thursday | 19th September | ICAS Maths Years 2, 5 & 6 |
| Thursday | 19th September | Junior Basketball Gala Day at Minto |
| Friday | 20th September | Senior Basketball Gala Day at Minto |
| Friday | 20th September | ICAS Maths Years 3 & 4 |
WELCOME MR WALSH -
As Mrs Webb will be attending a Spirituality Retreat for Principals for the remainder of this week (Thursday and Friday). We warmly welcome back Mr John Walsh as Relieving Principal during this time.
Thank you for making John feel welcome. Please direct any matters to either Mrs Billett, Mrs Libro or Mr Walsh that may arise.
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
Next weekend, on 21st September, many of our Year 6 students will be presented to Bishop Brian Mascord, as candidates for the Sacrament of Confirmation. The sacrament of Confirmation is the final step of initiation into the Catholic faith and for the candidates it is a very public reaffirmation of the promises originally made by their parents and godparents, on their behalf at Baptism.
A powerful ritual in the Confirmation liturgy is the anointing by the Bishop with the oil of Chrism. Anointing with oil is an ancient symbolic ritual that continues to be used today. Kings, queens, prophets and priests were anointed to show they were chosen by God to lead with justice and integrity. The anointing of the candidate at Confirmation is a sign of confirming the gift of the Spirit, and a calling to become involved in the life and mission of the community. The words ‘Christ’ and ‘Messiah’ mean ‘anointed one’. The ritual of anointing with the perfumed oil of Chrism also symbolises being sealed, marked and identified by the Holy Spirit. We are anointed to be Christ for each other, and to be Christ in the world.
As we remember our students who will now become fully initiated members of the Church, it may also be an opportune time to reflect on our own personal faith journey and our effectiveness in our role as parents, the first teachers of our child’s faith. The celebration of Confirmation within our community is an invitation to each one of us to reflect on the Baptismal promises that were first made on our behalf by our parents and godparents when we too, were baptised. This process invites us into a deeper way of relating to God, to Jesus and to one another, and to become more actively involved in the life of the community through the on-going presence of the Holy Spirit.
The Sacrament of Confirmation speaks of the need to bring the blessings of the gifts of the Holy Spirit to life. St John’s is a school community not only filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, but abundantly blessed by the generous sharing of these gifts. This can be witnessed on a daily basis. Thank you to all the staff who support and nurture the faith journey of each of our students each and every day.
Our Year 6 Confirmation candidates have been assisted in their preparation for Confirmation through the commitment of Mrs Hampton, our REC and the members of the Parish Sacramental team, Mrs Stephens and Mrs McNally. Gratitude is extended to Miss Cataldi, Mrs Skinner, Mr Astill, Mrs Merrett, Mr Jenkins and Mrs Hampton who so generously gave of their time to facilitate the workshops.
On behalf of the candidates I thank each of them for their readiness to live out their faith commitment.
Our teachers and our Parish have done a tremendous job in the preparation of the Confirmation candidates for 2019, but it does not stop there. The preparation and formal occasion of the sacrament is only the beginning. Confirmation is the acceptance of Jesus’ call to us to be living evidence of Christ in our world today. This is not an easy task for an eleven or twelve year old. In fact, it is not an easy task for adults to make such a commitment to their faith. This is the very reason why we, as the adults, need to support, nurture and guide our children in understanding the commitment they have made.
As parents what can we do to continue to guide and nurture the living witness of Jesus within our children? As a start, we could commit to living with an attitude of peace and joy and striving to bring our gifts of the spirit to life within our community. We could be open to recognise the times when the ‘Spirit’ invites us to reach out or respond to the needs of another. May we be challenged in the weeks ahead to make space for the spirit to work in and through us. In doing so, may we also confirm our place as the first teachers of faith for our children.
Wishing many blessing for the Confirmation candidates, their sponsors and families next weekend.
Mrs Jane Webb
Acting Principal
Congratulations to the following students who received the Good Samaritan Awards this week:
KB - Taly Recites
1B - Elijah Boyd
2B - Adriana Slewo
3B - Sean Phonthaphanh
4B - Markell Tan
5B - Gwen Klarich
6B - Alex Moy
The Five Stages of Solving Worded Problems in Maths
In the last edition of our school newsletter, we referred to a strategy that can be used to assist students to solve worded problems more effectively. The strategy is called Newman’s Prompts.
One of the biggest obstacles for children when solving worded problems is not the mathematical knowledge and skills that are needed to process the problem. It is often the way the question is worded as well as the many steps that are required in order to solve it.
Newman’s Prompts is a strategy that takes the students through the five stages of problem solving that are necessary to assist them to comprehend the question and unpack the language in order to be able to do the maths that is required of them.
Error Analysis Interview:
A teacher can follow a series of interview cues to probe the student as they solve a worded problem. Each cue relates directly to one of the five stages of the basic structure of solving worded problems for mathematics. The interview can expose why a student has made an error in a word problem.
Interview cues
- Please read the question to me. If you don't know a word, leave it out (reading and decoding).
- Tell me what the question is asking you to do (comprehending).
- Tell me how you are going to find the answer (transforming).
- Show me what to do to get the answer. 'Talk aloud' as you do it, so that I can understand how you are thinking (processing).
- Now, write down your answer to the question (encoding).
After interviewing the student, the teacher then has a better understanding of which part of the problem solving process the student is struggling with. Then they are able to give them strategies to target that particular area of weakness. For example, if the issue is in the transforming stage, the teacher would encourage the student to look for a pattern or make a list or table.
Kylie Billett Helen Libro
Acting Assistant Principals
Sacramental Program – Confirmation – Very Important Dates
Confirmation preparation continues. Two important upcoming dates are:
Reconciliation Date: Saturday 14 September 2019 at 10.30 to 11.30 am
Rehearsal Date: Thursday 19 September 2019
6 pm – Rehearsal for 11.00am Mass
7 pm – Rehearsal for 2pm Mass
As a school community, please pray for these young people as they prepare to receive this special Sacrament.
Upcoming Whole School Mass – Creation Mass
We are having a whole school Mass to celebrate the wonder of Creation. It is on our last day of term – Friday 27 September at 12 midday. We hope you can join us to celebrate our Eucharist to give thanks to God for the beauty of the earth.
Enjoy your week.
Mrs Kathryn Hampton
Religious Education Coordinator
Information Meeting for all 2020 Year 3 Parents and all other interested parents
Wednesday 18th September at 6.30pm
Tiered Learning Space
With the warmer weather now commencing, during the last 2 weeks of term (from 16th September), students are able to choose to wear either full Summer or full Winter uniform .
All students will return in Term 4 wearing their full Summer uniform.
Students need to wear either the entire Winter or Summer uniform during this transition period, not a combination of both.
What a “Super” Book Week and Book Fair we had at St Johns.
It was fantastic to see the children, and staff, so engaged in their characters and taking up the opportunity to design badges to reveal their “secret powers”. All of the badges were then displayed under the COLA so everyone could see that we all have different and unique secret powers! Each stage also had the opportunity to parade their outfits with their classmates.
The Book Fair was a great success selling over $8000 in books! As a result of your support in purchasing the books and novelties we have over $2000 to purchase library books and teacher resources over the next 12 months.
Over 81 books were purchased by St John families and donated to the library. We are very grateful for your generosity. Over the coming weeks displays of the books donated will be set up in the library.
Flyer attached for Eschol Park Little Athletics