Week 5, Term 3 - 2023
Welcome
Dear St James Community,
Today we celebrated Grandparents Day & Book Week Dress-up Day. It was wonderful to have so many visitors in our school honouring the love and friendship across the generations. It was also wonderful to see the myriad of costumes linked to books, supporting our students engagement in reading as a lifelong adventure. We thank all involved in creating this memorable event.
Book Week & Grandparent's Day
Safety Reminders
Safety is a vital part of schooling, as such, we need all of our community to promote the following:
- The gates open at 8 am; students are not to arrive prior to this time. At 8 am all students must sit under the Covered Outdoor Learning Area (COLA) until the duty teacher commences at 8:10 am. Please note that from 8 am-8:10 am, students are not directly supervised.
- Collection of students is 3pm. Students are supervised for bus collection and car pick-up and they may wait outside of the office until 3:15pm (sitting on the grass) for siblings coming from the College. There is a growing number of students who are waiting in and around the school until around 3:20pm for collection from parents; we respectfully request that this does not occur in the future.
- Whilst there has been a great improvement in the management of traffic and adherence to driving protocols within the school grounds, we still have some issues, please note:
1. Do not park on nature strips.
2. Do not cut through the bus thoroughfare zone.
3. When using the car pick-up/drop-off zone do not get out of the car (children must be able to get in/out of the car and buckle in themselves) and do not allow children to get in the car until the car is adjacent to the footpath collection area.
Our teachers supervise the top oval (3 staff), kindergarten play area (2 staff), and bottom oval (3 staff) each break time and after school, and our maintenance crew assists with traffic management each day. This supervision helps immensely, but we also need all families to play their part so we can continually teach our students to play safe and be safe! I ask that all families reiterate these important rules with their children at home.
School Improvement
School improvement is a crucial part of our journey at St James, and we are always working towards improving all aspects of our school community for the benefit of our students' faith, learning, and emotional well-being. For improvement to occur we need a "working together" approach, and to support this we have installed a new sign at the entrance of the school. This sign serves two purposes:
1. To outline our annual goals so that parents and students can help staff as we "work together" towards achieving these goals.
2. To outline our short-term goals so that parents and students can help staff as we "work together" towards achieving these goals.
We believe if everyone knows, understands, and "works together" we'll have a better chance of succeeding with our aspirations, both in the long and short term; ultimately helping our kids to live, learn and grow in God's love.
Staffing Announcement
It is my pleasure to welcome Kat Rogers to the role of Administration Officer at St James Primary School. Kat will join our wonderful Administration Team of Tracey Smith and Jacinta Condon, and together they are the welcoming committee, the face of the school, the knowledgable others, a voice on the end of the phone and the medical officers for students (as well as a myriad of other things). Kat has a background in administration and I am confident she will enrich this function of our school; she will commence on Monday, October 9th. Please join me in welcoming Kat to the St James Primary School staff.
Sporting news
In recent weeks our students have been immensely busy with their sporting endeavours.
- We congratulate Violet, Ezekiel, Ashton, Willow, Olive, Kiana, Eden, Cormac, Zane, Billy, Lucia, Hannah and Callum on their efforts and tremendous sports-person-ship at the recent Diocesan Athletics Carnival. Well done kids! We especially acknowledge: Ezekiel (shotput), Cormac (1500m & 800m), Eden (200m) & Kiana (shotput & high jump). What a tremendous effort; they will now travel to Sydney for the Polding Athletics Championships, early in Term 4.
- The Stage 2 & 3 Rugby Gala was held on August 8th. The boys played very well with The Opens team having 2 wins and a close loss. The Under 10s team was undefeated on the day with two wins and a draw.
- The Stage 2 & 3 Netball Gala was held on August 9th. The girls played very well with a mix of wins and loses.
- The annual O'Dwyer Shield, played between St James Primary and St Joseph's Primary occurred on Sunday August 13th, hosted by Seagulls RLFC at Piggabeen Oval. A huge crowd was on hand to watch St James and St Joseph’s Under 10s and Opens games. The games were played in great spirit with some great skills on display from all teams. The Under 10s went down 26/12 in a gutsy display. The Opens won 30/12 playing some creative footy backed up with solid defence.
Sporting Gallery
Kindergarten Excursion
Our beautiful Kindergarten students ventured out of the school grounds on August 9th; they visited our parish church, St Joseph's, and had morning tea with the Kindergarten children from St Joseph's Primary School. This was a lovely event, where they explored the church; and of course, they were very excited to be going on a bus! These little people will cross paths again with the Kinder class from St Joseph's Primary in 2029 when they Graduate together from our Parish Schools.
Kinder visit to the Church
Pupil Free Days - 2024 (Survey)
We are seeking parental input on how we use our pupil-free days for 2024. In 2024 the school is entitled to 7 pupil-free days that are used throughout the school year; these exclude the administration days at the start and the end of the year. Staff have discussed two options for the use of the days, and we are now seeking parent voice on the matter. The two options are:
Option 1.
- Use 1 day on May 28th (Tweed Proclaim).
- Use 1 day on September 27th (the final day of Term 3)- Use 5 days on July 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 25th, and 26th (This is Week 1, Term 3; ultimately giving families a three-week break in the middle of the school year).
Option 2:
- Use 1 day on May 28th (Tweed Proclaim).
- Scatter the other 6 days throughout the year on random days (dates yet to be determined)
Please use the link below to cast your vote!
Term 3 Dates & Events
Please note the upcoming events scheduled for Term 3.
- Friday, August 25th: Stage 3 Gala Day.
- Saturday, August 26th: Parent Social - Bogan Bingo 6.30pm, MPC
- Thursday, August 31: Father's Day Stall.
- Friday, September 1st: Father's Day Breakfast - 7:30 am [all are welcome!].
- Friday, September 8th: World Literacy Day.
- Saturday, September 9th: Stage 2 Family Mass.
- Friday, September 15th: R U OK Day.
- Wednesday, September 20th: Dio Soccer/Netball.
- Thursday, September 21st: Matilda - The Musical (see flyer below).
- Friday, September 22nd: Pupil Free Day.
Thumbs-Up
- Our community for sharing a special Grandparent's Day and Book Week dress-up day.
- Parent Forum who supplied and served the morning tea on Grandparent's Day.
- Llewellyn [Amelia] & Langan [Henry & Hazel] Families for helping care for Petunia, Rosalind, Marigold, and Henrietta (our beautiful chickens) over the past two weekends.
To Conclude
This week we rejoiced in the sacred and joyous occasion of the Feast of the Assumption. On this special day, observed on August 15th, Catholics honour the Blessed Virgin Mary's glorious ascent into heaven with a holy day of obligation.
The Feast of the Assumption, also known as the Assumption of Mary or the Dormition of the Mother of God, holds profound significance in Catholic theology. It commemorates the belief that, at the end of her earthly life, the Virgin Mary was assumed, body and soul, into heaven by the divine grace of her Son, Jesus Christ.
As we mark this special Feast Day of the Church, let us reflect on the teachings and virtues of the Virgin Mary, her unwavering faith, humility, and devotion. The Feast of the Assumption invites us to seek inspiration from her example and to renew our commitment to faith, compassion, and love for one another. May this blessed day bring us joy, peace, hope, and an opportunity to strengthen our spiritual journey.
With Blessings,
Nic.
Feast of the Assumption Mass
