School Newsletter – 29th April 2020

In our Prayers this week: Gadischke Family – Kate Yr 7, Sarah Yr 6, Ellie Yr 3 Gakuo Family – Ian Yr 8, Nicole Yr 4 Gardem Family – Nathan Yr 6, Adam Yr 4 Garvie Family – Jed Yr 3, Ezekiel Yr 1 Gayatgay Family – Nica Yr 6 Gibson Family – Chloe Yr 4, Izak Yr 2 Goodrich Family – Tyla Yr 5, Liam Yr 4, Jacob Prep Gould Family – Arron Yr 2

St John’s Lutheran School Ph: 07 4162 3988 Fax: 07 4162 4255 PO Box 506 84-94 Ivy Street Kingaroy Qld 4610 E-mail: office@sjls.qld.edu.au

Choose Kindness Bible Verse: Ephesians 4:32

‘Be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you

because of Christ.’

Family relationships are not always easy - especially when you are

spending a lot of time together at home at the moment.

We get it! Dealing with family all under one roof for a long time can

be lots of fun, but it can also be a lot to deal with.

Today’s Bible verse tells us to be kind and compassionate and to

forgive. That means forgiving your brother who just ate the last of

the chips. That means being kind to your Mum or Dad even when

you are getting a bit impatient with each other. Jesus challenges

us to treat others with love and kindness. So today, look for ways

to help your family. Ask God for His help too. He might show you a

way you can help your family. Unpack the dishwasher, or maybe

hang up the washing. Your kindness will go a long way to helping

your family get through this scary time together!

Anzac Day Thank you to our wonderful school

community who remembered our

ANZACs in unique and varied ways last

Saturday. From the wonderful drive by

Anzac Wreath display, to poppies on

the hill, poems recited around the

campfire, and students playing the last

post at dawn. We are humbled by your

creativity and respect for our ANZACs.

Thank you also to Felicity Aitken from

Murgon Florist who donated the wreath

bases so that our students could

complete the drive-by wreath display.

Thank You Congratulations to everyone in our community for your contributions

last week. We have had so many wonderful messages of support

from families in regard to the online learning that is being provided by

our staff. Our teachers and teacher aides are all working incredibly

hard to deliver quality education during these uncertain times.

Parents at home are working incredibly hard too - to support and

guide their children so they can continue their learning. It is this

partnership between school and families that will ensure our children

are well cared for emotionally and educationally. I wish to reiterate to

families again not to panic if you don’t get through the set work each day. We know you are juggling many balls

in the air. Teachers understand and know that you are doing your absolute best! Do not worry about your child

‘falling behind’. It is our job as professionals to ensure that when all children return to school, we continue your

child’s learning journey. We know, and are already anticipating, that all children will be at various junctures in

their learning. Teachers have been very grateful for parents’ open responses and questions because it is

through these conversations we can all work together to help YOUR child.

Keep up the wonderful work!

Whacky Hair Day Students are having a bit of fun today showcasing their whacky hair styles. It has been great seeing so many

children at home getting in on the fun! Keep your eye out on Facebook and Seesaw for some WHACKY photos.

New Staff Profile

This week we feature Kristen Dowdle. “Hi, my name is Kristin I have spent the majority of

my life in the South Burnett, moved to Toowoomba for high school, and moved back to

the South Burnett when I met my husband. We have three beautiful girls who all attend St

John’s. In previous years I have worked as a relief teacher aide; this year I was lucky

enough to become a Teacher Aide here at St John’s. Before children, I worked as a Youth

Worker for the Department of Child Safety, and in high schools as a Youth Support

Worker in Ipswich and surrounding areas. With three girls who are all very active, my

family is kept very busy. When we can, we enjoy family camping trips. I have really

enjoyed my time here at St John’s and am looking to the rest of the year, thanks to the

staff and students who have made me feel very welcome.

School Commencement Dates – 2021 Due to Australia Day falling on a Tuesday the School Council have agreed that St John’s start date for 2021 will

be Wednesday, the 27th of January 2021, in line with other schools in Queensland.

School Fees

School Fees accounts will be posted home to all families today. Term 2 school fees are due for payment by

Friday, the 5th of June. We know that some families are finding themselves in financial situations they may

never have anticipated. Our families continue to value the education and care their children receive at St John’s

and if you need to discuss financial options at this time, we encourage you to email our Business Manager, Mrs

Teresa Lucas, to make an appointment - tluc@sjls.qld.edu.au In a nutshell, we will charge only tuition fees in

Term 2. There will be no charge for cleaning/maintenance or activity levy. The P&F have also agreed not to

charge the P&F levy for this term. Music students will also be provided with continued on-line instrumental

lessons at no charge.

Primary Snippets Welcome to Week 2. I think it is safe to say that BOTH teachers and parents

alike were exhausted after the first week of venturing out into the ‘unknown’

world of online learning. One St John’s parent has commented that:- ‘ in

this new mode of learning, I feel as if my kids are learning a LOT more than

just Maths and English…… they are also learning time management, self-

motivation, responsibility, independence, and delayed gratification, as well

as how to READ INSTRUCTIONS!’ Keep up the great work, parents and

teachers!

Secondary Snippets It’s week two of our home learning here in the Junior Secondary Precinct. It certainly is a different atmosphere

and students are adapting to the changes well. We are busting myths up here in the Junior Secondary,

especially the old saying ‘You cannot teach an old dog new tricks’. This myth has been busted, Myth Buster style

by our Junior Secondary teachers, who are producing amazing content and using technology to do things that

have not been seen before.

We hardly see Mrs Coetzee anymore physically, as she teaches from her fabulously flamboyant art room to all

students via live streams and video montages. Students are showing their creativity using what they have at

home to produce amazing examples of innovation in art. Mrs Springhall as ever is multi-tasking by hosting

meets, collecting and marking work all at her finger tips, whilst providing feedback to students online and in the

physical classroom, and that’s just by first bell. Mrs Roberts continues to stretch the mathematical abilities of all

students by using up-to-date, cutting-edge stats from the COVID-19 pandemic to keep students abreast of

current events whilst providing the skills to apply their knowledge of all things statistics! Mrs Jorgensen has

students working ever so diligently on their textiles, so your child will be able to mend all your clothes and hem

your curtains by the end of term! Technology is being taken care of by Mr Sampson, who has been busy

installing the latest addition of resources to our Junior Secondary with amazing 3D printers that will transform

students’ digital work into tangible products. Mr Moseling has been virtually running everywhere along with

students to keep them in tip-top shape over this time and sending out personalised videos developing strength

and flexibility for all. Mrs Boonzaaier, along with Mrs Thamm, have had staff and students well-equipped with

their technical wizardry to get us out of all kinds of technical difficulties.

All staff, including our dedicated Teaching Assistants Mr Emslie and Mrs Soley, are going above and beyond to

provide and support for our students during this time, and I am so grateful to have this dedicated team working

for your children.

Parents are very welcome to contact us during this time if there are concerns or problems with access, or they

have any technical, subject specific or general questions. We are here ready to support you and your children.

Mark Eisenmenger – Junior Secondary Co-ordinator

Secondary Snippets Maths - The Year 9 students have been exploring how mathematics applies to

real life. They have looked at something that is a passion for them and

investigated how mathematics is connected in this passion. The images

demonstrate how mathematics applies when reading, flying drones or

sewing. All the students were adventurous and none of them doubled up, so

we had some great infographics demonstrating mathematics in real

life. These infographics are displayed on the wall in L1.

English - Year 9 Students are honing their narrative skills. They were given the scenario to imagine they are on

a bus or train, going somewhere they would rather keep secret, especially from their friends. They were to write

what happens on this journey when someone they know gets on, sits next to them, and just happens to be going

to the same place as them. In this task, visible on the Padlet, students were to use suggestions/clues to show

the context (place, time and problem) rather than tell. Check out their writing and see how well they did.

Padlet English Narrative

Art - An online art lesson was posted for Year 5N and Sierra Seng turned in a magnificent piece. Without a doubt I want to yell from the roof tops to say how I miss the students, asking questions, punctuating my room with shrieks and spills, knitting their eyebrows when I pronounce a technique or paint colour in an unknown manner. I miss the interaction, interruption and the interest. I miss the little chocolate or note on my desk to “the coolest art teacher”. (There is only one, so there is no competition). But I want to celebrate our students and their commitment. Their resilience. Their flexibility. This online business is working and the results are there. Praise God for the learning and the experiences that are still making it worthwhile to love the best job in the world. Eureka Coetzee Whacky Hair Day - Secondary students at home and at school had a lot of fun with their Whacky Hair Dos. Some just rolled out of bed- but it worked. Follow the link to see the photos and rate the students.

Secondary Whacky Hair

Virtual Inter-house Team Challenge. Wow! Huge week! 123 participants completed over 1010km running or walking! Great effort staying active

everyone! 👏👏👏 Wivenhoe wins this week with 355kms. Top three contributors were the Taylor, Springhall and

Jorgensen families. Somerset came in second with 348kms (so close!) Top three contributors were the

Moseling, Searle and Reddacliff families. Boondooma came in third with 307kms. They were leading just after

the half-way point! Top three contributors were the Gadischke, Tones and Tipple families.

Week 3 started Monday! Stay safe and have fun!

Now Wivenhoe is in great need of supporters having only 36 walkers in comparison to Boondooma 47

and Somerset 55. So sign up Wivenhoe and give your team a helping hand!!

The links to the Strava clubs are below:

https://www.strava.com/clubs/stjohnskingaroywivenhoe

https://www.strava.com/clubs/stjohnskingaroyboondooma

https://www.strava.com/clubs/stjohnskingaroysomerset

Supporting our Community We invite school families who run a small business in our local community to advertise in our upcoming

newsletters. Please let us know how we can support you. One way to keep our local economy buoyant is to

shop locally and what better time than now, as restrictions are starting to lift, to support our local businesses.

Please send us a business card, a blurb about what you supply or stock and any extra info for our families. It has

been exciting to see many businesses come up with creative solutions in the last few weeks, so now is the time

to tell us about it! There is no charge for this ‘advertising’ – it is simply our way of helping our families!

Tuckshop Mrs Litzow, with the help of Mrs Davison, will be offering tuckshop as usual. Please order this on Flexi-schools if

possible, as we are minimizing money handling as per health recommendations. There will be no tuckshop

roster until further notice.

Family Meals – The ladies are going to offer an easy meal option for families each Wednesday. This is to assist

and support our essential workers. For the next four weeks Mrs Litzow will offer a choice of two main meals for

$15 each and a dessert for $7. These would feed a family of four approximately. To order this please text your

order to Deb on 0403 671 909 by 9am each Monday and drop payment into the school office in a named

envelope. Your order will be available to be picked up at 3pm Wednesday from the tuckshop. Bus children will

need to bring a carry bag and collect their order directly from the tuckshop before proceeding to the bus.

Available options for next Wednesday, the 6th of May include:

Main Meal – Apricot Chicken or Beef & Pasta Bake

Dessert – Sticky Date Pudding

Date Claimers PJ day - Wednesday, the 13th of May Bling your Accessories day - Wednesday, the 27th of May

Mother’s Day Stall and Night Markets Unfortunately, we have had to make the decision to cancel the Mother’s Day Stall and Night Markets this year.

We are unable to comply with social distancing guidelines to run these events. Krista Holznagel is selling some

of the Mother’s Day gifts she has generously donated on Facebook.

DADs – Please note you now have only 12 days to organise a Mother’s Day Gift this Year!!

Lost Property Could parents please take a moment to check names and ensure that your children have brought home the

correct hats and jumpers? We are still searching for a few missing items of lost property.

Scholastic Book Club Scholastic Book Club are offering a Virtual Catalogue while students are learning from home.

Please click on the link below to view the catalogue:

https://scholastic.com.au/book-club/virtual-catalogue-1/

Please let us know if you have any questions. All orders need to be placed online by Friday, the 8th of May.

South Burnett Lutheran Parish We would like to invite you to attend our online Church Services. The links can be accessed on the South Burnett Lutheran Parish Facebook Page or the website sbluthparish.com or look them up on YouTube. These pre-recorded services can be viewed anytime at a time that suits your family and usually include a kids’ talk too.