Phone: 6882 2677

Fax: 6884 4500

Email: stjohnsprimarydubbo@bth.catholic.edu.au

Fees Office: 6884 8504

Email: sjpdubbofees@bth.catholic.edu.au

Term 1 Week 4 February 15, 2016

ST JOHNS PRIMARY SCHOOL NEWSLETTER

www.stjohnsprimarydubbo.catholic.edu.au

138 Sheraton Road

P.O. Box 4914

S C H O O L M A N A G E R F a t h e r G r eg Ken n ed y

S C H O O L C H A P L A I N F a t h e r G r eg Ken n ed y

P R I N C I P A L M r A n t h o n y O ’ L e a r y

A S S I S T A N T P R I N C I P A L M r A d am F o l e y

R E C M r D a v i d S c h w ag e r

PRIMARY COORDINATOR

Mrs Angela Benton TEACHING STAFF:

KINDERGARTEN Mrs Maria Brice Mrs Teagan Hoper

YEAR 1 Mrs Kim English/Mrs Erin Carney

Miss Louise Lindsay Mrs Paula Clifford

YEAR 2 Mrs Gabrielle Jones / Mr David Schwager

Mrs Michelle Noonan

YEAR 3

Miss Anna Veech Mrs Angela Benton/Mrs Sarah Davis

YEAR 4 Mrs Judith Gibson/Mrs Aimee Rose Ms Carmel Reidy/ Mrs Aimee Rose .

YEAR 5 Miss Emma Bolton/Mrs Amanda Shields

Miss Madelyn Colquhoun YEAR 6

Miss Maddie Redden Mrs Mickaela Wright

SPECIAL EDUCATION: Mrs Patricia Toohey, Mr Adam Foley Mrs Amanda Shields

TEACHER’S AIDES: Mrs Deanna Swanson, Mrs Bronwyn

Harper, Mrs Tracey Duncan Mrs Maricon Amoranto, Mr Trevor

Thomas, Mrs Belinda Montague LIBRARIAN:

Mrs Maree Williams ABORIGINAL EDUCATION

WORKER: TBA

CREATIVE ARTS: Mrs Maggie Dunn

SCHOOL SECRETARY: Mrs Margo Green

CANTEEN MANAGER: Mrs Cathy Dries

GENERAL HAND : Mr Mark Bradford

CLEANER: Mrs Kerry Iverach Mrs Cathy Keevers

P&F MEETINGS: 3rd Tuesday every month PARENTS/GUARDIANS Please note that photographs of students may be used in this publication. Please advise the School Office if you do not approve of your child’s photo being used.

From the Principal’s desk…. Welcome to Week 4. This week is a special week in terms of sharing information and connecting as

a school community. This evening we have our Parent

Information nights for Grades 1 – 6. This is an opportunity for

our dedicated staff to share the class organisation and

expectations with you. As the time is restricted it’s not a time

to ask individual student questions, however, parent teacher meetings can always be organised at

any time. Tomorrow, Tuesday is the Kindergarten information night. This will be followed by the

P&F meeting. Unfortunately, I will be an apology at the P&F meeting, as I have a commitment at St

Johns College. Mr Foley will be attending the meeting. I would encourage any new parents to come

along to the meeting. You will be made feel very welcome, and I always appreciate the amazing

contributions the P&F make to our school.

This Wednesday our swimming team will be

representing the school at the Northern Region

swimming carnival. The carnival is held in Gulgong.

All the best to the team.

Gospel and Reflection: Luke 4:1-13

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert

for forty days, to be tempted by the devil.

He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was

hungry. The devil said to him,

“If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”

Jesus answered him, “It is written, One does not live on bread alone.”

Then he took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in

a single instant.

The devil said to him, “I shall give to you all this power and glory; for

it has been handed over to me, and I may give it to whomever I wish. All this will be yours, if you

worship me.”

VISION STATEMENT

St John’s Primary School strives to foster a community of faith that is centred on the teachings of Christ, where love and

concern develops the whole child, empowering each individual to realize his/her potential.

Jesus said to him in reply, “It is written: You shall worship the Lord, your God, and him alone shall you serve.” Then he led

him to Jerusalem, made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him,

“If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written: He will command his angels concerning you, to

guard you, and: With their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.”

Jesus said to him in reply, “It also says, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”

When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time.

Reflection: In each of the three Synoptic Gospels, after his baptism, Jesus is reported to have spent forty days in the desert,

fasting and praying. In Luke and in Matthew, the devil presents three temptations to Jesus. The devil tempts Jesus to use his

power to appease his hunger, he offers Jesus all the kingdoms of the world if Jesus will worship him, and he tempts Jesus to

put God's promise of protection to the test. In each case, Jesus resists, citing words from Scripture to rebuke the devil's

temptation.

Each temptation that Jesus faces offers insight into the spirituality we hope to develop as we keep the forty days of the

Season of Lent. We can trust God to provide for our material needs. We worship God because God alone has dominion over

us and our world. We can trust God to be faithful to his promises. Jesus' rejection of the devil's temptations shows that he

will not put God to the test. Grounding himself on the Word and authority of Scripture, Jesus rebukes the devil by his

confidence in God's protection and faithfulness.

This Gospel highlights for us one of the central themes of the Season of Lent. We are dependent upon God for all that we

have and all that we are. Anything that leads us to reject this dependency or to distrust its sufficiency, is a temptation from

the devil.

Luke ends his report of Jesus' temptation in the desert by noting that the devil departs for a time. The implication is that the

devil will return. Jesus knows that he will be tempted again in the Garden of Gethsemane. The depth of Jesus' trust in God is

shown most fully when Jesus rejects the temptation to turn away from the task God has given to him. Jesus' final rebuke of

the devil is his sacrifice on the Cross.

Jesus' responses to the temptations of the devil teach us how we can respond to temptation. As we start our journey

through Lent, this Sunday's Gospel calls us to adopt the same confidence that Jesus had in the face of temptation: God's

word alone will suffice, God's promise of protection can be trusted, and God alone is God.

CAR PARKING AND DANGERS

Over the past week I have had a number of parents discuss with me their concerns over the actions of some drivers in the

afternoons during the pick up times. Our procedures are very simple.

We ask that you wait patiently as the teacher on duty assists the

children getting into the cars. On average, 4 cars at a time can collect

their children. We have a green cone that is the end point for cars to

head towards for parking and NO COLLECTION points on the curved

sections. We also ask that your speed is minimal as you enter the

school and leave via a LEFT Turn only onto Sheraton Road. Please be aware that this area in the afternoon is also a NO

PARKING area! if you need to leave your vehicle, please park along the fence on the Bunnings side of the school. We are the

only Catholic Primary School that has a pick up area within the school. If cars continue to drive in an unsafe manner our only

option will be to lock the gates and have all children picked up via the pedestrian option, which in itself causes issues. By

cooperating and being patient we can ensure the safety of our students.

‘WORKING WITH CHILDREN DECLARATION FOR VOLUNTEERS’

New Child Protection requirements have come into force from 2014. Volunteers helping at the school will now need to

complete a ‘Working With Children Declaration’. Photo I.D. must be produced when lodging this form in person at the

school. This Declaration will be available to all Canteen volunteers, class/sport volunteers etc.

Have a great week and God Bless

Anthony O’Leary

Important Dates to Remember

15th February—Parent Information Evening for Years 1-6 (see page 4 for times) 16th February—Parent Information Evening for Kindergarten 5:45pm 16th February—P&F Meeting 7pm followed by AGM 2nd March—Diocesan Swimming Carnival (in Dubbo) 19th March— School Fete

SCHOOL FEES 2016

The first statement for 2016 will be posted this week. It will show your total fees for the year.

Please note: Term Due dates for fees are: Term 1 – 19 February 2016; Term 2 – 20 June 2016; Term 3 12

August 2016.

You can still pay your fees by regular payment plan, however the only options currently available are

BPay, Direct Debit and Credit Card. If you had a direct debit in place last year and would like to continue

paying by direct debit and your bank details are the same, all you need to do is adjust your payment

plan amount for the 2016 year. If you fall into this category please give the St John’s Primary Fees Office

a ring on 6884 8504 and we can calculate your new payment plan amount and get it set up for you. If

you choose BPay it would be best to contact the office also to ensure you have the correct payment plan

amount set up to clear your fees by the end of November.

Please note: If you have a child in St John’s Primary and St John’s College you will need to set up

separate payment plans for each child with your child/ren’s individual school.

If you have not yet returned your School Fee Agreement form, signed by both parents, please do so

urgently. This is the form that is used to set up your fees. If the fees are to be divided between parents

you will also need to complete separate School Fee Agreement form and an Application to Divide School

Fees Between Parties.

Please ring 6884 8504 or email dubsjpfees@bth.catholic.edu.au if you have any queries relating to your school fees.

Religious Education News Term 1, Week Four 2016

Ash Wednesday and Lent

Last Wednesday our school participated in a beautiful Mass to commence the season of Lent– a period of 40 days of preparation concluding with our celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection at Easter. I must commend our choir who sang so proudly on the day.

Project Compassion

As part of our Lenten Journey each year we like to support the terrific work of Caritas Australia through their fundraising appeal titled Project Compassion. Due to a major printing malfunction our donation boxes have not arrived as yet but hopefully will be here by the end of the week for distribution.

Historical Bibles

A cache’ of much-loved family bibles, missals and prayer books has being uncovered at school with the names Antonia and Alphousus in them. I imagine they would be a dear keepsake for some family if they would like to collect them. Otherwise I am happy to use them as a display at school.

This Wednesday I will be attending our first REC cluster meeting of the year at St Pius X School.

Conversations with Kindies!

(As told to Mr Schwager)

Name: Armanie Hodges

Favourite Movie: Hotel Transylvania 2

Favourite Book: Room on the Broom

Favourite Food: Banana Yoghurt

Favourite Game: Tips

Favourite Sport: Soccer

What makes you happy? People helping me

What makes you sad? Mean things

What do you like about Dubbo? There are lots

of people

What do you think God looks like? I haven’t

seen him

What kinds of things do you think you can do in

heaven? You can spend time thinking about

God

What message would you like to give to the

rest of the school? If someone trips over, we

should help them

This week's REC Award goes to:

Ethan Letfallah

“To Live, Love and Learn in the Light of Christ”

Music Matters

Dear Parents,

Both Music and Drama activities have been launched at St Johns Primary this term! Our school Musical Production for 2016 is Aladdin Trouble a Pantomime! Classes have been introduced to the fun and typical ingredients which make up a Panto flavour. Auditions will happen later in this term. Save the Date….Performance Week, Term 3 Week 4! We have many new students learning instruments this term. These students will be able to join our Primary Ensembles for Strings and Band. All new members will be invited when their tutor and I, think they are ready to belong to the performing groups. Primary Strings who have been invited to attend the St Johns Combined String Ensemble need to be further advanced in their instrument eg Grade 2 Violin or equivalent and or in Yr 6 in primary school. Later in Term1 or 2, all strings will give a combined performance to the school. Later this Term there will be music workshops for all students learning an instrument across all Catholic Schools! Stay Tuned. Calling for clean recyclables! Year One will be experimenting in Music studying sound and making percussive instruments. I wouldd appreciate your recyclables for example; cardboard containers, boxes of all sizes (easily carryable), plastic milk containers, rubber bands, metal bottle tops, small pasta for shakers (no small grains - too messy). Your time and thought will be much appreciated. Likewise we need fabric / dressups, hats- if you wish to add to our Drama wardrobe we would always be grateful! Happy Music Making Mrs Maggie Dunn 0438498099

Parent Information Evenings

Want to know what the year has in store for your children? Our parent information evenings are a chance to hear from your child’s teacher about the learning and opportunities in the year ahead. This night sets up our year for good communication between the school and home about how things will unfold and the procedures we all wish to follow. Grades 1—6 will have their night on Monday 15th February. Years 5 & 6 will be starting at 5:30pm , Year 3 & 4 will commence at 5:45pm and Years 1 & 2 at 6:00pm. The meetings will take place in the grade classrooms. The purpose of the evening is to meet your child’s class teacher and gain relevant information pertinent to his/her class and the school. We appreciate also those families who have children in several classes, that there will be some clashes of time. Teachers will be preparing a handout so if you miss the teacher’s talk, you may collect this from them. Kindergarten will hold their information session on Tuesday 16th February commencing at 5:45pm. The P&F meeting is also on this evening, so it is a perfect opportunity for our new Kindergarten parents to come along to the P&F meeting in the school staff room. You will find a very warm welcome at the P&F meetings. This meeting commences at 7:00pm.

Please note that these are information sessions only and not the opportunity for a Parent/teacher interview. If you would like to have an interview please arrange a suitable time at a later point.

Our School Newsletter?

This week hard copies of our school newletter will go home to only those families

who have indicated that preference. Some families have requested that they

receive the newsletter via email and that also will commence today. All other

families will need to access the newsletter on our school website which is

www.stjohnsprimarydubbo.catholic.edu.au

If any family would like to change the method by which they receive their newsletter, please contact the

school office.

Canteen News

Hi everyone! During these hot days, Snappys & Icy Bites are

50c. Our Friday helper for this week is Mark Polley.

Have a great week!

Cathy Dries

Canteen Manager

0458 550 747

P & F News The P&F general meeting will be held tomorrow night, February 16th, at 7pm, followed by our AGM. EVERYONE WELCOME Positions will all be vacant. Please view the roles and responsibilities from our constitution at https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwPLjfAgGWkOakNkWFEwQXZiYUE/view?ts=56c06f83

Some reasons for coming to the P&F meetings: - Helping at P&F fundraising events helps you get to know your childrens teachers better and understand the way the school works. - Being part of the P&F helps you get to know other parents and their children. This is important for school matters but also great for a more active social life. - By joining the P&F you have the chance to promote and enhance your school's standing within your local community. - Although occasionally embarrassed, most children do actually like to know that you are there for them, taking an interest and sharing their experience. - Talking to other parents helps you and them. Sharing experiences and parenting tips helps us all. - Everyone has different talents and skills they can bring to the school and parents are a great interface between the school and the outside world. Very handy for sourcing raffle prizes, spon-sorship or professional help. - Knowing that they can (within reason) predict a certain level of fundraised extra income each year will allow the school to plan for effective resources.

Belinda Tink P&F President

Sports News

Last Tuesday, 9th Feb, St John’s Primary held our annual Swimming Carnival for 2016. The day was a great success

with some great swimming and a lot of fun had by all in attendance. Special thanks must go to all of the parents

& helpers that volunteered on the day to help out with timekeeping, marshalling, etc. Without parent helpers

who are able to give up some of their time, sporting carni-

vals would not run as smoothly. Your help is very much ap-

preciated.

St John’s Primary Swimming Age champions on the day

were as follows:

Jun Girl – Aspen Moore

Jun Boy – Jonas Bealing

11 yr Girl – Eva Osborne

11 yr Boy – Josh Burton

Sen Girl – Elle Mulholland

Sen Boy – Douglas Foley

Winning House – LaSalle.

Special Note – Junior Girl Champion Aspen Moore had two

record breaking swims at our carnival which is a fantastic

achievement –

10yr Girls 50m Freestyle in 34.80s 2016 old record 37.27s 2003.

Girls 8-10yrs 50m Butterfly in 42.98s 2016 old record 44.43s 1994.

There was some great racing at the carnival and St John’s Primary now has a very strong team to go on to the

Northern Region Carnival which will be held in Gulgong this Wednesday, 17th February.

At the Northern Region Swimming Carnival our swimmers will be competing against swimmers from St Laurence’s

Dubbo, St Michael’s Dunedoo, Sacred Heart Coolah, All Hallows Gulgong & St Matthew’s Mudgee. Swimmers

who place 1st, 2nd or 3rd at this carnival or 1st & 2nd in the Team Relays will become part of the Northern Region

Swimming Squad to compete at the Primary Diocesan Swimming Carnival on the 2nd March.

FETE FOCUS Like and Share St John’s Primary St

Patrick’s Autumn Fair on Facebook

St John’s Primary

St Patrick’s Day Autumn Fair

Saturday, 19th March 2016

3:30— 6:30pm

WANTED FOR

OUR

Petting Zoo

Cute and Cuddly

animals

Information Packs have gone out last week. You may get this

from the link:https://drive.google.com/file/

d/0BwPLjfAgGWkOYTY2OGdlaXRNdms/view?ts=56c0788b

SJP P&F’s Krispy Kreme Doughnut Fundraiser

To be returned to the school office by 2 March 2016

· Order either an Original Glazed Dozen ($17.00) or Classic Assorted Dozen ($23.00)

· Full payment in cash/cheque/ direct credit must be made at the time of ordering.

· You may like to co-ordinate orders for your own workplaces, friends, family, neighbours.

· More Order Forms at http://

www.stjohnsprimarydubbo.catholic.edu.au/

documents/forms/krispykremefundraiser.pdf

Bakers Delight are offering a $200 gift Voucher for the family who has the largest

order.

Order forms sent in fete pack but can be downloaded.

https://drive.google.com/file/

d/0BwPLjfAgGWkOVkJLVkxyR

k1TUzQ/view?ts=56c07895

We accept Direct Credit: All orders for Krispy Kremes, Bakers Delight and Prordered Tickets can be all done by direct credit. Details are BSB:182512 Account No: 963845839 Name: St Johns Primary P and F. Place your surname and a reference.

Start to bring in your donations. Please refer to your Pack.

RSL Youth Soccer Club Registration Day McDonald’s (Cobra Street)

Saturday 27th February 10am-12pm

COMMUNITY NEWS:

BRICKS 4 KIDZ - AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM

There are still some spots available at our After School Pro-gram which commences this Thursday, 18 February for 7 weeks at St Johns Primary School. The program is designed to stimulate and build children’s imaginations and fine motor skills where they build exciting motorised models with Lego® bricks. Visit Bricks 4 Kidz at bricks4kidzaustralia.com.au/nsw-centralwest/ or telephone 0419 894 586 for more infor-mation. Places are only open to children from St Johns and are limited to 20.

Basketball NSW registration fee is $65p.a., for unregistered players