Term 1 concludes on Wednesday 13th April
Term 2 commences on Tuesday 3rd May 

Mother's Day Stall - Friday 6th May 

Dear Parents

It is hard to believe that I am writing my last newsletter article for this term.

I would like to once again start my newsletter article by offering my sincere gratitude to whole of the St Pius community. I have been made to feel most welcome by staff, students and families and I have greatly appreciated all of your support and understanding in what has been a disrupted start to the school year.

Harmony Day:
Last Wednesday we celebrated Harmony Day. Harmony day celebrates Australis’s cultural diversity. It’s about inclusiveness, respect and sense of belonging for everyone. One thing I have really noticed since moving to St Pius, is how rich the school is in cultural diversity and the children are very open and proud of their cultural heritage. It was wonderful to see many children dress up in traditional clothing from their culture in order to celebrate this day. Many children also wore orange clothing which is the colour that symbolises harmony day. The liturgy on the oval, followed by the school parade and then watching many of the children joining in with some Egyptian Belly-dancing was wonderful to witness and really brought back a strong sense of community. The orange Krispy Kreme donuts were also a big hit with the children. It was also really good to have so many parents join us for the Harmony Day celebrations. I would like to thank Ashlee Stanley and Amy Raymond for their organisation of the day.

School Board
On Monday we had our School Board AGM. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all who attended the AGM. At the AGM we elected three new members to St Pius X School Board and I take this opportunity to welcome Kosta Safos, Shane McMillan & Sharni Wallace-Groves to our School Board.  The School Board plays a very important part in the oversight of the School Operations and greatly support the work of the school’s leadership team in making decisions about school issues. The School Board for 2022 and is as follows:

President: Fr Mathew Raj (Ex-Officio)
Principal: Ashley Keane
Deputy Principal: Jamie Deverson
School Bursar Julie Parsons
Chairperson: Anthony Pryzibilla
Deputy Chairperson Jason Alford
Treasurer Beata Kucaba
Minutes Secretary Susan Trimboli
Staff Representative Holli Caputo

Other Parent Representatives
Guinevere Flavel
Fionna Bottroff
Kosta Safos
Shane McMillan
Shani Wallace-Groves

I would like to thank Tessa Carey who will be stepping down from the School Board after 4 years of service.

I look forward to working with the School Board this year.

Enrolments for 2023 and 2024
We are at the point where we are about to finalise our enrolments for Reception in 2023 and we also starting to receive an influx of enrolment applications for 2024. If you have a child who is due to commence in 2023 and you have not yet enrolled them, can you please ensure that you contact the school ASAP. Also if you have a child who is due to start in either Term 3, 2023 or Term One 2024, I strongly encourage you lodge your enrolment application in the near future. We want to guarantee the enrolment of all siblings of our current families, however we need families to ensure that they have completed an enrolment application. We are receiving very strong interest in enrolments at St Pius and I would hate to see any siblings miss out on a place. Any siblings due to start in Term 1, 2023 will need to ensure that they have enrolled before the end of this term in order to guarantee their place.

Please contact Susan Trimboli in the front office if you need any further information about enrolling your child.

Term Three Reception intake and SPARX transition program.
I am pleased to advise the community that we will be offering two mid year Reception classes in 2022. If your child is eligible to commence in the middle of the year and you would like discuss this option for your child, then please don’t hesitate to contact me.

I am also very excited to announce that St Pius will be introducing a new transition program called SPARX (Student Preparation And Readiness for St Pius X) for children in the year before they commence in Reception. We will be starting this program in Term 3 this year and all children who are enrolled to commence Reception at St Pius X in Term 1, 2023 will be invited to join this program if they wish to. The transition program will be run from 9:00am – 11:30am one day per week and will focus on helping children to feel safe, secure and comfortable in their new school environment. The program is completely optional for families, but is a great way to help children prepare for the commencement of schooling.

In 2023 we are looking to offer this program from the beginning of the year, with all children who are enrolled to start in either the middle of the year 2023 or Term One 2024 being invited to join the program. Further information about these exciting initiatives will be communicated to families early next term. If you would like to discuss these programs in more detail, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Welcome to Reception Picnic
Last night our Reception teachers hosted a welcome to Reception picnic on the school oval. The picnic was based around the theme of the Hungry Caterpillar. It was a wonderful celebration and a great way for families gather and get to meet some of their children’s friends and meet other parents. It was so heart warming to see the children playing together and having so much fun in a relaxed and casual atmosphere. It was a colourful celebration with the teachers dressing in bright green tutu’s, a very creative and colour caterpillar was made out of balloons, children were able to have a caterpillar painted on their face and made Hungry Caterpillar head bans and there were bubbles galore and plenty of tasty treats on offer for the children to indulge in. I would like to thank the Reception teachers Nicolina Di Giovanni, Rosalia Di Giovanni, Brittany Honner & Holli Caputo for their tireless efforts in organising such a wonderful celebration for the Reception families. I would also like to thank Sarah Tirimacco for her support in organising this event and for arranging the creative Hungry Caterpillar balloon display and Ashlee Stanley, Oliva Ventura, Stephanie Ellul and James Lloyd for staying behind and supporting the Reception team. I would also like to thank all the families who attended.         

End of Term One and Beginning of Term Two:
Just a reminder as per the letter sent home to all families, via the SZapp on Wednesday evening, Term One finishes for all Catholic Schools on Wednesday the 13^th of April. Term 2 commences on Tuesday the 3^rd of May. Families who are unable to organise care for their children on the 14^th of April or 2^nd of May will be able to access school provided care, which will be provided by our ESO staff. Parents wishing to access this care will need to book in via our online booking system. A link to this booking service will be sent home on Tuesday next week.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all parents for their support this term.

God Bless

On Sunday, the Gospel reading was about the Prodigal Son. This story reminds us of God’s unconditional love. No matter how big our mistakes are, God is always ready to forgive us and welcome us back. Our challenge is to forgive others and this isn’t always easy! Throughout our Lenten journey, we have been focussing on how we can be ‘more’ for others, in particular, how we can ensure safety, security and peace for all future generations.

Vinnies Flood Appeal - Thank you!
Thank you for generously supporting our Vinnies Flood Appeal last week. So far, we have raised over $1200 which will directly support families in need.  

Ukraine Crisis
We continue to hold the people of Ukraine in our prayers. As the fighting continues, more and more people are being forced to flee their homes in search of safety. Here in Adelaide, the Ukrainian community are welcoming families arriving from Ukraine. There may be more that our school community can do to support their work, and I will pass this on when I know more.

Holy Week Prayer
On Wednesday, Week 11 (13^th April), we invite families to attend our Stations of the Cross prayer service on the school oval, commencing at 9am. Please wear a face mask at all times and bring a chair to sit on, as we will be gathering outdoors, similar to Harmony Day. This prayer service should last approximately 30 minutes. I thank our Year 6 students for their hard work in preparing for our Holy Week prayer.

Holy Week & Easter at St Pius X Church
You are invited to attend the Easter Ceremonies at St Pius X Church.
Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper – 7pm (Mass followed by adoration until 9:30pm)

Good Friday Stations of the Cross – 9:30am
Good Friday Passion of our Lord – 3pm
Easter Saturday Vigil – 6:30pm
Easter Sunday 9:30am (no evening Mass)

Project Compassion
Many families are beginning to return their Project Compassion boxes to school. Thank you for your generosity. Please return these boxes before the end of term. They can be sent directly to the office, or to your child’s teacher. The work of Caritas is enabled through your donations. Should you require a receipt for tax purposes, please fill out the card on the box. Receipts will be issued through the parish.  

As holidays approach, I take this opportunity to wish you peace throughout Holy Week and the Easter season.

Blessings

Reception in 2023
Have you enrolled your child to commence with us next year?  If not and you would like to apply for them to attend St Pius X School please contact Susan as soon as possible on 8266 9400 as places are limited.

Reception in 2024
Do you have a child born between 1st November 2018 and 31st October 2019 and you would like to apply for them to attend Reception at St Pius X School in 2024? If so,  Prospectus and Application for Enrolment forms are available from Reception or please contact Susan if you would like information regarding the enrolment process.

To ensure that a message regarding your child, including, for example, changes to pick-up place after school, early departure or if they will need to go to OSHC please contact the school via telephone - 8266 9400.  

Telephoning will ensure the message is received by our staff and passed on to your child, their teacher and/or OSHC staff.  The school's general email account (info@stpiusx.catholic.edu.au) is not monitored for this purpose and, therefore, your email may not be seen in time for the message to be passed to your child.

Thank you.

If you would like to enrol your child in the Instrumental Program for Term 2, please complete one (or more) of the Enrolment forms below - please do not re-enrol your child if they are already having lessons as this message applies to NEW students only, who would like to enrol for Term 2.

Enrolments will close on Thursday 14^th April. If there are vacancies with the tutors, I will pass on your details to them and they will contact you. If no vacancies exist, your child will be placed on a waiting list. 

Thank you to our 9 wonderful Music Staff who offer private or group tuition to 200 students. We are looking forward to a great term of Instrumental Music Tuition in Term 2.  A copy of the school's Policy is available here - Music_Speech_Drama_Tutoring_Policy.pdf

Piano Enrolment Form

Voice Enrolment Form

Drums Enrolment Form

Clarinet Enrolment Form

Flute Enrolment Form

Guitar Enrolment Form

Trumpet Enrolment Form

Violin Enrolment Form

Saxophone Enrolment Form

Trombone Enrolment Form

Recorder Enrolment Form

Speech and Drama Enrolment Form

SAPSASA District Carnival

What a great albeit short season we have had this year. After only 3 training sessions due to COVID delaying the start of our swimmimg season, our overall results were quite outstanding. 16 swimmers competed in the SAPSASA Adelaide North East District Carnival at the Payneham Pool on Friday 18th March. It was a warm, sunny day, and our students had a fabulous time, swimming their best. Although Covid meant some schools were unable to compete this year, there were still 8 schools present on the day. Incredibly, most of our students placed in their events at this carnival and although not officially confirmed yet, many will go on to represent the Adelaide North East District at the Metro SAPSASA Championships at the Marion Aquatic Centre on Monday 9th May.

SAPSASA Carnival Placegetters

Ari R 4G: 4th 10yr Boys 50m Freestyle, 4th 10yr Boys 50m Backstroke, 4th 10yr Boys 50m Breaststroke

Ayumi C 4G: 1st 10yr Girls 50m Breaststroke

Ava W 4G: 4th 10yr Girls 50m Breaststroke

Baylee W 4BP: 1st 10yr Girls 50m Freestyle, 2nd 10yr Girls 50m Backstroke, 2nd 10yr Girls 50m Breaststroke

Rafael I 5P: 4th 11yr Boys 50m Freestyle, 2nd 11yr Boys 50m Backstroke, 1st 11yr Boys 50m Breaststroke

Megan T 5P: 3rd 11yr Girls 50m Freestyle, 4th 11yr Girls 50m Backstroke, 2nd 11yr Girls 50m Breaststroke

Aria F 5R: 3rd 10yr Girls 50m Freestyle, 3rd 10yr Girls 50m Backstroke, 2nd 10yr Girls 50m Butterfly

Isabelle G 5R: 2nd 10yr Girls 50m Freestyle, 1st 10yr Girls 50m Backstroke, 1st 10yr Girls 50m Butterfly

Thomas S 5R: 3rd 11yr Boys 50m Backstroke

Taleah K 5R: 3rd 10yr Girls 50m Butterfly

Tanishka B 6M: 3rd 12yr Girls 50m Freestyle, 3rd 12yr Girls 50m Backstroke, 3rd 12yr Girls 50m Breaststroke

Ben B 6M: 2nd 12yr Boys 50m Freestyle, 1st 12yr Boys 50m Backstroke, 3rd 12yr Boys 50m Breaststroke

Flora-lily L 6M: 1st OPEN Girls 100m Freestyle, 1st 12yr Girls 50m Freestyle and 1st 12yr Girls 50m Butterfly

Tahlia Z 6JT: 2nd 12yr Girls 50m Backstroke, 2nd 12yr Girls 50m Breaststroke

Well done to all 16 of our students who participated in this Carnival and congratulations to those who were placed receiving a ribbon on the day.

As well as individual students competing for a place in the District Team, the 8 schools were also competing against each other for the Championship School Shield. We are pleased to announce that our amazing St Pius X team came 1st overall. The top 4 schools were St Pius X 87 points, St Martins 49 points, Cedar College 21 points and St Paul Lutheran 17 points. What a fabulous effort by our swimmers!

Although not officially confirmed huge congratulations to our possible 10 SAPSASA ANE District representatives; Ari R (10 yr Boys 50m Freestyle Relay), Ayumi C (10yr Girls 50m Breaststroke), Baylee W (10yr Girls 50m Freestyle and 10yr Girls 50m Freestyle Relay), Rafael I (11yr Boys 50m Freestyle Relay and 11yr Boys 50m Breaststroke), Megan T (11yr Girls 50m Freestyle Relay), Aria F (10yr Girls 50m Freestyle Relay), Isabelle G (10yr Girls 50m Freestyle Relay, 10yr Girls 50m Backstroke and 10yr Girls 50m Butterfly), Tanishka B (12yr Girls 50m Freestyle Relay), Ben B (12yr Boys 50m Freestyle Relay and 12yr Boys 50m Backstroke) and Flora-lily L (OPEN Girls 100m Freestyle, 12yr Girls 50m Freestyle, 12yr Girls 50m Freestyle Relay and 12yr Girls 50m Butterfly)

Thank you to our amazing mums that officiated on the day and all the parent and grandparent supporters!

Catholic Schools’ Swimming Carnival
On Tuesday 22^ndMarch, the St Pius X Swimming Team competed in the Catholic Schools’ Swimming Carnival at the Burnside Pool. We were racing against 7 other schools in Division 2 of the 9 Division Competition. All 23 students were very excited as they settled in with their parents and grandparents into the St Pius X seating area amongst the beautiful big trees by the pool. We witnessed some excellent swimming with 16 students receiving a total of 42 ribbons between them, for placing 1^st 2^nd 3^rd or 4^th in an event. Our students received 10 1^st, 13 2^nd, 9 3^rd and 10 4^th place ribbons. The excitement level remained high all afternoon, despite the constant rain, and the cheering and support of each other was beautiful to witness.

3 of our students won the Individual Age Championship. Wow!!! Fantastic news!

Megan T 5P won the Year 4 Individual Girls Championship; Ben B won the Year 6 Individual Boys Championship and Flora-lily L 6M won Year 6 Individual Girls Championship. They were each called up to the podium and presented with a medal. Flora-lily scored a perfect 50, for her 1^st place in all 5 of her individual events. An outstanding result!

Place getters were:

Samuel M 3S
2^nd  Yr 3 Boys 50 m Backstroke Div C
3^rd   Yr 3 Boys 50 m Freestlyle Div A
3^rd   Yr 3 Boys 50 m Breaststroke Div A

Sebastian C 3B    
1^st   Yr 3 Boys 50 m Freestlyle Div C
2^nd  Yr 3 Boys 50 m Backstroke Div B
4^th   Yr 3 Boys 50 m Breaststroke Div C

Lucas K 3B
3^rd   Yr 3 Boys 50 m Freestlyle Div B
3^rd   Yr 3 Boys 50 m Breaststroke Div B

Ari R  4G               
3^rd   Yr 4 Boys 50 m Backstroke Div C
4^th   Yr 4 Boys 50 m Freestlyle Div C

Baylee W 4BP      
1^st  Yr 4 Girls 50 m Freestlyle Div A
2^nd  Yr 4 Girls 50 m Backstroke Div A

Ava W 4G          
4^th  Yr 4 Girls 50 m Freestlyle Div C

Lucas M 5P          

3^rd  Yr 5 Boys 50 m Breaststroke Div A

Rafael I 5P            

4^th  Yr 5 Boys 50 m Breaststroke Div B

Megan T 5P         
1^st   Yr 5 Girls 50 m Freestlyle Div A
1^st   Yr 5 Girls 50 m Butterfly Div A
2^nd  Yr 5 Girls 50 m Breaststroke Div A
2^nd  Open Girls 4X50 Medley Relay -Breaststroke
3^rd   Yr 5 Girls 50 m Backstroke Div A
4^th  Yr 5 Girls 4X50 Freestyle Relay

Isabel G 5R           
2^nd  Open Girls 4X50 Medley Relay -Backstroke
2^nd  Yr 5 Girls 50 m Backstroke Div B
4^th  Yr 5 Girls 50 m Freestlyle Div B        
4^th  Yr 5 Girls 4X50 Freestlye Relay

Aria F 5R               
2^nd  Yr 5 Girls 50 m Freestlyle Div C
3^rd   Yr 5 Girls 50 m Backstroke Div C      
4^th  Yr 5 Girls 4X50 Freestlye Relay

Eloise C 5HB         
4^th  Yr 5 Girls 4X50 Freestlye Relay

Ben B 6M             
2^nd  Yr 6 Boys 50 m Backstroke Div A
3^rd  Yr 6 Boys 50 m Freestlyle Div A
4^th   Open Boys 100m Freestlyle Div A
4^th   Yr 6 Boys 50m Butterfly Div A

Flora-lily L            
1^st   Open Girls 100m Freestlyle Div A
1^st   Yr 6 Girls 50 m Freestlyle Div A
1^st   Yr 6 Girls 50 m Backstroke Div A                      
1^st  Yr 6 Girls 50 m Butterfly Div A
1^st   Yr 6 Girls 50 m Breaststroke Div A
2^nd  Open Girls 4X50 Medley Relay - Butterfly

Tenuli A 6JT         
2^nd  Open Girls 4X50 Medley Relay - Freestyle
2^nd  Yr 6 Girls 50 m Breaststroke Div B

Tahlia Z  6JT         
2^nd  Yr 6 Girls 50 m Breaststroke Div C

Overall, St Pius X Girls placed 5^th out of 7 schools in the school competition while the Boys placed 7^th.

Thank you to our parents and grandparents who assisted with time keeping each week at Training. Our 3 afternoons at the Payneham Pool were delightful!

Thank you to those parents who helped with transport for both Carnivals and to Donna Thompson and Arosha Salagadu for being Officials on the day, and to Marina Kollis for being the Covid Marshall.

Once again, congratulations to all our swimmers! A great 2022 season was had by all.

See you all next year!

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