Tomorrow - Friday 26^th August: Book Week Dress up Day

Saturday 27th August: 60th Anniversary Gala Dinner
Friday 2nd September: Parent Breakfast and Father’s Day Stall
Friday 9th September: School Disco – Evening Event for Children
Wednesday 14th September: School Photos
Thursday 22nd and Friday 23rd September: St Pius X Sports Day
Friday 30th September: Last day of Term

Term 4
Monday 17th October: Pupil Free Day
Tuesday 18th October: Students return for Term 4
Friday 21st October: 60th Anniversary Picnic at Point Malcom Reserve at Semaphore 10am – 2pm. Parents are invited
Wednesday 9th November: 60th Anniversary School Concert at Influencers Church, Paradise @ 6:30pm

Happy 60th Anniversary St Pius X School
Last Thursday we celebrated our 60th Anniversary with a beautiful school Mass. As a new Principal entering the school in a COVID affected year, this was my first experience of a whole school Mass at St Pius X. I was blown away with the manner in which children sang and brought our 60th Anniversary celebration to life. The Mass gave us the opportunity to gather as a school community and give thanks for 60 years of education St Pius X.

It was great to see so many current and past parents and some former staff members and old scholars join us for this special occasion. The celebration began with our former Deputy Principal Ms Desiree Henthorn processing in with a time capsule that was packed during the 50th Year Anniversary year. Desiree was the Deputy Principal during the 50th year celebration and it was great to have her join us for the Mass.

At the end of our Mass the chair of our School Board Mr Anthony Pryzibilla and a long time serving member of our Parent & Friend’s association Mrs Jodie Fitzgerald both came forward with their children Riley Pryzibilla and Caitlin Fitzgerald (current Year Six students) to cut our Anniversary cake. Anthony and Jodie have both been associated with the school for over 35 years and were students at the school during the 25th Anniversary celebrations back in 1987. 

After the Mass our guests joined us for coffee and cake and some of our guests were taken on tours of the school by our Year Six students. All of our students returned to their classrooms and celebrated with a St Pius X, 60th Anniversary donut.

I would like to thank our APRIM, James Lloyd for his wonderful organisation and coordination of the Mass. I would also like to acknowledge the extra-ordinary talents of our Music teacher Basia Jedrzejczak for her organisation and preparation of the children’s singing for the Mass. The arrangement of music as well as the enthusiasm and beautiful sound of the children’s voices were truly amazing and is a true reflection of the dedication and passion that Basia puts into her work.

I would also acknowledge and thank Susan Trimboli, Julie Parsons, Cassandra Figg and Tokuyo Sneddon for their 'behind the scenes work', and all our staff for their flexibility and support in the lead up to the celebration.

Finally I would like to acknowledge our wonderful children for their participation and impeccable behaviour and singing throughout the service. I feel truly blessed to part of such a wonderful community.

The 60th Anniversary Mass was the first of four celebratory events planned for our Anniversary Year. I am looking forward to this Saturday’s Anniversary Dinner at the Marche Club and our whole school picnic and concert in Term Four.

Book Week Dress Up Day
We are looking forward to our Book Week dress up day tomorrow. Parents are invited to come along and join us for a Book Week parade at 9am on the oval. I look forward to an exciting day.

Friday 2nd September: Parents’ Breakfast, Open Classroom Morning & Father’s Day stall
Just a reminder that next Friday the 2nd of September we will be hosting a Parent Breakfast and Open Morning. All parents are invited to come along to school with their children between 8:00am and 8:40am and grab a Bacon and Egg sandwich or vegetarian patty. At 8:45am parents are invited to accompany their children to their classrooms and view the children’s work and join their child in undertaking some classroom activities.

On this day the Parents and Friend’s committee will also be running a Father’s Day stall. Children are invited to bring some money to school and choose a gift for their dads or special people for Father’s Day.

If you are coming to the Parent’s Breakfast, then please ensure that you RSVP to the front Office by Monday next week so that we can cater effectively.

Upcoming Events:

Friday 9th September
Student Wellbeing and Casual Day
P&F School Disco in the school Hall: R-2 5:30pm–6:30pm & Yrs 3-6 7:00pm–8:30pm

Thursday 22nd September: R-2 Sports Day
Friday 23rd September: Year 3-6 Sports Day

More details about these events will be sent home in due course.

Notification of Students not returning in 2023 and change to School Fee Policy
During the week a letter was sent home to all families requesting that parents notify us if their children (with the exception of those currently in Year 6) will not be returning to St Pius X in 2023. This letter also outlined the change recently made at our School Board meeting, which now requires families to provide the school with at least One Term’s notice if their children will not be returning to the school in 2023. In Term Four we order student stationery, ICT devices, make decisions about class placements and staffing for the 2023 school year. Families who do not inform us in a timely manner that their children will leave the school will be charged a full term’s school fees as late notifications about student departures does have financial implications on the school. I thank all families for their support and understanding of the above and welcome any families who would like to discuss any aspects of their child’s enrolment in 2023, to come and speak with me.

God Bless

Sixty years ago, Fr McCann’s vision of opening a Catholic school in our area was realised. Today, we thank God for this vision and the work of the Brigidine Sisters who came to Windsor Gardens to open our school. Our whole school Mass last Thursday, was a wonderful opportunity to gather former and current staff, students, parents, and parishioners and give thanks for 60 years of learning at St Pius X School.

Thank you to the many community members who attended this Mass. You were treated with beautiful singing, and I thank Mrs Jedrzejczak for her hard work in preparing our children in the weeks leading up to this Mass. St Augustine is attributed to saying “when we sing, we pray twice” and I’m certain that our prayers were heard through song on Thursday.

Last week, parents of our Year 3 Sacrament Programme students met in the Church for an information session with teachers and Fr Mathew. Thank you to those who attended. Later this term, these children will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time. Over the coming weeks, they will be preparing in class and at home for this significant step in their journey of faith. Please keep them in your prayers.

Many of you would know that I had some long service leave at the end of Term 2 and the beginning of Term 3. It is wonderful to be back amongst you all and I thank you for your lovely greetings since my return.

Blessings for the week ahead.

Tuition Fee Installment 3 Reminder     

Installment 3 of Yearly Fees was due & payable on the 5th August 2022.  If you have entered into a part time agreement to pay your fees over the whole year this due date does not apply. 

Thank you to those parents who have paid promptly.  Reminder statements will be posted home for parents who have not met the due date.  Please pay promptly on receiving your overdue fee statement so figures can be finalised for 2022.

For parent’s convenience, EFT, BPay, QKR, Visa and Mastercard are available.

If you wish to pay your fees via BPAY please ensure that the full reference number (which is found at the bottom left hand side of your statement) is entered so funds can be applied to the correct family. 

If you pay by EFT or QKR please use for your reference number, the ID Number at the top right hand side of your statement.  This will ensure that funds are applied to the correct family.

Please Note – There are still unallocated funds from Term 1 which can not be credited to the correct account as no reference number was given for this large payment.   This payment was dated 4/4/2022.   If you are receiving a statement for overdue fees and you feel this is incorrect and that this unallocated payment might relate to your account, please contact me and be able to show me your bank receipt or copy of bank statement with the amount clearly shown.  I will then be able to finalise this payment for you.

If you are holders of a Health Care Card, you may be eligible for School Card which is granted by the school.  Please see me if you feel you meet either of these criteria or have any queries relating to fees.

Thank you.

School 2021 Year Books
The books are almost completed from the printers and should be made available to the students soon. 2021 families who have left the school will receive theirs via post.

Building Update
Stage 2  of the building project is starting to take shape, the building contractors will soon look to be excavating and  getting the steel mesh ready for foundations to be laid and then the framework steel put in place. The area is also getting some landscaping and being cleaned up to give students more area to use for recess and lunchtimes. Students will also have a say on what is important to them for the future of this area.

Traffic Management
The school board has put some recommendations for the letter that has been submitted last week to the Port Adelaide Enfield (PAE) council regarding proposed traffic changes. This includes a proposal to make the below roads one-way

• Hillburn Ave (between Windsor Grove and Cooke’s Road) Westbound
• Acton Ave Eastbound

The council’s decision on this is expected sometime in September and will advise us of the final outcomes after consultation with the surrounding residents and ratepayers.

Important Dates
There are a number of activities coming that the whole school will participate in.

• School Picnic 21st October – Point Malcolm Reserve Semaphore Park
• School Concert 9th November – Influencers Church Paradise

Dear Parents

A couple of years ago, Catholic Education South Australia launched the Living, Learning and Leading framework. This framework provides some parameters for all Catholic schools to focus on as we strive to be a system of excellent schools.

In order to support our school in improving services to parents, students and the local community, Catholic Education South Australia has worked with Curtain University to develop a survey which will enable parents to provide feedback about our school.  The survey provides an opportunity for you to tell our school staff how things are going for you and your child. As a school we value this feedback and will try to respond to the information that we receive.

Please note that the feedback provided to the school does not provide specific responses from individuals. Rather it is presented to us in graph form to in order to capture the general feel of all of the people who responded, so your anonymity when completing the survey is guaranteed.

The survey can be completed online www.NSIPartnerships.com.au and you can our school code SPXLLLP.   

I encourage as many parents as possible to complete the survey, so we can get a broad view of parent perceptions about our school. As a bit of a light-hearted way to encourage parents to complete the survey, all students of parents who complete the survey may enter the draw to be Principal of the Day.  Please join in the fun and more importantly share your views on what we are doing well and what we can do to improve. The draw will be held in Week 1 of Term 4 and the entry form link is - https://stpiusx.schoolzineplus.com/form/280

Please note that this survey is just one way in which parents can provide feedback to us about our school and parents are always welcome to email me or arrange a meeting with me to share any feedback about our school.  

The Survey and entry to the Principal for a Day draw will close next Friday, 26th August

Thank you in anticipation of your support of this survey.

Regards,
Ashley Keane
Principal

A Community Breakfast of bacon and eggs (vegetarian option available) will be served on Friday, 2nd September from 8:00am.  Parents are then welcome to visit their child's classrooms from 8:45am-9:30am.  To assist with catering please complete the order form available from this link - http://www.schoolinterviews.com.au/code/qzv9y 

We look forward to seeing you!

At the end of Term 2, St Pius X School students Angus, Minghao (Aidan), Hannah, Siena, and Connor completed their AMEB Speech and Drama exams with flying colours and very positive remarks from the examiners. Each student presented a program that included poetry, prose, and a special subject or object talk.

The Speech and Drama program encourages students to use appropriate speaking pace, pitch, projection, vocal and physical expression to help them become confident speakers and performers.

The examiners were particularly impressed with the talks presented by the students on subjects as broad as Sonic the Hedgehog, Monopoly, and Laika the First Dog in Space!

This term the students are working on short plays that will utilise all of the skills learnt in Terms 1 & 2. Miss Bec and Mr Laurie would like to congratulate all of our students who should be very proud of the results of their hard work with special mention to Siena who achieved a grade of Honours. If you are interested in discussing the benefits of Speech and Drama please call Miss Bec on 0400 202 399.

Thank you!