Dear Parents

The year is moving by very quickly and it is hard to believe that we are already at the half-way mark!

Building and School Improvement

These are exciting times for our school, and I have no doubt that the long-term benefits for our children of the developments outlined below, will far outweigh the short-term inconvenience that is associated with the projects.

• Completion of the current stage of the building project – we anticipate the two Reception classrooms, along with the new music room and 4 new instrumental rooms, to be ready for use by the beginning of next term.
• Completion of the paving and landscaping, along with the handover of the new Junior Primary and OSHC toilets.  This is expected early next term. You may have noticed a lot of external landscaping happening in the main courtyard area over the last couple of weeks. Part of this work is to adjust ground levels to improve drainage, provide new pathways and re-lay the lawn area to a better standard (last year’s lawn landscaping was a temporary measure).
• Plans for the re-development of the classrooms above the administration area are well under way.   This stage of the project will provide us with a new Library, Inclusive Education Centre, multipurpose meeting room, learning space and an Italian classroom.   We anticipate work will commence next term once the current stage is completed.
• Planning for the resurfacing of the basketball courts and the construction of a large shelter over the court. The shelter will provide another all-weather outdoor learning space which can be used for PE lessons, after school sports training, OSHC and extra shade for the children during playtimes.
• Upgrading of the air-conditioning system in the OSHC building
• Installation of blinds to the STEM terrace to shelter it from the elements

Longer term planning continues for the re-development of our front office and administration spaces as well as the construction of a new playground for the children.

World Environment Day Celebrations

Over the past nine months a very committed group of Year 6 students, led by Jane Buhagiar, one of our Year 4 teachers, worked hard behind the scenes to organise our World Environment Day activities in Week 4.  Their work included:

• A vision for a theme based on children enjoying playing in nature and re-using old materials, that may otherwise be sent to the rubbish dump, to make cubby houses, shelters, and other items from loose parts. The children then presented their vision to the School Leadership Team and staff to seek support to turn it into a reality.
• They sought donations from local businesses and parents to run competitions and are now hosting a raffle to raise money for future school resources which will be used for similar activity days.
• The children organised an assembly and liturgy based around Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si (Praise Be to You), which calls for all people to care for creation and our common home, the Earth. The liturgy was planned as the launch for the World Environment Day activities, which unfortunately, due to the inclement weather were postponed for the Year 3 – 6 students.  The Reception to Year 2 children were able to participate in their activities on Friday and although I couldn’t be at school to join in the fun, teachers and students reported that the day was a wonderful success.

The Years 3-6 World Environment Activity Day has been re-scheduled for Thursday 8^th June.  Children are invited to wear casual play clothes that are allowed to get dirty.  I look forward to joining in with the students.

Well done to all the students involved in bringing the World Environment Day event from a vision to a reality. We have some wonderful future leaders on our hands.

The Southern Cross Newspaper interviewed the students regarding the event and will be running a story on our World Environment Day activities in an upcoming edition.     

Cyber Safety Sessions

Just a reminder that we are offering three Cyber Safety Sessions for parents next week. The sessions will be held on Monday 5^th June at 9:00am and 6:30pm and Wednesday 7^th June at 6:30pm. I strongly recommend these sessions to all parents.  Cybercrime and attempts by people to inappropriately contact children online, is on the rise and these sessions will provide all parents with the knowledge and tools necessary to make your homes cyber safe for their children. If you haven’t booked into one of these sessions, then it is not too late to contact the office to register your attendance or you may just come along to one of these sessions. Please note if you wish to utilise the school creche on the Monday and Wednesday evenings, then you must register so we may organise the appropriate number of staff to manage the service. Creche for Cyber Safety Information Sessions

Parents & Friends Meeting

11 people were able to attend our meeting last Tuesday where we discussed the following –

• P&F Committee office bearer nominations – we welcome and thank the following parents for their commitment - Francine Schiller (Chairperson), Amanda Vernik (Vice-Chairperson) and Niomi Spiby (Treasurer)
• Possible community events for the remainder of this year
• Formal Parents & Friends meetings will occur once per term on a Friday afternoon
• In addition to these meetings, separate committees will be established for different events throughout the year and will meet at times that are mutually convenient to members of that committee.

If you are interested in being a member of our Parents and Friends group, even if it is just helping with one event for the year, then please contact Cassandra Figg in the front office or Francine Schiller at pandf@stpiusx.catholic.edu.au

The Parents & Friends Committee has many exciting plans for the remainder of the year and further information will be shared with you.

Our next Parents and Friends meeting will be held on Friday 4^th August at 2:00 pm in the Staffroom.

Thank you to all those people who are supporting our P&F Committee - without a strong Committee we could hold some of the community events that we do.  

Pupil Free Day

Just a reminder that next Friday, 9^th June, will be a Pupil Free Day and the OSHC service will be available for families needing care.  

Our staff will be undertaking professional learning on creating assessment capable learners and exploring the role of Artificial Intelligence in education.

God Bless

Ashley Keane

Sacrament of Confirmation

To receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit you must open your heart and invite the Holy Spirit in! Ask the Holy Spirit to guide your thoughts, words and actions every day! Be grateful for all the gifts God has given you! Regardless of your individual circumstances, God has given all of us many blessings.

What we do with those gifts is our gift back to God! By generously sharing everything we have and everything we are, we become more “God-centered” and less “self- centered” and our lives truly reflect God’s light, love, and mercy.

Congratulations to the children who were confirmed in the spirit by                      Fr Dean Marin and Fr John Sebastian at St Pius X Church this week:                   Jack, Kobe, Hanna, Sebastian, Xavier, Chrisa, Lucas, Alana, Benjamin, Hannah, Luke, Samuel, Luca, Abigail, Jessica, Giorgio, Riel, Shenali, Jaiden, Elliana, Katie, Oliver, Sara, Aarom, Katelyn, Ari, Jessica, Deon, and Caelyn.

We pray that through gratitude and generosity, you learn to open your hearts and invite the Holy Spirit into your life!

I would like to thank the Year 4 teachers: Nigel Armstrong, Jane Buhagiar, Angela Terminello and Andrew Getgood for their support and teaching of the program.  The children were well prepared and ready for the celebration and connected their faith to their world.

The celebration of their First Holy Communion will be held on June 27^th.

Feasts of Pentecost and Holy Trinity

These two very important feasts recognise the gifts and presence of the Holy Spirit and the belief that God is three in one. The Feast of the Holy Trinity always follows Pentecost.  It is a reminder and focus on God as three parts – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  We can call on any of the parts at any time to be with us in times of need as well as in times of celebration.  Each person of the Trinity is fully God, and each person is distinct from the other two. Although they are distinct, they are also united in one essence and nature.

Vinnies Winter Appeal

Thankyou for the generous donations we have already received so far for the Vinnies Dernancourt Conference.  ALL donations of food and clothing will be collected at school either via the large blue clothing bins or by leaving them at the front office.  If you would like to make a financial donation, please use this link:

https://donate.vinnies.org.au/winter-warmth?-utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=20027352641&utm_content=143593509250&utm_term=donation%20to%20charity&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI0ZC-jcae_wIV_JlmAh1d4wfrEAAYASAAEgJEr_D_BwE

St Pius X Parish Information

Dernancourt Parish Mass Schedule

Weekend Masses:

Saturday, 6.30pm
Sunday, 9.30am & 5.30pm

Weekday Masses:

Tuesday to Friday 9.15am Rosary 8.55am

Reconciliation Times

Saturday 11:30am-12 noon

Baptisms, Funerals & Weddings

Please call Parish Office to arrange a date.

St Vincent de Paul Society Payneham Conference MOVIE FUNDRAISER
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

Date: Sunday 23 July 2023

Place: The Regal Theatre: 275 Kensington Road, Kensington Park

Doors Open: 3 pm

Movie Start: 4 pm

Adult: $25 Children: $15 (5-12yrs) (Includes: movie ticket, ice-cream, drink & nibbles) https://ww.trybooking.com/CHZCS

Contact: Grace (p) 0402 181 694 or John (p) 0433 465 056 or Silvana (p) 0417 872 513

Reporting Absences

If your child is absent from school please notify us through SZapp.  Use the 'Absences' tab.   Please notify your child's class teacher via email.

Change of clothes

Due to the current wet weather please have spare pants and socks in your child's bag incase of slips in the yard. This is for all children as we have noticed a renewed interest in the nature play space.  JP parents please ensure there is always change of clothes in your child's bag. 

Labelling reminder

Please ensure ALL your children's belongings (uniforms, lunchboxes, drinkbottles, pencil cases etc.) are CLEARLY LABELLED with your child's name.

Labelled property can be easily returned to their owner.

Parking  

Parking is not permitted in the bus zone outside the Kiss'n'Drop on Hillburn Avenue. Police and Council officers regularly patrol this area and issue fines. Staff will ask drivers to move on if they stop in this space.

Thank you for keeping our children safe.

QKR! Update

It has come to our attention that there is an issue with new Android phones when using Qkr! It will take a couple of weeks for the Qkr! tech team to solve. In the meantime please head to the Qkr! website for ordering.

Qkr! by MasterCard (qkrschool.com)

SZapp Update

There is a new version of SZapp available for Android and IOS Devices. Please ensure that you have updated this version on your device. If you experience any difficulties with completing this process, please reach out to Schoolzine using support@schoolzine.com. To assist with your query, they ask that you provide a description of the issue you are facing, the email address you are using when facing this issue and a screenshot of the issue.

Instalment 2 of Tuition Fees were due & payable on Friday 12th May 2023.  If you have entered into a part-time agreement to pay your fees over the whole year, this due date does not apply. Reminder statements were posted last week.  Please pay the instalment amount promptly.

If you were unable to meet this deadline, please do not hesitate to contact me and part time arrangements can be made.  For parent’s convenience, EFT, BPay, QKR, Visa and Mastercard are available.  If you are unsure of the amount due, please contact me and I can discuss this with you.  

If you wish to pay your fees with internet banking, please ensure that you use the BPAY ID number which can be found at the bottom of your statement.  If paying by EFT, please use the Account Number at the top of your statement.  Bank account details are listed at the bottom of the statement.

If you hold a Health Care Card you may be eligible for School Card support and therefore Fee Remission. 

Please see me if you feel you meet any of these criteria or have any queries relating to the payment of school fees.

Thank you.

JULIE PARSONS

FINANCE MANAGER

Due to many uniform donations and a small number of unlabelled lost items we have secondhand uniform items available for sale.

The proceeds of the items sold will be donated to the Krupka Foundation - established by a past staff member to provide financial support for our families.  

If you would like to purchase a secondhand uniform item please complete the following link - Secondhand Uniform Request

You will be notified by email or phone if the item is available and how to make a payment. (DO NOT PAY UNTIL ADVISED THE ITEM IS AVAILABLE)

Once payment is received your purchase will be sent home with your child. Please wash all items before wearing.

For other secondhand uniform opportunities please head to the facebook link -

Due to extreme weather conditions last week we had to postpone our Year 3-6 World Environment Day activities.

The new day is Thursday 8th June.  Please ensure your child wears play clothes and has extra socks and pants in their bag incase their clothes get dirty.

Athletics

Listed below are events for the remainder of 2023.

Cross Country State Championships – Thursday 8th June at Oakbank Racecourse

(This carnival is for children that win their event in the above district carnival).

Cross Country – Catholic Schools – Thursday 10th August at Park 15, Adelaide Parklands

(This carnival is open to all students in Year 3 to Year 6)

Athletics – SAPSASA District – Thursday 17th August at Bridgestone Stadium, Salisbury

(This carnival is open to all children born from 2010 to 2013).

Athletics – State Metro Championships – Tuesday 19th September at Mile End Stadium

(This carnival is for children that win their event in the above district carnival).

Athletics – Catholic Schools – Friday 3rd November at Mile End Stadium

(This carnival is open to all students in Year 3 to Year 6)

Thank you to everyone who came along to our Term 2 Meeting.

We appointed our committee:

President - Francine Schiller

Vice President - Amanda Vernik

Treasurer - Niomi Spiby

Our next P & F meeting will be held on Friday August 4th at 2pm in the school staffroom. All welcome. Please come along to meet other parents and share ideas. 

Are you available to help at any of our events? You need to be a registered volunteer. To become a registered volunteer please contact Susan Trimboli at the school office on 8266 9400.

to contact us email pandf@stpiusx.catholic.edu.au

Please see the latest edition of The Southern Cross