Week 7 Term 4, 2024

Giving Tree

In Weeks 7, 8 and 9, our Mini Vinnies group will be setting up a Giving Tree for the Vinnies Christmas Appeal. Donations of non-perishable food items, or unwrapped toys and clothes, can be placed under the tree during the final weeks of school. Your contributions will help make Christmas a little brighter for those in need, while teaching your child the spirit of giving.

Blessing of the Cribs

On Sunday, December 8th, we invite families to join the parish for Mass at 9:00am. Students and their families will have the opportunity to read and actively participate in the Mass. Additionally, families are encouraged to bring their cribs or nativity scenes (or parts of them) from home to be blessed by Fr. Ranjith. If you plan to attend and would like your children to participate, please inform Annie O’Reilley.

Mock Wedding

On Monday December 9^th the staff would like to hold a Mock Wedding for Mr Taylor and Miss Parisotto.  They will be married in early January.  We ask children to wear their ‘good casual clothes’, maybe a dress or a polo or collared shirt (but perhaps not your very best clothes).  Tuck will still occur but will be presented in wedding style and of course there will be wedding cake and dancing! We are looking forward to an afternoon of fun celebrating the future Mr and Mrs Taylor. 

Grandparents Mass

Catholic Athletics Carnival

Congratulations to all our athletes who competed in the Catholic Schools Athletics Canrival in Adelaide in Week 4.

“Catholic Athletics was a fun way to put our athletic skills to the test. When we left everyone was nervous, but as soon as we got on the bus it all melted away with happy comments to each other about their skills. The bus ride there was so much fun, radio turned up loud and chatting to friends. It was also quick because the teachers and the bus driver had already met and discussed the route. When we got there we were all too excited to stay in lines. We sat down and had a little snack. Rosie, Elkie and Sid raced each other to warm up. Some people did a 400m run to warm up others only did 100m. The day went on, everyone had smiles on their faces. Different events in different places made students go everywhere, but a teacher always knew before we wandered off. At the end of the day came the presentations.

• Indy F won Year 5 Champion Girl
• Denzel F won Y3 champion boy
• the Y4 girls and Y3 boys were the best in their grades.
• Our school came 3^rd overall, but none of us cared because we were all winners in our books.

​On the bus ride back, Mr Taylor taught Rosie and Sophie to play a game called 'Top Trumps".  The bus grew silent because of the fun, tiring day.

To sum up our day we all had a blast, we all had an amazing day and can't wait for next year!” - Rosie R

A big thank you to Harry Simpson, Luke Clark and Kerry Sutter who volunteered to time keep for the entire day and to all the parents who attended to support and cheer on our team. 

Hot Shots Tennis Carnival

Last Wednesday, Year 3-6 St James students attended the Hot Shots Tennis Carnival at the Jamestown Tennis Courts.

“Hot Shots is a fun way that kids can practise and play tennis, even for those who don't like tennis it was good to have a little play. It was fun to play against other schools and meet new people. When the schools were playing, they played great music like the Macarena, Nutbush, YMCA and heaps of other good hits. They also gave us lunch that we ordered. They gave us burgers and fruit boxes (which were really yummy). At the start of the day they gave us an idea of how to play, then before we did the last couple of rounds, they gave us tips. There was only three of them, so they asked for a volunteer so Mr Wrobel did it. Overall, St James had a great time at Hot Shots Tennis.” - Sophie Broad

Last week, the Year 2/3 class went on their camp – an excursion to the Clare Valley, followed by a sleepover at school. All students represented the school well and had a fantastic day out!

Our first stop was Mintaro Maze. We sat under the trees to eat some recess, and played some of the giant games they had, like chess and Jenga. Even though it was hot, we enjoyed exploring around the maze using clues to find and solve answers to some questions.  

Our next stop was at Sevenhill, where we had a look around St Aloysius Church. We compared the church to our church at school and came up with some similarities and differences. We got to have a look in the crypt, where priests are buried underground, and walked around the vineyards to a cottage where Mary MacKillop once stayed. After our walk we sat under the trees to eat our lunch and had a play on the grass area.

Finally, we jumped on the bus to head for the water park in Clare! What a perfect day for water play. We spent time splashing around, standing under the tipping bucket and going down the slides to cool off during the afternoon. This was a highlight for many, with most students sharing that this was their favourite part of the day.

Soon we were back on the bus ready to head to Blyth to watch the movie Runt at the cinema. As a class, we enjoyed reading this book earlier in the year and following Annie and her dog Runt’s adventure from their small town of Upson Downs in WA all the way to Krumpets dog show in London, trying to help their family who were at risk of losing their farm due to the drought. The movie was just as good as the book and had all of us giggling in our seats, while pulling at the heartstrings at the same time!

We then travelled back to school where we ate delicious pizza for tea, followed by ice creams and fruit before getting ready for bed. In the morning we enjoyed a pancake breakfast and a cricket game before being picked up. We had a fantastic time, huge thank you to Emily Cousins and Peta Caulfield for coming with us for the day, Peta Caulfield and Tamara Wilson for your help overnight, and Greg Farr for help with swag rolling and pack up in the morning - very grateful for all of your help!!