Week 9 Term 3, 2024

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PRAYER AND REFLECTION
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
CATHOLIC IDENTITY
SCHOOL NEWS
WELLBEING
AUSLAN
SAPSASA
PARENTS AND FRIENDS
ASSEMBLY
NATURE PLAY MINI FESTIVAL
LOST PROPERTY

PRAYER AND REFLECTION

Pope Francis’ Prayer for Nature

All-powerful God,

You are present in the whole universe and in the smallest of your creatures. You embrace with your tenderness all that exists. Pour out upon us the power of your love, that we may protect life and beauty. Fill us with peace, that we may live as brothers and sisters, harming no one. O God of the poor, help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth, so precious in your eyes. Bring healing to our lives, that we may protect the world and not prey on it, that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.

Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain at the expense of the poor and the earth. Teach us to discover the worth of each thing, to be filled with awe and contemplation, to recognize that we are profoundly united with every creature as we journey towards your infinite light. We thank you for being with us each day. Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle for justice, love and peace. Amen

Prayer taken from Pope Francis' encyclical Laudato Si'

PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE

Welcome to the Week 9 newsletter. This week on Tuesday and Wednesday, Parent Teacher Interviews will take place for those parents who wish to meet with their child’s teacher. Thank you to the parents who have booked interviews via Operoo. There are still some time slots left. Teachers are available to meet with parents at anytime of the year. Parents are asked to contact their child’s teacher to make an appointment time that suits.

Staffing Update

On Wednesday, we will welcome a new staff member, Nick Klingner, into the role of Education Support Officer: Curriculum. He will spend most of his time with students in the Year 4-6 Classes. Nick will work Monday to Friday. I am sure that the school community will make him feel very welcome.

Congratulations

Andrew Gassner, Grounds and Maintenance person, married his partner Gillian on Saturday 14^th September. Congratulations to them both and we wish them all the very best.

Thank You – Student Teacher

Student Teacher, Alice Harding will complete her seven week placement this Friday 20^th September. She is in her fourth and final year and has demonstrated that she is very capable. We thank her for her contributions and wish her well for the remainder of her studies.

CATHOLIC IDENTITY

Season of Creation

During the Season of Creation, we are invited to deepen our commitment to ecological conversion and action. Catholic Education South Australian (CESA) encourages every school to participate. The theme is “To Hope and Act with Creation.” As a school, we have prioritised learning in nature throughout the year, making connections to our Earth, our spirituality, and our well-being. Pope Francis reminds us, "May the relationship between man and nature not be driven by greed, to manipulate and exploit, but may the divine harmony between beings and creation be conserved in the logic of respect and care." Additionally, Jason Tyndall, CEO of Nature Play SA, emphasises, “We cannot ask our children to heal nature’s wounds if we don’t give them time and space to build a connection to it.”

We will use our end of term Mass on Friday, September 27th, to pray for and celebrate the Season of Creation. The Year 4 Class will lead this celebration at 12:15pm.

R U OK Day

The essence of the Christian message is to love one another. Last Thursday, we gathered for a short prayer time to reflect on this Gospel message and discussed the steps to take when listening to a friend after asking if they are OK.

Vinnies Sleep Out

The Mini Vinnies group is actively planning for this event and wishes to share the following statistics about homelessness in Australia:

More than 20,000 Australian children under the age of 12 have no permanent home
60% of the homeless population is under the age of 35

There are different types of homelessness:

Primary homelessness: Individuals without conventional shelter, such as those living on the streets, sleeping in parks, squatting in derelict buildings, or using cars or train carriages for temporary shelter
Secondary homelessness: Individuals who move frequently from one form of temporary shelter to another, including those staying in emergency or transitional housing or residing temporarily with other households, such as couch surfing
Tertiary homelessness: Individuals living in boarding houses for 13 weeks or longer, where their accommodation is considered below “minimum community standards”

Students in the Mini Vinnies group will receive a permission note this week via Operoo.

SCHOOL NEWS

SRC Wheels Day

The Student Representative Council have organised a Wheels Day for this Thursday 19^th September. The students are welcome to bring their bike, scooter or roller blades to school. There will be a short parade on the basketball court after the morning assembly. Students must wear a helmet. Students are asked to wear the Sports Uniform on this day.

Pupil Free Days 2024 - Staff Training Days

The remaining Pupil Free Days this year include;

Term 4 - Week 1 - Monday 14th October – Curriculum Day
Term 4 - Week 9 - Friday 13th December – Handover and Curriculum Data Day

Last Day of Term Arrangements

The last day of Term 3 is on Friday 27^th September. Students are invited to wear casual clothes on this day. There is no cost. There will be an early dismissal at 2:15pmn, due to the Community School finishing early on this day. Buses will depart St James from 2:15pm.

School Buses

Bus families - please note that Jamestown Community School will have two remaining Student Free Days coming up. This means there will be no buses running on these days. The dates are as follows;

Term 3 - Week 10 – Monday September 23^rd
Term 4 – Week 4 – Friday November 8^th

WELLBEING

At St James we value the connections we make when we gather as a community. We gather to share our faith, and now we can continue to gather to share breakfast. We have been successful with our application to Foodbank SA who will provide us with breakfast produce each fortnight. We are excited to be able to continue to offer Breakfast Club on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 8:30am.

Positive benefits we have noticed from breakfast club:

creating positive relationships between peers, staff, and community.
positive social interactions with peers
teamwork

Currently we have toast and some healthier cereal options available to students. Foodbank will supply apples and watermelon; we would gratefully accept donations of eggs or any seasonal fruit or vegetables. Last Friday our students enjoyed freshly squeezed orange juice. Thank you, Jemma Tabone, for the extra juicy oranges.

AUSLAN

National Deaf Week is celebrated from September 23^rd - 30th. It is a week-long national celebration of Deaf individuals and the Australian Deaf community. It includes celebrating the International Week of Deaf People and International Day of Sign Languages. We will acknowledge this special week with some Auslan fun. Next Wednesday, we will gather as a whole school community to engage in games, craft and Auslan challenges.

SAPSASA

17th September - AFL Girls Training @ Jamestown 4-5pm
21st - 23rd October - AFL Girls State Carnival

Hockey SA Clinics

The Hockey Clinics will take place this Wednesday 18^th September on the usual PE Day. I would like to thank Sporting Schools Australia for the grant that has funded the new hockey kit and the clinics.

SAPSASA Hockey

Congratulations to Hugh T and Eddie D who took part in the State SAPSASA Hockey Carnival last week. The boys vastly improved their hockey skills throughout the three day event.

SAPSASA State Track and Field Championships

The State Track and Field Championships take place today in Adelaide. We wish Ethel A, Alayla K, Elkie C, Indy F, Flynn T, Fletcher W, Tom P, Patrick C and Tom C all the best for their events.

PARENTS AND FRIENDS

Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday 29^th October at 6:30pm. Please feel very welcome to join us and show your support for our school.

You will notice a new tuck item on the Flexischools app this week. Small frozen yoghurts will be available to order during the warmer months.

ASSEMBLY

Term 3 Assembly Dates

Each class will host an afternoon assembly throughout second half of the year to showcase the learning that has been taking place. All parents and grandparents are most welcome to join us. The next assembly will be held in the Learning Centre on;

Friday 20^th September – Year 5/6 – 2:40pm

NATURE PLAY MINI FESTIVAL

Last Tuesday our Students along with Little Jimmies and Bizzy Bugs headed off to Bundaleer Forest for a day of outdoor activities. We’d like to thank Cameron and Narrah from Nature Play SA and also a special mention to Leanne from Red Hot Shot Coffee for spending the day with us.

The learning benefits include;

Develop specific skills and knowledge to be confident and capable operators in the outdoors.

Explore human-nature relationships and steps to engage with nature and culture in a positive and meaningful way.
Take action to live a more sustainable life and share messages of hope for the conservation of local flora and fauna.
Identify ways they can influence their own health and wellbeing through nature connection and being active in the outdoors.

Thank you to Mel Kitschke and the My Bundaleer committee for making the grounds available and preparing for our visit.