21 September 2023

Principal’s Message – Kate Ferguson

In the wake of an unexpected loss within our staff and community, we have come together as a tightly knit community to support one another during this challenging time. Our community has shown an outpouring of support, compassion, and understanding, reminding us of the strength and resilience that binds us together. Thank you, families, for your support of our staff and students during this time. 

During the holidays, the funeral for Trish Higgins, will be held on Wednesday the 27th October 2023 at 11:00 at The Sacred Heart Cathedral. School staff will be present at this funeral representing the school community. Please continue to keep Trish and her family in your prayers.  

Staff Changes – Learning Support Assistants 

Linda Wallace, one of our dedicated Learning Support Assistants, will be taking a leave for the remainder of the year. Linda joined St John the Baptist this year and has been a huge support of students and staff. We wish her well in term 4 as she looks to spend more time with her family.  

In term 4 we welcome the following Learning Support Assistants to our staff – Michelle McDonald, Alichia Hardy, Karlie Klemenczuk and Kaleb Williams. These 4 staff members have been working at St John the Baptist through 2023 and it is excellent to be able to welcome them on a more consistent basis for the remainder of 2023. If you have any questions or concerns about the support provided in your child’s classroom, please contact your classroom teacher. 

End of Term 3 

As we reach the end of Term 3, it's with immense pride and gratitude that I reflect on the achievements and growth we have witnessed in our community. The dedication and hard work of our students, teachers, and support staff have shone brightly during this term. 

Thank you to Chris Sheridan, Sara Murdoch, and Michael Tobin who have all taken on acting leadership roles for the last 5 weeks in Stacey Whiting’s absence. I appreciate their commitment to the students and staff at St John the Baptist and have enjoyed working alongside them within the school leadership team. 

We celebrate the achievements of this term and look forward to the opportunities that term 4 holds. I hope that you have a restful and restorative break with your students, and I look forward to seeing you back in term 4. 

Acting Assistant Principal’s Message – Chris Sheridan

This past week has been a challenge for many in our school community. With the loss of our friend and colleague Ms Trish Higgins, we were thrust into a reality not of our choosing. We were and are forced to ponder many questions and experience a range of emotions that too often leave us without answers. Fortunately, we have experienced the love and support of an incredibly caring and connected staff and also received compassion and understanding from our broader school community. 

As a Catholic community, as we grieve, we also know that at this very time, others are grieving losses too.  

Teach us Lord, to be sensitive  
to the sufferings and pains of others.  
Help us to take strength from the community  
of our brothers and sisters in the faith. 
Amen. 

Acting Religious Education – Sara Murdoch

In Religion, 1B and 1W have been learning all about Saints. We held our ‘Saints Day’ last week. During this week, students chose a Saint to learn about and then they came dressed to school as their Saint last Friday. Thank you to the parents and carers for the support of this day. We had a SAINTSATIONAL time!

Mrs Baker and Mrs Collins

First Holy Communion  

Congratulations to the following students who recently received their ‘First Holy Communion’.  

James Banister, Ruby and Stella Botham, Rosie and Gracie Spiteri, Maddalyn Morgan, Chloe and Max McCullum.

Socktober – Friday 20^th October

On Friday the 20^{th of} October (Friday Week 2), we will be inviting our students to wear a different pair of socks with a gold coin donation. This is part of our mission day to raise money to support families in Timor-Leste facing health and wellness challenges.

The money raised from Socktober help sustain and enrich the lives of vulnerable children by providing vital medicines and health support. 

Children will wear their normal Friday uniform but with Crazy,  or Silly and Colourful socks.  Gold coin donation.

Acting Primary Co-ordinator – Michael Tobin

Touch Football Gala Day

We had a fantastic day at the Touch Football Gala Day at Maitland Park on Thursday the 7^th of September. We had 6 teams participate, 3 senior boys and 3 senior girls. The boys and girls scored a lot of brilliant tries throughout the day, had some great wins and enjoyed a day full of smiles and fun. Our students behaviour and sportsmanship was excellent and we were all very proud of our amazing students. Thanks to all of the families who came and cheered for our boys and girls!

Rugby Gala Day

What a brilliant day of rugby for the Digby Rayward Shield at Hunter Valley Grammar School. Our St John’s kids certainly put in a huge effort! Our Junior Team won all their games and made it to the Grand Final! They were runners up to Scone Grammar School. Well done kids, you showed a lot of grit and determination and didn’t give up! Well done to our Senior Team. They played 3 games, 2 wins and a loss. Such incredible players and excellent sportsmanship throughout the day! Thank you to our parents who cheered and supported the kids throughout the day! A huge shout out and thank you to our coaches! Thank you to Nick O’Toole, Marty McCullum and Chris Badior. Thank you for training the kids before the gala day and for your expertise and guidance throughout the day!

Polding Athletics

Good luck to Patrick O'Toole, Lincoln Greentree, Eadie Gollan who are attending Polding athletics at Sydney Olympic Park on the 13^th October. What an outstanding achievement to represent at Polding, well done to these 3 amazing athletes!

NSW Wrestling State Championships

On Sunday the 10^th of September Jesse Cox participated in the NSW Wrestling State Championships. He competed in the 50kg U11s division and defeated the State Champion from last year to become the new state champion in the Freestyle Division. We are very proud of Jesse’s amazing achievement. Well done Jesse!

State Pony Club Show Rider

Congratulations to Zoe Collett who rode very well at State on the weekend and came home with a 2nd and a 5th in very competitive classes!

She represented Zone 25, which makes up a number of pony clubs within the zone - there's a picture attached that shows those clubs. Zoe is pointing to Hinton Wallalong which is her home club. Well done Zoe!

Interrelate

Students in Year 5 and 6 have been taking part in the Interrelate program, 'Moving into the Teen Years' over the last few weeks. The students have enjoyed learning about important aspects of health to enhance their self-esteem and consolidate previous lessons regarding physical changes to their bodies and relationship education and help develop communication and decision-making skills. Students have explored a range of adolescent issues and this comprehensive program is designed for this important time in the lives of senior primary school students.

River Research Project

On Tuesday morning, a small group of students walked up to the Hunter River. We arrived and met Fiona, a representative of Maitland Council, and Jane, a representative of Local Land Services, to help with their research of the health of the Hunter River. This research project is being completed across different schools close to the river and testing how healthy each section is. A river sample was collected by Jane, and we conducted the tests in the shade of the Levee.

The tests were the pH levels, salinity, and turbidity of the water. We also assessed the vegetation, weather contexts and wildlife around our section of the river. The results from our tests showed that our section may not be a healthy part of the Hunter River with high alkaline levels present in the water. Emma and Phoebe hypothesized that these high alkaline levels could be from dogs or ducks and the little presents they sometimes leave behind!

Next term, we will be able to see Fiona and Jane again to compare our results with the other schools partaking in this project. The schools are as far up to the Barrington Tops, where the river begins, and Beresfield where the river starts to become saltwater as it leads out to the sea. How interesting will it be to compare the results, stay tuned for an update in Term 4!

Totem Pole and Lanterns

1 Blue and 1 White have been working with one of the Year 9 Visual Arts elective classes at All Saints College to complete two special projects. The first project was designing and decorating lanterns, reusing plastic soft drink bottles for the Maitland River Lights Festival coming up in our community soon. The second project was completing a Totem Pole linked with our Grade 1 Term 3 HSIE (Geography) and Science Units which focused on the weather and the four seasons.

Thank you to all the students involved, Mrs Prince and Mr Scott from ASC and Mrs Collins and Mrs Baker from St John the Baptist for organising these valuable cross-stage interactions, and to Mrs Ferguson and Mr Lacey (Principals of SJB and ASC) who have fully supported these activities.

Our Totem Pole will be on display at Hunter Valley Gardens from the 23^rd September to the 8^th October. If you are planning a visit to HVG in the holidays, please vote for our pole. The voting instructions from HVG are as follows:  Anyone who enters Hunter Valley Gardens from 23^rd September – 8^th October is able to vote for their favourite totem pole on a piece of paper which then goes into a special box nearby.  There are terrific prizes for the schools who win this competition.

Class Merit Awards

Canteen

P & F News

We have recently donated an additional $400 to cover the cost of 2 more portable ball game goals. We hope students are enjoying playing with the new equipment. 

Dates for the Diary

Term 4

Meeting & 2024 AGM - Wednesday 8 November @ 9:30 am (Week 7)
Christmas Family Night - Tuesday 5th December (Week 9)
Christmas Fun Day - *** New date*** Monday 11 December (Week 10)

Uniform Shop

Open Monday 8:30-9am in school hall.
We are asking for donations of approved uniform items in good, clean quality condition (no rips, stains etc).
We thank our dedicated uniform shop volunteers for their time and efforts in sorting and washing donations ready to sell.

Contacting the P & F Committee

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need any assistance via executive@pandf-maitlandsj.com
We welcome any suggestions, feedback, offers to volunteer with events or general enquiries.