April 28th, 2025: Newsletter #12

Acknowledgement of Country

St. John’s school community respect and honour Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders as the traditional custodians of the land on which we learn, pray and grow. We acknowledge the stories, traditions and living cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on this land and commit to building a brighter future together, working together towards a reconciled Australia. 

Week 2: The Season of Easter

The Season of Easter: During the second week of Easter, the opportunity exists for us to focus on celebrating the new life offered through Christ's Resurrection and reflecting on the joy of the resurrection. Like the disciples who were unable to see Christ's light, we ask God to enrich in us the ability to see Christ in all things. Here are a few ways in which we can do this;

• Consider how the Resurrection offers hope and a renewed sense of purpose.
  
• Express gratitude for the love and mercy of God, particularly during times of difficulty. 
• Ask for the strength to break free from habits that hinder your relationship with self, with others and with God.
• Pray for the needs of your family, friends, and community, especially those who are suffering or in need of healing.

From the Principal

Hello everyone, welcome to a new week at St. John's, 

Welcome: We extend a warm welcome to the Xu family who join our school community. Louise commenced in Grade 4 JM today. 

New arrivals: Congratulations to Levi P and family on the arrival of their beautiful new addition Isla and to Alexander M and family on the arrival of sweet little Sofia, pictured with Alexander and sister Addison.

We are also excited to announce Mrs Kristie Painter, her husband Michael and son George recently welcomed gorgeous Arthur into their family.

May these new little miracles bring you all immense love and joy.

E Scooters: The use of E Scooters by primary age children and the associated risks with using them has for some time been a topic of conversation, the tragedy last week in Terang has only served to highlight this further.

The bottom line is that the use of E Scooters by children under the age of 16 in Victoria is illegal so put simply, it should not be happening. 

Public Holidays in Term 2: Please note the following Public Holidays where students are not required to attend school.

• Thursday May 1st- May Races Holiday
• Monday June 9th- King's Birthday Holiday

Term 2 Assembly Roster:

• Monday May 5th- Gr 2
• Monday May 12th- Gr 3
• Monday May 19th- Gr 5/6
• Monday May 26th- Gr 1
• Monday June 2nd- Foundation
• Monday June 16th- Leadership
• Monday June 23rd- Leadership

Enjoy the week ahead, Ben. 

As we celebrate the life of Pope Francis, this time may invite us to reflect upon his life and work and what it means for us all. In 2020, Pope Francis and Austen Ivereigh wrote a book Let us Dream - The Path to a Better Future. The very last thing Pope Francis included in this book is a poem by Alexis Valdes titled Hope, In light of his death and especially in this Easter season, this poem may point to the lasting effects of Pope Francis for us and our times.

HOPE

When the storm has passed and the roads are tamed.
and we are the survivors of a collective shipwreck.

With tearful heart and our destiny blessed.

we will feel joy simply for being alive.

And we’ll give a hug to the first stranger.
and praise our good luck that we kept a friend.

And then we’ll remember all that we lost.
and finally learn everything we never learned.

And we’ll envy no one for all of us have suffered.
and we’ll not be idle but more compassionate.

We’ll value more what belongs to all than what was earned.
We’ll be more generous and much more committed.

We’ll understand how fragile it is to be alive.
We’ll sweat with empathy for those still with us and those who are gone.

We’ll miss the old man who asked for a buck in the market.
whose name we never knew who was always at your side.

And maybe the poor old man was your God in disguise.
But you never asked his name because you never had the time.

And we’ll all become a miracle and all will become a legacy.
And we’ll respect the life, the life we have gained.

When the storm passes I ask you Lord, in shame
That you return us better as you once dreamed us.

2026 Foundation Enrolments- Now Open!

Enrolments: Applications for our Foundation students for 2026 are now OPEN with the closing date being 4:00pm on Wednesday 11th June, 2025. 

A reminder to all existing school families that if have you siblings who are entering primary school at St. John’s in 2026 please enrol as soon as convenient. As enrolments are now open to the general public, we want to ensure that siblings of existing students are given first priority.

All of our enrolments are completed online, via the Enrolment/Apply now page on our schools website. 

You will need to make sure you have your child's documentation loaded onto your device, either by taking a photo or scanning and uploading.  

• Birth certificate
• Immunisation Statement
• Baptism certificates (if relevant)
• Any specialist reports

Enrolment Tours/Information Sessions: Our session dates have also been set and can be booked via the Event Registration page on our school website.

• 10.00am, Wednesday May 14th
• 10.00am, Wednesday May 21st
• 7.30pm, Wednesday May 21st

Federal Election

Please find below a letter from DOBCEL Executive Director Tom Sexton regarding funding commitments for Catholic education from political candidates in the seat of Wannon. 

ANZAC Day Celebrations

Our gratitude is with the many families who joined with the Dennington community on Friday to pay respect to those who have served in numerous battlefronts across the world. 

We appreciate your passion in ensuring their legacy lives on. 

School Cross Country- This Wednesday!

All students will participate in our school Cross Country on Wednesday at the Dennington Oval. Students will compete in their age groups, the same age groups as Athletics. Students are to come to school in their sports uniform on this day.

Families are welcome to come along but please note the below times are approximate and will depend on weather.

CDFpay- Download now!

A reminder that we are going cashless. That means all orders for Wednesday Treats, Mother's Day Stall and fundraising etc need to be placed via CDFpay.

CDF pay is an app that you download to your phone.

• In the app store search for CDFpay
• Create a new account
• When searching for our school, start with our postcode of 3280 and our school will come up in the shortened list to select from
• You will need to add each of your children and select their 2025 classroom. Please make sure this is correct, as this is where the lunch order will be delivered to. 

If you need any assistance please contact the office but it is important to note that due to privacy restrictions associated to this app, we can not add students or amend your account for you in any way.

School Uniform- Updates!

After a period of consultation with parents, staff and Lowes, our uniform supplier, please note the following updates to our school uniform.

1. We will be introducing a raincoat- this is an optional piece of clothing and the community will be advised when it is available.

2. We will be maintaining 2 styles of jumper, the polar fleece and a windcheater.

3. We will be transitioning from grey pants/ shorts to navy blue- these are available for purchase from Lowes now. Lowes have been requested to no longer sell grey pants/ shorts. We are still working on an option for our girls pants/ shorts and hope to have this finalised shortly. All students will wear navy blue socks.

With any change, there is always a transition period so it is ok for children to be wearing grey and navy blue pants/ shorts. 

And lastly, the move from summer to winter uniform can take place over the next few weeks, there is no requirement on all students to be wearing winter uniform now. 

Mother's Day Breakfast

We invite Mothers or a special person to our annual Mother's Day Breakfast- which will be held on Friday 9th May from 8.00am to 8.45am in the Stadium.

Please complete the google form linked below by Friday 2nd May to let us know if you can make it.

St. John's Helpdesk

Wellbeing

Confidence & Motivation

Confidence and motivation are two critical ingredients for young people's success. Supporting your child to help nurture these qualities allows them to believe in their abilities and navigate life's challenges with resilience and a positive outlook.

Meaningful May

The below Action for Happiness Calendar focuses on being more meaningful and incorporating small daily actions that helps us to think about what's important to ourselves and others.

Theircare

Student Awards

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to the following students who celebrate their birthday this week: Rhy B, Bella P, Kaylee K and Luke V. We hope you have a terrific day!

Around our School- Week 1

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Parents and Friend's Social Group

Our next Parents and Friends meeting will be on Wednesday 28th May at 7.00pm in the Gathering Space. All welcome.

Dennington Day Out

Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 13th May at 7.00pm in the Gathering Space. Our committee is still looking for new volunteers to join. 

Dennington Day Out Sponsorship Proposal for 2025 is now available if you or someone you know is interested in sponsoring this years event please contact ddo@sjdennington.catholic.edu.au

Wednesday Treats

Wednesday Treats are back!

This year there will be no paper order forms going home, it will all be done online via the CDFpay app. Each Wednesday the order for the following week will be uploaded to the app.

Orders will close at 8:30am on Tuesday so please make sure you get your orders in on time as we can not accept late orders or cash this year.

Starting the term off with Pizza’s. There will be a post on our school facebook page when orders will be open so please keep an eye out for it. 

Wednesday 7th May 

• $2.50 per pizza slice 
• $2.00 each - Apple Juice, Orange Juice, Chocolate Milk & Strawberry Milk

Should you have any questions please feel free to contact Taliah Gleeson, Emily McGennan or the front office.

Mother's Day Stall

Our annual Mothers Day Stall will be held on Wednesday 7th May. Students will browse the stall with their class and select an item for their Mum or other special family member/friend. 

This year it’s a little different as we are now a cashless school. You will need to upload your money for EACH student via the CDFpay app. 

When you open the CDFpay app you will see the event “Mothers Day Stall” here is where you can select the amount you wish for your child to spend with a maximum being $10. 

Please note all payments must be made by this Friday 2nd May. 

Regina Laird is looking for volunteers to help on the day please see the below flyer with contact details. 

Cake Raffle

Each week at Assembly we draw a cake raffle for students. The money raised goes to various charities like Royal Childrens Hospital in Melbourne.

School families have been assigned a week to bring in a cake. There is no obligation or pressure for you to do so, it is only if you wish to. If you have been assigned a week that is unsuitable and you would like to bring a cake in another week, please contact the office and an alternate date will be arranged.

If you choose to, please drop your store purchased cake into the office with your family name written on top. 

All students will have the opportunity to buy a raffle ticket for 20c with a limit of five tickets per student. The Johnnies will make a P.A announcement at first lunch, calling all students who wish to purchase a ticket, to the Library.

The following families are rostered on for Monday 5th May:

De Visscher, De Martin (Savannah), De Martin (Sommer), Doak, Downing and Drake.

Emmanuel College-Enrolments close this Friday.

School Sponsorship

Would you like to advertise your business in our school newsletter? Businesses can advertise for only $100 a year and will have a business card sized listing in every school newsletter.

A big thank you to O'Brien Electrical & Plumbing, Fry Painting, Carry on travel, King Cole Fruit Supply, Total Landscapes and Design and Hiensch Haulage that sponsor our school!

Please contact parents@sjdennington.catholic.edu.au for more information.

Star of the Sea Bulletin

Sunday Mass is held at 9.00am at St. Pius X Church. School families are always welcome. 

The Parish office can be contacted on 5562 2231 and this weekends bulletin is featured below. Other information and contact details can be found on the Star of the Sea South West Coast website: https://www.ballarat.catholic.org.au/parish/southwestcoast/ 

Community Notices

Upcoming Events

Tuesday 29th April: Confirmation Parent Meeting (7.00pm St Joseph's Church)

Wednesday 30th April: St. John's School Cross Country- 1.00pm start

Thursday 1st May: May Races Public Holiday

Friday 2nd May: Division Athletics at BrauerAnder Park (Permissions have been sent to students that are competing)

Saturday 3rd May: Voting coffee and cake stall 8.00-11.00am in the Stadium

Wednesday 7th May: Mother's Day Stall

Wednesday 7th May: Wednesday Treats commences

Tuesday 13th May: DDO Meeting at 7.00pm in the Gathering Space

Wednesday 28th May: Parents and Friends meeting 7pm Gathering Space