Informer - Term 3 Week 6

APRE News...

Listen to the Stories

There were many, in the time of Jesus, whom others wouldn’t take the time to listen to, but Jesus went out of his way to listen to and talk with them.  He spoke to the blind man, the lepers, Zacheus, the widow from Nain, the adulterous woman and the woman at the well. These were strong messages to each of us.  We need to reach out and listen to all…to hear their stories.  We should not turn a deaf ear to anyone, as everyone has the right to be heard.  Once we label someone, it’s as if we have already worked out their story, so we think that we don’t need to listen.  Jesus taught us through his actions, the opposite of judging others.  Jesus modeled respecting the dignity of every person.

Our children also need to be heard.  If we don’t take the time to listen to them, research has shown they ‘act out’ their voicelessness, often in inappropriate ways.  Some lose confidence, others become anxious, and others depressed.  Children need to feel that what they have to say has worth and is worth listening to.  They need to be given a chance to voice opinions or fears and have these addressed to keep them happy and safe.  They need to feel that their ideas have some power to shape their life in some small way.

Our First Nation People also have stories that need to be heard and understood.  Again, we can’t assume we know their story.  Check that what we have read form different sources is actually the true story.  We need to hear all view points.  We need to keep asking, keep listening and learning.  Each story is unique and we need to keep listening, to empathize and understand.

The key is to make time to sit with our children and with others and be an active listener.  Switch off our devices and listen.  Read stories from reliable sources or better still, first-hand sources to get the true account.

And remember also, that Jesus is with us always, ready to listen to anything we care to share with him.  He is our listening model.

Did You Know?

Travel in First Century Palestine

Horses:  mostly used by the military or government.

Camels:  slower than walking but could carry heavy loads over long distances and endure long periods of dryness and heat.

Donkeys: slower than horses but could carry heavy loads, pull carts and sometime carry people.  They were particularly good on steep mountainous tracks.

Litter:  This was a special bed used by the Romans and carried by slaves.  It was used only within the cities or towns.

Chariots: These were pulled by horses and used in wars or to transport Roman officials.  Probably only used on smooth Roman roads.

Vietnam Veteran’s Day

This year, the 18 August will mark the 55^th Anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan, when Australian ‘diggers’ of D Company 6th Battalion Royal Australian Regiment fought a regiment-sized force of Vietcong and the North Vietnamese Army.  Against all odds the diggers prevailed.

We keep these veterans and their families in our prayers, giving thanks for the sacrifices they all made, so we can live the life of freedom we enjoy today.

Vietnam Veteran's Day

Healthy Lunch Box Challenge

St John's is literally putting the health into Health & Physical Education lessons this week as we focus on learning what makes a healthy lunchbox. Classroom conversations have revealed that St John's kids have a wealth of knowledge about healthful eating, so this week, students have been challenged to help out with lunchmaking ensuring that their lunchbox is filled only with healthy foods. Featured here are some of the key themes and suggestions that have been offered by students from Prep to Year 6. We are all excited to see the healthy lunchbox creations that appear over the next week!

Volunteer Induction

There will be a Volunteers Induction held this Wednesday 18 August at 8.45am in the Library. This induction is compulsory for anyone wishing to help out at school, tuckshop or in the classrooms.

PREP 2022

A reminder to existing St John's families that a Prep 2022 enrolment application must be submitted and completed in full for your child to be considered for Prep in 2022.

Swimming Carnival

St John's Way Awards

Parent Engagement Day

QLD's Single-Use Plastic Ban

Single-Use Plastic Ban in Qld

From September 1 2021, certain single-use plastic items will be banned in Qld, including plastic straws, stirrers, cutlery, plates, bowls and expanded polystyrene cups and containers. 

As many community groups provide takeaway food and drink as part of their community and fundraising activities, this may affect how you operate. As such, your group may benefit from information on how to comply with the new bans.

To help you prepare, the Qld Government has contracted the Boomerang Alliance* to conduct a series of early evening forums across the state to answer your questions on:

• What items are included in the ban?
• What alternative products can be used?
• How can my organisation adapt to comply with the ban?

We would like to invite you to your local forum which is listed below. For venue information and to register, please follow THIS LINK to our Eventbrite page.

Tuckshop Special

Volunteer Tuckshop Roster

Tuckshop Menu

Dignitea

Our St John’s App Is Live!

We are very excited to announce that the St John’s is live and ready for parents to download to their devices.

Please follow the instructions step-by-step for downloading the St John’s App. The one-off St John’s set-up passcode is 8892.

Additionally, to download the St John’s App to your iPad, laptop or PC, please follow the following link - https://stjohnclinton.schoolzineplus.com/subscribe

Once you have downloaded the App you will see we now have a one-stop-shop for all information you need to stay informed at St John’s.

In the top banner you will see Home, Feed and Manage.

Home will take you to the tiles and Feed will take you to alerts/messages (as Dojo did).

The latest ‘feed’ will be displayed on the home screen above the tiles.

The ‘’tiles’’ we have used are as follows:

• Parent Lounge – takes you straight to the Parent Lounge sign-in page
• Latest Newsletter – each week the newsletter will be uploaded to this tile
• Website – takes you straight to our website
• Forms and Documents – in this tile the following documents have been uploaded – simply tap on the link:
  

Parent Handbook
School Uniform
Behaviour Management
Fees and Levies Schedule
ICT Code of Practice
Tuckshop Menu

• School Calendar – all key dates for the upcoming term (continually updated)
• Tuckshop – takes you straight to the online tuckshop log-in page
• OSHC – links to required forms
• School Contact – takes you straight to our phone contact
• Facebook - takes you straight to our Facebook page
• Seesaw – Our new ‘Dojo’’ – please note that this is still a work in progress
• Newsletter Archive – each weekly newsletter will be archived to this tile for referral where required
• Subscribe to Newsletter – please note that all existing families will be automatically uploaded to this new platform. This tile is for new families in the future

While we feel we have covered all bases, things can be overlooked so we look forward to your feedback or suggestions on information that would be a benefit to be included. As always your feedback is valued; please email Jakki Graham at Jakki_graham@rok.catholic.edu.au