Term 4 Isuue 1

Dear Families

Welcome to the end of Week 5. We have four weeks remaining of the school year!!! The next four weeks will be busy so please try and keep up to date with all of the events happening. Below I have listed the key events to assist you.

Building Updates

There is quite a bit happening in the building space at SFX. Some major developments taking place in 2025 are:

• Term 3 Reception classrooms to be set up near current Reception classrooms (Pope Francis Building)
• A brand new building which will incorporate eight classrooms for Year 2 and 3 as well as a new Library and ICT support offices to commence being bulit in mid 2025.

I will elaborate more on these proceedings next year as plans are still being developed. These are exciting times, and it is a great time to be a student at SFX.

Classes 2025

Next year we will commence the year with twenty-four classes and have a further two classes in Term 3 (Reception Mid-Year intake) making a total of 26 classrooms. We are moving from a three-stream school to a four-stream school which means we will have four classes in each year level from Year 2 moving forward.

All classes will remain straight classes (not a composite of two year levels). The maximum for R -1 is 25 children and Years 2 - 6 is 29 children in accordance with the Enterprise agreement. All schools have to abide by these numbers.

Remembrance Day

On Monday, 11^th November we held a prayer service for Remembrance Day.

On the 11th hour, on the 11th day of the 11th month, a minute's silence is observed and dedicated to those soldiers who died fighting to protect the nation.

At 11:00am on 11th November 1918, the guns on the Western Front fell silent after more than four years of continuous warfare. The Germans called for an armistice (suspension of fighting) in order to secure a peace settlement. They accepted the allied terms of unconditional surrender.

The conflict had mobilised over 70 million people, left between nine and thirteen million dead, and as many as one third of these with no grave.

The 11th hour, of the 11th day of the 11th month attained a special significance in the post-war years. It became universally associated with the remembrance of those who had died in the war.

Originally known as Armistice Day, it was renamed Remembrance Day after World War Two to commemorate those who were killed in both World Wars.

Today the loss of Australian lives from all wars and conflicts is commemorated on Remembrance Day.

We will remember them. Lest we forget.

Campion Books

We are moving to a new stationery provider based on price and quality of product and service in 2025. We have heard parent feedback and have made positive changes to cut costs and delivery fees per student / per family. Informatation was emailed out to all existing families last week with details of how to complete your order.

Student Absenteeism

On your child’s school report there is a section with days absent. It is important your child is at school every day unless they are sick. If your child is sick or has illness symptoms please keep them home but we are having far too many children not attending for unexplained reasons. Data shows that Year 3 students with an absence rate of 10% in each of their first three years of schooling made almost two thirds of a year’s less progress by Year 5 in Naplan. The Early Years are critical to a child's development, and it is paramount you send your child to school every day if they are healthy and not sick.

End of year Reports and CESA Community Portal

A final reminder to all families about the registering and accessing the CESA Community Portal.

The Community Portal allows families to check contact details, pay fees, access Student Academic Reports and check school fee balances in real-time.  In line with our school's ongoing sustainability focus School Fee Statements and Academic Reports will be delivered via the Portal going forward.  Please save this link to your device for easy access https://cesa-portal-auth.civicaed.com.au/. If you need your invitation to the portal resent, or you have forgotten your login details, please contact the school at accounts@sfx.catholic.edu.au.

A reminder that the End of Year student reports will be released to the Portal on Monday, 9th December.

Staffing 2025

I am pleased to share with you our teaching staff for 2025. Please note, this list may be subject to change but rest assured that every teacher in our school is dedicated to delivering the highest standard of education.

Our teaching team consistently works together with a shared vision and commitment to the success of every student. They collaborate regularly to plan, ensuring that their approach to teaching and learning is consistent across all year levels. This teamwork fosters a unified approach where agreed whole-school practices are followed, providing a stable and enriching learning environment for our students.

We are incredibly fortunate to have a team of such passionate and skilled teachers who are focused on maintaining a positive, supportive, and dynamic classroom environment for every child in our care. Their dedication to upholding the values of our school ensures that all students receive a high-quality education.

Remaining Dates 2024

26^th November: Christmas Concert: 5:00pm BYO picnic for a 6:00pm start.

29^th November: SFX Feast Day and Colour Run. The Colour Run commences at 1:30pm -3:00pm.

4^th December: Whole School Mass: 9:15am

5^th December: Transition new classes

9^th December: End of year reports go home via CESA Community Portal

10^th December: Year 6 Graduation Liturgy 11:45am

11^th December: Last day of School Year – Wednesday 3:05pm finish

2025

In the last newsletter for this year I will outline term dates, pupil free days, key events etc.

Regards

Jason Mittiga

Principal

SFX

Rosanna Samarzia - Assistant Principal Religious Identity and Mission

All Saints Day (1^st November) and All Souls Day (2^nd November)

On 1 November we recognised All Saints Day, a solemn Holy Day of the Catholic Church. The day is dedicated to the Saints of the Church, that is, all those who have attained Heaven. On this day, students had the opportunity to gather for classroom Liturgies and participated in class activities, learning more about what it means to be a Saint.

What is the difference between All Saints Day and All Souls Day?

The Saints are people who said “yes” to God’s plan for them and are now in heaven. On All Saints Day we praise and thank God for what has been done for us through these Holy people. We ask the Saints to pray for us that we might love God and neighbour the way Jesus taught us.

On All Souls Day we think about all those who have passed (died). It’s a time we ask God and the Saints to look after them.

How did we recognize All Souls Day at SFX this year?

A wooden cross was placed in the Well-being Hub. Students and staff had the opportunity to write the names of loved ones who have passed (died) on a heart and to display it on the wooden cross. Students and staff were also invited to light a candle in remembrance of that special person. The cross will be given to the Modbury Parish who will display the cross alongside a similar cross created by Gleeson College at the Church. The Parish will pray with us for those special people who we have lost.

Remembrance Day (11^th November)

Each year on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we pay our respects to those who have fought and lost their lives fighting for our country. On Monday morning, we gathered for a Remembrance Day Liturgy, hosted by our RE leaders.

Thank you to Mr. George Cooke who joined us for this service and read the Ode.

Religious Literacy Assessment Tool (ReLAT) results
Last term our students participated in an assessment in Religious Education for all Year 4 students in South Australia Catholic Schools. This annual assessment has been developed by the Catholic Education Office.

Religious Education (RE) is a core Learning Area in all Catholic schools. It is a foundation for all learning and is integrated into the life of the school through prayer, liturgy and social justice programs. 

ReLAT focuses on knowledge content which is core to the Year 4 Crossways Religious Education curriculum. As a basic knowledge test, ReLAT complements the continuous, fuller, and deeper assessment of learning that occurs in the RE classroom. It gives results across 5 domains of learning: God, Us and Faith, Sacred Texts, Church for the World, Moral Life and Sacramentality and Prayer.

The results for SFX were outstanding, with our students being above the state average in all 5 domains.

Our school’s average was 8.3% above the state average. Congratulations to our staff and community for providing opportunities for our students to grow spiritually no matter where they are in their faith journey.

School_Report_SouthAustralia_Year-4_St-Francis-Xaviers-Regional-Catholic-School

Vinnies Christmas Appeal

Support the St Vincent de Paul Christmas Appeal and help families in need. From 11th - 29th November, please join us in donating non-perishable food, drinks, toys, or Xmas gifts to your child’s classroom. Every donation—big or small—brings warmth and joy to those who need it most.

Thank you in advance for your kindness and generosity.

Vinnies Christmas Appeal and St Francis Xavier’s Feast Day

We ask that all students bring a donation (non-perishable item) as an act of service on Friday, 29th November, St Francis Xaver's Feast Day celebration.  

Library News

It has been a huge year for the library this year - students have participated in National Simultaneous Storytime, Book Week festivities and of course the incredible resuts in the Premier’s Reading Challenge. Students have also enjoyed borrowing a large number of books this year during their class borrowing time, however we now ask that all books are returned to the Library.

As we approach the end of the year it is imperative that students keep track of all library books so we can ensure that everything has been returned in time for the annual stock take. 

Please note the following dates for your information

Friday 15/11/24 (Week 5) – this is the final date for students to borrow from the school library for 2024. 

Friday 29/11/24 (Week 7) - ALL library books must be returned to the library prior to this date.  Please note, families will be invoiced for any books not returned to the library by the end of the year.  Reminders and final notice letters will be sent in the weeks following the final due date so please ensure that you are regularly checking your emails (including junk mail folders) to ensure you receive notifications of any books borrowed by your child/ren that need to be returned.

Please contact either Lynda or Jan in the library if you need any assistance.

On Monday, 23rd September the SFX Festival Choir performed in the Catholic Schools Music Festival.

This group of 14 students from Year 5 and Year 6 took to the Festival Theatre stage with over 200 other Catholic School students, to perform the most incredible evening of songs. They had everyone tapping along to ‘Take Me Home Country Road’, ‘Putting on the Ritz’ and the hugely popular ‘Defying Gravity’ from the musical Wicked.

Congratulations to every student involved, these moments are ones that become lifelong memories.

Sports News (Term 3 and Term 4)

As SFX students continue to shine across a variety of sports, we are excited to share some of our most recent achievements from Term 3 and Term 4.

In Term 3, our Year 5/6 Softball teams participated in the School Sport SA – Tea Tree Gully District Softball Carnival. With both teams being co-coached by Mrs Chillingworth and Mr O’Leary, the boys' team were crowned Champions, while the girls' team secured a fantastic 3^rd place. SFX continues to be a mecca for softball talent with the following students having represented the Tea Tree Gully District at the SA State Championships earlier in the year: From Year 6, Mikalya E, Chloe O, Olivia B, Ava H, Sienna B, Jade G, Tyler P and from Year 5, Mitchell B, Noah M, Lincoln F, and Patrick F. Well done, softballers!

Our Year 5/6 Touch Football teams participated in the SACPSSA Touch Football Carnival. Our girls’ team, coached by Mr Esposito narrowly lost the Grand Final, finishing as runners up, and the boys’ team, coached by Mr Stagg, finished in a respectable 3^rd place. These are fantastic results as our teams were competing at the highest level, being the Championship Day of the Carnival, for the first time in many years. We look forward to focusing on Touch Football in 2025 as it grows in popularity at SFX.

Our Year 5/6 Tennis Team participated in the School Sport SA – Tea Tree Gully District Tennis Carnival. We finished the day with a score of 16.82, which was based on group size and average score per player at the carnival, finishing as Runners Up. Well done to the small but dedicated team of tennis players that represented our school at the carnival.

Our Year 5/6 Boys Cricket team participated in the School Sport SA – Tea Tree Gully District T20 Blast Cricket Carnival. The team, coached by Mr Bruce-Gordon, went through the carnival undefeated, winning each game by more than 100 runs, and returned to SFX as the 2024 District Champions. Fantastic effort boys!

At the recent SACPSSA Athletics Carnival at Athletics SA Stadium, both our boys’ and girls’ teams placed 2nd overall, showcasing their learning from the Term 1 Athletics unit. Special congratulations go to our Year 4 Girls and Year 5 Boys, who each took home the top prize in their respective age groups with both teams being crowed Champions. From 95 events, our athletes placed in the top 4 in 53 events, which is an amazing result and is testament to the effort of each individual athlete during the carnival.

Finally, a massive congratulations to our Year 5/6 Boys Basketball team, who were crowned School Sport SA State Champions after a thrilling competition. Under the expert coaching of Mr O’Leary, the boys showed hustle, teamwork, and sportsmanship all day. This is a significant achievement, and we are so proud of the way they conducted themselves throughout the campaign: from Year 6 Jordan G, Kayde B, Sonny S, Tristan H, Jackson C and from Year 5, Lincoln F, James S and Jacob I.

We acknowledge the following students for their selection in School Sport SA – Tea Tree Gully representative teams.

Tennis – Amelia C, Aysha R, Laura F

Cricket – Jackson C

Australian Rules Football – Ava H, Isabel G, Jordan G, Jackson C, Noah M

Athletics –         Jordan G, Tyler P, Jackson C, Dante D, Hayden M, Carlo B, Bastian V, Gursehar J, Summer S, Xavier B, Jacob I, Annabelle A, Anja K, Indiana G, Chiara B 

Selection in these teams is a major sporting accomplishment and we are very proud to see these students representing SFX and the Tea Tree Gully District at State level – well done!

Congratulations to Jordan G for an outstanding achievement on his selection to represent South Australia in both Basketball and Athletics.

These results highlight the dedication, hard work, and athletic integrity of our students across the board. We are incredibly proud of all our athletes and look forward to even more success in 2025.

The Class of Children's University 2024!

On the morning of Thursday, 31st October, a group of dedicated students from SFX celebrated their graduation from Children’s University.

This innovative program encourages students to engage in enriching, out-of-school learning opportunities, boosting their educational achievements, and fostering self-directed learning.

Over the past twelve months, these SFX students explored various learning destinations, completed tasks through the online portal, and reflected on their extracurricular activities. This journey helped them expand their knowledge, discover new interests, and develop a passion for lifelong learning.

Congratulations to all the SFX graduates! We extend our gratitude to the University of Adelaide, Mel Ainslie – our Children’s University Co-Ordinator, SFX teachers and the parents of the students who participated for supporting and inspiring these young learners to reach new heights.

Congratulations to Stefanie H who has achieved her 40 piece challenge in music.

What a wonderful way to start Term 4. Thank You for your ongoing support SFX families!