Term 1 Week 7 - Thursday 20 March 2025

Principal's Message

Community Council Principal’s Report

School Fete

I would like to acknowledge and congratulate the Fete committee for the significant time and effort put into planning, organizing and running the fete. It was a huge ask on Sarah and her team, with many of them backing up from last year’s fete. This gave us a significant advantage which enabled smooth running to occur in many areas. Long hours and unlimited enthusiasm, combined with common sense, clear strategy and planning with all involved playing a vital role. The day itself was an enormous success, beautiful weather, perfect setup, great crowds and functionality. It not only was an amazing community event, it was also a good fund raiser. A secondary outcome has also been that we have created a great foundation to build upon for future fetes. A solid roadmap, timeline, volunteer / job list and required resources and equipment will make next year’s fete even easier.

Swimming Carnival

Thank you to both Brendan and Kerrin for their outstanding organization in coordinating our  swimming carnival. The event ran smoothly, with parent support and significant assistance from the senior students at McKillop College.

Athletics Carnival

This will be held this coming Monday at Woden Athletics Field. Again, thank you to Brendan and Kerrin for their organisation. We have created a structure which will enable all students from ELC through to Year 6 be in attendance and participate on the same day, at the same venue. This is the first time it will be done this way, staff and students are very excited.

Year 5 and 6 Camp

The weather was kind and the activities were engaging. We sent 9 staff members with our students. This is a huge commitment by our staff and we are extremely fortunate and grateful to have such giving and caring staff. Apart from the odd case of travel or home sickness the camp ran smoothly. It was interesting to note the number of students who had never slept away from home.

Walk/Ride to School

A great initiative led by Brendan Mitchell and supported by staff, students and parents. As a school we have always strongly promoted physical health and the benefits transferable to mental health and this was another opportunity to be active.

NAPLAN

NAPLAN gives us important data in relation to how our students are travelling in comparison to other schools. It can neither be overstated, nor understated. As a school we don’t teach to the test, we do however, try to set students up for success by exposing them to similar formats and teaching them specific writing structures.

Ongoing Projects

Extension of the butterfly room – As you are aware, space is at a premium. We are currently working with CE to have a wall which divides 2 spaces in the Butterfly room removed. This will give our Butterfly staff some additional space and allow Italian to again have its own classroom. Having a roving Italian class where Italian has been taught in the home room has been beneficial in enabling students to settle in their classrooms, however, it isn’t an effective long term strategy as we lose time in transitions.

Irrigation stage 2 – During the Easter break, we will have a new irrigation system installed across the oval space. This will be connected to the bore dug in the Christmas break and will ensure more efficient watering of our oval space.

Monkey Bars Playground Space- As you are aware, a student suffered a significant injury. CE are currently completing an investigation, which will direct and changes to this space. Ultimately, we want to ensure that all students are safe.

Damage to the hall and front of canteen floor – Two recent flooding events have led to damage to both flooring spaces. We are currently working with CE to explore options for repair or replacement.

Significant drainage repair – The recent storms have highlighted some issues with our roof, gutters and drainage. I met with plumbers and CE on Monday afternoon and there will need to be significant work completed to ensure that any water flows into the right spaces. At this stage, the areas impacted wont be near the classrooms, rather, near the front office and around the sides of the school hall.

Important Dates

School News

Compass
Check out our 'school documents' section which can now be found in the Compass app. Our medial forms, bus permission and fee information can be found here.  They are located in 'more' under 'school documents'. 

Harmony Day - tomorrow 21 March
Students can come dressed in traditional outfits or in orange. Harmony Day is not a mufti day. 

50th anniversary  

Join our 5th Anniversary Facebook page 

RE News

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is an important step in building our relationship with God, self and others. We seek forgiveness for our sins which have moved us away from God's love, we receive God's grace and restore our relationship with God and the community. Reconciliation and recognising that we have made poor choices is an important time for reflection, to acknowledge that we are not perfect but that we are all worth of changing our ways and starting again.

We pray for the following children who are on this journey.  May they have the courage to recognise their sins and find peace in seeking forgiveness. Give them the strength to start again, now and into their adult lives. 

Parish Feast Day - Tuesday 25 March

On Tuesday 25 March we will celebrate our Parish Feast Day, the Feast of the Annunciation. It has become a tradition to celebrate together with St John Vianney, and this year we are off to SJV to celebrate with Mass and activities. Please complete the bus permissions if you have not done so already. Students will need to take a packed lunch and hat. 

Mass will be at 9.30 at SJV if you wish to join us.

ELC News

ELC NEWS

Happy Birthday Mary J and Marley M

What an amazing fete day last Saturday! A huge thank you to the parents, staff, families and friends who helped make it such a successful day.  It takes a whole community to come together to make such a big event work. A special thank you to Sarah Tonna (mum of Alice in the Turtles) for taking on the massive role of fete co-ordinator again this year.

ELC Project Compassion Donations

Throughout Lent, we will focus on the importance of prayer and doing kind things for others, and we will be participating in Project Compassion to help people living in poverty.  ELC families are invited to donate.  Project Compassion boxes are located on the prayer table in each classroom and children will be able to contribute during morning class prayer.

Harmony Day – Friday 21 March

On Harmony Day we celebrate our rich diverse culture and the valuable contribution that different cultures make to our society. Harmony day aims to promote cultural diversity and inclusion, fostering respect and a sense of belonging for all Australians. Students are asked to wear orange to school and/or something traditional from their cultural background.

Athletics Carnival – Monday 24 March

The St Jude’s athletics carnival is at Woden Park on Monday 24 March. A fee of $8.50 has been added to your account to cover the bus.

Parish Feast Day – Tuesday 25 March

On Tuesday 25 March the ELC will join the St Jude’s and St John Vianney’s to celebrate our parish feast day. A fee of $8.50 has been added to your account to cover the bus to SJV. Please ensure you have returned your permission note. The bus departs at 9:15am, please ensure you are on time. We would hate for you to miss the bus!

St Jude Open Day – Thursday 1 May

St Jude’s ELC and primary school will hold an Open Day on Thursday 1 May. There are two sessions: 9:30am - 11am and 4pm - 6pm. We will also hold tours on Tuesdays in May from 9:30 – 11am.  Please contact the ELC if you would like a Tuesday tour.  If you know any families with children approaching preschool age, invite them along to have a look at our amazing ELC!  Online enrolments are open via the ELC page of the school website.

St John Vianney’s Open Days

St John Vianney’s will have Open Day every Wednesday in May from 10:30am to 5pm and Saturday 9:30am – 12:30pm.

Library News

Library borrowing next week

Due to the athletics carnival being on Monday, our normal borrowing day, your child will borrow on the day they have their library lesson. 

Sora App

Sora is an app and web-based platform that allows our Year 4-6 students to access thousands of e-books, e-magazines and audio books at school and at home.  Our Year 4-6 students have had time during library lessons to become familiar with Sora. They can access Sora on devices at home, with parent's permission. 

The website is https://soraapp.com/welcome or you can download the Sora app for free from the App Store.

Students will need to search for Australian Catholic Education Network instead of St Jude's. They will need to input their school username and password to access Sora.

Let me know if you have any issues.

Happy reading!

Mrs Hind

Sports News

Ride2School - Tomorrow, Friday 21 March 

This week is Ride2School Week and we are encouraging all students as well as parents and carers to get as involved as they can this Friday morning when we will have our whole school Ride and Walk to school morning. 

This initiative is led by the Bicycle Network and is partnered by many community organisations. It is a great community event that helps promote healthy lifestyles. Our school will be one of many around Australia participating on Friday and we will join the more than 350,000 other students participating on the day.

Tomorrow we will have teachers and some of our Yr6 St Jude’s Sport Leaders stationed at several locations to ride or walk into school in groups. (see the map attached)

We will be meeting from 8:10am onwards and we will start riding to school from 8:20am. Organise with parents and friends on which location you’ll meet at and all head in together - the more the merrier!

When students arrive there will be fresh fruit provided and some party tunes to welcome us to school. All participating students will go in the draw to win some cool prizes that day.

Athletics carnival 

St Jude's Athletics Carnival will take place on this Monday 24 March, at Woden Athletics Park, Ainsworth St Phillip. ELC to Year 6 students will participate in this carnival.

Year 3-6 students and Year 2 students turning 8 years old this year, will travel by bus to and from Phillip, leaving St Jude's School at 9.15am and returning to school by approx. 2.30pm.

Kinder, Year 1 and Year 2 students turning 7 years old this year will travel by bus to and from Phillip, leaving St Jude's School at 10.30am and returning to school by approx. 1.50pm.

Students are to wear their sports uniform and may wear a t-shirt/jumper in their house colour. 
Streeton - RED Hindmarsh - YELLOW Dixon - BLUE Mulley - GREEN 

All students will need to have their school hat, sunscreen, healthy snacks, packed lunch if not ordering a MEAL DEAL and plenty of water to drink on the day.

If you have nominated you child to run the 800m race parents are responsible for transporting their child to Woden Athletics Park by 8:30am.  

Mulleyduds Uniform Shop

Uniform shop will be next open, Friday 28 March from 2:45pm-3:15pm.

For second hand requests please email to: uniform.stjudes@gmail.com. Please include your child’s name and classroom for us to deliver to. **Please do not make payment for secondhand items, until we reply to your request confirming stock is available.

Mulleygrub Cafe News

Canteen Volunteers week 8

Wednesday 26 March - Renee, Carlie & Mark

Community Council

A Heartfelt Thank You for a Fantastic Fete

We are thrilled to extend a huge thank you to everyone who contributed to the overwhelming success of last weekend's fete! Thanks to your incredible dedication, hard work, and sense of community spirit, the day was not only a fundraising triumph but also a beautiful reflection of our shared commitment to making this event one to remember.

A special thank you to the following individuals whose efforts were truly instrumental:

• Sarah, our Fete Coordinator, whose seamless planning and leadership ensured everything ran smoothly from start to finish.
• Cathy and Bec, our talented Treasurers, for managing the finances with such precision and care, keeping everything in check and ensuring the day was financially successful.
• Kathryn and Bec, for the amazing raffle and silent auctions.
• Monique, our Stall Coordinator, who worked tirelessly to ensure that all our fantastic stalls were well-organized and ready to go.
• Danni and Damien, the dynamic duo who coordinated our Fete Mates and showbags, bringing energy and enthusiasm to every fete meeting.
• Andrew, our social media extraordinaire, for keeping everyone informed with excellent communications and running our Facebook page like a pro, making sure the event had a wide reach.
• Kathryn, our Entertainment Coordinator, who curated a wonderful lineup of performances and activities that kept everyone engaged and entertained throughout the day.
• Ron, our design guru, whose creative touch brought the fete’s visual identity to life, adding a vibrant atmosphere to the event.

We would also like to express our deep gratitude to our wonderful stallholders who brought their unique and exciting offerings, and to our amazing school staff—in particular Kerrin Henderson, Katrina Howden, and Brendan Mitchell—whose support and coordination were essential to pulling everything together.

Thank you also to our stall holders:

BBQ (Fete Mate) – Brendan Mitchell and Cameron Reed

Brisket Burgers – Peter Lilley

Café and scones – Katrina Howden

Cake Stall – Rebecca Ford

Chip on a stick – Phil Tonna

Dutch pancakes – Karina and Steve McKellar

Face painting – Mandy Cowley

Fairy Floss – Greg Pugh

Fete Mate – Danni and Damien Montesin

Gelato – Eve Burnes

Hairspray and temporary tattoos – Karen Leighton

Junior and Senior Choir – Emily

Lob-a-Choc – Nick Fairbairn

Nacho stall – Ben and Gemma Cabot

Plant Stall – Jeanette Swayn and Jennie Holbrook

Pokemon card trade – Gemma Cabot and

Raffle and Silent Auction – Kathryn Lees

Ride Package - Camelot (Giant Slide, Storm, Cups and Saucers, Cactus Cabin, Soccor Shoot out, +1 TBC)

Show bags – Kerrin Henderson and Year 6

Slushies – Kerrin and Imogen Henderson

Tombola and slime, Adopt a Squishmallow – Vanessa Cooper

Trash and treasure – Renee Tanner

A very special thank you goes out to all our volunteers, whose tireless efforts were crucial to the day’s success. Whether you helped set up, ran stalls, or pitched in wherever needed, your time and enthusiasm made a huge difference. This event simply wouldn’t have been possible without the support of each volunteer.

What a fantastic day it was! Not only did we raise an amazing amount of money for the school, but the true highlight was the sense of community engagement that was palpable throughout the entire event. The beautiful weather, the buzzing atmosphere, and the sheer joy of being together in such a vibrant and inclusive environment were a true testament to the spirit of our school and the amazing people who make it what it is.

Thank you all for your contributions, whether big or small. Every effort made a difference, and we are so grateful to each and every one of you. We look forward to coming together again next year to build on this year’s success!

Community Council Meeting Tuesday 25 March 6pm

We welcome everyone to our next Community Council meeting to be held in the school library and online. We will focus on feedback and learnings from the fete.

Finally we would also like to thank our sponsors who helped support the successful day it was through both advertising, monetary donations and volunteers:

Platinum and Raffle Sponsor – Team Burke at Luton Properties

Gold Sponsor – Andrew McLean at Enhanced Plumbing and Gas

Silver Sponsors – Dr Sam Whittle at Corinna St Orthodontics & Camp Australia

Bronze Sponsors – Book Cow Kingston, Dare to Dance, The School Photographer

Entertainment Sponsor – Football Stars Academy

Fete News

Thank you to our Fete sponsors 

Camp Australia

Holiday Programs