St John the Baptist Ferntree Gully Newsletter

On Sunday morning the SJB parish gathered to celebrate the Nativity of St John the Baptist at mass at the special time of 10am. It was wonderful to see the parish come together for this special celebration followed by morning tea after mass.  This celebration was made even more special with one of our parish and school families celebrating their daughter, Chizara receiving the sacrament of First Eucharist. Congratulations Chizara on receiving your First Holy Communion.  We were all most fortunate to be present and celebrate with you.

We thank all families for submitting their enrolment forms for the 2025 school year. This is an exciting time for families as we start preparations for welcoming our new preps throughout Semester Two. 

Letters of acceptance have now been sent to all families who have enrolled their child for the 2025 school year. We ask families to return their acceptance offers by Wednesday June 26th, 2024. This will allow us to start forward planning early in Term 3.

We ask any families who have not yet submitted their enrolment forms to do so as soon as possible as places are limited.

Semester One reports were emailed to families on Friday 21st June.  If you have not received your child/ren’s reports we ask that you contact the office.  Reports are an opportunity to reflect on student growth and how students are progressing in their learning. Familiarising yourself with your child/ren’s report is always beneficial prior to attending interviews.

In the event that you do not receive your child’s school report please email: 

Wayne Daniell ICT Leader - wdaniell@sjferntreegully.catholic.edu.au

Kelli Johnston Principal - kjohnston@sjferntreegully.catholic.edu.au 

Parent/teacher/student interviews will be held today and tomorrow.  We encourage all students to attend interviews with their families. The focus of interviews is to celebrate the hard work students have undertaken throughout the semester, as well as the growth they have made as a result of their hard work. 

Interviews will be held on: 

     Tuesday 25th June 2:30-6:00pm

     Wednesday 26th June 3:30-5:30pm

On Tuesday 25th June there is an optional early finish with interviews commencing at 2:30pm. Where possible we encourage families to collect their children early.

A friendly reminder that if you have a PSG for your child that this includes your Parent/Teacher Interview. Families who attend a PSG do not book an additional Parent/Teacher Interview. 

As we come to the end of another busy term we have the opportunity to celebrate the Feast of St John the Baptist. The Feast Day of Saint John the Baptist is June 24th.  As a school we will celebrate the Feast of our Patron Saint on the last day of term. We have a wonderful day planned for all. 

Please see the outline of the day below:

Families please note: Given that there is a change to timetabling for the day we ask that all students bring morning tea for first break.  There will be a special lunch in the Canteen on the last day of term, however please be aware that students will receive their orders at 12:00pm. 

During the last week we have had several cases of head lice.  We encourage families to regularly check their child/rens hair at this time.  Students with long hair that is long enough to be tied back is required to be tied back at all times.

As we are now well into the cold and flu season we ask families to keep unwell students at home.  We have had cases of influenza, COVID, colds and general feeling unwell occurring throughout the school.

There are a number of changes to the Specialist Timetable in Week 1 to work around the Year 4 and 5 students attending Emmaus College’s School Production - Funny Girl. The amended timetable will be sent out to families via the Skoolbag app once it has been finalised.

The Specialist Timetable will then revert back to its usual timetable from Week 2.

This year’s school disco is booked for Friday 9th August. We look forward to students having an opportunity to dance afternoon/evening away with their friends dancing

Please be advised that all Beleza Retail Stores will be closed for the first week of the Term 2 school holidays. Stores will close at 2pm on Friday 28th of June and will resume standard trading hours from Monday 8th of July.

The Prep students had a surprise party on Monday to celebrate Milo the Monkey’s birthday, a character they've been following since the beginning of the year in the story 'Milo’s Birthday Surprise'. One page was read weekly to hook students into the new letter/s they would be explicitly learning how to read and write. The party commemorated their achievement in learning all 26 letters and sounds of the alphabet, marking a delightful conclusion to their first semester in Prep.

Preparing for the party offered numerous opportunities across various curriculum areas. In Mathematics, students explored patterns and practiced creating and continuing three-step patterns. They then applied this knowledge by decorating party hats with pom poms using their own unique three-step patterns. Additionally, students learned to compose invitations as a new text type, drafting and publishing good copy invitations for Milo’s birthday party.

The afternoon was delightful, capped off by a special appearance from Milo the Monkey, much to the delight of the students!

This term, our Grade 3/4 students have been diving into the fascinating world of traditional bush food plants as part of their History unit of work. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Bunnings Scoresby for their generous donation of bush food herbs, fruits, and vegetable plants.

Our school veggie garden now proudly features saltbush, native oregano, native thyme, finger lime, midyim berry, wild currants, and murnong. With careful nurturing, we look forward to seeing our students use these unique ingredients to cook up a delicious feast in the near future.

Stay tuned for updates on our garden's progress and our budding chefs' culinary adventures!

Christian der Kinderen

Sustainability Leader

Prep BA

Mason A - for a wonderful first semester of learning in Prep. You have been trying so hard in all learning areas and always do your very best in any activity. Great work!

Prep LC

Jasmine A - for being an amazing role model of being a responsible learner! We love watching you grow in confidence and let your light shine Jasmine.

Leon P - for being an excellent role model of caring for others in the school, who looks after others and includes everyone in his play. We're lucky to have a friend like you Leon!

Year 1/2B

Bethany B - for being a wonderful, caring classmate who always tries her best with her school work. Keep up the great work!

Marlina A - for being a wonderful and caring classmate and always working so hard with your school work. Keep up the great work!

Year 1/2D

Keira M - for enthusiastically contributing your thoughts and ideas to our class discussions and demonstrating an eagerness to learn in all lessons. You are a superstar!

Year 1/2JM

Leonard W - for your enthusiasm towards all aspects of school-life. We love your positive attitude Lenny!

Aaron W - for working hard to achieve your best. We are impressed with your skills in answering questions quickly in Mathematics.

Year 1/2KC

Gretta L - for improving so much in spelling, consistently being a responsible learner and a very respectful member of our school community. You are a star!

Willow P - for consistently following directions, working hard to listen carefully to the sounds in words when writing, and for being a fantastic helper at clean-up time. You are a star!

Fletcher B - for sharing his knowledge about history, improving his spelling skills, and showing respect for others. You are a star!

Year 3/4GA

Jacob N - for all his efforts in his writing and for extending his care for others on and off the playground!

Lacey H - for her wonderful efforts in constructing the elements needed for her History project in Inquiry!

Josie S - for her efforts and creativity in her Author's choice writing as well as her ability to present her work!

Year 3/4HM

Bryce S - for having a positive attitude to his learning and for sharing his warm smile with everyone.

Malvina A - for being a very helpful, hard-working and responsible class member, and a very inclusive friend.

Year 3/4J

Jai P-W - for working hard at being a responsible learner in the classroom, and for improvement in writing.

Zoe v B - for being a responsible learner and reflecting on ways to improve her reading comprehension. For always working hard and being fair to others.

Year 3/4SJ

Leo N - for demonstrating creativity in both his thinking and his artwork. You are a star!

Harriet H - for being a deep thinker and a classmate who is kind and considerate of others. You are a star!

Jeremy G - for being a responsible learner in all that he does and for the kindness he shows to all those around him. You are a star!

Year 5/6D

Susie D - for her engaging writing, which displays excellent vocabulary and high level writing devices. Always an entertaining read!

Joshua A - for displaying great leadership and setting an example with his learning and behaviour on our recent excursion to the Immigration Museum.

Year 5/6RD

Joseph W - for exemplary leadership in overseeing and supporting younger students in the school composting program. As well as being a wonderful role model in our classroom, always very focussed when completing tasks, particularly in Reading, Writing and Maths. Well done Joseph you are to be commended for always striving to achieve your very best.

Austin T - for displaying a keen interest in our history unit this Term by working really hard on all of the tasks related to migration and our 'Suitcase Project'. Your participation in all our classroom discussions, particularly on this topic, have been outstanding and so knowledgeable. Well done Austin!

Nishala A - for being very focussed when completing all tasks in the classroom, always asking good questions and listening attentively. Well done Nishala you are to be commended for always trying your very best and being such a positive role model to other students in our class and in the school. Keep up the great work.

Wishing everyone a great holiday and all the best for a restful Term 2 holiday break.  We look forward to seeing everyone on Monday 15th July ready for a fabulous Term 3!!

Kelli Johnston

June

25th - Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews - 2.30-6.00pm

26th - Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews - 3.30-5.30pm

28th - St John the Baptist Feast Day celebrations

28th - Term 2 concludes @ 2.00pm

July

15th - Term 3 commences

17th - Emmaus School Production - Year 4 & 5 students

18th - Chess Club free incursion

24th - Confirmation Family Evening

26th - School Assembly - 1/2D

27th - Confirmation Commitment Masses

28th - Confirmation Commitment Masses

29th - Year 5/6 District Football

31st - Year 5/6 District Netball

31st - School Advisory Council - 2:00pm

August

1st - Year 5/6 Level Mass

1st - Mater Christi & St Joseph's Production

6th - AMC Maths Competition

7th - Prep 2025 Family Meetings

8th - Prep 2025 Family Meetings

9th - SJB School Disco

10th - Term 3 Working Bee

15th - Feast of the Assumption Mass

16th - Year 7 2026 Applications close

Canteen orders can be placed via http://www.flexischools.com.au

Orders must be placed no later than 7.30am on the Wednesday or Friday.

Link - https://subscribe.entertainment.com.au/fundraiser/188321n