SCHOOL NEWSLETTER - TERM 1 WEEK 10 2025

Our Parish

Our Parish

Fr Feleki – Parish Priest (Administrator)
C/- 94 Oran Park Drive, Oran Park, NSW 2570PO
Box 889, Narellan, NSW 2567
Ph: 4648 2226    Email: oranpark@dow.org.au
Web:   marymackillopparish.org.au
Facebook:  oranparkparish

Office Hours
Mon to Fri - 9am to 1pm

NB: While the Parish Office is open to visitors, if possible we encourage all enquiries to be directed to the Parish Admin team via email oranpark@dow.org.au or via phone 02 4648 2226

If the parish office is unattended, leave a message on the answering machine or you can send an email: oranpark@dow.org.au 

Parish Mass Times

Weekend Mass Times, Oran Park

• Saturday Vigil 5pm - preceeded by the Sacrament of Reconciliation from 4pm
• Sunday 8am
• Sunday 10am
• Sunday 12 noon - Chaldean Holy Mass
• Sunday 5pm

Week Day Masses, Oran Park

• Tuesday 7pm
• Wednesday 8am
• Thursday 10am - preceeded by Rosary at 9.30am
• Friday 9.30am - 1st Friday of the month will include Anointing of the Sick

Principals Report

Dear Partners in Mission,

Hope that you are well and have enjoyed your week.

As Term 1 draws to a close, we take the opportunity to reflect on and thank the St Justin’s School and Mary MacKillop Parish communities for their investment in and support of our students as they continue to learn and grow. Thank you to our dedicated and committed staff for their support, care and service shown each day that supports the learning needs of our students. 

There are no ordinary moments. This is the essence of gratitude. No moment, nothing in life, should be taken for granted. In developing gratitude for every moment – for the simple joys, and even for the challenging times in our lives – we come to really enjoy and appreciate life. 

It was wonderful to see the many families that were present to support last Friday’s World’s Greatest Shave (WGS). Thank you to Team WGS:  Mrs Lusik, Mrs Manahan and Mrs Manning (Hair Spraying); Sr Mary, Fr Feleki, Mr Cartwright, Grettel Bonamis and Maria Felise; Mrs Randell, Isabella Coletta and Mel Desho (Hairdressers). Thank you one and all for the wonderful sense of fun, energy and good will shown on the day. The support for the  Leukemia Foundation and Sr Mary has been outstanding. The school and parish community have been extremely generous in donating $7,777 to the Leukemia Foundation.  It was a wonderful community event - thank you again for all involved. We will be be closing the donation link on Friday 11th April 2025. 

Neurodiversity Week was celebrated throughout last week and acknowledged with  staff wearing capes to acknowledge each person’s superpowers. When it comes to inclusion, neurodiversity refers to a world where neurological differences are recognised and respected as all other human variations. Many people in our community use neurodiversity as an umbrella term used to describe alternative thinking styles such as Dyslexia, DCD (Dyspraxia), Dyscalculia, Autism, Epilepsy and ADHD.

We have been continuing to monitor, reflect and seek feedback on traffic safety and flow with and around the St Justin’s, St Benedict’s and Mary MacKillop precinct. The safety of our school community is always at the forefront of our thinking and decisions. A successful application to the Transport NSW - Centre for Road Crossing, will provide St Justin's with a School Crossing Supervisor on Hollows Dr and Phillips Ave each morning and afternoon. This will commence from early Term 2, with an official starting date to be confirmed by Transport NSW. This is a great result in the support of the ongoing safety of our school community.

Teacher Professional Planning Day (Pupil Free Day) is on  Monday 28 April. Staff will be working through CEDoW’s Vision for Faith, Learning and Wellbeing, St Justin's Vision for Learning and differentiation.

Have a brilliant weekend. We look forward to our final week together before the end of the term.

Take care

Brad Colquhoun

Principal

Diary Dates

Anzac Day

Dear Partners in Mission,

Friday 25th April 2025 - is ANZAC DAY.

 The Camden RSL Sub-branch ANZAC Day March will commence from Elizabeth Street, Camden at 10.30am sharp. The March will make its way down Argyle Street and conclude on Cawdor Road next to the Camden Bicentennial Equestrian Park.
All students are welcome to join - please meet Mrs Billett and Mrs Manning at 9:30am out the front of the CAMDEN TYRE SERVICE on Elizabeth Street. Students are required to wear full Summer Uniform.

Mrs Billett & Mrs Manning will have the School BANNER so you will be able to find them. Please fill in the form attached to confirm your attendance.

Curriculum and Learning

Kindy Celebration of Learning- Week 9 Assembly

Kindy 💚❤️🤍💙.mov

Congratulations to our Kindy Students

We are nearing the end of our first term, and the teachers are incredibly proud of how well the Kindy students have adapted to school life!

Our days are filled with exciting learning and enjoyable experiences.

It’s completely normal for children to come home feeling tired after such an active day and especially at the end of the term.

Remember, each child is different, and they may need different approaches to feel ready to talk or recover from their busy day.

Here are some ideas to support your child at home:

• After school, allow your child some quiet time to unwind. A peaceful environment helps them recharge before engaging in conversation.
• Instead of asking, “What did you do today?” try asking open-ended questions like, “What was the best part of your day?” or “Tell me about something fun you did today.” This can encourage them to share more.
• Encourage your child to play. Play is great after a long day at school because it helps children relax, unwind, and process their experiences in a fun, stress-free way.

Exciting New Playground

We are grateful for the generous support of the Parish and Father Feleki, which has granted us access to the grass area across from the school office for our students to enjoy during break times.

Currently, students primarily use this space to play soccer; however, with the expanded area available, we are eager to introduce a variety of additional activities throughout the year.

Sinh (Our Parish Seminarian) comes to play soccer!

HARMONY DAY SONGWRITING COMPETITION

WHO CAN ENTER?
The Harmony Day Songwriting Competition is open to school students in all schools across Australia. Entries are based on the student’s school year for 2024.

An entry may be made by an individual student or a group of students. In the case of multiple students’ entries the highest class of the students entering will be used for judging purposes

PRIZES

Prizes will be awarded for the winners in the following sections of the competition:

• Junior section 1 Years K – 2
• Junior section 2 Years 3 – 6
• Senior section 1 Years 7 – 9
• Senior section 2 Years 10 – 12

In each section the winner will receive $250 each.

https://movingforwardtogether.org.au/songwriting-competition/ 

CONCERT FOR COMPASSION
Our Concert For Compassion continues to shine as a highlight of the term, bringing together talented students who share their love of music while supporting Project Compassion.

Performances – 19th March

🎻 Gwen (3R) – a beautiful violin performance of Canon in D.
🎤 Natalia (1W) – a heartfelt rendition of You Belong With Me by Taylor Swift.
🎹 Julian (KB) – a confident keyboard performance of Ode to Joy.
🎼 Johan (Year 8, St Benedict’s) – an impressive performance of Passacaglia in A minor by Handel.
🎶 Madison (6G) – a stunning vocal performance of Wildflower by Billie Eilish.

A special thank you to the High-Performance Year 8 Music Class from St Benedict’s, who attended in support of our performers, adding to the spirit of encouragement and musical appreciation.

Performances – 26th March

🎤 Erin M (5B) – singing This Is Me from The Greatest Showman.
🎤 Harley & Lucas (2W) – performing Bye Bye Bye by NSYNC.
🎤 Shiloh (4R) – singing Vampire by Olivia Rodrigo.
🎤 Emily P (1B) – performing Die With A Smile, a song by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars.
🎤 Violet, Mila & Arianna (5G) – performing APTN by Bruno Mars.

Our Year 5 girls have also been doing an amazing job fundraising by selling handmade bracelets to support the Concert For Compassion.

Final Auditions – 1st April

The last auditions for Concert For Compassion will be held on Tuesday, 1st April, due to the Staff Development Day on Monday.
If your child would like to audition, please ensure:
✅ They know all the words to their song (if singing).
✅ They have practised in front of you at home.

Thank you to all our talented performers and dedicated supporters for making this event a success. Music continues to bring our community together for a great cause! 🎶💙

✍️WriteOn Competition 2025 ✍️

About the competition

The annual WriteOn competition is an exciting opportunity for students to focus on writing. Through the competition, students develop skills in writing to express their ideas and may become published authors. 

Students in years 1-6 who are interested in entering the competition will plan, write and edit their work at home. Their task is to create an imaginative text of up to 500 words, using a provided stimulus.

The new stimulus for WriteOn 2025 is the quote:

“Could they be changing?”

Each year, winners are celebrated at an award ceremony and their entries are published in ‘The Best of WriteOn' anthology. The 2024 version of the anthology is now available for purchase from the NESA Shop.

Entry criteria

• Each school/home school can submit a maximum of 3 entries: one entry from Stage 1, Stage 2, and/or Stage 3.
• Each typed submitted work can be up to 500 words.
• Entries can only be submitted by a teacher in a school or a registered home schooling parent/legal guardian with a valid NESA registration number.
• All entries must be the student’s own work. Some students with disability may require adjustments.
• Only one entry per student can be submitted.

Consent form

All entries require parent/guardian consent. The consent form is included within the entry form. 

Entries for the competition can be emailed to the schools email address: info@sjopdow.catholic.edu.au

Entries close: Thursday 12th June

To find out more information click on this link.

Diverse Learning

Personalised Planning Meetings

With all Personalised Plan Meetings nearly complete, I would like to thank our amazing staff and parents for the professional way these meetings have occurred. During these meetings, individual goals were created and adjustments discussed to ensure student learning and wellbeing is always at the forefront. During Parent/Teacher meetings in Term 2 and PP meetings in Term 3, these goals and adjustments will be reviewed and adjusted. 

St Justin’s celebrated Neurodiversity Week during Week 9. Throughout the week, we aimed to increase understanding and acceptance for all people who are Neurodiverse in our community and throughout the world. 

Depending on how our brains are wired we think, move, process information and communicate in different ways. Many people in our community use neurodiversity as an umbrella term used to describe alternative thinking styles such as Dyslexia, DCD (Dyspraxia), Dyscalculia, Autism, Epilepsy and ADHD. But regardless of labels, neurodiversity is about recognising those who think differently. And no matter whether you are a school, university or organisation you can benefit from different thinkers!

As a St Justin’s community, we believe celebrating and embracing diversity is critical in developing students' capacity to be inclusive learners. In order to raise awareness, each class contributed to our school display highlighting the many people throughout history who are neurodiverse and identified their unique skills- superpowers they bring to the world.  

As Catholic people at St Justin's, we want to encourage the positive and unique aspect of all neurodiverse people, calling their unique skills and abilities their “SUPER POWERS”.

Environmental Awareness

Shrubbies Update

Over the past couple of weeks our garden beds have all been topped up with garden soil. The students have been busy putting the in-garden compost bins into each garden bed with our gardens ready for planting.

 Inspirational Story

This story is shared by a student in Year 6. Alessia was inspired at the end of last year to build her own garden at home. She has shared some photos of her new productive garden. Thank you Alessia for sharing your story!

 “My name is Alessia. I am in 6W and this is my garden. In my garden I have cucumbers, zucchini, spinach, capsicums, strawberries, tomatoes and corn. I enjoy hanging by my garden because I get to see the changes from the beginning to now and I’m thankful for that opportunity.”

Catholic Care School Counsellor

Library News

📚 A Guide to Reading Over the Holidays📚

The holiday break is the perfect time to slow down, connect with your child, and enjoy the magic of books together. Reading over the holidays isn’t just about keeping up with literacy skills—it’s also a wonderful way to create calm, mindful moments, introduce new vocabulary, and strengthen comprehension. Plus, it keeps those mental gears turning by building critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and empathy.

Here are some simple ways to bring reading into your holiday routine:

Create a Relaxing Reading Space – Whether it’s a cosy nook with cushions or just a favourite spot on the couch; having a special place for reading makes it feel inviting and enjoyable.

Make Reading Part of the Day – A bedtime story, a morning book cuddle, or a quiet afternoon read—small daily moments can turn reading into a cherished habit.

Read Together (No Matter Their Age!) – Younger children love being read to, but even older kids enjoy listening to stories or reading the same book as you and discussing it. Audiobooks are also a great option for long car trips!

Revisit Old Favourites – Kids often love reading (or hearing) the same book again and again. Familiar stories provide comfort and help build comprehension skills.

Model the Joy of Reading – When your child sees you reading for pleasure—whether it’s a novel, magazine, or even a cookbook—they learn that reading is something to enjoy, not just a school task.

Talk About Books – Ask open-ended questions like, “What would you do in that situation?” or “How do you think the character feels?” These chats build comprehension, empathy, and deeper thinking.

Keep It Fun and Interactive – Try acting out parts of a story, drawing a scene from a book, or even creating your own holiday-themed tales together. The more engaged they are, the more they’ll love reading!

Visit Your Local Library – A trip to the library can be a great adventure! Let your child explore different books, discover new authors, and meet other children. The Camden Libraries (Camden, Narellan and Oran Park) offer many fun activities during the break. For details and how to book click this link.

By making reading a part of your holiday break, you’re not just keeping up literacy skills—you’re creating special moments, encouraging imagination, and helping your child see books as a lifelong source of joy and knowledge.

Happy Reading!

Mrs Giewald

Library Teacher

Sporting News

St Justin's Swimmer Makes Waves at Mackillop Trials!

We are thrilled to announce the outstanding achievements of our very own Aurelia W at the recent Mackillop Swimming Trials! Aurelia, representing St Justin’s Oran Park, dove into the competition with incredible determination and skill, competing in the 50-metre freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, and breaststroke events.

Showing true dedication to her training, Aurelia achieved fantastic personal best times in every single stroke! This remarkable feat is a testament to her hard work, commitment, and passion for swimming.

The highlight of the day came in the 50-metre backstroke, where Aurelia swam brilliantly to secure an impressive third place. This outstanding result means that Aurelia has qualified to represent the Mackillop Zone at the upcoming PSSA Swimming Championships on Friday, April 11th!

Aurelia also demonstrated her versatility and talent in the other events, narrowly missing out on further progression in the butterfly, where she placed a commendable 4th. In the highly competitive freestyle event, Aurelia finished in a strong 5th place.

Aurelia is incredibly proud and excited to be representing Mackillop at the PSSA Championships and will be flying the flag for St Justin’s Oran Park with pride.

Let's all congratulate Aurelia on her fantastic achievements and wish her the very best of luck at the PSSA Championships! We know she will make us all proud. Go Aurelia!

CEDoW GALA DAYS

Selection Process

Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) organised Sport Gala Days provide our students with a chance to participate in friendly games as part of a St Justin’s team, competing against other local Catholic Primary Schools. These days are designed to be enjoyable, allowing students to have fun with their peers while applying the skills they've learned in Sports lessons in a fun competitive setting.

Throughout their sports lessons this year, students will be given the opportunity to express interest in participating in the upcoming Gala Days and need to nominate themselves. Mr Hawkins, the sports teacher, will observe all nominated students during their sport lessons to assess their understanding of the game rules and their demonstration of good sportsmanship, which will assist with the team selection process. Preference is given to Year 6 and Year 4 students for teams and if there are additional spots these are then filled by Year 5 and Year 3 students who have expressed their interest in participating. This ensures that students get an opportunity to attend a gala day (should they wish to) every 2 years.

If your child has been invited to participate in a St Justin’s Gala Day Team you will receive a Compass Event Notification for parents’ permission closer to the event date. Please note that students attending these Gala Days will require parental transportation to and from the venue. Additionally, events like these rely on parent volunteers to ensure their success, as without parent help we would be unable to support the number of teams in each day.

Upcoming Gala Days:

Term 2

• CEDOW Netball - Thursday 26th June 2025 (Back up Date 3rd July 2025)

Term 3

• CEDoW Soccer - Thursday 28th August 2025 (Back up Date 4th September 2025)
• CEDoW Basketball Juniors Yrs 3 & Yrs 4 - Thursday 18th September 2025
• CEDoW Basketball Seniors Yrs 5 & 6 - Friday 19th September 2025

St Justin’s are also looking forward to participating in other Gala Day style events this year that are competitive and not organised by our CEDoW. These days ARE competitive and therefore teams for these will be picked on student ability and skill in the sport. Students will be offered the opportunity to nominate themselves to trial for these events and teams will be organised by Mr Hawkins and Ms Young. If your child has been selected in a competitive sporting team, you will receive a Compass Event notification for parental permission closer to the event date. These days will incur a fee, to help cover the cost of the team registration. Parents will also be required to transport their children to and from the venue.

Upcoming Competitive Sporting Days: (Small fees payable)

Term 2

• Futsal

Term 4

• Oz Tag

St Justin’s School Sporting Events

Upcoming Whole School Sporting Events:

• St Justin’s School Cross-country Carnival - Term 1: Tuesday 8th April 2025

Next level competitive pathway for selected students - Tuesday 6th May

• St Justin’s School Athletics Carnival - Term 2: Wednesday 2nd July 2025 (Back up date 24th July)

Next level competitive pathway for selected students - Mackillop Western Region Friday 8th August

Primary Students Diocesan Representative Sporting Pathways

Students participating in the representative pathway events are highly skilled athletes, selected based on a range of criteria. This includes years of experience in their chosen sport, representative achievements, sporting club affiliations, and notable sporting accomplishments. These trials are not gala days or school-based carnivals. They are not designed for students “to come and try or for the experience” They are designed specifically for elite athletes who have demonstrated exceptional talent and are aiming to progress to the next level of competition; Regional→State→National. These are organised and run outside of our school, we just provide the information for the when and where of the event.

Parents will need to nominate their child for the 2026 year during the nominations period which generally runs from September to November 2025.

Upcoming Diocesan Representative Sporting Trial Dates for 2025

These upcoming trials are for selected students from the 2025 Diocesan Representative Sports Pathway who have already been nominated by their parents in 2024. These nominations are reviewed by CEDoW sport selectors unless St Justin’s have been asked to run an in school trial to gain further insight into nominated student abilities.

If your child has been selected by CEDoW Sport you will receive a Compass Event Notification for parent permissions closer to the event date. Please note these are CEO run events and therefore no St Justin’s staff members attend and students who attend will require parental transportation to and from the venue.

2026 Representative Sport Pathway Trial Nomination Information

Each year primary school children have the opportunity to trial for Wollongong representative teams, for the following summer and winter sports: Basketball, Tennis, Cricket, Touch, Softball, Football (Soccer), Rugby League (11 years and Open), Rugby Union, Hockey, Netball and Australian Rules. This gives students the opportunity to access higher levels of sporting pathways, representation and opportunities to progress into state representation. 

These trials are held annually and provide a pathway for students to the MacKillop selection trials. The selected Wollongong teams’ trial at MacKillop level against the Dioceses of Wagga, Canberra/Goulburn, Sydney and Parramatta. 

The Wollongong Diocese nomination process for 2026 will be open in Term 4 2025. Further information will be released closer to the date. 

If you have any sporting inquires please email sjop_sport@dow.catholic.edu.au

Ms Rochelle Young

St Justin’s Sports Coordinator

Administration and Awards

Well done to our Kinder, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3 and Grade 5 students for maintaining 95% or higher attendance for the year so far!

Year 4 and Year 6 there is still time to improve your attendance before the end of Term 1.

REMEMBER:

PB4L WHITE AWARD CHANGES - 1st Notice

Our PB4L team has been reviewing the award system and a small change to kindergarten white awards will commence from the next infant assembly.

Kindergarten students will only have their very 1st White Award present to them at the Infants Assembly. All other white awards will then be presented in the classroom as per Yr 1 to Yr 6 award protocols.

Principal Awards and Principal Medallions will still be issued to eligible students at the relevant assembly.

Infants assemblies will go back to a 2:15pm starting Term 2.

We thank you for your support of this process.

PARENT INFORMATION REGARDING SCHOOL STUDENT TRAVEL - Reminder

PARENT/ TEACHER COMMUNICATION - Reminder

A reminder to our parent cohort that the school encourages all communication to teachers from parents to come via info@sjopdow.catholic.edu.au all communication is forwarded on to the relevant staff member the same day so long as it has not been sent outside office hours and the staff member then has the opportunity to respond to your query within a 48hr period.

Communication via Seesaw has now been turned off as this is a tool used by teachers to share your child's work and achievement from the day / week.

We thank you for your support of this process.

2026 ENROLMENTS- Final Reminder

Enrolments are now open for 2026.

Please visit our school website and click onto the enrol now tab.

https://www.sjopdow.catholic.edu.au/

Enrolments will close Thursday 10th April 2025. Applications received after this date will be marked as late.

Medallion and Principal Awards

Congratulations to the following students for receiving their Medallion/Principal Award at our last Assembly.

St Justin’s Catholic Primary School Facebook Page:

Don’t miss out on following all our exciting news about events and learning on our St Justin’s School Facebook page:

Social Media Statement

The Catholic Education Office of Wollongong, Social Media Statement will become a permanent fixture as part of the school newsletter in order for Parents of the school community to be aware of the standards expected.

Parent-School Partnership 

Apple Devices - iPad, iPhone or Mac

- Open Books app - sign in using Apple ID if needed

- Tap GET to download the Book

- Access via the Books app Library once downloaded 

You will then have the option to download - Download the book from the Book Store and then read in books.

Android

Click this link to download as an ePub file and open in your favourite eReader app, like Adobe Digital Edition

P&F News

P & F contact email:

pandf@sjopdow.catholic.edu.au

Clothing Pool – Friday 2nd May 2025

Clothing pool dates will be updated in the Diary dates of the newsletter are held on the first Friday of the month.

Cash purchases only, No EFTPOS facilities. Please be kind to our P&F volunteers.

Community & Parish News

Join Father David Catterall’s Appeal for Stem Cell Donors

As many are aware, Fr David Catterall (Emeritus Parish Priest of St Mary MacKillop Parish, Oran Park) is currently undertaking a stem cell transplant. While not without its risks, this transplant offers him a better outcome to his Acute Myeloid Leukemia diagnosis. 

Each year, over 1,100 Australians, like Fr David, search for a stem cell donor to cure their blood cancer or disorder. A transplant from a genetically matched donor is often a last-resort treatment that could save their life. However, Australia’s existing donor pool only helps around 80 patients annually, leaving many struggling to find a match. By registering as a donor, you could give hope to patients worldwide.

Stem Cell Donors Australia runs the national donor registry, and signing up is as simple as completing an online form and a free cheek swab kit sent to your home. If you are ever a genetic match, you’ll be contacted to donate your blood stem cells.

Becoming a donor is free, easy, and could change someone’s life. If you’re 18 to 35 and generally healthy, you can join Fr David’s appeal by visiting stemcelldonors.org.au/appeal/david or scanning the QR code.

Yeronga School Uniforms will be closing for the

following dates over Easter & Anzac Day!

Camden Show

Closed – Saturday 5^th April

 Easter

Closed – End of Day – Wednesday 16^th of April.

Reopen – 9am – Wednesday 23^rd of April.

 Anzac Day

Closed – Friday 25^th of April