SCHOOL NEWSLETTER - TERM 3 WEEK 6 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
Tuesday to Friday - 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 you are well and that you’ve enjoyed a wonderful week.

Book Week at St Justin's is always a much-anticipated highlight on our school calendar, celebrated with enthusiasm, creativity, and a shared love of learning. This year’s theme, “Book an Adventure,” inspired students and staff alike to explore the CBCA shortlisted books and channel their imaginations by designing travel stickers based on their favourite books, characters, and destinations. These imaginative creations were proudly displayed on our whole-school ‘Travel Suitcase’ outside the Library. A sincere thank you to Mrs Giewald for her outstanding planning and coordination of this exciting week.

This week, we were also delighted to welcome our Kinder 2026 students and their families to the St Justin’s community, as they begin their transition to school. It is always a joyful and significant moment as we commence this journey together. A heartfelt thank you to Mrs Pech, Mrs Pace, and the entire Kinder Team — Mrs Vergara, Mrs Cummins, Mrs McMahon, Mrs Kmet, Mrs Billinghurst, Mrs Khoury, Mrs Assandri, Mrs Perry, Mrs Randell, and Mrs Manahan — for your care, dedication, and exceptional organisation throughout this most important time.

Special recognition goes to our Year 6 student leaders, who led school tours with grace, confidence, and maturity. The positive feedback from Kinder families regarding their respectful manner, warm welcome, and deep knowledge of St Justin’s has been truly affirming. We now look forward to the next stage of the transition program — The Play based Learning sessions,  beginning next term from Wednesday 12 November.

As part of St Benedict’s College Feast Day celebrations, our student leaders had the opportunity to attend an inspiring presentation by five-time Olympian diver Melissa Wu and Elite Mindset Coach John Novak. Melissa shared her journey of dedication, resilience, and achievement across multiple Olympic and Commonwealth Games campaigns, while John offered powerful insights into wellbeing and the development of life-enhancing habits. We thank Mr Turner, Principal of St Benedict’s College, for the kind invitation and the opportunity to learn from such opportunities.

Looking ahead, we’re excited to host our annual Father’s Day Celebration on Thursday, 4 September. The celebration begins at 7:50am and features a sausage sizzle, raffle, and a variety of engaging activities. Thank you to Mrs Fenato and our dedicated staff for their preparation and support of this special event.

Wishing you a relaxing and joyful weekend with your loved ones. I look forward to our continued partnership as we head into Week 7.

Take care,
Brad Colquhoun
Principal

Peace With Creation

With the upcoming Season of Creation, we are invited to reflect deeply on this year's profound theme: Peace with Creation. This theme resonates powerfully with the spirit of the Jubilee Year, which is a time of grace, forgiveness, and reconciliation. Just as the Jubilee calls us to mend our relationships with God and one another, "Peace with Creation" urges us to restore harmony with our common home.

The Season of Creation begins on 1 September 2025 with the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, a day established by Pope Francis to encourage the Catholic community worldwide to pray for our planet.

The symbol for the Season of Creation 2025 is the "Garden of Peace", which invites us to imagine a garden, not merely as a place of beauty, but as a living testament to peace—a place where every element, from the smallest seed to the tallest tree, thrives in interconnectedness and balance. This image serves as a powerful reminder of the peace that is possible when humanity lives in right relationship with creation. As educators, we cultivate minds and hearts, much like a gardener tends to a garden. We plant seeds of knowledge, nurture growth, and strive to create an environment where our students can flourish. This Season of Creation, let us consider how we can extend this nurturing spirit to the wider creation, fostering a sense of peace and stewardship in our classrooms and beyond.

The concept of "Peace with Creation" is deeply rooted in biblical wisdom, drawing inspiration from passages such as Isaiah 32:14-18 which speaks of a time when "justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness abide in the fruitful field. And the effect of righteousness will be peace…” This vision of peace is not merely the absence of conflict, but a flourishing of justice and righteousness that extends to all of creation.

The Jubilee Year has always been a time of abundant remission and pardon of sins and a call to conversion. This spirit of reconciliation and renewal is precisely what Peace with Creation calls us to embrace. Our actions, both individually and collectively, have impacted creation, and this season offers us an opportunity for repentance and a renewed commitment to ecological conversion.

Bullying No Way Week

Bullying No Way Week

Last week Kid’s Helpline shared  the largest anti-bullying lesson.

You may wish to watch the following 20 minute recording with your child.

https://kidshelpline.info/anti-bullying-video-primary

Invitation to contribute to research project

Kinder research.pdf

PB4L Update

Why the Zones of Regulation?

At school, student success is not only about learning academics—it also depends on how well students can manage their emotions and responses in different situations. The Zones of Regulation is a curriculum designed to support students in developing these important self-regulation skills.

Using a cognitive behaviour approach, our students will engage in learning activities that help them:

• Recognise and name their feelings and levels of alertness.
  
  
• Identify which “Zone” they are in (each Zone is represented by a colour).
  
  
• Build a personal “toolbox” of strategies to manage their emotions and behaviour.

Over the coming weeks, we will be explicitly teaching students how to identify their Zone and use strategies that help them feel in control and ready to learn.

We encourage parents and carers to talk with their children about the Zones and use this shared language at home—it can be a powerful way to support consistency between home and school.

Diary Dates

Curriculum And Learning

Celebration of Learning Kindergarten and Mackillop 

Stage 2 - Celebration of Learning Year 3 and Year 4

Kindergarten - Fire Fighters Visit

In Week 5 Kindy were visited by the Oran Park fire fighters to support our PDHPE safety learning. We completed an education session about fire safety and saw the hose being sprayed. We learnt lots about keeping safe around fires and what to do in an emergency.

The Premier's Reading Challenge

This year, St Justin’s has had 113 primary students sign up to complete the challenge individually! What a great response from our students. It is not too late to sign up to the challenge. If your child is interested, please see Mrs Orazi or Mrs Giewald.

A special shout out to these primary students who have completed the challenge over the past fortnight:

Year 3: Eleanor F, Kenai W

Year 4: Samuel M

We now have 45 students who have completed the challenge! Remember you can keep reading and compete for the in-school prizes!

St Justin's Got Talent

St Justin’s Got Talent - 5th September 6pm, in the School Hall

Please register your attendance with the below link. 

Library News

📚 Book Week 2025 – Book an Adventure!

Last week our school joined in the celebrations for CBCA Book Week, exploring this year’s theme: Book an Adventure. Students had a wonderful time reading, sharing, and engaging with the CBCA shortlisted books across the Early Childhood, Picture Book and Younger Reader categories. Here are the book winners in all categories.

Students created stickers about the books they read, adding them to a vintage-style suitcase to represent the many places stories can take us. In the library lessons, students in grades 4, 5 and 6 worked through a special reading passport activity, where they were encouraged to read widely and reflect on their adventures with different books. The younger grades explored the idea that reading itself is an adventure, imagining and drawing the different places that books have transported them — from magical worlds to mysterious landscapes and faraway countries. Here are some photos from the week.

It was a joyful celebration of books, stories, and imagination — reminding us all that opening a book is the first step in booking an adventure of our own!

Happy Reading!

Mrs Giewald

Library Teacher

Diverse Learning News

Semester Two Personalised Planning Meetings 

• Students with Classroom Support Only

During our Term 2 Week 9 Parent/Teacher Interviews, teachers had the opportunity to meet with parents of students who have a Personalised Plan (classroom support only). These meetings allowed teachers and families to review existing student goals and make any necessary adjustments. We hope these discussions were valuable and that clear, new goals were established for Semester Two.

• Students with External Interventions and Classroom Support

As we approach the end of 2025, members of the Diverse Learning team will be conducting Personalised Planning Meetings with classroom teachers and parents of students who are receiving both external interventions and classroom support. These meetings will take place during Weeks 8, 9, and 10 and will be held via phone, lasting approximately 15 minutes. During this time, current adjustments will be reviewed, and Semester Two learning goals will be discussed.

Booking information for these meetings has been communicated to parents via Compass. If you are unable to attend your scheduled time, please contact the school office as soon as possible to reschedule.

Thank you for your ongoing support in helping ensure a smooth and productive planning process

Belinda Pace

Leader of Diverse Learning

Sporting News

Wollongong Selection Trials

On Tuesday 19th August, a large group of our St Justin’s students attended the Time Trial selections for the chance to make it into the Wollongong Mackillop team. Our 2 Senior Relay teams were successful, and are now in the Mackillop relay teams. The other students who are now Mackillop Representatives are Matea S in High Jump, Sullivan H in Long Jump and Harrison C in High Jump, Long Jump, Shot Put and Discus. We wish them all the best for the 24th September at Homebush.

Futsal 

On Thursday our senior Futsal sides made the trip across to Windsor to compete in the Futsal Schools State Championships. 

Both teams represented the school with great distinction and humility as they came head to head with the best the state had to offer. With a coveted spot in the national championships up for grabs, both teams asserted their authority on the competition early with dominant displays throughout the group stages. 

With precision passing and fast ball movement a feature of their games, both sides progressed through to the knockout stages undefeated with highlights aplenty all over the pitch.

With both teams progressing through to the semi final stage, they have also managed to secure a spot at nationals, an amazing achievement for the school’s first foray into the sport.

The boys also made it all the way to the final after a nail biting penalty shoot out win in their semi final match. While they may have fallen just short in the final, the pride and passion they displayed throughout the encounter ensured they certainly came away as winners on the day.

On Friday it will be the junior boys who take to the pitch in what promises to be another highly competitive tournament.

Soccer Gala Day

Thursday 28th August is the Western Region Soccer Gala day and St Justin’s attended at a new venue for us at the Liquidamber Reserve hosted by St Clare’s. 

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 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 3

• Futsal State Championships (Qualifying teams) 28th and 29th August 2025 

Term 4

• Oz Tag - 31st October 2025 (Camden)
  

St Justin’s School Sporting Events

Upcoming School Sporting Events:

• Next level competitive pathway for selected students 

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 opens from 2nd 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. 

Parents will need to nominate their child for the 2026 year during the nominations period which opens from 2nd September to November 2025.

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

Ms Rochelle Young

Sports Coordinator

Environmental Awareness Update

Backyard Chickens: Our Planet's Little Helpers!

Keeping chickens at home, often called "backyard chickens," is a great way to participate in sustainable living for those who have enough space in their backyards. These are some benefits of having backyard chickens.

1) Waste Reduction and Composting: Chickens are excellent natural composters. They happily eat many of your kitchen scraps, such as vegetable peels, fruit rinds, and leftovers. This significantly reduces the amount of household food waste that would otherwise end up in a landfill. Their own waste is a rich source of nutrients for your compost pile, creating a natural and powerful fertilizer for your garden.

2) Natural Pest and Weed Control: Chickens love to scratch and forage. In doing so, they eat a variety of garden pests like slugs, snails, grubs, and insects. This natural form of pest control reduces the need for chemical pesticides, which can harm the environment and local wildlife.

3) Soil Health and Natural Fertilizer: Chicken manure is a highly effective, nitrogen-rich fertilizer. When properly composted, it improves soil fertility and structure, reducing the need for synthetic chemical fertilizers. This promotes healthier plants and a more robust garden ecosystem.

4) Hands-on Learning: For families, keeping chickens provides a direct, hands-on lesson in sustainability. It teaches children about where their food comes from, the importance of recycling, and the interconnectedness of a healthy ecosystem. This experience can foster a lifelong appreciation for the environment and sustainable practices.

Alessia, one of our students in Year 6, has recently set up her own backyard chickens. This is Alessia’s description with some photos of her chickens and coop.

“Hi. These are all 7 of my chickens, including 4 hens and 3 roosters. Their names are Fried, Zinger, Bacon, Cheese, Duck Duck, Goose and Red, short for Red Rooster. Every morning and afternoon I feed them and while in there, I collect the eggs that they have laid. When in the hen-house the roosters run around like ‘headless chooks’. The chickens have many ecological

benefits for us, they eat all the bad worms out of the soil and fertilise the ground. Most importantly, they give us the freshest eggs to make omelettes with.

Administration and Awards

Attendance

Congratulations to our infants cohort! 

You are all in the 93 or above percentile for attendance - well done everyone.

To our Primary cohort you are all continuing to improve in your attendance. Keep up the good work!

We love that you all understand how important it is to work towards our school goal of 95% attendance to school. We can do it!

2026 Class Placement Requests - 2nd Notice

Staff will commence working on class groups early Term 4 for the 2026 school year. 

It is our desire for everybody within the community to get along, however, this is not always possible. It is Mr. Colquhoun’s practice, to attempt to accommodate requests from parents for children who may need to be separated from each other to help contribute to their learning. 

Please note that it is a requirement that a new request is made each year, as we do not store previous requests. We ask that you ensure your child’s teacher is aware of any circumstances that would warrant a separation from another individual as soon as possible.

Such requests need to be made to Mr. Colquhoun no later than Friday 19th September by sending an email to info@sjopdow.catholic.edu.au

Parent Contact Request - School Protocol

Just a reminder to our parent community that all teacher contact requests need to come via our secretaries email info@sjopdow.catholic.edu.au

All emails are forwarded onto the relevant staff member for their review / investigation / action. It also enables the office to include leadership if necessary. We ask that you allow staff a 24hour response time.

Please do not send emails directly to a staff member or via Seesaw as they may not respond in a timely fashion.

Transition to Summer Uniform

Students will be able to commence transitioning into their summer uniform from Week 8 of this term, with the expectation of them wearing their full summer uniform from Week 9 of Term 3.

Please remember that while in the transition week uniforms should be weather dependent and either be full summer uniform or full winter uniform and not a mix.

Thank you for your support.

Mrs Ann Holgate | SSSO

Awards System Update

Celebrating Our Students

We’re proud to see so many students earning Blue Merit Awards, a testament to their positive behaviour and effort.

With the increasing number of awards, we are updating how certificates are distributed:

• Blue Merit Award certificates will now be sent digitally via parent email notification. You are welcome to print them at home.
• Special Awards will be presented in the classroom, except for Kindergarten students receiving their 1st Special Award, which will be presented at the Infants Assembly.
• Principal Awards and the Principal Medallion will be presented at school assemblies.

You can view your child’s award progress anytime via Compass Chronicle. We appreciate your continued support in recognising and celebrating the efforts and achievements of our students.

You can view your child’s awards tally using an iPad or laptop (the mobile app has limited features):

How to View Awards on Compass Chronicle

1. Open Compass
2. Click on your child’s profile
3. The Chronicle home page will open
4. Click on the “Categories” tab Select “Awards and Merits”
5. Change the date range from “This Year” to “All” (top right corner)
6. This will now show you all awards received and your child’s total merit points tally.

Award Points System Breakdown 

Every 1 Blue Merit Award = 1 Point
Students accumulate points to earn Special Awards, Principal Awards, and eventually the Principal Medallion.

Medallion and Principal Awards

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

School Counsellor 

As a school counsellor, I understand how challenging parenting can be. Through my work with the wonderful families at St Justin's, I’ve also seen how committed our community is to growing together, sharing knowledge, and supporting the development and learning of our students.

That’s why I want to share a free, self-paced program that you can easily complete on your mobile phone/desktop PC. It offers practical, evidence-based strategies to help you handle everyday parenting challenges with confidence—no matter your child’s age or stage.

From managing tantrums and building social skills to encouraging cooperation, listening, and self-regulation, this isn’t a strict rulebook. It’s a flexible toolkit designed to help you stay calm, prevent problems before they escalate, and support your child to thrive.

See link below. 
Triple P Online under 12 | Triple P

Amanda Heather

School Counsellor

www.catholiccare.dow.org.au

Catholic Care Link

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

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

Community & Parish News

UPDATED Bus Timetable for St Justin's Oran Park