“O God, who willed that Saint John the Baptist should go ahead of your Son both in his birth and in his death, grant that, as he died a Martyr for truth and justice, we, too, may fight hard for the confession of what you teach. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen!”
(The Passion of St John the Baptist – August 29th)
Please note that this Term 3 calendar is a draft and is subject to change. It will be sent in each fortnight’s newsletter and can be found on the website.
MJR (Make Jesus Real) Award
The next MJR Award will be presented at the Year 6 Gold Assembly on Friday 18th September.
Sacrament of First Holy Communion
Congratulations to the twenty-four students who received the Sacrament of Holy Communion last weekend. It was a beautiful ceremony led by Fr. Mark. Thank you to Mr Papp, Miss Vitanza, Mrs Konle, and the music ministry for their assistance in preparing the students for this special sacrament.
Sacrament of Confirmation
The Sacrament of Confirmation program commences with Commitment Masses being held on the weekend of 12th/13th September. The Parent/Candidate Workshops to be held on the afternoons of Wednesday 16th September (4pm & 5.15pm), and Thursday 17th September (4pm & 5.15pm). All students in Year 6, will attend a sacramental retreat on Tuesday 13th October in the Parish Hall. A final rehearsal will be held for all candidates at 11am on Tuesday 20th October. The Sacrament of Confirmation will take place on Sunday 25th October commencing at 9.30am.
Performing Arts Festival
Last week, the School Choir performed Panis Angelicus & This Little Light of Mine at St Benedict’s parish. It was a wonderful way to conclude Xavier’s involvement in this year’s Performing Arts Festival. The school will be notified if any of our performances have been selected to perform again at the finale concert later in August.
Faction Athletics Carnival
Weather permitting, this year’s Faction Athletics Carnival will occur on Wednesday 8th September (Field – Years 4-6) and Friday 11th September (Track – K-6). Thank you in advance to Mr Chambers for organising and preparing the students for the carnival.
Pre-Primary Excursion to Scitech
Our Pre-Primary students had an amazing day exploring Scitech! We travelled beyond Earth at the Planetarium, learning about our solar system, planets and constellations, before travelling millions of years back in time to discover the fascinating history of dinosaurs through an entertaining puppet show.
We also had lots of fun exploring the many hands-on exhibits, investigating, experimenting and discovering how things work. It was wonderful to see so much curiosity, excitement and enthusiasm throughout the day. We certainly have plenty of budding scientists in Pre-Primary! 🧪🌟
Japanese Drum Incursion
Today, our P–6 students enjoyed an exciting Taiko Drumming Incursion, experiencing the energy, rhythm and traditions of Japanese taiko firsthand. Students were captivated by the powerful sounds of the drums in the taiko performance. It was wonderful to see students so engaged as they connected their Japanese language and cultural learning with an authentic live experience. A fantastic and memorable celebration of Japanese culture for our whole school!
From the Social Worker's Desk
Supporting Children to Understand and Manage Emotions
Learning how to recognise, understand and manage emotions is an important part of children’s development. These skills help children cope with frustration and disappointment, manage impulses, build positive relationships and become more independent learners.
The Raising Children Network has a helpful article for families with practical ideas for supporting children’s emotional regulation. It includes strategies such as helping children name their emotions, noticing how feelings affect their body, talking about emotions through books and play, and practising simple calming strategies such as deep breathing and counting. It also reminds us that strong emotions are completely normal, but children may need adult support to learn appropriate ways to respond to them.
Families may find this a useful resource to explore together at home.
Xavier Playgroups
Paul Litherland Guest Speaker
The P&F have been able to acquire the services of Paul Litherland who will be speaking with the Year 5 and 6 students about cyber safety on Wednesday 9th September. Paul has made himself available to speak with parents at 6pm. OSHClub WA will be providing supervision of children to allow parents to attend this very important presentation. Paul is a highly sort after speaker with years of knowledge around cyber safety. This is a presentation not to be missed. Please sign up using the QR code on the posters located around the school.
P&F News
The next P&F Meeting will be held on Tuesday 25 August at 6.00pm in the staffroom. We look forward to seeing you there.
