Newsletter 13 – 27 August 2025

Dear parents and caregivers,

I trust that our children enjoyed the four day break from school routines. Hopefully it provided the perfect opportunity for their batteries to be recharged for the remainder of the school term.

SNAFL Carnival

Our Year 6s had an incredibly busy day last Thursday. They started their morning with a dance rehearsal at the Perth Convention Centre, followed by their SNAFL Carnival and Performing Arts Festival in the evening.

Our netball team came away with the championship trophy and our soccer team performed well, too. A fun day was had by all and for those students who played their designated sport for the first time, it was also a wonderful learning curve. Thank you to Mrs Draper for coaching our star studded netball team to victory and to Mr Cooper and Mr Stone for their mentorship and supervision.

Performing Arts

Our Year 5 and 6s performed an exceptional dance routine at last Thursday night’s Catholic Performing Arts Festival. They brought the Super Mario Bros to life with their dance moves, bright costumes, and abundant energy. We are incredibly proud of the way they confidently presented their dance routine.

We are very grateful to Mrs Basilio for choreographing the dance, teaching it to our Yr 5/6s, organising the costumes and coming in for extra rehearsals. As a result of her dedication, and our student’s commitment to excellence, they produced a technically and aesthetically amazing dance performance.

Thank you also to our parents for getting the children to the Perth Convention Centre on time and dressed in their costumes. Your support made for a relaxing transition for our students.

St Pius X Feast Day

Our Year 5s led our school in a reflective and reverent liturgy centred on St Pius X. They reminded us of the charisms of St Pius X which we strive to emulate each day: perseverance, humility and charity.

After recess, our Year 1-6s walked down to the river with their buddies whilst praying the Rosary. Once at the river, we prayed the final decade of the Rosary together whilst looking out at the water. With their buddies and class teachers, our students then found a patch of grass or sand to pause and take in their surroundings. Together we discussed the many things our students noticed and what they reveal to us about God. I was so impressed by our students’ attentiveness and perceptiveness. Their responses highlighted how important it is for us to carve out pockets of time to just be still in nature and aware of the beauty of God’s presence in our lives.

Book Week Parade

Our Pre-Kindy class had a magical time celebrating Book Week 2025 with the theme “Book an Adventure!” The teachers joined in the fun, dressing up as Olaf and Anna from Frozen, which brought lots of smiles to the children. Together, they decorated their very own special book wands to help them choose a story to read.

Even though the day was cold and wet, our Pre- Kindy students braved the weather and ventured outside to splash through puddles and explore the big kids’ playground. Most of the day was spent cozily indoors, enjoying recess and lunch at their tables, building with big blocks and shapes, and sharing in imaginative play.

The biggest adventure of all was trying to get a photo with everyone looking at the camera! Our Pre-Kindy’s also enjoyed a lively wiggle dance party and a wonderful story time with Pamela Allen’s A Lion in the Night. It was truly a day full of adventure, joy, and stories!

The rest of our school came to life this morning with students dressed up as an assortment of characters for the Book Week Parade. Our staff got into the spirit, too, dressing up as characters from Peter Pan.

Thank you to all our parents for instilling a love of reading in our students and supporting our Book Week celebration.

Mrs Lina Collazos

At the conclusion of Week Seven of this term, we will be farewelling Mrs Lina. Together with her beautiful family, she will be relocating to Albany. We are ever so grateful to Mrs Lina for all her contributions to our school community and will greatly miss her. Our staff will be putting on a morning tea for Mrs Lina and I am sure our parent community will express their appreciation for her gentle care and guidance of our Pre-Primary students.

CCTV

On Monday morning High Standard Security will be installing five cameras on our school site. Two will be located around our school admin building (one capturing the Kindy play area and Cloisters Ave gate to the office and the other with view of our second gate for Kiss and Drive), two near our SEARCH zone (one with visibility of the school oval fence perimeter and the other overlooking our basketball courts and playground fence area), and the other near the TSH building capturing the Ley St gate and PP fence area. The cameras will provide us with added security, particularly during those periods when school is not in operation. 

School Fees 

A friendly reminder that the third instalment of school fees is now due. We kindly ask families to ensure payment is made promptly. If you have any questions or require assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact the school office. Thank you for your continued support.

Students not returning in 2026

If your child will not be returning in 2026, it would be greatly appreciated if you could notify admin in writing at your earliest convenience. We are currently in the process of preparing our budget for next year and this information is essential for our future planning.

As previously mentioned, this is my last week before I go on leave for the remainder of the term. Mrs Gregory will be taking on the role of Principal during this time.

Wishing you all a blessed and smooth end to the term and I look forward to seeing you all upon my return in Term 4.

God bless,

Melissa

It’s been an exciting journey under the sea in Pre-Primary! Each week, our students have focused on a new sea creature, creating colourful and unique artworks to add to our classroom display while learning interesting facts about our oceans. These activities have supported the development of creativity, fine motor skills, and teamwork as children explore different materials and techniques.

Alongside our ocean theme, students have continued to grow their Literacy and Numeracy skills both indoors and during play. In Literacy, we have been focusing on digraphs, helping children to recognise and use letter combinations in their reading and writing. In Mathematics, we have explored measurement through hands-on activities, such as measuring each other with blocks, comparing lengths, and discussing the concepts of longer, shorter, heavier, and lighter. Students recently completed an activity of measuring a friend using unifix blocks and then counting and comparing which friend was taller and by how many more blocks.

In Religion, we have been focusing on prayer, exploring the importance it holds and how we practice it. Students also completed a ‘Who We Pray For’ activity, reflecting on the people and intentions that are meaningful to them.

To celebrate St Pius X, the Pre-Primary came together with their Year 4 buddy class to make friendship bracelets and keychains. This activity not only brought so much joy to the children but also helped them practise cooperation, kindness, and the values of friendship that are central to the spirit of St Pius X.

ATHLETICS (YEARS 1-6)

There has been a lot going on in Physical Education over the last couple of weeks. In the lead up to the Athletics Carnival the students have been practicing their various events, whether it be long jump, turbojav, shot put, races, relays, or team ball games. Time trials have also begun. It is great to hear how supportive and encouraging the students are to each other. Parents, be prepared to participate in a few races and team games at the carnival!

KINDY/PRE-PRIMARY SPORTS CARNIVAL

We not only have the Athletics Carnival approaching but also have the Kindy and Pre-Primary Sports Carnival coming up. The students have been practicing their races, relays, sack races, rob the nest, and egg and spoon races. The Pre-Primary’s have even been to James Miller Reserve for a practice of the carnival.!

SNAFL CARNIVAL

Our Year 6 students recently participated in the ASCS SNAFL Carnival. The students did a great job, not only in how they performed in each sport, but in how they personified the SEARCH values of our school. A big congratulations to the Netball team who won each of their games and took the trophy. Thank you to Jodie Draper for coaching the Netball team, and to Mr Stone for coaching the Soccer team.

Caleb Cooper
Physical Education Teacher

P&F News – A Busy Term Ahead!

It’s shaping up to be a very busy (and exciting!) term for our school community.

Book Week Parade & Scholastic Book Fair
Book Week is always a highlight of the school year, and this year we are thrilled to once again be hosting our Scholastic Book Fair. Families are welcome to come along before or after school on Wednesday 27 August and before school on Friday 29 August to browse and purchase from a fantastic range of books, stationery, and posters.

The aim of the Book Fair is to promote literacy and help make books more accessible and exciting for children. It’s also a wonderful fundraiser – last year, thanks to your support, the P&F was able to purchase over $1,000 worth of brand-new books for our school library. This year, we’re hoping to do even better!

Even if you’re not looking to buy anything, we encourage you to stop by the stall in the library with your child – students will have the chance to share their suggestions for new titles they’d like to see added to the school library.

Upcoming P&F Events
Alongside Book Week, we have several other great events coming up:

• Father’s Day Stall – Thursday 4 September
• Movie Night – Friday 12 September
• Athletics Carnival Sausage Sizzle – Tuesday 16 September

All of these events are now live on Flexischools, and further details will also be shared in your class WhatsApp groups.

A Big Thank You!
Thanks to your amazing fundraising efforts, the P&F has been able to purchase a brand-new barbeque for use at all of our upcoming events. We can’t wait to put it to good use at the Athletics Carnival!

Thank you once again for your continued support – together, we’re making a real difference for our students and school community.

Warm regards,

St. Pius X P&F