1 March 2017

Newsletter Articles

FROM THE ACTING PRINCIPAL

Today being Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent for 2017. During the next 40 days, we as Catholics try to ‘Turn Back To God’ by living more like the way Jesus taught us.

In order to do this we refocus our minds through Prayer, we prepare our bodies by fasting or denying ourselves of something we do not need and we prepare our souls through alms giving to the poor. Last weekend Fr Matt invited the parishioners at mass to come forward and collect the Project Compassion giving envelopes and small moneyboxes as a reminder of our baptismal call to reach out to those less fortunate than ourselves.

Project Compassion is of course a major part of our Joeys Yearly Giving Plan and each class will have a large moneybox for collections this year. One of the defining characteristics of Joey’s has always been the level of generosity in our school community and how we help those in need. The level of support for Project Compassion we have always enjoyed over the Lenten period only highlights this wonderful attribute of our school.

As noted in this week’s Parish Bulletin, there will be a Parish Assembly next Sunday in the Holy Family Church commencing at 10:30am and concluding at 12:00 noon. The Assembly will be a chance to look to the present and future as the ‘North-side Catholic Community’ and with the parishioner’s input, discuss what directions we may take. With Fr Matt being the only priest available on the north-side following Easter, it is only inevitable that there will be some change to the current roster of mass times and with the help and input of our faith communities the parish hopes to establish a new sustainable plan and way forward. All are welcome to attend.

Next week we will be having some special visitors to our school that will be conducting out National School Improvement Tool (NSIT) audit. Our guests will be in the school from Tuesday the 7th till Thursday the 9th of March taking time to observe all aspects of our wonderful school. This NSIT visit is one of the first steps in the lead up to our five yearly School Review and Improvement process that is scheduled for later in the year.

Don’t Forget …

• St Joseph’s Day/Grandparents Day – Fri, 17th March
• St Patrick’s Race Day – Sat, 18th March
• Dance Fever Showcase – Tues, 21st March

Have a great week.

Regards
Bernard Fitzgerald
St. Joseph’s PA Acting Principal

APRE REFLECTION

The 2017 Theme for Project Compassion is Love Your Neighbour. Each week Caritas brings us a personal story from our ‘near neighbours.’ You can visit the Project Compassion website to watch a video of each story. These stories may be viewed in classrooms throughout Lent. The stories help us learn about the Caritas projects and the difference we can make to our neighbours.

Watch week 1; Dinia's story here

RELIGIOUS MATTERS

LENT

Today marks the start of the Lenten season. The students participated in our Ash Wednesday liturgy, receiving ashes on their foreheads with the phrase ‘Turn back to God’. Lent is a time of preparation for Easter, and during this season all classes will be involved in Project Compassion, through Caritas. Across the next five weeks each class will have a Project Compassion box in their room and students are asked to make donations into the class box, where possible.

Many thanks to all the parents for their donations yesterday for the Shrove Tuesday Breakfast. Additionally, students were asked to bring a gold coin donation to contribute to the breakfast and we raised $310.45 to commence our Lenten project. A great effort!

5T Prayer Assembly

This Friday 3rd March, 5T will be leading the prayer assembly in OLHC church at 11:30am. The year 5 students will be presenting a Lenten themed assembly. Parents, families and friends of the school are all welcome to come along and share this prayer celebration.

Bernadette Brennan
St Joseph’s PA Acting APRE

SPORTING MATTERS

Needed – Football Boots & School Football Socks

As school sports have now commenced, we have a number of students that are in need of football boots and school football socks. Boots are needed to play Soccer, OZ Tag and Rugby League this year and school football socks are needed for Soccer, Hockey and Rugby League.

If you or your family have older football boots that are still in good condition or have school football socks that an older sibling no longer has use for, please send them into the school office. These boots may well help out some of our families that are unable to purchase new boots.

Rockhampton District Selection Trials – 10-12yrs Boys Rugby Union

Trials for the Rockhampton District 10-12yrs rugby union team are being held on Wednesday the 15th March at Frenchville State School from 4pm.

Rockhampton District Selection Trials – 10-12yrs Girls Football (Soccer)

Trials for the Rockhampton District 10-12yrs girls football team are being held on Wednesday the 15th March at Bouldercombe State School from 4pm.

Rockhampton District Selection Trials – 10-12yrs Touch Football Boys & Girls

Trials for the Rockhampton District 10-12yrs touch football teams are being held on Friday the 17th March at Rockhampton Touch fields (bottom fields) from 4pm.

If your son/daughter is interested in trialing for any Rockhampton team you will need to contact the school office to receive the relevant paper work in order to nominate. Nominations are due back to Mrs Brennan two days before the trial date.

Dance Fever Showcase

To celebrate the success of Dance Fever Multisport visiting our school each week and the hard work the students have put into developing their skills, we will be hosting a showcase for parents and families. The showcase will be held on Tuesday 21st March @ 6:00pm in the undercover area. During the evening classes will demonstrate the various dances they have learnt. The P & F will be running a BBQ prior to the student performances.

Friday afternoon sports 03/03/2017

Soccer

Girls 1:35

St Joseph’s PA v RGS @ Rugby Park

Yr 6 Boys Blue 1:35

St Joseph’s PA v Frenchville SS @ Frenchville SS

Yr 5 Boys Maroon 12:40

St Joseph’s PA v Frenchville SS @ Frenchville SS

Oz Tag

Games are played at McLeod Park (on Dean Street)

Girls 1:10

St Joseph’s White v Glenmore (field 2)

Girls 1:50

St Joseph’s Maroon v Mt Archer Blue (field 2)
St Joseph’s Blue - BYE

Boys 12:30

St Joseph’s Maroon v Mt Archer Blue (field 7)

Boys 1:50

St Joseph’s Blue v St Joseph’s White (field 6)

CURRICULUM NEWS

ICAS

The University of New South Wales will, once again, be running the International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) in 2017. These competitions are open to any children in Years 3 to 6, and some of the competitions allow the year 2 children to participate. Those children wishing to be involved can participate in the areas of Digital Technologies, Science, Spelling, Writing, English and Mathematics.

Dates and costs associated with the competitions are as follows:

These competitions are a great way for students in our school to compare their academic achievements against students in other schools around Australia. If you would like more information please visit the UNSW website below:

It would be appreciated if anyone wishing to enter any of the competitions could return the permission slip to the office, along with entry fees by Monday 6th March (beginning of Week 7 - Term 1). Please note – no late orders will be accepted as the official tests will be ordered by the school in Week 7.

Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum

Throughout Semester One, our school will be implementing the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum with students in all year levels. The curriculum is based on principles of best practice in child safety education and centres around three key messages: Recognise, React and Report. Through a series of lessons, students will learn how to recognise, react and report when they are unsafe or find themselves in situations that can have a significant detrimental effect on their physical, psychological or emotional wellbeing. The Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum links very closely with the Australian Health Curriculum. Therefore these lessons will be delivered by Miss Tennille Kerrisk as part of our Health Curriculum on a Tuesday and Wednesday. The Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum has been mandated by our Diocese to be actively taught in all of the Rockhampton Catholic schools each year.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this program please don’t hesitate to contact either Miss Kerrisk, Mrs Senini or Mr Fitzgerald.

Information about the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum can be found below:

Week 6 Lesson Objectives:

Prep – Year 2

Students will:

• identify (or revise) private parts of the body.

Years 3 - 4

Students will:

• identify relationships between rules, laws and safety
• discuss how rights, rules and responsibilities can all play a role in our ability to stay safe
• consider if and when people should take responsibility for their own actions.

Years 5 – 6

Students will:

• identify relationships between rules, laws and safety
• discuss how rights, rules and responsibilities can all play a role in our ability to stay safe
• consider if and when people should take responsibility for their own actions.

LITERACY CORNER

Reading:

Learning to read involves children learning skills in comprehension, fluency, accuracy and expanding on their known vocabulary. This week’s skill comes under the heading of Comprehension.

Strategy: Back Up and Reread

This strategy is used when a child reads a sentence or passage and realises that what they have just read doesn’t make sense. They then go back and reread the sentence or passage again to understand the meaning of the sentence.

Spelling:

Strategy: Rainbow Words

This strategy involves students writing each of their spelling words. They use two colours. They write their spelling pattern in one colour and the rest of the word in a different colour. An example of this is:

Regards,
Deanne Senini
Assistant Principal Curriculum

FINANCE NEWS

TERM 1 FEES were due on Wednesday 15th February

Fee Accounts for Term 1 were due for payment on Wednesday 15th February.

If your account remains unpaid, these are now Overdue.

If paying by Direct Deposit, please use your Account Number (6 digit number on your Fee Statement) as the reference.

If you are unable to settle your account, your immediate contact with either Bernard or Megan is requested to advise when the account will be settled.

CLASSROOM NEWS

News from 3A

This term we have been looking at different heat sources. We have decided that we are going to test one of the biggest heat sources around - the sun. Here are some snapshots of us designing and planning our Solar Ovens. Stay tuned for the finished products!

SCHOOL TOILET SAFETY

The students are very aware that the toilets are for just that… going to the toilet. They are not places to hang out with buddies, eat or play. They have one important purpose and that is what it should be used for.

Posters have been placed around the toilet blocks as a visual reminder to students. The safety message of ‘Recognise, React and Report’ is one well used at school. We would appreciate families discussing these themes and phrases at home. We need our students to understand and be aware that toilets are not a social place, that going to the toilet is private and that these procedures are put in place for the safety of themselves and others.

Brooke Black
Child Protection Contact

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Congratulations to the following students who will celebrate their birthday this week. They are: Coco Barnes (PM), Rhys Armstrong (2F), Caitlin Dives (4W), Laria Barnett (4M), Lucas Bellert (3A), Thomas Bellert (3T), Ryan Hallam (PW), Rhyley Clark (1F), Abby Druery (4W) and Thomas Lill (3A). Have a great day.

YR 6 EASTER RAFFLE

This term Grade Six will be holding an Easter raffle.
Tickets will be sold outside the office (courtyard) before and after school and will be $1 each.
This raffle will be drawn on Friday the 17th of March (Grandparents Day).
We are hoping for your support, so come along and buy a ticket.
All money raised will be going towards the Grade Six camp.

Thank you
Grade Six

BOOK CLUB

Book Club orders are due back by Monday 6th of March.

Online ordering (paying by credit card) is now available below and follow the prompts.

If you put in your order online, there is no need to return your book club form to school. Happy reading!

Thanks,
Michelle

VOLUNTEERS INDUCTION SESSIONS

WPH&S Volunteers Inductions are necessary for the safety of your children. Therefore we ask that all parents who generously volunteer their time to the school, either in a classroom or in the tuckshop, attend a very brief induction regarding maintaining a safe environment for the children of St. Joseph’s.

These sessions only take about five minutes and are available after assembly on a Monday morning with Deanne Senini, or on Tuesday afternoons from 2:45pm - 3:00pm.

UNIFORM SHOP

Our uniform shop is run by VOLUNTEERS of the school and is open

Monday morning from 8:15 - 8:45
Tuesday afternoon from 2:45 - 3:15
Friday morning 8:15 – 8:45

Please feel free to drop any uniforms you no longer need so they can put out to sell. Proceeds can go back to you or you can donate it back to the P & F.

The Uniform Shop has quite a lot of good second hand uniforms. Please feel free to pop in (at the opening times above), and have a look. There are second hand Emmaus uniforms also.

FRIDAY PIZZA

Meatlovers and Hawaiian Pizza are available every Friday for $1.50/slice. Please have your order in a Brown Paper Bag with your name, class and order on it, with the money in side.

Please use a brown paper bag with child’s name and class written on the front.

TUCKSHOP IS UNAVAILABLE ON FRIDAYS

DRAKES SUPA IGA

Simply scan your Drakes Supa IGA key tag and the checkout with your groceries, and automatically 1 cent of every dollar you spend goes to the Cathedral Conservation Fund.

Key tags are available from the office, local church or Drakes stores. Put it on your car keys so you remember to use it.

Key tags can be used at any Drakes Supa IGA supermarket in Queensland. Currently in our Diocese Drakes stores are located at

• Glenmore (North Rockhampton)
• Emu Park

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC WORKSHOP

STRINGS AND WOODWIND/BRASS/PERCUSSION

Just a reminder that next weekend (Saturday 11 March) there is an instrumental music workshop being held at Emmaus College (Yaamba Rd campus) for students who currently learn a strings/brass/woodwind or percussion instrument.

• The Beginner Student (those who have only started this year) workshop runs from 10am-midday,
• The Continuing students (those who have learnt more than 1 year) workshop runs from 1pm-4pm.

Forms were distributed during lessons in previous weeks, but if a new form or more information is required, please email Mrs Alexia Lally: Alexia_Lally@emmaus.qld.edu.au.