27 March 2019

Newsletter Articles

FROM THE PRINCIPAL

I would like to start this week by congratulating our Kindy for a wonderful result in their recent audit. We love having the Kindy as a part of our Joeys community and it is always lovely to see the smiles on the Kindy student’s faces as they visit the big school.

A reminder that we are beginning to take enrolments for Prep in 2020. By then we will have a fully refurbished Prep facility ready for the 2020 school year. If you have younger children or know of people who are wishing to enrol in Joeys next year, please urge them to contact the school office as soon as possible.

Next week we say farewell to our Year 6 students as they take part in their Leadership Camp at Chaverim just outside of Bundaberg. This time also gives our Year 5 students a chance to step up and be the senior leaders at school during the final week. All the best for our Year 6 group next week. On a side note, I will be posting our safe arrival at camp as well as our estimated arrival time back at school on both the official school app and the parent Facebook page.

It is my pleasure to announce that after an exhaustive search, we welcome Miss Gabby Dempster to the school as our new Year 5 teacher. Gabby has volunteered in the Year 5 room for a couple of days to get the lay of the land and is excited to commence work with the staff and students as soon as possible. I am sure you will join me in welcoming Gabby into our Joeys community.

Over the next few weeks you will see Ms Lyn Lavender working in the front office. Lyn will be covering the bases as Tracey Brosnan will be taking some well-earned long service leave until the end of Term.

Sad news that Miss Linda Crane lost her mother a little while ago and will be taking well-earned LSL until the end of Term. I am sure you will all join the staff in supporting Linda during this tough time.

Don’t Forget …

• Catholic Education Leadership Conference, 26th-28th March
• Year 6 Camp @ Chaverim, Monday 1st – Thursday 4th April
• St Mary’s Grandstand Classic Race Day, Saturday 13th April
• Palm Sunday, 14th April
• Holy Thursday, 18th April
• Good Friday, 19th April
• Easter Sunday, 21st April
• Term 2 commences, Tuesday 23rd April
• Field Events @ SJPA, Tuesday 23rd April
• Track Events @ Emmaus, Wednesday 24th April
• ANZAC Day, Thursday 25th April

Have a great week.

Regards
Bernard Fitzgerald
Principal - St. Joseph’s Catholic School Park Avenue

APRE REFLECTION

Sixteen-year-old Peter goes to a boarding school in the Solomon Islands which has experienced water shortages for 60 years. Previously students would have to walk kilometres each day in search of clean water. This was particularly challenging for Peter who is living with a disability.

Peter’s mother left the family when he was little and has since passed away. His father decided to move from northern Malaita to Honiara, to better provide for his family. He arranged for Peter to stay with his aunt, then attend Aligegeo Secondary School. Groundwater sources at the school have dried up and rainfall is unpredictable. Water in surrounding wells often made students sick or gave them rashes.

Caritas Australia, and partners Caritas Solomon Islands (CASI) and the Solomon Islands Government Rural Water Sanitation and Hygiene division (RWASH), have teamed up with the school to tackle the problem. CASI provided a 90 kilo-litre water tank, electric pump and technical advice, while the Malaita Provincial Government contributed labour. Staff and students took part in training, dug trenches and are helping with a water management plan.

The school now has a safe, reliable water system, servicing around 1,000 people.

You can watch Peter’s story here.

Mass times

Weekday

Tuesday 9.00am Holy Family
Wednesday 12.00 Noon St Mary’s
Thursday 8.00am Emmaus College (Yaamba Rd)
Friday 9.00am Our Lady Help of Christians

Weekend

Saturday – Vigil
5.00pm Holy Family
6.30pm Our Lady Help of Christians

Sunday

7.00am St Mary’s
9.00am Holy Family

Bernadette Brennan
APRE

RELIGIOUS MATTERS

Liturgical Celebrations for Term 1

*OLHC – Our Lady Help of Christians church – next to school

Bernadette Brennan
APRE

SPORTING MATTERS

Save the Date

The Joey’s annual athletics carnival is in Week 1 – Tuesday 23rd and Wednesday 24th April. Tuesday is field events day for children born 2010, 2009, 2008, & 2007. Wednesday is the Track events day at Emmaus College – Yaamba Road Campus for all students.

Friday Sport 22nd March

Soccer

Yr 5 boys St Joeys Navy v Frenchville SS @ 12:40 Norbridge 4
Yr 6 boys St Joeys Maroon v Frenchville SS @ 1:35 Norbridge 4
Yr 6 girls St Joeys v Mt Archer SS Blue @ 1:35 Mt Archer SS
Yr 6 Blue (mixed) St Joeys v St Marys 3 @ 1:35 Norbridge 6B
Yr 5 White (mixed) St Joeys v Berserker SS @ 12:40 Norbridge 6B

Softball/Teeball

St Joeys Navy v Frenchville on 4B
St Joeys White v Crescent Lagoon 1 on 3
St Joeys Maroon v RGS on 1C
St Joeys Blue v Mt Archer on 2C
St Joeys Gold v Ridgelands on 2A

Softball/Teeball games commence about 12:30

CURRICULUM NEWS

Parent Teacher Interviews

Semester One parent teacher interviews have been scheduled for Week 2 of Term 2 (Monday, 29th April through to Friday, 3rd May). Parent Lounge will be open to parents from Monday 1st April through to Friday 5th April (Week 10 of Term 1) to make a booking to see your child’s teacher.

NAPLAN 2019

In 2019, St Joseph’s will be participating in NAPLAN online. All students in Years 3 and 5 will be completing all NAPLAN assessments online with the exception of the Year 3 writing assessment which will be completed on paper. Last year we participated in a practice NAPLAN online test in order to ensure our technology infrastructures and equipment were sufficient. This year, we will participate in another practice test which is designed to allow for any complications to be identified and resolved before the official test occurs in May. The practice test for St Josephs will occur on Wednesday, 3rd April while the official testing period will occur in week 4 of Term 2 (14th – 17th May).

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your child sitting either the practice test or the official tests, please make an appointment to discuss these concerns with either myself or Bernard Fitzgerald.

ICAS - 2019

Students are invited to participate in ICAS assessments in 2019. This year the ICAS assessments have moved to an online format and are occurring later in the year. These assessments are designed to recognise and reward academic excellence. The assessments are based on the curriculum for each relevant year level. These assessments are designed to allow students to demonstrate a deeper, integrated and thorough level of learning.

More information about how to sign up for these assessments will be made available next term.

Write4fun Competition

The 2019 Schools Writing Competition is now open. Write4fun encourages students to read and write through fun competitions. School students across Australia battle it out for the great cash and prizes on offer. First prize is $500 cash for the winning student and $500 cash for their school plus their choice of an Apple iPad 32GB, Xbox One X, $500 Rebel Sport Gift Card or a PlayStation 4.

To enter this competition you need to write either a Poem consisting of 16 lines or less OR a short story consisting of 500 words or less. You can choose any writing style and any topic. The competition is open for any student in Kindergarten through to Grade 12.

For more information and details on how to enter please visit www.write4fun.net.

Entries close on Sunday 31st March 2019.

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 has been mandated by our Diocese to be actively taught in all of the Rockhampton Catholic schools each year. In 2019, classroom teachers will teach these lessons on a Friday morning as part of the Health Curriculum.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this program please don’t hesitate to contact either Mrs Senini, Mr Fitzgerald or your child’s classroom teacher.

More information about the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum can be found in the link below.

Regards
Deanne Senini
Assistant Principal Curriculum

FINANCE NEWS

TERM 1 FEE ACCOUNTS OVERDUE

URGENT Attention is now required for Term 1 Fee Accounts. These are now 5 weeks overdue.

If you have not received your Fee statement or are unable to make any payment, can you please make immediate contact with Bernard or Megan to advise your current situation?

Fee Accounts are now being published to Parent Lounge and will no longer be posted out in hard copy. You will need to Login to Parent Lounge to access your Fee Statement.

Please remember to update your Concession Card if it has expired, as you are unable to get the Concession without a new card being presented.

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

CLASSROOM NEWS

2M

Marvelous Meditation

Every day, after first play, 2M enjoys around 10 minutes of meditation.

From the first time that the class started this practice, students have surprised Mrs Miranda and Miss Beak of how well they took on the challenge of stopping to quieten their mind, their heart and body.

Research shows that meditation in the classroom helps students become more focused, calm, settled and rested — by providing them an opportunity to learn to relax and reflect. Numerous studies point to the physical, emotional and psychological benefits that meditation brings:

• helps improve concentration
• improves our ability to cope with stress
• improve happiness levels and foster peace of mind
• encourages creativity

Meditation also balances blood pressure and heart rate, improves respiration and cognition.

Some days 2M enjoys guided meditation, when students are led step by step to practice breathing and to pray. Other days students enjoy a quiet and still time listening to calm music, having the opportunity to reflect, to appreciate God’s creation and to be thankful for all their blessings.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Congratulations to the following students and staff who will celebrate their birthday this week. They are: Hannah McCrohon (Yr 6), Skylah McLean (PM), Cooper Wedel (Yr 4), Jack Burnham (3M), Zaeleigh Hannah (3M), Hannah Jamieson (Yr 6), Jed Ryan (2M), Alfred Timms (Yr 4) and Mr Fitzgerald (Hope you have a great week at Year 6 camp).

Have a great day.

P & F NEWS

Last week notes went home with the oldest in the family, with details about ordering lunch for Sports Day this year. Please hand your orders in with correct money on brown paper bags as soon as you can please. Orders are due back by the last day of term.

We’re asking for donations of Homebake to be sold again at the P&F tent at Emmaus. Please drop your baking creations over in the morning when you drop the kids off, and all proceeds go directly back to keeping Brekky Club alive. Anything from cakes, slices, muffins, cookies, but especially toffees! The kids love TOFFEES!

If you could also spare some time in between your children’s races to help serve drinks, homebake and lunches, it would be much appreciated. We’re all there to watch our kids have fun, and the more people we have allows us to do this.

Following on from the mini conference, we’ll be looking at different ways to aid our Joey’s community in coming together and getting to know one another and engaging with each other. Commencing in Term 2, we’ll be trialing a “Coffee and Catch up” after Assembly, like we used to in the good ol’ days. There’ll be tea, coffee and something sweet if parents and friends wanted to hang after Assembly for 10-15 mins, as a way of meeting new faces, and catching up with the familiar ones.

Let’s have a great Sports Day!

Reminder:

Thanks,
Joeys P&F

SCHOOL COUNCILLOR

Wow it is Week 9 already. As you continue to walk the journey of Term 1 – it seems to be whizzing by, with holidays just around the corner.

Coming out of last 2 weeks there have been many events on the St Joey’s school calendar, with celebrations on Friday 15 March 2019, with Grandparents Day. It was wonderful to see many families here celebrating and supporting their little people. Supporting and growing children really does take a village and the support of parents, siblings, extended families and grandparents provides children with a sense of their family and those that care about them.

Bullying NO WAY!!!

Also on Friday 15 March 2019, was the National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence? We know how important the messages are for children to speak up even if your voice shakes, to stand up for yourself and others. It is so important that we can continue to educate and support our children to take action every day, to build their skills and confidence. Recently the Principal also shared with me a letter to be shared with parents and carers from the Prime Minister – to explore how you go about talking with your children and helping them be safe and to speak up, and some resources shared here in this letter like online safety, take action against bullying and about student well-being.

Also useful can links can be https://bullyingnoway.gov.au/ and kids helpline website – which as kid friendly information for children and their parents. - https://kidshelpline.com.au/.

World Happiness Day Wednesday 20 March 2019.

This year’s theme was Happier Together – so as you think of this – and ask? What is happiness and what makes me happy – maybe you have some time to take a moment to think about doing something for yourself or with your children that improves your well-being and overall happiness.

So lots of classes did in class activities such as talk about happiness, colour in, listen to fun music as well as kids going to the Library at lunch might have brought home a happiness inspired bookmark.

Check out some pictures of Year 4 – having some happy colouring in and Year 6 – working on a gratitude letter to someone in their life.

There is now research that talks about 10 keys to happier living (see the picture below) and there are resources like an excellent book that the school library now has if you want to check it out – a fun packed book with 50 ideas of activities to build happiness. Here is a link to some things you can do with your kids.

You could chose to spend time connecting with others, reaching out to someone who is struggling, make a detour to have a post school park play to burn off some energy, help someone else, spend some time relaxing or listening to your favourite song or having a family dance in the car on the way home. Or maybe tonight you might have a chat over dinner about 3 good things that happened that made your child smile.

Also for parents on the go – the Action for Happiness website has an app for smart phones – that sends you daily positive messages and little nudges about actions you could take to improve your day via their daily notifications from the app and the monthly calendars. Some parents share these calendars, with their families by printing for the fridge or a talking point in the car, to do the activity each day to share the experience. Check it out – May you have a happy day

VACATION CARE

Please find attached the Vacation Care Program and also the Booking Form. If you are looking at care for your child/children and have not yet booked in, could you please do so by calling Chelsea on 0408 703 482.

PARENT LOUNGE

Changes to your address, phone number or work phone number can be made in Parent Lounge. Simply log in, go to the Parent Details tab, make your changes, and then submit.

ABSENTEES

Absentees can be done through the Skoolbag App. Click on our School Logo, eforms and then Absentee Form.

All notifications from the school are done through this app. Our weekly Newsletters are also posted to this app.

Please make sure that you have downloaded it.

SCHOOL BANKING

School banking happens every Thursday.

If you wish to start school banking, you need to open a Youth Saver Account at the Commonwealth bank, make no deposit and they will provide you with your banking book and details.

Please send your child’s banking book in so they can place it in the grey classroom-banking bag.

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 do not take long and are available after assembly on a Monday morning with Deanne Senini, and on Wednesday afternoons from 2:30pm - 3:00pm. Debbie Rooney will conduct induction sessions in the tuckshop, if you are helping in there.

Thanks

UNIFORM SHOP

Our uniform shop is run by VOLUNTEERS of the school and is open
Monday morning from 8:15 - 8:45 and Wednesday afternoon from 2:45 – 3:15.

Please feel free to drop any uniforms you no longer need so they can be 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 inside.

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

PIANO LESSONS

Piano Lessons are available on Thursday mornings. There are three places open for lessons on a rotational Timetable and a Keyboard will suffice to practise on. Please contact Mrs Lynette Anstey on 49333661 / 0419358485 / anstey.family@bigpond.com.

Kind Regards
Lyn Anstey