St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Park Avenue
PDF Details

Newsletter QR Code

Main St, Park Avenue
North Rockhampton QLD 4701
Subscribe: https://sjparok.schoolzineplus.com/subscribe

Email: school.information@sjparok.catholic.edu.au
Phone: 07 4994 8205

30 November 2022

Newsletter Articles

FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Dear Parents & Guardians

Well done to our Semester 2 Academic Award winners who were recognised for their efforts last Monday morning. It was fantastic to see so many awards being handed out. Our 9 students who received Gold Certificates were also awarded QBD book vouchers to enjoy some reading over the holiday break.

A reminder that Semester 2 reports were posted to Parent Lounge today, Wednesday 30th November.

It was fantastic to see so many of our Joeys community gather together for last week’s Presentation Night. Many thanks to everyone who came along to support our students and help make it such a memorable evening. Congratulations to the worthy recipients of this year’s awards as well as all of the students who performed on the night. Many thanks to the staff who also put in much hard work and preparation for what proved to be a wonderful event.

Presentation Night Award Winners for 2022:

Encouragement Award – Halle Mclaughlin
Junior Performing Arts – Abigail Farr
Senior Performing Arts – Pippa Kaufman
Sports Girls – Lani Duncan
Sports Boy – Preston Livermore
Sportspersonship – Taylor Dives
Luke Monaghan Award – Bronson Wall
Kelvin Hill Award – Matari Tanner
Principal’s Recognition Award – Cooper Lee & Matilda Ballinger
Dux – Lani Duncan
Leadership Award – Brittney O’Leary
Spirit of St. Joseph’s Award – Lani Duncan

Congratulations also to Monique Jarrett who received the Diocesan P&F Community Spirit Award and Michelle Smith who received the St Joseph’s Community Award.

In 2023, we have set some new School Improvement Priorities as a way to continually improve the opportunities we provide for our students to access the curriculum in a faith filled environment.

The 3 priorities for 2022 are:

  • Increased Learning Gain and Achievement
  • Learning Dispositions
  • Prayer Life

Drawing our school year to a close will be our End of Year Mass this Friday, 2nd December. We will be celebrating with a whole school Mass commencing at 9:00am. The Mass not only provides us the opportunity of farewelling our Year 6 students for the final time. The mass will also incorporate the induction of our student leaders for the 2023 school year.

We must also be aware that we share Friday’s mass with the Parish, so I request that we leave the parking spaces directly outside the office vacant for the use of our parishioners.

Please remember that during all of our celebrations, we must not use the parking in the mall car park during the day as retailers in the mall have previously complained that there is no parking for their patrons.

Officially school concludes at 3:00pm on Friday, though some parents have enquired about students going home early. Students are able to go home with their own parents or guardians following Mass at approximately 10:30am. Students wanting to leave with another child’s parent must have written permission to do so from their parents.

Please remember that OSHC will not be in operation on the final day of school.

As you will all be aware of Joey’s educational philosophy and how our open learning spaces support the diverse learning styles of our students, every child in the school will be a part of a Year Level cohort and will all have two teachers and an Educational Support Officer within their double sized learning spaces.

The Joey’s teaching staff for 2023 will be as follows:

Prep – Kirsty McLeod, TBD, Beth O’Brien and Kristie Sloan
Year 1 – Sophie Noake, Ashley Borich and Kylie Schoneveld
Year 2 – Louise Chapman, Shereen Svendsen and Jacinta Beak
Year 3 – Rebecca Gabriel, Kerrie Tennyson/Aimee Watson and Lyn Lavender
Year 4 – Daena Walton, Lori Guest and Rachael Duncan
Year 5 –, Catherine Farr, Lauren McDonald and Kelson Tennyson
Year 6 – Ann McCutcheon, Tina Thorsen and Kaitlyn Brosnan
Inclusive Curriculum – Lesley Donohoe
Inclusive Curriculum – Kira Tickner
Inclusive Curriculum – Leonie Mooney
Inclusive Curriculum classroom support – Alana Jones
Inclusive Curriculum classroom support – Kelsey Milburn
Inclusive Curriculum classroom support & Arts Specialist – Paula Roati
Pastoral Support and Wellbeing Officer – Brooke Black
PE Specialist – Rebekah Hall
MiniLit – Kylie Farr and Madelein Paap
Indigenous Support – Jess Ivers and Ashley Gray
Special Project Numeracy Extension – Alice Wayman
Special Project Writing Extension – Tarina Hancock
Special Project Support – Rebecca Whiting & Jacinta Thackeray

Congratulations to the Year 6 students, staff and parents on tonight’s Graduation Mass and dinner. Enjoy yourself and savour the end of your Primary years at Joey’s. Have a wonderful Fun Day on Thursday and for all of the rest of our community, have a great last few days of the 2022 school year.

Don’t Forget….

  • Semester 2 Reports posted to Parent Lounge. Wed 30th Nov @ 12:00pm
  • Year 6 Graduation Mass & Dinner. Wed 30th Nov
  • Year 6 Fun Day. Thurs 1st Dec
  • End of Year Mass & Leadership Changeover. Fri 2nd Dec @ 9:00am in OLHC
  • Term 4 Concludes. Fri 2nd Dec
  • 2023 School Office Reopens. Mon 9th Jan (depending on roofing)
  • 2023 Resource Drop-Off. Thurs 19th Jan 1:30pm – 3:00pm
  • 2023 School Year Recommences. Mon 23rd Jan 8:35am sharp.

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

St Joseph’s 2022 School Improvement Priorities:

  • Prayer
  • Family Partnerships
  • Increased Learning Gain & Achievement

Sacraments 2023 – Students over 7 Years of Age who have not been Baptised.

Families who have children over the age of seven (catechetical age) and are seeking to have them celebrate the Sacraments of Initiation – Baptism, Confirmation and First Eucharist in 2023– please contact Trish Jones at the Parish Office (49282800) for more information on the Rite of Christian Initiation for Children of Catechetical age. This program is specifically for children 7yrs and older and who have not yet been Baptised.

Warm regards,
Gail T Davis
Email gail_davis@iinet.net.au l g.t.davis@cqu.edu.au l 0498266100

RELIGIOUS MATTERS

The First Sunday of Advent

The Lord is Coming when we Least Expect

Matthew 24: 37-44

Gospel Focus – Get Ready!

Jesus draws a parallel between the people in Noah’s time and the people of his own time. What it reflects is a complacency that periodically overtook the Jewish people. When the people bound themselves to God in covenant their lives gradually became better. Inevitably, their lives improved to such a state that they forgot God was responsible for their blessings. They ignored their relationship with God and became complacent about their good fortune. Ultimately, their comfort was brought to an end and they recognised once again their need for God. Jesus calls the people to get ready because the pattern is repeating itself.

@Liturgy Help – Greg Sunter

Last weekend, the Rockhampton Catholic worship communities lit the first candle of the Advent Wreaths in our churches. The ritual of lighting advent candles has a long history and each of the candles holds significant meaning.

These candles correspond to the themes of each week of advent. Families and church congregations begin lighting a candle on the first Sunday of Advent, and they light another candle each subsequent Sunday.

  • The first candle symbolises hope and is called the "Prophet’s Candle." The prophets of the Old Testament, especially Isaiah, waited in hope for the Messiah’s arrival.
  • The second candle represents faith and is called "Bethlehem’s Candle." Micah had foretold that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, which is also the birthplace of King David.
  • The third candle symbolises joy and is called the "Shepherd’s Candle." To the shepherd’s great joy, the angels announced that Jesus came for humble, unimportant people like them, too. In liturgy, the colour rose signifies joy.
  • The fourth candle represents peace and is called the "Angel’s Candle." The angels announced that Jesus came to bring peace. He came to bring people close to God and to each other again.
  • The (optional) fifth candle represents light and purity and is called "Christ’s candle." It is placed in the middle and is lit on Christmas Day.

Christmas Celebrations

As we enter the season of Advent, we turn our focus to the coming of the Christ Child. This season in the Catholic Church allows us the opportunity to prepare for the Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord on Christmas Day. Please see the Mass times offered in the various worship communities of Rockhampton, they allow time for reflection in a hectic world. I have also included the times for celebrations over Christmas. It is always wonderful to see families gather in our churches to share the joy that the birth of our Saviour brings to our lives.

Liturgical Celebrations Coming Up

WEEK

DAY

DATE

EVENT

TIME

PLACE

Week 9

Wed

30th NOV

Year 6 Graduation Mass

5:00pm

OLHC

Fri

2nd DEC

End of Year Mass

Leadership Handover Ceremony

9:00am

OLHC

*SJPA – St Joseph’s Park Avenue
*OLHC – Our Lady Help of Christians church (next to St Joseph’s, Park Avenue)
*HF – Holy Family Parish Centre (next to Anthony’s School)
*STM – St Mary’s Church (next to St Mary’s School)
*MPA – Multipurpose Area (Basketball court)

PARISH NEWSLETTER

Elizabeth Carter
Assistant Principal Religious Education

CURRICULUM NEWS

2023 Booklists

Booklists for next year have been sent home. They are also available on the skoolbag app if you need to print one off between now and next year. You will hopefully notice that the quantity of items for parents to purchase has again decreased thanks to the generous support of our P&F. Their contribution to the booklists has enabled many items to be removed from each list, therefore, saving a considerable amount of money for every parent. A huge thank you to the P&F for everything they do to support the school.

Semester Two Reports

Student reports are now available to view on Parent Lounge. Please ensure you are able to log on before the office closes at the end of this week.

Medication Collection

Please be aware that all medication which is kept at school needs to be collected at the end of the school year. Any medication not collected will be disposed of as per Diocesan policy.

I wish everyone a safe and happy Christmas break. I look forward to seeing everyone again in 2023.

Regards,
Deanne Senini
Assistant Principal Curriculum

SJPA SUSTAINABILITY

During National Recycling Week the Year 4 students participated in our annual bin audit with the Rockhampton Regional Council. This was our 3rd year completing the audit, where staff and students worked together to sort a sample of waste using over 12 different waste/recycling categories. This information is then compiled so we can track our progress and make changes to our current processes. Earlier in the year, we were proudly acknowledged as a Recycling Hero School for our commitment to caring for the environment and this is a part of maintaining this title. Thank you to Kelly, Sharyn and Matt for guiding our students throughout the process on the day and teaching us all how we can improve our waste management here at SJPA.

Watch what we got up to by using the link below!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAt93ca8ZjU

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Congratulations to the following students and Staff who will celebrate their birthday this week and for the remainder of the year. They are: Xavier Hallett (Prep), Blake Meehan (Prep), Nate Barber (Yr 5), Cooper Kirkman (Yr 1), Jaxson Balderston (Yr 4), Olivia Bragg (Yr 5), Izabelah Zerafa (Yr 4), Juliet Horton (Yr 4), Emilee Thompson (Yr 4), Indigo Wallace (Yr 1), Amelia Gray (Yr 3), Elijah Kerr (Yr 1), Lilly Beal (Yr 5), Braxton Kane (Yr 5), Corben Emerson (Yr 3), Amelia Pedersen (Yr 4), Penelope Brady (Prep), Emily-Rose England (Yr 3), Tayte Mooney (Yr 3), Kiara Carpenter (Yr 6), Braxton Pope (Yr 1), Emma Rea (Prep), Noah Richards (Yr 1), Madeleine Watson (Yr 4), Erin Albion (Yr 1), Eden Jackson (Yr 3), Connor Fulwood (Yr 5), Tauryn Schneider (Yr 6), Jaison Henaway (Yr 4), Mrs Farr (Yr 5), Miss Jacinta Thackeray (Yr 1) and Mrs Watson (Yr 2).

Have a great day.

LIBRARY NEWS

DID YOU KNOW??

St Joseph’s has a FREE online LIBRARY?

Simply download the SORA app, follow the log-in instructions
and enjoy access to thousands of age-appropriate resources!

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC in 2023

Enrolments are now being accepted for new and continuing students to learn the following instruments at St. Joseph’s Park Avenue.

FLUTE, CLARINET, SAXOPHONE, TRUMPET, TROMBONE, PERCUSSION, VIOLIN, VIOLA, CELLO, GUITAR & VOICE.

Instrumental Music provides so many benefits to a child – please watch the attached link to a fantastic video about Music and the Brain: Instrumental Music Learning and Brain Fireworks

Please see the attached information letter for details on required year levels for each instrument, and a downloaded version of the enrolment form.

Enrolment is available online from the link below.

https://emmaus.qld.edu.au/co-curriculum/instrumental-music/

KEYBOARD LESSONS

Leanne Voss will continue to offer Keyboard lessons in 2023 for interested students in grades 1 – 6.

Lessons are of 30-minute duration and will be conducted weekly at school.

Students will be required to have access to a keyboard for practice and purchase a music tutor book and theory book. Lessons will generally be given to groups of 2 or 3 students with some individual lessons available when it is not possible to match students of similar musical ability. The lessons will focus on using a chord bass with an emphasis on utilising keyboard features such as different tones and rhythms.

Playing keyboard is an excellent extra curriculum activity to develop not only musical skills, but creative thinking, hand-eye coordination, concentration and commitment to task.

Enrolment forms are available from the office and in the newsletter for both new and continuing students.

UNIFORM SHOP

Our Uniform Shop is open Friday Mornings from 8:00 – 8:45am. The Joeys and Friends Facebook page will still have what is available for sale.

WEARITTO

Wearitto will be extending their trading hours on Saturdays in January. On the 7th, 14th and 21st January they will be opened from 9am until 2pm. Normal opening hours Mon-Fri 8:30am - 4:45pm.

DRAKES SUPA IGA

Drakes Fundraiser for St. Joseph's Cathedral

I thank you for your support of this project which has raised over $40,000, of which the school community has played an important role. Please continue to support the Cathedral by shopping at DRAKES using your key tag and receiving the benefits.

If you have not been part of this fundraiser you are invited to get a key tag from your local School or Church and shop at your local Drakes, one cent in every dollar you spend will go to the Cathedral. No Fuss, only benefits.

Hoping to see you at Drakes

Stay Safe

Shirley Hopkins,
Co-ordinator, Drakes Fundraiser for St Joseph's Cathedral

SCHOOL TRANSPORT ASISTANCE SCHEME

We are now processing STAS (School Transport Assistance Scheme) school bus pass applications for the 2023 school year.

Parents/Carers will need to apply for a new school bus pass if their students are -

  • Starting at a new school in 2023

OR

  • Moving into Year 7 at their current school in 2023

OR

  • Residing at a new address in 2023

Parents/Carers will not need to apply for a school bus pass if their students are already bus pass holders and are (a) staying at the same school and (b) residing at the same address.

Parents/Carers can apply for STAS online here

http://www.qld.gov.au/schooltransportassistance

  • One Form
  • Up to Five Children
  • Any Device

Additional Information

Please contact STASDigital.Helpdesk@tmr.qld.gov.au or 1300 119 289 for technical assistance with your online application.

Please visit our website below for school bus service information.

Rothery’s Coaches

https://www.rotheryscoaches.com/school-services/

Phone: (07) 49224320 Email: info.rotherys@cdcbus.com.au

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Kind Regards,
Emily Meek
School Liaison and Customer Service Co-ordinator
T (07) 5476 6622 M 0459 854 010
A 11 Page Street, KUNDA PARK, QLD 4556
E emily.meek@cdcbus.com.au
cdcqueensland.com.au