Term 4 Week 2
Key Information
Term 4 Important Dates
Week 3 – Year 5 Camp
- Monday 14th October – Year 5's Leave for Camp
- Tuesday 15th October – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am; Catholic Identity Meeting, 3-4pm
- Thursday 17th October – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45
- Friday 18th October – Ride to School Day, 7:45am from Florence Clark Park; Assembly (Year 4), 8:30am
Week 4
- Monday 21st October – Aussie Backyard Bird Count;
- Tuesday 22nd October – Catholic Identity Meeting, 3-4pm
- Thursday 24th October – Grandparent’s Chaplaincy Breakfast
- Friday 25th October – Free Dress wear Red for Day for Daniel
Week 5
- Monday 28th October – Free Dress (Old White Shirt); Founders Day Fun Run, 2pm
- Tuesday 29th October – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am; First Reconciliation Meeting 1, 3-4pm
- Thursday 31st October – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am
- Friday 1st November – Assembly (Year 3), 8:30am
Week 6
- Tuesday 5th November – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am; FNEAC Meeting, 3-4pm
- Wednesday 6th November – Buildings & Art Showcase Evening, 5pm
- Thursday 7th November – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am
- Friday 8th November – 2024 Swimming Carnival
Week 7
- Monday 11th November – Remembrance Day – Whole School Prayer, 10:20am; Kick for Kids (Starlight – Year 6)
- Tuesday 12th November – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am; 2025 Prep Transition Day, 8:30-10:30am; First Reconciliation Meeting 2, 3-4pm
- Thursday 14th November – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am
- Friday 15th November – Assembly (Year 2), 8:30am; 2025 Prep Transition Day & Move Up Morning, 8:30-10:30am; Parents Morning Tea (Library) – Speech Pathologist, OT and GO Presentation
Week 8
- Tuesday 19th November – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am
- Wednesday 20th November – Year 5/6 Treasure Island Afternoon Performance
- Thursday 21st November – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am; Year 5/6 Treasure Island Afternoon Performance
Week 9
- Monday 25th November – UMY End of Year Trip to Mount Isa
- Tuesday 26th November – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am; Rehearsals for Christmas Concert, P-Year 4 8:40am, Years 5-9 9:40am
- Wednesday 27th November – Awards Evening & Christmas Concert
- Thursday 28th November – SRC Christmas Free Dress; Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am; Year 9 Reflecting on the Journey Retreat, 8:30-11:30am; Year 9 Graduation Dinner, 6pm
- Friday 29th November – End of Year Mass; Last Day for Secondary Students
Week 10
- Tuesday 3rd December – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am; Year 6 Graduation Ceremony & Silent Disco
- Thursday 4th December – Chaplaincy Breakfast, 7:45am
- Friday 6th December – Last Day for Primary Students
Tuckshop News
Please have your orders in by WEDNESDAY 8:30 am. Please remember to pack a healthy snack for Brain Break.
To order: https://myschoolconnect.com.au/
Our special for Week 3 is: Chicken Burrito & Lemon Cake
Our special for Week 4 is: Queso Fundido & Red Jelly Slice
OUR TUCKSHOP CREW NEEDS YOU
Miss Jamie-Lea is looking for some wonderful volunteers to help her in Tuckshop on Thursdays. You do not have to be a parent to volunteer. We have had grandparents, aunties, uncles, friends and cousins, as well as mums and dads. If you are interested in volunteering, please join Miss Jamie-Lea's tuckshop volunteer group. 
https://m.facebook.com/groups/
Tuckshop Menu Change
The tuckshop menu will change from Week 3 onwards. As it is becoming increasingly difficult to secure volunteers for tuckshop we have altered the menu to ensure it is sustainable on the days volunteers are not possible. We know our wonderful community love to volunteer in our tuckshop, however, we acknowledge that this is not always possible.
Please familiarise yourself with the changes and provide any feedback that you may have to the front office. If the changes will impact your child/children and any dietary requirements that they may have please phone our front office to discuss the best option moving forward.
Uniform Shop
Our Uniform Shop is open to orders being placed via the app: https://myschoolconnect.com.au/
Please give us 24 hours to organise collection for your order; we generally contact you when your order is ready to collect.
If you are needing students to try on sizes, we are available:
Monday from 2:30-3pm and Wednesday from 8:10-8:30am.
Miss Heather
General News
Townsville Catholic Education Review of the Student Academic Reporting, Prep to Year 10 Guidelines
The Townsville Catholic Education Office (TCEO) is undertaking a review of the current Student Academic Reporting Guidelines for students in Prep through to Year 10. TCEO is inviting parents and carers to complete a survey by Friday 25th October. The letter and survey can be found by clicking on this link: Parent/Carers Survey
Principal's News
Welcome to Term 4,
I hope your term has started well and your child/children have adjusted to the school holidays coming to an end and the final school term of the year commencing. An email was sent to parents/carers in Week 1 with important information and reminders. If you didn't receive this please let the front office know as your contact information may need updating. I have included some of this information below for you to read if you missed it.
In Week 3 I will be off-site for the beginning of the week (Monday - Wednesday) as I travel to Townsville to join other Principals' in our Diocese to learn and develop. I am passionate about continuously learning in my position of leadership to provide the very best to our staff and students. I look forward to sharing some takeaways from this in my next newsletter.
This week has been incredibly busy - we have had several events to keep us busy - including a musical rehearsal for our year 5 and 6 students, year 5 camp information evening, emerging leaders roadshow in Mount Isa, Rock Pop practice in Mount Isa, and Guidance Officer Appreciation Day. Tonight we end the week with the Rock Pop performance in Mount Isa. I feel incredibly proud of our community. The amount of students, staff, parents, and community members that have come together to make sure Rock Pop was possible for the amount of students we have involved has been amazing. Each year when I look around at the community in Mount Isa it is incredible to see so many people from Cloncurry there. I would like to congratulate our students and staff on a wonderful production and I can't wait to watch it tonight, I would also like to extend my congratulations to The Cloncurry State School - it is fantastic that we can both offer this opportunity to our students.
In Week 3 our year 5 students will be at camp with Mrs Cullen, Mr T and Mr Grehan. The students will depart St Joseph's at 6am on Monday morning and will head to Magnetic Island. This is the first year that we have travelled to Magnetic Island for year 5 camp and we're excited to hear all about the adventures they get up to. The students will depart the island on Thursday and head to King Pin, before settling for the night at a station in Charters Towers. Students will arrive back at school on Friday evening. Parents and carers will receive regular updates throughout the camp and our community will see some happy snaps on our Facebook page.
We will also celebrate Ride to School Day next Friday. What a great initiative for students to come together as a community and travel safely to school. Thank you to Mrs Toni Schneekloth for pulling this together.
Information from the welcome back email:
It can be challenging for students to adjust back to the day to day routine of schooling after the holidays, so I bet some of you have had some tired children this week. It can take some time to re-establish the schooling routine - if you have any concerns or would like to provide information to your child’s teacher to assist them in settling in please feel free to do so. Drop off and pick up times may be chaotic, but email addresses can be found on the Compass app.
It is hard to believe we’re in term 4 already. Where has the year gone?
Term 4 is a very busy term, I have therefore created a parent calendar for you to save the date for upcoming events. Please note that changes to this calendar are inevitable and this communication will be made via the school newsletter, alternatively via email or text if the change is time sensitive. There is also a Google Calendar that a lot of parents link to their personal accounts as it is continuously updated and sends reminders to your devices of events, I have linked this here if you would like to add this to your device.
Bike Racks:
The bike racks will be relocated to the new building throughout the coming week. This relocation needs to occur before sheets are fitted near the new bike area. The current location where bikes are stored behind the Mary MacKillop shed will remain until further communication is sent. If you have concerns with your child's bike being stored there without a bike rack please phone the office on (07) 47421633 so an alternative arrangement can be discussed.
P-4 Eating Area:
It was great to gain the P-4 eating area back this term. The team at Simon Bell Construction worked over the school holiday break to ensure this was possible. Please note that students will now eat their morning tea and lunch in this space as it is sheltered from the sun. The location where your child eats brain break is at the discretion of each classroom teacher. This has also meant that the Prep students can access the classroom from this side, this will be the entrance to the prep room from now on.
Staffing Update:
Bronte Ashe - please note that Bronte Ashe, our School Officer in Year 2, has departed our community. We would like to thank Bronte for her support and wish her all the best in her future endeavours. You will notice recruitment will begin to fill this school officer position.
Toni Schneekloth - Toni will sadly be departing our schooling community in 3 weeks time. Toni is a very valued member of our community as our Pastoral Leader, First Nations Leader, and Safe Person. Toni will be remaining in Cloncurry and will still be involved with our school. We look forward to celebrating with Toni over the coming weeks and will have a chance to farewell Toni in the upcoming weeks.
Newsletter & Assembly:
The newsletter and assembly alternate each week to ensure you're informed. This is our first newsletter for the term and next Friday will be our second assembly for the term.
Completion of the building & upcoming potential disruptions:
The new building looks incredible!
We have taken a lot of time and care in planning this build, which has included visiting other schools in our Diocese and in the Brisbane Diocese for both inspiration and guidance on ‘what to do’ and ‘what not to do’. I hope you can see this when you view the building for the first time.
The building still has several weeks of construction left before it is complete. Once a timetable has been created for the relocation of the area this will be shared with you.
Future Building Disruptions:
Prep Verandah: The school has funded a verandah to be installed to the existing prep room. This verandah will follow the same design as the two new verandah's that have been built off the new classrooms. In doing so the primary classrooms will tie together with one another as each of them will have a similar outdoor learning space. To install this verandah there will be disruptions to the prep classroom and may be noise to the remainder of the school, I do however predict that this will be minor when considering how well the team at Simon Bell Construction have done at minimizing all other disruptions and noise this far.
This will be installed across 4 days, which will be confirmed soon, this will hopefully be across a Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday grouping of days to minimise disruptions and noise on school days. Once the date has been confirmed this will be communicated with parents/carers.
Fencing: The school will be fenced with a 1.8m fence. This fence will go around the entire school, including behind the Mary MacKillop Shed and playground. This may be installed over the Christmas break, but if an earlier installation is possible there may be some noise or disruptions for this.
It has been great to catch up with our existing families and I hope to see the remainder of you over the coming weeks.
May God bless you and your families,
Mrs Samantha Kelley
Principal
Deputy's News
Welcome Back to Term 4
Welcome back to all our students, staff, and families as we kick off what promises to be an exciting and productive Term 4. I hope everyone had a restful break and is ready to tackle the last term before the big man in red visits us. Our teachers returned with a meaningful start to the term, participating in a Walk on Country. This experience, guided by First Nations knowledge, allowed staff to reflect on the deep cultural connection Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have to the land. This practice also gave us a chance to reflect on how we, as educators, can incorporate these lessons of respect, history, and connection into our daily teaching.
Upcoming Events:
As we move into the new term, one of the key activities on the calendar is the PAT (Progressive Achievement Tests) in Reading and Mathematics for students in Years 2 to 9. These assessments, facilitated by ACER, are an invaluable tool in helping us measure each student’s progress and identify areas where additional support or extension may be needed. The data collected allows us to tailor our teaching strategies to better meet the needs of each learner and ensure we continue delivering high-quality, targeted instruction. Please encourage your children to approach these tests with a positive mindset, as they are simply a way for us to improve and adapt our teaching practices for their benefit
Rock Pop Performance:
A big shout-out and best wishes to our Rock Pop students who will take to the stage tonight for their much-anticipated performance. We are incredibly proud of the commitment and creativity they’ve shown throughout their rehearsals. A big thank you to the staff and volunteers who have supported the team in getting to this moment — we wish them all the best.
Mr Dean Kelley
Deputy Principal - Teaching and Learning
APRE
Welcome back to Term Four. I hope the break gave our school community a valuable opportunity to rest and recharge in order to prepare for the busyness of Term Four.
Sacramental Program - First Reconciliation
An email went out to parents and candidates on Monday with information in regards to the 2024 Sacramental Candidate completing their First Reconciliation. Parents are encouraged to read and respond to this email. If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me.
October - Month of the Rosary
This month the classes will focus their prayer times around the Rosary. October is designated by the Catholic Church as the "Month of the Rosary" because in this month the Church celebrates the Marian advocation of "Our Lady of the Rosary" on October 7.
To understand this feast, we need to go back in time. In the 16th century, the Islamic Ottoman Empire presented a serious military threat to Western Europe and sent a fleet of ships to attack Christian defences in Southern Europe. Pope Pius V recognized the grave danger and organized a fleet called the Holy League to confront the navy of the Ottoman Turks.
On October 7, 1571, the two navies engaged in a pivotal battle that would determine who controlled maritime traffic in the Mediterranean, Adriatic and Aegean seas. The fate of Western Europe depended upon the success of Christians in this navy battle, which involved more than 400 warships (it was the largest naval battle in Western history for centuries).
Pius V knew he needed more than just military strength to defend Christian Europe, so he asked that all the faithful pray the rosary, requesting the intercession of the Blessed Mother. At the end of the Battle of Lepanto, the Holy League was victorious and the maritime expansion of the Ottoman Empire was permanently prevented. (www.dotb.ca)
Still today the Rosary is such a powerful prayer that lets us develop and strengthen our relationship with God. By praying the Rosary, we meditate on the events in the life of Jesus Christ and this lets us know God more.
Wishing everyone a refreshed start to the new term!
Therese Curley
APRE
Pastoral Care
URSTRONG -8 Tips to Help Children Build Resilience
Let’s be honest, saying “Be resilient!” is not helpful. Instead, give kids practical ways to make lemonade out of lemons
“Resilience” has become a common word heard around schools and seems to be a big focus for both educators and parents. While we understand the importance of helping our children build emotional strength in the face of adversity, it is sometimes less obvious how to teach those critical skills.
We want kids to recognise the life lessons in tough situations and have the ability to ‘get back up on the horse’ and try again. However, in a world of Helicopter Parenting and click-of-a-button convenience, it is even more important to explicitly teach social-emotional skills to harness grit and resilience.
Here are a few strategies to help children strengthen their resilience:
Use Friendship Fires® as a teachable moment. Friendships mean the world to kids, but as Friendship Fact #1 states: No Friendship or Relationship is perfect. Use the lens of friendship to teach skills to build resilience. Our step-by-step approach for putting out Friendship Fires® helps children climb out of emotional holes and take control of social dynamics. Conflict resolution, the central theme of our program, is fundamental in building resilience.
Use child-friendly language. Words like “resiliency” and “anxiety” are adult words that sound really scary to children. Replace the word “anxiety” with butterflies, which we find extremely effective in our Friendology curriculum. Butterflies are not to be feared and can be set free.
If you want a child to be resilient, articulate the behaviours you would like to see. For example, if you have a student or child who gives up easily you could say, “I notice you’re having a hard time with the test and seem to be getting frustrated. Why don’t you try tackling the easiest problems first?” Give them specific suggestions for ways to persevere.
Avoid saying to a child, “Be resilient!” This statement is in the same family as, “Suck it up,” “Be a man,” “Just ignore it,” and “Grow up!” It offers no practical strategies for children and, as mentioned above, most kids do not even know what it means. Articulate what specifically a child could do that would ultimately demonstrate resilience.
Help children put their struggles in perspective. Sometimes children make mountains out of molehills. While adults have life experience and a greater understanding of The Grand Scheme of Things, children are not quite there yet. Talk to them about what is important and help them understand where this particular struggle is on the hierarchy of ‘what matters most.’ (Keep in mind, however, that their broken iPad might be at the top of the list and it may take some convincing to help them understand it is NOT the end of the world!)
Be honest with children. Sometimes kids’ greatest stressors come from the unknown. Fill in the blanks for them and, if necessary, come up with a plan together. If they are worried about trying something, get them to put a name to their butterflies and come up with a strategy to tame the ones they can control. Help them release the ones they can’t control because it’s wasted energy.
Have a plan. Give children all sorts of tips and strategies for calming themselves down in emotionally charged situations. Go for a walk, drink water, put your hands in your pockets, doodle, chew gum, listen to music, journal, or talk to a friend. Sit down with them and make a Calm Down Kit together. Resilience is about feeling in control. When we have a plan, even when we are in the dumps, we are more likely to rise above it.
Empathise. Sometimes a child just needs some extra support and that hand-up can come in the form of words of empathy. While you should definitely cheer them on, remind them that they can do it. Be their #1 fan! Watch this amazing video on empathy by Brene Brown and get in the hole with them.
Written by Dana Kerford - Friendship Expert and Founder, URSTRONG
The Resilience Project
Use this link to view a breakdown of the concepts of emotional intelligence and how it’s an integral part of thinking and decision making.
Uniform
St Joseph’s school family takes pride in its school uniform. It is a highly visible symbol of who we are and students are required to wear the full school uniform neatly and with pride.
Parents are asked to ensure their child is wearing the correct school uniform at all times. All items (except for shoes) can be purchased from the school’s Uniform Shop. Shoes are to be fully black, with no colours. Sports shoes can be worn on PE days.
Hairstyles are to be neat and tidy with long hair up off the collar. Keep outlandish hairstyles such as mullets, skullets etc for the holidays!
The students are to wear their hats at all times when they are outdoors including to and from school. The school’s policy is NO HAT – NO PLAY! Please ensure that all items are clearly marked with your child’s name.
We understand that there are accidents or days when school uniforms may not be worn correctly, just send a note to your classroom teacher, to the office or through COMPASS. Students who are not in the correct uniform without parent or caregiver notification will be sent an email of non-compliance through COMPASS.
Our Uniform Shop sells new uniforms and second-hand uniforms (when in stock) and can be purchased via the MySchoolConnect app or at the School Administration Office.
Feed and Succeed
I encourage all senior students to attend weekly tutoring available on Thursdays from 3-4pm!
Upcoming Events
Term 4 is always a busy one! Note these in your diary or calendar!
Best regards
Mrs Schneekloth
Pastoral Care Leader
Prep
Hello Everyone, Welcome to Term 4!
Over the last two weeks, Prep has hit the ground running in our Literacy unit identifying the characters and setting, and sequencing the events of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. We have also learnt the digraphs ‘wh’ as in whale, ‘th’ as in thumb and ‘oo’ as in moon.
Looking Forward into Week Three and Four:
Literacy: We will be continuing our learning ON digraphs. We have two to go for the year before we spend the remainder of the term revising. We will learn the digraphs ‘ng’ as in swing and ‘ay’ as in play. Over the next two weeks, we will also learn the new Tricky Words what, where, want, some and come identifying the parts that are tricky and the parts that we can sound out.
Numeracy: We have just finished our unit of work on Data collection. For the remainder of the year, our Little Leaders will partition and combine numbers to 20. They will represent practical situations involving quantifying, equal sharing, adding and subtracting to 10 using manipulatives. Students will recognise and write numbers from 0-20.
Religion: In Religion this term we will begin to recognise Jesus’ teachings about love, compassion and forgiveness that challenged people about the way they were living. We will relate examples of people having the freedom to choose between good and bad, right and wrong.
Reminders:
Swimming: Just a reminder that swimming is first up on Tuesday mornings. The classroom will be open to drop off your child’s brain break, lunch and school bag before heading to the pool. It is important to ensure that your child has their school hat and closed-in school shoes to wear when walking back to school.
Keep up to date with what is happening in Prep by checking out our Little Leaders Website.
Yours in fun and learning,
Miss Brock, Mrs McLauchlan, Miss Rachel, Miss Kylie and Miss Josie
Year 1
Hello Families,
We have had a busy first 2 weeks in year 1!
In Math, we have been collecting data and displaying the data on graphs. The students have been looking at bar and picture graphs. The students enjoyed going up to years 5 and 6 to collect data on their favourite colour and then compare the results with our favourite colour graphs.
In English, we have been looking at persuasive texts. The students have been looking at a book called ‘Red is the Best’ and discussing the girl's opinion and the reasons as to why red is the best colour.
The students enjoyed their first swimming lesson with Mr Timms on Tuesday. Just a reminder that the students need to bring sun-safe swimwear, towel and water bottle to school ready for the last lesson.
Reminders:
Monday: Art
Tuesday: Swimming (sport uniform)
Thursday: Homework due and Library (no more library for the term)
Friday: Technology
Enjoy your holidays!
Miss Haley and the always fun Year 1s
Year 2
Hi all,
Welcome back to Term 4 - last one for 2024!
During Writing this term we will be looking at Persuasive texts. The students have really enjoyed learning about the OREO text structure this week! Next week, we will begin learning how to construct a persuasive text. During HASS, we are looking at important places and caring for sites of significance. In Maths, we have nearly finished location and will be moving on to Measurement after this. In Science, we are looking into forces, particularly Push and Pull. During Religion, we are looking at prayer and how this strengthens our relationship with God.
Reminders:
- Homework due Monday
- Sport (Swimming) - Wednesday
- Library - Monday Week B (Week 4, 6, 8, 10)
Kind regards,
Miss Ansell
Year 3
Hi all,
October is Mission Month. In Week 5, each class at St Joseph’s will take part in the Socktober Shoot Out! This year, Socktober will raise money for the Caring Center in Mongolia. If you have any materials at home that you could contribute to our sockball, please start sending them in (e.g. socks, string, old shirts, and plastic bags).
Here are some updates regarding what we’ve been up to this fortnight...
English
This fortnight, we’ve learnt about the structure of a narrative structure (orientation, complication, sequence of events and resolution) and how we can use various narrative conventions (like time connectives, past tense, third person, descriptive language, dialogue rules, and figurative language) to enhance our writing.
Students also set a personalised reading goal to work towards this term!
As per routine, students have been working hard to:
- enhance their writing skills with Writer’s Toolbox
- learn to write using joined letters in handwriting
- learn new sounds each week to enhance their spelling skills
Mathematics
The students have been loving learning about fractions and finding fractions as a part of a whole and a part of a collection!
Religion
With our focus on prayer this term, students have been practicing the Our Father and The Glory Be. They have learnt about how Christians glorify God and how The Glory Be, like the Gloria (said during a Sunday mass), comes from Luke’s scripture (Luke 2:14).
Reminders:
- Homework - Due Thursday
- Swimming Tuesday
- Library every second Thursday (odd weeks - W1,3,5,7,9)
- Chaplain’s Breakfast - Tuesday & Thursday at 7:45am in MMS
Thank you
Laura Cook
Year 4
Hi all,
October marks Mission Month, and we are excited to celebrate this as Socktober! We would appreciate it if you could send in any loose household items such as lonely socks, string, old shirts, and plastic bags that could be used to create our own soccer balls. The best ball in the class will be used in our annual school 'shoot out' competition, which will take place on the Monday of Week 5, alongside our school colour run.
Our Water Safety lessons are going great so far! Students have enjoyed their first trip to the pool, showing enthusiasm and eagerness to improve their skills. It's wonderful to see their excitement as they dive into this new experience, building confidence and teamwork in the water. We look forward to continuing this journey together!
This term we are completing a Civics and Citizenship unit as part of HaSS. In this unit, students are exploring the differences between rules and laws and their importance in everyday life. They are investigating the roles of local government and how community members engage with local services. Additionally, we will discuss the diversity of cultural, religious, and social groups, highlighting their significance to personal identity.
Please don’t forget:
- Homework is due every Monday. This needs to be in on Monday to then be sent home the same day for the new week. If possible, I would love for this to be completed by Friday, however, I understand that with the variety of extracurriculars that the Year 4 children participate in, this can be difficult.
- We will be visiting the Library every Friday. Please make sure your child brings their homework bag and any outstanding books on Fridays.
- Children need to bring their swimmers every Tuesday.
- Year 4 will be leading our Assembly prayer in Week 3. Feel free to come along, participate in our prayer and support the class.
- It’s Ride to School Day on Friday of Week 3. If you want to ride to school, meet at Florence Clark Park at 7:45am.
- Grandparents Day is Thursday Week 4. Come along for a shared breaky!
Have a great fortnight.
Thank you
Mairin Borlase
Year 5
Welcome to Term 4!
I hope you are having a good week.
Term 4 has started as busy as Term 3 ended. The Year 5 children led our first assembly of this term. I was so proud of them all - it's never easy to get up on stage and read in front of the whole school and parents. They have also made me so proud with the energy and commitment they have shown to their two performances this term, Rock Pop and Treasure Island. If you have not purchased your ticket for Treasure Island yet please do so as soon as possible as they are selling out quickly.
Finally, at last, our Year 5 camp is here. I'm sure you will have some very excited and slightly nervous children this weekend. Please assure the children this is an opportunity for an adventure with their school friends.
English
During the last three terms, Year 5 has worked on narrative, persuasive and information texts. This has been supported and scaffolded work. This term we will be putting all this knowledge into quick writes - much like Naplan tasks. We have started this work with persuasive writing as the children have found this very difficult. Our quick write theme this week has been “We should all learn to swim”.
The children have also continued their weekly Soundwaves lessons. In week 1 we worked on the sound ‘y’.‘y’. is used at the start and in the middle of words, but never at the end of words (e.g. yellow, canyon).
‘y’. is frequently used as part of the sequence of phonemes ‘y’ ’’oo. These two phonemes are often represented by the graphemes ew, u_e and u (e.g. knew, cube, music).
The grapheme i can represent ‘y’ (e.g. million, onion).
The grapheme ough is an unusual way to represent ‘O’ (e.g. though, dough). In week 2 we worked on the sound ’’oo’. The graphemes ew, ue, u_e and u can represent ‘oo’ (e.g. grew, true, rude, ruler). However, they can also represent ‘y’ ’’oo’ (e.g. new, rescue, cube, music).
The grapheme ou represents ’’ou’ in a small set of words (e.g. group, route, soup, boulevard). Words containing ou for ’’oo’ usually originate from French.
Unusual graphemes for ’’oo’ used in high frequency words include oe and ough (e.g. shoe, through).
Maths
In Maths, in week 1 we finished our shape unit. We worked on symmetry, rotations and translation of shapes. In week 2 we moved on to our new unit on factions. The children will be adding and subtracting fractions. In week 2 we worked on adding and subtracting fractions with the same denominator.
Religion
In Religion, we have started our new unit ‘Mary, the Mother of the Church’. In weeks 1 and 2, the children have been learning about the Rosary and how the Rosary is prayed. We have also been learning about the Mysteries of the Rosary. The children have enjoyed learning about different times in Jesus' life.
Specialist Subjects:
Monday: Technology and Science
Tuesday: Drama
Wednesday: Swimming and Health, students are to be dropped off at the pool
Thursday: Science and HASS
Friday: Japanese and HASS
Reminders:
- Tuesdays and Thursdays: Chaplaincy breakfast begins at 7:45am.
- Wednesday: Tuck shop orders due by 8.30am
Hope you have a great weekend,
Nicola Cullen
Year 6
Dear Families,
Thanks so much for your speedy response for the consent to take students to St Andrew's Hall. We had our first two practices there and the children were outstanding! The performance is really taking shape and you will be very proud of the collective effort they have shown in getting organised throughout the year (even if you may be sick of the songs - maybe not as much as I am)! You can still purchase tickets for our performance; there really is no expectation that you attend both nights but you are of course very welcome. We do ask that the students involved in the performances are available both nights arriving by 6pm on Wednesday 20th and Thursday 21st November (Week 8).
Chelsea and Peggie (and friends) were selling Cupcakes for Breast Cancer during week 1, coupled with a free Silent Disco at lunch has meant a very busy start for them. During the holidays, they baked 300 cupcakes - which were delicious! Thanks also to Susan and Rose for supporting the girls with the preparation at home. They designated that Friday 4th October was a Wear PINK to show your support and raise awareness - coupled with the gold coin donations, their total was approximately $707 with a further $222 online giving them a grand total of $929 - phenomenal ladies! Obviously, the significant charity work that we have organised this year has meant we're always asking for money; your support is appreciated but in no way is it expected or under appreciated. It is however a terrific experience that our students get the opportunities to lead and organise these events throughout the year and be involved in Works of Mercy and you should all be immensely proud of this little community. If you are interested in making a donation - click this link.
In English, our reading focus will be on the Socratic Debate structure. Students read a text with the adult, research the wider topic of the text, clarify the meaning, and definitions of new vocabulary, ask questions about the topic etc. Students then bring all the information back to discuss and debate the topic. Our first topic is Jellyfish; the students have already discovered some fascinating facts about the most lethal, largest and what to do in an emergency. Our writing will be a return to persuasive text structure using the lawyer paragraph to get our opinion across and make our writer's seem like experts. Spelling for this week is investigating [oo ew ue u-e u] graphemes for the phoneme [u], further discussions about word origins and investigation of the prefixes sub- (meaning under/below) and super- (meaning over/greater/higher).
In Maths, we commence the term with a focus on TRANSFORMATIONS - translations (slide), rotations (turn) and reflections (flip). Students are welcome to continue using IXL at home (our free trial ends at the end of Term 4) The focus for the next fortnight is on Unit Z - symmetry and Transformations. Other maths topics this term include Prisms, Chance and Data and a return to Fractions, Decimals and Percentages to complete their Year 6 journey. Our Think Mentals continue to be a revision of all four operations and the strategies available to calculate efficiently and wherever possible mentally. To connect with Backyard Buddies, we will visit the workshop to create simple bird/mini creature houses - applying our measuring skills and using equipment safely.
In Religion, we are investigating Works of Mercy by reading Matthew 25:31-46 and discussing the meaning of the text. We will use our Socratic Debate structure to delve deeper into the text - clarify meaning, ask questions and discuss vocabulary. We will investigate how we can support the less fortunate in society and live a life under Jesus' Law. We will investigate our new school prayer and the importance of prayer like the Examen and Lord's Prayer to Catholics. Students explain the significance of Jesus' New Law for the way believers live their faith and examine the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. They explain the significance of personal and communal prayer including the Our Father and the Examen and the use of meditative prayer practices especially prayer journaling for the spiritual life of believers.
GOOD LUCK TO ALL OUR ROCK POPPERS - Friday will be another evening to remember! I will be away on Y5 Camp in week 3, while the following week I will be on a mini adventure to Perth for a family wedding. Plenty of work has been organised, planned and left for the teachers who will fill in.
Looking forward to our final term together,
Mike
UMY Subject Spotlight
UMY Languages - Japanese with Mr Delaney
The Year 7, 8 & 9 students have a fun, and quite an interesting topic to finish the year… We are learning about “chindōgu”. Chindōgu (珍道具) is the practice of inventing ingenious everyday gadgets that seem to be ideal solutions to particular problems, but which may cause more problems than they solve. See below:
**Fun fact - the selfie stick was actually lumped into this category until it gained popularity in the 21st Century!**
The students have been reviewing some of these inventions, why they might’ve been developed (the ‘need’), their usefulness, and labelling the nouns using appropriate Japanese characters. By the end of the term, the students will develop their own chindōgu prototype and write a short pitch that they will present (in Japanese) for the class!
UMY Arts with Miss Humes
Our UMY students have begun this term by continuing where they left off at the end of the last, and that is with dance. They have spent the last handful of weeks looking at how dance has evolved and become increasingly popular through the phenomenon of social media trends. Through these short videos, we have explored elements of dance, as well as worked on our teamwork as we choreographed our own short dances.
However, this all changes in the next couple of weeks as we switch our focus to music. In this short unit, students are going to continue working on necessary teamwork skills to develop a short performance. They will be using boomwhackers - plastic tubes set to one pitch - played in order to recreate a song
Youth Ministry & Chaplaincy
Welcome back for our last term of the year!! It’s crazy that Christmas is just around the corner. More on that later…
We have plenty happening this term, from the day-to-day ministry of SJC, to the special termly events.
Prayer sessions in the classrooms will continue this term focused on either the class’ core Scripture or the Hail Mary and/or Rosary for the month of October;
Mini Vinnie’s and Spirit in Action (SIA) start back up in the coming weeks. This term, the youth ministry groups will be focusing on Vinnie’s Christmas Appeal, some more visits to the Cloncurry Hospital to hang out with the aged care residents, and helping with Chaplaincy Breakfast. The Year 4 students will be welcomed into the Mini Vinnie’s group this term, led by the Year 6 students who will receive their badges as a sign of their commitment. Similarly, the UMY SIA students will receive their badges;
As this is the Year 9 student's final term at SJC, they will have a special retreat day at the end of the term, on the same day as their graduation dinner. I look forward to sharing further details of this experience closer to.
Important dates/reminders!
- Chaplaincy Breakfast: every Tuesday and Thursday before school @ 7:45. Due to morning prayer sessions and homeroom time for classes, we will begin to pack up from 8:10.
- Mini Vinnie’s: Our next Mini Vinnie’s session will be next week on Wednesday (16/10) during First Break.
Spirit in Action (SIA): Students in Years 6 to 9 are still encouraged to join our group! Our next session will be next Monday 21/10.
Yours in faith, hope & love
Mr Delaney
First Nations Education
Dadirri Experience
What does 'Dadirri' mean? First Nations people practice deep listening, an almost spiritual skill, based on respect. 'Dadirri' is a First Nations word meaning 'inner deep listening and quiet still awareness and waiting'.
Last week, Father Mick led our staff in a meaningful on-country dadirri experience, focusing on reflection, gratitude, and deep listening. Set against the beautiful backdrop of Cloncurry, especially at Chinaman Creek Dam, the tranquility of the environment enhanced our connection. We engaged in meditation, which deepened the experience and allowed us to immerse ourselves in nature, bringing forth a sense of peace and insight. Overall, it was a fantastic start to a busy term ahead.
To learn a little more about dadirri, click on this link.
Community Information
School Student Broadband Initiative
We can support your child’s education with free home internet.
This is an Australian Government program for families and carers with school-age children who are struggling with bills.
Eligible parents and carers have until 31 December 2024 to register for the School Student Broadband Initiative and sign up with a participating internet provider.
Contact our team to see if you qualify and for help getting your house connected Student NBN enquiry form
The goal is for all School Student Broadband Initiative households on Fibre to the Node (FTTN), Fibre to the Basement (FTTB) and Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) technology, to be provided with a broadband service based on nbn’s 50/20 wholesale speed tier.
For more information contact the initiative provider directly on 1800 954 610 or check out the FAQs
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