Term 1 Week 8 2023

Key Information

Term 1 Important Dates

• Monday 27th March and Tuesday 28th March - Parent Teacher Interview Year 4 to Year 9
• Thursday 30th March - Good Friday Liturgy & Easter Hat Parade - 8.30am 
• Friday 31st March - IPRASS Day - No School 

Term 2

• Monday 17th April - Term 2 begins
• Tuesday 25th April - ANZAC Day
• Monday 1st May - Labour Day
• Friday 16th June - Show Holiday
• Friday 23rd June - Last Day of Term 2

Tuckshop Menu:

Special: Potato & Horseradish Hash with St Patrick's Cupcakes and a Popper

Orders are to be in by 8.30am each Wednesday morning! Click the link to order!

https://myschoolconnect.com.au/

A little note for all Parents & Friends -
If you are needing to contact Miss Jamie-Lea, please call the office on (07)47421633 Wednesday/Thursday, or alternatively on her email jmcconachy@sjctsv.catholic.com.au

Uniform Shop

Open Days:

• Monday: 2.30pm-3pm
• Wednesday: 8:10am-8:30am

Any requests for uniforms outside of these days MUST be done via the link below. Please click the link to access the Uniform shop! https://myschoolconnect.com.au/

Principal News

Welcome to Week 8, 

It is great to be back at school this week. I attended a Principal’s Conference in Townsville at the beginning of last week with other principals from around our Diocese and was unfortunately at home unwell with tonsillitis at the end of the week. It is good to be feeling better and back on deck. 

Parent Teacher Student Interviews:
Our first round of Parent Teacher Student Interviews started this week for students in prep to year 3. These interviews are a great way for three of our most important stakeholders to come together (parents/carers, students and teachers) in partnership for success. Research demonstrates that effective schools with high engagement and academic outcomes also have high levels of parent engagement and community involvement. This involvement is strongly related to improved learning, attendance and behaviour. As parents and carers you are the first and most influential teacher in your child’s life. Parent Teacher Interviews are a perfect way for us to join together in unity for the benefit of both your own child/children and for all children at St Joseph’s Catholic School. 

Please know that this partnership and involvement extends far beyond Parent Teacher Interviews. If you would like to come into the school to join in on reading groups, literacy or numeracy rotations, or lunch time activities we would love to hear from you - please contact your child’s classroom teacher or the office. 

This year we have trialled a split in parent teacher interview times with children in years 4 to 9 having their interviews in Week 10. The main reason for this was the movement of NAPLAN to term 1 and the need for parents to attend multiple interviews. A break in the calendar has meant that parents can go along to interviews for all of their children without having to come to school each afternoon in the same week. 

Wine & Cheese Afternoon - Family and Community Engagement:
Come along to hear about the re-structure of our P&F group to a Family and Community Engagement Group. We will meet in the library from 5.30 - 6.30pm next Tuesday the 21st of March. I am excited to share with you what this transition means and to gather your input on what you would like to see happen in this space throughout the year. If you can’t make it, you will still have the opportunity to provide your ideas through a Google Survey. 

The evening will start with a presentation on what FACE means. It will then move into an informal event where parents / friends / staff can interact with each other and contribute to different questions / posters around the room. 

NAPLAN - Year 3, 5, 7 & 9
We are ready to go with NAPLAN kicking off tomorrow with the writing test. All year levels will complete this test on their computers, with an exception for year 3 who still complete a paper test for writing. 

There are a number of things parents can do to assist us in preparing students for NAPLAN:

• Please ensure students get a good night's sleep prior to the tests, and a good breakfast the morning of.
• Language surrounding NAPLAN is very important. We have been speaking positively about the tests at school, and it would be good if that could continue at home. Whilst it is important for students to try their best and 'give it a go', these tests take a small snap-shot of their overall capabilities and it's important for students to maintain a healthy perspective.
• Students have been working towards these tests for over a term now, as our preparation started last year. Students have even experienced the platform that they will complete the test in and sample questions. Please reassure your child that they are well prepared and shouldn't be overwhelmed or nervous. However, if your child is particularly anxious please contact their classroom teacher to inform them.

Harmony Day:
This week we have celebrated Harmony Day (official day is next Tuesday - 21st March), however, due to a number of events next week and the commencement of NAPLAN tomorrow it was fitting to celebrate this week. It has been nice for us to come together and foster inclusiveness and respect. The theme for 2023 is ‘living in harmony’, which is certainly true at St Joseph’s Catholic School. At St Joseph’s we are proud of our foundations. It is clear that we remain committed to Mary MacKillop’s vision for Catholic education instituted many years ago which emphasises the need to be a community of welcome, open to all. 

Yesterday our students joined together in the Church for a Harmony Day liturgy, today they wore a colour from the rainbow or traditional dress and joined in a whole school dance party at 10.30am. Last week students discussed harmony day and how we ensure harmony in their classes and completed a hand and/or flag that represents themselves, their culture and their family which are showcased in the library. We love coming together! 

God Bless you and enjoy your week ahead, 

Mrs Samantha Kelley
Principal 

APRE News

Welcome to week 8! Yesterday we had our last Confirmation and First Holy Communion gathering with our 2023 candidates - Wyatt Mara-Skellern, Cole Daley, Clancy Saunders, Oliver O’Brien, Scarlett Campbell, Caroline Curley, Charlotte Curley, Brydee Gresham and Angela Murray. Our Confirmation and First Holy Communion Mass will be held on Wednesday April 19, at 5 pm.

When Bishop Tim Harris will make the special trip out to confirm these new members. Please keep them in your prayers as we wish them all the best for the completion of their Sacramental Journey. 

Children’s Mass
Thank you to all the families and children who joined us for our Children’s Mass on Sunday. We had a fantastic turnout! Fr Emene celebrated our mass with us. Our readings and songs were adapted to assist the children in their understanding of the scripture. Fr Ememe even gave a very entertaining and insightful homily that involved some icky mud (to demonstrate how sometimes we can make a mess of our lives ) and some water (to symbolies how Jesus is always there to help us wash away the icky mud and help to clean the mess).  I wish to say a special thank you to all the children who participated in the mass, whether they were reading, acting out the gospel, singing or bringing up the gifts, it is their presence that makes these gatherings so special - So thank you to all who participated!

St Patrick’s Feast Day Friday 17th March
This Friday is St Patrick's Feast day. The Year Three class  have been writing some lovely prayers to pray to St Patrick. I have included some below, however they are all on display in the office - please have a look!

Notices:

• St Joseph’s Feast Day: Next Friday 24th we will share in a Liturgy at our assembly followed by celebration activities. 

Have a blessed week!

Mrs Therese Curley
APRE

Pastoral Care

The Resilience Project - Part 5: Summary

This final part of The Resilience Project’s series shares an important message about creating environments where our kids can ask for help. 

65% of adolescents do not seek help for mental illness. 

In this presentation, Martin shares a personal experience about a traumatic event that happened to him as a child. He explains how he overcame adversity and built resilience by asking for support, particularly from his family.

Note: This video contains a story of sexual abuse that may be triggering. Please consider this before watching. For mental health resources and support information, visit The Resilience Project’s Support Page. 

View Part 5: Summary of the series here: https://theresilienceproject.com.au/parent-and-carer-hub-hugh/

Thank you for participating in this Parent and Carer Digital Program series. You can re-watch the videos and access activities and resources anytime via the Parent and Carer Hub. You can also stay up to date with The Resilience Project news and events by signing up to their Newsletter.

Clean Up Australia - Wednesday 15th March 2023

Our Clean Up Australia Day activity was planned for 3rd March however due to the glorious rain we have had, it was postponed.  This Wednesday our Green Joey’s will be stepping up to clean up this beautiful country!

St. Patrick’s Day - Friday 17th March 2023

To celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, we will be holding a lunchtime disco in the library this Friday! This will also celebrate the end of NAPLAN. Students can dance of their week of tests. 

National Ride2School Day - Friday 24th March 2023

St. Joseph’s is excited to be celebrating National Ride2School Day on Friday 24 March 2023.

National Ride2School Day is the perfect opportunity to kick-start new healthy habits and promote the many benefits of active travel. We encourage all students and their families to leave the car at home and give riding, walking, scooting or skating to school a go. It’s sure to be a fantastic morning and we look forward to seeing you there!

Join us next Friday morning at 7.45am at Florence Clark Park on Scarr Street!

Mrs Toni Schneekloth

Pastoral Care Leader

Literacy Goal - Progress

This year, to increase literacy outcomes at St Joseph's we have added reading and writing time into our timetable for all students. Surprisingly, less than 8 weeks into the year and we are already getting a glimpse at what the future holds based on our current literacy focus.

Firstly, I will share some background knowledge about our writing program. Starting from day one this year our entire student body committed to improving their writing. And improve it has. Each morning starts with prayer and 10-- sometimes 20 — minutes of writing on the "daily challenge". During this time students in Year 3 to Year 9 focus on the elements of quality writing while constructing a text focusing on sentence types, fluency, and precision. As you could imagine this does look a little different in Prep, Year 1, and Year 2. Students in our early years are focused on making connections and building the foundations for quality writing.

Below, I have shared images from the Writer's Toolbox which show both engagement and improvement. To give these results some perspective I have added notes after the images.

This data means (Year 3 to Year 9):

• The average student from Year 3 to Year 9 has written close to 4,000 words in the first 7 weeks of schooling.
• We are on track to write over 2 million words - (just on the Writer's Toolbox) as a school or 20,000 per student before the year's end. 
• On average, each student has improved their writing (additional sentence types, adding precision to their writing, and increasing fluency) 180 times - this is over 5 times per day, every day. 

This is a phenomenal effort from students and they should be congratulated on their engagement and willingness to develop their literacy skills. I will always be biased however, I believe the classroom teachers deserve some level of credit for these amazing results as well.  
Parents/caregivers can further foster this development of literacy by asking your child/children to show you their "Daily Challenge", asking them about the sentence types, and reading together regularly. 

Mr Dean Kelley
Head of Teaching and Learning 

NAPLAN

Our students in years 3, 5, 7, and 9 are well prepared to commence NAPLAN tomorrow. I have inserted the timetable below. As you will see the writing test is the first test that all students in Australia sit to commence NAPLAN week. This test is completed on the computer for students in years 5, 7 and 9. Year 3 complete the test on paper. 

Students may feel anxious about the NAPLAN testing window, however, please reassure students that we have prepared them well and they are to do their best. We are proud of the development that our students have shown. 

I hope all students get a good nights sleep tonight and come refreshed to start the testing window tomorrow. 

If your child does become distressed about the tests please communicate this to their classroom teacher. 

Mr Dean Kelley
Head of Teaching and Learning 

Prep

Welcome to Week 8! 

This week we will be learning about St Patrick's Day celebrations as part of our HASS unit. The class will participate in some Irish Dancing (thank you Jill Smith), decorate some biscuits with green icing and make a rainbow shamrock. We will learn about the letter "p" and begin to blend letters to read simple words during our InitialLit lessons. Hopefully the sun will come out so we can do our postponed sausage sizzle sunscreen experiment! In Maths the class will make and cook mini pizzas. They will then complete an assessment about the sequence. I will be out of class on Tuesday for a planning day - if Mrs McConachy, who is covering Prep, is not flooded in! 

Reminders:

• Monday: Making pizza
• Tuesday: Sport. 
• Wednesday: Order tuckshop
• Friday: St Patrick's Day

Yours in fun and learning,

Mrs Sharon McLauchlan and Miss Tamara Williams. 

Year 1

Hello parents and carers, 

Welcome to week 8! 3 weeks of learning to go before the end of term. We are busy revising learning from the start of the term and looking at assessing the concepts that the students have learnt. 

Here is a snapshot of the week ahead;

Literacy: We are continuing to learn about simple sentences and the four aspects that a simple sentence needs. A capital letter, a full stop, the sentence needs to be about something or someone and needs to make sense. We have been focusing on the digraphs that we have been learning in Initalit and where we see them in a word. Our latest digraph that the students have learnt is the ee/ea digraph. 

Math: We are continuing our learning to identify patterns over the next few weeks using numbers and objects, specifically number patterns, skip counting in 2’s, 5’s and 10’s. We have also started our learning on place value and identifying where numbers go on a place value house. 

Religion: We are learning to identify our gifts from God. How we can be stewards of God in everyday life. We also have a focus on the Easter story and the timeline in which the events happened leading up to Easter Sunday. 

Reminders

Library: Monday (week 1,3,5,7,9)

Resilience Project: Monday (week 2,4,6,8,10)

Sport: Wednesday (every week) please have your child wear sports uniform

Technology: Thursday (every week)

Homework was sent out last Friday and is expected back on Thursday morning so readers can be changed over. 

Just a reminder that we do have a child that is anaphylaxis to Watermelon and Kiwifruit in our class. Please be mindful of when you pack these items in your child's lunch box and please let me know. 

This week is parent teacher interviews and it is not to late to jump on Compass to book an appointment to see Miss Brock and Miss Haley about how your child is growing as a learner for term one and the goals we can make for the rest of the semester. 

Have a wonderful week,

Miss Mae-Louise Brock, Miss Erin Haley and the always fun Year 1’s!

Year 2

Hi all,

During InitiaLit this week we are working on the comprehension strategy of prediction and are reviewing vowel digraphs and split digraphs. This week we are looking at the preposition start sentences. In Maths, we are counting collections of coins and have been working at our place value on Friday’s. Along with this, we are looking at keeping ourselves healthy and safe in Health, God’s nature and relationship with his people in Religion, Mixtures in Science, where and why there is Drama as well as now and then during HASS.

A few reminders:

• Technologies is on Tuesday each week.
• Sport is on Friday each week. Students are to wear house shirts for this and we will wear our Sport shirt on Wednesday so we get to use all of our uniforms.
• Library and Resilience Project will be on a fortnightly rotation on Mondays. Monday Week A (week 1, 3, 5, 7, 9) will be Resilience Project. Monday Week B (week 2, 4, 6, 8, 10) will be Library.
• Homework is due on Tuesday and will go out on Tuesday. We will start this week. Reading is the most important part of homework!

Have a fantastic week,

Miss Leonie Ansell

Year 3

Welcome to Week 8!

This will be a huge week for Year 3 with the children all taking part in the Naplan testing. The tests cover skills in reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy. The children have all worked so hard this term, grasping new concepts and new forms of writing. I am so very proud of them all. The children now need to relax, believe in themselves and try their very best - there is nothing more we can ask from them. 

What’s on this week:

Monday: Parent Teacher meetings begin.

Homework will not be set due to Naplan but Home Readers will be given. Please ensure all Home Readers are returned on Friday.

Tuesday: Chaplain’s Breakfast in MMS 7.45am.

PE the children can wear their sports shirt.

As this is Week B the children have Library please ensure children return their books. 

Harmony Free dress - come in your favourite rainbow colour.

Wednesday: Naplan Day 1.

                      Tuckshop orders must be in by 8.30am.

Thursday: Naplan Day 2.

Chaplain’s Breakfast in MMS 7.45am.

Tuckshop Day. 

Children have Technology with Miss Laffey.

Friday: Naplan Day 3.

             Home Readers to be returned.

No assembly this week due to Naplan.

Best Wishes,

Mrs Nicola Cullen

Year 4

Hi everyone, 

Interviews - A reminder for parents that parent interviews are coming up on Monday and Tuesday next week. If you haven’t booked in you can do this on compass. If these times don’t suit, feel free to get in touch to arrange another time or pop into class before or after school.

Reminders:

• Homework - Homework was given out this Monday and it is to be returned on Friday. 
• Tuckshop - Tuckshop is on this week. Orders are due on Wednesday. 

• Library - Our library visit was last Thursday. Our next library visit is next week (week 9). If your child wants a new library book please encourage them to visit the library during lunch times. 

• PE - PE will be this Thursday. Please have your child wear their sports uniform.

Thank you and have a great week,

Miss Mairin Borlase

Year 5

Dear Families,

This week we have NAPLAN each morning - we start on Wednesday at 9:20 with our Assessment of Writing, followed by Reading and Language Conventions on Thursday before completing with Mathematics on Friday morning. It is important that learners get a good night’s rest and if they are feeling under the weather, they do not come to school. We have catch up days in Week 9/10, whichever test they missed can be caught up.

ENGLISH - we will discuss reminders about narrative and persuasive text structure and organisation. Learners will continue to complete regular comprehension activities and their spelling programme will continue with <i> sound (as in igloo) - segmenting, investigating prefixes, synonyms and antonyms (in, im, il and ir), and the suffix -ive. They will complete activities for Unit 7 in their Green Sound Wave student book.

MATHEMATICS - This week will be revision of place value, addition and subtraction strategies. Think Mentals will continue to focus on Subtraction Strategies - the aim of these strategies is to develop efficient mental calculations, although currently we encourage the use of mini whiteboards.

HASS - the learners will continue to investigate the Gold Rush in Bathurst NSW.

• Harmony Week
• NAPLAN Writing (WEEK 8 - WEDNESDAY)
• NAPLAN Reading Comprehension (WEEK 8 - THURSDAY)
• NAPLAN Language Conventions & Spelling (WEEK 8 - THURSDAY)
• NAPLAN Numeracy (WEEK 8 - FRIDAY)

Wishing you all an awesome week. 

Mr Mike Tarleton

Year 6

This week the Year 6 students have begun working on a number of assessment tasks for the term:

• They are completing their draft Diary Entries in English

• Revising the addition and subtraction of fractions as well as how to simplify fraction in preparation for their Math’s test on Thursday

• Have been looking at different Asian countries and researching social and economical characteristics. 
• Engaging in cyber bullying activities to prepare themselves for their Health test. 

We also spent some time making Origami Cranes which everyone loved!

It has been a very busy week in Year 6, but everyone has been working very hard!

Mr Dom Purcell

UMY - Spotlight

Yr 7 & 8 Art with Miss Humes
This term we have been quite busy exploring the visual art space through looking at Indigenous Artists. We’ve done some research on the artists to discover what inspires their artworks, and through their work, identified the elements of art (line, space, colour, shape, texture, form and value). 

That’s the written side, but the arguably messier and more enjoyable aspect of visual arts is creating. It is astounding to see students delve into the creative process, from finding inspiration, to planning their artworks, and finally bringing them to life using paint, watercolours, and a few other mediums. It is a truly colourful and engaging space to work in, and I can’t wait for everyone to have a chance to see these finished artworks!

Yr 9 English with Mrs Delaney-Lovett
It’s wild to think that Term 1 is (almost) done & dusted! This term, the students have engaged with persuasive texts, focussing on a public health issue as the topic. We have examined and explored the way a text (written, spoken, visual - or combined) can be manipulated for effect. The students have constructed a visual text (in the form of a print advertisement) that aims to promote or prevent a public health issue of their choosing. The visual text must be purposeful - reflected through the choice of colours, images, composition, vocabulary choices & language features used. From this, the students will develop an essay answering the question: how do you effectively promote/prevent a public health issue, to a target audience, through your advertisement. 

The expectation with the written component is adherence to structure (from sentence, to paragraph, to sections of a whole text); use of persuasive language, and analysis of the techniques they’ve used to create their advertisement - arguing their impact. This is a big task, however I am pleased with the progress of the learners & will be in contact if there are any concerns. 

9 Religion with Mrs Delaney-Lovett
This term, the students have had 2 units of work: one focussed on the importance of prayer and meditation in the lives of believers; the other centred around the Church’s response to emerging moral issues (Catholic Social Teachings and agencies such as Caritas Australia). The students have engaged in really robust discussions about the link between human rights and human dignity, the importance of upholding and respecting the dignity of the human person, and how this can be lost in societies/communities around the world. We will soon focus on the work of the Catholic agency - Caritas Australia - as an extension of the Catholic Church, and determine the way that their works around the world are evidence of the Church’s response to emerging moral issues such as poverty, access to education, hygiene, sanitation, health care and more.

Harmony Day Celebrations

School Chaplain

Our Colouring In Competition has started and we would love all students to participate! One entry per child, prizes per year level and Spark Club at first lunch is where you will find the pages! 

Spark Club was created to connect with the School Chaplain and to have conversations or ideas spark up! We spoke yesterday of Jesus and Easter, Death and the Ocean. The students always have so much to share, it is great to be a part of their interesting lives.

Today we danced for Harmony Day! Happy by Pharrell Williams and the kids absolutely loved it! Perhaps we need a Spotify list for St Joseph's! And, bring in dancing through the term!

St Patrick's Day this Friday, what a celebration week! Keeping the good vibes flowing! Have a wonderful week, 

Miss Pete x 

Sight & Hearing Screeners

Dear Parents,

Unfortunately, the Prep sight screeners have been canceled for this week. Mount Isa Child Health have postponed all travel for the next two weeks due to the rain and road conditions. A new date will be scheduled for next term and I will communicate this date with you as soon as it is confirmed. 

In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me at school or through email: lmartin3@sjctsv.catholic.edu.au

Yours in Faith and Education,

Mrs Louise Martin

Indigenous Education

Speech Language Pathologist Information

Community Notices

St Patricks Celebrations @ Gidgee Inn