2022 Week 9 Term 4

Dear Parents

As we draw closer to the end of the school year it is easy to get caught up in the busyness and stresses of all we need to complete and deal. Preparation for the end of the 2022 school year, and the coming of Christmas can sometime feel overwhelming.

It is important for us to keep in mind the amazing things we have achieved together this year, as well as the happy times.  I am hearing from many of our Year 6 students, whose time at St Joseph's is coming to an end, how much this school has meant to them and how sad they are to be leaving. For them, of course, an exciting new beginning awaits as they commence their secondary school journey, making new friends and meeting new challenges.

These conversations do remind me of how important each day is and how we must always make the most of each moment. Keep in mind what matters most, and that is, the relationships we build with each other and the times we share whilst part of the St Joseph's School community.

I wish to acknowledge and give thanks to Fr Felix and the staff at St Joseph's School. Their response to all that was asked of them this year has been inspiring, to say the least. They keep their students engaged with learning, continuing to foster a sense of belonging and concern for the well-being of all the children in their care. I admire them and give thanks for the gift of each staff member.

To our P & F and volunteers throughout the year. You were there ready and firing to help out and improve our school. You came when the call went out, doing so graciously and silently knowing our school needed you. I thank you for being selfless and having our students at the centre of what we achieved.   

To our parent community, I extend the most heartfelt thanks. You continue to be challenged beyond what you could have imagined. You navigate your own full time work and personal challenges alongside being a parent and a teacher for your child/children. You have stepped up, pushed through and provided your children with a nurturing, loving and enriching environment where they continue to learn and grow. 

Of course the stars of our 2022 school year are our children. They adapted to all that we asked of them. They push themselves to stay motivated, stay positive, and grown in their appreciation of being able to come to school. Our students are simply amazing and will transcend beyond anything that is thrown at them. 

We are... because of them!

Staff Updates

A few important announcements regarding staffing changes for 2023.

We welcome to our school next year:

Miss Kandis Hoffman who will be on a Kindergarten class. Ms Jessica Power, teaching a Stage 1 class. Mrs Tegan Houghton who will take on the role of the Indigenous Education Worker.

We will welcome and learn more about our new staff at a more formal occasion in 2023.

Staff Farewells

We say thanks and appreciate the time the following staff and students contributed to our school making up the culture and loving place our school has become over this year and over the many years they have attended St Joseph's School. May God Bless each and everyone of you and May the road in front, be filled with many of God's graces and cherished moments.

Staff: Ms Courtney Brown, Miss Ellie Norman, Mrs Josephine Richardson, Miss Ella Page, Miss Brittany Goodsell

Students: Logan Paine, Andi Farmer-Sibanda, London Byfield, Rylan, Marlee and Myah Prussing

Year 6 - Families Leaving

As this is the last Newsletter for 2022, we would like to acknowledge the families who are leaving our school community, particularly those who have been a part of St Joseph’s for a significant period of time, some for many years. We know the school has changed a great deal during the past years. We thank you for supporting the growth, innovation and changes throughout that time. Thank you for your contribution to our Parish school community. We wish you all the very best moving forward. 

Farewell to the Beattie, Cooper, Hurrell, Kolk, Lynch, Martin, Moorman, Newman and Todd families.

Parent Portal - Reports

To access your child's report for Semester 2, please log into the Parent Portal. The Parent Portal is our Student Information System software – Schoolworx.

The Parent Portal is a secure web based application which contains information about our school and your child.  The Parent Portal will again contain your child's end of year report. Other information for parents is also held on this system such as NAPLAN results.

If you require an account, please follow these steps below. For security reasons the username for this account must be your email address recorded at the school.  The process is as follows.

1. Log in to http://parent.lism.catholic.edu.au create an account with your email address as the username.
2. An email will be sent to this address stating that a new account has been created and includes instruction to activate your account by following the embedded link.
3. If the email does not arrive check your spam folder.
4. You will be prompted to create a password and to confirm this password.
5. Select the blue log in button. Add the username and new password created in step 4.
6. Click on the Schoolworx icon to enter the Schoolworx parent portal.
7. Select your child.
8. Log out when done.

If you do not have an email address which is known to the school or you have changed your email address during the Term or provider, please contact the St Joseph's School Office on 6585 1745 to update your details.

These instructions are also available on our website

Staffing for 2023

2023 Classes

A great deal of thought and planning is involved in allocating students to classes. We take into account social groupings, academic performance, intervention needs, previous teachers the children have been taught by as well as other factors. To ensure that this process is completed with every student’s best interest at heart, a collaborative process is undertaken with all our educational professionals who have relevant knowledge of any of the students to be grouped into new classes. This includes the current class teachers, specialist teachers, intervention teachers, teacher assistants, Additional Needs teacher, and members of the school Leadership Team.

The next part of the process is where our children participate in a step up day. They  meet their new teachers for 2023 or continue with the teachers they have worked with this year. We ask that you embrace with your child their teacher and classmates and be encouraged that all considerations have been made.  

Thank you for your understanding with this aspect of school life. I have every confidence in the class distribution process, along with the quality and care afforded all students. There is no perfect arrangement of classes, no perfect class group, and no perfect teacher for any student. Rather, in each class, we aim to create a balance of gender, learning needs, as well as consideration of social and emotional needs.

Christmas Blessings

I wish all in our community every blessing for this Christmas season. Be safe, have fun, and enjoy the important parts of life the most important of which is spending time with family and friends. Take time to replenish and give thanks for all that has been. We look forward to welcoming everyone in 2023. 

Peace be with you

Brendan Kiely

Term 1 - 2023 Start

School Administration Days (Pupil Free Days) - Friday 27 and Monday 30 January 2023

Year 1 - Year 6 commence Maths Assessment Interviews 

Tuesday 31 January 2023 to Thursday 2 February 2023

Year 1 - Year 6 classes commence Friday 3 February 2023

Kindergarten Best Start Interviews - Tuesday 31 January 2023 to Friday 3 February 2023

Kindergarten commence  - Monday 6 February 2023

Term 1 last day – Thursday 6 April 2023

STUDENT REPORTS LIVE 

MONDAY 12 DECEMBER 2022

PARENT PORTAL

After a wonderful semester and year which has involved lots of learning, student reports will be available MONDAY 12 DECEMBER 2022 at 3.00 pm via the PARENT PORTAL.

The reports will provide a summary of your child's academic progress for the Semester. Below is a link to assist you with either returning to the Portal or set-up.

Please contact the School Office 6585 1745 if you have any questions or concerns with viewing your child's academic report.

If you would like to discuss any part of the Report, please contact your child's classroom teacher to organise a meeting as soon as possible.

 SCHOOL REPORTS PARENT PORTAL INSTRUCTIONS

WHOLE SCHOOL REWARDS DAY

As part of our Whole School Rewards for Term 4, students will be travelling, by bus, to Rainbow Beach, Bonny Hills to participate in a Surf Awareness Program (Australian Lifeguards NSW) and fun beach activities including shallow water play. 

All children will participate in the Surf Awareness Program and those children who are eligible (students who have not received an Office reflection during Term 4) will also be able to participate in the beach activities and/or shallow water play. 

As you can imagine, this will be an exciting day for our students and a justified reward for the positive behaviour exhibited throughout Term 4. 

 IMPORTANT DETAILS

 Thursday 15 December 2022 - All Day 

$10 for bus

Out of uniform

Students to bring own lunch and water bottle 

Wear swimmers, rash-shirt, joggers and school hat

Bring towel, change of clothes, wet bag/plastic bag

Requirements -

• Children can wear, suitable for a school activity, out-of-uniform attire and bring school broad-brimmed hat
• (Please label all clothing clearly with your child’s name)
• Sunscreen and drink bottle
• Children will be supervised by teachers and taken to the amenities at regular intervals.

Students who have received an Office Reflection or Suspension will reflect on their Term 4 behaviour and look positively towards 2023 with either Mr Kiely, Mr Toole or Ms Solares. They will go to the beach with the rest of the school but will discretely complete their reflection. Following their reflection, the students will continue to be involved in the Surf Awareness Program and other beach activities. Please complete all the required permission sections of this note.

Parents will have received an Operoo note with these details. Please complete the permission note and the informationsection regarding your child's swimming ability.

WE CANNOT WAIT TO SPEND THE DAY AT THE BEACH!

TERM 4

Staff Development Day (Pupil Free Day) - Monday 28 November 2022

Kindergarten to Year 6 last day of classes for Term 4
Friday 16 December 2022

OTHER HOLIDAYS IN 2022

Christmas Day - 25 December (Public Holiday)

Boxing Day - 26 December (Public Holiday)

School Captains 2023

Congratulations to

School Captains, Leila and Henry 

Vice Captains, Ruairi and Ellie.

Ministry Leaders 2023

Congratulations to Ministry Leaders Taylor, Roisin, Felix and Lisi.

House Captains for 2023

Waugh – Joel Marchment and Emily Saunders

Mackillop - Brody Cook and Peyton McCrostie

Curran - William Drummond and Evan Webb 

 

Congratulations - progressing to Polding trials

Brody, Jack and Peyton are progressing to the Lismore Diocese Touch Football team. They will travel to Parkes next year to attend Polding trials. 

Diocesan Summer Sport Trials Laurieton

St Joseph's combined Rugby League team with Laurieton school, represented the our school with great sportsmanship. We also had representation with Touch Football and Cricket.

Well done to all our sporting superstars.

Swimming Carnival

Congratulations to all the students who participated in our swimming carnival on Monday.  It was wonderful to share this day with parents and grandparents.  Thank you to Renate and the P & F for organising and cooking the sausage sizzle.    

Age Champions

Age Champions	Girls	Boys
13 Years	Louisa Smith	Finn Towey
12 Years	Emily Saunders	Ruairi Groogan
11 Years	Isabel Thompson	Livio Sonneville
10 Years	Ivy Pope	William Saunders
9 Years	Bronagh Towey	Shea Towey
8 Years		Travis Boyd

Australian Champion Physical Culture 

Congratulations to Olivia Riley, who was crowned Australian 9 Years Girls Champion in Physical Culture. This is a high achievement, and we are proud of Olivia's efforts.

Price Increase

Due to distributors continued price increases we would like to advise that we will have a small price increase on some of our Canteen and Uniform Shop items. We have done our best to continue to keep our prices as low as possible for our families.

Thank you for your understanding.

2023 - Term 1

CANTEEN COMMENCES

TRADING ON MONDAY 6 FEBRUARY 2023

NORMAL TRADING DAYS WILL REMAIN

MONDAY, WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY 

Make your bookings soon

Thank you for generous supporters of school book fair.

Mrs O'Brien handed out Book Week awards to consistent book borrowers, on-time returns and overall love of literature, alongside our Book Week colouring in competition.

Congratulations to all winners.