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- From the Principal
- From the Assistant Principal
- From the Co-ordinator
- RE Corner
- Student Awards Weeks 6 and 7
- Library News
- Peer Support Program
- Good 4 Kids
- Parish Notices
- Thompson's Pie Drive - P & F Fundraising
- PLUS - Pre-Loved Uniform Shop
- Guitar Lessons at St Joseph's!
- Dates to Remember
- Community Notices
Athletics Carnival
The Athletics Carnival was a great success on Monday just gone. A huge thank you to Anne Neems who put in countless hours in the background to ensure a successful event. Thank you also to the army of volunteers who made it possible. The whole community does appreciate your support, especially your children.
We will be celebrating the winners when we hand out ribbons at next week’s Awards Assembly. In this newsletter I would like to acknowledge other aspects of the Carnival that are so important to your children’s development. Over the course of the day, I saw so many children giving their all and striving to not only win but just to finish. This level of resilience and determination will lead to success in their future lives. The way people cheered and encouraged those who were struggling, was absolutely heart warming and made me feel extremely proud to be a part of this community that is full of great people.
Two highlights from the day for me were seeing some of our younger children compete in Long Jump and running the last 50m of the 800 with the last place person. For our younger children, they had never competed in Long Jump before. Seeing the change in them during the event was great to witness. They were worried about what to do and how to do it and some were clearly fearful. After they had one go, they were absolutely full of joy and couldn’t wait to have more turns. They moved past their concerns and just had some enthusiastic fun. In the 800m, one of the boys had all but given up, being in last place and exhausted from competing all day. He was trying to walk fast down the straight to ensure he finished the 800m. I went down to him, gave him some encouragement, and started to jog with him just so he would finish. The crowd was cheering madly for him to continue, and he went from a jog to a sprint to finish off the 800m. What an example of determination by the competitor and sportsmanship by the crowd!
Athletics carnivals aren’t just for those who can run, they are for everyone. Children won’t realise it, many adults won’t see it, but it is one of the greatest learning experiences children can have. It is not just about sport, it is about developing excellent human beings who have resilience, determination, compassion and knowing how to have enthusiastic fun.
First Holy Communion
We have several children from our community making their First Holy Communion this Sunday at Kilaben Bay Church. This is a very special Sacrament, that makes us one with our Catholic Community and sustains us we journey though life. Eucharist is also one of the few Sacraments that we can experience again and again in our lives. Eucharist unites us closely with God and continually draws us into the Trinity. Enjoy the experience on Sunday, may you be blessed.
Kindergarten 2024
Please note that if you have children who you are wanting to start Kindergarten next year, can you please contact the ladies in the office to start the enrolment procedure. Similarly, if you know of someone who has child who would be school age for next year, please pass on our details to them and invite them to join our community.
Take care, celebrate often, and go gently.
Take care, celebrate often, and go gently.
Brad Fuller
Principal
Zones of Regulation
Our School uses The Zones of Regulation as a school-wide S
ocial and Emotional Learning initiative to support student wellbeing.
What are the Zones of Regulation
The Zones use four colours to help students self-identify how they are functioning in the moment, given their emotions and state of alertness. There are times where it is expected to be in each of the zones and times it would be unexpected.
Blue Zone is used to describe low states of alertness (e.g. sad, tired, sick or bored) when our body and/or brain is moving slowly or sluggishly.
Green Zone is used to describe a regulated state of alertness (e.g. calm, happy, focused or content). Being in the Green Zone shows control and is generally the zone we need to be in for schoolwork and being social.
Yellow Zone is used to describe a heightened state of alertness (e.g. stressed, frustrated, anxious, excited, silly, nervous or confused). The Yellow Zone is starting to lose some control.
Red Zone is used to describe extremely heightened states of alertness or very intense feelings (e.g. anger, rage, panic, terror or elation). Being in the Red Zone can best be explained by not being in control of one’s body.
The concepts of The Zones are embedded within daily interactions and routines as an ongoing support to help all our students better evaluate their current social and emotional zones and find success in school, home and their community.
How can you support The Zones of Regulation at home?
• Use Zones language to teach and support self-awareness and regulation skills.
• Model the Zones yourself, checking in and helping children see and hear from adults that all the Zones are experienced and are okay e.g. “I am feeling tired because…, I am in the Blue Zone. I’m going to go for a walk to help me feel more alert”.
• Help your child gain awareness of their feelings, the Zone they are in and what tools might help them to regulate such as “I can see you are frustrated, you are in the yellow zone. Let’s take a trampoline break and then come back to finish this off”.
Resources for home:
Dobell Restival of Art and Craft
Congratulations to Mia R, Crystal M, Evanna S, Grace B, Sienna B, Oscar C and Finn C who entered in this year’s Dobell Festival of Art and Craft. Their original artworks were fantastically displayed for hundreds of people to view who visited the exhibit. A very special congratulations to Finn C who came first place in the Primary category. Well done Finn!
Spelling and Maths Bees
SPELLING: Emma R, Ike B, Lilly K
MATHS: Emma R, Ike B, Matilda B, Kaitlyn G.
Community Partnership Toronto Men's Shed
Thanks to volunteers from Toronto Men’s shed, students continue to work hard on their habitat boxes. All groups have now built their box and this week we enjoyed giving them the first coat of paint!
'Watch this space! Bigger and better things to come as we continue building this partnership!'
CLARITY: What matters most in teaching and learning.
This week Mr Fuller and I presented to Regional Support Advisors from the diocese about our journey with LLC. The focus was on Parameter 13: Cross Curricular Literacy Connections. We shared some of the strategies teachers use to promote this parameter and the effectiveness of making these connections.
Sport
What a wonderful day our Athletics Carnival was! We are so lucky to have access to such a wonderful facility as the Fearnly-Dawes track. Congratulations to our fantastic athletes, especially those who really dug deep to challenge themselves in difficult events. We are just waiting for shot put to be completed so that we can announce our winners. My sneak peek so far suggests some very close results.
Thank you so much to our 'Dream Team' of parent helpers who made the day run so smoothly.
Children University
Passport stamping is available Wednesdays at lunch time. On 22/6/23 Children's University participants will visit Newcastle University for a day of interesting and challenging activities. All participants must meet me at the Maths Bus Stop at 9.30 am sharp. Parents/carers are asked to transport their children, and car-pooling is recommended due to limited parking spaces opposite the Maths Bus Stop. The day will be completed by 1.30pm. Permission is required via the Compass note sent out this week.
Best wishes,
Anne Neems
Primary Co-ordinator
Vinnies Winter Appeal
What a lovely day we had on Wednesday with our Mini Vinnies Winter Appeal! Thank you to Stage 3 for all of the yummy treats they brought in for the cake stall! They were delicious, with many of the staff and students going back to buy more than one!
A special mention also goes to Scarlett T in Year 2, who came to me with the idea of a colouring club during the last days of our Project Compassion fundraiser during Term 1. She had several handwritten posters all ready to go but with not enough notice for it happen on the last day of fundraising, I asked her if she would be okay in having a colouring club in Term 2 for Vinnies Winter Appeal. She immediately said yes! So, in talking to Scarlett earlier this term, we were able to plan, print and organise our Colour-a-Donation fundraiser for the Vinnies Winter Appeal and she has run it at lunch time for the last two weeks with the help of some friends and the Mini Vinnies leaders. Thank you for your kind and thoughtful idea to raise money to help others Scarlett. You did a great job!!!
A big thank you to our Mini Vinnies Conference for leading our liturgy in the hall. It
was lovely have students from Stage 2 and 3 working together and seeing their passion for social justice issues during the meetings we have had this Term. All of the food donated on Wednesday will go to locals in our area through our CatholicCare Toronto Community Kitchen. People in Lake Macquarie needing a hot meal can visit the Toronto Community Centenary Hub every Thursday. Now, with our food donations, people can also take some canned or packaged food home when they need to. Mrs McWilliam told the students at the liturgy how much of an impact their small gesture will have on local people who are in need. For more information, please visit Community Kitchens | CatholicCare Hunter Manning
One of St Vincent de Paul’s annual fundraisers is the Vinnies Winter Appeal, with this year’s focus on the number of older women experiencing and at risk of homelessness. Funds raised through the Vinnies Winter Appeal will be used to provide assistance with food, clothing, household bills, specialist homelessness services and support people in need to find and maintain secure housing.
SJKB raised close to $600 this year for St Vincent de Paul’s Vinnies Winter Appeal! This is an amazing effort and Mr Barnett, from the St Vincent de Paul society accepted this donation from us during our Mini Vinnies liturgy – telling the students what an amazing impact this kind donation will have for people who are struggling to have enough food and warm clothing for their families.
More about Saint Vincent de Paul
Who is Saint Vincent de Paul?
Vincent de Paul was born in the small southern French village of Pouy – later renamed Saint Vincent de Paul in his honour – on 24 April 1581. He was ordained as a priest in 1600 at the age of 19. As a young man, he ministered to the wealthy and powerful. However, an appointment as chaplain to a poor parish and to galley prisoners, inspired him to work with the poor, those most marginalised and powerless.
Vincent urged his followers to bring God’s justice and love to people who were unable to live a full human life:
“‘Deal with the most urgent needs. Organise charity so that it is more efficient…teach reading and writing, educate with the aim of giving each the means of self-support. Intervene with authorities to obtain reforms in structure… there is no charity without justice.’”
Vincent de Paul died in Paris on 27 September 1660 at the age of 79. He was canonised on 16 June 1737. The Catholic Church designated him as the special patron of all charitable associations in 1883.
The Saint Vincent de Paul Society
The St Vincent de Paul Society was founded in Paris in 1833 by Frederic Ozanam. The Society was established by like-minded people who wanted to put their Catholic faith into action. The first Australian conference of St Vincent de Paul Society was established by Father Gerald Ward at St Francis’ Church, Melbourne, on 5 March 1854. The St Vincent de Paul society provides support to people living in poverty or seeking assistance through more than 200 programs and services across the country. From emergency housing and homelessness support to disaster recovery and general support like home visits and providing food, our help is delivered on a local level throughout our communities. For more information, please go to https://www.vinnies.org.au/
SJKB’s Mini Vinnies Conference
Mini Vinnies empowers primary school students to become advocates within their school and local community by putting Vinnies Values into action. Our Mini Vinnies Conference meet fortnightly at lunchtime on Friday and any students in Stage 2 and 3 can join me to learn about social justice issues, develop leadership skills and engage with the local community. Stage 3 students also get the opportunity to visit Kilpatrick Court Residential Age Care. Where students interact with the residents, playing games and sharing morning tea with them. More about our first trip to Kilpatrick Court, for the 2023, was mentioned in last week's newsletter.
Term 2 dates for the calendar:
• Friday 30th June: NAIDOC Liturgy
Blessings,
Taylor James
RE Co-ordinator
National Simultaneous Storytime
St Joseph’s students recently participated in National Simultaneous
Storytime. This is an annual event, with schools, libraries, pre-schools and other places throughout Australia participating each year. This year the book that was read all over Australia was The Speedy Sloth by Rebecca Young and Heath McKenzie. This delightful book was enjoyed by all students. Many watched it being read by a zookeeper at the Singapore Zoo, who introduced the zoo’s sloth Indigo and her baby. We loved reading the book and learnt about what sloths like to eat, how they move and what they look like. Our children then participated in a fun activity about Spike- the speedy sloth.
St Joseph’s has a wonderful collection of books that we encourage all students to borrow.
The Library is open during lunch times on Wednesday – Friday and the children love coming in to enjoy books, chess, games and writing or drawing. It is a great social activity for them and it’s lovely to watch them interact with each other and enjoy creating. Students are also able to borrow during lunchtimes on these days.
All students need a library bag to borrow from our Library. This helps protect our lovely books.
School Library bags are available for $14 for anyone who needs one.Library borrowing occurs weekly for students.
Students are able to keep the books for two weeks, although most return them for new ones each week. If students would like to keep books for longer than 2 weeks, we ask that they bring them to the Library to "renew" the borrowing record in our system.
Infants (K-2) borrowing day is Monday.
Primary (3-6) borrowing is Tuesdays.
Many parents and carers often wonder if a book is appropriate for their child. A great resource to help with this is Common Sense Media . This website allows parents/carers to search books, games, apps, movies and websites to view whether it is age appropriate and what its content contains.
PRC
The Premier’s Reading Challenge is an initiative by the NSW Government that encourages a love of reading in students from Kinder to Year 9. It is not a competition but a challenge to each student to read widely and enjoy reading. Students are each given an individual username and password to log onto the PRC website. There they can add the PRC books they have read to their reading record. Students who complete the challenge will have their names displayed in the library and the newsletter. At the end of the year they will receive a certificate to show their achievement. At St Joey’s we also like to celebrate with a Pizza Party for those students that complete the challenge in term four. The challenge continues until 18th August.
The PRC Website can be found here:
Kinder: Archer S.
Year 1: Ethan H, Alec T.
Year 2: Vera H, Luca T.
Year 3: Maggie H.
Year 4: Jack K, Olivia S.
Year 5: Amelia M, Evan C.
Year 6: Matilda G.
Sora
St Joseph’s has a subscription to SORA. Sora is an eBook and audio book Library. As part of the Australian Catholic Education Network (ACEN) member collection, your child can access eBooks and audio books through the Maitland Newcastle Diocese.
All you need to do is to download the SORA app or go to the website and sign in through the
ACEN membership, then you and your child can enjoy some terrific books on your devices at home.
One of the great features of SORA is the inclusion of a Premier Reading Challenge book section. Graphic novels, Fiction and Non-Fiction books are also available.
Log in and explore today.
I am very blessed to have some wonderful helpers in the library. Our Library monitors volunteer at lunchtimes to help organise resources, put books away and keep the Library neat and tidy. THANK YOU to those students.
School Book Club
At St Joseph’s we participate in Scholastic Book Club. This provides families with an easy way to encourage your children to read. Twice each term students will bring home a catalogue of affordable and fun books that you may purchase. All money spent through Book Club benefits the school, as a percentage of money raised is given back to the school as reward points for the Library to purchase fantastic resources.
The current Bookclub orders are due no later than:
Friday 16th June
If you have any questions about anything in the Library, feel free to send me an email.
Happy reading,
Leah Hannan
Teacher Librarian and ER Teacher
Our school has been undertaking the Peer Support Program this term, with excellent outcomes for our children:
The program is conducted each week by our trained leaders from Stage 3, supervised by teachers.
The children have been looking at leaders and followers and building positive relationships with the theme "Stronger Together":
• Relationships – Exploring the skills and attitudes necessary to maintain friendships and positively interact with others.
• Anti-bullying – Building on students’ capacity to prevent and respond to unhelpful and unhealthy behaviours.
Regards,
Beth Woollett
Youth Group Trivia and Scavenger Hunt!
Reminder: Evangelisation Presentation with Deacon Peter Pellicaan - All Welcome!
Who doesn't love a pie drive - please support ours! It's a win/win for St Joey's - no cooking for you and the school benefits from the profits!
Please use the order form sent home to place your order - or print this one and send back to school NO LATER THAN Friday 9th June - pay the total on Qkr! under P & F - thank you.
ORDERS DELIVERED TO SCHOOL ON FRIDAY 23RD JUNE
Thank you
St Joseph's P and F Association
How to Order
Look out for our simple QR system - coming soon. In the meantime - please email direct to the P & F Volunteers on joeyspandf@hotmail.com
PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR CHILD'S NAME AND CLASS in the message as our volunteers do not have access to the different family surnames to make connections to students - therefore use your child's name first, then your name, especially if different surname. Payment is via the Qkr! app. Refer to previous articles for more details.
Unfortunately school admin staff are not able to leave the office to fill orders, so please use the email address above and volunteers will assist as soon as possible.
Thank you!
THE PLUS TEAM
Reminder if you would like your child to learn guitar: We have a guitar group here at St Joseph's where children receive tuition from professional teachers at school. For more information, please contact Ricky direct on 0407 534 944:
An updated paper Term Planner will be sent home shortly for your reference - some dates are still being finalised so apologies for the delay.
However, please continue to check your Compass app for daily information shown in orange in the calendar section.
Unless otherwise stated, the advertisements placed in this newsletter are by independent third parties who have no legal relationship with the Diocese. The activities or services of the advertiseers are not supervised or controlled in any way by the Diocese. The Diocese is not in a position to endorse the advertisers of the services provided and makes no representation about those matters. Accordingly, the Diocese cannot accept any responsibility for the advertisers of the activities or services that are the subject of these advertisements.
We have a number of students who have life threatening anaphylactic allergic reactions to all nuts and eggs. We would like to encourage families NOT to send these food items to school with their children or to ask their children to tell their teacher if they have brought them, so that they can be eaten away from affected children. We also encourage children NOT to share food at school.