2023 Term 2 Week 1

Principal's News

Welcome Back

Dear St Joseph’s Community

Welcome to Term 2. We hope everyone enjoyed a relaxing and enjoyable holiday break, and is ready for the learning, spirituality and joy that awaits us throughout Term 2. 

This is the first newsletter we have published using Schoolzine. This format should be more compatible when viewing the newsletter on your phone. We have also decided to return to publishing the newsletter on a weekly basis.  You will also notice a change to our school website which has also been changed to the Schoolzine platform.

ANZAC Day

This week, we commemorated ANZAC Day, a day when we pause in remembrance for those who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations. It was terrific to see so many of our staff and students gathering at Elizabeth Ann Brown Park in Alstonville for the commemoration service. Congratulations to Toby Conlon and Chloe White for being our school winners of the RSL Primary School ANZAC Day Essay Writing Competition for their compositions on the Vietnam War. Toby and Chloe both recited their composition at our school service. Thank you also to Ros Kingsford for her coordination and leadership of our school’s ANZAC Day service on Wednesday morning. These were both important opportunities for our students to be reminded of the freedoms we have been afforded and the significant cost that has been paid for its attainment. 

Welcome Joe O'Donnell

With Charlotte White, our Stage 1 Enrichment Tutor, taking Leave this term to travel, we welcome Joe O'Donnell to St Joseph’s for Term 2. He has recently moved to the area from Victoria, where he has been an Enrichment Tutor in a Catholic primary school in Geelong for the past three years. Please make Joe feel very welcome into our school community. 

Welcome to our new student

Welcome to our new student Nathaniel Cordero whose family have recently moved to the area from the Philippines. We hope you find our community very warm and welcoming. 

Safe on Social - Social Media Presentation

Thank you to all those who were able to attend the Safe on Social presentation, supported by Parent Assembly. We have had very positive feedback about this presentation and hope it has equipped families with the knowledge needed to ensure our children are safe and protected online. A number of parents have asked if Safe on Social provides access to their slides or notes. I have asked the company, and unfortunately, this is not possible. However, you can check out their blog, which is regularly updated. You can also subscribe here to receive regular blog updates via email. 

This presentation has also led us to the realisation that our current school Technology Use Agreement no longer adequately addresses the current reality in relation to technology. This is something that we are looking to update in the near future and to ask our students and parents/carers to reaffirm their commitment to. We will share more about this later in Term 2. 

 Kevin Hogan MP Leadership Presentation

In the holidays, our local federal Member of Parliament, Kevin Hogan, the member for Page, invited our school to attend a presentation for school leaders. The Welcome & Events Year 6 Leaders were offered the opportunity to attend a leadership talk by Naomi Moran, a Nyangbal, Awakwal and Dunghutti woman and the General Manager of the Koori Mail. Naomi shared her journey from a 14-year-old administration trainee at the Koori Mail to becoming a distinguished indigenous journalist and finally returning to the Koori Mail as General Manager. Naomi also shared how the Koori Mail, significantly impacted by the 2022 floods, was able to pivot so quickly to become a community hub to support the Lismore population in the wake of such a tragic natural disaster. This was a wonderful opportunity for these students to hear from such a proud, resilient and community-minded leader. Thank you to our representatives; Georgia Wilks, Grace Cooper and Lincoln Roberts, for attending with their parents and representing our school so well among their peers.

Child Protection Policy

From time to time, we like to highlight the variety of policies our school must operate under to meet the requirements for school registration and best practice. This week we are highlighting the Child Protection Policy. This policy can be found on our webpage.  This policy covers the legislation and parameters we must follow in supporting our students. It encompasses our school being a mandatory reporter, if concerns arise. It is the reason we require Working with Children Checks and are required to complete a great deal of training to ensure we are aware of and can meet our responsibilities.

School Review

This term in Week 8, our school will take part in our regular three-yearly review process. This process is facilitated by the Catholic Schools Office but coordinated through an external Lead Reviewer attached to the Australian Council of Educational Research. The review provides us with feedback against the 9 Domains of the National School Improvement Tool, an internationally recognised tool outlining what great schools do to support student progress. This will be a terrific opportunity to celebrate what our school is doing well and to help guide us as we move towards the development of our next Three Year Strategic Plan. We will be seeking parent involvement in the review in the coming weeks, please keep an eye out for an invitation to be a part of this process via Compass. 

Tell Them From Me Survey 

As part of our focus on school effectiveness, St Joseph’s will be participating in an  online survey for students – Tell Them From Me (TTFM®). The survey will provide us  with valuable feedback on what our students think about school life, how engaged they  are with school and the different ways that teachers interact with them. Schools in Australia and around the world have used the Tell Them From Me survey to help them  improve. A notice has been sent home via Compass to all parents in regard to the student survey. All students in Years 4-6 complete this survey. There is an ‘opt-out’ form attached to the letter for parents who would prefer their child not participate in this survey. 

In the next week, we will also be opening the TTFM Parent Survey. This survey provides us with such rich information and can help us to discern potential improvements to our school. We would be delighted if as many parents as possible completed this survey for us. Details for completing the survey will be shared in the next two newsletters, via Compass and in the front office. 

Amendments to Key Dates

In recognition of the significant work our school is undertaking to implement the revised NSW Curriculum, the Catholic Schools Office has allocated additional staff development time for our teachers and enrichment tutors to plan for and review the curriculum. This is in the form of an additional pupil-free Staff Development Day. This has meant some slight amendments to the key dates for 2023. The only significant change for parents is an additional pupil-free day scheduled for Monday, 29 August 2023 (Week 7 Term 2). We thank parents for their support in finding alternative supervision for their children on this day. This additional time will be a terrific support to all our staff to ensure the learning provided to all students is as effective as it can be.

A copy of the revised key dates calendar has also be shared via Compass. Thanks again to our families for their understanding of the need to make these changes and their support for the ongoing learning of our staff. 

Acknowledgement to Country

Jingi Walla ( Jin-gee-wah-la ) Hello….
As we journey on this land of the Bundjalung Nation on which St Joseph’s stands, we pay our respects to the Elders - the past, present and emerging leaders of the Bundjalung Nation. We acknowledge and respect their culture, their heritage and their beliefs as stewards of the land, sea, the earth and heavens, animals and vegetation.

Mission News

Catholic Schools Week

 Our school will join with more than 620 Catholic schools across NSW and the ACT to celebrate the annual Catholic Schools Week (CSW). This will take place in our school during Week 2 this term. 

 This year’s theme “Living our Mission’’ highlights the mission of Catholic schools in the Diocese of Lismore. The Catholic school community has a co-responsibility in the service of mission through sharing Jesus’ messages of love and forgiveness, peace, hope and joy as revealed in the Gospels. The transforming power of mission ensures our students experience the fullness of life (John 10:10). 

We are immensely proud of the important role the Catholic school has alongside our Bishop, Parish Priest, school staff, parishioners and families in the missionary activity of bringing the ‘Good News' to the world. This week provides us with the opportunity to showcase and celebrate the missionary activities of our Catholic schools as well as the quality education we offer.

I would like to extend an invitation for you to participate with members of our parish and wider community in the spirit of this celebration. Below is a schedule of events for the week that you are invited to attend: 

• Open classrooms afternoon from 2.30pm - 3.20pm on Thursday, 4th May. You are invited to join your child/ren’s afternoon lesson and experience life in their classroom.
• Catholic Schools Week Assembly 2.20 - 3.20pm on Friday, 5th May in the hall. 

Thank you for your ongoing support. We look forward to seeing you during our celebrations for Catholic Schools Week in 2023.

Project Compassion: ‘For All Future Generations’

Thank you to all our students and their families who together raised $355.95 for Project Compassion. Our students generously made small regular donations to Project Compassion, often with change from the canteen or instead of a treat.

Our money will be used to support people and communities in need. Examples of what our money can do include:

Holy Week Liturgy

Our students led our Parish-School community in a beautiful remembrance of the events of Holy Week.

Confirmation

Our Confirmation candidates have Formation Day this Thursday during school hours. They will be joined by the rest of Year 3 later in the day. Our Confirmation candidates are invited to wear casual clothes on this day that includes something RED. Morning tea and a BBQ lunch will be provided. 

We look forward to celebrating the Sacrament of Confirmation with our candidates, their sponsor and their families and friends. Our thanks to Fr Max and Bishop Greg for leading us in this special Sacrament. 

Please keep these students in your prayers: Aya Bennett, Rueben Birkwood, Sophia Birkwood, Mitchell Charter, Noah Colnan, James Cormick, Gabriel Ducler des Rauches, Braith Duncan, Poppy Elmsly, Amalia Gooley, Zoe Hargrave, Oscar Lamas, Maddi Layland, Lachlan Lewis-Hughes, Allanah MacRae, Lily McVey, Noah Moss, Eva Munday, Samuel Pucci McDermott, Rory Quinlann, Damon Szeto, Eloise Watson and Hannah Young.

Kate Jones - Assistant Principal Mission

Sport News

Zone Cross Country
This will be held next Wednesday, 3 May at Hepburn Park, Goonellabah. (Back-up date: Tuesday 9 May)

We wish the following children : Lulu Barnes, Elaina Battaglia, Reuben Birkwood, Sophia Birkwood, Spencer Birkwood, Henry Buchanan, Noah Cassianos-Kennedy, Amala Chee, Flynn Cluff, Abby Collins, Tate Commens, Toby Conlan, Grace Cooper, James Cormick, Ethan Cox, Maeve Crook, Braith Duncan, Michael Gallagher, Will Gallagher, Andrea Gooding, Sophie Gonzales-Yule, Penny Hodge, Harry Hosking, Grayson Jeffery, Brenden Latham, Hugo McCall, Aiden Mail, Dannon Pucci-McDermott, Samuel Pucci-McDermott, Sully Mitchell, Enid Murgha, Leo Nolan, Ava O’Bryan, Chloe O’Bryan, Sybella Peters, Emma Quinlan, Orlando Speidel, Jordy Thompson, Nate Towns, Lara Tuckett, Ruby Vickrage, Eloise Watson, John Wilkie, Georgia Wilks, Harpa Windley, Hugh Woolley, Indy Vu, Layla Vu and Charlotte Young. 
An Event will be sent this week via Compass for permission and payment. Please act on this upon receipt.

Polding Trials

Good luck to Brenden Latham (Rugby League) and Ethan Thompson (Hockey) who will be participating in the Polding Trials this Friday at Tamworth.  

Library News

As Term 2 starts the fun in the library continues! Our library leaders have some fabulous initiatives planned for this term to encourage our students to enjoy our library. Maker Space will continue at lunch times every day with many exciting challenges for students to undertake. Before school reading will continue each morning and will provide a quiet warm space for students to start their day.

Library classes for each Stage will commence in Week 1.

Students who borrowed books over the holidays will need to return these to be able to borrow. Remember, students don’t have to wait until their Library Day to return and borrow books - they can do this any day before school or at lunch.

Stage Library Days:

Kinder - Wednesday

Stage 1 - Thursday

Stage 2 - Friday

Stage 3 - Thursday

Happy reading!

Ms Ros Kingsford - Library Manager

Wellbeing News

Seasons for Growth® Program “Learning to live with change and loss” 

Change and loss are issues that affect all of us at some stage in our lives. At our school we recognise that when changes occur in families through death, separation, divorce and related circumstances, young people may benefit from learning how to manage these changes effectively. We are therefore offering a very successful education program called Seasons for Growth which will commence on Wednesday 26/4/2023 and run for 8 weeks.

This program is facilitated in small Stage based groups and is based on research which highlights the importance of social support and the need to practise new skills to cope effectively with change and loss. The program focuses on issues such as self-esteem, managing feelings, problem-solving, decision-making, effective communication and support networks.

Mrs Nikki Wagner is looking forward to starting with our Stage 1 group this week and students from other Stage groups throughout the remainder of this year. Families nominate their child if they wish them to participate and the invitation is still open if you wish your child to benefit from this program. Contact the school office for further information.

Kind regards, Nikki Wagner (Seasons for Growth Companion)

Canteen News

Canteen will be moving to Compass Canteen online ordering in Term 2.

Starting this week, all student lunch orders must be made through the Compass App. (So no more scrounging around for loose change and paper bags!)

Simply open your Compass App and use the menu bar on the top left corner of your screen and open "Canteen"Once the Canteen App opens, you click on the “knife and fork” place order at the bottom of the page.

You will then be asked to select a date for your order. All orders must be placed by 8:30am on the selected date. After this time you will not be able to place an order.  (You can pre-order any time leading up to your selected date. For example, if you wanted to order for Wednesday (in Week 9) you can place this order as early as Week 1.)

Then choose a sitting - select the only sitting available. The menu will open. Select the items you would like to purchase and add it to your cart at the bottom of the screen. When you have finished choosing your items click on view cart which will take you to a confirmation and payment page.

When making orders for you children, please look through the menu for the specific item they wish to order. This can be done by scrolling through the menu list or simply typing in the search box at the top of the screen for your food items. To make searching for items easier, tags have been applied to foods and drinks.        

The tags are:   * HOT FOOD    * GLUTEN FREE    * COLD DRINKS    * SNACKS    * ICE BLOCKS                * DAIRY FREE    * SAUCE    * SANDWICH AND SALAD       

Alternatively, you can just type in Large Pie etc.

Unavailable items will be listed as sold out on the menu, please make an alternate choice if this occurs as you will not be able place an order for that item. When ordering items such as Chicken Burgers and freshly made goods, there are options to add or remove items such as tomato, lettuce, sauces etc. You will find this when you open the menu item, at the bottom of the page you can make your changes. Chill J's will be ordered in a similar way. Open the Chill J menu item, select quantity and at the bottom of the page select the flavour. GLUTEN FREE - have their own menu items so please use these to order, please do not order the regular menu items with a GF request.

Cancelling an Order: If you have to cancel your child's lunch order this must be done before 8:30am on the morning of the order. In doing so, your order payment will be moved into your Canteen Wallet. Unfortunately, Compass cannot refund credit cards directly,  however your wallet will hold the refund amount for you to use at another time.

Please note that there will be no ability for the students to order through their Compass Portal. Only parents can place an order through their parent Compass App. Parents and carers will be required to use a Credit Card or Debit Credit Card when making a purchase through the App.

Children will still be able to use cash at canteen during lunch and afternoon tea time to purchase snacks and ice blocks.

A fact sheet on how to operate this app. will also be uploaded to the School website in the coming weeks.

We thank you for your patience and understanding as we transition into online ordering. 

Ms Emma Thrum - Canteen Co-Ordinator

Celebrations

For Your Information

Term 2 Tuition Fees

These will be billed this week and will appear on your April Statement. Fees are due upon invoice.

Uniform Shop Extra Opening Hours - THIS FRIDAY

The Uniform Shop will be opening at the slightly earlier time of 8:00am, this Friday only.

Coming Events