19 September 2023 (Term 3 Week 10)

Family Day

We are delighted to be celebrating Family Day on Thursday 21st September.

The theme for the day is “Read! Grow! Inspire!”

9:15 - FAMILY LITURGY IN MCCARTHY HALL

We invite all family and friends to join us for this special Liturgy. There will be plenty of seating inside the hall.

10:15 - BYO PICNIC MORNING TEA

Families are asked to bring their own morning tea and join in a school wide picnic. Coffee, tea and cold drinks will be available from the canteen.

10:45 - 2:15 - ROTATION OF ACTIVITIES

Students and their families will travel in groups through five different activities based on the theme “Read! Grow! Inspire!”. Family and friends are invited to join in the fun.

BBQ LUNCH

Fr Max is kindly supplying lunch for all of our students, staff and visitors. If you are able to help cook or serve the BBQ lunch, please call the school.

BOOK FAIR

Our annual Book Fair will be held in the library. Family and friends are invited to purchase books as a donation to our school library. Each book will have a donor book plate added to it as a sign of appreciation. Books have been hand selected for our library from the Book Warehouse Lismore. Cash sales and EFTPOS will be available. 

OPEN CLASSROOMS

All of the classrooms and learning spaces will be open on the day. Feel free to have a look around and explore our school.

CANTEEN

The canteen will be selling cold drinks and snacks.

DRESSING UP

All students, staff, family and friends are invited to dress up on the day. The theme is “Read! Grow! Inspire!” Come dressed as your favourite book character; the person who inspires you; a tree! The options are endless. Please note: students must have covered footwear and no bare shoulders or midriffs.

Principal's News

Dear St Joseph’s Community

It is hard to believe that we are at the end of Term 3! This has been an incredibly busy term, full of learning and fun, and I know we are all, staff and students, looking forward to a well-earned Term 3 break.  I would like to thank all of our families for their support this term and wish you a safe and restful break. We look forward to welcoming students back on Tuesday, 10th October.

SCRIPTURE REFLECTION 

This week’s Gospel passage, Matthew 18:21-35, is a reminder of our constant call to forgiveness and love. Through a parable, Jesus reminds us of the infinite scope of forgiveness — not just seven times, but "seventy times seven." In the frenetic pace of life, especially in a term as busy as this one, it's easy to lose sight of the virtues that really matter. These aren't just old stories; they are timely reminders to our children and ourselves to forgive generously and seek forgiveness humbly.

This term has been filled with achievements and challenges, both academic and personal. Let us encourage our children to carry the spirit of limitless forgiveness into their relationships and endeavours. As they grow academically, let's nurture their growth in empathy, love and forgiveness as well. St Mary MacKillop’s words here ring true: "Do not be afraid. Love one another, bear with one another, and let charity guide you in all your life." In our busyness, let us not forget the lessons of love and forgiveness that pave the way for a nurturing community and a fulfilling life. May this break refresh us all, and may we return next term ready to continue our journey of growth through love.

FAMILY DAY 

We are enthusiastically looking forward to our 2023 Family Day this Thursday! This is such an important part of our school year and a wonderful opportunity for our staff and families to spend a day together. Our theme this year is Read, Grow, Inspire and we invite families to dress up as literary characters or people who may be an inspiration to them. We hope to see families there to join us, we know that this can be a juggle with work commitments. Parents are welcome to join for even part of the day.  More details are above!

STAFF DEVELOPMENT DAYS - REMINDER

A reminder that we have two upcoming Staff Development Days.

Friday, the 22nd of September, our staff will be off-site, completing our mandatory First Aid Training to ensure we are equipped to keep our community safe. The administration building will still be open, along with the uniform shop.

Monday, the 9th of October, is a Staff Professional Learning Day. We will be preparing for the teaching of the new English and Maths curricula and finalising our goals for our Strategic Plan. I appreciate that this can be a significant juggle for families, and I thank our families for their understanding of the need for us to utilise these days to support quality professional development and planning for staff. 

NEW BELL SYSTEM

If you have been on site, you might have noticed that our bell tones have recently changed. We have recently upgraded our bell and evacuation system. The new system is state of the art and allows us to use this as our bell, lockdown, evacuation and PA system.

ALSTONVILLE PLATEAU ROTARY SATELLITE CLUB

Alstonville Plateau Rotary Club (which is in its 51st year) is currently in the process of establishing a new Rotary Club primarily to underpin the future of Rotary in Alstonville. The new club is specifically designed to support those people who would love to give back to their community through the Rotary Club but whose work and family commitments mean that they cannot commit to meeting as regularly as would normally be the case. The new Satellite Club will provide members with considerable flexibility in relation to how often they meet and the scope of the projects they engage in. If you are interested in learning more, you are welcome to join an informal information session and BBQ on Sunday 24th September at Alstonville Tennis Club House at the Wollongbar Sports Complex, from 11 am – 2 pm. If you are interested, please contact Rotarian Bob Costello on 0410 598 523. A brochure is attached below with additional information.

Learning & Teaching News

SENTENCE LEVEL GRAMMAR QUIZ

Login to Quizizz using this link to take the sentence level grammar quiz. The quiz shows you just some of the aspects of sentence level grammar our students have been focusing on this year. How is your knowledge of sentences? I wonder if your child can help you? Have fun! 

Mission News

CHOIR

The choir have been practising hard (and are squeezing a few extra rehearsals in this week) for our Family Day Liturgy this Thursday. It’s wonderful to have so many students keen to be involved. Their enthusiasm and joy is always uplifting and I know you will all enjoy singing along with them on Thursday!

Stage News

STAGE 2 PARK TOUR

Stage 2 went on a Park Tour around Ballina to complete research for their STEM and Geography park design project. They interviewed park-goers and observed the equipment to look for accessibility, safety, temperatures of the equipment, amount of shade available and other factors.  James from Ballina Council shared his expertise of some of the decisions that are required before a park is established. The students asked insightful questions and completed quality questionnaires.  Thank you to the Stage 2 Team for organising such a great day.

Library News

All student library books are now overdue. Please send these back to school as a matter of urgency. Thanks to those students who have borrowed books for holiday reading!

The library is closed this week for student activities as we prepare for the book fair. Students can return books to the box at the front door.

Wellbeing News

RUOK DAY

Staff thoroughly enjoyed last Thursday’s National “RUOK” day with a staffroom that was set up to nurture and encourage each and every one of our amazing team! There was calming music, trickling water feature, a pampering table of treats, massage chair, yummy sandwiches and cakes as well as personalised affirmation photos that were displayed in our Prayer space. The whole school community were kindly checking in with each other by asking “RUOK?” and listening to each other’s responses with compassion. We see this in action with the S1 students organising a fun, inclusive game on the playground that S3 love joining in with them and sharing so much fun and laughter. Seems like we’re doing OK at the end of such a big term! 

SAFE TECHNOLOGY USAGE SERIES

We continue to share some important information to support parents and carers to help keep their children safe when using technology. This information has been compiled by those with expertise in the Catholic Schools Office. The sixth in this series discusses how we as parents can help their children maintain a balance with technology usage. A key part of parenting is to ensure your child has a healthy, balanced life. This is also true of their engagement in the online world. 

Start the conversation

• Talk to your child about their online time and the importance of taking breaks.
• Spend time online with your child to understand their games and platforms better.
• Conduct an experiment to measure their device usage throughout the day. 

Thriving

• Children thrive with a balanced mix of activities. Ensure they engage in physical activity, connect with nature, bond with family, interact with peers and develop their spirituality.
• Follow Australian Department of Health guidelines for screen time limits: 1 hour per day for ages 2-5 and 2 hours per day for ages 5-17 (excluding online learning).

Practical Tips

• Create a family device agreement to set boundaries for device use.
• Establish device-free times such as before bedtime, during dinner, and overnight.
• Focus on quality content rather than quantity. Discuss and engage with what your child watches or does online.
• Provide alternative options and encourage offline activities, hobbies, and sports.
• Dedicate one screen-free day each week.

Parent Resources

1. esafety Screen Time
2. esafety Screen Time - 7 Tips

Celebrations

REGIONAL POETRY AND PUBLIC SPEAKING COMPETITION

Last Friday, a number of students represented across the stages in the Regional Inter School Poetry and Public Speaking Competition, held at St Carthage's Primary, Lismore. Our school was incredibly well-represented. Our students did an amazing job in writing, learning and presenting their poems and speeches and they should all be very proud of their efforts, as we are of them. 

Representing in Poetry were:

• Addison Bambrook (Kindergarten)
• Matilda Hollows (Stage 1)
• Chloe O'Bryan (Stage 1)
• Lachlan Lewis-Hughes (Stage 2)
• Mitchell Charter (Stage 2)
• Toby Conlan (Stage 3)
• Ella Creighton-Kemp (Stage 3)

Representing in Public Speaking were:

• Indy Vu (Stage 2)
• Zara Towns (Stage 2)
• Emma Quinlan (Stage 3)
• Peter Carroll (Stage 3)

Our students presented so confidently and the competition was incredibly stiff! Often, there were only 5 or 6 marks separating all students presenting in a particular category.  We congratulate two students who placed in the competition. Matilda Hollows of Year 2 was judged second place in the Stage 1 poetry recital competition with her self-authored poem, Meeting a Dragon. Addison Bambrook from Kindergarten was judged first place for her recital of the Poem The Worm that Wouldn't Wiggle - by Steve Attewell.

Coming Events

STAGE 2 GET TOGETHER

Come join us for a play and morning tea on Sunday September 24 10am-12pm at Wollongbar skate park . Bring a plate to share, picnic rug, drinks, chairs, scooters, balls. All welcome, including siblings. We'll aim to get one of the tables towards the back of the skate ramp. Hope to see you there. 

Parish News

MASS TIMES

6:00 pm Saturday

8:30 pm  Sunday - join for morning tea after Mass, sponsored by St Vincent de Paul. 

Community News