Principal's News

Dear Families,

It's been a pretty busy couple of weeks as we get into the 'thick' of the school year. Aside from the standard/ usual curriculum we've had a fair few extra things happening as we head to the mid-way point of the term. For us teachers who have been around the traps for a number of years, we know that the children generally become tired at this point, and this tiredness can result in sensitivities to things that children may normally be able to shrug off.  (And parents too). Plenty of rest and a good night's sleep is essential!

Our annual staff conference takes place next Thursday and Friday, with staff involved in professional learning with the Berry Street organisation. This leads into the long weekend, with Labour Day on Monday 13th March. 

This 5-day long weekend will undoubtedly be a much-needed circuit breaker for our students, especially for our preps who continue to amaze us all!

Reflecting on the past couple of weeks, there have been a number of stand-out events.

Shrove Tuesday was a huge hit! It was wonderful to see so many parents and grandparents come in to help make pancakes; the parish kitchen was like a scene from Master Chef!

Everyone had a great time, and the pancakes were enjoyed by the children and teachers during a whole school picnic. It was great to see everyone come together as a community and enjoy the lovely pancakes and great company.

Thank you so much to all the adults who assisted on the day.

The following day we all attended church for Ash Wednesday, and the children were exceptionally reverent. We want to thank Monsignor Stuart for leading the Mass and our parents who joined us. It was a beautiful service, and it was great to see so many of our community come together to celebrate this special day.

Dendy District Swimming

On Monday 20th February, our Year 3 to 6 students participated in the Dendy District Swimming competition, and we are proud to announce that they came first place in the percentage scores! Well done to our students and thanks to our teachers for their hard work and dedication. It was a fantastic day, and we're so proud of everyone who participated. 

A special congratulations to Nicholas (Y3), Callum (Y4) and Alexis (Y5) who broke four of the Dendy records, with Alexis breaking two records by a WHOPPING 10 seconds!

Dendy District Tennis

Well done to Grace, Daniel and Luca in Year 6 for representing our school in the Dendy District Tennis competition. 

"On this Land", a First Nation Unit of Work

Our teachers enjoyed a very informative workshop with Michellie from Australians Together, who led us in First Nations professional development. It was a wonderful opportunity for our teachers to learn and grow within a hugely important topic in our curriculum. Australians Together support teachers to teach Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives with professional learning and curriculum resources, which are created by applying the Australians Together Learning Framework and are developed alongside First Nations educators to ensure they're authentic and transformative.

"A Magical Experience like No Other!!" Laura, Y6

We had a magical day out with the Year 5 and 6 students to see the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child production at the Princess Theatre. It was all the more exciting as we got to meet the cast for a Q+A session and we were able to ask questions that would help in producing Finding Nemo Jr. 

Thank you to our senior staff and Year 5 and Year 6 students, the whole day was an absolute joy!

Structured Literacy and MSL (systematic phonics)

Thank you to Amanda Jackson, Miss V and Mr B for hosting our prep parent information session about supporting students with their reading. For those who were unable to attend, we will be posting some videos to our website, so stay tuned. It's quite incredible to see our preps already taking home readers- we're so proud of their hard work!

On Saturday, we have a working bee starting at 8.30am, led by Adrian B. 

We'd love as many people there as possible and if you have a leaf blower or rake to help clean up the gardens, please bring it along. This is a great opportunity to get involved in our school community and help make a difference, ie, clean up the grounds before open day!

Speaking of which, our Open Day is on Monday 6th March, beginning at 9am. 

Our Year 6 students will set up stalls/ information desks around the school and we would love some parent tour guides as this was very successful last year. It's a chance to showcase our amazing school to prospective families and show them what makes St Joseph's such a special place. 

Some Reminders:

• I know we are (generally) a school of dog lovers, but I ask that your dog is kept on a lead at all times, with an adult holding the lead. We do have children with a fear of dogs and I would hate to cause our students to feel unsafe entering school.
• Could I ask that parents are careful with school bags, as they enter the school or in the corridors. It is best if bags are worn by students, save parents wrestling to get around safely.
• Our school calendar is now live on our website: www.sjmalvern.catholic.edu.au and is linked to a google family calendar. When you click on an event you are able to sync it to your own calendar. The calendar is located at the bottom of the main page:

Baby News

A huge congratulations to Eunice, Mark and Lucia (prep) on the very recent birth of baby Vera. How beautiful is baby?.. and Lucia is already doing a great job as big sister to Vera!

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to our school community over the last two weeks. We are grateful for your support, and we look forward to continuing to work together to create a positive and inclusive environment for all.

It's a Friday Vibe....

Have a great weekend,

Michelle