Dear Parents and Guardians,

Thank you to all our families for their support of our Harmony Day yesterday. Many students wore a splash of orange and staff and students enjoyed the very engaging Digjeribone performance. We raised $141.00 to support our sponsored child, Vivian, in Tanzania.

I enjoyed a fabulous camp with our MLA students and staff last week. Our visit to Sovereign Hill included activities such as panning for gold and the Aura night walk, where students were immersed in the Wadawurrung Creation story and the gritty story of gold and history of the rebellion.

A very big thank you to Cherrie, Vanessa, Connie, and Michael for their participation and support on camp and to Jackie, Chloe and Mary for their wonderful organisation and planning to ensure a successful camp for all.

As this is my last newsletter for Term One, l would like to thank our students for their wonderful work this term. We are all very grateful that we have had a productive term of learning. Our students have worked very hard, and l am sure everyone is looking forward to a well-earned rest over the holidays.

St Joseph the Worker is a wonderful community where parents and staff work together and are committed to providing the best learning opportunities for our students. As we near the end of the term, I would like to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of our staff who do a wonderful job. Thank you to all parents for your support and for trusting us to educate your children.

Congratulations also to our Prep students, who have completed their first term of school. All students have settled into school, made friends, and adapted well to the new routine of learning in the classroom. Well done Preps.

Lenten Pilgrimage

I hope families can join us at our Lenten pilgrimage next Wednesday 27th March. This will be a wonderful opportunity for our community to gather at 9.00am and reflect on the events of Holy Week. At the conclusion of the pilgrimage, students, staff and families will proceed to the hall for the drawing of the Easter raffle. All families are welcome to attend the pilgrimage and the drawing of the Easter raffle.

Thank You ~

Sacrament of Reconciliation

Congratulations to our Year 3 students who celebrated their first Reconciliation on Wednesday evening. This is an important milestone in their faith journey and special thanks to Jackie, Chloe, Mary and Kate for their great work supporting our students in preparing them to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

NAPLAN

Congratulations to our Year 5 and Year 3 students who have completed NAPLAN testing. We are currently running our catch-up sessions for any students who missed the testing on Monday. A very big thank you to Geraldine for leading this and supporting our MLA and SLA teams with this.

Staffing Updates

We have welcomed Dermott Galvin-King to our staff. Dermott is currently completing his Honours in Psychology and will be working at St Joseph the Worker as a learning support officer in our school on Tuesdays and Fridays.

We continue our search for a teacher in SLA 1. I will update families regarding this as soon as possible.

School Tours and Enrolments

If you have a child and wish to enrol them for next year, please collect a pack from the office. We have further tours next term, and if families would like to join a tour, please contact Michele by ringing the office or via email michele.hides@sjwreservoirnth.catholic.edu.au

School Advisory Council

At our Annual General Meeting earlier this term, we held an election for the School Advisory Board, where Vanessa Bonanzinga was re-elected. We thank all nominees and look forward to working together in partnership with our School Advisory Council, Parents and Friends committee and parent community.

Easter Raffle

Thank you for your great support towards our Easter Raffle and donations for the prizes. Our Parents and Friends do a wonderful job to raise important funds to support our school. This term they have been very busy organising our Tarantella dance night and organising our Easter raffle. I would like to thank the many parents who generously give their time to support our school. We really appreciate it.

St Joseph the Worker Parish Easter Celebrations

Please refer to Fr Manny’s news section for all the important Holy Week and Easter celebrations. Your family will be very welcome at these important events in our catholic calendar.

School Uniform

Traditionally, at the commencement of Term Two, we move to our winter uniform, however we know that with changing weather patterns, we can often experience continued mild weather in late April and early May. For this reason, we are leaving the decision to parents to choose when their child moves to the winter uniform, so that we can ensure that your child is comfortable at school.

Students must always wear the correct uniform and can wear either the full summer or the full winter uniform to begin next term, but not a mix of both. The school holidays are a good opportunity to ensure that you have the required winter uniform items. Next term, on our first newsletter, we will set a date for all students to be in our winter school uniform.

School Fees

Thank you to all the parents who have paid their school fees in full. For those paying in instalments, the first instalment and the Curriculum Levy are now due. It is important that all fees and levies are paid on time to enable the school to meet our financial commitments. Please contact Marisa if you have any questions regarding your fees.

St Joseph the Worker Feast Day

Monday 1st May is St Joseph the Worker Feast Day. We will be celebrating with our students on this day beginning with Mass at 9.10am. Families are invited to join us to celebrate Mass on our school feast day. Further information regarding this day will be provided next term.

Secondary school enrolments

It is that time of year that parents need to start considering a secondary school for your child. Catholic Secondary Colleges: enrolments are open for current Year 5 students.

For Government Secondary Colleges: enrolments are open for current Year 6 students.

Please contact your preferred secondary college to arrange a tour and collect an enrolment form.

Working together

At St Joseph the Worker, we strive to be a safe, supportive and respectful learning community where the wellbeing of all is paramount. We implement a number of strategies and approaches to promote an inclusive and supportive environment for our students where everyone feels safe, supported and respected.

End of Term One & Term Two beginning dates

Term One will conclude on Wednesday 27th March at 1.15pm and 3 Way Conversations commence at 2.00pm until 5.30pm and continue on Thursday 28th March at 8.45 – 1.15pm.

Term Two commences on Monday 15th April. Please note; the school will be closed on Anzac Day, Thursday 25th April, with school closures following on Friday 26th April and Monday 29th April.

We ask St Joseph the Worker to continue to bless our wonderful Parish and School Community.

I wish everyone a happy and holy Easter and a wonderful break with your family. Thank you for your ongoing support during a busy term. May St Joseph the Worker bless you.

May the God who created a world of diversity and vibrancy,

Go with us as we embrace life in all its fullness.

May the Son who teaches us to care for strangers and foreigners,

Go with us as we try to be good neighbours in our communities.

May the Spirit who breaks down our barriers and celebrates community,

Go with us as we find the courage to create a place of welcome for all.

God made all of us alike, yet different in so many ways.

Many of us have different customs and speak different languages.

We pray that everyone can show respect for all those who have entered our lives and accept everyone for who they really are-Children of God.

Kind regards,

Maria Barnes

Principal

Learning & Teaching