Principal's News
Dear Families,
It is hard to believe we are now more than half way through Term 1. With a short week this week, and next, the teachers have worked hard to ensure the week is jam packed with lots of learning. It has been a special week in our liturgical calendar, commencing the beginning of Lent with Ash Wednesday.
Weekly Prayer
Lenten Reflection
As we begin the season of Lent, let us reflect on the times when we have failed to love and care for others. Let us pray for God’s forgiveness and mercy.
When we constantly put ourselves before others, we carry the stone of selfishness in our hearts.
God of mercy, heal our hearts.
When we fail to show tolerance and acceptance, we carry the stone of prejudice in our hearts.
God of mercy, heal our hearts.
When we cheat others and try to hide the truth, we carry the stone of dishonesty in our hearts.
God of mercy, heal our hearts.
When we are envious and covet what others have, we carry the stone of jealousy in our hearts
God of mercy, heal our hearts.
When we are arrogant and put other people down, we carry the stone of pride in our hearts.
God of mercy, heal our hearts.
Lenten Prayer of Sorrow
Let us pray a prayer of sorrow.
My God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong and failing to do good, I have sinned against you whom I should love above all things. I firmly intend, with your help, to do penance, to sin no more, and to avoid whatever leads me to sin.
In Jesus’ name, my God, have mercy.
Amen.
As we begin Lent, this might be something you might like to refer to:
Staff 'Faith Formation' Day
In this Jubilee 2025 year, Pope Francis invites the faithful to “journey together in hope,” and to take the opportunity of the upcoming Lenten Season to embark on a path of spiritual renewal and move out of our comfort zones. "Christians must walk together and not alone."
Today, for our school closure day, our staff have had the very special privilege of taking part in a pilgrimage with Fr Gallacher, journeyi together.
We began our day with Mass at St Joseph's where Father Gallacher talked about the importance of pilgrimage in this Year of Jubilee in which pilgrimage is very significant. Father Gallacher shared his experience of pilgrimage with us, as we we took part in a pilgrimage with him through the city, visiting various significant Catholic churches including St Francis Church (the oldest Catholic Church in Melbourne) and St Patrick's Cathedral.
Our pilgrimage was further enriched as we visited the Mary Mackillop Heritage Centre and Sr Rita took us on the very first tour on the new reflective garden where Saint Mary MacKillop was born.
We feel very privileged to have experienced this pilgrimage with Fr Gallacher and Sr Rita. As we walked through the city streets and spent time in these magnificent churches, we prayed, we reflected on our faith, and we deepened our connection with God. We shared stories on our journey which also deepened our connection with each other. As the staff of St Joseph's school community, and as faith filled people, we look forward to sharing our experiences with you all and with the children.
As we shared lunch together at the end of the day, we had a very special visit from Dr Ed Symons, Director of Catholic Education, who Fr Gallacher had invited as a surprise for our staff. He was keen to hear about our pilgrimage and to hear about the amazing learning at St Joseph's.
We thank our Religious Education Leader Ms Donnella DeVisser for all her work in organising such a meaningful faith-filled day for our staff.
Below are some highlights from our very special day...
Open Day - Monday 3rd March
Our first Open Day was held on Monday 3rd March. We were very excited to have new families visiting our school to see the wonderful happenings in our classrooms. Our superstar Year 6 students prepared brochures and engaged with the families as they toured our school, showcasing learning as well as sharing their experiences of school life at St Joseph's. We encourage all of our current families to extend an invitation to any potential families who are looking at schools for their children and to continue to spread the positive talk about our learning community.
Open Days for 2025
Monday 3rd March - 9am -11am
Thursday 24th April - 9am - 11am
Tuesday 6th May - 9am - 11am
Please encourage any families you know who are looking at a school for 2026 and beyond to book a tour with us at any time.
Our First Working Bee for 2025
The rain did not stop our amazing parents and children from attending our Working Bee on Sunday morning! A huge thank you to all of pour Prep and Year 5 and 6 parents who stepped out in the drizzle on Sunday for our first working bee of 2025! Your time, effort, and enthusiasm have made an incredible difference—our school looks absolutely fantastic and was shining just in time for our first Open Day. It was wonderful to see so many hands working together, proving once again that a strong school community is built on teamwork and generosity. Whether you were weeding, sweeping, planting, or unclogging the drink taps, your contributions have created a welcoming and vibrant space for our students and visitors alike. We are truly grateful for your support and look forward to more opportunities to come together as a school family. A huge thank you to Jess Purcell for organising this first Working Bee for 2025.
Shrove Tuesday
This week we celebrated Shrove Tuesday. Our wonderful P&F provided pancakes for all of our children. We thank them once again for supporting our community.
Ash Wednesday Mass
Our Ash Wednesday Mass this week was celebrated by Fr Gallacher in St Joseph's Church as part of the Parish Mass. It was so lovely to see so many of our families joining us for the first day of Lent. More news about Lent and Easter from Ms Donnella DeVisser on our Religious Education Page.
NAPLAN 2025
The 2025 National Assessment Program—Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests will be administered to students in Years 3, and 5 from Wednesday 12th March to Tuesday 18th March 2025. The tests will commence next week. If you have a child who will be completing the NAPLAN tests and you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to see our learning leaders Amanda and Dean, or myself.
The NAPLAN Tests will be held on the following days:
Wednesday 12th March: NAPLAN Writing
Thursday 13th March: NAPLAN Reading
Monday 17th March: NAPLAN Language Conventions (Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation)
Tuesday 18th March: NAPLAN Numeracy
Senior Learning
On Tuesday night we had the first of a series of parent meetings to present the exciting plan for our seniors students this year. Our leadership team and the Year 5 and 6 teachers showcased the plan for the learning across this senior learning space as well as the leadership opportunities for our senior students. This was a great opportunity for parents to hear about the exciting things planned for this year as well as ask questions. The feedback was extremely positive and I think our Year 5 and 6's are very much looking forward to the changes. Parent and student voice is very welcomed, valued and part of this process. A huge thanks to our P and F who are offering to support the transformation of the physical space for our senior students. Watch this space!
Year 6 Leadership Conference
This week on Tuesday our Year 6 students attended a leadership conference at the Melbourne Conference and Exhibition Centre with hundreds of other primary senior school students. This was an amazing day for them, building connections with other children from many other schools as well as learning about what it means to be a school leader. This is one of the many exciting things ahead for our senior students this year. You can more information about this experience on the Year 6 Excursion Page in this newsletter. Our Year 6's have written some prety good reflections! I am sure you will enjoy reading what they learnt and what they intend to do next!
Enrolments for 2026
It is always very exciting when we begin to look forward to our enrolments for the next year. With our Open Day commencing on Monday this week, we are beginning to plan for 2026. We request that if you have a younger child who will commence Prep in 2026, that you please make contact with the office to ensure we have your child enrolled for next year. It is very important that we have this information as soon as possible.
Next Parents and Friends Meeting
Please join us at our P&F meeting next week. It will be held on Thursday 13th March, from 6.30pm to 7.30pm in the school staffroom. The agenda for this meeting will be the upcoming P&F events and marketing for the school. All parents are warmly welcome to attend and participate. We look forward to seeing you there!
P&F Update
The P&F have had a very busy couple of weeks. Just the way we like it!
ICY POLE DAY
The new freezer space meant the senior students could conduct an icy pole stand at school raising $153. These funds will assist the Year 6 graduation celebrations at the end of the year. We heard it went really well. The weather is looking ideal next week for another icy pole day.
WORKING BEE
Doesn’t our school look wonderful! Thank you to the wonderful families in Prep, Grade 5 & 6 who rolled up their sleeves to make the school look great in time for the open day. Thank you also to the teaching staff who came in on a Sunday to assist with the working bee.
SHROVE TUESDAY
We would like to thank the families for their donations of ingredients to make pancakes for Shrove Tuesday. Thank you to those families that donated their time to cook and serve the pancakes to the smiling children. It is such a joy to have these shared experiences with the children.
NEXT P&F MEETING
The P&F invite all members of the school community to attend the next meeting at 6:30pm on Thursday 13th March in the staff room.
Laura and Talia
Presidents of the P&F
School Advisory Council (SAC) Meeting
At our last meeting we introduced our new School Advisory Council members and outlined the purpose of the SAC. This year we have a very strong SAC who are committed to working with myself and Fr Gallacher for the benefit of our school and our children.
Council members give consideration and advice on important school matters in order to support the principal and the strategic interest of the school. The following are some examples of the ways the SAC may support the school and myself as principal:
- articulating the school's vision and mission
- promoting the school's Catholic ethos and culture
- promoting faith formation and development
- supporting school policies as required
- giving advice to the principal on issues such as school improvemtn plans and enrolment trends
- engaging in discussion with the principal about the annul school budget and other financial matters
- giving advice to the principal about the school masterplan
- providing capital resource planning and maintenance support to the principal
“School advisory councils provide a crucial point of connection between the wider school community and school leaders. While they do not have decision-making authority, they inform and advise the principal and school leadership.”
At our last meeting, we discussed learning, enrolments and marketing, finance, our plan for the senior learning space and child safety. We also had updates from myself, Dean our Deputy Principal, Amanda our Literacy Leader and the Parents and Friends Association.
The next SAC Meeting will be held on April 1st at 7pm.
Code of Conduct
It is timely to remind all parents at St Joseph's that we have a Parent and Guardian Code of Conduct. We belong to a wonderfully welcoming and inclusive community and this is the culture and community that we want to encourage and maintain. We have a Code of Conduct for one reason and that is to ensure the wellbeing and safety of all of our students.
Thank you for your support of this and ensuring that St Joseph's continues to be a place where all of our children and parents feel physically and psychologically safe. You will have received an Operoo notification to read and sign the Code of Conduct. If you ahve not as yet completed this could you please do this as soon a spoible
Our SJM Swimmers at Beachside Division
Congratulations to all the swimmers from our SJM Swim Team who have progressed through to the Beachside Division Competition which is being held today.
We wish the following students all the best for their swims today: Max, Nicholas, Callum, Spencer, Evelyn, Victor, Lucy, Milana and Matilda.
We look forward to hearing how they went.
World's Greatest Shave- Max and Callum
We are so proud of Max and Callum, who are taking part in The World’s Greatest Shave to raise vital funds for the Leukaemia Foundation! By shaving their head, they are standing in solidarity with those facing blood cancer. This is a fantastic opportunity for our St. Joseph’s community to rally behind them and show our support! If you’d like to donate, every contribution—big or small—makes a difference. Let’s get behind Max and Callum and help them make a real impact!
Congratulations Cooper!
Last weekend Cooper in Year 5 wrapped up an incredible run, competing in three tournaments over four action-packed weekends: the U10 Junior Academy League, U10 Futsal League, and U12 Futsal League.
Cooper and his teammates dominated the U10 divisions, emerging as champions in both competitions, while also putting up an outstanding fight in the U12 Futsal League, finishing as runners-up in a thrilling final - adding two trophies and three medals to his collection!
Throughout the tournaments, the team collectively netted an impressive 151 goals, showcasing their skill, teamwork, and relentless determination. Notably, they remained undefeated in the U10 Junior Academy League for the entire tournament—an incredible achievement!
Congratulations to Cooper and the team on an outstanding performance!
Our St Joey's Mums at RCH Tennis Charity Event
On Monday some of the mums from St Joey's participated in a day of competition at Kooyong Tennis Club. Whilst they didn't win (this time) I heard they had a lot of fun. This particular event was a charity event for the Royal Children's Hospital. For any parents who would like to join further tennis events please see the flyer below. All welcome!
Family School Calendar
Here is the link to our school calendar for families so that you can keep up to date with the school events across the year.
https://www.sjmalvern.catholic.edu.au/mevents
School Closure Days:
Friday 7th March Staff Faith Formation Day and Monday 10th March Public Holiday
Reminders
Public Holiday
Monday March 10th, is the Labour Day Public Holiday. There will be NO SCHOOL on this day.
Important Road Safety Reminder
Unfortunately we have had a few passers-by alerting us to some unsafe behaviours at school drop off and pick up. Just a reminder, for the safety of our children, that there should be no double parking, no U -Turns on Stanhope St, and please observe the parking signs. This is very important for the safety of our whole school community as well as other local people using Stanhope St.
Being SunSmart
As the very warm weather continues and the UV levels are very high, our school is committed to implementing SunSmart awareness. It is timely to remind everyone that hats must be worn during the warmer months. It is helpful for the children to apply their sunscreen before school and again before going out to play. It is important that we all remember to be SunSmart. For useful ideas and more information about sun protection, see the SunSmart website www.sunsmart.com.au.
Parking
A friendly reminder that the carpark between the Parish House and School is for Parish and School Staff only. You may have noticed the new Parish signage. Please do not use this for drop off and pick up on school days as there is not enough parking for school staff or Parish staff. Additionally, children, parents, and families should not be entering or exiting through the side gate. This is also for staff only. Use of the carpark and gate is a safety concern as this area is not supervised by staff and is not safe for children to be moving in and out of this space. Thanks everyone for your understanding. The safety of our children is our highest priority.
Staying connected...
If, at any time, you have any concerns or worries about your child's wellbeing, learning, or friendships, please do not hesitate to have a chat with your child's teacher as your first point of contact. If you have other concerns, please feel free to touch base with our wonderful admin team, a member of school leadership, or myself. For more serious concerns, I encourage you to please reach out by either making an appointment through the office to see me, or contacting me directly via email.
Enjoy the long weekend and this beautiful weather!
Stay safe if you are on the roads this weekend.
With warmest regards and blessings to you all,
Annabelle Marinelli
Principal