PRINCIPAL'S NEWS

Miss Jaclyn is always busy keeping abreast of our socials and sharing the terrific things that are happening at our school.  

Here's a snippet of our Socials this week - check out what some of our students have to say about their GRANDPARENTS!

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1996393547442928

Grandparent's Day

What a fabulous celebration of Grandparents we had at St Joseph's! 

A heartfelt THANK YOU to all the grandparents who joined us. Your presence in your grandchildren's classrooms and at morning tea made the day truly special. We were delighted to welcome nearly 90 grandparents, making it a wonderful turnout.

A big thank you also goes to our dedicated staff for preparing food, setting up the room, and assisting throughout the event, and to our wonderfully polite and respectful students who served morning tea and helped pack up at the end of the morning.  It was a fantastic team effort, and the positive feedback from our visitors was greatly appreciated.

I've included some photographs from the day, and be sure to click on the link above to watch the video on our Facebook/Instagram page where children share their thoughts about their grandparents.

Roof Rectification Project update

I would like to extend my gratitude to our students, staff and families for your patience during the current roof rectification works.   The resilience of our students and staff is to be commended and I applaud them for their adaptability and 'go with the flow' attitude. Our yard space has certainly been compromised, yet despite the limited space, the children have shown remarkable flexibility in navigating the new play spaces.

Our middle school students are making the best of travelling to and from the courts and have made great use of their new learning space. Together with their teachers, we are all incredibly proud of their resilience and their ability to make the most of the situation.

I am pleased to share the news that the builders from Solution 3 are ahead of schedule. Last week they completed of 50% of the roof tiles, successfully retiling the south end of the roof.  This week, plasterers and painters will begin work in rooms 7 and 9 (Middle T and Middle J classrooms). We are on track to complete the main works by the end of the term.

Additionally, we are taking advantage of the scaffolding to replace the box gutters and repaint the areas around the windows. The scaffolding is expected to come down during the next school holidays.

Thank you once again for your support and understanding as we work to improve our school's facilities.

From this...

To this... (so far!)

In the Wellbeing and Learning Diversity section of this newsletter, Lynette (one of our Education Support Officers) has offered some tips on 'Coping Strategies for Families and Children During Times of Change'.  Lynette is a qualified Counsellor and a great addition to our team!

School Fete

We are excited to announce that St Joseph's will be hosting a SCHOOL FETE this year! This will be our first fete in some time, as we have not hosted one since Covid restrictions. This year, the event will take place on Saturday, November 16, and will run as a traditional 'day' fete.

So far, we have had 19 people volunteer to help. While November 16 might seem far off, much of the organization needs to start now, and we will need many more volunteers to ensure the fete's success.

We will be compiling a 'How Can I Help' list, which will provide direction on how you might assist. Stay tuned for more details!

Thank you in advance for your support and enthusiasm as we prepare for this fantastic event.

If you are interested in contributing your time and skills, please contact Olivia Triandos on 0408 369 184 or oliviatriandos@gmail.com,  or contact the school office.

Book Week

Book Week is fast approaching and St Joseph's will be celebrating with:

• A visit by local author Nicky Johnston
  • Nicky will be running some fun interactive sessions with all students
  • she will be available for book signing
  • visit her website to purchase her books 
• Lots of reading, games and craft activites
• Dress up parade - 23 August @ 8:45am

Save the Dates...

School Closure Day

The school closure day for this term will be on Friday August 16.  On this day the staff will be on site and working on High Impact Teaching Strategies and further unpacking the new Vision for Instruction - Flourishing Learners initiative recently released by MACS (Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools).

Hooptime Dates

Senior's Hooptime - September 10

Middle's Hooptime - September 13

We will need parent helpers to coach and/or score on the day.  

As Senior's Hooptime is booked for Tuesday September 10, we have moved Parent Teacher Interviews (previously scheduled for Sept 10) to Wednesday September 11.

Paper Plane Competition

Last Thursday our annual paper plane competition was held in the front yard. We were blessed with a beautiful sunny day and much fun was had by all. We had many entrants in both categories (furthest flying plane and most creative plane). The final points were as follows:

1st place: Simmonds = 225 points

2nd place: Carr & Mannix  = 195 points

3rd place: Goold = 135 points

A huge thank you and congratualtion to our House Captains for organising such a fun and fabulous competition.