Principal's Page

Principal's Message

Dear Parents and Carers,

In the coming days, Halloween, All Saints Day and All Souls Day will be upon us. Halloween is now more popular than ever in our Australian calendar but many celebrate it without really understanding what it means or its roots.

In our Catholic tradition, “Halloween” is observed on 31 October, and is the "een" or "eve" of All Hallows Day (All Saints Day) and All Souls Day, November 1 and November 2 respectively. 

The ancient English word ‘hallow’ declares something holy or blessed. All Saints Day was for centuries called Hallow-Mass, the Mass celebrating all the saints. Halloween is a shortened form of Hallows-Even, the evening before the feast of All Saints.

"Hallow" is a word in the Lord's Prayer – "hallowed be thy name" (may God's name be held holy) so to celebrate Halloween without connecting it to All Saints Day would be like celebrating Christmas Eve without a Christmas Day. 

If you take away the Saints from Halloween, along with our Christian beliefs about the dignity and destiny of human beings, then all you have left is a pre-Christian superstition about the dead!

Halloween is also a time to celebrate the saints who have been in our lives and their “holiness.” There are countless people we remember, including our family, friends and strangers, all those anonymous saints – who quietly, with no fanfare or publicity, lived generous, holy and faithful lives, and have gone to God. As the Eucharistic Prayer in the Mass puts it, ‘have gone before us with the sign of faith’. 

We especially pray for and remember the students of St Joseph’s who have passed away. We remember these students in our school prayer garden.

At St Joseph’s we are in the business of creating saints for the world. Every day at St Joseph’s we witness deeds of ‘saintliness’ from our students, who are the face of God for others when they pray, care, and act for the good of others with bursting hearts. We are grateful for, and ask God to pour many blessings upon our young saints in the making here at St Joseph’s.

Let the fun of Halloween celebrate our holiness!

For all things at St Joseph’s, give thanks!

Jen Charadia

Principal

What is happening on Thursday?

Check the 'Our Catholic Identity' page of this newsletter for important information.

Orientation for Kindergarten 2021

Last week, we welcomed our Kinder 2021 families to our newsletter. I thank you for your patience and understanding as we have navigated your children's orientation to school.

You will have received a letter from me last week, where I was able to share the wonderful news that the children will be able to attend two orientation sessions on-site, at school. If you have not yet booked in for these you might want to do this as soon as possible.

The Kindergarten teachers have been very busily preparing an interactive eBook for your children so that they can learn about their school and feel a sense of belonging and welcome. We will also soon have Seesaw ready for you and your child with other activities.

We are really looking forward to meeting Kindergarten 2021. It is such an exciting time for your family and for us, their new St Joseph's family.

Year 6 Farewell

Last week, I met with a very generous and enthusiastic group of Year 6 parents to discuss the Year 6 Farewell and I hope to provide some information for parents now.

The current COVID-19 health advice will see certain restrictions in place, the most significant of these is that parents will be unable to attend. This is disappointing as the farewell is such a wonderful community event and not only an opportunity for students to farewell their primary school years but to also farewell those families with their last child at St Joseph's.

The Years 6 Farewell will be held on Tuesday 15 December during the day. It will include a liturgy, lunch, speeches, awards, presentations, farewell to leaving families, and a disco. We are also hoping to either live stream or video the farewell for parents.

The parent volunteers are hoping to decorate the hall but this will depend upon COVID-19 restrictions at the time. If this is not possible I will ensure that some staff members are available.

Please be assured that all social distancing and hygiene protocols will be in place, including those around food service and handling. The safety of all involved is a priority.

The Year 6 parents I met with last week have already begun planning and I thank them for their valuable contribution to this wonderful school event.

Formation of Classes for 2021 

All requests regarding a child’s placement for 2021 classes should be made in writing and addressed to the Principal by Friday 6 November, next week. Whilst parental requests are considered, there is never a guarantee that they will be granted. If you plan to make a request, particularly about your child being placed within a friendship group, please be aware that there may be circumstances surrounding such requests that prevent it from being granted.

"Mum or Dad, I need a haircut!"

I appreciate the effort parents make to ensure their child/ren have suitable haircuts for school. Correct uniforms and haircuts are part of the high standards we expect of our students.

When it is haircut time for your child, you need to consider the school expectation for hair under our uniform policy. Remember, your child might want a haircut that is trendy or sets them apart from others but as a parent, you will make the decision about your child's hair. 

When making that decision please refer to the school handbook under Uniforms.

Hair

Students are required to wear their hair in a neat and tidy manner.

• Haircuts should be of an even grade.
• Hair should be well brushed and combed.
• Hair will not be in such a condition as to invite comment.
• Long hair is to be tied back or plaited, off the face and should not extend to cover the eyes.
• Navy blue headbands, ribbons and scrunchies are to be worn in the hair.

BE AWARE OF THE FOLLOWING:

• Extreme styles, bleaching, colouring or dyeing of hair are not permitted.
• Gel, mousse and hair spray or other substances should not be used.
• There will be no undercuts, steps or shaved lines within the hair.
• Nothing shorter than a Number 2 comb is acceptable.
• Students who do not abide by the haircut requirements will be asked to fix the identified problem.

School Handbook

Principal Awards and Merit Awards

The following students will receive their Principal Awards at our afternoon assembly on Friday 6 November 2020.  

Acknowledgement to Country

St Joseph's Bulli acknowledges and pays respect to the Dharawal people past and present, the traditional custodians of the land on which our school is built.