Week 3, Term 3

Dear families,

Congratulations to Alannah and Callum Harrison on the safe arrival of their beautiful baby boy, Roman Charles Harrison. Born on Monday July 28th, Roman is now settling in at home with his parents as they begin life together as a family of three. We are all so excited, and already counting down the days until Alannah and baby Roman visit us at St Joseph’s.

We are also thrilled to announce that Garin Sandler and his wife, Bee, have welcomed a beautiful baby boy, Miles William Sandler, into the world! Born on Tuesday, both mum and baby are doing well, and the family is settling into this joyful new chapter together. We send them all our love and congratulations.

Lastly, congratulations to Reuben (Year 1) and Frankie (Kindergarten) who have a new little sister, Stevie, who was born on Thursday! Congratulations go to the whole family, Andrew, Megan, Reuben and Frankie, we are so happy for you.

Year 6 Sacrament of Confirmation

Congratulations to our Year 6s, who celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation last night. The celebrant for the evening, Bishop Tomlinson, was so impressed with how prepared the students were, and the manner in which the St Joseph's community acknowledged the sacredness of this occasion. Proudly supported by their families and staff, the evening was a beautiful celebration for our Year 6s. We sincerely thank Miss Shanahan, Mr Jansson and Mr Sandler for preparing the students so well, to Bishop Tomlinson for celebrating the Mass and Father Leenus, Father Pat and Rev. Lam for concelebrating.

Semester Two Student Leaders

We are delighted to announce our Semester Two SRC and Environment Leaders from Prep to Year 5. One of the most heartwarming moments of the presentation was hearing classmates cheer as each student proudly accepted their badge. We are so fortunate to have such a kind, enthusiastic and supportive group of students! Please click here for the full list.

Year 4RC Assembly

Year 4RC brought the house down with their clever and comedic assembly, styled as a special edition of Classroom 360: The Midseason Review (a nod to AFL 360). With student hosts channeling their inner 'Gerard and Robbo', the assembly covered all the big talking points: standout learning moments, team spirit, growth mindset and classroom “premiership potential”. From Kinder Buddies to diorama showstoppers, it was equal parts footy banter and academic pride. Congratulations to 4RC and Miss Coldebella on a grand final-worthy performance, you are well and truly in the premiership window!

P&F 'St Josephitz Apres Ski' Fundraiser

If you ever wondered what makes a great community, look no further than the celebrations of the P&F event, 'St Josephitz Apres Ski' fundraiser. Parent involvement remains a key indicator to the success of a school (and event). Our parents are an integral part of who we are, and the event reflected the strength of our community and the value we place on it.

This year marked the return of our much-loved Art Auction, featuring stunning student-created pieces offered exclusively to our parent community. Each year level worked with our Art teacher, Mrs Krause, to produce seven unique and beautiful works of art. Congratulations to the winning families, we hope you enjoy your one-of-a-kind creations!

Our two family winners of Principal for the Day will be contacted to work out the best time for their children to 'take over' the school for the day - stay tuned!

It goes without saying, we are also incredibly grateful for the overwhelmingly generous donations for the raffle, as well as silent auction items from our families. The total amount raised will be communicated in the next newsletter and these funds will be strategically invested in upgrading the outdoor play spaces for our children.

On behalf of all at St Joseph's, we sincerely thank those parents and local businesses who contributed so actively to the success of this function:

P&F Exec: Victoria, Rosie, Tim, Rachel, Kathy.
Lead Event Planners: Mon and Laura (The Dream Team!)
Styling team: Mon, Laura, Hayley, Deb and Steph
Silent Auction supporters: AllSports, Anytime Fitness, Avenue Bookstore, Barber Boss, Be Bowl’d, Bronte Body Care Capezio, Carter Lovett, Ceramiques, Chargrill Charlies, Classic Cinemas, Code Camp, Dawn Eatery, FALA Store, Flowe Interiors, Futures Tennis Academy, Glen Eira Leisure, Grassroots Yoga, Grill’d, GMS Collective, Heavenly Morsel, Hair Keen, Hanoi Hannah, Hidden Beauty Co, Langham Hotel, Laura Vivian Architecture, Leena’s Bar, Love Athletica, Melbourne Studio of Art, Nova Pharmacy, Rossdale Golf Club, Ruby’s Gifts, Sacred Ink Collective, Sossy & Canvas Gallery, Spring Park Golf, Terracotta Cafe, Waxed.
Raffle Supporters: Swan Family, Anytime Fitness, CP Group
Auctioneers: Ben and Jimmy (they did an amazing job!)

We also thank our major sponsors for the evening - Biggin & Scott, Elsternwick. Thank you for your support and generosity.

The Silent Auction will run until 12pm on Saturday 9th August - please click here to browse and bid!

P&F Meeting - Tuesday August 12th

We warmly invite all members of our parent community to the next Parents and Friends meeting - Tuesday August 12th at 6.30pm in the staff room. We will celebrate the most recent parent fundraiser, in addition to sharing updates on the Footy Classic and the Father's Day breakfast.

P&F Footy Match

Our next Parents and Friends event is the much-anticipated St Joseph's Footy Classic, taking place on Saturday, August 30th at Wattie Watson Oval. It's set to be a fantastic afternoon for the whole community, with a BBQ, cake stall, face painting, kids' games, and of course, a friendly footy match. The first bounce is at 1pm, and we hope to see the St Joseph’s community out in full support.

Prep 100 Days Celebrations

Today, our amazing Preps celebrated their 100th day of school with a beautiful assembly and party, supported by our generous families. Dressed up in the theme of, 'When I grow up...' we congratulate our Preps on this special milestone. A memorable day filled with joy and growth!

We thank Miss Mclean, Miss Nardella and Mrs Shea for their exceptional dedication in nurturing our precious junior students into school life.

As promised, below are the slides from their stunning assembly this morning.

Tournament of the Minds (ToM)

Our Year 5 and 6 students are busily working away on their Tournament of the Minds (T.O.M) presentations. T.O.M is a problem-solving program for primary and secondary students, designed to enhance their potential by developing diverse skills, time management, and collaborative discipline. The program challenges students to solve demanding, open-ended tasks within a competitive environment. Supported by Mr Hartney, the students will be presenting their scripts next weekend - good luck, St Joseph's!

School Advisory Council Meeting

Last week, our School Advisory Council gathered to discuss a range of important matters, including support for students with additional needs, current teaching and learning practices, and our most recent NAPLAN results. We extend our sincere thanks to the Council, chaired by John Ferraro and vice-chaired by Cat Anderson, for their ongoing support and the valuable contributions they make to the success of our school community.

Student Teachers from ACU National

We warmly welcome Juliette Luther into the Year 1AN classroom and Liana Barbagallo into Year 4RC as they begin their seven-week teaching placements. Both are final-year student teachers from the Australian Catholic University and will be well supported by their classroom mentors, Miss Nelligan and Miss Coldebella, throughout their time with us. We know our community will make Juliette and Liana feel very welcome.

Mary Poppins JR Update

"The children are simply amazing!"

"They are doing a wonderful job"

"I am so proud of them"

The above sentiments is a small snapshot of what Miss Mclean, Miss Dunk and Mr Hayes have shared with me over the past fortnight, as the school production of Mary Poppins JR starts to come together. Excitingly, we are at the stage where we begin to put scenes together to practice our transitions, and the younger students can see how their performances fit in with the bigger storyline. This week also marks the point in time where we take away the backing lyrics, and have the lead actors sing on their own with the accompanying music. It can be daunting when singing in front of several other students and teachers, but our Lead Actors have taken it all in their stride - impressing everyone with their stage presence and confidence.

The staff room was a hive of activity today, as our parent helpers came together to sew, iron, sort and label approximately 350 student costumes. To say we have been overwhelmed with parent support would be an understatement! We remain ever so thankful for the investment of our parent group in our Mary Poppins JR production - we simply have the most wonderful parent community.

Footy Colours Day

To coincide with our Father's Day celebrations, students and their Dads/Special Friends are invited to wear their Footy Colours (AFL/Soccer/or another sport) on Friday September 5th. This day is always a highlight and we look forward to seeing everyone in their team colours.

Little Gems

Thank you to All Stars Martial Arts for running a Prep - Year 3 Karate Incursion earlier this week. Everyone had a wonderful time!

We received this lovely photo and message about Freddie in Year 2:

Freddie's team played in purple for pancreatic cancer and Freddie scored 5 goals and 1 Assist in a 9-0 win.

Henry, Maxim, Ruben and Ahn Vu (Year 1) created their own non-fiction text on the solar system. I was very impressed!

Who doesn't love puppy cuddles - welcoming the newest member of the St Joseph's puppy club, Deborah Jo (DJ).

Pat, Arthur and Luke (Year 5) have been working on a special intiative for our students to reward positive behaviour. I was so impressed with their commitment, working through their lunch break earlier this week in readiness to present their slides.

It was a delight to welcome David Southwick MP to the All Stars Martial Arts class on Monday morning! It was a great opportunity to showcase the students' hard work and the positive impact of the programs at St Joseph’s.

As we wrap up another wonderful week at St Joseph’s, I want to say thank you to our incredible staff, students, and families for all that you bring to our community.

From learning successes in the classroom, to laughter and friendship in the yard, and the occasional visit to the leadership office to share a success story, there has been so much to celebrate.

Wishing our wonderful community a restful weekend.

Claire Tobin.

Principal

St Mary's College