Principal’s News

Dear Parents and Carers,

It really looks like Spring has sprung.  We had a lovely day in the sunshine here at School and on the One/Two Excursion to a local cattle farm.

Father's Day Celebrations

Inviting all Dads or other Special people to our Father’s Day Celebration on Friday, 4 September, 2:30pm to 4:00pm. 

There will be time in the classroom with your children, followed by a brief liturgy in the SPA Centre. Weather permitting,  will then gather on the oval for a sausage sizzle and some games with the children. 

We are looking forward to celebrating this special day with you and your children.

Archbishop Peter Comonsoli's Episcopal Visit 

The Archbishop of Melbourne, the Most Reverend Peter Comonsoli will be holding an Episcopal Visit in the Sacred Heart parish in early September.  He will be visiting the school on Friday 4 September  and will be participating in Parish events on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 September.

Archbishop Peter will be celebrating mass with the school and parish on Friday at 11:00am.  We are hopeful that he will join us for our Father's Day Celebrations in the afternoon. He will be holding a Parish Forum on Saturday, which families are welcome to attend.  He will be celebrating Mass at 8:30am on Sunday and this will be followed by a morning tea, hosted by the school.  Parents are invited to assist the staff with the set-up of morning tea at 8:00am and with serving the parishioners at around 9:30am.

Parent Helpers Course

Under the Child Safe Standards (1 July, 2022), people are required to complete Child Safety Induction prior to being able to work with children.  Previously this has been done on-site.  We have also run this as a live online Webinar.  This term we are going to trial a self-service system, whereby participants engage with a presentation at their own pace, then complete a quiz requiring a score of at least 90% .  Once completed, participants photograph or take a screen shot of the final page with their score.  They then forward this to principal@sjyarrajunction.catholic.edu.au via email.  Participants will then receive a certificate of completion.

Once the course has been completed and the participant has a valid Working with Children Check card (WWCC), they will be able to volunteer to help in the classroom, to attend excursions and help at other school events.  Anyone wishing to assist with the Father's Day Stall next Thursday will need to have completed this course and hold a valid WWCC. The course will come online tomorrow.  Parents and Carers will be notified via our various communication channels when this is accessible.

Pupil Free Days

As previously communicated, this Friday 28 August is a Pupil Free Day.  Industrially, I am required to provide this time to staff (VCEMEA 2022) in lieu of camps, evening meetings, and other activities I request them to attend out of hours.  I hope this provides the staff and your children a bit of a refresher for the run home to the school holidays commencing on Friday 18 September.

Pupil Free Days in 2027

Our first Pupil Free Day for 2027 will be Wednesday, 27 January, the day before school commences for our students.  This is the first of four school-led Professional Learning Days.  The school can choose three other days for School-led Professional Learning throughout the year and this is where you get to have a say about their timing.

Some parents like Pupil Free days to be attached to School Holidays and Long weekends.  Others find it difficult to get leave to care for their children when they are placed adjacent to School Holidays and Long Weekends.  Please click the survey link below to share your preference.

School Photos

Sibling Photos are being taken for the children who missed out when the photographers were here last time.  They will be taken on Wednesday 4 November. Ordering instructions will be sent closer to the time.

Please note, this is the day after the Cup Day Public Holiday.

Student Attendance - Every day counts

Why going to school is important.....

Going to school every day is an important part of your child’s education. Children and young people learn new things at school every day, connect with friends, have fun and develop good habits that help them to succeed. Attending and participating in school will help your child:

• develop important skills and knowledge to help them learn
• develop social and emotional skills such as good communication, resilience and team-work
• establish friendships with peers, which help develop self-esteem and a sense of belonging

There is no 'good number' of days for missing school. Being away from school for 1 day a fortnight adds up to missing 4 whole weeks of school a year and 3/4 of a year across their time in Primary School.  Where possible, you should avoid your child missing school, for example, make appointments for your child outside of school hours and keep family holidays to outside term time.

Reporting Student Absences

As a parent/carer, you are legally required to ensure your child attends school every day unless they have a legitimate reason, and if your child is absent you must provide an explanation.

Our school acknowledges and understands that parents and carers may be juggling various challenges to get their children to school every day. If your child must miss school for any reason, notify the office via phone 59671183 or email office@sjyarrajunction.catholic.edu.au as soon as possible so we can work together to ensure your child is supported.  We are legally accountable for confirming the whereabouts of enrolled students so it is important that absences are reported by 9:15am at the latest.

List of legitimate reasons for absence, as identified by the Department of Education:

1. Accident
2. Appointment
3. Bereavement
4. Extended Family Holiday
5. Family
6. Hospitalised
7. Medical/Welfare
8. Quarantine
9. Refusal
10. Sick
11. Suspension - external
12. Truency

Please note: "Parent Choice" is not an accepted reason.

Prolonged absences for in-term holidays

If you are considering taking your child out of school for a prolonged period, an application for approval must be made in writing and a meeting arranged with me through the office to discuss the application.  Consideration for approval will be based on the child's attendance record throughout the year.

If your child misses a lot of school...

If your child has frequent, and especially unexplained absences, then the school will work with you to develop a support plan to assist your child and ensure they attend school every day and remain at school during school hours.  If you require assistance in this area, please reach out to Rebecca Beveridge (Wellbeing), Katie Vranken (DP and Mental Health in Primary Schools) or myself.

Arrival/Departure Times

Supervision of the students by staff commences each morning at 8:30am.  From this time onwards, the school assumes duty of care for the students.  Prior to this time, Teachers and Leaders are involved in meetings, lesson preparations, etc and are unavailable for before school supervision. Consequently, students who are dropped off early are being left unsupervised by their parents or carers who have the duty of care until 8:30am.

In the afternoon, students are supervised by the Leaders and Teachers between 3:00pm and 3:15pm.  Parents and carers are asked to collect their children from school by 3:15pm.  If parents are running late, the children will be taken to the office and supervised.  Parents are asked to contact the office if they have been delayed.

Before and After School Care

If it is unmanagable for you to drop your children at school at 8:30 or pick them up by 3:15pm, Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) may help.   St Joseph's has engaged Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools Early Years Education (MACSeye) for OSHC.  Their service runs from 7:00am until 8:40am before school and from 3:00pm until 6:00pm in the evening.

Contact MACSeye using the details above or just drop in and chat with Tahlia before or after school.

Have a lovely weekend and best wishes for the week ahead.

Nick.

Nicholas Boyhan

Principal.