Principal's News   

Term 3 - Welcome Back!

Dear Parents and Carers,

It was a delight to warmly welcome you all back to St Joseph's this week. It has been lovely to hear that our staff, children and families were all able to enjoy some much needed rest and relaxation, and possibly even some warm weather for those who travelled north or overseas.  We are now all ready for the full and exciting term ahead. 

A highlight this week was meeting you all the gate in the mornings and afternoons across the week and visiting the classrooms to hear about all the holiday adventures and activities - our students and staff certainly had a wonderful break!

In true St Joseph's spirit, it should come as no surprise that we have started the term with excitement! At our leadership and staff meetings this week, there was a buzz in the staffroom as we spoke about the many wonderful opportunities that our students will be involved in this term. We have a number of key events this term that will offer valuable opportunities for our students families and staff to grow, connect and flourish. One of the major highlights this term is our Beauty and the Beast Jnr School Production as well as a range of other exciting activities such as our Book Week Celebration, Pyjama Day, 100 Days of Prep Celebration, our Prep to 6 Intensive Swimming Program and much more! Please have a look at our 'Important Dates' page in this week's newsletter. 

It goes without saying that this is also in addition to the excellence in teaching and learning, with the structured and explicit literacy and numeracy instruction that takes place in classrooms each day. We continue to lead the way in delivering exceptional teaching practice, ensuring that our classrooms are calm and supportive places that meet every child's learning needs. It is with great pride, forward planning, and hard work that we continue to offer our students such an enriching program. As always, we thank our dedicated teachers for going above and beyond to provide these experiences for our students. The teaching excellence has been a highlight again this year in the 2025 NAPLAN results that we received this week! More information about our wonderful NAPLAN results in today's newsletter.

We look forward to an exiting Term 3 together!

Prayer for the NewTerm

Dear St. Joseph,

We thank you for the gift of this new school term and for the blessing of our school.

With grateful hearts, we come before you as we begin this journey of learning, growth, and community.

We ask for your guidance and blessing upon all the students, teachers, and staff here at St. Joseph's. May each one be filled with kindliness and strength as we strive to live out our school values just as you demonstrated in your life.

Help us, St. Joseph, to embody kindness in all that we do—towards one another, our teachers, and everyone in our school community. May we be a reflection of God's love and compassion, offering a helping hand and a kind word to those around us. Let our hearts be open to friendship, understanding, and respect for others, regardless of our differences.

Grant us the strength to persevere through challenges, to stand tall in the face of adversity, and to lift each other up when we need encouragement. Just as you stood as a protector and guide to the Holy Family, may we find strength in your example, knowing that with your prayers, we are capable of facing anything that comes our way.

Bless us with the drive to pursue excellence in all aspects of our lives. May we give our best effort in our work, in our actions, and in our relationships. Help us to rise to every challenge with courage, and to be proud of the work we do, knowing that we are always striving to be better versions of ourselves.

Bless our teachers with wisdom and patience, St. Joseph, and guide them as they lead us in knowledge and in faith. May our school be a place of safety, peace, and encouragement, where we grow together in the light of God's love.

We offer this term to you, trusting that you will walk beside us every step of the way. May St. Joseph’s School be a place where kindness, excellence, and strength thrive in every heart, every classroom, and every moment.

Through you, we place our trust in God to guide us and watch over us throughout the term.

Amen.

Prayers for Loss of Loved Ones

Over the holidays a few of our staff members sadly lost their loved ones. We pray for Stacey Farrell whose father passed away, and we also keep in mind Grace Harrick's partner, whose father also passed away. We continue to look after and pray for Stacey and Grace, and their families.

Dear Heavenly Father,

We come before You with heavy hearts, remembering those we have lost over the school break. We lift up all those who are grieving, asking for Your comfort and peace to surround them.

Please grant them strength in their sorrow, and help them to feel Your loving presence in their time of need. May Your grace heal their hearts and give them hope, knowing that those who have passed are now in Your eternal care.

Wrap their families in Your love, and help them find comfort in the memories and the love that will never fade. 

May perpetual light shine upon them and may they rest in peace.

In Your name, we pray.

Amen.

Michelle Moore's Birthday and Memorial Ceremony

On Wednesday this week, Michelle's family and close friends celebrated Michelle's birthday with a special ceremony on the Mornington Peninsula. They gathered for the unveiling of special memorial tree and birthday. Together they shared heartfelt tributes and stories of Michelle's life. 

We Welcome New Families to St Joseph's

This term we welcome new families to our school community. In Year 1 we have welcome William who has joined Ms Meg Correy and 1C. We also welcome Thalia who has also joined 1C this term. New student Orlando has joined Ms Tanya Huebner and Year 2H. I thank you for warmly welcoming these new families to our school and I have no doubt that they will very quickly feel part of our wonderful St Joseph's community.

Staff News

We warmly welcome Kirsten Daws back from parental leave. Kirsten will join the senior team working with Lauren O'Grady in Year 5. They will continue to work closely with Siobhan O'Dwyer and Clare Smith for the remainder of this year. Lauren will be working Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and Kirsten will work Thursday and Friday in the Year 5 class. 

This week we welcomed Meg Correy back after her wonderful honeymoon in Europe. We look forward to welcoming David Prowse back next week. It is wonderful to hear about their amazing time away. We are also very happy to have Lynnette back in the office after her very short time away. Thank you to everyoe n our community who has helped Lynnette over the past week in so many ways. You small gestures of kindness are very much appcreaited. I know you will join us is taking good care of her while she recovers. Isabelle will be away on some leave over the next few weeks till the beginning of Week 4.

Our Positive School Culture

As we begin a new term it is timely to emphasise the value we place on our community- our students, families and staff, and promoting a positive school culture. Positive relationships, belonging, connection and respect is what we pride ourselves on at St Joseph's. This is is something that we must continually nurture.

Please take the time to read the letter sent via Operoo to all parents, guardians and carers this evening, in regards to understanding the way in which we expect each member of our community to engage respectfully with each other. The Parent/Guardian/Carer Code of Conduct has also been attached to the letter for your reference. 

We acknowledge that our school community is precious, and we rarely need to refer to the Code of Conduct. We intend for our school community to continue to remain a positive, respectful and safe place for every valued member. This is something we value immensely at St Joseph’s.

Parent Teacher Meetings - Thursday 31st July

At the end of last term you would have received your child's Semester 1 School Report. We are so pleased to celebrate the growth and success of our students in the Semester One school reports. 

At our Parent Teacher Meetings next week you will have an opportunity to meet with your child's class teacher to discuss your child's progress across Semester 1. These meetings provide a chance to discuss student progress in all areas of learning. The Parent Teacher will be on Thursday 31st July from 2pm to 7pm. Bookings for our upcoming Parent Teacher Interviews have been opened to parents. 

NAPLAN

This week, our Year 3 and Year 5 students at St Joseph's, and across the country, have received their 2025 NAPLAN individual reports. 

NAPLAN, or the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy, is a national test that all Australian students in Years 3, 5, 7, and 9 take, assessing essential skills in English and Mathematics linked to the Australian Curriculum. It is the only national assessment that all Australian children undertake. Literacy and numeracy skills are the critical foundation for all learning and for the ability to participate effectively in society. NAPLAN questions assess content linked to the Australian Curriculum in English and Mathematics.

While NAPLAN results provide valuable insights into each student’s performance, it’s important to remember NAPLAN tests are only one aspect of each school’s assessment and reporting process. As they are held once every 2 years for each student, they cannot replace the extensive, ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance. The NAPLAN individual student reports, along with other assessments, serve as useful tools for parents and teachers to discuss each student’s progress and identify areas for future growth. Your child’s teacher will have the best insight into your child’s educational progress. 

As a school we have once again excelled in literacy and numeracy. Our school is extremely pleased with the fantastic results achieved by our students, and we commend the hard work and dedication shown by each child.  We are proud of all our students’ efforts and look forward to continuing to support them in their educational journey. We thank our dedicated teaching staff and school leaders for their ongoing commitment to teaching and learning excellence at St Joseph's. We look forward to sharing our school's exceptional 2025 data with you once the state and national data has been released.

Here is a link to the VCAA Website with information for parents and carers about the NAPLAN individual student reports:

If you would like to discuss your child's NAPLAN report please do not hesitate to make a time to see your child's class teacher, or one of our Learning Leaders - Amanda Jackson (Literacy Leader) or Dean Butler (Numeracy Leader).

Psychologist at St Joseph's

We are offering a wonderful opportunity for students and/or families to access a psychologist onsite at school at no cost to you. Families may choose to access the support of psychologist for many reasons and these sessions are confidential in nature. The sessions are free to any students who require these services. They will take place onsite at school, however this will be managed discreetly and confidentially. There is more information about this in this week's newsletter. Please contact our Wellbeing Leader Georgina Carman if you require any additional information.

Upcoming Open Day and Information Session 

Our final official Open Day for 2025 is being held on Tuesday 29th July. 

If you have family or friends who are exploring school options for 2026 and beyond, our Open Days are a great opportunity to see our beautiful school in action, meet our staff, and learn more about what makes our community at St Joseph's so special.

Our Final Open Day:  

Tuesday 29th July 9am-10:30am

Information Session: 

Tuesday 29th July 10:30am -11am

We will be running both School Tours and an Information Session for families who are interested in finding out more about our school. 

Please spread the word to any prospective families you may know. Your word of mouth is the best advertising for our school.

Every Day is Open Day at St Joseph's!

We encourage prospective families to book a tour with us at any time. Please encourage any families you know who are looking for a school for 2026, and beyond, to be in touch with us. We would love to show them around our beautiful school. Every Day is Open Day!

Prep Meet and Greet Interviews for 2026

It is with great joy that we commenced our Prep Meet and Greet Interviews last term for 2026. It is such a pleasure to take the time to meet our new families and the children who will be joining our Prep classes for 2026. These interviews will continue this term.

Prep Prep Program

Next term we commence our Pre Prep program for all children enrolled in Prep for 2026. This will begin on Friday August 15th witch our very loved and very wonderful early childhood educator Ms Stacey. Please see details below or contact the office for more information. We look forward to welcoming new families to our school community.

Pilgrims of Hope - The Year of Jubilee

Last week's news from the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne focussed on the Year of Pilgrimage.

"In the Catholic tradition, pilgrimage is a spiritual journey as much as it is a physical one; a tangible expression of faith with roots in the earliest biblical times; a time to deepen one’s connection with God. The act of pilgrimage takes on added significance in a Jubilee year, which is traditionally marked by pilgrimages to Rome. Acknowledging that not everyone can get to Rome from Australia, the Archdiocese of Melbourne has designated more than a dozen pilgrim places for people to experience a local pilgrimage of faith."

You will see in the article that Catholic schools across our system and church groups are embarking on local pilgrimages. Here you will see our SJM staff pilgrimage from earlier this year featured in the article. 

Link to the article: 

https://melbournecatholic.org/news/melbournes-catholics-answer-the-call-to-be-pilgrims-of-hope

Later this year, I am privileged to be part of a group of principals who will embark on a pilgrimage to Rome and across other parts of Italy to deepen our faith and connection with God in this year of Jubilee. This will be a significant and deeply spiritual experience made even more special by the recent announcement that  our very own Fr Gallacher has been appointed to lead the principal pilgrimage through Italy. I look forward to sharing this significant experience with you later in Term 4.

Archbishop Peter A Comensoli says: ‘This Year of Jubilee calls us to embrace, and be renewed in, the hope of Christ—a hope that does not disappoint."

Structural Works to Commence at St Joseph's

As you know, last term we very successful in receiving a supplementary capital funds grant. This was amazing news for our school as we are very much in need of some structural works that need to be addressed quite urgently.

The works that need to be undertaken are determined in consultation with the MACS Infrastructure Team after engineering reports and assessments have been completed over the course of this year. 

Over the next few weeks some works will begin at school. As a start there will be some structural work undertaken in the library and therefore, for the time being, our library will not be accessible and classes will continue to use Malvern library for now. We will ensure this area remains safe for our children and out of bounds, until the works are completed. These works will be commencing over the weekend. 

There will be other works that will also be undertaken over the next few months into next year. These include major sewerage works potentially impacting the children's toilet block, roofing, ceiling repairs and possibly some parts of the playground. Whilst these are not glamorous, it is important that these works are completed to ensure that our school buildings continue to be safe places for all members of our community.

With time, once the structural works are completed, we can begin to look at our Masterplan and a refurb of our existing classrooms. This is a very exciting time for our school.

Thank you for your patience as we navigate the next steps. I will be working closely with MACS and their Infrastructure Team, our SAC and our leadership team, and I will keep you updated as to the next steps regarding these building works. 

Recipient of Garden Maintenance Grant- Victorian Schools Garden Program

We extend our sincere thanks to Dean Butler for his hard work and dedication in helping our school become a successful grant recipient. 

We are excited to share that St Joseph’s has been awarded a $500 grant through the Victorian Schools Garden Program, sponsored by the Department of Education Victoria. Among 951 outstanding applications, we are proud to have been selected.

This grant will support the improvement of the garden beds at the front of our school office. 

We are especially grateful to Dean for taking the time to write and submit the grant application. Dean will now work alongside our senior student sustainability leaders to determine the next steps and plan the design of the new garden space.

We deeply value the commitment of our staff to continually improving our school environment.

Production Update

The countdown is on till showtime. We have 5 weeks until our school production Beauty and the Beast Jr. Please take the time to read the production update in this week's newsletter from Dean Butler and our performing arts teacher Ms Wendy D'Arco.

Art Class Holiday Program- thank you Hanna Rose!

A special shout to Hanna Rose (Artist and Mum of Oscar, Year 6) who, over the holidays ran some amazing art classes for our students. Here are couple of photos of the giant angel wings that they made in the holiday program. Each child had a photo taken with the wings. We will find a special place to display these in our school. Thank you Hanna for adding so much creativity and fun to the holidays for our children. We are so appreciative that you generously shared your talents with our community!

SAC Meeting - Tuesday 29th July 7pm

Our next SAC meeting will be held next week on Tuesday 29th July. It is always a pleasure to work with the SAC, to consult with them and seek their counsel related to important school matters. I will provide an update in next week's school newsletter on the items that we discussed.

P&F Upcoming Meetings

P&F Brick Fundraiser- Thank you!

A huge thank you to Tennille Bare (Mum of Raphael, Year 1) who, with the support of the P&F, organised the Brick Fundraiser for our school. 

This fundraiser raised an amazing amount of over $10000 for our school! Thank you to all the families who purchased a brick to support our school. 

Your contributions have generously supported the refurb of our senior space. This money will generously contribute to new carpet, new furniture and painting. This will help to freshen up and create an exciting space for our senior students. We appreciate your support with this.

I'm sure you will have a lot of fun looking for your brick when you arrive at school on Monday!

A special thanks also to Adrian, father of Hamish, who was our school captain in 2023. Adrian popped the bricks into in the ground last week.Y

You will also notice the P&F purchased a brick for Michelle Moore so that she will continue to be remembered at St Joseph's. The P&F have also purchased a brick for the office ladies Isabelle and Lynnette who tirelessly continue to support the P&F with each of their initiatives!

Sustainable Uniform Shop

The Sustainable Uniform Shop will run next Friday August 1st. We thank Angela Nicolai (Eliott's Mum) Simon Dabbs (Mum of Xavier and Pip)and Brony Ross (Edmund's Mum) for all their work in providing this for our families.

Our St Joseph's School Assembly

SRC Awards

Today at our assembly, our Wellbeing Leader Ms Georgie Carman presented the students with their SRC badges for Semester 2. We are so proud of the students who were chosen by their classmates as responsible and respectful candidates, demonstrating the leadership values we uphold at St Joseph’s of strength and kindliness.

We congratulate the following SRC's for Semester 2:

STAR Awards at Assembly

It is always so nice to see so many of our students being the recipients of our STAR Awards! Congratulations to you all for displaying the values of S- Stay Safe, T- Try Your Best, A- Act Responsibly and R- Respect Yourself and Others.

Birthday Awards

We also wish our birthday children a very happy birthday!

Who Am I?

This week I introduced a new item to our school assembly. It's the Principal's 'Who Am I? Each week one child will be chosen from a 'Wheel of Names' in my office as the nominated person for the 'Who Am I?' 

This week we had the pleasure of introducing Spencer in Year 5

Congratulations to Bart in Year 4 for listening so carefully and working out all the clues to guess that Spencer was this week's 'Who Am I?'

Bart will now spin the 'Who Am I Wheel' to choose next's week's 'Who Am I' which will be shared at next week's school assembly on Friday.

Welcome to new students

Today at assembly, we also welcomed new students to our school community. Unfortunately Orlando and Thalia were both absent however we had the pleasure on inviting William to the front to receive a warm St Joseph's welcome from our school community.

Meet our Wonderful SJM Staff

Each week I'd like to take some time to introduce you to members of our staff. This week let me introduce our Prep Teachers Niki Liolios and Luisa La Rosa.

Hi, I'm Miss Liolios! I joined the school at the beginning of last year as a first year teacher after spending a year working as a CRT. I currently teach Prep and absolutely adore it. Coming from a childcare background, I’ve always had a passion for early years education and I’m so glad to now bring that experience into a primary school setting. Outside of the classroom, I enjoy reading. My favourite children’s book is Oh, the Places You'll Go! by Dr. Seuss. I also love spending time with friends and travelling. My family and I are huge Sydney Swans fans and enjoy going to games whenever they play in Melbourne. My family are Greek Orthodox and we celebrate traditions like Greek Easter, which is similar to the traditions that Catholics celebrate.

Hello! I’ve been part of the wonderful St Joseph’s community since 2024, but I’ve been teaching since 2017. Having completed my schooling at Catholic schools, I felt it was important to nurture my own faith journey as well as other students in the Catholic tradition. I actually began my career as an Italian teacher before moving into classroom teaching. I’m currently teaching Prep and absolutely love working with our youngest learners. Their enthusiasm and curiosity make every day so much fun!

At home, I have two very cute (but very cheeky!) Ragdoll cats named Arnie and Lola. My favourite colour is purple, and I can’t go past chocolate as my favourite treat. I’m a big AFL fan, though unfortunately, I support the Bombers! On weekends, you’ll often find me trying out new cafes and restaurants. I love discovering good coffee and great food! 

Meet our Crossing Supervisor - Richie

Richie has been our friendly and dedicated crossing supervisor since the beginning of this year. He loves the daily interactions with the students and brings warmth and cheer to the school community. Each day, he’s joined by his beloved toy poodle, Billy Bob-  full name Billy Bob Sunny Ray Beckham the 1st - a 4-year-old bundle of energy who’s quickly become a favourite among the children. Richie says having Billy Bob by his side makes every day even more special for him and the children at St Joseph's.

Let's Stay Connected...

If 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 our school leadership, or myself. 

For more serious concerns, I encourage you to reach out to me directly, either by making an appointment through the office, or contacting me via my email. 

I look forward to an exciting Term 3 with you all. 

With warmest regards,

Annabelle Marinelli

Principal 

annabelle.marinelli@sjmalvern.catholic.edu.au