PRINCIPAL'S NEWS

HOME SCHOOL COMMUNICATIONS

I'd like to remind all families to ensure that you have downloaded the 'Audiri' (formerly known as 'Skoolbag') app.  This app is our major form of communication with families, outside the school newsletter.

As a component of our sustainability focus we will be increasing the use of this app in order to reduce our paper use. Starting in term 4, all notes, permission slips for excursions/incursions and notifications around special school events, together with daily updates that may include notifications around uniform changes (e.g. sports uniform days) will be sent through Audiri.  

The following link will provide information on how to download the app 

https://help.audiri.com.au/en/articles/4221409-download-the-latest-version-of-audiri 

Please ensure that you have access to this app - it is a vital tool to ensure you know what is happening "day in and day out"!

CONGRATULATIONS TO...

We have some exciting achievements that I'm really proud to acknowledge today.

Miles McCrohan in Middle L and Zia George in Senior L both progressed to the State Finals of the Prime Minister's Spelling Bee competition which was held last week.  They both performed very well and Miles has successfully progressed to the National Final . This is a HUGE achievement and we wish Miles all the best as he competes with other students across the country on September 07.  

Go Miles!!!!

Please see the Learning and Teaching section of this newsletter for more information about this competition

Congratulations again to Zia George, who has been listed in the top 100 entries in the Dymocks Beyond Words Creative Writing Competition! Zia’s story, How To Save A Turtle, will progress to the next judging round and will hopefully make the shortlist of stories in the Youth category. Winners in each category will be announced on the 28th of September. Good luck, Zia! 

A big congratulations to our amazing students who made it through to the next level of the Athletics competition!

Vincent Dang - 12/13 boys Shot Put 

Stella Ryan - 12/13 girls 1500m 

Zahra Lania - 11 girls 1500m

Charlie Jamieson - 9/10 girls 1500m

Division Athletics will be held at Meadowglen Athletics Stadium in Epping on Thursday 7th of September. 

Good Luck Everyone!!!!

The annual MAD ON MUSIC Concert was held last week and I would like to congratulate all of our budding musicians and singers who performed on the evening.  By all accounts the concert was a resounding success, showcasing the brilliant musical talents of our students.

Thank you to Ashleigh from Mad on Music who expertly organised this event and trained our students to perform so brilliantly.

Thank You to our Social Club !!

Thank you to Jo and all the parents who helped with our Father's Day Stall last week.  It was certainly a busy morning, with much of our stock selling on the day.  The Stall raised a whopping $1335.05!!  Thanks again to all concerned!! 

Last Saturday the Social Club hosted our annual school trivia night.  The night was a great success considering the 'smaller crowd'.  The evening raised a whopping $1,243 which will be put towards the resurfacing of the undercroft area and the transformation of this space into a brighter, more interactive play-space.  I would like to make special mention to Sarah Whyte who hosted the night for the first time.  Sarah did a fabulous job and excelled as our new Quiz Master.  Thanks again Sarah! Thank you also to Aruna, Eleanor and Jo for organising the night, and thank you to the families who attended.  This is always a fun evening thoroughly enjoyable evening!

Closure of St John's Clifton Hill 

I recently sent out a letter from Edward Simons (Executive Director at Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools) to all families explaining the closure of St John's Primary School in Clifton Hill.  

This event has been traumatic for the families and staff at St John's and my heartfelt compassion goes out to them. There has been a considerable amount of interest in enrolments at St Joseph's and Kate and I are meeting with every family individually who has registered their interest, to get to know them and their children.  

We are extremely mindful of maintaining our 'small school community' and our personalised approach to learning and teaching does not lend itself well to larger classes. Keeping this in mind we will maintain our small class sizes and continue to teach to every student's individual needs.  At the commencement of next term we will have a clearer picture of what our enrolments for 2024 will look like, and I will share this, together with our proposed class structures.

Friday Market

Don't forget - the Middle Students are hosting our Friday Market on Friday Sept 08 after school.  There will be a cake-stall, sausage sizzle and our pre-loved uniform sales.

Please come along for a chat, a cake and/or a sausage!!

Summer Hats

With fourth term just around the corner we have restocked our supply of school hats which are available for sale for $10 from the school office.  As we are a SunSmart School hats must be worn during term four for all children.

End of Term 3 

Next Friday, September 15, is our last day of term. Children may wear casual clothes on this day and will be dismissed at 1:30pm.  

I will be taking long service leave as of this Thursday, and returning at the commencement of term 4.  I hope everyone has a great term break and enjoys some quality 'down-time' with your children.