PRINCIPAL'S NEWS

Principal's Message...

Dear Families,

Last week our senior children attended camp at Camp Wyuna in Queenscliff.  I would like to thank the staff who attended, Ms Lauren, Ms Ashlyn, Ms Kate, Ms Steph, Ms Fiona and Mr Zammit.  It's a huge responsibility to take 38 children away for three days, and to be on-call 24 hours a day.  For these staff there are no breaks, no coffee shops, no lunch and dinner breaks - no 'down time'.  I thank them all for their dedication to our children and for their capacity to ensure that a fun time was had by all.  

I would also like to thank our extraordinary students.  I was fortunate to spend Wednesday and Thursday morning with them on Camp and their behaviour was exemplary.  The staff at the camp commented on their wonderful manners and how polite and 'nice to each other' the children were.   They have a beautiful sense of camaraderie and showed great sportsmanship with all the activities in which they participated.  They are a credit to their parents and you should be very proud of them - I most certainly was!

Please see the report from our children and some more great photos of their adventures in this newsletter in the "Senior's Camp" section.

STUDENT LEADERSHIP

At our assembly on Feb 11 we announced our Student Representative Council for 2022

Each class from grade prep to grade 4 elects one representative per class, and our senior classes elect a grade 5 and a grade 6 representative.  Together with myself and Ms Thornton, the senior SRCs will chair meetings and coordinate the activities and initiatives throughout the year.

I very much look forward to working with the following students:

Year 6                  Amelie Brunton & Jordan Fernandez

Year 5                  Tommy Mayne & Elliot Becroft

Middle L/T        Sophie Brunton

Middle A             Neve Morison

Junior K               Harry Spence

Junior S                Billie Ziemer

Prep                      Noah Elliot & Akiva Gelman-Ward

CONGRATULATIONS to you all!!

In our next newsletter we will present our House Captains for 2022.

CURRICULUM EVENING 

A Parent Information Session will be held Today February 22 commencing at 6:20pm. via Zoom. This will be an opportunity for teachers to share information with parents/carers and the Learning and Teaching team will provide valuable information about the St Joseph’s Learner Qualities.

The following Zoom details have been shared via the Skoolbag App and also emailed to all families 

CLASS PARENT REPs

Calling all helpers!!!

On behalf of the Social Club we are asking for parent volunteers from each classroom to nominate to be the 'Class Rep' for 2022. You may wish to pair up with someone and do this together, or go solo!  The role of the Class Rep is to ensure the connection with parents in each your child's class and work with the Social Club to plan social and fundraising events.  There is no commitment to regular evening meetings as most communication is online.  If you are interested please contact either: 

Jo Hadjistamatis      jomartis@hotmail.com.au

Olivia Triandos         oliviatriandos@gmail.com

or phone Carmel in the office.

SCHOOL UNIFORM

Now that we are half-way through term one, I ask that parents ensure your children are in correct school uniform each day.  We do understand that occasionally there will be times when children will be in incorrect items for a day or two, but it is very important that we take pride in our appearance and wear our uniform correctly.  This includes the correct footwear when wearing the summer uniform (no runners). 

Please see the 'School Uniform' section of this newsletter for the details of the correct school uniform.

Prep Sibling Enrolments 2023

Enrolments for existing families are now open.  Please come into the school office to pick up a Prep 2023 Prospectus.  

Updated Contact Details and MACS Enrolment Agreement.

Coming home with your child today is a request to confirm and/or update your contact information.  This is a process completed at the beginning of each school year to ensure our records are up to date.  Also, a copy of the St Joseph's Enrolment Agreement will be sent home today to all children in grades 1-6.  Given the change of Governance last year, all Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) are required to update our enrolment policies, in order to comply with MACs requirements.  Towards the end of last year this document was ratified by the St Joseph's School Board.  We ask that all families sign the Agreement and return it to the office at your earliest convenience.  Thank you for your understanding as we continue to comply with the new procedure and practices for all MACS schools. 

COVID SAFE PRACTICES UPDATE

Earlier today, the Victorian Government announced that existing Covid safe measures in schools and early childhood settings would continue until the end of Term 1.  Therefore

Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) will continue to be available from the school office until the end of Term 1.  The testing regime will remain the same, with students and staff testing each Monday and Thursday morning.  RATs have proven to be an important Covid safe tool to help reduce the number of Covid-19 cases and ensure our schools are as safe as possible. Their use will remain voluntary for staff and students, but it is strongly encouraged.

Can I please remind all parents to email me directly if they have a positive case in their immediate family as soon as possible. This enables me to follow the prescribed actions by the health department which in turn keeps our community as safe as possible during these uncertain times.  

Change to mask-wearing guidance 

The Victorian Government announced earlier today that masks will no longer be needed in most indoor settings, with masks only required in school settings for students in Year 3 or above at primary school.  Their use will remain in place for staff and students in years 3-6. 

If you require any further clarification or have any questions please don't hesitate to contact the office or Fiona (fehmer@sjnorthcote.catholic.edu.au) or myself (principal@sjnorthcote.catholic.edu.au).