A successful Harmony Day at St Joseph's...

Thanks to all parents, staff and students who contributed to a really successful event on Tuesday 21st March.

We started the day with our parade, followed by an informative and enjoyable Sri Lankan cooking demonstration organised and presented by Dulan, Nadee and Nicky. What a treat!

The day was jam packed with cultural activities, presentations and yummy food from around the world. Thank you to Mark (Alfred and Abigail) for presenting such an informative session on England:

Thank you to Helene, aunty to Andre in Prep, for her talk about all things Swedish, and to Andre's mum for providing Swedish meatballs for the whole school!

Thank you to Sofia (Harry) for your Greek treats; Tatyana (Davyd) for delicious sweet Ukrainian dumplings; Connie and Leandro (Salvador) for their Alfajores de maicena with Dulce de leche (Argentinian biscuits); Alex (Joanna) for Greek sweets); Elma (Ivan) for the HUGE tray of delicious noodles accompanied by chopsticks!

(Apologies if I have missed anyone out)

Well done to Mr Cleary, Marcus and the Y6 boys for running the Aussie BBQ on the day...delicious!

Camp Rumbug

What a fantastic adventure for our Year 5s and 6s, with suitably muddy camp experiences! Camp Rumbug is such a brilliant experience for our students, with a big focus on teamwork, resilience, kindness, friendships and stepping out of their comfort zones.

Thank you to Clare Smith, Liam Cleary, Liam Gava and Kate Bascombe for accompanying the students on their outdoor adventure.

Literacy Collective

St Joseph's has formed a Literacy Collective with like-minded schools in our region. This collective aims to share and celebrate evidence-based practices in Literacy, based on the foundations of structured literacy with MSL, Spelling Mastery & The Writing Revolution in our classrooms. The collective currently consists of St Joseph's Malvern, St Joseph's Elsternwick, St Agnes' Highett and Sacred Heart in Sandringham. Amanda Jackson (Literacy Leader) recently attended the inaugural Literacy Collective meeting and was thrilled to be working with like-minded schools from across our region.

At St Joseph's, investing in professional development is an important step in ensuring that our staff have the skills and knowledge they need to deliver high-quality learning to our students. Literacy is a crucial area of focus, and it's fantastic to see that we are prioritising this core business.

Whilst teachers at our school have had extensive training in pedagogy and the delivery of Literacy, we are thrilled to acknowledge in 2024 our staff will work with Dr Pam Snow and Dr Nathaniel Swain to consolidate the great work we are doing in this area. Both professionals are recognised as the leading experts in the Science of Reading and Structure Literacy, presenting and lecturing nationally and internationally.

Parenting Seminar

It was great to see so many families at Georgie Manning's parent information session on Wednesday night and I hope you came away with some handy tips/ strategies for your parenting. Thanks to Georgie for her informative session and for the follow-up handouts that went out via Operoo.

Finding Nemo Jr

Today, Ms Cleere and I had the pleasure of auditioning our Year 5 and Year 6 students for the lead roles in our November production of Finding Nemo Jr.

I congratulate all of our students for giving it their all and as always, we were astounded at the talent amongst our most senior students.

On Monday, we will have 'call backs' for those roles which were difficult to fill, ie, too close to call. We will also audition those students who were absent today.

We hope to reveal the full cast list by the end of next week.

Whilst we know some students will be elated with their role, others may be a little disappointed...that is the really difficult part of this process but I hope our children know we are proud of each and every one of them.

Cake Stalls 2023

Yes, they're back!

With our Year 5 and 6 parents donating the cakes and treats, I'm sure there'll be lots of yummy bargains to be had in time for Easter.

Thanks to our host classes and please note the following:

All cakes and treats can be dropped off on Thursday in the hall kitchen
Cakes can be delivered on paper plates (or something disposable) and wrapped in glad wrap or foil.
Please include a list of ingredientson a sticker directly on the glad wrap or as a separate list.
The sale will begin at 3.30pm on Thursday 6th April

Once again, the generosity of our parents is amazing!

Thank you to Katy Reed in conjunction with the Marmina family (Fleischer's) for the Hot Cross Bun sale...how very generous of you - and delicious too!

Holy Week Liturgies

The official end of Lent is on Saturday, April 8, 2023, the day before Easter Sunday. There's an entire list of events leading up to that day called Holy Week. Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday. This marks Jesus's arrival in Jerusalem, where he received palm branches at his feet. During Palm Sunday services, churchgoers are given palm crosses that are supposed to be kept until the next year.

After Palm Sunday comes Holy Wednesday, which acknowledges Judas Iscariot’s plan to deceive Jesus. That's followed by Maundy Thursday and commemorates Jesus's last supper. Next is Good Friday, when Christians recall the crucification of their saviour. The final day of Holy Week is Easter when believers acknowledge that Jesus rose from his tomb.

Holy Week is the most sacred week in the liturgical year in Christianity and our students will be presenting Holy Week Liturgies each afternoon next week as follows:

Prep Palm Sunday Liturgy

Monday April 03

Time: 2:15:pm in the hall followed by Prep open book sessions in the classrooms

Holy Thursday Year 3/4

Tuesday April 04

Time: 2:15:pm in the hall followed by Year 3 and 4 open book sessions in the classrooms

Good Friday Yr 5&6

Wednesday April 05

Time: 2:15:pm in the hall followed by Year 5 and 6 open book sessions in the classrooms

Easter Monday Yr 1&2, including our end of Term 1 assembly

Thursday April 06

Time: 2:15:pm in the hall followed by Year 1 and 2 open book sessions in the classrooms

Our open book sessions provide an opportunity for parents and family members to visit the classrooms and have a look (celebrate) your child's Term 1 work.

Cross Country

Our annual cross-country event takes place next Thursday morning at 9am. Whilst the Year 3 to Year 6 students will be involved as preparation for the interschool competition in Term 2, our Year 2s are also invited to have a 'taster' of the event.

Please note the end of term assembly will be held at 2.15pm on Thursday 6th April.

Parking and Child Safety

The issue of parking and child safety was an agenda item in this week's School Advisory Council meeting. Please see the note from the SAC later in the newsletter. Please know, we are trying to find solutions to the crowded parking whilst keeping the safety of our children at the forefront of our minds.

Term 1 Reflection

There's so much to celebrate this term, not least of which is student learning, teacher professional development (expert teaching) and quite incredible levels of involvement from our parent community.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you do and for all your support throughout the term. We look forward to a final week of celebration and community as we head towards the Easter holidays.

A few Term 1 moments to savour:

Wishing you all a happy and holy Easter holiday,

Michelle

Playgroup(s) Update