Dear Parents and Carers,

Wow, we are at the end of Week 8. Only two more weeks until the end of the 2022 academic year!

The next couple of weeks are going to be extremely busy here at school. We have a lot of events, gatherings, and activities planned for students, all while continuing on with our literacy, numeracy and other syllabus learning. We are trying to maximise the learning time, particularly with so many interruptions and disruptions caused by flooding earlier this term.

Last Sunday was the beginning of Advent. This is the period of time that leads up to our Christmas celebrations. As Catholics, Advent is a time of waiting and preparing for our Saviour, Jesus Christ. However, the advent period can too often get swallowed up in our preparations for celebrations, holidays and work goals. It is important to reflect on the true nature of the advent period:

What is Advent?

The people of Israel waited for generations for the promised Messiah to arrive. Their poetry, their songs and stories, and their religious worship focused on an awaited saviour, whom God had promised, over and over, would come to them to set them free from captivity, and to lead them to the fulfillment of all that God had chosen for them.

Israel longed for a Messiah, and John the Baptist, who came before Jesus, promised that the Messiah was coming, and could be found in Jesus Christ, God’s Son, the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”

Advent is a season in the Church’s life intended to renew the experience of waiting, and longing, for the Messiah. Though Christ has already come into the world, the Church invites us to renew our desire for the Lord more deeply into our lives, and to renew our desire for Christ’s triumphant second coming into the world.

Advent is the time in which we prepare for Christmas, the memorial of Jesus Christ being born into the world. Preparations are practical, like decorating a tree or stringing lights, but they’re also intended to be spiritual.

During Advent, we’re invited to enter more frequently into silence, into prayer and reflection, into Scripture, and into the sacramental life of the Church, all to prepare for celebrating Christmas.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church says the goal of Advent is to make present for ourselves and our families the “ancient expectancy of the Messiah...by sharing in the long preparation for the Savior's first coming.”

Christmas is coming, and the end of the school year is in sight. Let us remember to be kind to one another, take time out for prayer, and take time out to be thankful for everything that is happening around us and reflect positively on our interactions with each other. Therefore we can all go into this busy period happy, excited and ready to spread joy.

School Production

Last Friday, 25 November, we held our long-awaited school production of Christmas Recipe and Pirates of the Curry Bean.

It was great to see so many families and friends joining us on the night. The students did a fantastic job. I still can’t get those catchy tunes out of my head.

A big thank you to Karlee Hatton, Leanne Schwager and their team for their hard work and dedication to coordinating the production.

Future Leadership

On Tuesday, 29 November, we held our future leadership speeches. All nominees spoke very well, and we are proud of their efforts!

Congratulations to the following students on their nominations for future leadership positions next year:

Schools Captains: Cameron Baird and Emma Gleeson

Sports Captains (Andrews): Percy Hayes and Emma Dixon

Sports Captains (Josephs): Blaine Edwards and Sarah Coutts-Smith

We thank the current leaders of our school for their effort within their leadership roles. We hope that you enjoy your last few weeks and graduation celebrations.

Gingerbread House Competition & orders

The St Joseph’s P & F will be holding a Gingerbread house competition! Purchase a kit, decorate, take a photo and send it to weeadmin@arm.catholic.edu.au to enter for your chance to win a $20 Visa Giftcard.

A limited number of Gingerbread houses with lollies (as well as Gluten Free options) will be available to purchase via https://checkout.square.site/buy/36YLFKTHZXET3YRLFXTQNBTJ, and will be available to collect from the school office starting this Friday, 2 December.

Entries close Thursday, 15 December.

Unleash your inner builder and decorate your very own gingerbread house. Our gingerbread house kits are a great family activity or elegant corporate gift – egg-free product includes 4 walls, roof & chimney baseboard + royal-icing mix, piping bag and instructions. LOOK HERE to see what's inside the box!

Taronga Western Plains Zoo Excursion

Today, our Stage 2 students travelled to Dubbo to visit Taronga Western Plains Zoo. All staff and students had a great day visiting the exhibits and participating in animal encounters.

Cricket & Tennis trials

Today, we had two students travel to Tamworth to compete in the ADPSC Cricket and Tennis trials.

Percy Hayes competed in Tennis and played very well, winning numerous games. Well done, Percy!

Cameron Baird attended the Cricket, where he batted, bowled and fielded amazingly. He has been selected to represent our diocese at Polding early next year, which is a great achievement. Congratulations Cameron!

Infants Excursion postponed

Please note that due to reasons beyond our control, such as staffing and bus availability, we have had to postpone our Infants Excursion to the Gunnedah Civic to watch the Nutcracker on Tuesday, 13 December.

We will be departing the school at 8:00 am and returning by 2:45 pm on the same day. Students are invited to wear Christmas-themed casual clothes if they would like.

Semester Reports

This is a reminder that school reports will be released via Compass next Thursday, 8 December, from 4 pm.

End-of-Year Presentation Awards

This is a reminder that our End-of-Year Awards Presentation will be held next Thursday, 8 December, at the Wee Waa Bowling Club, starting at 6:00 pm.

Please note that students are required to wear their full summer school uniform for our end-of-year presentation (sports uniform will be worn to school on this day).

If you would like to attend, please complete the following RSVP via /bit.ly/3EEYVZ6 as soon as possible to ensure that we have enough seating on the night.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the school office.

Annual Raffle

The St Joseph’s P & F have extended their annual Raffle, which will close next Thursday, 8 December. Purchase tickets via bit.ly/3yTSf61 for a chance to win a Hark Chubby Smoker valued at $1,150, a $500 BCF Gift Card or an Essential Summer Bag Pack valued at $250.

The draw will be made at the end of the end-of-year presentation.

School Closure Day next Friday

Please note that next Friday, 9 December, the school is closed while our staff participate in professional development.

End-of-Year Thanksgiving Mass

This is a reminder that our End-of-Year Thanksgiving Mass will be held on Monday, 12 December, at St Andrew’s Catholic Church, starting at 9:30 am.

This is a special time as our current Year 6 students will ‘pass on their light’ to the future leaders of our school during the Light of Leadership ceremony and receive their graduation certificates.

All are welcome to attend!

End-of-Year Celebration

This is a reminder that St Joseph’s P & F will be holding an End of Year Celebration to commemorate our students’ achievements on Wednesday, 14 December, starting at 12 pm.

A Jumping Castle, Water Slide, BBQ lunch, drinks and ice cream are planned at school. There will be no canteen on this day. Students are invited to wear casual clothes and bring their swimmers.

Thank you to our school’s P&F for donating your time and talents to ensure that all children have a wonderful celebration at the end of this year.

Mardi Gras & donations needed

The St Joseph’s P & F will be selling show bags and raffle jars on Thursday, 15 December, at the Mardi Gras. We would greatly appreciate some donations for our raffle containers, such as lollies, chocolates, goodies etc.

Next Year

Please note that all students are due to return back to school next year on Tuesday, 7 February.

Please see the Important Dates & Events page for further information.

Have a great weekend.

God Bless,

Alistair Stewart

Principal

St Joseph's Primary School

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Issue 15 · 02 Dec 2022

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