Term 2 Week 4 - May 21st, 2024

From The Principals Desk

Dear Parents and Carers,

What a fun night was had by all last Friday night at our Family Disco! Our sincere thanks go to DJ Matt for hosting such an enjoyable evening. It is always great to see students, parents and staff on the dance floor and having fun. Congratulations to all on a fun community night.

Child Safe Standards

Along with the Child Protection legislation, policy and procedures, our school is also bound by Child Safe Standards. As a Child Safe Organisation, our school follows the standards set out by the NSW Office of the Children’s Guardian.

1. Child Safety is embedded in organisational leadership, governance and culture
2. Children participate in decisions affecting them and are taken seriously
3. Families and communities are informed and involved
4. Equity is upheld and diverse needs are taken into account
5. People working with children are suitable and supported
6. Processes to respond to complaints of child abuse (or other concerns) are child-focused
7. Staff are equipped with the knowledge, skills and awareness to keep children safe through continual education and training
8. Physical and online environments minimise the opportunity for abuse (or other kind of harm) to occur
9. Implementation of the Child Safe Standards is continuously reviewed and improved
10. Policies and procedures document how the organisation is child safe

The Child Safe Standards can be accessed on our website through the policies link.

As part of our commitment to these standards we are officially nominating the garden area at the front of the school (where parents and carers currently congregate to wait at 3pm) our ‘Green Zone’ at afternoon pick up time as a measure to meet Standard 8 of the Child Safe Standards.

A Green Zone, is the area on school grounds that parents can come without signing in to wait to pick up their child/ren at the end of classes. Parents are not permitted to wander unsupervised around the school at the end of classes in the afternoon.

Child Safe Standard 8 - Physical and online environments minimise the opportunity for abuse to occur. Child-safe organisations review and adapt both physical and online environments to minimise the risks of abuse.

Public Speaking Competition - Nominations open now!

It is that time of year again when our students are invited to nominate themselves for our St Joseph’s Public Speaking Competition. This is not a compulsory activity, however we strongly encourage student participation. 

All nominees entering the public speaking competition will be excused from homework activities to allow time to concentrate on preparing the presentation of their speech. The preparation time will be determined by the class teachers according to the timing of their in class speech presentations

The students will compete in Stage categories:

○ Early Stage 1 - 1 minute ○ Stage 1 - 1 1/2 minutes

○ Stage 2 - 2 minutes ○ Stage 3 - 3 minutes

Public Speaking Competition Timeline

• Students will present their speeches to their class/stage by Thursday 20th June, Week 8, Term 2. 
• Stage Public Speaking Finals will be held on Monday 24th June, Week 9 of Term 2.

• A winner and runner-up from each Stage will be chosen to represent at the regional competition on Thursday 8th August 2024.

The nomination form will be forwarded out to families via email this afternoon.

Tell Them From Me – Parent Survey (Annual School Improvement Feedback Opportunity)

 Have you had your say yet?? Survey window closes this Friday!!

We would like to invite you to complete the Tell Them From Me (TTFM) Partners in Learning survey. As we value the role of parents and carers within our school community we would greatly appreciate your feedback. The information you provide will be used to maintain our commitment to working together in partnership to further improve student learning and wellbeing at St Joseph’s Primary School, South Murwillumbah.

 The survey is anonymous and will take approximately 20 minutes to complete. You are able to access the parent survey on your computer or mobile device by using the URL below:

http://tellthemfromme.com/stjosephsmbah24

The survey will be live from Monday 6th May - Friday 24th May

 Have a great week!

Peace and blessings,

Jason Clarke

Principal

Attendance

Learning growth can occur when your child attends school every day.

By attending school every day, students maximise their exposure to educational opportunities, engage in meaningful learning experiences, and lay the foundation for continuous academic progress. Regular attendance provides students with the opportunity to ask questions, seek clarification, and collaborate with others, enhancing their understanding of the material.

Parents and educators play important roles in fostering an environment that promotes and values regular attendance, contributing to the overall success and wellbeing of students.

"You Can Do It!" Awards

WEEK 2 - Term 2

Kinder
Bobbi-Olive Baartz for Persistence and Giving Effort.
Tao Heterick for Confidence for Taking a Risk and “I Can Do It” Thinking.

Year 1
Koa Segrave for Persistence and Giving Effort.
Lincoln John for Persistence and Giving Effort.

Year 2
Nate Jarman for Persistence and Giving Effort. 
Poppy Cudmore Organisation and Planning my Time.

Year 3
Eli Rudman for Confidence and showing I Can be Independent.
Amelia Keevers for Persistence and "I Can Do It" Thinking.

Year 4
Ella Hunt for Persistence, Giving Effort and Working Tough.
Kaedan Jandura for Persistence, Giving Effort and Working Tough.

Year 5
Levi Campbell for displaying Persistence and "I Can Do It" Thinking.
Ace Colleton for displaying Confidence and "I Can Do It" Thinking.

Year 6
Eadie Workman for Persistence, Giving Effort and ‘I Can Do It’ Thinking. 
Declan Behan for Persistence and Giving Effort. 

 Week 3 - Term 2

Kinder
Harley Linkins for Persistence and “I Can Do It” Thinking.
Halle Berry for Confidence and Accepting Myself.

Year 1
Jacob Hoffman for Organisation, Setting Goals and Planning my Time.
Bronson Roe for Persistence and Giving Effort.

Year 2
Millie Anderson for Organisation and Planning my Time. 
Lilly Dryhurst-Evans for Resilience and Bouncing Back. 

Year 3
Alex Kelly for Confidence and "I Can Do It" Thinking.
Will Glasby for Organisation and Planning my Time.

Year 4 
Alayah Burns for Resilience and Bouncing Back.
Lorenzo Pahlow for Confidence and Taking a Risk.

Year 5
Ruby Carter for displaying Persistence and "I Can Do It" Thinking.
Misha Reed for displaying Confidence and "I Can Do It" Thinking.

Year 6
Ivy Hunt for Persistence and Working Tough.
Pearl Wilkinson for Organisation and Planning my Time. 

Sharing the Gospel

Hot Chocolate for Kinder & Stage 1 around the camp fire!

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Stage 2 did not miss out either! What a fun fundraiser.

Curriculum News

Stage One Arcade Games!

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Stage One Games Arcade Afternoon.

The Stage 1 classrooms were the place to be last Friday afternoon. The students in Years One and Two opened the doors of their very own arcade to fellow students, teachers and parents. Everybody had the best time with lots of laughs and even walked away with winning tickets. 

When parents asked ‘How much assistance was given?’ Well it was all the children. While as teachers we gave the children the background learning of Forces and how they work, it was their creative minds that designed, created, trialled and evaluated these games all before sharing them with our school community.

We are so proud of the students efforts and thank everyone that was able to visit and play our games with us!!

STEM News

ICAS Assessment Information

School Disco Fun

Retro disco dudes & divas!

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Do you own any these items left after our disco? If so you can collect them from the office.

Mother's Day Liturgy

Happy Mothers Day!

Today, with the help of Year 6, Kindergarten invited the school and all our mothers and motherly figures to join us to celebrate Mother's Day. Here are some things that some students had to say about their those they love:

Corey: I love when Mum is generous! She buys me stuff that I don't even ask for!
Aiden and Ayla: My mum is nice and she makes us laugh. One time, Mum fell over at Cross Country when she was racing! She was so brave!
Frank W: My mum always gives me cuddles when I feel sad. 
Amelia K: My mum gives me lots of cuddles.
Indigo: My mum is ALWAYS there for me when I need her.
Darcy A: My mum is nice. She always makes delicious food for me. 
Sienna: My mum ALWAYS gives me hugs when I am sad. 
Skylar: My mum plays funny games with me.
Kayley: My mum always plays games with me, like UNO. I LOVE it! Sometimes Dad plays with us too. Mum is better at playing UNO.
Pippa: Mum always keeps our bellies full and drives us places! 

We hope all Mum's had a wonderful day! 

Mother's Day Liturgy

We love our Mothers!

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Sports News

                                        ZONE CROSS COUNTRY

Recently the St Joseph’s Cross Country squad attended the Zone Cross Country at the Murwillumbah Showgrounds.  Our fantastic runners represented themselves and their school with great athleticism and pride.  It was fantastic to see every single competitor giving it their absolute best all whilst displaying outstanding sportsmanship when congratulating their opponents on the finish line.  
                                                                    Well done to our running team:
8/9Yrs: 
Boys: Eli Reed, Eli Rudman, Carter Alexander, Will Polson & Ali. 
Girls: Millie Anderson, Amelia Bedser, Ayla Bourke, Scarlett Walker and Sierra Casagrande.

10Yrs:
Boys: Sam Stovold, Kaeden Jandura, Ace Colleton, Xavier Workman & Levi Campbell.
Girls: Ruby Carter, Esther Cambridge, Peggy Wilkinson, Tahan Heterick, Pippa Bourke & Ella Hunt.

11Yrs:
Boys:  Misha Reed, Kobi Buckroyd, Frank Ahrens, Nakoha Heterick, Jaxon Mann, Nate Linkins & Chayse McLeod.
Girls:  Imogen Rudman, Lyla McMahon, Indigo Cleak, Pearl Wilkinson, Lalyta Brockbank.

12/13Yrs:
Boys:  Max Bourke, Caleb Bourke, Luke Stovold, Archie Anderson, Zilli Hatton & Blake Stuart.
Girls:  Indi Asanuma, Ava Hunt, Ava Bray, Bella Higgins, Amelia Alley & Sienna Alexander.

DIOCESAN CROSS COUNTRY

Four students finished in the top 8 for their age category which progresses them onto the Diocesan Cross Country this Tuesday in Grafton!  

Congratulations to the following students who are preparing to compete at the Diocesan Championships at McAuley College Grafton: 
Esther Cambridge 8th, Ava Hunt 7th, Indi Asanuma 4th and Max Bourke 3rd!

We wish all these competitors the best of luck for Tuesday in Grafton and congratulate them for reaching this level of competition!!

Library News

Oh, how I love the sky….
And moving through
The marvellous BLUE

The National Simultaneous Storytime (NSS) book for 2024 is Bowerbird Blues by Aura Parker.

Bowerbird Blues stars a beautiful bowerbird on the search for (you guessed it) BLUE!  It’s a moving story of longing and connection, that unfolds as the bowerbird’s search sends him soaring across the sea, sky and city. He swoops and snatches vibrant treasures for his collection, and soon his bower – a mix of natural and unnatural objects – attracts something greater and more fulfilling than he could ever have imagined.

Upon learning that her book had been selected as this year’s NSS story, author Aura Parker said “National Simultaneous Storytime brings us together and makes us smile, and the shared experience can send imaginations soaring to new heights. I am surprised and blown away with excitement that ‘Bowerbird Blues’ has been chosen as the book for 2024!”

The National Simultaneous Storytime will take place on Wednesday 22 May 2024 at 12:00pm AEST.

Our school will celebrate this joyful occasion by reading the story and watching a video to learn all about Bowerbirds during their library time.

General News

Our hardworking Poppy Wayne has been at it again! He worked tirelessly, in his spare time, to hand mow our  playground so our children could get out on to a dryer play area. We are very grateful for your thoughtfulness and care of our school grounds.

Thank you, also to Julian Cleak for using his ride-on mower to cut the long grass which made it easier for Poppy Wayne to mow.

Canteen News

CANTEEN VOLUNTEERS NEEDED URGENTLY!

Please contact the office if you can assist for approximately 3 hours in the morning on:

Friday 31 May (1 person)
Wednesday 5 May (1 person)
Wednesday 19 June (2 people)

If we can't get helpers we may not be able to open the canteen on these dates!

Cancelling a canteen order

If you need to cancel a canteen order you can do this through Compass up to 8:00am on the day of canteen. Your refund will go to your Compass Wallet as a credit. You can then use the credit in your Compass Wallet any time to pay for a canteen order, school fees, or a school event. Access these funds through the payment method drop down menu.

Enrolment Changes

New student applications for 2025 can be completed now.

If you have already applied via our old system, rest assured we have your application; there is no need to reapply.  See our website (see Link below) for more details on how to enrol and where to get assistance if you need it.

Compass Help for Parents

                                                    Compass Absence Notes

The Compass attendance note feature is now up and running again.
Parents can let the school know of student absences in advance through the Compass app using the shortcuts icon on their homepage. 

Alternatively you can still respond the SMS sent to your phone on the day of the absence, or email / phone the school office prior to or on the day of absence.

Parish News

Tuesday 21 May            5:30 pm - Mass
Wednesday 22 May     5:30 pm - Mass
Thursday 23 May         8:15 am - Mass
Friday 24 May               9:30 am - Legion of Mary|Parish Meeting Centre
                                            12 noon - Mass
Saturday 25 May         9:00 am - Rosary
                                            5:30 pm - Rosary
                                           6:00 pm - Vigil Mass
Sunday 26 May           8:30 am - Rosary
                                           9:00 am - Mass
                                          10:15 am - Baptism

Health & Wellbeing

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