eNews Term 2, Week 3, 2024

Dear parents, carers, teachers, and students,

Welcome to our Week 3 Newsletter!

I trust everyone enjoyed a wonderful Mother's Day celebration, honouring the remarkable mothers and mother figures in our lives with affection and gratitude. On behalf of the St Joseph’s School staff, I hope you used your Mother’s Day voucher.
As we commence this week, we embrace Catholic Education Week 2024. 
Catholic Education Week is celebrated in South Australia from May 13th to 19th (Week 3, Term 2). It is about Education—celebrating quality teaching and learning across Catholic Education SA. This annual occasion reminds us of the distinctive qualities that define us as a Catholic educational institution.

Throughout this week, our students will partake in a diverse array of activities designed to commemorate their role within our Catholic School community.

National Volunteers Week - 20th – 26th May (Week 4, Term 2)

Next week, we extend our heartfelt appreciation during National Volunteers Week, a time dedicated to honouring the invaluable contributions of those who selflessly dedicate their time to helping our school community. This year's theme is 'Better Together.’

It is undeniable that our school flourishes because of the support of our volunteers. From the dedicated members of our School Board to the tireless efforts of our canteen assistants, classroom aides, camp supervisors, reading mentors, book coverers, and every role in between, each volunteer embodies the spirit of service and unity that defines our community.

We sincerely thank all volunteers, whether their commitment spans a moment or over time. Your generosity enhances every facet of our school life, fostering an environment where collaboration and compassion thrive.

Thank you; we are indeed stronger and better because of our volunteers.

Road Works

Beginning this week, road works around the school premises will commence due to the preparation of a new childcare centre on Mannum Road.

These road works will entail intermittent traffic restrictions on Florence Street for the next 12 to 18 months, consequently impacting the drop-off area on McHenry Street. As a result, I kindly request that all drivers within the vicinity of the school exercise patience and understanding during this period.

It is important to note that our site already faces challenges regarding parking availability, and it is our utmost priority to prevent any aggravation around this issue. Your cooperation and support regarding traffic regulations and accommodating these temporary inconveniences are greatly appreciated.

Kindest regards,

Mrs Ros Oates
Principal

IMPORTANT INFORMATION REMINDERS

Transition Programs

St. Joseph's School offers two preparation periods for pre-school students to help them transition smoothly into Reception and become familiar with the school environment.

JOEYs – January start for (12 months) Reception students.
Mid-Transition – Term 3 start for (18 months) Reception students

These sessions aim to ensure your child is well-prepared and to ease any concerns or anxiety about starting school.

Mid-Transition (Term 2)

Students enrolled for the Mid-term intake (18 months) will transition to school on a nominated day, week 9 of Term 2. Guardians were invited to attend an information session on the 15th of May to discuss the particulars of the transition day at the end of the term.

Our current enrolment numbers are approaching capacity for the Mid-Term class beginning in Term 3 this year. Please refer to the calendar for the upcoming parent meeting dates.

JOEYs (Terms 3 and 4)

Depending upon the registration numbers for JOEYs, we aim for two periods over Semester 2 for JOEYs.

Guardians select ONE DAY (the same day each week) that complements your child’s kindergarten days.

e.g. Kindy days: Monday, Thursday. JOEY's chosen day could be Tuesday, Wednesday or Friday. ONLY 1 day per week. 

Term 3, beginning week 3 until week 8, (6 days in total)
Term 4, beginning week 1 until week 7, Term 4 (7 days in total)

We host a very special JOEYS Liturgy Graduation at the end of the Year in Week 7, Term 4. Guardians, relatives and friends are invited to join us for this special occasion. 

The JOEY’s extended transition program is a valuable resource designed to aid young children in transitioning from kindergarten to school. This optional program is facilitated by our dedicated Reception teacher and support staff.

National Reconciliation Week was initiated in 1996 by Reconciliation Australia to celebrate indigenous history and culture in Australia and foster reconciliation discussion and activities. National Reconciliation Week is observed every year between 27 May and 3 June.  These dates commemorate two major turning points in the relationship between the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and the wider community.

May 27 is the anniversary of the 1967 referendum, which saw an overwhelming majority of Australians, agree to remove clauses from the Constitution, which discriminated against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.  The changes allowed the Commonwealth to make laws for First Australians. June 3 is the anniversary of the High Court’s 1992 decision in Mabo, which overturned the prevailing concept of “terra nullius” (empty land) and recognised native title in the common law of Australia.  

February 13th, 2008, was also a momentous day in the history of our country.  Then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologised on behalf of non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians for the past mistreatment of these people.  It was a very emotional experience, as the feeling of moving forward towards true Reconciliation was recognised by many.

This year’s theme is: ‘NOW MORE THAN EVER’

This year we will once again plan activities over the week for our student’s and our Aboriginal Support Education Officer, Amy Rogerson has organised a Reconciliation / NAIDOC celebration day for Friday, May 31st involving outside agencies and members of our Ngarrindjeri community.  Our school’s Indigenous Leaders Group will support Amy.

During the day the students will be involved in Indigenous art activities, Health, and fitness activities, learning about Bugs and Slugs and the Ngarrindjeri language, ADAC providing a BBQ lunch for our students. 

In Science this term, students in Year 5 have been learning about Earth and Space. We have been investigating the big questions that determine what the surface of our earth looks like. Last week, we looked deep into the layers of our Earth, developing an understanding of the varying layers and how they are formed. Students created their own models of the earths layers to demonstrate their learning. Check out our creations! 

On Tuesday 7th, Wednesday 8th and Thursday 9th May the Yr. 3 classes went to Montaro Zoo to participate in an overnight camp. Each class began their camp with a bus tour of the Safari Park. John- our group leader- told us many interesting facts about the animals that live at the park. When night fell we all braved the cold and went for a night walk. We loved star gazing at the beautiful clear night sky. That same night we constructed animal shelters from the materials around the clearing. The highlight of the night was finishing with a bon fire and toasted marshmallows. 

The next morning we woke early to the sound of drums beating. We quickly got up and dressed so we could walk and see the sunrise. We then bordered the bus again and went to see the checky chimpanzees. It was then time for us to go home via a lunch stop at Maccas! Everyone had a fabulous time and are so grateful for the experience.

In Food Technology, Year 8 students have been busy planning and cooking their own small batch pastries, using some of the techniques we have investigated this semester. They have spent weeks working with different types of pastry: shortcrust, puff, flaky, wonton wrappers and spring roll wrappers. In pairs, students created some amazing and delicious recipes to showcase the skills they have learnt. 

On Monday this week, 13 students travelled to Unity College to compete in the Murraylands Cross Country event. These students had already competed in our School Cross Country Trial and were selected from this event to represent the school at the Murraylands Cross Country Event.

10 Year Old students ran a 2km course while the 11 and 12 Year Old students ran a 3km course. 

Congratulations to Max Sobels (10boys) and Archie Popplewell (11boys) for being selected to represent the Murraylands District in the State Cross Country Event in June. Well done to all our competitors for their running achievements and determination to push themselves and represent our school with pride.

Here are links to the latest issue of The Southern Cross newsletter and the online edition of The Southern Cross May 2024.