Filter Content
- PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
- DEPUTY PRINCIPAL
- ASSISTANT TO THE PRINCIPAL PRIMARY
- ASSISTANT TO THE PRINCIPAL FORMATION & IDENTITY
- SEMPER UNA YEAR 6 CELEBRATION
- BUSINESS STUDIES
- PRIMARY REPORTS
- LECTURETTE DISTRICT FINALS
- CHESS CLUB AND TOURNAMENT
- SOUTHERN DOWNS YOUTH COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES 2021
- FAIRYTALE BALL
- WET 'n' WILD FOR OUR YEAR 6 STUDENTS
- DANCE FEVER HEATS UP ST JOSEPH'S
- MUSIC and INSTRUMENTAL LESSONS
- ST JOEY'S SCOUT BOYS DONATION
- TED BONNER TENNIS TOURNAMENT
- HORIZONS
- BIBLES FOR SALE
- UPCOMING EVENTS
As the year comes to an end, I would like to thank all students, their families and the staff for helping to make the year a successful one for the school.
I would like to specifically thank both the P&F Association and the Board for their guidance and contributions throughout the year. Their efforts are very important in helping to set the direction of the school and provide assistance to the students.
The staff as a whole deserve a special mention for their good work to get all students and the school through a challenging year. They are a dedicated and hard-working group who have the interests of the students at heart. I thank Mrs Catherine Oag, Mr Scott Stone, Mrs Debra Stone, Mrs Jo Barker, Mr Mark Spiller and Mrs Emma Rhymer who finish at the school this week. Special mention to Catherine Oag for her many years of service to St Joseph’s.
Well done to all the students for working towards the best they can be. I hope they all come back to school well rested and ready to continue their Joey’s journey. To the Year 6 students, congratulations on completing your Primary journey and best wishes for the next phase of your schooling life.
Finally, I would like to wish all a merry and safe Christmas period.
God Bless
The final weeks of Semester 2 has certainly gone quickly, with students working positively towards completing assessment requirements and finishing a hectic, eventful and satisfying year well. I congratulate all students on an excellent semester and the strong academic results that are evident in the semester reports. In relation to semester reports, these will be mailed out towards the end of Week 9. Please take the time to work through the feedback within these reports and as always, I encourage parents to contact the relevant staff or myself if you wish to discuss anything contained within these reports.
I wish to take this opportunity to thank all members of our school community for your wonderful support throughout what has been a challenging year. The students have had an excellent year and deserve a well-deserved break and I thank you, as parents, for the role you have played in supporting them through another school year. To the staff, your awesome efforts and genuine care for the students never goes unnoticed and thank you for a wonderful year.
To all, enjoy a safe, enjoyable and fun filled break. May the love of Jesus encounter each and every member of our community through the festive season. See you in 2021!
Matthew Brown
Deputy Principal
ASSISTANT TO THE PRINCIPAL PRIMARY
The academic year 2020 has come to an end and it is an appropriate time to reflect on all that has been achieved. Shortly all parents will receive their child’s semester report which provides a summary of their achievement this semester and some suggestions for areas which would benefit from further consolidation in 2021. Whilst the grades achieved for each subject will be of interest to parents, it is also important to focus on the academic growth that each student has made throughout the year.
This week we hosted the district final of the Granite Belt Lecturette Competition where nominated students from schools in the area present a three-minute talk on a topic of their choice in front of an audience as well as adjudicators from Stanthorpe Toastmasters. Each year the competition improves in terms of the content of the speeches and the confidence of the students. This year, five of our Year 6 students were involved in the final. Well done to Eden Shatte, Magnolia Mills, Ashley Juriss, Stella Rabic and Lillian Kendall who all represented the school so well. Congratulations to Stella and Lillian who were awarded first and second places respectively.
We have also farewelled the Year 6 cohort of 2020 this week with a special 'Semper Una' celebration as part of the end of school year Mass. The theme this year centred around a compass, reflecting a year when these students sought to navigate their way through their learning, embracing new tools and thinking to plot their course to success. Working in the 'hub', this group of learners has benefitted greatly from the research about what constitutes effective learning and are well equipped to take on the challenges of Year 7. They are confident to share their opinions with justifications, resilient enough to know that mistakes are inevitable and should be welcomed, resourceful to select the tools they need at the right time and humble enough to know that we all need help to achieve our goals in life. It has been a pleasure to work closely with these students during this year and we will watch their journey as it continues into the future.
On behalf of all the staff on the Primary Campus, I would like to thank the parents and families for their continued support throughout the year. I would also like to recognise the dedication of the staff and thank them for their commitment to providing the highest level of care, support and education for the children. Mrs Stone and Mrs Barker are leaving us at the end of this term - Mrs Stone will be moving to Warwick Christian College and Mrs Barker will be looking to start her teaching career having completed her degree. We wish them both well in their future endeavours. Finally, a big ‘thank you’ to the children themselves who continue to surprise us every day and make our role as educators so fulfilling. For those students who are leaving St Joseph’s, we wish you well and hope that you continue to thrive in your new environment.
I wish everyone a restful and safe holiday and trust that we will all have the opportunity to reflect on the real meaning of Christmas and the role that Jesus plays in our lives.
May we all rejoice in the miracle, the gift and the promise of Christmas.
Sarah Yates
Assistant to the Principal Primary
ASSISTANT TO THE PRINCIPAL FORMATION & IDENTITY
Waiting and Watching this Advent Season
Last Sunday the season of Advent commenced, a period of self-preparation where we await the joyous arrival of Jesus. During this time of preparation and waiting, we may become overwhelmed with all there is to do, making plans, maintaining traditions, singing carols, seeing familiar faces of the nativity scene huddled around the newborn King. Yet this Advent, we are reminded to take our time through this meaningful journey, to notice the details, to take in the sights and sounds of all that is the story of Christmas. Let us try to find the hidden in the familiar, to notice the details, to find something new and joyous as we embark on the journey to Christmas.
May you all have a blessed Christmas, filled with joy and anticipation of all that lies ahead.
God bless,
Megan Mahoney
Assistant to the Principal Formation & Identity
The completion of Primary school is a significant milestone in a student's education, and this week 39 Joey's students can celebrate just that! As their time at Primary school comes to a close, it is fitting that the achievements of the Year 6 students were proudly acknowledged at an official celebration in the form of a Semper Una - "Always One".
Held at St Joseph's Church on Wednesday 2nd December, the celebration included a mass and presentation, followed by a morning tea for the students. While there is always sadness as some students part ways with some of their close, childhood friends, we hope all students also have a sense of pride in a school that nurtured and protected them through their early years, as well as feel excited as they anticipate the new opportunities, challenges and adventures that await them. We also encourage all students to remember their Mercy values as they continue their journey into Secondary. Congratulations to our Year 6 Joey's students!
Year 9 and 10 Business have been busy this semester learning about macro and micro economic policy and the impact of fiscal and monetary government decisions on our everyday spending. Students have worked hard to learn new technical language and concepts. The unit culminated in students investigating differences in living standards and the effects of living in poverty for some people in our community. Our Year 9 class wanted to show their understanding in a tangible way and contributed a bag overflowing with essential items in the annual Share the Dignity ‘It’s in the Bag’ project. This project provides sanitary and other items for families in poverty, and was kindly delivered by Liz Alldridge.
The Year 9 Business class also wanted to show their support for all students at St Joseph's by launching their own Dignity Project to provide support, encouragement and education around periods and monthly cycles. They presented their ideas to Mr Kendall, Mr Brown and Mrs Mahoney in a professional submission, gaining support to advance the project in 2021.
Well done girls!
At the end of this term, you will receive your child’s academic report for Semester 2, reflecting their performance against the Australian Curriculum Achievement Standard for each subject. The teachers have have given much consideration to the grades and comments and taken into account a wide variety of evidence. For your information, the grades awarded for each subject can be interpreted in the following way:
A |
The student is able to successfully and independently complete unfamiliar tasks where they have applied their knowledge and understanding. |
B |
The student is working beyond the expected level of knowledge and understanding for the cohort and is beginning to demonstrate this through exploring some unfamiliar tasks. |
C |
The student has achieved a level of knowledge and understanding at the expected level for their cohort. This is demonstrated through familiar tasks. |
D |
The student is working towards the standard of knowledge and understanding for the cohort, but requires additional support at this stage. |
E |
The students requires significant support at this stage to complete tasks that are appropriate to the cohort. |
The effort rating, learning habits and general comment offer information as to the skills and dispositions your child has demonstrated throughout Semester 2. These may provide a starting point for a discussion relating to ‘the more you put in, the more you get out’. Students are encouraged to become more active participants in their learning rather than passive recipients, and to understand that having a growth mindset can allow you to reach for and attain goals… if you are prepared to put in the effort. It is also important to see your child as an individual, rather than comparing them to siblings or others in the cohort. If your child is growing in their learning, this is cause for celebration regardless of the starting point or the level achieved.
However, it is also important to remember that an academic report is only one way to measure the ‘success’ of a semester and in some respects it may be seen as limited. To name just a few things, each and every child on the Primary Campus this Semester has experienced highs and lows, learned about how to negotiate and renegotiate friendships, has grown in their spiritual understanding of what it means to be a student at a Catholic school, has felt compassion in regards to the plight of others and acted to do something about it, has felt frustration when aspects of a subject seemed too complex to understand and demonstrated resilience in order to overcome those problems. Many of them are able to explain what it means to be ‘in the learning pit’ and describe strategies for getting themselves out. Educating students for life in the 21st Century is more than imparting knowledge; it is about developing a creative thinker, a problem solver, an effective communicator, having a sense of resilience, establishing respectful relationships and building a strength of character to stand up for what they believe to name but a few things.
The annual Lecturette competition for Year 6 students has come around again, with five St Joseph’s School students standing tall to present their speeches at the Lecturette District Final held on Monday 30th November.
Magnolia Mills, Lillian Kendall, Eden Shatte, Stella Rabic and Ashley Juriss were selected to represent St Joseph’s School in the finals, after reciting their lectures to students, staff and families in the Town Final competition held on Monday 16th November.
While public speaking can be very daunting, all students were confident and assertive in the delivery of their speeches which were the result of weeks of planning, drafting, editing and polishing.
The students enjoyed the opportunity to develop their research skills and present a point of view. All competitors did well and the competition was very close. Well done to all students who represented the school in the 2020 Granite Belt Lecturette Finals and to Stella and Lillian who were awarded first and second place respectively.
During this last term, we have been participating in Chess Club. We have played against each other and have grown considerably through learning and applying new strategies. We play games such as the Queens Gambit, the Scholars Mate, the Fools Mate and many others. All this led to our school sending two teams to the Granite Belt Primary school Chess Tournament on the 27th of November.
The St Joseph’s teams played very well with Team One finishing in first place in Pool A and Team Two two finished in second place in Pool B. This meant that Team One was playing in the final to finish in either first or second position and Team Two played off for third or fourth. In two extremely close matches, St Joseph’s lost by narrow margins in both events finishing in second and fourth positions. Congratulations to Glen Aplin for winning this year and thanks to Stanthorpe State School for hosting and Mrs Judy Grimmond for organising the tournament.
Thomas Telfer
Year 4/5F
SOUTHERN DOWNS YOUTH COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES 2021
Congratulations to Taylah Organ and Eliza Telfer on being nominated as the Year 10 St Joseph’s Southern Downs Youth Council Representatives for 2021.
They will be wonderful representatives for our school - well done !
As the end of the school year was quickly approaching, ‘The Fairy Tale Princes’ and Princesses’ were eagerly awaiting their much anticipated invitation to the annual Fairy Tale Ball which took place on Thursday 26th November.
The Queens of the Fairy Tale Kingdom (aka Mrs Charlton and Mrs McNichol) along with their assistants, Miss Hollie and Mrs Barker, eagerly awaited for their beautiful Prince and Princesses to arrive.
Upon arrival, they feasted on Fairy Tale Chicken Nuggets, Gold Fish Pieces and Crispy Fries along with some bubbly pink lemonade before they danced the evening away with the ‘Fairy Tale Hip Hop’.
Special guests who joined the evening were King Mahoney (Mr Mahoney), King Kendall (Mr Kendall) and Queen Yates (Mrs Yates).
An enjoyable evening was had for all - before all Prince and Princesses ventured home to sleep and dream of fun and Fairytales ........
WET 'n' WILD FOR OUR YEAR 6 STUDENTS
As cars and buses pulled up in the St Joseph's School carpark, the Year 6 class of 2020 gathered for their long awaited excustion to Wet 'n' Wild. Waking at 5am and travellling on a bus for three and a half hours was certainly worth the adventure that lay ahead of them.
Slipping and sliding, screaming all the way, only stopping for food, water and reapplication of sunscreen, the students had a wonderful day with their friends. Wth great reluctance the adventure had to come to an end.
With strengthened friendships and a test of bravery, the Wet 'n' Wild trip of 2020 was certainly one to remember.
DANCE FEVER HEATS UP ST JOSEPH'S
St Joseph's students from Prep to Year 6 have been participating over the last few weeks in "Dance Fever Multi-Sport'.
'Dance Fever Multi-Sport' is a program focussed on learning dance and social skills. Teachers work with their students to build confidence and to learn dance routines in a fun and respectful manner. The students are building on dance skills learnt in previous years.
Tuesday, students gained the opportunity to show off their dance skills in front of amazed parents. Students gain a sense of pride while achieveing the routines for a final performance.
MUSIC and INSTRUMENTAL LESSONS
Congratulations to all students who have been involved in instrumental lessons throughout the year. It is wonderful to see students participating in music tuition and great to see the progress. It is with some sadness that we say farewell to Mr Aaron Buchanan as he has taken up a position in Gatton and will not be able to continue with us next year.
However, we are delighted to announce that Mr Phil Ryan will be joining us at St Joseph’s in 2021. Phil is an outstanding brass player, has a history of symphonic performance and is highly regarded as a teacher at both the school and tertiary level. He will offer tuition on all band instruments as well as offer band rehearsals during lunchtime next year. It is most likely that lessons and Band will happen on Thursdays each week but the timetable will be confirmed at the beginning of the new year.
If there are any enquiries please contact Dr James Cuskelly james.cuskelly@twb.catholic.edu.au
Over the weekend, boys from Year 1 and Year 2 undertook the task of picking, chopping, preparing and cooking strawberries in preparation of making some delicious strawberry jam.
The Scout members were then asked to think of who they might like to donate this jam to. They chose Mini Vinnies.
This was the last task the boys needed to undertake in order for them to earn their Messengers of Peace badges.
Friday 27th November saw Billy Gallaway, Jack Brown, Jayden Green, Brae Einam and Nicholas Gasparin participate in the annual Ted Bonner Tennis finals.
After winning the first round against the Stanthorpe State Primary School, they progressed to the finals where they played Glen Alplin State School.
Our students played well going down to Glen Aplin 3 sets to one. Well done boys on being awarded Runners Up in the finals.
For the latest Advent edition of the Horizons magazine, please visit https://www.twb.catholic.org.au/horizons/
4 December | Last Day of Term 4 - 12pm finish |
27 January | First Day of Term 1 2021 Years 1-12 |
28 January | First Day of Term 1 2021 Prep |