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Welcome back to Term 2. I hope all had a restful break and I am pleased that the students and staff have started well.
ANZAC Day
I was very proud of our students and staff for their involvement in the various ANZAC Day activities here at school on 24 April and in Stanthorpe, Tenterfield and Wallangra on ANZAC Day. St Joseph’s School prides itself on its community involvement and the great turnout for these activities was much appreciated.
Visit from Fiji
This week we welcomed Mr Isoa Ciwanacagi who is the Vice-Principal from Magodro School in Fiji. In August Mr Ciwanacagi will return with three other teachers and ten Year 10-12 students from the school to visit St Joseph’s for 8 days. The Magodoro community were very grateful for the care packages for female students they received last year that were organised by our students. We are looking forward to the visit.
Stymie Launch – Online Bullying Reporting System
On Friday 3 May the school will launch Stymie, an online student reporting system for bullying. During the launch all Year 5-12 students were given a briefing on the system and how to use it. St Joseph's School is conscious of the need to address bullying issues and provide a safe and caring environment. Stymie is a useful addition to the policy and procedures we have in place to support the wellbeing of our students.
Masterplan
Last week the Stanthorpe Border Post published details of the proposed masterplan for the school. The key improvements outlined in the masterplan are necessary to provide the school with the necessary facilities for our students to succeed into the 21st Century. My vision for the school is to give every student the opportunity to excel within themselves, that is, do their best, so that when they leave school they have the skills, outcomes and values needed to be successful in life and be a valued member of our society. The masterplan will help to achieve this.
Some have queried whether this about making the school “elite” and whether school fees will significantly increase to fund the masterplan. I can assure all families that is definitely not the case. My firm belief is that St Joseph’s should be a school that is a valued part of the community school, is accessible to all and cater for the needs of all students and families.
It will be exciting to see the positive changes to the school of the coming years.
Have a good term.
God bless
Andrew Kendall
Principal
DEPUTY PRINCIPAL (ACTING)
Welcome back for what shapes to be a wonderful, busy and exciting Term 2. I hope that all families enjoyed a safe and fun-filled Easter break and students are refreshed and ready to positively engage in the curriculum and assessment challenges that lie ahead as we enter the next phase of the school year.
Over the Easter break, parents would have received interim reports for students in Years 7-12. These reports provide a brief summary of in-class and assessment performance across the units covered in Term 1. In Week 2, parent teacher consultations provide an opportunity for parents, teachers and students to reflect on academic progress and collaborate to establish goals and discuss methods to promote improvement in the upcoming units and assessment instruments. I extend my thanks to the secondary teachers for facilitating these positive and informative consultations.
In the first half of the term there will be many events that will provide opportunities for students on the sporting field. In Week 3, our Junior Secondary Soccer teams will compete in the annual round robin phase of the Bill Turner Soccer competition against Stanthorpe SHS, Warwick SHS and Assumption College. In Week 5, our annual school field and track athletics carnivals will be held. I encourage all students to be actively involved in these days, either as competitors or helpers, and parents are more than welcome to attend to support their children.
NAPLAN tests for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 will occur from the 14th -24th May. This year all NAPLAN test instruments (expect the Year 3 writing test) will be completed online and students have been well prepared, both in class and through organised online practice sessions, for this change in format. Details of the NAPLAN schedule will be sent home to parents. As a staff, we wish all students involved the best of luck in these upcoming tests.
Finally, I remind parents that as the term progresses, please do not hesitate to contact me if there are any issues, concerns or questions that you may have.
Matthew Brown
Deputy Principal (Acting)
ASSISTANT TO THE PRINCIPAL PRIMARY
“There are so many things you can learn about, but you’ll miss the best things if you keep your eyes shut.” Dr Seuss
Welcome back to Term 2 and what promises to be another busy term of learning and social opportunities. To whet your appetite, in a few weeks we have a forensic science incursion for students in Years 3 – 6, the Athletics Carnival is in week 5, Sgt Dan O’Dea will be visiting one of our assemblies in his role as our ‘Adopt a Cop’, students in Prep will begin a Fun Friends program in conjunction with Bush Kids, rehearsals will continue for the forthcoming musical and students across the campus will be preparing for the Border District Eisteddfod. These and other activities will run alongside all of the engaging learning experiences that the teachers have planned for this term. Parents are encouraged to access the Primary Newsletter each fortnight for more information about what is happening and to review photos.
Over the recent holiday period, we ran a Family Maths Challenge, encouraging students and their families to seek opportunities to discuss ‘real life’ maths. It is important for students to make connections between what they do in school and how this learning might be applied in different circumstances. Thank you to all the families who participated by sending in photos. It was lovely to see and hear about the enthusiasm of the students. The photos will be shared in assembly this week.
This term, across the two campuses, we will be talking with the students about Learning Dispositions and in particular, the importance of resilience. Each primary class has been given a ‘Weeble’ as a reminder to the students that things do not always go to plan and that in such cases, it is important that we are positive and ‘bounce back’. We will be helping the students to apply strategies that can help them do this and in each Primary Newsletter there will be some information for parents.
Finally, a thank you to all those families who participated in the ANZAC Day commemorations. It is important that our children have the opportunity to reflect on the courage and sacrifice that has been, and continues to be, shown by those involved in war and peace keeping missions to ensure our safety and that of others.
Sarah Yates
Assistant to the Principal Primary
ASSISTANT TO THE PRINCIPAL FORMATION AND IDENTITY
The Easter Season Continues....
With Easter eggs, hot cross buns and Easter baskets put away for another year, most would assume that Easter has concluded. Yet the Easter season, commencing on Easter Sunday, continues for another fifty days, and is the longest liturgical celebration of the Christian calendar. During this period we celebrate Jesus Christ’s bodily ascension into heaven and conclude with Pentecost Sunday, where the apostles receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit as promised by Christ.
Throughout the Easter season, we are all encouraged to grow as “Easter people”, rejoicing and celebrating the joy of the resurrection and the promise of new life. So keep on celebrating Eastertide and wishing your friends a happy Easter!
Megan Mahoney
Assistant to the Principal Formation and Identity
ANZAC DAY PARTICIPATION
ANZAC Day is an important day for all Australians. Students take part in several activities to remind them of the significance and true meaning of this day. On Wednesday 24th April, the school gathered in the Bathersby Centre with invited guests for a prayer service to commemorate ANZAC Day. Following an address by special invited guest, Major Matthew Wilson, everyone moved to the Memorial Garden on the Secondary campus. In military tradition, the Last Post was played with one minute silence being held. To remember past servicemen and women, a special wreath laying ceremony concluded the morning's service. The involvement of the Student Leaders and the St Joseph's Choir ensured this Service was a wonderful tribute to the ANZACs.
The following day, students attended both the Stanthorpe and Tenterfield events including the Dawn Service, Gun Fire Breakfast, ANZAC Day March, Commemoration Service and Wreath Laying.
We thank everyone involved for their support and attendance of these events and keeping this tradition alive in our young people's lives.
BUSY TIME FOR ITALIAN STUDENTS
Italian language students have a very busy term ahead of them. Each year students from all classes are invited to enter the ILC Calligram competition, to create an artwork using Italian to illustrate a theme. The 2019 theme is ‘Gelati’, (ice-cream) and all classes are putting the finishing touches to their entries, ready to compete against the best Brisbane has to offer. ‘Buona fortuna!’
Two of the ILC examples for the ILC Calligram competition.
Work by Aiden, Cooper and Millie.
Term 2 is also Eisteddfod time. St Joseph’s School has entered a Year 3/4 and Year 5/6 group in the Italian speaking section of the Eisteddfod.
In addition, students have been offered an opportunity to show their individual flair in speaking Italian. These students will present a poem on their own. It is wonderful to see students from Years 1 to 6 taking up the challenge. LOTE Teacher Ms Leigh Cusack is very proud of their efforts.
LOTE students have been working hard practising for the upcoming Eisteddfod.
This term in Year 10, science students are learning about DNA and evolution. These two units are a good introduction to topics covered in Senior Biology. One aim in Year 10 Science is to give students a 'taste' of each senior science before Year 11 subject selection. In Term 1, students covered topics in Chemistry and in Term 2, the focus is on Biology. Later in Term 3 there will be an introduction to Physics.
Students recently worked together to extract DNA from 'normal' split peas purchased from Woolworths.
On Friday 26 April, Year 8 and 9 students were immersed in culture for their Visual Art and Drama excursion to Brisbane. The students visited Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art and the Queensland Performing Arts Centre.
The students enjoyed this wonderful experience and look forward to utilising their new found knowledge back in their classroom.
CROSS COUNTRY
On Thursday 4th April, students participated in the annual St Joseph's Cross Country which was held at the Stanthorpe Golf Course. Davadi won both the Primary trophy and the Secondary trophy. Well done to all the students on their sportsmanship and encouragement of their peers. Congratulations to the Age Champions and Runner Up Champions and a huge thank you to Symphony Hill Winery, the McLucas and Hilton families for their sponsorship of the trophies.
Age Group | Age Champion | Runner Up |
9 Years Boys | Ted Bonner | Thomas Telfer |
9 Years Girls | Margaret O'Dea | Natalie Gasparin |
10 Years Boys | Billy Gallaway | Flynn Williamson |
10 Years Girls | Emily Robinson | Addison McCosker |
11 Years Boys | Alex Waterworth | Jaiden Morello |
11 Years Girls | Eliza Bonner (NEW RECORD) | Erin O'Dea |
12 Years Boys | Sonny Fraguas | Darcy Daddow |
12 Years Girls | Claire Danzey | Maggie Gallaway |
13 Years Boys | Tyler Look | Ryan Whiticker |
13 Years Girls | Brigid O'Dea | Claire Williamson |
14 Years Boys | Will Bonner | Jack Bell |
14 Years Girls | Chelsea Debnam | Hannah Widderick |
15 Years Boys | Jack McMeniman | Joshua Rowen |
15 Years Girls | Louise Day | Kirra Daddow |
16 Years Boys | Rory McDonagh | Gregory Zournazidis |
16 Years Girls | Gianna Newman | Taylah Whiticker |
Open Boys | Jared Hitchener | Lachlan Mahoney |
Open Girls | Hannah Debnam | Indiah Loy |
Last Saturday, young ladies from the QISSN team continued their fundraising for the QISSN Netball carnival which takes place in Bundaberg in the first week of the June/July holidays. These ladies are working hard training, fundraising and preparing for the week away, and are grateful for their opportunity to represent the school.
Lara Beckett and Lindsey Swan at last Saturday's Bakesale.
The Woolworths Earn and Learn Program is returning. Between 1 May and 25 June, collect as many stickers as you can.
Stick them on the sticker sheets and pop them in St Joseph's School collection box, either at the Office or at Woolworths.
These stickers are then redeemed for over 10,000 different pieces of equipment, across every possible category including ICT, science, sports, mathematics, arts and crafts and more.
6 May | Labour Day Public Holiday |
14-17 May | NAPLAN |
22 May | National Simultaneous Story Time |
24 May | Athletics Carnival |
25 May | QISSN Street Stall in front of the Country Club |
26 May | Redshield Doorknock Appeal from 8.30am |
28 June | Student Free Day and end of Term 2 |
PET OWNERS WARNING
Pet owners please be aware that there will be loud Acoustic Fireworks at approximately 2.30pm this Sunday 5th May 2019 as well as approximately 6.30pm as part of the annual 3 Saints Celebrations. Please secure your loved pets during these times!