St Joseph's Catholic School - Mundingburra eNewsletter

Acknowledgement of Country

We respectfully acknowledge the past and present traditional owners of this land on which we stand, the Wulgurukaba and neighbouring Bindal people who are the custodians. We pray that we can walk together to a better future.

From the Principal

Dear Parents, Caregivers, Staff and Students

Recently, we celebrated World Teacher’s Day. Celebrated annually on the last Friday in October, World Teachers' Day is an opportunity to celebrate and thank Queensland teachers for their important role in our communities and for the positive impact they have on the lives of students. There is no doubt that being an educator is a demanding job, and while it can come with frustrations the rewards are significant. This is the reason why teachers teach.

I am extremely proud of and grateful for the staff we have at St Joseph’s Mundingburra. With their particular strengths and capabilities, they not only provide a safe and nurturing classroom environment where students are known, but also an orderly learning space so students can learn and reach potential. On many occasions I have been witness to the opportunities our staff provide to students both inside the classroom and out. Our students do not miss out when it comes to participation in a wide variety of both curricular and extracurricular activities.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank our generous P & F Association for providing our staff with their morning drink of choice (non-alcoholic obviously), as well as a delicious chicken and salad lunch. Staff always enjoy and are grateful for this gesture from our P & F. I would also like to thank Townsville Catholic Education for their morning tea contribution of cheesecakes from the Cheesecake Shop.

Grandparents Day, our biggest morning of the year in terms of attendees, has come and gone. The numbers for this event seem to grow each year, which is wonderful. As a school, we look forward to hosting our grandparents, including grandparent figures, and enjoy witnessing the very special bond which is evident between grandparents and their grandchildren. Recently becoming a grandparent myself, I believe it is vital to foster the grandparent/grandchild relationship in any way possible. Grandparents serve as sources of unconditional love, positive influence, and emotional support for their grandchildren. They contribute to their character development, offer support to parents, and provide a link to family history and traditions. I have included a lovely grandparent quote below:

"My children were like miracles, but my grandchildren are like being in heaven."

- Catherine Pulsifer

Enjoy the rest of your week.

God bless

Tracy

APRE News

2024 Prayer Theme: Blessed to Serve

Bear with one another, help one another, and ever strive to serve God in a generous spirit. ~Mary MacKillop

Last Thursday we held our annual mission stalls. Thank you for all of the generous donations that were sent in to help with our stalls. Our Year 6 students and teachers did an amazing job organising, setting up and running the stalls. So far all of our fundraising efforts have raised over $1400.00.

This week we have launched our annual St Vincent de Paul Christmas Appeal. Over the next four weeks, classes will be collecting donations of food items to help brighten Christmas for those in our community who are experiencing hardships. This week students received a note specifying an item to contribute. If you would like to purchase additional gifts (toys, board games or toiletries) these can be dropped into the office.

We appreciate your support and generosity.

Assemblies

Our assembly is held on Monday morning at 8:45am in our Shelter Shed. Parents, families and friends are all welcome to join us. Our next assembly will be:

Week 7: Remembrance Day Prayer 11:00 am in the shelter shed. (No student awards this week)

Week 8: Thank you Liturgy (No student awards this week)

Week 9: No Assembly

Christian Meditation will take place each Thursday morning at 8:00am in the Library. Meditation is a form of sacred and silent prayer, known as prayer of the heart. It is a lovely way to start the day!

May God’s blessing be with you.

Peta.

St Mary of the Cross MacKillop Parish

CHILDREN’S LITURGY

Children's liturgy takes place every Sunday mass at 7:30 am (during the school term) Members of our parish take the children out and complete activities related to the weekly gospel. This is a wonderful opportunity for children to engage with and understand the meaning of the gospel. All children are welcome.

Parish Lift Assistance – Help a Fellow Parishioner: As part of our commitment to caring for one another, we are encouraging parishioners to offer a lift to those in our community who are unable to drive. If you are attending Mass and have space in your car, please consider reaching out to a fellow parishioner in need of transportation. If you are able to provide a lift or know of someone who needs assistance getting to Mass, please contact the parish office. Together, we can ensure everyone has the opportunity to participate in our parish life. Thank you for your generosity and support!

ARE YOU INTERESTED IN PROMOTING YOUR BUSINESS IN OUR PARISH BULLETIN? Our weekly bulletin reaches over 1,600 individuals, both through email distribution and printed copies available in our churches. Advertising in our bulletin provides a fantastic opportunity to connect with a broad and engaged community. You are also welcome to advertise or extend wishes for special events in your life or in the lives of your loved ones, such as birthdays, anniversaries, baptisms, First Holy Communion, and so on, for a nominal fee. For further details, please contact the parish office at 4779 1404.

MARY OF THE CROSS MacKILLOP PARISH SENIORS GROUP: Our next meeting will be at 10 am on Thursday, 7th November, 2024 at the Spirit Centre. Our last get together for 2024 will be Lunch at the Kirwan Tavern, 154 Thuringowa Drive, Kirwan on Thursday, 21st November, 2024. Further information will be provided closer to the date.

CATHOLIC WOMEN’S LEAGUE (CWL) TOWNSVILLE BRANCH: Our members are excited to welcome back our friend from Southbourne, England who visits her friend in Townsville every couple of years! Maureen joins us when she is here and we correspond regularly with Maureen and her local branch of CWL, sharing ideas, celebrating successes and praying over concerns affecting our communities. We look forward to hearing from Maureen about her branch at our next meeting on Tuesday, 12th November and of course, she will join us for our Christmas Celebration on Tuesday, 3rd December. For now, blessings to all - For the honour and glory of God

2025 Staffing

The Joey's Way

Star Students

From the Office

School Fees

Term 4 school fees have been issued and are due next Friday. If you require any assistance with paying your school fees, please contact our office.

Updating Information

If your circumstances or contact details have changed, please inform our office so we can update our records accordingly.

Lost Property

A reminder to regularly check the lost property rack outside the tuckshop for any items that may belong to your children.

Booklists

2025 Booklists are now live on our website! 📚 Please review your child’s list carefully to prepare for Term 1.

Please note: At the bottom of each booklist, you’ll find textbooks that the school purchases on your behalf and provides directly to teachers. This ensures all students have the correct textbooks. The cost of these textbooks will be added to your Term 1, 2025 school fees.

Farwell Larissa

Today, we bid farewell to our cleaner, Larissa. Thank you for your hard work and care in making our school a welcoming place each day. Larissa is moving on to a new role with more hours, and we wish her all the best in this next chapter.

Diary Dates

Save the Date!

Library News

BOOK FAIR 2024

Last week St Joseph’s Library held our annual Scholastic Book Fair. Thanks to the generosity and enthusiasm of our wonderful St Joseph’s Families, our Fair was again a great success in commission raising for our library for 2025.

The amazing ‘Scholastic Book Fair Shop’, was a super outcome with students, excited each day to view the large range of reading materials available to them to choose from. The Book Fair Shop assists in raising funds for our school to earn valuable commissions for every book purchased at the Fair. 2025 will be another year where a variety of books and resources can be purchased for our students next year. As usual the Lucky Dip was a success with a student winning a free book Monday to Thursday at the Book Fair. Congratulations to our Daily Book Fair Prize Winners this Year! Book Fair is another way of expanding our students’ developing minds and igniting their love of reading!

Any Book Fair orders from last week should arrive soon and will be sent to students as soon as they arrive.

This week our lovely Library Teacher Mrs. Luton, focused on the upcoming Remembrance Day, Monday 11^th November, and why we commemorate the sacrifice, previous generations have made to ensure that we enjoy the freedoms they so valiantly fought for. Storytime with the lower primary students, focused on concentrating on literacy concepts such as prediction and special word recognition.

SORA EBOOK HUB

Sora Thursday lunchtime club sessions with Mrs. H. will return this week. Come join us and have fun with our digital borrowing.

OVERDUE BOOKS

Thank you to parents and students for returning their books to the library. The last week of borrowing will be Week 8, so all books will need to be returned to the library Week 9, so our library collection can be maintained and ready for 2025. Sora borrowing will be available at all times 24/7 for students borrowing as well.

DONATIONS

A ‘thank you’ to parents for their donations to the library this month.

SCHOLASTIC BOOK CLUB ISSUE 7

Issue 7 book orders are on there way and will be distributed as soon as they arrive!

Winston Churchill

Happy Reading everyone!

Guidance Counsellors

Raising Boys

Neuroscience and brain mapping has over the years helped researchers gain a clearer understanding into the distinct development of the male brain. When comparing male and female brains, it is necessary to take into consideration the psychology of differences. There are many reasons for these including hormonal, physical, environmental, and of course, brain differences. However these should not translate into limitations or affect how a parent acts towards their child, nor should it influence how you treat them. It's no secret that most boys are active, loud, rambunctious and prone to rough play, but you need to be careful not to pigeon-hole your child into sex specific behaviours as there is a big cross-over. Boys should not be considered all the same as they do have individual differences. https://sjmbtsv.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/raising-boys. This school TV resources offers some handy tips on raising boys.

Inclusive Education

Transitions

As we approach the end of the year we look towards 2025 with excitement but also some nervousness. All children will have a class transition to their new classroom and teacher in week 10. However, if you feel your child may benefit from some extra transition visits and/or some extra relationship building with their new teacher or a transition booklet to read over the holidays please feel free to contact us so this can be arranged.

tlane1@sjmbtsv.catholic.edu.au

dengert@sjmbtsv.catholic.edu.au

Our last Inclusive Education Committee meeting for 2024 is to be held on Wednesday the 13th November at 3:15pm.