Term 4 Week 5 Newsletter
From the Principal
Dear Parents/Caregivers
Welcome to the middle of Term 4, I hope this week has been a good one for everyone so far.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank our P & F Association for all they do in supporting the staff, students and community of this school. St Joseph’s Parents and Friends Association (P & F) is a strong and vibrant organisation who support the school community in many ways. The role of school P & F Associations as defined by the Qld P & F Federation is a broad one, and includes but is not limited to actions such as developing a school community partnership of parents, teachers and students, planning and organising functions, providing resources to the school, promoting the school in the wider community and encouraging parent participation in learning activities and school life. This is done in collaboration with the Principal and staff.
One role the P & F play in our school community revolves around fundraising in order to provide equipment and facilities for the school community, which the school cannot afford to provide without imposing higher fees. The beauty of this is that the generously given efforts of those involved in organising these activities results in income for the school, which can then be spent on ‘extra’ items which benefit our students and school.
The provision of a daily tuckshop service for the students is another on-going P & F role. This service relies on the generosity of parents/carers to staff the tuckshop, with the P & F funding a paid Tuckshop Convenor who guides and influences the work of volunteers. The funds raised by our school disco, held in partnership with the P & F last Friday, went towards much needed equipment for Jeannine in the tuckshop. Jeannine is always on the lookout for parent/carer volunteers, so please consider if you are able to help out in 2022, even if this is in the smallest of ways it will still make a difference.
A major function that our P & F play within our school is that of providing hospitality and organising social functions. Some of the functions organised each year include a ‘Welcome Back’ BBQ and disco held in the first few weeks of first term, as well as events agreed upon at P & F meetings. Throughout the last few years these have included Mother's and Father’s Day functions, Carols by Torchlight, and this year we had our inaugural Trivia Night. Staff are well looked after by our P & F, with the recent provision of a coffee and lunch for World Teachers’ Day last Friday being much appreciated.
A monthly P & F meeting is held in our school library on the second Monday of each month, and parents/carers are urged to come along and be part of the discussions and on-going planning.
Our school community thrives due to the commitment and dedication of our very generous and supportive parent community.
Have a wonderful week.
God Bless
Tracy
APRE News
November is a time of contemplation and prayer for all who have died.
At the beginning of November the Catholic church celebrates two very important feast days.
FEAST OF ALL SAINTS
On Monday 1st November, The Feast of All Saints, we remembered all those who have died and have gone to heaven. 1A led the school in a liturgy celebrating our Saints. In particular we remembered St. Joseph and St. Mary of the Cross MacKillop. Thank you to Miss Green and 1A for a beautiful time of prayer.
FEAST OF ALL SOULS
Tuesday, the Feast of all Souls, November 2nd, is a day of remembering all of the dead.
All Souls Day
We celebrate All Souls Day, a day where we remember all those who are part of the Church - those who have died and are with God, and those of us still here on earth. We ask for God’s comfort and peace in times of sadness and loss.
As a family, you could light a candle and say a prayer, for your loved ones who have died, either at home, at Church or online. Visit goo.gl/qyQDqK to light a candle and write a prayer intention online.
Gracious and loving God, you love us and care for us more than we can ever know. Give us peace when our hearts are heavy, and help us to rejoice in the knowledge that our loved ones are with you forever. Amen
Lord, look upon them with eyes of mercy, may Your healing hand rest upon them, may Your life giving powers flow into every cell of their bodies and into the depths of their souls, cleansing, purifying, restoring them to wholeness and strength for service in Your Kingdom.
Amen.
During the month of November it is a tradition in the Catholic church to have a Memorial Book where we remember family and friends who have died.
Our Memorial Book is at the front office. Please write the names of family members who you wish to be prayed for.
Our whole school prayer will take place this Friday 5th November at 1.40 in the Covered Area when we will gather and meditate with the focus being on All Souls.
First Eucharist and Confirmation
Last Sunday many children, who had recently made their First Eucharist and Confirmation, gathered after mass and received their Confirmation Certificate.
Congratulations to all those children. Please remember them in your prayers.
Socktober
We continue to celebrate Socktober with our weekly kick offs.
Wednesday: Back Oval for Yrs. 2 to 6
Thursday: Prep and Yr. 1
Last Thursday the staff, led by Janelle Knack form CEO, participated in a Contemplative Walk and Reflection around Jezzine Barracks. Thank you to Janelle for giving us this opportunity to be still and silent in this busy time.
Look at a tree, a flower, or a plant. Let your awareness rest upon it. How still they are, how deeply rooted in being.
Allow nature to teach you stillness. Eckhart Tolle
Joey’s Way this week was clearly acted out by 1A “ Own Your Actions.”
Remember we all make mistakes however it is important to accept what we have done, apologise and start afresh. God is forgiving, let us forgive each other.
Next week our Monday liturgy will be led by 1B.
Keep safe and blessings
Clare
Save The Date
Information for Families
Year 6 parents are reminded that camp fees are now overdue. Could you please make payment as soon as possible.
We currently have a number of students at the tuckshop and office asking for more food as they have eaten all of the food sent from home. As the year progresses, appetites often grow as students grow. Please ensure students have a nutritious lunch with enough food for both breaks.
Term 3 fees are now overdue. Your prompt payment is most appreciated. Term 4 fees are due Thursday 11 November.
Optional Long Sleeved Shirts
School Locker have advised that due to the factory closure during COVID that there will be a delay in supplying these shirts. School Locker apologise to families and will contact families directly once the shirts arrive.
Interschool Robotic's Gala Competition & Bebras
Well done to our group of Year 5 and Year 6 students who participated in the Interschool Robotic's Gala Competition at Annandale Christian College. The day involved a Battlebot and Robot Dance Competition. Their project was to design and build a robot from scratch and then program it all on the day. One of our Year 5 teams came first in the battlebot competition and went throughout the day undefeated. Our second team placed third. In the robot dance competition, one of our teams placed second and our other Joey’s team placed fourth. Terrific effort Joey's.
Mrs Cantoni
~ Bebras Challenge ~ Twenty-one of our students were involved in working together to solve a set of problems that build on the skills and techniques that software engineers use to write programs and apps. Bebras is an international challenge that aims to promote Computer Science and Computing among students. The aim was to solve as many questions as possible in the allotted time.
The challenge focused on student’s ability to break down complex tasks into simpler components, focusing on algorithm design and pattern recognition. Well done to all of our students who participated.
Library News
Book Fair 2021
At last the Book Fair is here! The amazing Scholastic Bookstore has a varied selection of books this year to purchase! Today, Christmas books have just arrived!!!
All classes viewed the Bookstore earlier this week and had a chance to preview some books they were interested in. Payments can be made online through the Scholastic Book Fair Parent Payment site “My Wish List” at home or through the popup bookstore here in the Library.
Thank you for all your wonderful participation and support with the bookstore…every book sold goes towards generating earning points for the school.
Come and enjoy the Fair!
OPENING TIMES
Date: 01 – 04 NOVEMBER 2021
Place: Our Library
Times: Monday to Thursday
8.00 - 8.30 am
2.45 - 3.30 pm
Here are our winners for the daily lucky draw prize for the Library.
Grace from 3B was our winner on Monday and Emily from Prep A is Tuesday's winner.
Don’t forget… are you using our fabulous educational resource, Story Box Library, which gives you access to a world of stories, available online to your child at home, by our school subscription?
Your child can watch favourite stories, read aloud by fabulous authors and storytellers and more, at home as well as in the classroom.
Just in case you have forgotten our login for Story Box Library:
Username: SJMB
Password: Joeys Happy Reading!!!