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 and Caregivers, Staff and Students

Yesterday was Ash Wednesday which marked the beginning of the season of Lent, a special time in our Church and school community where we think about the mystery of Jesus’ life and death. Lent lasts for 40 days (not including Sunday’s) and concludes on Holy Thursday. The 40 days of Lent remind us of the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert in preparation for his public ministry. It is the time that we prepare to enter the mystery of Easter, that Jesus died and that was sad but it was also wonderful in an Easter kind of way… somehow he was still with his friends, somehow he is still with us! The Church encourages us to prepare for the great mystery of Easter in three specific ways:

Prayer

Prayer is a central part of the Catholic tradition and is observed regularly. During Lent Catholics are called to continue their prayer life and ‘make space’ for God.

Almsgiving

Almsgiving refers to being charitable and sharing what we have with people in need. Project Compassion is the appeal run through Caritas Australia which Catholic communities are encouraged to support during Lent. Families are encouraged to watch together the stories of the communities we will be supporting through our Project Compassion donations.

Fasting

Fasting does not have to be about just giving up ‘food’. Fasting is often done by giving up something that you enjoy, certain past times or an event, and giving the money you’ve saved to help someone else. We are also invited to ‘give up’ some habits that are not life-giving. Maybe we could consider giving up petty rivalries, jealousy, negativity, impatience or greed.

Pope Francis gives Catholics around the world the following perspective on fasting:

Fast from hurting words and say kind words.

Fast from sadness and be filled with gratitude.

Fact from anger and be filled with patience.

Fast from pessimism and be filled with hope.

Fast from worries and trust God.

Fast from complaints; contemplate simplicity.

Fast from pressures and be prayerful.

Fast from bitterness; fill your hearts with joy.

Fast from selfishness and be compassionate.

Fast from grudges and be reconciled.

Fast from words; be silent and listen.

There is much we can take from these words, even if we just focus on one line a day over the next 40 days. Or perhaps we focus on one or two lines for the entire period. Whichever way we want to engage one thing is certain, at the very worst we come out of this period as better people and hopefully in a closer relationship with God.

Wishing you all a wonderful week.

God bless

Tracy

APRE News

2025 Prayer Theme: Hopeful Hearts

Shrove Tuesday

Yesterday, we observed Shrove Tuesday, which marks the final day before Lent and is always celebrated 47 days prior to Easter Sunday. Traditionally, Christians refrained from consuming certain foods during Lent, including meat, fats, eggs, and dairy products. To prevent food waste, families would hold a feast on Shrove Tuesday, utilizing perishable items before the Lenten season. Pancakes were a popular choice for this occasion, as they allowed households to use up eggs, fats, and milk by simply adding flour.

Ash Wednesday

Today, we observe Ash Wednesday, which signifies the commencement of Lent, a period that lasts for six weeks. The term "Ash Wednesday" is derived from the tradition in which many Christians worldwide receive a cross of ashes on their foreheads. This practice has been a meaningful symbol for God's people for hundreds of years. The cross of ashes serves as a reminder to our friends and neighbors that we acknowledge our imperfections. With God's guidance, we strive to be devoted followers of Jesus, demonstrating our core values through both our words and actions. Even in moments of despair, we find comfort in knowing that God is present, offering us love, strength, and courage.

Project Compassion

On Monday, we centered our Assembly prayer on the launch of our Project Compassion appeal for 2025. Project Compassion is Caritas Australia’s annual fundraising initiative that takes place during the six weeks of Lent each year. The theme for Project Compassion 2025 is ‘Unite Against Poverty.’ This theme encourages us to collaborate in making the world a better place and to seek long-term solutions to global challenges. Throughout the remainder of the term, we will be actively raising funds for this important cause.

Our First fundraising event will be ‘Guess the Teacher’. Baby photos of teachers will be placed around the school for the student to try and guess who’s who!

Whole School Meditation

This week, Mrs. Bortingnon guided the entire school in meditation in observance of World Day of Prayer. World Day of Prayer is an international ecumenical initiative led by Christian women. Operating under the theme "Informed Prayer and Prayerful Action," it is celebrated annually in over 170 countries on the first Friday in March. Each year, a different country prepares the services, highlighting its unique culture, joys, and challenges. This year's prayer focus is on the Cook Islands.

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!

Assemblies

Assemblies will take place fortnightly this year at 2:00pm.

Our next assembly will be in:

Week 8: No Assembly due to our Feast Day Mass on Wed 19/03/25

Week 6: 5B Project Compassion Launch

May God’s blessing be with you, have a wonderful week.

Peta.

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT - PARENT / CARER SUGGESTIONS & FEEDBACK

Parent/Caregiver suggestions or feedback provide valuable information to school leadership, and assist in informing the school's Annual School Improvement Plans. If you would like to express your ideas as to how St Joseph’s Catholic School Mundingburra can grow and improve, please complete this short survey (Link below) by Friday 21st March. Your suggestions may not always translate to goals on the Improvement Plan, however we do take all feedback on board and try to find ways to implement suggestions at the appropriate time where possible. Thank you in advance for taking the time to provide this valuable feedback.

Click HERE to complete the survey.

The Joey's Way

Star Students

From the Office

School Fees

Term 1 school fees have been issued. Please ensure payment is made on or before

Friday, 21st March (Week 8).

Library News

After a successful ‘Library Lovers February Month’, the month of March has started with the celebration of the amazing American Author, Dr Seuss. Theodor Seuss Geisel (who penned under the name of Dr Seuss his pseudonym name), has written and illustrated more than 60 books during his lifetime with over 600 million copies of Dr Seuss’s books sold all over the world. The main benefits of reading his books are the continual repetition and rhyming of words which are an excellent tool for early readers to assist in decoding and growing their vocabulary knowledge.

Dr Seuss has made amazing contributions to building a love of reading in children all over the world, hence why on the 2^nd of March his birthday, we celebrate this extraordinary author and illustrator. Students have been enthusiastically entering our Dr Seuss Week, ‘My Hopes’ Library Competition’. The competition mirrors the theme of being part of the Catholic School Community, for the Pope’s Jubilee Year theme: ‘Pilgrims of Hope’. Entries will be open until this Friday. This week, International Women’s Day, on the 8^th March, will be focusing the spotlight on one of our own cherished and famous female Australian Authors, Mem Fox. Mem Fox’s literary writing career and her literacy awards to engage children to love reading, has become an international success story, especially with her book favourite ‘Possum Magic’.

BOOK CLUB ISSUE 1

Issue 1 book orders have just arrived and will be distributed to students as soon as possible.

SORA EBOOK HUB

Don’t forget Thursday’s lunchtime eBook borrowing sessions in the library with Mrs H. Come join us every lunchtime at 1.10pm and have fun learning how to borrow books digitally.

Dr Seuss, ‘Happy Birthday to You!’

Happy Reading!

Henry's Update!

In 2024, the P&F fundraising efforts were dedicated to supporting the Thiele’s, one of our Joey's families, as they navigated their son Henry’s new medical diagnosis. We are incredibly grateful to the wider school community for their generosity, kindness, and contributions, which played a vital role in supporting our fundraisers. Your donations and efforts have made a meaningful difference in assisting this family during a challenging time, and we sincerely appreciate the spirit of compassion and solidarity shown by our community. Thank you all.

Please see below for a message from Chris and Carla Thiele. On behalf of the P&F, we wish Henry continued good health in 2025 and beyond.

Meagan

Hello to our beautiful school community. We wanted to send an update as we start a new year and some new chapters for Henry. Towards the end of last year, we had genetic testing done which confirmed Henry’s diagnosis of aHUS (Atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome) as the life long strain. This means that we navigate life a little differently now through regular hospital visits which involve drug treatment infusions for the foreseeable future. This treatment is what is blocking Henry’s disease, letting his kidneys heal and allowing him to return to as normal as he can be! We don’t have a clear future mapped out yet for Henry. There’s still questions of how long he will be on drug therapy or whether he will relapse but with careful management and a new health plan in place we look forward to a healthy future!

Chris and I would like to take this time to again acknowledge and thank every single person in our amazing school community. We would not have been able to get through what we got through without the support wrapped around us. The school community has impacted our family and helped us in ways we never thought we’d ever need. But we thank God that when it was there for us, we could lean on it and support our family. To be a part of a school like this, is truly a blessing and we are forever grateful.

The Thieles

Rafael's Update!

Throughout 2023, our P&F fundraising was dedicated to another of our Joey’s families, the Zarate’s, after their son Rafael’s diagnosis with Clear Cell Sarcoma. The generosity and kindness of our school community played a crucial role in making our efforts a success. Thanks to your contributions, we were able to provide meaningful assistance to the Zarate family and we are incredibly grateful for the community spirit that made this possible. On behalf of the P&F, we hope Raf continues to keep in good health, and wish the Zarate family all the best for what lies ahead - Meagan (P&F Vice-President ).

A message from the Zarate family:

To our wonderful school community.

We wanted to share an update about Raffy and his journey.

It’s hard to believe that a year has passed since we arrived home after Raffy completed his last round of treatment. We are so grateful to share that Raf is doing well and continues to grow stronger and meet milestones, both big and small. He still has routine check-ups every 3 months, and so far, everything has been looking good. We remain confident and hopeful that this will always be the case, and so grateful for how far Raf has come.

Raffy is now 4 years old and he continues to keep us on our toes. He is a ball of energy, he loves his superheroes, dress ups and playtime with his friends and family. Raf is now in kindy and will start prep, next year - which is so crazy to think about. But another milestone we are excited to welcome.

Luke and I would like to thank you all for standing by our family, for your generosity, love, support and prayers. Your kindness has meant the world to us, and we will never forget the love and support that carried us through.

We are so grateful our kids are a part of such an amazing school community. We wish and hope everyone has an amazing 2025.

With love and gratitude,

The Zarate’s

School Photos - Advanced Life

Please be advised that our school photo day is on Friday, 16th May. You can now order your preferred package using the information provided below. More details, along with sibling envelopes, will be available for collection from the office shortly.

Guidance Counsellor

Questions for Parents to ask children after school

Parents will often report that it can be very difficult to get their child to talk about what has happened during their day at school. When posed with the question “What happened at school today?” students will often reply with “Nothing”. Here are some questions that may generate some discussions about your child’s day at school.

What was the best part of your day?

Was there anything that upset you today?

Did you help anyone today?

Can you tell me something that you learnt today?

Would you change anything that happened today if you could?

What made you laugh today?

Was there anything that you didn’t understand in class today?

Are you reading anything at school?

Is there anything that you need help with for school?

Did you play any games today?

What was the best thing your teacher asked you to do in class today?

Sport

On Friday the 21st Joeys sent a team of 12 players along to the Ruth Young Hockey Gala Day. We made it to the HOTSHOTS league with only 4 experienced players! Mrs Huxley was nervous for the team but they soon proved that even though most of the team were inexperienced, they gave it their all and ended up in the top 8!Mr Dave Jones, trained with us and came to the gala for the first couple of games to set up our strategy and positive attitude which helped us to thrive throughout the day! We finished fourth overall, having played in the BRONZE medal final! We were so grateful to have a cheer squad of parents, who also helped us set up our basecamp and Emmett's family donated some yummy baked goods that we enjoyed after each win. Amongst the highlights were wearing the new Joey's jerseys, running riot in the sprinklers and meeting the Hockey Roos player, Dayle Dolkens.

Mrs Melissa Huxley

National eSmart Week - Monday 31 March to Sunday 6 April

Be Heard. Be eSmart

This year we're empowering children and young people to use their voices to shape the online spaces they want and deserve. Student will be participating in a range of in-class lessons throughout the week including virtual storytime sessions. Activities are designed to promote positive digital citizenship and ensure that students stay safe, smart and responsible online.

Parenting in the digital world

Parenting in the digital world has many challenges. Join this session to understand your child's online world and how you can support them to stay safe.

Date: Wednesday 2 April 2025

Time: 4.30 pm (AEST)

Duration: 45 min

Trybooking - save your spot

Inclusive Education

Supporting Your Child's Development: Resources for Townsville Families

Early intervention is crucial in ensuring your child reaches their full potential. If you have any concerns about your child's development, it’s important to discuss them with your GP and classroom teacher as soon as possible.

In Townsville, the Child Development Service (CDS) supports children with complex developmental concerns, offering assessments and outreach services to families. Families can self refer, ask the school to refer, or ask their GP to refer.

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provides support for children with developmental delays or disabilities. The general rule for accessing NDIS without a formal diagnosis is for children under the age of 6 (or have the forms/referral completed and submitted before their 6th birthday) through the Early Childhood Approach through Uniting Care.

The local provider for the NDIS Early Childhood Approach in Townsville is Uniting Care, which assists families of children up to 9 years old by:
✔ Identifying developmental concerns
✔ Connecting families with therapists and support services
✔ Assisting with early intervention funding
✔ Guiding families through the NDIS application process

For children over 9 years old, Feros Care is the NDIS partner responsible for supporting families through the transition to longer-term NDIS support and services.

You can contact Uniting Care or Feros Care for more information on how to access NDIS support. More details are also available at ndis.gov.au.

Please note that there are currently waitlists for pediatricians, occupational therapists, and speech therapists in the area. A list of local providers can be provided to you by the school. To avoid delays in accessing support, we strongly encourage families to seek advice from healthcare professionals and educators as early as possible.

Early support makes a big difference—if in doubt, reach out early!

Further information can be found by clicking:

Uniting Care

Feros Care

Townsville CDS

Inclusive Education Committee

We look forward to hosting our first Inclusive Education Committee in early term 2. All are welcome to join our committee which focuses on ensuring St Joseph’s is an inclusive place for all learners and their families. If you are interested in joining the committee please contact Mia White and Therese Lane mwhite9@sjmbtsv.catholic.edu.au tlane1@sjmbtsv.catholic.edu.au

Christian Meditation

Bimbi Wadja

Bimbi Wadja - My Story

Our First Nations student group used the artwork "Every Face Has a Story, Every Story has a Face; Kulila!" by Yarrenyty Arltere Artists, from Arrernte (Alice Springs) in the Northern Territory, to explore the theme of belonging. Students sat in circle, talked, listened and created a self-portrait using a variety of materials. During our Meet and Greet next term, students will make an artwork label with our parents/family members which tells their story.
To learn more about the artists and artwork, click here.

Eco Marines

At assembly this week, we acknowledged the passion and dedication of our 2024 EcoMarines Ambassadors; Lachlan, Oran, Isla and Luciena who led a number of initiatives last year, including composting the tuckshop scraps and the Grounds to Grounds coffee pod community project.

Congratulations to our 2025 Year 5 EcoMarines Ambassadors; Tyler, Matthew, Quinn and Harriet. They will use data from our parent, student and staff Sustainability Surveys to decide on their action plan for this year. Well done to everyone who applied to become an EcoMarines Ambassador - we have a great support crew this year!