Newsletter 9 2023
Principal Report
Hello to Families and all in the St Joseph's School Community,
This week leads us towards the final week of the Lenten Season, with the celebration of Palm Sunday this coming weekend. Palm Sunday signifies the beginning of Holy Week on the Catholic Christian Calendar. Holy Week is the week between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. Holy Week is a time when Catholics remember and participate in the Passion of Jesus Christ. The Passion was the final period of Christ's life in Jerusalem. It spans from when He arrived in Jerusalem to when He was crucified. Holy Week is considered the most important week in the Church's year. It is a time when Christians celebrate the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, remembering his actions, reflecting on his messages and recommitting to living as his disciples in the world today.
Palm Sunday Palm Leaf Prayer
As part of the Leadership morning the grade 5 and 6 students participated in a couple of weeks ago, they decided on a social justice action for Lent, which was to run a mini activities morning at the school. The seniors are busy planning for this event, with the aim of providing a fun end of term activity, while raising some money for Project Compassion. I commend them on their enthusiasm and see this as a fitting activity to hold during the final Lenten week. This activity will be on WEDNESDAY 5th April at 11:00am. It is hoped students will purchase their morning snack from the food and drink stall. There will be Face Painting, Yabby Races, Pop the Balloon, Lucky Dip, Treasure Hunt and Guess the Lollies in the Jar. Details and a price list will go home before the event so stay tuned!
This week has been another engaging week at St Joseph’s with a visit from children’s author, Phil Kettle; Grade 5 & 6 visitors from surrounding areas working on Child Safety and practise for Hot Shots Tennis in Boort tomorrow. The highlight for me this week was counting twenty-eight students busily digging and building in the sandpit with our new sand toys! The rain on Monday provided the perfect consistency for castles, dams and roads!
Today and tomorrow, I am meeting in Ballarat to participate in the second part of my Principal Induction Program, which I find very helpful and informative. It is also a valuable opportunity to liaise with other beginning principals in the diocese. Mr Tom Sexton, the Director of Catholic Education, called in to visit St Joseph’s School and check in on me this week. School leaders, Lila and Cooper gave him a tour of the school and then shared what they had done at the Child Safety Day with Mr Sexton. He was very impressed by our work and by the nature of Lila and Cooper and how they so capably articulated their ideas and interacted. Well done!
Author Visit
On Friday children’s author, Phil Kettle, visited to conduct workshops with the students. Phil worked with the F-2 students to begin with and then did a lengthier session with the Grade 3-6 students. Phil shared how he generates ideas for writing, how he plans his plot and characters and then uses A LOT of IMAGINATION to write each story. Phil guided the students to plan, create characters and get started on writing their own stories. I particularly loved some of the advice Phil gave to the students – reading is a habit, start with a small amount and build the habit; reading makes you smarter; choose books about things you enjoy and don’t forget to turn on your imagination switch!
Hot Shots Tennis
Grade 5&6 students will travel to Boort on Friday 31st March (tomorrow) to participate in the Hot Shots Tennis Sports Day. Students are to wear their full sports uniform and to pack their usual snacks, lunch and water. Students must wear their school hat and sunscreen will be provided. The bus will leave school at 9:00am sharp and return in time for dismissal by 3:15pm. Mrs Tammy Wright and Mrs Naomi Fitzpatrick will attend with the students. St Joseph’s students are joining with Charlton College students to make three teams.
Swan Hill Excursion
On Monday 3rd April, staff and students will enjoy an end of term treat, going on an excursion to Swan Hill. The bus will leave at 9:00am sharp so please be punctual. We are attending a science performance at the Swan Hill Town Hall called “The Alphabet of Awesome Science”. After the show students will enjoy some time to eat lunch and enjoy the Riverside Playground, before arriving home to be dismissed at the usual time. Students are to wear their usual full Summer uniform and bring their snack, lunch and water bottle.
Office Hours
A reminder that Mrs Olive can be contacted at the School Office from 8 :00am – 3:00pm each day from Monday to Thursday. If you need to make contact outside of these hours, please phone Mrs Hogan on 0419 137 966.
Looking Ahead – Term 2
Term Two for students will commence on WEDNESDAY 26TH APRIL.
ANZAC Day Public Holiday is on Tuesday 25th April and as Charlton College is closed and buses are not running, staff will undertake professional learning on Monday 24th April.
All students are invited to represent St Joseph’s School at the ANZAC Day Service in Charlton on April 25th. The service begins at 8:40am and concludes by 10:30am. The Term Two school leaders, Charlie and Liam, will lay a wreath on the school’s behalf. Students to wear full Winter uniform, please.
Bus Travel
From the beginning of Term Two, all students who catch the bus will be marked on the bus roll as they get on the bus each afternoon. Parents/carers MUST notify the school if their child/ren will not be catching the bus, otherwise staff will assume students are to go home on the bus. Notification may be given for a period of time (eg X will not be on the bus each Wednesday of Term 2). You may send a written note, phone the Office, send a text message or be present to collect your child/ren at the end of the school day. I know this will be a change, but this is very important if the school is to ensure the safety of each student every day. Thank you in anticipation of your cooperation.
Important Dates
Please note the following dates which are on the Term Calendar.
Friday 31st March Hot Shots Tennis in Boort – Grade 5 & 6
Monday 3rd April – Excursion to Swan Hill to see “The Alphabet of Awesome Science” F-6 students
Thursday 6th April – END OF TERM ONE
Monday 24th April – Pupil Free Day
Tuesday 25th April – ANZAC Day
Wednesday 26th April Term Two commences
Please keep on the dates as they continue to populate in each weekly newsletter and aim to avoid appointments on these days so all students can participate.
Mary Hogan
Principal
Child Safety
The care, safety and wellbeing of children and young people is a central and fundamental responsibility of Catholic Education. St Joseph’s School is committed to strengthened practice for the protection of children in line with the Victorian Government child safety reforms.
Catholic schools must comply with legal obligations related to mandatory reporting and managing the risk of child abuse to ensure that all school policies and procedures are continually reviewed and updated to reflect Victorian legislative requirements. Mandatory reporting is a legal requirement under the Children, Youth and Families Act 2005 (Vic.) to protect children from harm relating to physical injury and sexual abuse and is non-negotiable in our schools.
In July 2021, the Victorian Government announced the new Child Safe Standards to further strengthen child safe environments and protect children from abuse. The 11 new Child Safe Standards (listed below) came into effect for schools and school boarding premises on 1 July 2022.
New Victorian Child Safe Standards
1. Culturally safe environments– Organisations establish a culturally safe environment in which the diverse and unique identities and experiences of Aboriginal children and young people are respected and valued.
2. Leadership, governance and culture– Child safety and wellbeing is embedded in organisational leadership, governance and culture.
3. Child and student empowerment– Children and young people are empowered about their rights, participate in decisions affecting them and are taken seriously.
4. Family engagement– Families and communities are informed, and involved in promoting child safety and wellbeing.
5. Diversity and equity– Equity is upheld and diverse needs respected in policy and practice.
6. Suitable staff and volunteers– People working with children and young people are suitable and supported to reflect child safety and wellbeing values in practice.
7. Complaints processes– Processes for complaints and concerns are child focused.
8. Child safety knowledge, skills and awareness– Staff and volunteers are equipped with the knowledge, skills and awareness to keep children and young people safe through ongoing education and training.
9. Child safety in physical and online environments– Physical and online environments promote safety and wellbeing while minimising the opportunity for children and young people to be harmed.
10. Review of child safety practices– Implementation of the Child Safe Standards is regularly reviewed and improved.
11. Implementation of child safety practices– Policies and procedures document how the organisation is safe for children and young people.
On Monday almost thirty Grade 5 & 6 students from St Joseph’s Charlton, St Patrick’s St Arnaud, St Mary’s Sea Lake and St Mary’s Donald gathered at our school with a focus on Child Safety. New Child Safety Standards were implemented around the middle of 2022 and there are eleven standards in total. The new standards highlight cultural safety and safety for ATSI students; online safety; government, systems and processes to keep children safe and they aim to involve families and students.
As a group, we discovered the rights of children and looked at photographs to discuss the ways schools have changed over time. We explored the eleven child safe standards and rewrote them in simpler, child friendly terms. We also identified ways of speaking up and seeking help if need be, including a hand of five trusted people we could talk to.
Each school is now going to continue working with the standards to publish a child safe guide, to share the learning with the school community and to create some child friendly posters for display in our schools. The day was hugely worthwhile and I was very impressed by the way the students interacted and contributed. Well done everyone!
COVID Safe measures for schools
COVID Safe measures have changed but all Victorian Catholic schools are required to
continue to implement important practices to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
Schools must continue to take the important steps of ensuring air purifiers are in use, external
ventilation is maximised, good personal hygiene is encouraged and face masks continue to
be made available for staff, students and visitors who wish to wear them.
Vaccinations
Staff and students are strongly recommended to ensure they keep up-to-date with all
recommended and available COVID-19 vaccinations as vaccinations are the best way to
protect individuals, families and school communities from the severe effects of COVID-19 and
reduce the spread of the virus.
Vaccination is no longer mandatory for staff or visitors in any Victorian school, including
specialist schools.
Rapid antigen testing
It is recommended that rapid antigen tests (RATs) are used by students and staff:
• If you have symptoms of COVID-19 infection, no matter how mild
• If you are a household or close contact of someone who has COVID-19
• If you are a social contact of someone who has COVID-19.
Management of suspected cases of COVID-19 in schools
A ‘suspected’ case means a person who displays any COVID-19 symptoms who has not yet
tested positive for COVID-19.
The staff member, student or visitor who is symptomatic should be recommended to undergo
testing for COVID-19. Parents of students who are symptomatic should be asked to collect
their child from school and to keep them home until they are no longer symptomatic.
Management of confirmed cases at school
The Department of Health recommends that a person who tests positive to COVID-19 report
that result to their employer, school and household.
Where a student or staff member is identified as a positive case, the following steps should be
taken:
1. Parents/carers should inform the school by phone or written notification if a student tests
positive to COVID-19 (via a PCR or rapid antigen test).
2. Students who report a positive result are recommended to isolate for a minimum of 5
days and not attend school until their symptoms have resolved. Students who isolate as a
result of a positive COVID-19 test should be supported in the same way as students with
an extended absence due to illness or injury, with learning materials provided to support
their continued learning.
3. Staff who report a positive result are recommended to isolate for a minimum of 5 days
and not attend school during that period. Staff who test positive are able to access five
days paid infectious diseases leave when COVID-19 has been contracted at school,
without a medical certificate (though evidence, such as a RAT, may be required), in
addition to personal leave. Staff who are unfit to return to work and who have accessed 5
days paid infectious diseases leave can access personal leave for the duration of the time
they are unfit for work, with a medical certificate.
4. There is no longer a requirement for principals to inform the school community of a
positive case associated with the school.
Student Awards
Congratulations to the following students who received Student of the Week Awards or Principal Awards. It has been fabulous to have visitors to my Office sharing their work with me.
F/1/2 Lachie Caine
3/4 Patrick Winslade
5/6 Lila Schofield & Cooper McGrath
Principal Awards - Megg Fitzpatrick, Mia Wright, Madelyn Winslade, Lila Lanyon & Connor Caine
Foundation/1/2 Class Report
In the junior classroom this week, we’ve been working hard on completing our unit of work on place value and counting for the term. The students have learnt about using 5 or 10 as a base number and then counting on from there to make their counting more efficient rather than starting from 0 each time, i.e., 5 and 4 is 9, but rather than count all of the items from the beginning, we can start from 5 and count on from there, e.g. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. The students have also been practicing their skip counting strategy when counting large groups. We’ve talked about ways to make it easier to count and the class had a discussion around why it would take too long to count 50 counters by 1s. We then looked at ways to group the counters to make it quicker and more efficient to count the large group – 2s, 5s and 10s. Students offered suggestions of different ways to group the counters, however we decided to focus on 2s, 5s and 10s (as these are the numbers we explore with skip counting at this age level). We’ve had a lot of fun skip counting – through independent work activities, group games and small group inquiry sessions. The next step is to be able to skip count from any given number (rather than the standard patterns we first learn) and then to be able to follow on with the observed pattern. i.e., counting by 5s from 13 (13, 18, 23, 28) – the students learn that the numbers in this pattern will keep ending in either a 3 or an 8 and can then continue on counting much more confidently. The students have also been focusing on comparing, ordering and sequencing numbers. In order to do this, the students have to first have a good understanding of what each column represents in the numbers we’ve been looking at – ones, tens, hundreds and thousands. They’ve then learnt how to compare the same columns in different numbers, (the 2 in 24 represents 2 tens and the 4 in 43 represents 4 tens, so the number 43 is larger), and what to do when the place value column in two different numbers is the same (move onto the next column), i.e., 34 and 37 both have a 3 in the tens column, making the tens the same in each number, so I then have to look at the ones column to see that there is 4 ones and 7 ones, therefore we can conclude the 37 is larger as it has more ones than 34. The students are really starting to get the hang of this and are labelling and recording numbers in their correct place value positions quite accurately. Great work!
In Science this week, the students have continued to explore the concept of ‘Weather’ and have enjoyed our whole group discussions around this. We’ve watched a few inquiry based videos which explored how weather is different all over the world and the students have made clear connections between the topic and their own real life context and the location where we are situated in the world. We’ve talked about the types of weather we generally experience in Charlton and surrounds and have talked through the different seasons – exploring the senses of what we see, feel, eat, wear, etc. around each time of year depending on the weather. The students have seen some examples of environments across our globe that have extreme weather conditions – snow, drought, floods, fire, etc. and have realised that for life to exist in a comfortable way, weather conditions in a place need to be balanced – hot and cold, dry and wet, etc. In STEM this week, we’ve started a construction experience where the students have been challenged to build a trap to catch the famous ‘Gingerbread Man’ who ran away from the old woman who made him! The students were given a design page to make a plan, then used pieces of cardboard, popsicle sticks and masking tape to begin constructing their traps. The students were told that the trap should work on its own without human assistance and that they should be able to explain their ideas. It was fantastic to see the students building, experimenting, changing and tweaking their traps to make them work much more effectively and to see their creative minds at work. Most of the students used ‘something sweet’ as their bait and were able to manipulate the available resources quite well to create some very interesting ‘Gingerbread Man Traps’. Well done everyone and I’m glad you all enjoyed the process.
This is our last full week of learning, so please remember to return all library books by next Monday so that our books can be reorganized and filed away on shelves for Term 2 and keep at it with nightly reading and practicing spelling words as much as possible. If you’d like a few ‘reader’ books for the holidays, let me know and I’ll send a few home with your child. Please also note that this week’s homework task will be the last one for the term. Thank-you to everyone for your commitment to this weekly routine.
This week in the junior classroom, our student of the week award goes to Lochlan Caine for working very hard on his reading goals and showing excellent improvement. Well done mate!
Grade 3/4 Class Report
This week we have been looking at 'Our Journey Home' by Alison Lester in our OLSEL strategies and in our shared reading time. Students have worked well in our guided reading groups on their accuracy, fluency and comprehension in their reading. Students are working on persuasive writing this week. Students have focused on the structure of persuasive texts and planning their writing. Students have explored different language devices/features of persuasive writing, including rhetorical questions, modality, facts and emotive language. Students brainstormed many ideas for and against topics presented in class, and students completed a persuasive piece on whether they preferred country or city living.
Our topic in Maths this week is continuing our work on addition and subtraction. We are focusing on the concept of borrowing in subtraction, including across 0 in ones and tens place value. Students are practising their counting using a number chart daily. They are skip counting by 3, 4, 5, 6 or 10 from zero and non zero starting points. Students are writing 3-4 digit numbers in numerals and words.
Students are learning about the eucharist in Religion this week and the significance of this during Mass. Students have begun preparing for Easter through discussions and activities. We have created a stained glass window with a cross to represent our message of Jesus' presence in Easter and the light that he shines on each of us.
Homework contract 9 and spelling words are due this week. Thank you.
Grade 5/6 Class Report
Grade 5 & 6
Students have enjoyed some varied learning experiences this week, being treated to an authentic author’s visit on Friday last week. Phil Kettle told many interesting stories about his time growing up, about generating ideas for writing and planning out a story. The Grade 5 & 6 students were then invited to plan and develop their own creative writing pieces. In addition to this, the Grade 6 students worked on Monday to gain a better understanding of the Child Safe Standards of our school; why they exist, what they mean and how we can put them into action. Read more about this day in the CHILD SAFETY DAY Report.
ENGLISH
In writing this week, we have continued to focus on the persuasive genre. Moving on from Harmony Week we have explored the question – Do you think Australia is a good place to migrate to? It has been enlightening to hear about all the reasons the students believe Australia to be a country of worth, freedom and space! We might share a text or two with you when they are published! In Grammar we have continued to explore sentence types, looking more explicitly at compound sentences. Some found this a little challenging but we all got there in the end. We are enjoying a free trial of Literacy Planet on our iPads at the moment. The students have created a list using their spelling words for this week and the app has generated a number of activities which can be used to practise their words. We have also been checking out Word Mania, which works against the clock to create words as quickly as you can from individual letter tiles. Both of these activities could be accessed at home.
MATHEMATICS
In Mathematics this week we have continued to work on subtraction involving those pesky zeroes! We have also completed a decoding activity using subtraction to unlock the code and worked on solving worded subtraction problems. Some students have been working with subtraction involving decimal amounts as well.
I have been pleased to see lots of improvement in the rapid recall of number facts and times table facts. Hopefully, this means our daily number work is paying off – keep up the great effort and remember to PRACTISE, PRACTISE, PRACTISE!
And Just for fun - What is the maximum possible number of times you can subtract number 5 from number 25?
A reminder that students need their satchel, reader, diary and Homework Book at school each day, please. Reader diaries are to be filled in each day with the number of pages read and signed, please.
It is phenomenal that there is only one week left of Term One. What a busy and rewarding term I have experienced with the Grade 5 & 6 Class of St Joseph’s! Thank you to the thirteen wonderful and individual beings who make teaching and learning something new and wonderful each day! Enjoy the last week of term!
New Sand Pit Toys
Community News
