Dear Parents,

We have made it to halfway through the school year.  I hope you have enjoyed discussing your children’s learning progress with them so far this year, referring to the reports we have shared with you and the parent-teacher interviews you have engaged in.  For those who have not yet managed to meet with your children’s class teacher and wish to do so, please contact the teachers at the start of next term.

Much time and a great deal of effort goes into the writing of these reports and they are there for you to know how your children are going but also for your children to be affirmed for their attitudes, their efforts and achievements. It is also important for them to know what they need to focus on to improve.  For these reasons I ask that you find time, while it is all fresh in your mind, to sit down and talk with your children about their report and what the teachers said at your meetings.  An overwhelming number of children at Monday’s assembly indicated that their parents had not shown them or talked to them about their reports. 

An additional request, for the future, is that if you are unable to make your scheduled interview time, please send an email or call the office so that the teacher can be informed.  They have made themselves available to meet with you and are very happy to do so however it is a little unfair, when they have taken time away from their own families, that they are left waiting without any explanations.

Staffing News  

Mrs Leah Temple will commence her maternity leave at the end of this term.  We wish Leah well and hope she manages a few weeks of rest and relaxation, along with some sleep,  before welcoming her second child into the world.

We are also very excited and thrilled to inform you that Ms Renata Powell is expecting her first child later in the year. We are wondering what is in the water in Year 6 Blue!

This means that next term, Miss Chloe Coe, will take on Leah’s role of providing the Assistant Principal release on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Chloe, in Term 4, when Renata is on maternity leave, will then teach 6 Blue on a fulltime basis.

Congratulations to our mothers-to-be and a big welcome to Chloe.  Our Joey’s family is continuing to expand!

Compass Tips

Updates to the Parent App

Compass will be releasing the new look for the parent app over two days from the 30 June - 1 July to CEnet schools.

Newsfeed Sort Function

Parent/carer users can now sort their newsfeed by 'most important' or ‘most recent'. The default view will place important school posts first, but users can now toggle the feed view to ensure they don't miss a post.

Important News

NewsFeed posts that are marked as a priority by the school will be highlighted with an ‘important news’ banner so they can’t be missed by parents/carers.   

Save Posts

To make posts easy to find Compass have added a handy bookmark. Parent/carer users can now bookmark any Newsfeed posts they want to keep for reference, such as upcoming event information that they may need after they have consented. When they no longer need the post they can simply 'unsave'.

Compass have created a parent friendly guide that we hope you find useful.

Looking for Experts

In the Virtual Academy, the students’ focus is on the problem-solving process, requiring them to define problems and begin to discover more about them.  Part of this process requires the students to narrow down their brainstorms to choose problems, issues and topics in our world that interest them and to find ways to make a difference.   Part of the process involves helping the students to contact experts in the fields of their chosen problem. Not only does this give the students more information about their topics but it is also a chance for them to connect with someone like-minded and offers our students inspiration to see adults working in industries they are considering as part of their learning in the future.

Please get in touch with our diocesan Virtual Academy Acting Coordinator Bianca Sibert (bianca.sibert@mn.catholic.edu.au) or our school administration staff if you know of an expert, including yourself, in any of the following topics who would be willing to connect with students either via email or video conference:

• Sustainable transport 
• Newcastle, Singleton, Maitland, Port Stephens Council 
• Engineering 
• Ocean conservation 
• Energy efficiency 
• Renewable energy 
• Recycling/E-waste 
• Pollution/Fossil fuels 
• Asteroids/Planets 
• Journalism/Media 
• Population growth 
• Scouts 
• Fashion 
• National parks 
• Agriculture/Farming   
• Homelessness 
• Disability support 
• Nutrition
• Bio gas 

Performances

What a bunch of talented musicians we have here at St Joseph’s.  This week we have been honoured to have our school band perform for us at the start of the week and our guitarists to bring the week, and the term, to a close. Our musicians did a fantastic job of playing in tune, playing in time and most of all entertaining us and making the rest of the school feel good. They certainly showed that with regular practice and dedication, great things are possible! Congratulations to you all. You deserve a standing ovation!

Kindergarten 2022

What a huge but wonderful Kinder 2022 enrolment process it has been for Renata Powell and me this year.  To be able to have families in for tours and to sit down and meet with them in person has been so rewarding and interesting and so much better than what we all experienced last year. I have loved getting to know all the new families and Ren has equally enjoyed connecting with the families of siblings.  We have been inundated with applications this year and unfortunately have not been able to offer places to everyone.  This group of pre-Kinders have come across very respectful and well mannered and we cannot wait for our Orientation sessions to commence in Term 4.

‘Imagine’ Early Learning Centre

On Tuesday evening I was asked to be part of the “Preparing to go to big school” transition information evening at Imagine Early Learning and Childcare Centre just across the road from The Junction Fair.  Besides me there were representatives from The Junction Primary School and Hamilton South Primary School as well as a past parent. The evening was all about sharing ideas for preparing your children to start Kinder and the parent group was very appreciative of all the words of wisdom they received. It is hoped that over the next year we will connect and engage with this centre more often, both on their site and on ours, and forge a close relationship with them.

If you are on holidays with your family over the next two weeks I wish you fun and enjoyment. If you are not, I wish you a well-deserved break from the regular routine of school preparation, packed lunches and washed uniforms.  Stay safe. I look forward to seeing you upon our return in Term 3.

Karen