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Dear Parents & Carers
This Sunday, May 26th is National Sorry Day and the beginning of Reconciliation Week. It is a time to acknowledge and recognise members of the Stolen Generations. It is day for all people over Australia to say sorry for the actions that have robbed the First Australians of their life, law and language.
Together we pray …
God, Mother of Mercy,
Stir within us compassion and a deep desire for reconciliation.
On this National Sorry Day,
may this compassion and reconciliation be strong and true
so that justice flows, action flourishes,
a difference is made and peace is accomplished.
Amen
We also ask that you keep Mrs Nicola Matheson (Year 4 Blue teacher) and her family in your prayers as her father passed away from illness in this past week.
Staffing Update
I am very happy to inform you that Miss Stephanie Colvin has been appointed to the Acting Religious Education Coordinator position while Mrs Renata Powell is in the Acting Assistant Principal Position. Stephanie has commenced in this position and is very busily preparing for our first RE Curriculum Focus day which occurs next week with CSO staff. Our congratulations go to Stephanie and we know she will be a great addition to our school leadership team.
Mrs Donna McMillan is teaching 4Blue on a Monday for the remainder of the year and Mrs Belinda Person has stepped into the Gifted Education Mentor (GEM) roll – both positions that Ms Di Murphy previously held.
In Week 7 Miss Holly Gralton will join us to teach Year 6 Gold for the remainder of the year. We thank all these people for applying for, and accepting, these positions. We wish them well and are very pleased with the stability that their appointments bring to our school and to the children.
NAPLAN
We have just about reached the end of NAPLAN for 2019. We are very happy to say that our students were only very minimally affected on the first day by the reported problems with the online testing and of these several have opted to resit the Writing test next week, after consultation with their parents.
Thanks go to all the children for the calm manner in which they approached their tests and the effort they put into them. Thanks also to Miss Laura Slattery for the enormous work that went on behind the scenes to ensure that NAPLAN flowed smoothly and effortlessly for the students and teachers.
Parent Teacher Interviews
Reports will be sent home this term via Compass at the end of Week 9 and you are invited to meet with your children’s teachers to discuss these reports and future directions for Semester 2. Shortly you will be able to go online via Compass and book your interview times. Parent Teacher interviews will take place throughout Week 10, before and after school and on Wednesday evening, July 3rd, until 7:30pm.
Uniform Update
The Girls Winter Tunics in all sizes have arrived and are in stock at the Newcastle store along with the Tab Ties. Additonal Peter Pan Collar Blouses are on order.
The Long Sleeve boys shirts with embroidery have also arrived into the store.
All students need to be in full Winter Uniform by the first week of June.
Term Planner
We have attached this term’s calendar of events with the newsletter. Please understand that the calendar dates and events are subject to change and that you need to regularly check Compass for the most up to date information.
Volunteers
Thank you to all those who volunteer in so many ways here at St Joseph’s. Your skills and time are invaluable to us. As you are aware it is a requirement that anyone who wishes to volunteer throughout the year (reading in the classroom, canteen, excursions, carnivals etc) is required to have a Working With Children Check number which can be obtained from Office of The Children's Guardian.
In addition to this it is a requirement that all volunteers undergo a Volunteer Induction session as well as be issued with the updated diocesan Volunteers Handbook
We will be running two Volunteers Induction sessions over the next few weeks so if you think you may volunteer for something this year please come along to one of these.
Monday 3 June 6.20pm - 6.50pm
Wednesday 12 June 9.00am - 9.40am
Karen McGinlay
Principal
Important Dates
29 - 31 May | Canberra Excursion - Year 6 |
30 May | Choir Excursion - Apple Store |
30 May | Civic Theatre Excursion - Year 4 |
30 May | Grade Sharing Assembly - Year 3 |
31 May | Confirmation Retreat |
4 June | Sacramental Confirmation Night 1 |
5 June | Athletics Carnival |
5 June | Sacramental Confirmation Night 2 |
6 June | Diosounds - Years 5 & 6 |
7 June | Year 3 & 4 Participating in Mass |
Congratulations to this fortnight's Principal Awards recipients Emily Simpson, George Morgan, Bharat Repalle, Georgie Ward, Hamish Mitchell, Isabeela De Siqueira Mattes, Molly Boyle, Lucas Anthony, Madeleine Gill, Rory McMahon, Clancy Scanlon, Rosa Leonard, Ivy Smith, Oliver Sciulli and Abbie Hartnett
Curriculum Corner - Renata Powell
St Joseph’s is committed to improving writing outcomes across the school. Staff identified that we wanted to develop a consistent approach and process of teaching writing throughout the school. On Friday, 24th May all teaching staff are attending a Professional Development day learning how to implement Seven Steps to Writing Success.
The Seven Steps to Writing Success program has been very successful in developing students’ writing skills as it focuses on the craft of writing by breaking these skills into manageable chunks.
What is the Seven Steps Program?
The Seven Steps to Writing Success program was created by Australian author and teacher, Jen McVeity in 2004. Her Seven Steps to Writing Success program has proved to rapidly improve students’ writing skills and get students engaged in writing. The program is being successfully used in hundreds of schools across Australia.
Pedagogy behind the Seven Steps to Writing Success Framework
The Seven Steps to Writing Success program is underpinned by the principle of chunking writing into discrete, teachable elements of which students attain mastery through repetition. Emphasis is given to the importance of talking, brainstorming and planning before writing and the program encourages group and paired activities. (Jen McVeity, 2015).
The program is based on the following pedagogical principles:
- Chunk learning (… “for any learning activity to be effective it has to be taught step by step”, John Fleming)
- Repetition and practice reinforces learning (… “we have to process new material in order to transfer it from our working memory to our long-term memory”)
- Brainstorm first – write second (…the prewriting stage involves brainstorming, planning and organising)
- Verbal is Vital (…verbal language is critical for the development of literacy skills; it develops engaged, responsive and reciprocal learning relationships with children; all the research shows students learn better when they are active participants, not just passively listening)
- Consistency creates change (… change can’t happen in a day, but by being consistent, change can happen in a term, Jen McVeity)
The Seven Steps is a unique system that chunks writing into seven main techniques.
The Seven Steps are:
- Plan for Success
- Sizzling Starts
- Tightening Tension
- Dynamic Dialogue
- Show, Don’t Tell
- Ban the Boring
- Exciting Endings
For more information please visit
We hope in the near future you will hear your children coming home talking about all the great writing they are doing in class.
NAPLAN
During Weeks 3 and 4 all students in Year 3 and Year 5 completed NAPLAN testing. All students appeared very settled especially considering it was the first time these tests were administered online. A very big thank you to Miss Laura Slattery who coordinated NAPLAN Online testing here at St Joseph’s. Laura’s knowledge, organisation and ability to communicate the process to both staff and teachers has been invaluable. Thank you Laura!
It is important to remember that these tests only give us a snapshot of where the students are on their learning journey. Teachers analyse the results to assist students to continue to grow in their skills and understanding of the curriculum. This is only one tool teachers use to measure progress. Students are also regularly assessed within the classroom activities. The data collected regularly by staff, enables the teachers to help develop your child and target their individual needs, through appropriate planning and curriculum delivery, to improve the learning outcomes for each child.
If you have any concerns about your child’s progress, appointments to discuss the issue with your child’s teacher can be made through the school office. Official parent / teacher interviews will be conducted later this term. This is an opportunity which is offered by the school for you to discuss your child’s learning. Details on how to register for this will be given in the school newsletter closer to Week 10, the interview week.
Celebrating our Faith - Stephanie Colvin
Prayer
Loving God, you gift us with mothers who give us life and love. They show us a glimpse of what you are like and the unconditional, tender love you have for us. As we honour all Mothers, we pray that you bless and keep these precious women close to your mothering heart.
Month of May - Mary
The month of May has been dedicated by the Church as a time of devotion to Mary, who is honoured as the first disciple, Mother of God and Mother of the Church. Mary is recognized as the one who listened and responded to the call of God.
Christians see Mary as a human being, who willingly allowed grace to work in her. St. Luke tells us that from the moment that Mary was told that she was chosen to be the Mother of God, she expressed her natural feeling: “Mary was deeply troubled by the angel’s message…” and “Mary pondered those things in her heart”. All mothers ponder things about their children.
Mary, like us, had to strive to understand the mystery of the revelation made to her with regard to her Son, Jesus. She had to make her personal journey of faith as we now make ours. St. Bernard called her “Stella Maris” the “Star of the Sea” our guide and our assurance, as we journey on the stormy tossed waves of our lives.
Mary, we ask you to obtain for us the strength to lead a life offered to God in thanksgiving and praise. Be present with us at all times. Guide us safely into the presence of your Son, Jesus, so that we may, with you and all the Saints, share His life, happiness and love. Amen.
Sacrament of Confirmation
Children in the Parish Sacramental Program are participating in a Confirmation Retreat Day at Sacred Heart Cathedral, Hamilton on Friday 31st May. Information for parents is available on the Parish Moodle site. This is a day where the whole focus is on the children’s spiritual formation in preparation for receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. The retreat will be an opportunity for prayer, reflection, learning and fun! If you have any questions please contact Mrs Powell at school or Dr Anne Millard at the Parish Office.
Children from our St Joseph’s community and the wider St Benedict’s Newcastle Parish will be confirmed by Bishop Bill at the Sacred Heart Cathedral at 7pm on Tuesday 4th June and Wednesday 5th June. Thankyou to the parents, teachers and the Sacramental team, particularly Dr Anne Millard, for all their hard work and effort in preparing the children for this Sacrament.
‘Come Holy Spirit fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love.’
Term 2 Class Mass Dates
Each class joins with the parish community once a term in the celebration of Mass. These Masses are held of a Friday and begin at 10:15am in our St Joseph’s Church. Below is a list of dates when each class is attending in Term 2. Parents and grandparents are invited to join their children in prayer at this time.
Day/Date | Class |
Friday 7th June | Year 3 & Year 4 attending Mass |
Friday 14th June | Year 2 attending Mass |
Friday 21st June | Year 1 attending Mass |
Friday 28th June | Kindergarten attending Mass |
Cursillo
Cursillo is a renewal movement within the Catholic Church. The Cursillo movement operates in three stages, Precursillo, the Cursillo Weekend and Postcursillo. The Weekend is a 3 day course on the Catholic concept of Christian living today. It is an experience in group living, geared to discussing questions based on a series of talks which are given during the weekend.
* What are your ideals?
* What do you want to be?
* How do you live the Christian way of life?
* How do you set your priorities right - Your family? Your work?
* How are you bringing Christ to the world?
The aim of the weekend is to give the opportunity to men and women, both lay and religious, to take time off for reflection on what is fundamental in Christian living. The CURSILLO opens with a short Retreat which is a preparation for the three days of talks and discussions about living the life of grace and spreading it in one's own particular environment.
Here in the Maitland-Newcastle Diocese a Cursillo Weekend is taking place over the long weekend in June (7-10th June) at Pt Wolstoncroft Sport & Recreation Centre. If you are interested and would like further information, please see Mrs Powell at school.
Palms Morning Tea
All families are invited to the Palms Australia fundraising morning tea to be held after Mass at St Joseph’s on Sunday 30th June. Many Year 4 students from St Joseph’s and Holy Family will be attending mass at St Joseph’s Church for their First Holy Communion. The morning tea in the parish center will be an opportunity for the parish to welcome the families after Mass, play a few games and chat together, and raise money for Palms Australia. Families are welcome to bring a plate to share.
Thank you to Cheree Flanagan for the organisation with this fundraiser.
Palms Australia is an international aid and development agency that sends skilled volunteers to share their skills with communities around the world. Palms Australia has placed volunteers with communities and organisations in Africa, Asia, the Pacific, South America and in Indigenous communities in Australia. Palms Australia supports community development by sending volunteers at the request of the receiving communities, to work alongside local people and receive an equivalent living wage.
Coming Up
St Joseph’s will be celebrating the Feast of Pentecost with a liturgy at morning assembly on Tuesday, 11th June. Parents and grandparents are warmly invited to join us for the special occasion.
________________________________________________________
Newcastle Inner City Catholic Community - Weekend Mass times
Sacred Heart Cathedral – Vigil Saturday 5:30pm, Sunday 9:30am and 5:00pm
St Joseph’s, The Junction – Sunday 9:00am
Immaculate Heart of Mary, Tighes Hill – Sunday 8:00am
St Mary’s, Newcastle – Sunday 7:30am
_________________________________________________________
Sporting Highlights - Nicole Charnock
Athletics Carnival
Our 2019 Athletics Carnival will be held on Wednesday 5th June at the Newcastle Fearnley Dawes Athletics Track.
If you have yet to do so, please take the time to carefully read the following information that has been provided via Compass:
- 2019 Athletics Carnival Information for Parents
- 2019 Event Timetable
- 800m & 200m Nomination Form
- Kindergarten & Year 1 Event Information
- Parent Sign Out Procedures
NB: The 800m & 200m Nomination Form must be completed and returned no later than Monday 27th May 2019. Any forms received after this date will not be eligible for entry.
A copy of the day’s events is provided below:
2019 Athletics Carnival Timetable
9:00am - Leave School
9:45am - Carnival commences with Welcome and then straight to 200m races.
Straight after the 200m races have finished children will begin the rotational activities.
The following start times are approximations. If we can we will begin the events earlier.
10:30am - Rotational activities commence (see table below)
Time |
Track - 800M |
Shot Put |
Long Jump |
Ball Games/Rest |
|
10:30am |
8, 9 & 10 Years |
11 |
12 |
|
|
11am |
11 |
12 |
8 |
9 (games) |
10 (games) |
11:30am |
12 |
11 (games) |
9 |
10 (rest) |
8 (games) |
11.30am - 12.00pm Kinder and Year 1 to run 100M |
12.00pm - 12.30pm Kinder ball games with Year 6 - Year 1 rest and eat |
12.30pm - 1.00pm Year 1 ball games - Kinder rest and eat |
Track - 100M |
|||||
12.00pm |
8 |
10 |
11 |
9 (rest) |
12 (games) |
12:15pm |
9 |
10 |
11 |
8 (rest) |
12 (games) |
12:30pm |
10 |
8 |
11 (rest) |
9 (rest) |
12 (rest) |
12:45pm |
11 |
8 |
9 (rest) |
10 (rest) |
12 (rest) |
1pm |
12 |
9 |
10 |
8 (rest) |
11 (rest) |
1:15pm |
12 (rest) |
9 |
10 |
8 (rest) |
11 (rest) |
1.30pm - At the conclusion of the last event, children will move back into the stands ready for the relays and the conclusion of the carnival |
2.15pm - Children begin to walk back to school for normal dismissal time |
Please note these track times are approximations. We may run slightly ahead or behind time on the day.
In the event of wet weather the Carnival will be rescheduled at a date to be advised
Athletics Carnival Volunteers
We will require parent volunteers to assist at our school athletics carnival on Wednesday 5th June 2019. We will need assistance with both shot put and long jump, however all volunteers will need to have completed a Working with Children Check prior to the day.
If you are able to assist in any capacity, can you please complete the form provided on Compass and return it to the school by Monday 27th May 2019.
Futsal
This Thursday 23rd May, Miss Carney is taking two senior and two junior teams made up of boys from Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 to represent St Joseph’s in the Newcastle Futsal Tournament. The tournament will be held at Genesis Newcastle and will see the St Joseph’s teams compete against other schools from all across the Newcastle Region. We wish them every success and look forward to hearing about their experiences in our next newsletter.
Paul Kelly Cup
Congratulations to the following students who competed in the Paul Kelly Cup on Friday 10th May.
Charles Boswell, Patrick Burgess, Flynn Chaston, Oli Cockle, Timothy Collins, Julian Dunn, Harry Green, Jett McGregor, Darcy Mitchell, Cailen Moran, Jordan Reville, Jonah Rheinberger, Thomas Woods, Will Boyle, Arun Griffiths, Tom Scanlon, Eli Wasley, Molly Boyle, Daisy Breasley, Billie Davies, Ayla Flynn, Hannah Horn, Felicity Hoskins, Koko Minto, Harriet Saunders, Genevieve Smith, Kaylah Broadhead, Hannah Francis, Ivy Kiem, Elki Long, Chloe Vickery and Charisse Watters-Cowan.
Both the boy's and girl's teams started the day with a game against Dudley and realised very quickly the competition was going to be tough. Both games were very hard fought affairs and while the scores were tight Dudley managed to just come out on top each time. In the boy's game the score was 18-11 and the girl's 46-41
Next round saw our students compete against Wallsend South. In the boy's game all of our players showed great courage and determination when they were matched up against some much larger opponents in the middle of the field. Even though our boys were not able to score a victory the lead changed hands a few times and in the end there was less than a goal separating the two sides. The girls had a strong game against Wallsend South, starting tackling and running the ball hard and ended up with a comfortable victory of more than 40 points.
In the final round of the day the boys came home strongly with a victory over Telarah by about 40 points. The girls also finished off their day with a strong win of around 20 points.
Well done to all the students who took part. Everyone showed courage and determination and were always respectful towards their opponents and each other. Thank you to the many parents who provided transport or took on the role of a coach, manager, runner or cheering spectator; you’re presence on the day was greatly appreciated by the children and myself.
Peter Watson
Important Representative Athletics Information
The following information is for any talented Athletics participants here at St Joseph’s who would usually qualify for Polding Athletics and beyond. Please take the time to read this information carefully:
For your understanding- We will still have Diocesan Athletics 7th August, Polding Athletics 18th October and NSWPSSA State Athletics Championships on the 6th & 7th November.
Students qualify for this pathway via our normal process. However they will NOT progress to School Sport Australia from this.
As this year’s School Sport Australia Athletics Championships are being held in Darwin and with the heat at the end of the year, the SSA event is moved earlier than our NSWPSSA.
Therefore to qualify for SSA athletes must be selected in a PSSA Athletics Representative Team on Thursday 8th August at Homebush. This is independent of our school pathway and our NSWPSSA event on 6th/7th November. Students will need to apply online. It has nothing to do with schools.
Please see attached the NSWPSSA Athletics Selection Trial Information to be held on Thursday 8 August, Sydney Olympic Park Athletics Centre, Homebush.
Below is the link to the NSWPSSA website which has the forms required to submit applications
Upcoming dates:
NSW PSSA Boys Football: Tuesday 28th May- Thursday 30th May
Polding Touch Trials: Friday 31st May
Diocesan Rugby Trials: Wednesday 5th June
School Athletics Carnival: Wednesday 5th June
NSWCPS/Polding X Country: Friday 14th June
Central Region Athletics Carnival: Tuesday 2nd July
Simultaneous Story Time was lots of fun on Wednesday, 22nd May.
Premier’s Reading Challenge. Congratulations to all these students who have recently completed the challenge. Ava Kent, Audrey Owens, Skylar he, Eleanor McConkey, Isaac Moran, Daisy Owens, Patrick Aguado, Eden Buxton, Raphyte Molinia, Lucinda Beath and Rhys Kelly. Well done everyone.
All students at St Joseph’s are expected to complete the PRC and now you can combine it with the school Read-A-Thon!
Happy Reading