As COVID-19 restrictions ease across the country, it is good to be able to plan for a more ‘normal’ Term 3 when we will be able to resume assemblies, and some excursions and services that have been on hold since March. Our Little Saints Playgroup will start again next term, and we are planning our Junior Joeys Program to begin mid Term 3 for students starting in Reception next year. We are very busy with enrolment interviews for 2021, so if you have not yet submitted an application for a sibling, or you know of families thinking of a Catholic education for their child, please let us know as soon as possible.

From next term, we will be able to conduct our Parent Teacher interviews face-to-face and we look forward to meeting with you to discuss your child’s progress in learning. In any event involving parents or visitors attending the school, we are still required to follow density and physical distancing guidelines outlined by SA Health. This means no more than 1 adult person per 4 square metres and maintaining a distance of 1.5 metres. All parents and volunteers coming into the school are asked to sign in at Reception and answer some questions re health and recent travel.

Our arrangements for drop off in the morning have been working very well. It has been wonderful to see the growing confidence and capabilities of students as they have said goodbye to parents at the school gates and happily settled into class. We do not want to lose these gains, so would like parents to continue with this morning routine indefinitely. Our morning bell rings at 8.40am and students should arrive promptly and be in class ready to begin the day with prayer and morning notices. This time is very important for setting students up for the day. Unless a parent is on our volunteer list and has been asked to come into class for a particular time and activity next term, we request that parents do not enter classrooms. Our new routines have enabled learning to get underway promptly and in a very calm and settled way, so we look forward to this continuing.

From next term, parents may enter school grounds at the end of the day to collect their children. Again, social distancing in the yard is required, and parents are asked not to enter classrooms, unless a specific arrangement has been made to meet with the class teacher about something after students have left for the day. We all appreciate your support of these requirements, as they are in the interests of optimal learning for students and the safety of all in our community.

We are still under some restrictions regarding excursions next term. Day activities can proceed, but overnight camps are unlikely to take place in Term 3 at this stage due to occupancy density requirements and ratios to access bathrooms and so forth. Should this change, I will keep you informed. Sporting activities such as inter-school carnivals can resume, so we look forward to students participating once again.

I thank everyone in our community for all you have done during this difficult time. Together we have navigated uncertain and unprecedented times as a strong, vibrant and supportive community.

Dr Sandra Hewson - Principal

Coming Events Thursday 2nd July

• Year 12 Retreat Evening 5pm-11.30pm

Friday 3rd July

• Year 12 Retreat continues 10am-2.15pm

• Term 2 concludes at 2.20pm (Retreat to be held at SJS)

Monday 20th July

• Term 3 resumes

Please read the uniform reminder

inside this newsletter

Thursday, 18th June, 2020 - Term 2 Week 8

Covid-19 Restrictions Ease

Prayer

Almighty and merciful God, whose Son became a

refugee and had no place to call his own;

Look with mercy on those today who are fleeing from

danger, those who are homeless and hungry.

Inspire generosity and compassion in all our hearts.

Amen

Refugee Week raises awareness of the issues affecting refugees. It aims to highlight aspects of the refugee experience and help the broader community to understand what it is like to be a refugee. The theme 'Year of Welcome' promotes harmony and togetherness and is a reminder that, regardless of our differences, we all share a common humanity. Pope Francis states, “We ourselves need to see, and then enable others to see, that migrants and refugees do not only represent a problem to be solved, but are brothers and sisters to be welcomed, respected and loved.”

Students from Reception through to Year 12 reflected each morning in prayer about the struggles of refugees and learnt about promoting togetherness within our community by welcoming all. Yesterday I ventured down into Mrs Wilson’s Year 1 class and taught a Religion lesson with the focus on Refugee week. We read a book called ‘I’m Australian Too’ written by Mem Fox and watched a short film about a little refugee boy called Ali and his long journey to Australia. As a class we learnt about Jesus and the Holy Family being refugees and spoke about how we are called to welcome everyone into God’s family.

'I was a stranger and you welcomed me' Matthew 25:35

We are currently meeting with families for next year’s new enrolments. If you have another family member due to commence with us next year, please ensure you have an enrolment application submitted.

If you are aware of any families who are looking at schooling options for their children, please ask them to contact Cate Wuttke on 8683 2400 at school.

Faith Formation - Refugee Week

We welcome the following new students to our St Joseph’s School community: Conner Gericke (Year 4) Kaleb Gericke (Year 2) Elaina Gericke (Reception).

Please make them feel welcome.

We farewell Price Marshall (Year 11) who has gained employment at ‘Coffin Bay Oyster Farm’. We wish Price all the best as he heads into the work force.

School Board: Community Member Vacancy

Craig Hore has been a parent representative on the School Board for three years, and more recently has served as Chair of the Board and a member of the Finance Committee. Craig has unfortunately decided to resign from the Board, and we thank him for his contribution to the governance of the school. His support and service has been very much appreciated. Consequently, we are seeking nominations from parents/caregivers for a vacancy on the School Board. If you feel that you have interest, skills and the time to commit to three Board meetings per term, please contact Principal, Dr Sandra Hewson.

The School Board comprises: Fr Ben Mkuchu (President), Sr Catherine Clarke rsj (representative of the Sisters of St Joseph), the School Principal, Business Manager, a staff representative, and parents: Nicol Wright, Caitlin Noonan and Kristi Shepperd.

We look forward to hearing from you.

This term and even this year has been a little different from normal and posed many challenges for us as a school, our families and students. As we have resumed normal school attendance, we would like to remind families of the importance of having your child arrive at school by the first bell at 8:40am. We understand the mornings can be very hectic and developing morning routines is important.

From 8:40-9:00am each day students participate in prayer. The morning absentees are marked and important messages and notices are given out to the students in Reception through to Year 12. In Reception to Year 6, students begin their sustained and uninterrupted Literacy Block each morning at 9:00am until 10:30am.

During this block of time students will be taught explicit knowledge, skills and concepts around the foundational skills of Reading, Writing, Spelling and Grammar.

We thank you for your support with this request.

2021 Enrolments

Welcome

Importance of Daily Routines and Being On

Time to School Each Day

Farewell

School Board Vacancy

We really appreciate the support of all parents who encourage their children to meet our expectations around school uniform and abide by related policies about hair, jewellery, make up etc.

Teachers have noted that some students are choosing to disregard reminders and will now be following up with further consequences.

A School Uniform is to: ▪ Develop a sense of unity and school spirit ▪ Develop self esteem ▪ Be comfortable ▪ Be functional for school activities (safe and durable) ▪ Be attractive ▪ Be affordable

Clarification ▪ It is the responsibility of parents to ensure their child has the correct uniform to wear and to support the student in wearing it. ▪ It is the responsibility of the students to wear the uniform and to wear it appropriately at school, between home and school and on other occasions as required.

Correct uniform must always be worn unless instructed otherwise by the Principal or staff. A written explanation is required from parents if a student is not wearing the correct uniform for any reason and should indicate when full uniform will again be worn.

Full details of the complete uniform requirements are available from the school and it is the responsibility of parents and students to refer to this prior to any purchase.

View our Uniform Policy and Uniform Requirements online

Please refer to the Uniform Policy, which can be found on the school website, (https://www.sjspl.catholic.edu.au/pdf/policy/Policy%20-%20Uniform.pdf) or check with your child’s teacher or Pastoral Care Leaders with any queries.

Uniform Shop Times The uniform shop has returned to normal opening hours:

Monday 2.00pm -5.00pm Tuesday 8.00am -11.00am

Wednesday 2.00pm -5.00pm

During the upcoming school holidays the Uniform Shop will be open Wednesday, July 15th from 2.00pm - 5.00pm for your convenience.

Please note: Due to current circumstances the Uniform Shop would prefer cashless sales.

Key Capabilities SJS Uniform - Wear it Proudly!

In recent weeks, there has been an even more concentrated focus on students being literate, numerate and effective communicators as teachers work on reviewing their practice in response to data from previous student testing, gathering and analysing current data and finalising assessment and reporting in readiness for Semester 1 reports.

Being literate, numerate and effective communicators is integral across all learning areas and vital for lifelong learning. In the Key Learning Areas of English and Mathematics, specific skills are taught including making meaning in texts and using literacy in different ways, as well as making connections with mathematical knowledge, solving problems and reasoning using mathematical choices.

Students practise and refine their skills on a daily basis, supported by explicit teaching and through the use of learnt strategies, ‘rules’ and open investigations. Across the school, there is an emphasis on accuracy and excellence, and links to real life scenarios for these skills.

As with all learning, relevance and fun are necessary for engagement and developing resilience when grasping new concepts.

Reflecting on and sharing their work is also an important part of literacy blocks and mathematics lessons, contributing to the development of effective communicators.

Mrs Karen Browne - Deputy Principal

This week Boarding House Captain, Grace Johnson, presented the money raised from our recent 'Red Day' to Captain Darryn Lloyd of the Port Lincoln Salvation Army Corps, who gratefully received the donation and left a message for all of the students. He said, ‘I’d like to thank the St Joseph’s School community for giving a voice to the voiceless and this donation will make a real difference to the lives of people in the wider Port Lincoln community’.

Our students all pitched in to help the Boarders raise funds for the Salvation Army by wearing a touch of red and donating a gold coin or two.

A total of $874 was raised. What a fabulous effort!

Red Shield Appeal ‘Red Day’

Uniform Shop - Opening Hours

Monday and Wednesday

3.00pm - 5.00pm

Last Thursday, Mrs Goldfinch’s Year 9 Rite Journey girls hosted a Bake Sale where all profits went towards the ‘Malala Fund’. Bella, one of the students in Mrs Goldfinch’s class, studied Malala as part of her research task which was learning about the life journey of someone inspirational to them. She was so inspired by the work of Malala Yousafzai that she also wanted to help contribute towards the fund. Bella said, ‘Quite often, school is something that a lot of us take for granted, however, with over 130 million girls out of school in the world today, I believe it is important that we use our advantage of living in a great country to help the less fortunate, in this case, help give other girls the opportunity for the future they desire by being able to access free, safe and quality education.’

Bella approached her Rite Journey teacher and sought approval to host a bake sale and, together with the help of her classmates, baked and decorated cakes and biscuits and raised a total of $408.50.

Have you heard Malala’s story? When Malala Yousafzai was a child, extremists banned many things like owning a television and playing music and enforced harsh punishments for those who defied their orders. They declared that girls could no longer go to school. At 15 years old, Malala spoke out publicly against the Taliban about her belief that all girls have the right to education. This made her a big target to the Taliban. In October 2012, on her way home from school, a masked gunman boarded her school bus and shot at her, leaving her severely injured. Miraculously, she recovered after 10 days of being unconscious in a hospital in England. After many months of surgeries and rehabilitation, Malala used this incident to inspire others around the world. She founded the Malala Fund; a charity network giving girls free education they could not access before. Malala’s charity spreads over multiple countries around the world.

‘Education Perfect’ is an online learning platform catering to various subject areas and used by over 1 million students from 2000+ schools worldwide. Education Perfect (Japanese) was formally implemented into the Middle School at the beginning of Term 2. The platform includes speaking and writing practice, listening and reading comprehension, grammar lessons and vocabulary.

As part of their regular online learning activities, St Joseph’s School students can compete against students from Australia and around the world via timed competitions for a particular topic or theme. Recently Year 8 student, Torin Trenberth, completed one of these mini Japanese competitions, achieving a ‘global’ record. This feat was accomplished against some stiff competition from some prestigious schools from the Eastern states.

Ebony Pedler from Year 7 also recorded a ‘Top Ten’ position, posting the 8th fastest time against other schools from around the world.

Every year, Education Perfect runs a ‘World Series Championship’ for languages for one week. Our school took part in the Japanese section of the championship.

St Joseph’s School’s final placing for Japanese was 49th out of 1,423 schools worldwide. We also placed 45th against 1,040 Australian schools.

22 St Joseph’s School students received either a credit, bronze or silver award for their hard work and effort for the week.

Congratulations to Year 7 student Madilyn Fox who gained the top score for St Joseph’s School and received a Silver Award. Madilyn answered 4,798 questions during the challenge earning her 2,000 points, placing her in the top 5% of 181,000 competitors from around the world.

Canteen

Specials for the next two weeks are

Week 9 Spring Veg Quiche Minestrone Soup

Week 10 Lamb Rogan Josh with Rice

Chicken and Corn Soup

Large serves $6.00 Small serves $4.00 Soup $4.00

Malala Fundraiser Japanese Awards

Series of Resilience Skills Modules

1 Hour Zoom Webinar Tuesday the 30th of June, 6.30pm

Designed for Parents and Caregivers

Facilitators The session will be delivered by two LBI Foundation presenters with significant experience in providing preventative and targeted support (clinical and non-clinical) to children and young people (and their families and schools) within educational contexts.

Dr Ivan Raymond (Clinical Psychologist, PhD)

Ms Kylie Agnew (Registered Psychologist/Teacher)

Registration and Resilience Skills Modules in Term 3.

The Zoom Webinar is being delivered in partnership between the Life Buoyancy Institute Foundation and Federation of Catholic School Parent Communities SA. Registration and further information click here: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/sa-

catholic-caregiver-prevention-and-response-to-child-anxietydepression-tickets-107059078586

In Term 3, parents, teachers and secondary school students can learn about 4 key resilience skills (click links):

Mindfulness and Navigating Difficult Feelings (5/8) Growth Mindset (19/8) Actioning Values (2/9) Gratitude and Helpful Thinking (16/9)

Content This practical and engaging webinar will focus on:

• How does anxiety and depression manifest and express itself in children and

young people (from 5 years to 18 years).

• What are the current and emergent (post COVID) at-risk groups, within a

context of greater world uncertainty.

• What are the key parent and caregiver actions and strategies to prevent

anxiety/depression and promote child and youth wellbeing and resilience.

• Two key areas of focus to promote wellbeing and resilience:(`1) responding to

child and youth growth and developmental needs and (2) building child and

youth capacity through side-by-side support.

• How parents and caregivers can work side-by-side with schools and children/

youth in both preventative and secondary responses to anxiety/depression.