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Dear Parents,
I am writing this newsletter on behalf of Mrs Maslen who is currently on Long Service Leave but will return next week.
We are halfway through Term 4 and the end of the school year is fast approaching. As is every year, Term 4 is a very busy term with lots of activities happening to finish off the year. It is also a special time for our Year 6 students who are coming to the end of their primary education. Our Year 6 students are currently involved in a transition program with Gloucester High which will hopefully settle any nerves that they may have about heading to High School.
Last Thursday we had a visit to school from the Director of Catholic Schools Office, Mr Gerard Mowbray. Gerard is finishing his role as Director of our Diocesan schools at the end of the year and his visit to the school was a very significant one for our school community. For many years Gerard has understood the importance of our school being in the Gloucester community. He spoke to the staff about how the school has as much importance to the Catholic Schools Office as of a school of much greater size. Gerard is very aware of the difficulties that the Gloucester community has had with fires, drought, floods and COVID and he was the driving force in halting the tuition fees for our school. He has always held the Manning Region deeply in his heart and we personally thank him for having the faith in our small school and understanding what a wonderful learning environment it is for our students. It was a very special morning in taking Gerard for a tour of the updated playground and visiting the students in their classroom. As a school community I would like to thank Gerard and wish him all the best for his future endeavours.
On Friday it was also a pleasure to take our 5/6 students to the Clocktower for the Remembrance Day service. It was our first opportunity in a number of years for our students to represent our school at a community service like this. I was very proud of the reverence that all the students displayed during the service. A number of people commented on the amazing respect that the students showed during the service. I am also proud of our Year 2/3/4 students who lead our service back here at the school.
Parent teacher interviews have also been held this week. I would like to thank all the parents who were able to meet with their child’s teacher to hear about the amazing improvements that they have made throughout the year. Yearly reports will be given out at the end of this term.
Best Wishes
Adam McCann
Congratulations to all the students who participated in the Remembrance Day services either here at school or representing our school at the Clocktower. The students showed great reverence and respect in both services.
K/1 Swimming
The students in K/1 are thoroughly enjoying their weekly swimming lessons. It is wonderful to see their strength, skills and confidence in the water continue to develop each week. They are to be commmended for their positive attitude and their willingness to challenge themselves.
With the weather warming up, and in conjunction with our swimming lessons, we are also learning the key rules of water saftey. The students have been identifying different places in their home, on properties and in local public places, such as the park, that require them to be water wise. The students are also learning the importance of swimming between the red and yellow flags in preparation for beach season!
2/3/4 News
The students in 2/3/4 have really shown some outstanding growth in their writing this year. With expicit vocabulary lessons the students have been taught some higher level words from the texts that are read in class. The students then apply their knowledge of these words in their own writing. Here are some examples of their work:
In English we have also been studying the book "Misery Guts" by Morris Gleitzman. It is a story of a boy who convinces his parents to move from England to Australia. The students did a reaserch study of the Great Barrier Reef as well as creating a persuasive poster on why they should move to Australia. They also did some artwork on a colourful reef fish.
5/6 News
With the term flying by it's hard to believe we are on the countdown to holidays, and more sadly, close to loosing out Year 6 friends!
We have been fortuante for the last 3 weeks to have Mr Hunt, a prac student from Newcastle University in our classroom. We have had some great lessons in Maths, Writing, Geography, PD/H/PE and Creative Arts. We are going to miss him when he is finished and wish him all the best for the rest of his studies and career ahead.
The whole of 5/6 went to the War Memorial for a Remberance Day Ceremony on Friday 11th November with Mr McCann, Mr Hunt and Miss Jordan. Year 6 were able to wear thir balzers and all students represented St. Joseph's with pride and respect.
PASTORAL CARE NEWS
As we get closer to the end of the school year, I would like to thank all our students and parents/carers for a fantastic 2022. It has certainly been a busy year and the students have enjoyed so many activities as they develop their understanding of caring and sharing… and we all had lots of fun as well!
Mini Vinnies News:
The Mini Vinnies group has done an outstanding job this year. They have participated enthusiastically in all our activities and respected the joy associated with serving and caring for others. Thank You to Xanthe, Mia, Peta and Nick for your leadership of the Mini Vinnies group. Also, a big congratulations to Ewan, Cooper, Rory, Toby and Molly for all their contributions to the success of the Mini Vinnies this year.
Christmas Appeal 2022 (Nov 28th to Dec. 9th)
The Mini Vinnies will again be running the annual Christmas Appeal. We will be asking everyone to bring in as many donations of food items (non-perishable) as possible and we will then donate all the items to Gloucester Charities to assist local families in need at Christmas. Please consider adding a few extra items to your grocery trolley so that we can share some Christmas care within our community. The Christmas Appeal will start on Monday 28th November and run for 3 weeks until Friday 9th December and we look forward to receiving lots of donations.
“Christmas Sharing” Day (Monday Dec. 5th)
Please come dressed in Christmas themed outfits on Monday Dec. 5th Dec. and please bring some money as a donation to our Christmas fund for less fortunate people in our community. You can dress up in anything Christmassy… maybe as Santa, maybe as a Reindeer, maybe as an Elf… or you could maybe wear a Christmas shirt, a Christmas hat…
Canteen News:
Canteen continues to operate really well thanks to the Year 5/6 class. Please note that on the last day of term, December 16, lunch orders will be available but there will be no canteen on that day.
GJ’s Club:
This term we have done lots of different activities during our lunch breaks on Mondays and Fridays. The students enjoy the chance to try a few new things and the food-based activities are particularly popular. If you have any ideas for GJs activities for next year, please let me know and we will happily give it a go!
Quote: (you will see a new quote each week on the Blackboard in the covered play area)
“Individually, we are one drop.
Together, we are an ocean”
Week 7 | |
Monday 21st November | Shared Table - Hot Dogs |
Early Birds 9-12pm | |
Wednesday 23rd November | Sport - Swimming |
Friday 25th November | Year 5/6 Assembly 9.30am |
Parent Engagement Meeting 10-11am (Library) | |
Week 8 | |
Monday 28th November | Shared Table - Chicken Wraps |
Wednesday 30th November | Sport - Swimming |
Year 6 Transition - 1.30-3.15pm | |
Thursday 1st December | Year 6 Graduation 6pm |
Week 9 | |
Monday 5th December | Shared Table - Nachos |
Mini Vinnies Fundraiser | |
Wednesday 7th December | Sport - Swimming |
Friday 9th December | Year 6 Disco -1-3pm |
Reports Home | |
Week 10 | |
Monday 12th December | Shared Table - Hamburgers |
Wednesday 14th December | Beach Day Excursion |
Friday 16th December | Final Day Students 2022 |
Week 11 | |
Monday 19th December | Pupil Free Day |
Tuesday 31st January 2023 Year 1-6 return to school
Thursday 2nd February 2023 Kindergarten students begin