Term 1, Week 8
Principal's Piece
Dear Parents and Carers
Thank you to everyone who supported our St Patrick's Quiz Night last weekend. The event was a terrific success and there were many helping hands to ensure the smooth running of the night. Congratulations and particular acknowledgement to Shaun Joseph for your compering and to Sr Julianne and Jen Wolfe for your efforts in the scoring and judging space. Both of these tasks ensured a successful evening. Thank you to the staff for your support beforehand, during the event and afterwards with the clean-up. Thank you to the P & F team who sourced prizes and assisted with various activities.
A particular vote of thanks goes to our sponsors and supporters. We received many very generous donations that came together to make the night a huge success - to all of our sponsors, thank you for your invaluable support of our school.
To those who won prizes on the night, we hope that you enjoy them.
~ $13, 100 was raised and this will go towards providing a better education for our children ~
As we move towards the end of term, it is noticeable that the children are beginning to tire. Thank you to those families who are working to ensure that the children are rested and ready for a new day of learning.
This week I have participated in the Diocesan gathering in Broome to reflect on and respond to various decrees that were decided upon during the recently completed national Plenary Council. (A Plenary Council is a formal meeting of the bishops and other representatives of all the dioceses of the Catholic Church in Australia. Its purpose is to discern what God is asking of us in Australia at this present time.) The day was attended by the Papal Nuncio to Australia, Archbishop Charles Balvo (he is the Vatican's ambassador to Australia), Bishop Morrissey our current apostolic administrator and Debra Sayce Executive Director of CEWA. While in Broome, I have also attended Principal's meetings.
We are preparing for our Parent-Teacher Conferences in Week 9, on Thursday March 30. We will meet in the Library first at 3pm. The P&F will be providing a sausage sizzle between 3-5pm. This will be an opportunity for you to meet with your child's teacher and look at areas of growth as well as areas of need in your child's learning. A note went out via SeeSaw inviting families to book appointment times with your child's class teachers. Appointments are made on a first-come basis. Please return your note to the office as soon as possible.
Yesterday all classes had another swimming session. Preparations are underway for our swimming carnival in a few weeks' time. This will be a great opportunity to test our swimming skills and have some fun novelty events too.
There are still quite a few items in the lost property basket at the office. Take the time to check through the basket, you might just find something that's yours!
Thank you to everyone who is helping out with our Canteen requests, your help is appreciated.
Go well this week.
Miss Therese
Principal
St Patrick's Quiz Night.
Winners of the Best Dressed Table (above) and the Pot of Gold at the End of the Rainbow team (right).
Send Your Kids to School
Send your kids to school - it is the best possible way they can get a good education.
If your child misses one 1 day per week of school,
by the time they are in Yr 4 they will have missed 1 whole year of school.
Already they will by 1 year behind expected learning!
It may take some tough love, but it is worth the effort to make your child go to school every day.
Set a good routine from Kindy, don't let them miss a day.
It will give them the best start in life.
SACRAMENTS and other matters
As in previous years, all classes will learn about Sacraments and rites of initiation in their Religious Education programs. For students of the Catholic faith, there will also be an opportunity to receive these Sacraments at St Vincent Palloti Catholic Church. In this case, please contact the school office to place your child’s name on the Sacrament list for 2023. The schedule for Sacraments is below:
Baptism
Please contact Sr Julianne or Fr Vinu, at any time, regarding a date.
Eucharist
Year 5 children in Term 2. Date to be confirmed with Fr Vinu.
Confirmation
Year 6 children on 27th August, during the pastoral visit of Bishop Michael Morrissey.
Other dates/times
- The Season of Lent commenced with Ash Wednesday on 22nd February.
- Each weekend, Mass is held at St Vincent Pallotti Church on Saturdays at 5.30pm and Sundays at 8.30am. On Sundays, we also have Children’s Liturgy during mass.
- The Feast of Saint Joseph, our patron Saint, is on March 19th. Due to other commitments, we will defer our celebration to Friday 24th March. There will be a liturgy at 10.30am, followed by activities. All are welcome.
Easter Assemblies
Our students are learning about Easter in their Religious Education programs. In the last week of school, and the first week of Term 2, we will gather as a whole school each morning for about 15 minutes, to remember Jesus’ journey at Easter. Families and friends are welcome to join us.
Friday March 31: Year 1 will present Palm Sunday
Monday April 3: Year 3 Last Supper
Tuesday April 4: Year 4 Washing of Disciples' Feet
Wednesday April 5: Year 2 Garden of Gethsemane
Thursday April 6: Year 5/6 Good Friday
On the Thursday, the last day of Term 1, children are invited to wear black/dark clothes as a symbol of being in Sorry Time for Jesus.
On the first day of Term 2, April 25th, children are invited to wear very bright colourful clothes to celebrate the Resurrection. We will then continue the story of Jesus appearances each morning during that week.
Project Compassion
Thank you to the children who continue to support Project Compassion during Lent. In our last few weeks it would be wonderful if we could make a special effort to help those in need. What about collecting cans? Doing chores for donations? Drinking water rather than cordial and donating the savings?
Read more about Project Compassion projects at www.caritas.org.au/project-compassion/
Please don’t hesitate to contact Sr Julianne or Miss Marion Roberts, through the school office, at any time if have queries or questions about our Religious Education program.
Sr Julianne
Pre-Primary Teacher Miss Sarah showcased her face painting skills to raise money for Project Compassion
Year 5/6 News
To celebrate the hard work and huge effort that 5/6 students put into NAPLAN this week, we invited Year 4 students over to our class and watched a movie together. There were some surprises along the way: popcorn, chicken nuggets, apple juice and cupcakes. It was better than watching a movie in the cinema!
Miss Silvia
Year 5/6Teacher
Year 3 News
HARMONY DAY
This term in our Humanities and Social Sciences unit we have been learning about community celebrations and commemorations. On the 21st of March Year 3 celebrated Harmony Day, which is a celebration of our cultural diversity – a day of cultural respect for everyone who calls Australia home.
In Year 3, we have lots of people from different places around the world including England, Eygypt and Thailand. We celebrate our differences and all call Australia home. In Week 6 we performed an assembly item about our diverse class and school and celebrated all our cultures by innovating on Mem Fox's book “I’m Australian too”.
Below are some reasons why Year 3 think it’s important to celebrate Harmony Day.
“We should celebrate all the different cultures, and just because we look different, we all live in the same place and should live in peace.” ~ Janette
“If we don’t celebrate Harmony Day each year we could turn away the different cultures in Australia and they might leave.” ~ Isaac
"We have lots of different people and we need to include them.” ~ Edna
Miss Elle
Year 3 Teacher
Sugary Drinks
Sugary drinks make it harder to learn in the classroom, so please avoid sending them to school with your child.
Problems with sweet drinks
Sweet drinks can cause a range of problems including:
- excess weight gain
- tooth erosion and decay
- small appetite
- picky eating
- change in bowel habits.
Children do not need to include any fruit juices or other sweet drinks to have a healthy diet. Intake of sweet drinks reduces the quality of your child’s diet, has links to weight gain and poor oral health, and also exposes them to the ‘habit’ of drinking sweet drinks.
The Australian Dietary Guidelines do not recommend the consumption of sugar sweetened drinks such as soft drinks, cordials, fruit drinks, vitamin-style waters, flavoured mineral waters, energy and sports drinks.
Fruit and vegetable juices contain sugars that are found naturally in fresh fruits and vegetables, but become very concentrated when made into juice. Children do not need any fruit or vegetable juice to have a balanced and healthy diet. Encouraging children to eat the whole fruit or vegetable, and drink plain tap water or milk rather than juice is the best way to establish good eating habits early.
Encourage plain milk in preference to flavoured milks as flavoured milk is higher in added sugar.
Limit Artificially Sweetened Drinks
Some soft drinks contain artificial sweeteners instead of added sugar. Artificially sweetened drinks add very little energy (kilojoules) to the diet and therefore, do not contribute directly to weight gain. However, artificially sweetened drinks still maintain the ‘habit’ of drinking sweet drinks and do not add nutritional value to a healthy diet.
The acidity of drinks, whether sweetened with sugar or artificial sweeteners, and the frequent consumption of them, may contribute to tooth erosion and decay. For good oral health encourage children to drink plain tap water throughout the day.
Suggestions for Parents
Changing your child’s diet can be a challenge, but remember that young children can only eat or drink what is given to them. Suggestions include:
- Be a role model by not keeping sweet drinks in the house or consuming sweet drinks yourself.
- If your child is already used to sweet drinks, start to reduce their intake – for example, you could offer watered-down versions for a short time and then move on to water.
- Be patient. This may take time, particularly if your child is in the habit of wanting juice or cordial whenever they are thirsty or hungry.
- Encourage your child to eat fresh fruit and vegetables instead of drinking juice.
- Limit consumption of fruit juice to ½ cup (with no added sugar) only occasionally.
From the Victorian Government Department of Health
Olivia and Grace’s farm fresh
free range eggs
~ $8 a carton ~
Call or text
Mary (Mum) on 0428 524 611
Canteen Menu
Families at St Joseph’s to receive more affordable quality Catholic education
Families at St Joseph’s School will continue to benefit from high quality, Christ-centred and child-focused education in 2023.
Catholic Education Western Australia (CEWA) has announced that the fees parents pay at St Joseph’s will be $739 for a single child in 2023 (see attached email for information about fees for additional children). This compares to current fees of $1,137 for a single child.
The changes to school fees have come about as a result of changes to the overall funding for Catholic schools in Western Australia. Our school and CEWA are able to utilise a greater level of data to inform how we determine fees in a way that better matches our school and community’s unique context.
I hope families will welcome this news as indicative of our school’s commitment to meeting the needs of the Kununurra community we serve. The reduction in fees has been impacted by changes to the Federal Government’s funding model, which is now based on the parent community’s Direct Measure of Income (DMI). We are strongly committed to delivering the highest quality education alongside all our other current programmes offered in 2023 and beyond.
The change in fees is a strong sign of Catholic education’s continued place as the best value for money education option for young people in Western Australia.
Miss Therese
Principal
~ 2023 Parent Planner ~
School Bus Contact Details
The School Bus Contractors are Dylon and Chelsea Lodge.
Chelsea: 0450 250 691
Dylon: 0415 945 330
Please note that cash payments for Book Club are no longer accepted at St Joseph's. All orders should be placed through Book Club Loop.
See: https://www.scholastic.com.au/book-club/book-club-parents/
St Joseph’s Student Code of Conduct
The St Joseph’s Student Code of Conduct was developed by the students of St Joseph’s. Students participated in Steps 1 to 4 during Term 1 2021. Step 5 was worked through during term 2 and Step 6 completed during Term 3. The Student Code of Conduct was reviewed by students in Year 3 to 6 on two separate occasions. The Student Code of Conduct was shared with the wider school community during Term 3.
At St Joseph’s School, Kununurra we want to feel Safe.
1. In order to feel Safe we will follow school rules.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will ask an adult for help.
2. In order to feel Safe we will listen and follow instructions.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will ask an adult for help.
3. In order to feel Safe we will help and care for others.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will ask them why they are feeling that way.
4. In order to feel Safe we will keep our hands and feet to ourselves.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will ignore them or walk away.
5. In order to feel Safe we will treat others the way we would like to be treated.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will remind them of the golden rule.
At St Joseph’s School, Kununurra we want to feel Happy.
1. In order to feel Happy we will smile, laugh, sing and dance.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will ask them if they are alright.
2. In order to feel Happy we will be kind to others.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will ask an adult for help.
3. In order to feel Happy we will make friends and play with them.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will play with and include them.
4. In order to feel Happy we will come to school everyday.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will look after them.
5. In order to feel Happy we will listen to the teacher and other adults.
When someone isn’t feeling this way, or there is conflict, we will try to make them feel happy.
Our Code of Conduct prohibits bullying, harassment and other forms of peer-to-peer abuse and we require respect for the privacy and human dignity of other students.
Containers for change can assist in raising money for school resources. You can either deposit your cans in the school bins near the fence or take your own bag to the depot and write our school code on your bag.
Reminders
Term Dates 2023
Term Dates 2023
Term 1: Wednesday 1 February - Thursday 6 April
Term 2: Tuesday 26 April - Friday 30 June
Term 3: Tuesday 18 July - Friday 22 September
Term 4: Monday 9 October - Friday 8 December
Public Holidays During Term Time 2023
Monday 6 March: Labour Day
Friday 7 April - Good Friday
Tuesday 25 April: ANZAC Day
Monday 5 June: Western Australia Day
Pupil Free Days 2023
Monday, 24 April
Thursday & Friday, 1 & 2 June
Monday, 17 July
Monday, 4th September (Catholic Day)
Assemblies
Our assemblies are every second Friday afternoon at 1.10pm.
Week 2: 10 February - Year 5/6
Week 4: 24 February - Year 4
Week 6: 10 March - Year 3
Week 8: 24 March - Year 2
Week 10: To be confirmed
Kindy Days
Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday
7.50am - 2.00pm
Description Title
We are ready to collect your recyclable containers. Our drop off point is currently located in the staff carpark, just inside the fence. Money earned goes towards Mini Vinnies.
If you change your phone number, please tell us. We many need to contact you if your child is sick or doesn’t get picked up after school.
Most school age children are eligible for free dental care in Kununurra School Dental Clinic.
Primary School children become eligible to attend the School Dental Service in the year they turn 5.
High School children are eligible to attend the School Dental Service until they complete Year 11 or the day they turn 17 (whichever occurs first).
If you changed your address or phone numbers, please advise dental clinic staff. Missed appointments may result in suspension from the School Dental Service.
We are located on the hospital grounds in the Dental Health Building, 69 Coolibah Drive and are open Monday to Friday 7:30 to 3:30.
Please feel free to call us on 0419 939 179 or email: kununurramobile@dental.health.wa.gov.au to organise an appointment.
