Late last week my mother suddenly became very ill, which has meant that I have had to spend time away from school. First and foremost, I wish to express my appreciation to all parents & staff for your prayers and messages of concern. I also wish to thank Mrs Amanda Saunders and Mrs Mel Turner for their tremendous support in running the school during my absence. To the staff also for their assistance during this time. I’m please to report that my mother’s health has improved enough for her to be out of intensive care and we hope she will be home soon.

Being a parent/caregiver is one of the most important roles we do in our lives. With time and age, I’ve become more and more grateful for the lessons my parents have taught me. We as parents/ caregivers we are deeply connected to our children - when they are not happy we are not happy. Because of this we may ask ourselves: “Am I giving my child the best chance of success as a good person?’ “Can I keep them safe?” “Am I making good choices?”                                           

Glen Gerreyn from thehopefullinstitute.com has shared five of his key parenting/caregiver focuses to help us add to our tool kits.

1. Our main job as parents/caregivers is to highlight their strengths not to point out our children’s errors. Identify and grow their individual emotional, character and physical traits to help unlock the future for them. Expose them to lots of different life enhancing experiences to help them see what engages their heart and gives them something to aim for.
2. We often find it easier to encourage and love our children when they are little but an struggle as they get older. Praise the slightest hint of the behaviours you want to see in your child. In this social media driven world where they feel judged all the time it is good for them to have a secure base to work from. The best encouragement praises the action not the person, celebrates the small things and recognises sacrifices made.
3. Be connected to them when they are talking to you. Take time away from the TV, phone, laptop or any distraction and give them your full attention. Daily presence and connection is important for maintaining open lines of communication. Your child needs to feel that you listen to them and what they say is important.

4. Forgive yourself for your mistakes. Forgive your child for theirs. Share some of your failure stories with them and show them how you have grown through this experience. Let them know they are strong enough to overcome obstacles and that you will be there with them every step of the way. It’s not about protecting them from life’s troubles and mistakes. It is about showing them that failure is not fatal.
5. As much as possible home needs to be a safe haven and refuge. Our children ought to understand that we will give them mercy and forgiveness even when they make mistakes and do dumb things. There may be consequences for their actions. The goal is for them to be healed and restored so that together we can go out and face the world.

Lastly - you are all doing a great job. You are truly the most important person in their life and we congratulate you.

Prep 2020

It is vitally important that we have completed enrolment forms from our existing families who may have prep aged children for 2020. We need to know the exact number of children from our existing families prior to confirming prep enrolment to new families coming to St Joseph’s in 2020. To help with this we will be sending home enrolment packs to all St Joseph’s families who have Prep aged children for 2020. Please fill in and return as soon as possible. We will also be calling families to book in Prep enrolment interviews which will be held in week 1 and 2 next term.

Flu Season

The nasty flu is back again!  We can all do our part to keep ourselves healthy and protected from catching a seriously bad case of the flu this year.

* Wash your hands—after sneezing, coughing and before eating

* Eat a well-balanced diet—green vegetables, kiwi fruit, oranges and plenty of water

* Throw away your used and dirty tissues - remove your germs from where others are (wash your hands every time you touch them) 

School Officer’s Day

On Wednesday well celebrated School Officer’s Day. We had a special morning tea to recognise the significant contributions school officers and support staff make to St Joseph’s School Community. School officers undertake important work in our school and perform a variety of essential and diverse roles at SJW - from learning and library support, cleaners, front office employees and tuckshop convenor. School officers enhance student’s education and support the work of teachers in and out of the classroom. On behalf of our teachers, parents and students – Thank you for the work you do each and every day to make a difference for the students in our care at St Joseph’s Parish School. We are truly blessed to have you at our school! 

God Bless!

Megan