We respectfully acknowledge the past and present traditional owners of this land on which we are meeting – the Algnith people. We also acknowledge the contributions of First Nations peoples to the education of all children and people in our country Australia, in which we all live and share together.

Hello Families and friends 

I would like to take a moment to express my gratitude to all families who continue to partner with us in nurturing the growth and development of your children.  Your support and involvement make a significant difference in their lives.  This has been on great display this week with all the parents making the time to meet with teachers to discuss your children. 

As we navigate the final weeks of the term, I would like to remind families about the importance of maintaining attendance.  This ensures uninterrupted learning opportunities and fosters a sense of routine and engagement. Please make the effort to avoid late arrivals and early pick-ups, as this also has an impact on their learning. 

In addition to curriculum expectations, we also want to foster a positive and inclusive school community.  We believe that a safe and supportive environment for all students enhances personal growth. I encourage you to continue supporting our school values of Humility, Justice and Compassion in your children.  Together we will continue fostering a positive school culture where every student feels valued and supported. 

I want to express my appreciation for the trust and confidence you place in all of us here at St Joseph’s. 

Don't be a stranger, if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.  See you each morning at the gate and each afternoon at Stop, Drop and Go. 

Wishing you all a fantastic weekend and week ahead. 

God Bless 

A Prayer for our Earth - Laudato Si’ (246)  

All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe  

and in the smallest of your creatures.  

You embrace with your tenderness all that exists.  

Pour out upon us the power of your love,  

that we may protect life and beauty.  

Fill us with peace,  

that we may live as brothers and sisters, harming no one.  

O God of the poor, 

help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth, 

so precious in your eyes.  

Bring healing to our lives,  

that we may protect the world and not prey on it,  

that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.  

Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain  

at the expense of the poor and the earth.  

Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,  

to be filled with awe and contemplation,  

to recognize that we are profoundly united 

with every creature as we journey towards  

your infinite light.  

We thank you for being with us each day.  

Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle for justice, love and peace.  

Season of Creation 

From September 1 to October 4, Christians around the world are praying and caring for creation. The beginning and the end date of Season of Creation are linked with the concern for creation in the Eastern and the Western traditions of Christianity, respectively. The theme of this year’s Season of Creation draws inspiration from the words of the prophet, Amos, “But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” (Amos 5: 24). 

Around 2.2 billion Christians worldwide are urged to join the “river of justice and peace” and work collaboratively as stewards of God’s creation. Here are some links to some of the resources available to promote/ celebrate the Season of Creation in your schools and homes: 

- Learn more about Season of Creation 2023  

- Message of His Holiness Pope Francis for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation  

- Laudato Si' Movement Resources  

 Adapted from the Identity and Outreach Bulletin  

New Playground 

The new playground is ready to open and to be used. The students have been very patient and will be able to use it as of Monday. There have been many students who have been part of the design process including past students and we would like everyone to be able to celebrate with us. Please join us from 3:00-3:30pm on Wednesday 13th September to come and test out the new playground and enjoy it with your family. Please ensure you bring a hat.  

Welcome to Week 9!  

It’s been another busy week of learning and we’ve been busy little bees completing lots of assessments to show our learning from over the term. You would be so proud of how far we’ve come, and we are looking forward to a well-deserved rest at the end of next week.  

We had an absolute blast at our Father’s Day morning completing our skittles experiments. We loved creating the patterns around the outside of the plate and waiting patiently for the colours to run when the warm water was added. It was such a fun experiment that we loved sharing with our dads, however, as much as we absolutely loved making the patterns, we think the favourite part was having a sneaky taste of the skittles during the experiment. We also loved creating our Father’s Day gifts consisting of a portrait, card and photo frame and we hope you loved them too.    

Once again, we’d like to thank you for another fantastic term working in partnership for your child’s education. It is an absolute pleasure getting to be part of their schooling journey and we are so proud watching how far they’ve come this year.  

We hope you all have a safe and happy end of term break and look forward to seeing you all again for Term 4. 

Many thanks as always,  

Mrs Backhouse and Miss Rachael.

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Welcome to Week 9. The students have been working very hard during the past 2 weeks and are certainly looking forward to the holidays in a few weeks' time. We have had an amazing fortnight celebrating Book Week, Father’s Day Liturgy and Indigenous Literacy Day. 

We look forward to welcoming back Mrs Melanie Turner in Week 10.  

English 

This week the student have been busy in writing composing informative texts. They have been learning about spiders and have written their own mini book about spiders appearance, diet and habitat. The students had the opportunity to share their learning with different classes and the feedback was wonderful, that the children’s writing was descriptive and engaging.   

Maths 

In Maths this week Year One have been looking at position, the students have been using language of direction to instruct others on where an item is located and describe the pathway from one location to another. The students have been revising their knowledge of left and right, while using directional language of forwards, backwards, up, down to give directions. 

Health 

This week the students participated in the Daniel Morcombe Program Lesson 4 - Body Ownership in the Prep – Year 2 Curriculum. In the lesson they identified how our bodies chang as we grow and how people demonstrate protective behaviours that help keep them safe and healthy . We also discussed how we communicate and interact with others for our health and wellbeing and described emotional responses people may experience in different situations. 

Last week we discussed the properties of materials and why we use them for making different things. The students then conducted an experiment to see how certain materials change when submerged in water. We looked at the investigation sheet and completed the first part as a class reviewing ‘What is a fair test?’  before completing the ‘What will keep the same?’ and ‘What will we change?’ The students are enjoying predicting before carrying out an experiment and then recording their findings.  

Just a gentle reminder that: 

• Library - Wednesday 
• P.E. wear sports uniform - Friday 
• Assembly - Friday Morning 
• Mrs Gear teaching - Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday (am) 
• Mrs Turner teaching - Wednesday (pm), Thursday, Friday 
• Homework is sent out each Wednesday and collected and marked the following Tuesday.  

If you have any questions, please feel free to make contact with us at a convenient time that suits  

Our email addresses are:  

Michelle Gear mgear@cns.catholic.edu.au  

Melanie Turner mturner@cns.catholic.edu.au   
 

Kind regards,  

Michelle Gear and Melanie Turner.  

Greetings Parents and Caregivers of Grade Two! 

The last two weeks have seen the year 2’s busy consolidating their knowledge and completing assessments.  

We had a great time dressing up as our favourite characters for Book Week and participating in the whole school parade! 

Year 1 and Year 2 were treated to a Fire Safety visit from the Western Cape Region Rural Fire Brigade. Students learnt important fire education messages such as stop, drop, cover your face and roll, and even got to spray the fire hose at the end of the demonstrations! A massive thank-you to Tony and Leigh who volunteered their time to share their wealth of knowledge with the children.  

In Science we have been continuing our biological unit and learning about life cycles. Students have been examining the different stages of living things including humans. They used photos or drawings to represent their own life cycle. 

Lastly, we would like to thank you all for your support with the various events this term, whether it be attending assemblies, liturgies and school events, continuing to do homework with your child, and for coming along to our Father’s Day event and parent/teacher conferences. 

Wishing you all a very happy, safe, relaxing and enjoyable school break! 

Kind Regards, 

Year 2 Team, 

Mrs Tapper, Mrs Barber and Mrs Dore. 

Hello families and friends of Year 3, 

 As we come to the end of the semester, the students have been busy completing different assessments and consolidating their learning. Across the board, they have done a super job and should be proud of their efforts! 

English – we have been writing procedural recounts based on different science experiments we have done, for example our cloud dough and rain clouds in a jar. The students needed to use adverbs and adjectives to describe the different procedures. 

Maths – this week we have been collecting and representing data. The students were required to come up with some inquiry questions and collect data from the class. We then represented this data in bar graphs and pictographs using rulers. It was super important to be extra neat! 

HASS – Across both strands in HASS the students have been using seesaw to represent their learning. They were required to make a flow chart on how a law is made and why they are so important to society. In geography, the students were reading different grid maps and references and recognising the different symbols for mapping. 

Religion – For the final religion unit the students have been looking at sacraments of initiation. This involves baptism, confirmation, eucharist. The students recognised the different symbols associated with each sacrament and the process that occurs within the church.  

Thank you all for a wonderful week,  

Emily

We are nearly at the end and what a term it has been. As always, so much growth from all the students in year 4. Everyday they amaze me with what they know and how far we can take our learning. With many units coming to an end, students are completing assessments this week and next week.  

Our Math lessons have been focused around fractions with students learning how to create equivalent fractions and adding fractions. While in Geography and Writing lessons we are looking at South America and Africa as wonderful continents to travel to and explore. Students next week will complete their persuasive text and try to encourage others to visit countries from these continents.  

In Science this week we moved onto food webs and students began to identify that there is no one way a food web can work. Many animals (consumers) can be linked to other animals in different ways. Students were given the chance to create food webs and see the connections. It was pretty clear that the poor innocent poisonous mushroom could actually wipe out many animals if consumed.  

Next week we look forward to a class reward and Principal’s Morning Tea. Sadly we have said goodbye to one family, the Drums and will say goodbye to another, the Collins’. We wish both families all the best on their next adventure and will fondly remember them for the kind hearted people who have contributed to the St Joey’s community.  

I would love to wish everyone a restful school holiday break and will forward to seeing everyone in October for a busy term 4.  

Good Afternoon Families, 

The last week has been filled with in depth conversations about our Nation's history where we have been exploring events and changes to Australians Values such as the Stolen Generation, Sorry Day and the Uluru Statement of the heart.   

In Drama with Miss Libby Year 5 and Year 6 presented their plays. They did an amazing job at demonstrating elements of Drama. There was a range in differing performances from monologues concerning WWII, group presentations about the three little pigs and other concerning Cats having a meeting on when to take over the world. The students have spent the last few weeks gathering and creating costumes and props and it was lovely to see it all come to fruition.  

I’ve also added some photos from Bookfair that I had forgotten about. Enjoy! 

One more week till holidays! 

We’ve got this! The Senior Learning Hub Team!