Welcome back to another great week at St Joseph's.

As we cross the halfway point of the term, I’d like to thank all of the students for their hard work and encourage them to keep this effort up all the way to the end of the term. The teachers have been impressed with the effort that their students have been putting in and I’d like to thank all the staff for their high levels of support in helping our students achieve their best.

The old saying; ‘It takes a village to raise a child’; could not be more true when we talk about our Vision to be ‘An inclusive community committed to high levels of learning for all’. It is through our school values of ‘Love, Dignity, Justice and Integrity’ our school community aims to live this vision both now and into the future. ‘Integrity’ is a huge part of this vision with students, families, and staff acting with integrity when setting high expectations for one another.

The school employs research-based, best practices that support the professional learning of staff through collaboration and targeted support. Integrity is embedded in these practices through regular review of learners and their progress and goal setting supported by regular feedback and celebration of goal achievement. Regular progress conversations, stemming from reviews of student data are a part of the culture being developed at St Joseph’s.

Much of the last few weeks have been focused on updating systems and the strategic plans for the next 3-5 years in relation to key Teaching & Learning and Religious Education projects. Over the coming weeks, I will be working with the school Leadership Team and the staff to unpack the key points and shape them into our long-term school strategic plan and vision.

Book Week Celebrations began today and will culminate with a Parade on Friday.

We are also holding our Annual Book Fair during Book Week. There is a large variety of books for sale at prices to suit everyone. This is a wonderful opportunity to buy some great books and help the Library gain new resources as the school receives 25% – 30% of the total sales as our Commission.

Queensland Road Safety Week 24 - 28 August

When we’re behind the wheel, driving safely should be our number one priority. You might be surprised to know that the Fatal 5 (speeding, mobile phone distraction, drink driving, fatigue and not wearing a seatbelt) also contributed to over one third of serious crashes where people were seriously injured or lost their life, from 2014 to 2019.

What can you do?  Show your support by kicking those bad driving habits and make our roads a safer place for everyone. Check out the StreetSmarts website for a range of activities and resources https://streetsmarts.initiatives.qld.gov.au/ 

National Child Protection Week

Child_Protection_Week_Poster _pdf3.78 MB 

Key Messages of Child Protection Week

* Child protection is everyone’s business. The responsibility lies with adults in keeping children safe from harm. All members of society need to play a part in ensuring children are nurtured and safe.

* Adults are essential in ensuring children’s safety and well-being.

* Listening to children and young people is the number 1 indicator in assisting their safety and well-being.

* Children and young people are honest. They are unlikely to lie about abuse. They are more likely to stay quiet about abuse or harm than to speak up (especially if they know their abuser).

* Mean or cruel words harm children and young people.

* Understanding why people harm children and young people is essential in helping to prevent child abuse.

* The corruption of children and young people by being forced into acts against their will, including illegal activity harms children and young people.

* Being ignored, going hungry and feeling and/or being treated as invisible harms children and young people.

* Seeing or directly experiencing domestic and family violence harms children and young people.

* Being physically, verbally, sexually or emotionally abused harms children and young people.

* Not having health, educational and other developmental needs met harms children and young people.

* Being groomed for sexual abuse harms children and young people.

* Being forced to do something that feels ‘wrong’ harms children and young people.

* Being forced into situations that feel unsafe harms children and young people.

* Being forced to be with people (even those who are ‘known’ and ‘loved’) who feel unsafe harms children and young people

* Being forced to be with people who children or young people have stated have abused them, harms children and young people.

* Not being heard when they speak about abuse or trauma harms children and young people.

* Being removed from their home and/or family causes trauma and loss and harms children and young people.

* Knowing they have no voice to speak of how they feel and what they’ve experienced in terms of their safety and well-being harms children and young people.

* Being without the right to make decisions in their life such as where they live, who they visit and where they spend time harms children and young people.

* Caring for children and keeping them safe is a shared responsibility

God Bless,

Megan Pearce

This week let us also include in our prayers….. 

• Those local families who must travel away for medical help…. 
• Those who are alone, unemployed, suffering and dying as a result of COVID-19…. 
• Those in our First Nations communities who work tirelessly to Close the Gap… 

May these prayers and all those we hold in our hearts, be felt by those who need them most.  

Sunday’s Gospel- 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time 

Please find shared in this week’s newsletter: the Sunday prayer at home which has some wonderful resources to unpack this week’s readings in a family friendly way.   

This week’s gospel reading records Simon Peter’s profession of faith in Jesus as “the Christ, the Son of the living God”.  In response Jesus affirms and commissions Peter: “You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church”.  As we’ll hear next Sunday, in the passage that follows on directly from this exchange, the gospel writer Matthew counterbalances the image of foundation stone with that of stumbling block. The focus is on Peter’s faith, his courage, his foundational role in the Church, and the assurance that the Church will never finally fail.  Exactly what is meant by the power to bind and loose remains a matter for discussion within and across the Christian traditions.  The gospel ends with one of Jesus’ calls to silence lest his Messiahship be misunderstood. Reading Reflections 

Religious Education Review Day 

This week I am travelling to Cairns to participate and engage in a Religious Education Review Day. This agenda for day is to review the BCE Religion Curriculum in our own school context and this day gives us the opportunity to reflect on the content, assessment items and resourcing of the Religion Curriculum from Prep to Year 10 to see if there are areas of improvement.  

May St Joseph smile on you,  

Meg Newell 

APRE/CST