Matthew O'Brien, Principal

Dear Parents, Guardians, Staff, Students and the wider St. Joseph’s Primary School Community,

Ballarat Sovereign Hill Camp

Last week I had the pleasure of joining the Year 5 children on their two night camp to Ballarat and Sovereign Hill.  It was a great camp, packed with a variety of activities from Xtreme Bounce trampoline centre to the history and wonder of Eureka Centre Ballarat, the gold rush, panning for gold and of course the lolly shop.

It was a pleasure to be with the children especially to see them sharing their Australian history knowledge during the activities.  A big thanks to all of the teachers, LSOs and parents who came along to make the camp safe and successful.

$10,000 Playground Raffle

$10,000 Playground Raffle This week every family will receive 4 x $25 raffle tickets. Every dollar from every ticket is profit for our Parents School Association. And this year all of the profit will go towards our new middle and senior school playground.

The raffle works like this: Our sponsoring businesses have donated $15,100.

Our winner receives $10,000 as credit to be spent on one or more of our sponsors.

Also, the winning ticket seller gets their 2025 Family Fee credited for 2025 (or that amount credited to a secondary school for Year 6 families)

So let's imagine for a moment that you win. You could do this:

• Family Fee taken care of for 2025
• Your house painted ($4,000)
• New set of tyres for the car ($1,000) And Captain Sensible takes over with a $4,500 credit at Woolworths for fruit, veggies and staples
• and even $500 to feed the pets as well.

Not bad for $25! This is our major fundraiser for the year and we are grateful for your support.

Insight SCR Surveys

Each year we undertake surveys of staff, students (Years 3-6) and parents to gauge organisational health of our school. Our leadership team (along with DOBCEL staff) analyse this data along with our teaching and learning data and wellbeing data to ascertain the effectiveness of our programs and to identify areas of strength and opportunities for improvement. These areas then form the basis of our Annual Action Plan.

Last week 50 families were randomly selected to participate in the survey. These families were given an envelope which contained log in details.  The survey takes about 20 minutes to complete.  If you were selected I urge you to complete the survey as a large sample of families provides more meaningful data.  It might just be worth checking school bags as children have lost the habit of handing over notes in this digital age.

100 Days of School

Our Foundation children have been counting their school days since Day 1 and yesterday was Day 100!

They celebrated by dressing as 100 year olds, parading around the school, performing for family members and doing fun activities in their classrooms. A lot of effort went into the costumes (and the teachers’ costumes) which helped make the day so exciting. 

Thanks to all of the families who could attend, our fantastic Foundation teachers and of course the children for entering into the spirit of the day.

School Disco

The disco is on this Friday which is a highlight of the St Joseph’s calendar.  Thanks in advance to all of our volunteers who make this event so much fun.  There are details further in the newsletter. 

Please be patient with the drop off and pick ups. 

Please be patient and listen to volunteers, and allow for any waiting times for drop off and pickup, as we facilitate the movement of hundreds of excited students around the school. If you are picking up a junior student at the same time as dropping off a senior student, please make sure to sign in the senior students first, and then locate and sign out your junior student. Children will be able to enjoy a bag of chips or popcorn, and water will be available. If you prefer to bring your own water bottle there will be marked classroom tubs on the night to put them in. Children are welcome to bring glow sticks, and some will be available on the night, however please no mouth guard style or battery operated glow sticks. Tickets are on sale until 9am on Friday 9th August, with a PSA funded option available so no one misses out!

Father's Day Breakfast

After the fun of the disco we have the Major Raffle and Father's Day Breakfast to look forward to. Families will shortly receive a number of tickets to sell as part of our major fundraiser for the year, with a major prize of $10,000 to be used at one of our participating local businesses. The raffle draw will take place at our Father's Day breakfast on Friday 30th August, so keep an eye out in coming weeks for ordering options and a chance to volunteer to assist with the event.

Playground Project

Finally, an update on our middle/senior school Playground Project, which is where all of our fundraising activities are being directed. At our last PSA meeting we were all very impressed with the designs that had been presented by one particular company that had a focus on incorporating accessible elements into a 'Ninja Warrior' style activity course. The Playground group is still working with other potential suppliers to gather designs and prices, and soon hope to be able to present these for discussion with the student body.

Matthew O'Brien, Principal

Happy Birthday to children celebrating their birthday this week.

Jackson Senchenko, Henly O'Grady, Will McMahon, Logan McGennan, Hudson Moloney and Pippa Jones.

On Monday 5th August the Foundation classes celebrated our 100th day of school. To mark this special milestone in our first year of school, we dressed up as the cutest bunch of mini grannies and grandpas.

We had a fashion parade around the school followed by a short performance of a song we’ve been practising for our families in the hall. We created beautiful old age artworks, talked about how we would spend $100 and perhaps what our lives would be like when we turn 100. We had a fantastic day and the Foundation teachers are so proud of all the children who are now 100 days smarter, kinder, braver, taller and stronger. A special thank you to all the families who went to such great efforts with their child’s costumes and for coming along to celebrate with us.

On Wednesday the Foundation classes all participated in the very prestigious 2024 Potato Olympics. We learnt a little about the Olympics before we each decorated and named our own Potato competitors. We made the most of the glorious sunshine outside as our potatoes competed in 4 different events: Sprints, Shot Put, Diving and Breakdancing. 

Our potatoes were looking a little worse for wear by the end of the day, but the smiles and cheers of the Foundation students made for a great day!

Lawn Bowls Competition

Congratulations and good luck to all students who have been selected for the Lawn Bowls teams. They will take part in the Division competition on Friday 9th August.

Year 4 Basketball Trials

The second lot of Year 4 basketball trials will be held on Wednesday 7th August. The District Year 4 basketball competition will take place on Monday 19th of August at the Emmanuel Centre in Warrnambool.

Year 6 Basketball Trials

Year 6 basketball trials are scheduled for Thursday 8th August, during recess and lunchtime. The District Year 6 basketball competition is on 23rd August at the Emmanuel Centre in Warrnambool.

AFL 9’s

More information about Year 5 AFL 9’s will be made available in next week’s newsletter.

Matt McMillan
P.E Teacher and Sports Coordinator

Premier’s Reading Challenge Update

Congratulations to the following students who have recently completed the Challenge. 

• Annie Murrell
• Archie Gardner
• Ayuni De Silva
• Judd Coffey
• Charlotte Newbury
• Cleo Coffey
• Dhanvant Sivasankar
• Elouise Flett
• Luca Wrightson
• Emma Hatfield
• Everdeen Hawkins
• Finn McDonald
• Grace Saker
• Luna Gibbons
• Greta Lloyd
• Harrison Baker
• Hudson Foster
• Iris Foster
• Mae Flett
• Jet Struth
• Maxim Shepeliuk
• Millie Hughson
• Oliver Ault
• Oliver King
• Oliva Cerdena
• Oscar Lawlor
• Poppy Main
• Quinn McDonald
• Roisin Hansford
• Sophia Hose
• Summer Smedts
• Theo Arms

There are only 36 days left to complete the Challenge!  If your child is yet to start logging their books online, please email me for any assistance.

elloyd@sjwarrnambool.catholic.edu.au

Good Luck!

Save the date

Our annual Book Week Costume Parade will be on Friday 6th September. 

Parents and children will enter through the middle doors and sign-in their children. No parents, apart from volunteers, are to enter the school hall. Teachers will be available to help any child that is feeling anxious. 

Sign-out

Once each disco is over teachers will walk the children over to the school library and classrooms where the children are to be signed-out. Parents will enter through the school office foyer to pick up their children and sign them out. 

Food and Drinks

Popcorn or a small bag of chips will be the snacks provided this year. The Smiths chips and the popcorn are Gluten Free options. 

Drink bottles are optional this year. Each classroom tub will be set up on the far side of the hall with a classroom sign above it for drink bottles. 

Cups of water will also be available from the canteen. 

Photography Guidelines for Parents and Carers

Due to child safety rules, no photos are to be taken within the school hall.  

The first aid area will be set up in the canteen. All student medication and medical plans will be in this area. 

News

Tickets sales now open via CDFPay, 445 tickets have already been sold.

Volunteers

Thanks to those who have volunteered. A letter from Matthew O'Brien has been emailed to all those who volunteered. The roster will be emailed directly to everyone who completed the registration form.

The Lighthouse Theatre Staff judged the posters on Friday.

Prizes can be collected at the next assembly, parents welcome.

There are 4 winners in each category, with a major prize winner and then 3 minor prize winners. The major prize winner can have a $50 voucher to any local store and the minor prize winners will be Piccolo Hot Chocolate vouchers.

Junior Boys

Major Winner
Jackson Snell B2

Minor Prize Winners
Cooper Shiells B2
Dylan Thomas B5
Hudson Moloney B5

Senior Boys

Major Winner
Harry Williams F5 (this entry was fantastic!)

Minor Prize Winners
Jack Schrama F5
Ethan Thomas E2
Cooper McDonald F5
Aadinath Renjith D2

Junior Girls

Major Winner
Audrey Hunter, B4

Minor Prize Winners
Mae Flett B8
Lily Pearson B4
Olivia Bowman B4

Senior Girls

Major Winner
Indiana McLaurin D5

Minor Prize Winners
Evie Bushell D5
Amali Greene D3

Disco Volunteers

We still require volunteers for both discos.

7:00am - 9:00am
Friday 30th August, 2024

Our PSA is once again holding a Father's Day Breakfast for our school Dads (or special person). 

Children arrive at school early with their dad and enjoy a breakfast of egg sandwiches, egg and bacon sandwiches or sausages in bread. The PSA will provide some fruit, juice and hot drinks, gluten free bread available. After the breakfast dads can walk their child/ren to the classroom for a visit.

Orders made via CDFPay

Orders NOW OPEN. Orders close 2pm Tuesday 27th August. 

Sorry, no late orders accepted.

Volunteer

We rely on the assistance for volunteers on this day and the afternoon prior.

Please complete the volunteer form if you are able to assist with setup on Thursday after school or on the Friday morning for cooking, serving or cleanup.

School Canteen Support