Dear parents and carers,

How wonderful it was to be able to spend time on Monday morning, welcoming our community back to our school! The ELC, Foundation, Year 1, Year 2 and Year 6 students have made a fantastic return to the routines of school, even if it feels like the start of a whole new year. Next Monday we will welcome back the Year 3, Year 4 and Year 5 students – and we can’t wait.

It has also been great having all our staff back onsite. Over the lockdown period, many had only come to the school on the odd occasion to support those students who were attending. So it has been great to be able to reconnect. I thank all of the staff for their incredible work throughout the past ten weeks, guiding the students through remote learning.

This coming Friday, 29 October, is World Teachers’ Day. I encourage all parents to take the time to reach out to their child’s teacher, to thank them for their continued efforts, not just during lockdown, but in general to ensure St Joseph’s is a wonderful learning environment.

Please also see a link to the Catholic Education Facebook page with more ways to celebrate our teachers - https://www.facebook.com/ceoacg/posts/7122952844397586

 COVID-19 Updates

Today the ACT Government announced further easing of some restrictions that will take affect across various parts of our school and adjust the planning of upcoming school events. By the end of this week, further details will be sent out to all parents as a separate communication, to allow time for the impact of these changes to restrictions to be considered.

I trust that the return to school this week, and the significant planning and care that is in place at present, has provided all parents reassurance around the priority we are placing on the safety of the students, staff and wider St Joseph’s community.

As always, please contact me if you have any questions.

Canteen

This week the canteen reopened for Qkr! lunch orders only. These are being prepared by the Canteen Manager, and collected from the canteen by a single student from each class. I encourage parents to once again take up this great school service, as the canteen is a valuable support to the school community and the P&F in particular.

From tomorrow, Katie will also have icy poles and some ANZAC biscuits available for sale at second break only, being sold from a table outside in the courtyard. This again will be very carefully managed and students will be supported to move in and out of the courtyard according to maintaining physical distancing efforts.

Sacrament of First Eucharist and Confirmation

One of the first impacts of the lockdown for our school, was the cancellation of the Sacrament of First Eucharist for many of our Year 4 students. Likewise, our Year 6 students and families have been keen to find out if Confirmation will be able to take place this year.

Pleasingly, after meeting with Fr Paul this week, please see below the dates for the rescheduled sacraments to be held at the church –

• Sacrament of First Eucharist – Tuesday 9 November 5.15pm

• Sacrament of Confirmation – Sunday 5 December 12.00pm

(Registrations for Sacrament of Confirmation will be available on the St Joseph’s Parish website in the coming days)

We have also confirmed the date for the Year 6 Graduation Mass and Thanksgiving, to be held Thursday 9 December 12.00pm.

There will be much more information to come in the next few days, once further planning is in place and the changes to COVID restrictions taken into consideration.

2022 Classes   

A priority in coming weeks is to begin placing the students into their new classes for 2022. This is always a very carefully considered process that begins with the current teacher and what they know of each student and, first and foremost, their learning. At the same time, all social aspects of friendships and new opportunities are taken into account. All students in Foundation – Year 5 will be given the chance to consider 3 friends that they would like to be in a class with in 2022. The intention is to ensure that each student is paired with at least one of their friends they nominate. This Sociogram will be sent home Monday Week 6.

If there is specific information that parents would like to advise me of to assist the composition of classes for 2022, then this must be done so in writing to me either via email or letter by no later than Friday 26 November. This does not include requests for particular teachers, nor does it include considerations other than the learning needs of your child. Each year is a new start for all students, and teachers, and therefore only information provided this year is taken into consideration when putting classes together for 2022.

Supporting the School – The P&F and School Board

As we head towards the end of 2021, both our P&F and School Board will undergo elections and renewal. At this time, we offer a great vote of thanks to all the parents and volunteers who work tirelessly to ensure our school is a great place for the children and continues to grow in excellence. Once again, 2021 has been a challenging year for supporting our school and building the role of those who volunteer, so I greatly appreciate all that continues to be done by the members of the P&F and School Board.

The P&F works to support and build the wider St Joseph’s community. Its key purpose is to promote the role of all parents within the school and the support of fundraising to provide resources for the students. The P&F operates and oversees the Canteen and Uniform Shop, at the same time offering an opportunity for all parents to contribute to community events and the school in general. 

Therefore, please consider nominating yourself to join the P&F. All parents are members of the P&F, and can attend the AGM on Wednesday 10 November at 7pm via Teams. All positions on the P&F are declared vacant each year, so any and all nominations are welcome.

Please email Cameron.tarrant@cg.catholic.edu.au to be sent the Teams link for the P&F Meeting, or to find out more about how you can support and contribute to the wider St Joseph’s community.

2022 is a fete year as well!

Thank you to School Board Chair, Pip Cleary for her efforts and support throughout 2021 in particular, and overall as a member of the Board in recent years. At the Board meeting last week, Pip, as well as a number of other Board members, announced their intention to stand down from the Board in 2022 for various reasons. Therefore, in the coming week I will send out a communication calling for nominations for the School Board in 2022.

The Board plays a vital role in the functioning of the school and is an extremely worthwhile avenue for parents to assist with the success of the school. The Board’s work is dedicated to enhancing all that happens for your children at our school and we endeavour to work towards our vision of St Joseph’s being an excellent school within a Christ-centred community. 

Unlike the P&F, the School Board is comprised of elected members, voted in if necessary, who take on a two-year position on the Board. Members can only serve three consecutive terms. Please consider if you have particular skills and capabilities that may build on the excellent work of the current and past Boards.

P&F Big Night In

If you would like to contribute a raffle prize for The Big Night In, or have a business that you believe could support the night in some way, please get in touch with me ASAP so we can promote your business and get things happening!

Have a great end to the week. Stay safe and go gently.

Cameron Tarrant

Cameron.tarrant@cg.catholic.edu.au

UNIFORM SHOP COORDNIATOR NEEDED

• A uniform shop coordinator is needed to help with promoting the shop, coordinating volunteers, and managing stock levels and sales processes.

• If you can spare a few hours a fortnight, enjoy working with others, and maybe even have some experience in retail we'd love to hear from you.

Congratulations to the Week 1 award recipients. 

The awards for the previous week during remote learning are published in the newsletter. The awards for the current week are announced in the Friday morning message. 

Happy birthday to these students who celebrated their birthday this week.