ABOUT - Term 4 Week 8 - 5 December 2024

THOUGHT OF THE WEEK

God planted a seed of hope.  All we have to do is:
~ Water it with prayers ~
~ Fertilise it with words of God ~
~ Cultivate it with lots of love ~

YEAR 4 LAKE BURRENDONG EXCURSION

Our Year 4 students had a wonderful time last week on their first overnight school excursion!  Their first stop was the Burrendong Dam wall and spillway.  Then it was off to the Lake Burrendong Sport & Recreation Centre where they enjoyed activities including kayaking, slip ‘n’ sliding and archery.  Congratulations to the children for their brilliant behaviour and thanks to Mrs Morris and Mr Gibbons for taking such good care of the children.

SCHOOL BASED SWIMSAFE LESSONS

Our school based SwimSafe program began this week and concludes next Friday, 13 December. All infants children need to continue to bring their swimmers, towel and entry fee of $1.00 (for those who don't have a season ticket) every day for the two weeks.  The children will be transported to and from the pool each day by bus, saving valuable time and energy.  We hope through this program the children will enjoy participating with their friends and improve their water confidence and swimming skills.  We thank the Gilgandra Panthers for the use of their bus.

Please note that children will NOT participate in swim lessons next Thursday, 12 December as this is the day of our end of year school pool parties.

KNOWLEDGE EXPLOSION

The Knowledge Explosion, for all children in Years 3-6, commenced this week and will continue next Wednesday, 11 December between 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.  It was wonderful seeing the students involved in new activities that they may not otherwise have a chance to experience, including:  earring making, cooking, aqua aerobics, boxing, lawn bowls, sand art, painting, Christmas craft and  Meccano.

YEARS 5/6 CANBERRA EXCURSION EXPO

Family and friends of our Years 5 and 6 classes are invited to attend the Canberra Excursion Expo to be held at school tomorrow, Friday, 6 December at 2:00 p.m.  Come along and view the video showing all the fun and excitement the students experienced.  The children's booklets will also be on display.

KRISTKINDLE

Kristkindle is a German Advent custom which means ‘Christ Child’.  This custom helps us prepare during Advent for the coming of the Christ Child by seeing Him and serving Him in others.  In the spirit of Christmas every child in Years 3-6 has been given the name of one of their classmates and is asked to be extra kind to their Kristkindle by leaving little notes and surprises, helping and caring for them, but not telling them who they are.  Also, each child is asked to bring in a small gift, no more than $5.00 in value, with their KK’s name on it to be handed out at our pool parties next week.  The important thing about Christmas is not the gifts but the way we treat one another.  The children in Kinder to Year 2 are expected to care for one another and there will also be a little surprise for them at the pool party on Thursday, 12 December.

CHRISTMAS CAROLS ON THE CASTLEREAGH

Come and celebrate "Christmas Carols on the Castlereagh" this Sunday, 8 December on the lawn of the Cooee Heritage Centre, with fun activities commencing at 5:00 p.m and the carols to start at 6:00 p.m.

Our school has been invited to perform and we have a choir of 49 students who can’t wait to sing some carols for you!  We would love to see the students dressed in some festive casual clothes. 

So, bring a picnic dinner, a chair or rug, as well as plenty of bug spray and join in the festivities.  

YEAR 5 LEADERSHIP SPEECHES

We wish all our 2025 Student Leaders the best of luck as they present their leadership speeches in St Joseph’s Church next week.  All at St Joey’s look forward to hearing what these wonderful people are going to do for our school next year.  Following is a timetable of the speeches which will be delivered in random order, and everyone is invited to come along and listen:

Monday, 9 December

10:30 a.m.    Darcy Adams, Mitch Beaton, Sophie Lacey, Caitlin Younghusband

11:30 a.m.     Charlie Howard, Jakirah McKenzie, Tex Mudford

Tuesday, 10 December

10:30 a.m.   Estelle Hazelton, Oscar Medd, Neve Walker

11:30 a.m.    Clancy Larkin, Braxten Towns

YEAR 1 LEARNS ABOUT BRAILLE

Last week our Year 1 class learnt about Braille.  The children learnt about what braille is and they wrote some words using the braille alphabet  symbols.  Yesterday we had a visit from Year 6 student, Tom M.  Tom came in with his braille machine and showed the class how he writes in braille and even wrote all the children’s names.  They were very excited.  Thank you Tom!

LIBRARY BOOKS

Please ensure ALL library books are returned to the library by next Monday, 9 December.  If there are any problems locating books, would you please send in a note or make contact with the school.

POOL PARTIES

All classes will have their annual pool party next Thursday, 12 December.  Party food will be provided for everyone, however please ensure your child brings a packed lunch. Children in Years 3-6 will need to bring their Kristkindle present to school with them next Thursday.  Our infants students (Kinder to Year 2) will be having a special Christmas visitor who I’m sure will brighten their day.  They may even receive a little gift! 

LEAVING FAMILIES DINNER

Those families leaving St Joseph’s this year are invited to our Leaving Families Dinner to be held next Thursday, 12 December at 5:30 for 6:00 p.m. in the school grounds.  This is our way of saying thank you to those families for their involvement with the school over the years.  So, bring the family for tea and please feel free to stay on while the children go off to the social. For catering purposes, would the leaving families please RSVP to the school on 6847 2828 by tomorrow, Friday, 6 December.

K-6 SCHOOL SOCIAL

Next Thursday, 12 December - 7:00 p.m.

All students are invited to our school social to be held at the Gilgandra High School Hall next Thursday, 12 December from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.  Parents are most welcome to stay or to leave their children at the social and collect them at 9:00 p.m.

YEAR 6 PICNIC

Next Friday, 13 December

Our Year 6 students are sure to have lots of fun at the waterslides and tenpin bowling in Dubbo next Friday, 13 December.  This outing is the school’s way of saying thank you to our Year 6 student leaders for leading our school so well this year.  We thank you for “Giving Of Your Best” and may God bless you.

YEAR 6 GRADUATION MASS

Families and friends of our Year 6 students, as well as any other St Joey’s families who wish to attend, are invited to the Year 6 Graduation Mass at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, 17 December in St Joseph’s Church.  Following Mass, a morning tea will be held for our Year 6 students and their parents. Please bring a plate to share for morning tea. 

END OF YEAR PRESENTATION CEREMONY

Our school community is invited to attend our annual end of year presentation ceremony to be held at the Gilgandra High School Hall on Tuesday, 17 December commencing at 12:00 p.m.  We look forward to sharing this  celebration of our school year with you.

POSITION VACANT: ASSISTED TRAVEL SUPPORT OFFICER

The Department of Education currently has a position to fill to assist with the transport of a student with additional needs to travel safely to and from school.  This position is for three days a week.

Further information about this role is contained in previous newsletters or can be found at:

https://education.nsw.gov.au/public-schools/astp/atsos  

All successful applicants need to obtain a Working with Children Check, obtain the necessary proof of identity and complete the Expression of Interest form online.

HOW TO APPLY: The EOI and documents should be sent to ASTP at atso.astp@det.nsw.edu.au

MERIT AWARDS

Congratulations to the following students who received Merit Awards at Assembly on Tuesday: 

KINDER: Saddler Newton for fabulous use of adjectives and verbs when writing about “Imagination”, Angel Dinto for working hard to write and illustrate a story about using her imagination, Darcy Morrissey for great sorting of animals into their movement groups during Science and Cecilia Smith for making valuable contributions to Science lessons.

YEAR 1: Flynn Weston for brightening our classroom with a smile every day, Jock Cruickshank for happily cooperating with his peers and teachers, Henry Foran for constructing a fantastic portfolio writing task about our excursion to the Police Station and Alfie Mudford for completing all learning tasks in a timely manner. 

YEAR 2: Evie Adams for writing a great narrative about saving Christmas for Santa Claus, Charlie Budworth for writing a great narrative about being Santa’s helper, Georgie Kirkwood for writing a great narrative about some naughty Christmas elves and Caroline Taylor for writing a great narrative about 'Jingles' & 'Cookie', the elves.

YEAR 3: Aaron Robin and Charlie Jones-Copelin for their curiosity and involvement in Science each week.

YEAR 4:  Alice Peart for showing kindness to others, Michael Vermeluen for great work identifying syllables in Spelling, Liam Millstead for a great effort in Maths Operations and Regan Godber for working diligently to complete tasks.

YEAR 5:  Tex Mudford and Caitlin Younghusband for great work identifying and creating angles using a protractor and Sophie Lacey and Chloe Heffer for fantastic work sequencing the 'Nativity' story in Religion.

YEAR 6: Lucy Profke for being a quiet, responsible and respectful member of Year 6, Thomas Mclsaac for a great presentation about the formation of blowholes, Lucy Zell for consistent participation and meaningful responses to any topic in our class discussions and Lucas Riley for demonstrating consistent growth and improvement each week in our fluency sprints.

CLASSROOM NEWS

Kindergarten

The weeks are flying by and everyone in Kinder is doing a great job finishing their portfolio tasks and continuing to do some wonderful work in class. The Infants Intensive Swimming lessons have started and we’ve had a real mix of wild weather to deal with. The children have been learning new skills in their groups and talking about the importance of water confidence and safety in and around the pool. In the classroom, Kinder talked about the meaning of Advent in the countdown to Christmas and they are enjoying opening the Advent calendar windows. We wrote a letter to Santa after reading the story, "Santa Post".  Dance practices for the social are in full swing and we are looking forward to listening to the Christmas carols this Sunday. Don't forget to return the Cooee Lodge note as Kinder will visit the residents to spread some Christmas cheer in a couple of weeks. Have a wonderful weekend everyone.
Mrs Alison Newstead & Miss Lisa  Harvey

Year 1

This week Year 1 had a special visit from Tom in Year 6, who demonstrated how he uses the Perkins Brailler to write in Braille. Tom even wrote all our names in Braille and answered some of the questions we had after reading "The Black Book of Colours". In English we explored a new story about special treasures, discussing what makes something precious and how we care for our own treasures. During Maths we investigated the different features of 2D and 3D shapes and used this knowledge to sort everyday objects into groups. We were so excited to see how much our plants have grown and in Science we documented the changes and measured the impressive growth of our plants. The children are enjoying their swimming lessons each day and we can see improvement already. We look forward to seeing you at 'Carols on the Castlereagh' at the Cooee Heritage Centre, this Sunday at 5:00 p.m. Have a wonderful weekend!
Mrs Julia Jeffery & Mrs Prue Best

Year 2

We have been busy little bees in Year 2 and are all feeling rather tired as a result. During writing time we have been learning about procedures and wrote about delicious milkshakes and yummy pizzas. We have been completing revision during Maths and have been looking at graphs, difference, division and multiplication. Reflecting on the story of Creation has been our focus in Religion and we created beautiful pictures to represent each day. We have been learning some new dances for the social next Thursday and can’t wait until we can dance the night away with our friends. Being a good friend has been the focus of our discussions in PDH, where we brainstormed qualities that we value in our friends. Thank you to those children who are coming along to ‘Carols on the Castlereagh’ on Sunday evening, it’s sure to be a lovely night. Have a great weekend and I will see you in Week 9!
Mrs Nikkola Thomas

Year 3

Year 3 presented their factual accounts of Malala Yousafzai this week. We recorded their presentations as a news report. We also reviewed the texts, "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes" by Eleanor Coerr and "Malala’s Magic Pencil" by Malala Yousafzai and compared and contrasted Malala and Sadako’s experiences, actions and impacts on a Venn diagram. Students then wrote a personal reflection about how Sadako and Malala impacted their lives. In spelling we have learnt about the letter patterns for 'ear' phoneme such as 'eer' (as in deer), 'er' (as in zero), 'ere' (as in here) and 'ear' (as in hear). During Maths we’ve learnt that the equals sign means ‘the same as’ rather than to perform an operation and used the complement principle of addition and subtraction. Today we used number lines to solve subtraction problems. Year 3 has been working hard learning the dances for the social next week. We hope you have a great weekend and we’ll see you at the Christmas Carols on Sunday. 
Mrs Phillipa Haling & Mrs Swade Wilson

Year 4

What an awesome time we had at Burrendong last week! The rain certainly pelted down on Thursday afternoon but it didn’t dampen our spirits. The excitement and enthusiasm was high as we participated in kayaking, night games, archery and slip and slide. The children are to be commended on their wonderful behaviour, their willingness to step outside their comfort zone and the way in which they supported and encouraged one another. I was very proud of each of them! In class we’ve been writing a recount of our Burrendong excursion to include in our portfolio. This way our parents can read all about our wonderful time away. We also had our first week of Knowledge Explosion activities yesterday which allows us to participate in an activity we wouldn’t normally do at school. We’ve also been busy practising our dances for the social next Thursday which we are all looking forward to. Have a wonderful weekend!
Mrs Melinda Morris

Year 5

This term is flying by!  In Year 5 we have been very busy. We have been working hard practising our leadership speeches ready to present them next week. In Science we continued our balloon experiments and even got the chance to make balloon rockets. It was loud and chaotic but lots of fun. In Grammar we have been learning about abbreviations and acronyms. We identified some of the common ones found in Australia and looked at how they are all around us. During Maths we are looking at data. We read and interpreted data and discussed what graphing would best suit different situations. We even explored Google Sheets and created graphs on our Chromebooks. We had so much fun  at Knowledge Explosion on Wednesday afternoon. We all learned something new and came back with some great stories to share. I hope to see you all at the Community Carols on Sunday. Have a lovely weekend!
Miss Abigail Dobson

Year 6

This week we have been finishing off portfolio tasks, practising our dance moves for our school social next week and having a great time in the final few days of school with our classmates. So far we have had a lolly salad, a 'bring a cuddle toy to school day' and tomorrow we will complete toilet paper challenges. What fun!! Classwork has been jam-packed with solving tricky anagrams in Grammar and working on our poetry writing skills. In Religion we have been learning about the Jesse Tree and the different stories and symbols. During Maths we have looked at coordinates on a cartesian plane and have used our knowledge to reveal hidden pictures. Yesterday, we all had fun during Knowledge Explosion, where we participated in many activities, such as cooking, painting, lawn bowls, and boxing. It is lovely to see that some of our classmates will be attending the Christmas Carols for our community on Sunday.  Have a great weekend!
Mrs Meichelle Schier, Mrs Donna Colwell, Mrs Haylee Barry

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