ABOUT - Term 3 Week 9 - 18 September 2025

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK

"Spring adds new life and beauty to all that is"
~ Jessica Harrelson ~

ST JOSEPH'S SCHOOL ANNUAL CONCERT

'A Night At The Museum'
Gilgandra High School Hall - TONIGHT - Thursday, 18 September

After all of our practices and our full dress rehearsal on Monday, we are excited that our annual school concert is here and will be held this evening, at the High School Hall at 6:00 p.m. The concert involves all students from Kinder to Year 6 and children need to be at the hall by 5:45 p.m. dressed in their costume so that the concert can begin at 6:00 p.m. Could your child please bring a water bottle, a snack and a jumper with them.  We hope to see lots there for a great night out.  Please note that the students are not to go into the hall following their performance.  All children will stay in the classrooms at the high school until the end of the concert at which time they will line up on the basketball court for collection by their families.

CONGRATULATIONS KATIE & LAYLA

Congratulations to Katie C who won the 11 years Long Jump and placed 3rd in the 11 years Discus and to Layla W who placed 2nd in the 11 years Shot Put at the NSW Catholic Polding Athletics Championships in Newcastle last Friday.  Katie and Layla will now compete at the NSW PSSA Athletics in Homebush next term - well done Katie & Layla!  Special mention to Archie O who placed 4th in the 11 years Discus.  Unfortunately only the first 3 placings from each event proceed further.

WELCOME BACK EMILY!

We welcomed back ex-student, Emily Standing, to Joey's on Monday as she completes a week's work experience.  We hope Emily has enjoyed her time back at St Joseph's.  Once a Joey, always a Joey!

MOORAMBILLA RESIDENCY CAMPS, GALA CONCERT & PERFORMANCES

We wish Allie Claire Williams, George Taylor, Caroline Taylor, Sam Luckie, Archie O'Connor, Charlie Cruickshank, Oliver Buckley and Bella Hammond the best of luck as they attend Baradine for the final residency camps next week, in the lead up to the Gala Concert to be held on Saturday, 27 and Sunday, 28 September, as well as a Preview Performance on Saturday, 27 September, at Dubbo Regional Theatre & Convention Centre.

Tickets are available for the special Preview Performance of Moorambilla's RIVERSONG 2025: Skysong on Saturday, 27 September from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m.  This one-hour preview performance features the original pieces developed this year in collaboration with Moorambilla's exceptional artistic team.  Tickets to this event can be purchased by visiting https://www.drtcc.com.au/whats-on/open-dress-rehearsal-of-riversong-2025-skysong.

ST JOEY'S P&F SCHOOL FETE

This year's School Fete will be held in Week 2 of Term 4, on Friday, 24 October.  The fete will start at 2:00 p.m. and conclude at 5:00 p.m. with the 'Slime Run'.

School holidays are a great time to start thinking about our fete.  In particular, donations will be needed for the following stalls:

RAFFLE BASKETS STALL - Jess Morrissey is the coordinator of this stall and is asking for donations from each child for items to be placed in the themed raffle basket in their classroom, eg. Year 6 students have been asked to purchase a new gift, of any value, that relates to 'Lego'.  All items donated from each class (except Year 1) will be made into a class hamper, meaning we will have six different themed hampers to be raffled off at the fete.

The chocolate blocks from the Year 1 class basket will be used as prizes in the new 'Chocolate Toss' stall!

The themes for each year are:

At the fete, the class raffle hampers will be on display and children/adults can purchase tickets for $2.00 each or 3 for $5.00.  They then place their tickets into the relevant box for the basket/s they would like to win.  Towards the end of the fete, the raffles will be drawn and the six lucky hamper winners announced.

Donations can be brought in to school at any time between now and 17 October.  These items are to be placed in the raffle basket in your child’s class.

CAKE & PRODUCE STALL - Crystal Mudford is the coordinator of this stall and is asking for donations.  Plastic containers are available for collection from the school office at any time.  Call in and grab a few so you can start cooking and freezing your goodies during the school holidays!

STALL COORDINATORS NEEDED FOR FETE

We are still in need of coordinators for three of the fete stalls, being the Fairy Floss, Chocolate Toss and Photobooth stalls.  It would be wonderful if coordinators could set up and put away their stall, as well as man the stall for part or all of the fete (depending on the number of helpers). Coordinators do not need to organise goods for their stall, as this will be done for them.  If you can coordinate a stall, please contact the ladies in the office ASAP.

CHILDREN'S FETE & SLIME RUN TICKETS ONLINE

This year, families will again be given the opportunity to pre-purchase fete tickets and slime run tickets for their children. We have set up an 'Event' through Flexischools, enabling you to purchase and pay for tickets between now and 9:00 a.m. on the morning of the fete.  On the day of the fete, all pre-purchased tickets will be handed out to the students.

This year, we also have a 'SLIME RUN, HOT DOG & POPPER COMBO' available to pre-purchase on Flexischools.  Grab yours now, so your child can participate in the slime run and dinner will be ready to eat on your way home!

FETE ROSTER

We have today sent home the Fete Roster.  We are calling for helpers to assist the coordinators man the stalls during the fete.  If everyone helps out on the day for just one hour, then all the gaps will be easily filled. 

If you can help out, please write your name in the box/es and return the form to school by next Thursday, 25 September. There is also a place on the roster for helpers to set up on the day of the fete, from 11:15 a.m.  If you can help, please put your name down and return it so we know if we will have enough helpers. 

COW PAT LOTTO

At the fete each year we have a Cow Pat Lotto. How does Cow Pat Lotto work?  We erect a yard with an area of 400 square metres.  You then have the chance to purchase one or more of these one metre squares for $5.00 per square.  A cow is led around the yard and if you own the square where the first dropping lands, then you win $1,000.00!  A book of four tickets was sent home with each family on Tuesday to sell.  If you would like more tickets, just let us know and we will send them home, or pop into the school office and collect a book. All sold tickets need to be returned to school by Tuesday, 21 October.

SPORT FOR THE REMAINDER OF TERM

As previously mentioned, for the remainder of term, the WHOLE school will be participating in AFL sessions for sport each Friday.  This means that all years, from Kinder to Year 6, are required to wear their sport uniform to school each Friday and their normal school uniform on Thursday. 

PUPIL FREE DAY

The first day of Term 4, Monday, 13 October, will be a pupil free day.  During this day staff will be reviewing the Annual Improvement Plan for 2026.

TERM 4 CANTEEN HELPERS

As previously mentioned, we are starting to put together the Term 4 canteen roster.  If you can assist in the canteen during Term 4, please let us know your preferred day and also any dates that you are unavailable by completing the Term 4 Canteen Helper form below.  A paper canteen helpers form was previously sent home, which can be completed and returned to school.  A Term 4 Canteen Roster will be sent home early next term.

NO PARKING IN FRONT OF THE CHURCH

St Joseph's Parish is concerned about child safety around the church area at school drop off and pick up.  Please DO NOT park on the driveway (including the grassed areas), from the Wrigley Street entrance, in front of the church.  The parish is happy for parents to drive through this area and drop children off, but please DO NOT park here. 

There is a carpark on the Wamboin Street side of the church, where parents may park their vehicle whilst waiting for their children to come out of school, or if parents need to come into the school.

FOOD HANDLER TRAINING LINK FOR CANTEEN VOLUNTEERS

Please click on the below link to undertake the Food Handler Training required to be completed by all of our canteen volunteers. 

www.foodauthority.nsw.gov.au/training/food-handler-basics-training 

CANTEEN POLICY

Please find below a link to the St Joseph's School Canteen Policy. Due to various changes with Food & Safety Handling, we have been required to update our school's policy. Would all of our canteen volunteers please take the time to read through this document to ensure they are aware of the changes that are now in force.

WHAT'S ON IN WEEK 10

MERIT AWARDS

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

KINDER: Lylah Dickens for showing great enthusiasm & groovy dance moves during concert practice, Joe Barry for always being willing to lend a helping hand in the classroom and Levi Anderson for writing an outstanding recount of his weekend and sounding out tricky words by himself!

YEAR 1: Freyer Williams for focus and accuracy when forming groups and identifying number patterns in Maths, Noopura Rahul for working hard to use commas accurately in her writing and Evelyn Easman for explaining the terms ‘light’ and ‘dark’ in Science with enthusiasm and detail.

YEAR 2: Becky Hutchison for great improvement in her handwriting and Alex Moeris for trying to be more thorough in editing tasks.

YEAR 3: Annabelle Foran for always working hard and ‘Giving Of Her Best’, Indiana Jeffery and Frankie Medd for working hard during our concert rehearsals, Piper Van Den Ende for writing a letter full of description and rhetorical questions and Parthiv Rajesh Nair for super working with inverse operations in Maths.

YEAR 4: McKenzie Harvey for a terrific effort learning her times tables, Allie Claire Williams for working diligently to complete all tasks and Billy Jeffery and Isobel Barry for a tremendous effort to learn their concert lines.

YEAR 5: Oliver Buckley for working respectfully and cooperatively with his peers, Charlie Cruickshank for outstanding reading in fluency sprints and Rose Howard for a fantastic effort to complete operations accurately in Maths.

YEAR 6: Mitchell Beaton for writing an excellent and VERY believable 'Fake News' article and Estelle Hazelton for her effort and enthusiasm during concert practice.

CLASSROOM NEWS

Kindergarten

It has been a busy week in Kindergarten with Miss Harvey helping out while Mrs Newstead is away. Everyone has been writing some great stories, focusing on finger spaces between words and using capital letters for people’s names. The Phonics focus has been ‘Qu’ and Kinder has come up with a great list of words starting with the sound of the week (quick, queen, quilt, questions). We read the book “Meg’s Eggs” and completed a cloze passage and a sequencing task. In Science we finished our portfolio task on what materials are used to make things around us. Concert rehearsals are done and everyone is very excited for tonight’s performance. We hope to see lots of family and friends at Gilgandra High School Hall for the concert that everyone has worked so hard on. Have a lovely weekend everyone.

Mrs Alison Newstead & Mrs Julia Jeffery                                                                            

Year 1

Year 1 is very excited to perform for you tonight. Students need to arrive at Gilgandra High School Hall at 5:45pm dressed and ready for a 6:00pm start. We’re sure you’ll be very proud of the effort everyone has put into their performance. In Literacy this week our focus has been on writing complex sentences. We read “Pearl Barley and Charlie Parsely” and identified the complex sentences in the text. We noted the subordination conjunction and their location, either at the beginning or in the middle of the sentence. We also discussed how the subordinating conjunction of ‘while’ highlights the differences between characters and the subordinating conjunction of ‘when’ highlights cause and effect. We wrote some complex sentences together and then were challenged to write some on our own. Some great sentences were written. During Maths students were asked to count a large handful of counters and made groups of ten in order to count them efficiently. We also made 2 digit numbers using paddle pop sticks. In Religion we read the Bible story of Jesus meeting up with the seven disciples at the lake and helping them to catch many fish. We made a list of the qualities that Jesus shows that made him a good friend to his disciples. Each student chose five of the qualities they thought were the most important. Year 1 is keen for AFL tomorrow for Sport. Don’t forget to wear your sports uniform! Have a great weekend.

Mrs Phillipa Haling & Mrs Haylee Barry

Year 2

Concert night is finally here and Year 2 is looking forward to performing for you all tonight. See you at the Gilgandra High School Hall at 5:45pm dressed in your concert outfits. Congratulations Year 2, you have all worked very hard during concert practices and it is time for you all to shine. Thank you to parents for your help in organising costumes and preparing children with their lines. Thank you also to Year 6 for their efforts behind the stage to help our concert run smoothly. In relation to our Geography unit and research completed on marine animals, we have created a colourful underwater mural with seahorses, fish and octopi. We have used techniques including weaving, painting, bubble blowing and fine motor skills to complete the beautiful display. We began reading “World’s Worst Children”, where we are focusing on character traits. The children came up with their own character name using alliteration and we are working on forming a character analysis of ourselves. Have a lovely, restful weekend! 

Mrs Nikkola Thomas

Year 3

We are all buzzing with excitement about our concert tonight! After weeks of singing and dancing, we can’t wait to share our ‘out-of-this-world’ performance with you. On Friday, we finished “Rowan of Rin”. It was such an exciting ending and we were all delighted to see Rowan become the hero and save the village. Now, we are preparing to write our own alternate endings to the novel in the form of narratives, filled with figurative language, dialogue and vivid descriptions. I can’t wait to read them once they are finished! In Maths, we had lots of fun exploring different ways to divide numbers. To put our skills into practice, we even designed new classroom desk layouts. There were so many creative ideas and our problem-solving skills were definitely challenged. In Art we are working on a 1cm grid piece where the tree looks like it is popping out of the page. It’s taking time, as each tiny square is coloured differently, but the final effect will be worth it. We are so close to the end of term—only one more week to go! Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend.

Miss Abigail Dobson

Year 4

It’s CONCERT DAY!! The children are looking forward to performing their act on the big stage tonight. They have been enthusiastic in their practices and I hope you enjoy their performance. In other very exciting news the Year 4 students have received their pen licences! The children are very excited to be writing in pen and are trying extra hard to write neatly - I hope this continues! In class we’ve been practising division in Maths and verb tense in Grammar. During Geography the children have created slideshows about National Parks providing information about each park's conservation goals and conservation projects. We have one chapter to go in our novel and it is still keeping us enthralled. We’ve experienced a range of emotions as we continue to connect with the characters. The children wrote a diary entry from Davinia’s perspective highlighting the reasons why she decided to help Quin and betray her mother. Have a great weekend! 

Mrs Melinda Morris

Year 5

This week, we have begun our explanation presentations. So far, we have enjoyed learning about tsunamis, cyclones, goosebumps and how caves are formed. In Maths we have classified acute, obtuse and reflex angles by their degrees and converted analog time to 24 hour time. During Religion, we identified the symbolism of the Pope’s vestments and recorded the steps required to become a pope. In PDH, we discussed how emotions affect our decision making and explored the oral traditions of Australian Aboriginals in history. We are so excited about the school concert  - Year 5 has worked hard on their act and we are looking forward to seeing all their family and friends there tonight.

Mrs Meichelle Schier

Year 6

What a busy and exciting week we have had! We thoroughly enjoyed our concert practice on Monday and enjoyed watching all of the different classes perform. We look forward to tonight and can’t wait to share our concert item with our families. In the classroom we continued our ‘Perspective and Context’ focus, engaging in discussions about how people ‘see’ things differently and understanding what ‘context’ looks like in everyday life. In Grammar we have been revisiting ‘onomatopoeia’, ‘oxymorons’ and ‘personification’. It’s fair to say we are exposed to this language more than we realise! In Maths we have been constructing 2D shapes and documenting their regular and irregular properties, as well as integrating the use of ICT to construct shapes using Google Drawings - lots of fun! We have also been busy completing our portfolio tasks and look forward to sharing our work samples with you. Tomorrow will be our third AFL session and we really look forward to learning some more ball skills and game strategies. Don’t forget our countdown …..only 6 more school days until holidays!

Mrs Jess Morrissey & Mrs Donna Colwell

ALTAR SERVERS

CANTEEN ROSTER

NOTICEBOARD