ABOUT - Term 1 Week 6 - 7 March 2024

THOUGHT OF THE WEEK

 We are one family, all following in God's way.
With open arms, we welcome you, into our Joey's family!

BEAUTIFUL KINDER WELCOME LITURGY

It was a beautiful Liturgy held in St Joseph’s Church this morning as we officially welcomed our Kinder class of 2024.  The Kinder children were wonderful and we congratulate all of them for their reverence and enthusiasm.  The Year 6 leaders were splendid as they told us about each of their buddies.  Thank you to all those family and friends for joining in this special celebration.  A huge vote of thanks to Mrs Newstead, Miss Harvey, Mrs Alchin, Mrs Schier, Mrs Morrissey and Mrs Colwell and for all their hard work in preparing the Liturgy.  Our 2024 Kinder class includes:  Jazmyn Aberley, Molly Armstrong, Jordee Burgers, Josie Burke, Charlie Burrell, Chase Copelin, Evelyn Easman, Eleanor Foran, Charlie Freeman, Jackie Gronow, Tessa Hamilton, Kobi Hammond, Eliza Hancock, Harry Harvey, Daniel Herbig, Jack Jeffery, Ted Johnston, Teddy Kelly, Kyro McKenzie, Darcy Morrissey, Saddler Newton, Paddy O'Connor, Arthur Peart, Cecilia Smith, Ellis Starr, Kohen Walker, Freyer Williams.

DIOCESAN SWIMMING CARNIVAL

Congratulations to all of our amazing swimmers who competed at the Diocesan Swimming Carnival in Dubbo yesterday.  Special mention to Alana Spora who placed 3rd in the Senior 50m Breaststroke and Thomas McIsaac who won all of his multi-class events.  The first 3 places from each event proceed to the next level of competition, meaning Alana and Thomas will now compete at the Polding Swimming Championships to be held at Homebush on Wednesday, 3 April.  Well done Alana and Thomas!

Many of our swimmers placed in the top 10, which is an excellent result!  Our top 10 swimmers are: Alana Spora - 4th 12 years 50 m Freestyle, Oliver Peart - 10th Senior 50 m Breaststroke, Hannah Peart - 4th 9 years 50 m Freestyle, Bella Ferguson - 8th Senior 50 m Butterfly and our Senior Girls Relay team  comprising of Isabelle Peart, Indy Thomas, Claudia Harrison and Alana Spora placed 4th.

DIOCESAN WINTER SPORTS TRIALS

Over the past couple of weeks we have been running trials at school for all those Year 5 and 6 students who were interested in attending the Diocesan Winter Sports Trials to be held in Bathurst tomorrow, Friday, 8 March.  The sportsmanship and enthusiasm of every single child was absolutely fantastic. Congratulations to the following students who will represent St Joey’s at the trials: Kurt McBurnie, Oliver Peart, Harrison Newton, Heidi Colwell, Isabelle Peart, Lucy Zell (Soccer), Andrew Standing, Oscar Medd, Connor Jones-Copelin, Mitch Cosier, Akhiro Baker, Archie Valler (Rugby League), Milla Morris, Indy Thomas, Bella Ferguson, Jessie O’Connor (Netball).  Best of luck to you all.

WELCOME MR GABRIEL BUSTAMANTE

This week we welcomed Mr Gabriel Bustamante to Joey's. He will be joining our staff as a teacher's aide.  We hope Gabe enjoys being part of the Joey's family.

SCHOOL PHOTOS - Next Monday, 11 March

School photos will be taken next Monday, 11 March.  It's not too late to order photos.  Visit www.advancedlife.com.au before photo day and enter our school code: 7Q9 5JT KQZ at the top of the page.  Then just follow the prompts.  You do not need to return your child’s envelope if ordering online.  You can also make payments by cash or cheque which must be returned in the photo envelopes previously sent home.  A separate envelope must be used for each child.  ALL PHOTOS NEED TO BE PAID FOR PRIOR TO PHOTO DAY.  The money for photos may be returned to school at any time.  If you have more than one child at school and would like a family photo taken, special envelopes are available from the school office.

MUSIC LESSONS COMMENCE NEXT WEEK

Those students enrolled with the Macquarie Conservatorium of Music for music lessons at St Joey's, will commence their lessons next Tuesday, 12 March.  Please ensure you have your instrument at school with you next Tuesday.  If you are a new student and are borrowing an instrument from the conservatorium, your teacher will bring the instrument to the first music lesson.

SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY

Our school cross country will be held in Week 10 on Thursday, 4 April, for all students in Years 3-6 who are interested in competing.  Training for the cross country will commence at school next Tuesday.  Students participating in the cross country can wear their joggers to school for training upon arrival and bring their school shoes with them for changing into after their run.  From our school cross country, we will form a team to compete at the Diocesan Cross Country in Coolah next term.

NAPLAN ONLINE TESTING

As mentioned in last week’s About, students in Years 3 and 5 will participate in the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) online, commencing next Wednesday, 13 March with Writing and continuing in Week 8 with Reading, Conventions of Language and Numeracy.

ST PATRICK'S DAY MASS

All students will attend the St Patrick’s Day Mass that will be celebrated next Friday, 15 March at 10:30 a.m. in St Joseph’s Church.  This Mass is being prepared by Year 5.  All are most welcome to attend.  Please bring a plate to share for morning tea which will follow the Mass.

Our Year 5 students are also looking forward to visiting the residents of Cooee Lodge on St Patrick's Day, to give the residents a little bit of Irish cheer!

ST JOSEPH'S P & F DEBUTANTE BALL

Saturday, 23 March
Only 2 Weeks Away!
*TICKETS ON SALE NOW*

Mark your calendar & spread the word!  Get your friends together for a great night out at the St Joseph's P & F Debutante Ball.  Attending the ball is a great way to show your support for what is one of the P & F’s biggest fundraisers of the year!

The ball will be held on Saturday, 23 March with doors opening at 7:30 p.m and debutantes presented at 8:00 p.m.  Tickets are $40 per adult, including appetisers.  There will be music and full bar with EFTPOS facilities.

Tickets can be purchased from the school office, Tooraweenah Prime Lamb at 25 Miller St, Gilgandra (during business hours) or from the Shire Hall each Tuesday from 5:30 – 6.00pm.  There will be NO tickets sold at the door.  If purchasing tickets from school, you can use the EFTPOS facilities or alternatively transfer the money directly into the following bank account:

Account Name:  St Joseph's P&F Association
BSB No:  066 781
Account No:  100008639
Ref:  Your Name - ball tickets

This event is open to the whole Gilgandra community so organise a table and come along for a great night out whilst helping raise some funds for our school!

DEBUTANTE BALL WORKING BEES & DONATION OF SWEETS

Thank you to those parents who have offered to help out at the upcoming working bees for the Debutante Ball. The Ball Roster is below, from which you will note that we are still in need of many helpers. The working bee scheduled for Saturday, 16 March in the school hall has been cancelled.

Please also note that due to the clash with Grandparents Day, the working bee on Thursday, 21 March will take place from 12:00 to 3:00 p.m.

If you can help at any of the working bees or donate sweets for dessert at the ball, please complete the below form or alternatively speak with Heather, Toni or Veronica in the office.  

It would be wonderful to have as many volunteers as possible to help at the working bees and to donate some sweet treats - many hands make light work!  You don't need to come for the whole time, even if you can help out for an hour or two it would be appreciated.

ST JOSEPH'S DAY CELEBRATIONS

We have planned a day full of fun and celebrations for Tuesday, 19 March to celebrate St Joseph’s Day.  St Joseph is certainly a special saint for all of us at St Joseph’s and we want to honour him on this special day.  So if you would like to join us for part or all of the day, you are most welcome.  Our timetable is as follows:

12:00 p.m. – Mass
1:00 p.m. - Class picnics at pool
1:30 p.m. - Year 6 Synchronised Swimming, followed by dancing in the pool, biscuit fun and a free swim. 

SKI BISCUITS AND ROPES are required for St Joseph’s Day.  As in the past, we hope to have lots of fun on the ski biscuits at the pool.  If you are able to loan us a biscuit with ropes, could you please let us know as soon as possible.

GRANDPARENTS DAY / OPEN DAY

Thursday, 21 March 2024

One of our most anticipated and exciting days of the year is approaching and that is when we host Grandparents Day during Week 8, on Thursday, 21 March.  Everyone is invited from the very young to the very old to celebrate Grandparents Day with us.  The day begins at 10:30 a.m. with morning tea in the weather shed. Following morning tea the students of St Joseph’s will entertain you with a mini concert.  To conclude the activities everyone is invited to inspect the classrooms.  So, if you have a grandma, grandpa, nan, pop, an elderly next door neighbour or in fact know any person, young or old, please invite them to our Grandparents Day.  We will be needing cakes and slices etc. for morning tea, so please bring a plate to share.

PARENTS' WEBINAR

An eSafety Commissioner webinar will be held on Tuesday, 26 March from 7:30 - 8:00 p.m. This event for parents and carers is titled ‘Understanding Parental Controls to Safeguard Your Child’ and is all about different types of parental controls and how to set them on smart devices and computers, in apps and on gaming platforms, for your child’s safety. It’s suitable for parents and carers of primary school-aged students. Please click the below link to register.

CITY OF DUBBO EISTEDDFOD

INDIVIDUAL ENTRIES

A number of our students choose to perform an individual poem at the City of Dubbo Eisteddfod each year.  Entries are now open.  This is separate from our school verse speaking choirs in which all children from Years 1 to 6 participate. The teachers will assist any children wishing to enter the eisteddfod with their selection of a poem.  Transport to individual events must be arranged by the parents.  The proposed dates for the eisteddfod are 17 to 21 June.

KINDER/YEAR 1 NURSERY RHYMES

At the City of Dubbo Eisteddfod, Kinder and Year 1 children (six years and under) are invited to enter the singing section – Nursery Rhymes in Costume.  In the past, children who have entered have enjoyed it greatly and gained much from the experience.  If your child wishes to enter you must be prepared to take your child to Dubbo on the day and organise the costume.  Parents are to help their child select a nursery rhyme and we will then assist them with practice at school. The proposed dates for this section of the eisteddfod are 11 to 12 June.

If your child wishes to participate in either of the above individual sections of the eisteddford, please click on the link below, complete the note and return it to Mrs Hodge or Mrs Fuller at school no later than next Wednesday, 13 March.  Alternatively, you can send a hand written note to school with the relevant information or contact the school and we can send home a hard copy of the note. The age of the child shall be taken as at 31 December, 2024, ie, the age the child is turning this year. 

ATTENDANCE MATTERS

It doesn't matter what day of the week it is, attendance at school matters.  Please click on the below link to view an advertisement created by the NSW Government about children's attendance at school.

NEWSLETTER BY EMAIL

If you know of a family member who would like to receive a school newsletter each week and does not have a Compass login, please complete the below form with their name and email address and we will add them to our email list.  Alternatively, families can forward the link we email to the newsletter onto  family members.

NOTE:  this is for those without a Compass login (eg. grandparents).  All our Joey's families should now be able to view the newsletter via Compass.  If you are experiencing any problems, please see Heather or Toni in the office.

MERIT AWARDS

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

KINDER: Eliza Hancock for always "Giving Of Her Best" at school,  Cecilia Smith for taking great care to produce fantastic work, Evelyn Easman for super counting to 10 and Paddy O’Connor for great improvement with his pencil grip.

YEAR 1: Claire Barry for developing a detailed story map of her narrative journey, Bill Pagan for working well and applying himself to tasks, Duncan Semmler for working extremely hard to sound out unknown words in his writing and Tess Howard for using the ‘counting back’ strategy accurately to solve subtraction problems. 

YEAR 2: Lexi Glennister, Grace Johnston, Frankie Medd and Piper van den Ende for listening carefully on how to create a very cute ‘Peggy’.

YEAR 3: Hannah Peart for fantastic use of verbs, adverbs and coordinating conjunctions in our Grammar lessons, Ryle Walker for excellent work with his subtraction facts, McKenzie Harvey for working hard to complete Mathematics tasks accurately and George Taylor for completing all writing tasks with thought and care.

YEAR 4: Laycee Hazelton for working diligently in class, Maci-Jae Lomax for working consistently in all key learning areas and Layla Walker and Olivia Yates for writing a great narrative compilation from Oliver’s perspective.

YEAR 5: Sophie Lacey for adding engaging figurative language to her writing to engage the audience and Neve Walker for illustrating and writing an engaging orientation based on our novel, "The Wild Robot".

YEAR 6: Jocelyn Altman for excellent effort and application in all areas of school life, Mackenzie Skinner for excellent class contributions and always "Giving Of Her Best" and Andrew Standing and Bella Ferguson for excellent typing skills on Typing Tournament. 

CLASSROOM NEWS

Kindergarten

Congratulations Kinder on your beautiful Liturgy today. Your smiles, singing and confident reading made our celebration very memorable. It was wonderful to see so many family and friends join us as we officially welcomed Kinder into our Joey's family. A huge thank you to our Year 6 buddies who prepared and read their very thoughtful profiles and designed our amazing badges. We will treasure our badges forever. In our classroom we have been learning how to find syllables in words and locating things that start with 'Tt'. During Maths we worked in groups to sort and match numbers and groups from 1 to 5. Have a wonderful weekend.
Mrs Alison Newstead & Miss Lisa  Harvey

Year 1

Year 1 was very excited last week to welcome Mrs Best back to Joey’s and enjoyed working with her on Thursday and Friday. We attended a wonderful Liturgy today as our Kinder friends officially became part of our school. Congratulations to Kinder and Year 6 on a beautiful celebration! We began reading a new book in English called "The Great Rabbit Chase" by Freya Blackwood. We enjoyed sequencing the events of this story as we followed Gumboot’s adventure through the town and into a park. In Maths we continued exploring addition, collected data and used this data to create column graphs, while in Religion we commenced a new unit titled ‘Lent and Holy Week’. We read the parable "The Mustard Seed" and discussed how we can be like the tiny seed and make a big difference in our world. Have a wonderful weekend. 
Mrs Julia Jeffery & Mrs Prue Best

Year 2

It was a very special morning today as we officially welcomed our Kinder friends into the Joey’s family. Thank you Year 2 for your reverence and beautiful singing - you really made it a great celebration. We have been learning about whole numbers, addition and length in Maths and will continue this over the next two weeks. We played a fun game called ‘black hole’ which encourages us to use different strategies to solve addition - you could try this at home. Circular narratives have continued to be our focus during Literacy and we have begun working on our own narrative. During Digital Technology with Mrs McIsaac, we have been discussing how to keep safe online. For example, not sharing passwords, photos and not being friends with people we don’t know. Have a lovely weekend!
Mrs Nikkola Thomas

Year 3

We welcomed our new Kindergarten students this morning with a tremendous Liturgy. We also enjoyed a fantastic performance about resilience this afternoon. Hopefully now we can all be brilliant at being resilient! This week we have revised the spelling sounds we have learnt so far this term, while in Grammar we learnt about compound sentences and even tried writing some of our own. Our work on persuasive texts began by investigating point of view in relation to a topic and the structure of persuasive texts. The students brainstormed some great arguments for and against movies being more enjoyable than books and we modeled an example of a persuasive text using this topic and the arguments the students came up with. In Maths we began a new unit about chance, data and position. In our first lesson we defined chance and played musical chairs, discussing the differences in chance when 1, 2, 3 or 4 chairs were removed from the game. We hope you have a lovely weekend. 
Mrs Phillipa Haling & Mrs Swade Wilson

Year 4

What a lovely Kinder Liturgy we celebrated this morning as we officially welcomed our Kinder friends into the Joey's family. We had our hands dirty in Science with Miss Harvey this week, as Year 4 planted a variety of seedlings. We are conducting an experiment looking at plant growth in favourable and unfavourable conditions and will record the results for the rest of the term. In English, we have finished reading our class novel which we have mixed emotions about. We all loved the story and are a little disappointed that we’ve reached the end - a sign of a good book no doubt! The children are continuing to work on their narratives telling the story from Oliver’s perspective. In Maths we have been making connections between fractions and decimal notation. We placed a variety of fractions and decimals on a number line between 0 and 4 to help increase our understanding of the relationship between the two. Have a wonderful weekend!
Mrs Melinda Morris

Year 5

Week 6 has whizzed by! In Writing we have been focusing on narratives preparing ourselves for NAPLAN which starts next Wednesday. We took an extra close look at orientations and how to write one that is engaging and leaves us wanting more. In Religion we learnt all about St Patrick's Day and have begun preparing for our class Mass and Cooee visit next Friday. In Maths we looked at numbers going beyond 1 million and used the population of Australia and other countries to help us. We also used numeral expanders to express these large numbers and help us to gain a better understanding. This morning we attended the Kinder Liturgy which was lovely. Well done to Year 6 and Kindergarten for a great celebration. Don’t forget to bring your best smile for school photo day next Monday. Have a great weekend!
Miss Abigail Dobson

Year 6

Another wonderful week has absolutely flown by! Firstly we would like to thank the students of Year 6 for their beautiful participation in the Kinder Liturgy today and sharing with us their well written and superbly presented Kinder Buddy Speeches. It was very special to see the beaming faces of our buddies as they received their hand crafted buddy badges. Thank you to our family and friends for joining us today as we officially welcomed Kinder into our Joey’s family. In the classroom we have been just as busy! In English we have continued reading our class novel and completed relevant activities such as sequencing and summarising. In Grammar we have continued identifying main and subordinate clauses, while in Maths we have been learning about fractions in many forms, including equivalent fractions, improper fractions and mixed numbers. History has been very interesting as we took a look back at Federation and the significant figures in Australian history that helped shape our beautiful country all those years ago. Students have enjoyed completing an individual research task and writing a biography on their chosen figures and will share their findings with each other next lesson. Thank you all for another wonderful week, this term is certainly flying! 
Mrs Meichelle Schier, Mrs Jess Morrissey & Mrs Donna Colwell

ALTAR SERVERS

CANTEEN ROSTER

NOTICEBOARD

SYMPHONIA JUBILATE OUTBACK

Symphonia Jubilate Outback is an outback youth orchestra initiative which gives children in the bush a taste of what it is, through music, to play in an ensemble, listen attentively to a conductor and learn all the protocols that a real live orchestra uses in performance.

Rehearsals and performances will be held in the Gilgandra Public School Hall from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. on 25 March (Term 1), 6 May and 17 June (Term 2), 29 July and 9 September (Term 3) and an end of year concert and family sausage sizzle will be held on 4 November (Term 4).

A letter to parents is attached for further information and associated costs.  New students are asked to return the slip at the bottom of the letter to SJO directly or it can be dropped in to school.

COUNTRYSIDE COMPASSION & WELLNESS - COUNSELLING SERVICES

Please click on the below documents for information and referrals relating to counselling services available in Gilgandra.

ACTIVE AND CREATIVE KIDS VOUCHERS

The new Active and Creative Kids vouchers are now available, helping to make activities more affordable for eligible NSW families. 

Parents, guardians and carers of eligible school-aged children will be able to use two $50 vouchers per calendar year.

• Vouchers are available to those receiving Family Tax Benefit Part A, or Family Tax Benefit Part B, or both.
• Vouchers can be downloaded as a QR code and used toward either an eligible physical or creative activity.
• The $50 vouchers will be issued in Terms 1 and 3.
• Vouchers must be redeemed before their expiry date. 

For more information, visit Active and Creative Kids.