Term 3 Week 3 2024

For archived newsletters, please follow this link 

https://sjpslaurieton.schoolzineplus.com/archive

Year 5 Staffing Update

As many of you are aware, Ms. Josie Lulham will be commencing her maternity leave starting Monday, August 26th. We are incredibly excited for her and wish her all the best with the upcoming birth.

We are pleased to inform everyone that Mrs. Leanne Hyland has been appointed to cover Ms. Lulham's position during her maternity leave and will be the Year 5 teacher for the remainder of the year. Mrs Hyland is familiar to many of our students and families as she has been a key member of our casual teaching staff over the past few years.

We are confident that Mrs. Hyland's experience and familiarity with our school community will make the transition as smooth as possible for our Year 5 students.

Please join me in congratulating Mrs. Hyland on her new appointment and wishing Ms. Lulham the very best during this special time.

School Community Group Meeting Update

We are excited to share updates from this week's School Community Group (SCG) meeting. Firstly, we extend our thanks to Emma Hockham and Justine Reedy for their fantastic coordination of the Jam Jars fundraiser for Grandparents Day, which successfully raised approximately $400.00.

During this meeting, we also discussed the organisation and fundraising plans for the upcoming Soccer and Netball Gala Day and Father's Day events. These occasions are wonderful opportunities for our community to come together and support our school. We also acknowledged our Class Parents groups, who have been instrumental in welcoming new families and coordinating social events for their classes. 

Looking ahead, please mark your calendars for the next SCG meeting scheduled between October 28th and 30th. Once again, we will be conducting a poll to determine the most convenient day and time for our families, aiming to increase attendance. You can participate in the poll.  [here]. Additionally, the minutes from this week's meeting are available for review [here].

Saint Mary of the Cross Mackillop Feast Day

August 8 marks 115 years since St Mary died in North Sydney, where the Sisters of Saint Joseph, which she founded, are still based. At school, we celebrated with a beautiful liturgy led by Year 6 to remember Australia's only Catholic saint, St Mary of the Cross Mackillop, whose work led to the Catholic education system of today. St Joseph’s Laurieton was founded in Kendall in 1952 by the Sisters of St Joseph as ‘St Joseph’s Community School’. The school building (now used by ASPIRE for before and after-school care) was moved to Laurieton in 1977. Sr Frances Slack was St Joseph’s last sister to work in our school, retiring a few years ago.
Below is a photograph of the first students of St. Joseph’s Community School, Laurieton in 1977.

Bravehearts

On Thursday, our K-2 students participated in the Bravehearts presentation. Bravehearts is a non-profit organization that teaches children about personal safety. It seeks to protect and empower children through education. A booklet was sent home to families, and more information can be found on the Bravehearts website.

Parent Assembly Update - Emotional Intelligence Workshop

On Thursday Janita from Parent Assembly joined to us to run an Emotional Intelligence workshop for interested families. As usual with Parent Assembly workshops, the session was highly regarded by all families who attended. Everyone seemed to walk away with an insight into how to support their child better, including naming emotions and coaching children through emotions such as anger and fear.

We also have some wonderful news! We now have not just one Parent Assembly representative, but three. Janita met with our new representatives, Justine Reedy, Hayley Guffogg and Emma Hockham to look at the opportunities the Parent Assembly can offer and we have already booked in another parent workshop on ‘Puberty’ open to all families. Keep an eye out for this being advertised for early in Term 4.

Non - Attendance 

The Diocese of Lismore Catholic Schools have updated the procedures for monitoring and supporting schools to promote student attendance. Every school day builds upon the previous one, making it essential for students to attend regularly. Regular attendance is crucial as it fosters resilience and enables students to form vital social connections. Across all NSW education systems  the expected level of student attendance is above 95%, and we aim to support all of our students to achieve this. 

If your child’s attendance is below 90% you may receive a COMPASS communication in the coming weeks. We acknowledge that there may be many reasons for absences and you may have already provided information to the school about why your child has been away. However, this communication is to ensure all parents are aware that their child’s attendance is currently at or under 90%. 

We believe that by working together, we can ensure that every student has the opportunity to succeed. Please ensure you contact the school if you would like any support with your child’s attendance. 

Best wishes from the leadership team 

	Mr Rick Galvin Principal
	Mrs Maria Wilson Assistant Principal Mission
	Mrs Jessica Koenig  Assistant Principal Learning and Teaching

Compass Events

Speech and Drama 

Year 5/6 Camp deposit 

Stage 1 excursion 

Year 5&6 Todd Woodbridge will be sent next week.

Please note we are waiting on Tennis NSW to confirm if we are allowed 3 teams for the Year 5&6 Todd Woodbridge Cup. We have 28 students nominate but may only be able to take 16-18 students. The date has also changed for the stage 3 event. It is now Monday 19th August.

Father's Day Fundraiser

Consent and online boundaries 

The Council of Catholic Schools Parents is hosting a FREE webinar in collaboration with the eSafety Commissioner on Tuesday, 20 August at 7.30pm.

Please share this flyer and the direct link to register https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/1244428795787444059 with your parent/carer community.

Understanding how to support your child with online gaming
Suitable for parents and carers of children and young people in primary and early secondary school.
Tuesday, 30 July, 12.30pm
Tuesday, 3 September, 12.30pm
Register here

Consent and online boundaries: How to support your primary-aged child
Suitable for parents and carers of children in primary school.
Tuesday, 13 August, 12.30 pm
Wednesday, 11 September, 12.30 pm
Register here

An introduction to online safety and emerging technologies
Suitable for parents and carers of children and parents in primary and secondary school.
Wednesday, 24 July, 2.30pm
Thursday, 5 September, 12.30pm
Register here

We are all very excited to announce that we will be putting together this year bi-annual Creative Arts Showcase! This is a whole school performance where all students from kindergarten to year 6 are involved in dancing, singing, acting and art displays as we showcase our student’s talents, interests and learning in the Creative Arts. We have performed many memorable Productions in past years. This year, we will have a range of performances and art on display around the theme of ‘celebrating cultural influences from around the world’. This theme is inspired by some of the many cultures we have within our school community and the unity and celebration of the Olympics. Each class will be performing a dance that has been influenced by a culture or style from somewhere in the world. Drama and dance performances selected from our Eisteddfod competition teams as well as our Choir and Digi kids will also perform. An art exhibition of a similar theme will be on display and all the behind the scenes will be coordinated by our Year 6 students. Our Performances are always an exciting time for our students, families and the wider community to be entertained and see what an incredibly talented and joyous bunch of students we have! The shows will be during week 9 of this term. 

Monday 16th and Tuesday 17th September: Whole School rehearsals

Wednesday 18th September: Matinee Show 12pm

Thursday 19th September: Afternoon Show 3:30pm and Evening Show 5:30pm

We require all students to be available for these rehearsals and show performances so please make sure you let your classroom teacher know if your child is going to be unavailable for any reason.

Tickets will be available for each show from week 5 at a cost of $10 each. This covers some of the cost of costumes, props, staging, and lighting hire. All parents and extended friends and family are invited to attend. We offer complimentary special invitation tickets to our new Kindergarten students, parishioners, preschoolers, nursing home residents, and some special guests to particular shows. Stay tuned for more updates along the way.

Yours in Creative Arts 

Jessica Koenig 

*Further dates will be advised via Compass or Schoolzine. Please contact your class parent/s for more information on social activity.

2024 CLASS PARENTS

All Dads: Tony Maher (Artie Year 1) 

K: Irene Santi, Taliska Arentsen, Katie Barker 

1: Rachel deVries, Emma Hockham. Justine Reedy, Tony Maher

2: Lyndelle Lee, Emily Fogg, Katie Barker

3: Lou Roberts, Emma Hockham, Aaron Jackson, Erin Elliot, Katie Barker, Brooke Hudson

4: Erin Richards, Lyndelle Lee, Hayley Guffogg

5: Tamara Romer, Rachel deVries, Emily Fogg

6: Brooke Hudson. Michelle Latham, Chaney Boyle

School Leadership Contact: Fiona Hayward

Knowledgeable Others (for support to new class parents): Brooke Hudson and Michelle Latham