2024-08 Newsletter - Term 2 Week 5

From the Principal

As we enter the middle of Term 2, after a busy start to our term, we are seeing the onset of colder weather and an increase in illness across our school community. Although our classrooms are very warm and cosy we highly recommend that students remember to wear warmer clothing including their school jackets.

In our classrooms our students are diligently working through their assessments, showcasing their hard work and dedication. The teachers are in the process of writing student reports for the upcoming parent-teacher meetings.  

The collaboration between parents and teachers plays a crucial role in enhancing student learning and overall development. A strong parent-teacher partnership results in improved academic performance, enhanced motivation and engagement, consistent support and guidance and better behaviourial outcomes for all students.

By fostering a strong partnership, parents and teachers can create a supportive and enriching learning environment that helps students thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.

The Sacrament of First Holy Communion will be celebrated this weekend. This Sacrament marks a significant milestone in our students' spiritual journey, and we invite all families to join us in celebrating this joyous occasion.

Sacraments highlight the spiritual dimension of our students’ education and the strong community spirit that binds us together as a School and Parish community. We look forward to celebrating these special moments with you all throughout the year.

In Faith & Truth

Simone Taylor

Reflection - National Sorry Day 26th May 2024

On this National Sorry Day, we come together as a community to remember and honour the Stolen Generations and their families. We acknowledge the pain and suffering endured by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples due to past injustices.

Lord, we ask for your healing grace to be upon those who continue to feel the deep wounds of separation and loss. Grant us the courage to confront our history with honesty and compassion. May our hearts be open to reconciliation, and may we strive to create a future where respect, understanding, and justice prevail.

Help us to be instruments of your peace, advocating for equality and unity in our school, our community, and our nation. We pray for wisdom and strength to build a world where all people are valued and cherished.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Reflection:

The significance of National Sorry Day, a day to remember and acknowledge the mistreatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, particularly the Stolen Generations is a powerful reminder of our shared history and the importance of reconciliation.

As a Catholic school community, we are called to embrace the principles of justice, compassion, and love. The history of the Stolen Generations is a poignant chapter in Australia’s story, one that requires us to listen, learn, and understand the impact of these events on Indigenous communities.

Reconciliation is more than a word; it is a commitment to action. It involves acknowledging the truths of our past, apologising for the wrongs done, and actively working towards a future that respects and includes all cultures. By fostering an environment of empathy and solidarity, we can contribute to healing and building a more just and equitable society.

On this day, let us take a moment to reflect on how we can support reconciliation in our daily lives. Whether through education, advocacy, or simple acts of kindness and respect, each of us has a role to play in this important journey.

Let us pray for the strength to uphold these values and to work tirelessly towards a brighter, more inclusive future for all Australians.

First Eucharist 2024

We are delighted to congratulate Jack, James and John who are making their First Holy Communion this Sunday. This is a significant milestone in their spiritual journey, and we are proud of their dedication and preparation.

May this special occasion bring them closer to their faith and fill their hearts with joy and peace. We extend our warmest wishes to each student and their families on this memorable day.

All students and their families are invited to attend the Mass on Sunday at St Vincent’s Parish to share this wonderful experience with our students. We encourage all our school community to come along and support the boys.

Student Wellbeing

St Joseph's Portland has demonstrated outstanding results in student wellbeing. Their success is attributed to a considered approach that integrates wellbeing into learning through authentic student voice and the cultivation of safe environments anchored in positive relationships. By genuinely listening to students and fostering an atmosphere of trust and respect, St Joseph's Portland ensures that every student feels valued and supported. Ultimately, happy students are students who learn.

Year Six Religious Education Test 2024

Year Six will be undertaking the Catholic Diocese of Bathurst – Year Six Religious Education Test on Tuesday 18^th June 24. The students are currently completing practice tests and revising content in preparation for this in class. 

What's Happening in K/1/2

Looking around the room and through the children’s books over the last few weeks shows plenty of evidence that we have been very productive learning and practising skills in all areas of the curriculum.

Highlights include the following:

For National Simultaneous storytime this year we listened to the story, “Bowerbird Blues”, by Aura Parker. We also made some art to complement the story.

During English we were learning about how characters can be represented in different ways. We read a story called, “The March of the Ants”, by Ursula Dubosarsky &Tohby Riddle. The ants in this story were represented to be more like people than ants!

We thoroughly enjoyed the school excursion to BMEC and the adventure playground. We used our experience at the adventure playground to talk about the features of places. We linked this to the content in History and discovered that features can be Natural, Managed and Constructed.

What's Happening in 3/4

Rating our Crunch & Sip Fruits!

In the last couple of weeks, Year 3/4 have been very much enjoying a variety of different fruit, some of which they have never tried before such as passionfruit! For Daily Writing one day, we decided to enjoy the fruits in our fruit bowl and discuss what our thoughts were on each by giving them a rating out of 10.

Here’s what they had to say:

Noah

Red apple = 5/10 – because it’s not as good as green apple.

Cucumber = 20/10 – it’s so juicy and refreshing.

Orange = 0.1/10 if they’re from the shops, but if they’re home grown, they’re a 10/10. 

Passionfruit = 100/100 – I like it a lot but it’s a bit sour. It tastes like passion fruit tic tacs. 

Jack

Red apple = 2/10 - I don’t like it when it goes brown, it makes me get the shakies

Cucumber = 100/10 - it’s so juicy and I just love cucumber. Cucumbers are my friend.

Orange = if they’re from the shops 2/10, if they’re from my pops 1000/10. 

Passionfruit = 100/10 – it’s amazing, even the seeds. 

Edie

Red apple = 3.5/10 – it tastes weird and I prefer green apples. I like the sourness of green apple. 

Cucumber = 10/10 – they’re just so good because I like the crunch.

Orange = 9.5/10 – I love the sweetness.

Passionfruit = 0/10 – it’s just disgusting and gross by itself, I do like it on pavlova though. 

James H.

Red apple = 9/10 – they’re juicy and I like the crunch. I like that they taste like apple juice.

Cucumber = 101/10 – because the seeds and all the juice and the crunch are just SO GOOD.

Orange = 7/10 – when you peel it you get all the white stuff which I don’t like but when they’re cut up they’re delicious and juicy.

Passionfruit = 8/10 – it’s a little bit sour and it does taste alright, and the seeds are kind of good, but they waste space and I wish there was no seeds. 

Amitty

Red apple = 9.5/10 – it depends on the brand of apple. I love the Pink Lady and Royal Gala apples. I like them because they can get really juicy and the ones that aren’t bruised are the best.

Cucumber = 2/10 – I don’t like them because the skin is too sweet and a bit tangy. I do like them when I put them on my eyes like in the movies. 

Orange = 10.5/10 – because I love how orange they are and it’s always juicy and no matter how bruised it is it’s always good. 

Passionfruit = 9.5/10 – I love how it’s just the right tanginess and sweetness. 

Grace

Red apple = 9.5/10 – they’re really juicy and sweet. My favourite brand is Pink Lady.

Cucumber = 6/10 – because they are juicy and refreshing and they cool you down and are a great thing for summer.

Orange = 7.5/10 – because I love the flavour, but I don’t like the white bits.

Passionfruit = 6.5/10 – I like the tanginess and I think they are a good summer fruit, but I hated the seeds.

John 

Red apple = 10/10 – I like the ones that are hard and crunchy. Swirly apples are the best.

Cucumber = 0/10 – I tried it for the first time in class today and the outside is too crunchy, and the seeds muck it up. I don’t like that it is real soft in the middle and goes harder on the outside.

Orange = 100/100 because they’re just so good.

Passionfruit = a million/10 – because I love the seeds, I love the flavour, I love all the juice. I LOVE PASSIONFRUIT.

What's Happening in 5/6

The students have started the term very enthusiastically and produced some work that they can be very proud of. In between all the learning, we have also had some fun and interesting learning take place.

DRUMMING WITH JEMIMAH

Tying in with our Health, Wellbeing and Second Steps, Jemima (our school councillor) has been putting the students through various drumming activities that require excellent listening, cooperation and working as a team skills. What a lot of fun and noise!

ARTY SCIENCE

We have also completed various experiments to investigate the properties of liquids. The students used detergent to repel food colouring in milk to create a marbled effect. They also made a rainbow using jars of coloured water (red, yellow and blue) with paper towel inserted into each jar. The jars were left over the weekend and through the process of capillary action, the water transferred to the empty jars and combined the primary colours to create a rainbow. Capillary action is how the leaves of a plant get the water from the roots.

Diocesan Spelling Bee

We are incredibly proud of Grace and Parker who participated in the Diocesan Spelling Bee yesterday in wellington. Their hard work, dedication, and enthusiasm for learning were evident as they represented our school with excellence.

We congratulate them both  for their outstanding efforts and achievements. Their commitment to preparation for this competition was truly commendable. Both students progressed through the first seven round, which included unseen words. They finished their representation up on stage displaying their exceptional spelling ability, with Parker achieving runner up to the runner up.  Thank you Grace and Parker for representing St Joseph’s! You have made us all proud.

Well done, and keep up the great work!

Congratulation Miss Porter!

Congratulations Miss Porter on your graduation today! We are so very lucky to have you as part of our St Joseph’s family. A great teacher and fantastic Wellbeing Officer for our students. We hope you had a lovely day

Congratulations Annika!

Congratulations to Annika our School Based Trainee in Education Support, who has been selected as a finalist in the Western NSW School Based Trainee Awards. Annika has proven to be a valuable asset in our classrooms, building strong connections with our students. Annika has completed here interview with the selection panel and will be attending the awards night at Parkes next week.  Good luck Annika!

WOW - Thank you Portland SES

All students enjoyed the engaging presentation by our local Portland State emergency Service on WOW Day and  acknowledging their work by wearing Orange.

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the SES members who joined us for WOW Day. The presence of Paddy the Platypus and participation by the SES members made the day truly special and memorable for all students. Student were also very interested in viewing and learning about the SES Truck and the equipment used by the SES in times of an emergency.

We thanked the SES for their  dedication and service to our community. Their work is inspiring, and we are grateful for the time they took to share their knowledge and experiences with us. Thank you for making WOW Day a wonderful success!

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Sporting Clinics

All students enjoyed the opportunity to engage in Athletics and Rugby League lead by Hayden last week. 

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Student Reports and Parent Teacher Interviews

Academic Reports – Term 2 and Term 4

Reports indicating the progress students have made in academic and non-academic learning are issued to parents during (Semester 1) and at the conclusion (Semester 2) of the academic year.

Student achievement in each KLA is reported on using the standards-referenced approach of the Common Grade Scale. These reports are developed by class teachers through the Compass Student Management System.

Parent - Teacher Interviews

Communication between teachers and parents is both formal and informal. Formal opportunities for discussion are offered at the conclusion of each reporting period to allow parents/carers the opportunity to discuss their child’s report.

A compulsory parent/teacher interview is held with the classroom teacher in the middle of each year – Semester 1 reporting period.

DATES 2024:

Reports distributed : Friday 28^th June 24

Parent/Teacher Interviews :

Tuesday 2^nd/Wednesday 3^rd July

Additional Communication

Any additional communication regarding student progress at other times throughout the year, using both formal and informal means, is encouraged. This is generally directed by parents/carers communication through the school office as per the School Communication Policy.

Parents/carers who may have questions regarding their child’s progress are always encouraged to make an appointment with their child’s teacher or speak with the Principal directly to discuss any  questions or concerns they may have. 

Excursion to LHS - Mary Poppins the Musical

We have been invited to attend the Lithgow High School’s musical production of Mary Poppins Jnr on Wednesday 26^th June 2024.

All students from K-6 will attend this event, so please keep an eye out for information through the Parent Portal.The student’s will be transported by two smaller buses booked through the Wallerawang Recreation and Sports Club. We will also require some staff to transport a small number of students in their cars. This will reduce the expense of hiring a large bus.

Your Voice, Our Future Survey

The ‘Your Voice, Our Future’ survey is an opportunity for young people aged 14 to 24 to raise their voices, knowing that decision-makers will listen.

The survey will be used to inform decisions around the design of a new permanent voice for young people within the NSW Government.

We encourage young people across NSW to have their say. The survey can be found at https://bit.ly/YourVoiceOurFuture-NSW

Who are we: This survey has been developed by the Minister for Youth the Hon. Rose Jackson, MLC, the Advocate for Children and Young People (ACYP), and the Office for Regional Youth.

What do we do: We all work to make NSW a better place for young people. Our job is to listen to young people in NSW and share their views with decision-makers.

What is this survey about: We're going to ask about the issues young people face, what is not working well and how the NSW Government should support and better engage with young people aged 14 – 24 years. It is anonymous however there is an option for you to add your contact details if you would like to keep involved or go in a monthly draw to win a gift card of your choice up to the value of $250.

What we do with your answers: Our team reads every response that comes through. We summarise the results which we will share across the NSW Government to focus our work on the right things. We may also share the results with the general public so they can hear from you too. You will not be identified.

Please carefully read the information found here, the Privacy Statement and Competition Terms and Conditions to understand how and why we collect your personal information and invite you to provide us with your contact details.

Parish Information