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Dear Lord,
We ask you to bless St Joseph's School Community.
We pray that you guide us to be just and to see,
listen, speak and act like St Joseph.
May we be inspired by our Founders
to be the best that we can be.
May we always keep Jesus at the centre of all we do.
St Emilie Pray for us
St Marcellin Pray for us
St Joseph Pray for us
And may we always remember to pray for one another.
AMEN
Year 6 Camp
Our Year 6 students enjoyed three fabulous days away at camp this week.
I am pleased to say that their behaviour was outstanding and everyone had a go at all of the challenging activities.
I would like to extend an enormous thank you to the staff who gave up their time away from their own families to take the students away – Mrs Christian, Mrs Rodgers, Mr Watson, Ms Hince and Mr Natkanski.
Chicken Pox
An email was sent to all families on Tuesday to inform you that there has been an increasing number of Chicken Pox cases reported to the school. Both campuses have been impacted. If you suspect your child has been infected, you need to either present to a GP or ring the surgery to report it as it is a reportable disease and must be reported to the Health Department.
Holy Communion
On Sunday 28th August, many of our Year 4 students received their first Holy Communion. Congratulations to these students and a very grateful thanks to their teachers and also to Kathy Pollard for their preparation.
ACC Athletics
Toiletries Drive
St Joseph’s School has partnered with Share and Care to help in as many ways as we can. A class of Year 9 students is visiting with a group of elderly citizens on a regular basis, staff volunteered during our recent staff service day and we are also going to help to collect toiletries which will be used to distribute to those who are homeless or in need.
Families are asked to consider purchasing some extra toiletry items when they shop during the next couple of weeks. Every little bit helps!
Secondary Homerooms will have a container in each room and Primary students will be able to drop off their donations in a box placed in the Admin Office.
Items needed: Toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, conditioner, roll on deodorant, body wash, soap, shavers and shaving cream.
We thank you for your generosity.
School based procedures and Parent Handbook
We have finally finished rolling over our old school policies into what are now school-based procedures. These are in line with CEWA’s Executive Directives which are the policy statements we are bound by. These can all be found on our school website.
The Parent Handbook has also been updated to reflect the changes. This document can be found on our website at the following link: https://sjsnortham.wa.edu.au/images/2022_Parent_Handbook.pdf
School Advisory Council
We are searching for new members to the School Advisory Council. We are particularly looking for people who have an interest in building/maintenance to help work on a sub-committee with the Principal and the Business Manager. These people do not have to be a parent at the school; they can be a grandparent, relative or friend. If you or someone you know has an interest in finding out more about the role, please email Andrea Woodgate at andrea.woodgate@cewa.edu.au or Andrew O’Sullivan at hostautos@westnet.com.au
2023 Planning
We are planning now for the 2023 school year and as we do this, we take into account our class size numbers when allocating staff to subjects and classes. This is also the time when we would like to let those on our waiting lists know whether they are likely to have a place for the following year.
If you are planning to withdraw your child at the end of this year and place them into another school, we ask that you complete the attached form so that we can factor these students into our planning. If your child is staying at St Joseph's School then you DO NOT need to complete the form.
It is a requirement that you let the School know, in writing, that you will be withdrawing your child. By completing this form, you will not need to send another form of notification - 2023 Destination Form.
Dates for your diary
14-16 September Year 11 Camp
14 September Year 6 Camino Cabagniol
16 September NSSA Primary Athletics Carnival
16 September P&F Movie Night
21 September Year 4 Excursion Fremantle Prison
22 September Year 12 Final Day
Have a wonderful weekend.
God Bless
Andrea Woodgate
Principal
Camino Cabagniol
On Tuesday August 30 the Year 9’s embarked on their leg of the Camino Cabagniol by walking from Wooroloo to Stoneville along the Kep Track. The journey was a length of 21.7 km and named ‘The Jordan’ after St Joseph’s School Northam’s first Headmistress, Sister Columba Jordan.
Students enjoyed fantastic weather conditions and relished in the opportunity to push on with the distance despite developing tired legs. The Year 9’s also appreciated the story involved within the walk and the opportunity to journey with peers.
We thank the staff, parent volunteers and Br Joe Hughes for helping facilitate the day.
Weekly Gospel Reflection
Please view the Gospel reflection for this week.
This week's clip has a focus on 'Loving God 1st'
Lloyd Reidy
Religious Education Teacher
Parish Sacramental Program
The Parish Sacramental Program Coordinator, Mrs Kathy Pollard, wishes to advise families that the Parish is considering holding the Commitment Ceremony for each Sacrament prior to or at the first parent/student workshop. If you have any queries regarding the Sacramental Program, please contact Kathy on 0429 685 632.
Head of Primary
Dear Families & Friends,
This week I have had the pleasure of attending Year 6 Camp at Woodman Point, Coogee. Our Year 6 students showed resilience and understanding when their camp was postponed in Term One due to COVID restrictions, and although we didn’t have the warmth of summer, we had clear skies throughout the week. Students and staff have participated in activities such zip-lining, coastal mountain bike riding, rock climbing and archery. Thank you to Mr Watson, Mrs Rodgers, Mr Natkanski and Ms Hince for their amazing energy and for looking after our students so well on camp.
To our Year 6 students, thank you for your outstanding behaviour, great attitudes and for being willing to give everything a go. You represented St Joseph’s so well.
First Holy Communion
Congratulations to the students who celebrated their First Holy Communion last weekend. Thank you to Mrs Golding, Mr Ewing and Mr Reidy for preparing our students so well. Thank you also to Sr Ana, Sr Glory, Mrs Pollard and all of the Parish volunteers for making the celebration so special for our students.
Junior Athletics Carnival
On Wednesday August 31, the sun was shining and we held our Junior Athletics Carnival. Thank you to our Kindy to Year 3 students for their great sportsmanship and energy, and congratulations to Lenihan House who won the carnival. Thank you to Ms Frost for her wonderful organisation of the carnival and to Mrs Sandrini and her amazing Canteen volunteers for such a delicious lunch.
May you all have a lovely week ahead.
Michelle Christian
Head of Primary
Class in Focus: Year 5 Gold
Term 3 started off with a major classroom reorganisation as the students requested the mat be moved to the back and that ‘mat time’ be turned into ‘desk time.’ The mat is now the reading/deconstruction zone, and the students have been enjoying being able to stretch their legs a little more during instruction times.
Aside from this change, Term 3 has been a busy time with Book Week, the Athletics Carnival and Father’s Day events. For Father’s Day, the students had a great time preparing their ‘Father’s Day Report Cards,’ in which the important men in their lives often scored well for cooking, and less well for cleaning! To honour this, we made a big mess in the classroom preparing a BBQ spice rub that our dads could use to show their skill on the grill.
Our Science focus for the term is Space, in which we are learning about the planets, the sun and moon, and to support this our two focus texts for Writing have been a Star Wars action text, and a discussion text regarding whether we should all move to Mars. Students have been learning to engage with both sides of the issue, consider all the reasons for and against, and then come to a balanced conclusion. Parents should watch out before engaging in a discussion with our Year 5’s!
In Mathematics we have been working hard on our basic skills of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Alongside our times tables speed tests, we have been learning mental strategies for larger addition and subtraction problems and are now moving onto completing patterns and missing-number equations. This should prepare students for algebra in the coming years.
In Humanities and Social Science, we have embarked on a new topic for our students; Business and Economics. Our learning has been focused around basic but important concepts that will underpin all understanding in this area such as needs vs wants, scarcity, opportunity cost and choice. We will finish off the term by learning some strategies for making informed financial decisions and creating a simple budget for owning our dream pets. Who knows, perhaps there is room in the budget for that pony after all!
It has been a wonderful term so far, and we are looking forward to the rest of the year, especially with Year 5 camp on the horizon.
Peter Matthys
Year 5 Gold Teacher
Class in Focus: Pre Primary Blue
Can you believe it is Week 9 already? The Pre-Primary children have had a busy Term 3. Our theme this term is “Farm” and the children have had a wealth of knowledge to share with each other around the topic. Over the past nine weeks we have explored several different farming enterprises. During these investigations we have used our knowledge of 2D shapes to make chickens, draw cows and build tractors. Next week, we are headed to The Cuddly Animal Farm for our excursion. I am sure the children will love it! Each day the children are exploring the world of farming and how it interacts in our lives through the play areas within our classroom. And after a hard day of work and play some have been found under the classroom tree having a quiet read of a book.
In Literacy, we are continuing to learn our sounds and are using this knowledge to independently read and write words. For Talk 4 Writing we have been exploring the story of “The Gingerbread Man” and the children have demonstrated some fabulous retells of the story. We are very proud of their achievements! As a part of ‘Book Week’ we joined with PP Gold to make a collage of the story ‘Walk of the Whales’. All children participated in making the poster-sized collage and I think it looks amazing! Students also took the initiative to go out in groups during their investigation time to pick up rubbish around the school, just like the whales in the story would like us to do in the ocean.
During Mathematics, we have been learning how to subtract, sharing equal parts, sequencing daily events and days of the week, and are currently exploring 3D shapes. In Science, we have been discovering weather and the seasons and how they affect our daily lives.
Kym McCarthy
Pre-Primary Blue Teacher
Head of Secondary
Education Assistant Appreciation Week
Thank you so much to all of our Education Assistants for all of the work you do to ensure that all of our students feel valued and able to achieve. Whether it is putting together all of the equipment needed for a 'Starch and Glucose' experiment in Year 9 Science, assisting students to create the creative cakes we saw last week or helping our students with learning difficulties to complete an English essay. As teachers, having you in the classroom makes our job that little bit easier knowing we can rely on you to support us.
Department of Veteran Affairs
If your Year 12 child has a parent or a grandparent who served in the Australian Defence Force, they may be eligible to apply for a scholarship to help with university or TAFE fees. Details below.
Mental Health Week
This week the student leaders have been working hard to increase the awareness of Mental Health for our students. They have a wristband that they are all wearing for the week and receive House Points for each day they remember to wear them. Students are creating the iconic, ‘Blue Tree’ on the wall outside one of our classrooms from their handprints. Activities such as meditation, yoga and dancing are happening at lunchtime. Well done to the student leaders for taking on this massive issue.
Thank you to Audrey Carroll from Zero to Hero, Years 9 and 10 students and Casey Walton from Headspace who visited the school this afternoon and spoke to our Years 7 and 8 students. The information in the Zero to Hero presentation was interesting, especially coming from one of our ex-students. Camp Hero is a leadership camp which hosts 40 of Western Australia’s most inspiring Year 9 to Year 12 students. The camp is facilitated by WA-based not-for-profit organisation zero2hero.
Camp Hero equips students with the skills required to become mental health leaders and ambassadors in their community. Our team of experienced mentors and facilitators will assist students in developing their understanding of the mental health arena through a series of specialised workshops and activities. Students will be encouraged to physically challenge themselves whilst at the same time learning how to communicate more proficiently and how best to care for themselves.
We can’t wait to find out how many students sign up for the Zero to Hero Camps next year.
Headspace is dedicated to improving the mental health and wellbeing outcomes of children, young people, families, and school communities. Their programs and initiatives are designed to support the mental health and wellbeing of school communities through evidence-based mental health promotion, prevention, early intervention and postvention services.
ACC Athletics Carnival
Congratulations to the St Joseph’s students for their successes at the ACC Athletics Carnival last Friday. It was so good to be able to watch the live stream and feel like we were right there supporting you as you competed. Thank you to our wonderful staff who took our amazing students to the carnival and all the hard work they have put into training and preparing them for the event.
Lately we are hearing that a number of students have been creating and accessing the social media platform Instagram. Students are using the SJS logo and copying photos of fellow students and putting them on this site, where they invite others to rate them. This is really hurtful behaviour. Can I please encourage you to check your child’s social media sites and delete any inappropriate posts? Social media is one of the areas where we need to work together in order to protect our children.
Warm regards
Sharon Cusack
Head of Secondary
Learning Areas in Focus:
Year 11 Food Science & Technology
Bake Off Competition
On Friday August 19 the Year 11 Food Science & Technology class competed in the Bake off Competition. We had some fabulous entries and the students worked so hard to prepare their cake in one lesson and decorate over the next 2 periods. They were judged on appearance, texture, flavour and creativity by 5 senior staff judges and some Year 12 students.
Well done to all the students involved and congratulations to Jessie Clarke for working on her own and producing a very creative cake.
Carol Farson
Food Science and Technology
From the VET Office
Student Successes
Congratulations to Jessie Clarke and Quinn McEwan Robertson who completed 55 hours of Workplace Learning this term. Workplace Learning occurs when a student’s program includes the individual student spending a period of time in a workplace under the direct supervision of an employer in order to acquire generic and transferable and/or specific work skills. Thank you to Toodyay Early Learning Centre and Northam Natural Health Studio for hosting our students.
Caroline Marriott
VET Co-ordinator
Science in Focus
Secondary da Vinci Club
A group of students are learning about DNA, how it is made up and how we can separate it for use in analysis processes.
The group will also carry out fingerprinting techniques also known as DNA profiling, a forensic technique in criminal investigations, comparing criminal suspects' profiles to DNA evidence so as to assess the likelihood of their involvement in the crime. It is also used in paternity testing, to establish immigration eligibility, and in genealogical and medical research. DNA profiling can also be used in the study of animal and plant populations in the fields of zoology, botany, and agriculture.
With the assistance of a couple of Year 11 students who trained in these techniques last year at UWA, our da Vinci group will also look at DNA Barcoding, which is a system for fast and accurate species identification. It makes ecological systems more accessible by using short DNA sequence instead of whole genome and is used for simple and more complex cells.
Our da Vinci Club astronomy group along with our Year 11 Physics students successfully completed the UWA Spirit telescope training. These telescopes, which our students have used previously, have been relocated away from UWA and are now situated in a low-light regional environment in Mardella, south-east of Perth.
The session was conducted by two staff from UWA, who outlined the process for identifying and selecting astronomical targets and then the process for logging in and taking a series of images, while live viewing, with our group finishing the training at 7.30 pm.
Our students will be able to download their images and utilise a range of software, including Photoshop to create a colour image of their selected object. All students successfully completed the training and are now for the next few weeks moving onto compiling and enhancing their colour image. We are looking forward to further astrophotography opportunities using the four remote robotic telescopes and viewing the completed images in the near future. Thank you to Paul and Melissa from UWA for travelling to our school to provide this after-school workshop for our students and staff.
Mark Gargano
Teaching & Learning Coordinator Years 7-12
Secondary Sporting News
Sports Achievement for Weeks 5 & 6
Congratulation to Lily Parker!
Lily was a standout at the annual Meckering cross country event for 2022. She competed in the Year 9/10 girls race, winning the 3km event with a time of 12:20. In the afternoon she then competed in the Open Girl's race, winning the 4km event in a time of 17:33. This is Lily’s second Sports Achievement award after she came fifth at the ACC cross country event - well done to a very talented athlete!
Adrienne Suckling
Secondary Sports Coordinator
School Calendar
We advise the school community that the 2022 School Calendar on the website is still a work in progress. In the meantime, a PDF version of the 2022 Term by Term calendar is available from the Class Information page and also attached to the newsletter. https://sjsnortham.schoolzineplus.com/calendar
There have been several events updated since Term 3 commenced, and you are encouraged to check this for upcoming events that may involve your family.
Andrea Woodgate
School Community News
Northam Lawn Tennis Club Junior Tennis Coaching
Enrolments now open for Junior Tennis Coaching Sessions which will take place at the Northam Country Club on Wood Drive each Wednesday afternoon beginning in early October 2022. Lessons cater for all ability and ages from 4 to 18 years and are conducted in small groups with experienced coaches from Frontier Tennis, who travel from Perth each week. Groups will be set up dependent on ability, ages, enrolment numbers, and coordinator and coach decisions.
Coaching groups will be finalised during the school holidays and notifications sent soon after. Placement cannot be guaranteed if a session group is already at capacity at time of enrolling. Enrolment forms are available via email: karthur22@bigpond.com and completed forms should be emailed back to karthur22@bigpond.com by Friday 23 September.
Opening Times: Mondays - 3.15pm to 4.45pm
Thursdays - 2.45pm to 4.15pm
Families wishing to access the Uniform Shop are advised that the online shop is the preferred method of ordering uniforms. If items are required to be tried on, then an appointment should be made by contacting the Primary Admin on 9621 3500. We are continuing to limit numbers in the Uniform Shop so an appointment is preferred. Please note we can not accept email or telephone orders.
Please also keep in mind when ordering, that your items will go home Tuesday and Friday of each week, as Monday and Thursday are the days the Shop is open. When placing an order via the Online Shop, it will appear on a report the following day. For example; if you place your order on Monday, the report issues on Tuesday which means it will not be organised until Thursday, and will go home on Friday.
Michelle James
Primary - 9621 3524
Canteen Support - Volunteers Required
We are looking forward to changing over to our Summer Menu in Term 4 so make sure you check this menu before ordering next term.
IMPORTANT PRIMARY CANTEEN WILL BE CLOSED ON SEPTEMBER 22 AND SEPTEMBER 23, 2022
These are the last 2 days of school. Please ensure that your child has lunch on these dates.
The Primary Canteen continues to operate with the Winter Menu with Soup added to the Friday options. With next term's new menu being planned, this is the last chance to try yummy winter food.
You are encouraged to check out the daily options before ordering lunches. If we experience connectivity issues with the online ordering, please revert to using lunch bags to place orders for that day.
Recess or snack items ordered online are available for students to collect from the Canteen at their Recess break. Milo pops and icypoles can be collected from the Canteen following the second lunch bell.
Due to high demand on our quality food and service with record numbers of lunches being ordered, we need helpers to ensure that our kids get their lunches on time.
In order to function to our highest potential, we ideally need 2 or more canteen volunteers a day.
Volunteering is a great way to teach your kids about giving, modelling them for the future. Also, every shift you do at our School helps you towards qualifying for a Parent Participation discount on your annual fees. We would love to welcome you into our fun, and busy environment and see the smiles on your children’s faces when they see you in their school.
This year is a busy year and we would love to have some new faces in our canteen. If you are able help, please sign up online at https://signup.com/go/xTdBXsh
Our Primary Canteen Helper Roster for the next two weeks of Term 3 is below. No helpers are booked for next week. Volunteers are urgently needed so please consider offering an hour or two one morning.
Primary - Week 9
| Tuesday | 13/09 | HELPERS NEEDED | |
| Wednesday | 14/09 | HELPERS NEEDED | |
| Thursday | 15/09 | HELPERS NEEDED | |
| Friday | 16/09 | HELPERS NEEDED | Soup of the day: Chicken and Sweet Corn |
Primary - Week 10
| Tuesday | 20/9 | Lisa Hasson | |
| Wednesday | 21/9 | HELPERS NEEDED | |
| Thursday | 22/09 | CLOSED | |
| Friday | 23/09 | CLOSED |
I look forward to working with you. If you have any queries, you are always welcome to contact the Canteen on the number below.
Angela Sandrini
Canteen - 9621 3525
Parish Priest - Fr George James
Assistant Priest - Fr Konrad Gagatek
Mass Times ~ Saturday Vigil @ 5.30pm
~ Sunday Mass @ 8.00am
Presbytery Phone: 08 9622 5411
Email: northamcatholicchurch@iinet.net.au
Website: www.northamchurch.com
Parish News ~ Children's Liturgy
Children’s Liturgy sessions are held during the 8.00am Sunday Mass.
School Family Night
Next Friday September 16, we will be holding a free Family Movie Night at our Secondary campus grassed area near the new classroom off Duke Street. This will replace our annual Family Games Night run by the School Chaplaincy Worker this year. This is a great opportunity for us to finally come together as a whole school community after the last two years. Entry will be from 6.00pm, with a 6.30pm sharp start. You are welcome to bring blankets and pillows to sit on, or low lying chairs – if you wish to bring a camp chair, we ask you to position yourself at the back of the grassed area. This event will be a BYO food and drinks, and we will have a popcorn and fairy floss station available. More details are to come during the week – including the reveal of the movie!
Lauren Holten
President
NOTICEBOARD