St Joseph's Primary School Trafalgar eNewsletter

Dear Families

Welcome to Term 2! We started the term with a fantastic excursion on Tuesday to Sale. It was especially exciting travelling on the buses. We visited the Art Gallery for a tour of Annemieke Mein's exhibiton and we participated in a workshop with Meg, who is an artist who works at the Gallery. We also visited St Mary's Cathedral and Jeff from Catholic College Sale, gave us a tour of the Cathedral. We all learnt so much. It really was a great day of learning and everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. If you haven't ever been to the Art Gallery in Sale, I thoroughly recommend a visit. Meg tells me that each school holidays they run free workshops in the second week. This would be a great family free activity for the holidays.

The Easter Story

On the last day of term 1 we gathered in our church to remember The Easter Story. The senior students lead us in prayer in a meaningful and reflective way. We were all so proud of their presentation, they truly are great leaders. Thank you Mr P. and Gr 5 & 6. Here are some photos from their presentation...

ANZAC Day March and holiday

Next week on Thursday April 25th we celebrate ANZAC Day. It is a public holiday and we warmly invite families to join us in the local Trafalgar March. We meet at the pub at 10.45am to walk down Contingent Street towards the cenotaph. There will be a short service there where we will lay a wreath on behalf of our community. We ask that the students wear their school uniform to the March to represent us. We hope your family can join us.

ANZAC Day commemorates the landing at Gallipoli in 1915 where Australian and New Zealand soldiers bravely fought and died. We continue to remember them and we continue to pray for all those men and women who are serving our country in the Navy, Army and Air Force. We thank them and we pray for them and all who seek to bring freedom and peace to our troubled world.

Lord, we give thanks for the peace

and security we enjoy in our country.

We remember all who lost their lives in wars.

We especially remember the brave actions

of the men and women who

died at Gallipoli during World War 1.

We pray for the airmen, the soldiers and the sailors

who sacrificed their lives for our freedom.

We also pray for the families who lost loved ones.

Lord help us to remember that the sacrifices made in

battle have enabled us to enjoy our freedom today.

May we, too, be an instrument of your peace.

Give us the wisdom to help build a better world.

Amen.

OPEN DAY

Our Open Day is on Monday May 20th from 3pm to 5.30pm. Everyone is welcome to visit our school on this day. Our target audience is families with a child in kinder, so if you know anyone who has a kinder child, then you might like to tell them about our OPEN DAY. Signs will be going up on the highway and I will distribute advertising flyers to the kinders in the coming weeks. If you are able to help give the flyers out, then please let me know.

May God continue to bless and guide us in our learning.

Trish Mulqueen

St Joseph's School community welcomes Miss Kate to work in our school on Wednesdays each week.

"Hello my name is Kate O'Connor. I am looking forward to being part of the St Joseph's Primary School community working as a counsellor within the school. I currently also work two days a week at Sacred Heart Primary in Morwell as their school counsellor. I have six daughters aged 19 years down to 3 years old. I have recently worked with The Gippsland Centre against Sexual Assault as a counsellor with children and have 15 years experience in working with vulnerable families in the Latrobe Valley area. I am currently studying my Masters in Counselling, specialising in children's studies, and have previously completed my Bachelor in Social Science, with a major in Behavioural Studies. I love working with children and helping them to achieve their best. My favourite hobby is reading books and spending time with my family. I look forward to getting to know you all and I'm always open to any questions or suggestions."

CYBERSAFETY SERIES

Many of today’s parents grew up in a world devoid of technologies and often have little knowledge on how best to assist and guide their children. In today’s digital world, 90 percent of a child’s socialisation occurs online. As the range of social media platforms grows, so too does the opportunity for bullying and stalking. Often parents have no idea their child is a victim and kids are unlikely to report it for fear of losing access to their technology, which to them, is the equivalent of "social death”.

During Term 2 we are going to include a number of issues on Cybersafety. 1. Online Gaming 2. Managing Screen Time 3. Internet Addiction 4. Cyberbullying and 5. Sexting. Being informed helps us to make better parent decisions.

In this edition of SchoolTV - ONLINE GAMING

Games are an integral part of human behaviour. It is normal and healthy for young people to engage in play as a part of their daily lives, including playing games online. And like most activities, online gaming can have both positive and negative outcomes. It can be intimidating and confusing for carers trying to understand a young person’s online experiences with many considering that staring at a screen is an unhealthy habit. However, the World Health Organisation does believe that as well as the risks, there are also many positive benefits associated with online gaming and these could be key in nurturing bonds with others.

During the pandemic, there was an explosive growth of gaming as people sought much needed connection during isolation. In the media, gaming often gets bad publicity because most coverage tends to concentrate on the minority of gamers who play to such an extent that it compromises all other areas of their life. However, online gaming can teach young people many skills including teamwork, concentration, communication and problem-solving. It requires a level of interaction and skill from the player; unlike watching television, which is more passive.

Online communities provide opportunities for young people to feel socially connected and have a sense of belonging. At healthy levels, gaming can increase their self-esteem and social acceptance. However, any behaviour, when taken to extreme, can also have a negative impact on a young person’s everyday life. Understanding what your young person experiences online and knowing the warning signs if they are at risk, will help nurture a more positive relationship with online gaming and help your family find the right balance.

If you are concerned about your young person’s online gaming habits, it’s important to consider a number of factors. This edition will provide strategies in how to deal with any issues you may be experiencing.

We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this edition of SchoolTV and we always welcome your feedback. If you have any concerns about your child, please contact the school counsellor for further information or seek medical or professional help.

Here is the link to the Online Gaming edition of SchoolTV
https://trafalgar.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/online-gaming

Mother’s Day Stall

This year our Mother’s Day Stall will be held on either Thursday the 9th of May or Friday the 10th of May. There will also be a special Mother’s Day celebration on one of these days, but is yet to be confirmed.

Students will be able to purchase a gift for their Mum or other special lady in their life for either $5, $10, $15 or $20. We are also offering grandma/nana gifts for $10 or $15.

To ensure the Mother’s Day Stall runs smoothly and everyone is able to purchase a gift, please order and pay via CDF pay by Monday the 6th of May.

Weekly Lunch Orders

We will be offering a weekly lunch order each Thursday, starting from the 2nd of May. The lunch orders are through K Lee’s Kitchen at the Willow Grove general store.

Students have the option of a large box for $11 or a small box for $10.

The boxes include cut fruit and vegetables, cheese and crackers, a choice of sandwiches and a choice of either a muffin or yogurt. The boxes will be delivered at recess time as they include food for snack.

Please order and pay via CDF pay by Wednesday morning each week to receive a Thursday lunch order.

Pie Drive

We will be running a Pie Drive later this term through Yarragon Bakery. Order forms will be sent home in a few weeks.

Halloween Disco

This year we have decided to run our Halloween Disco at the end of term two on Thursday the 27th of June. It was a lot of fun last year and we are looking forward to it being another great night for the kids this year.

Parentzone offer a number of great short courses. Stay up to date by viewing this term's newsletter at

https://www.anglicarevic.org.au/about-us/newsletters/gippsland-parentzone-term-2-2024/

School Improvement is very important to us. Each year we ask teachers, students and parents to complete the Insight SRC Survey where you are asked a number of questions about our school. Your responses are collated by Insight SRC and this data is sent to the school. We reflect on the data and this helps to direct school improvement. What you think, absolutely matters. We will be completing the surveys in weeks 3 & 4 of this term. More information will come out to explain how to access the survey. Arrigato.

During this term we are promoting the Lions Club Public Speaking Competition. Students from grades 3,4,5 & 6 are encouraged to write a speech on a particular topic and present this speech to the school at the start of term 3. The topic for Gr 3 & 4 is ‘My Favourite Book Character or Fairytale Character’, this will be a 3-minute speech. Students from grades 5 and 6, have the topic ‘Who is the most influential person in my life?’, this requires the students to choose someone they know who they can interview and present their speech based on these interviews, this will be a 4-minute speech. This is a wonderful opportunity for the students if they would like to participate, however it is not compulsory. The students will write their speeches at home with assistance from parents, and school staff will check in regularly with the students who are participating.

Rubbish Warrior Competition 2024

The aim of the Rubbish Warrior competition is to reduce the amount of pastic wrapping and packaging by using containers for food. We are promoting healthy eating and healthy living, with a focus on looking after our environment. The winners of the Rubbish Warrior Competition in week 3 were F/1 and the winners of the Rubbish Warrior Competition in week 4 were Gr 1/2. Both classes have made and enjoyed healthy smoothies using The Smoothie Bike from West Gippsland Healthcare group.

Junior_Moe_Newborough_Baseball_Flyer_2024 _pdf 275.76 KB

School_Crossing_Information.pdf

School_Crossing_Information _pdf 107.88 KB

November

Tues 19 2. Interest Based Learning

Wed 20 Father's Group Parish Centre 5.30 to 6.30pm

Tues 26 3. Interest Based Learning

First Orientation Session for Foundation 2025

Fri 29 Gr 3/4 full day at Mill Valley Camp

December

Mon 2 to Fri 6 SWIMMING program

Tues 3 Second Orientation Session for Foundation 2025

Fri 6 3pm Advent Assembly and sending off Gr 6s

Tues 10 Third Orientation Session for Foundation 2025

Thurs 12 End of Year & Graduation Mass 2.15pm

Gr 6 Graduation

Fri 13 Gr 5 & 6 Fun Day

School Reports go out

Tues 17 Last day of school 1pm dismissal

Wed 18 to Fri 20 Planning days for 2025

2025

January

Tues 28 First day of school for teachers

Wed 29 & Thurs 30 Individual Testing Days

Fri 31 First day of school for all students

February

March

Fri 3 Student Free day (Staff Professional Learning in RE)