St Joseph's Primary School Trafalgar eNewsletter

Dear Families

A Prayer for Term 3

Dear God,
Thank You for the holidays and the fun we had.
Now we are back at school, ready to learn and grow.

Help us to listen with kind hearts,
to try our best in all we do,
and to care for our friends and teachers.

Guide us through Term 3 with joy and curiosity.
May we discover new things,
share happy moments,
and shine with Your love every day.

Amen.

St Joseph’s Students Shine in ‘Around the World in Grandma’s Dreams’ Production

St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School recently delighted audiences with its outstanding school concert, Around the World in Grandma’s Dreams. This original production was a collaborative effort, with the script creatively developed by staff and senior students.

Music teacher Ms Raelee Hill took on the roles of producer and director, bringing the story to life with great energy and passion. She was expertly supported by Naomi Blackman, who led the choreography and helped shape the overall presentation.

The performance, held at the Lowanna College Auditorium, was a true showcase of the students’ talent and hard work. It was a memorable evening of storytelling, song, and dance that left both performers and audience members proud and inspired.

Grandparent's Celebration

Book Fair

This year we are running the Book Fair in week 3. It will be set up in room 2 and the classes will visit the Book Fair on Monday August 4th. The Book Fair will be open for business on Tues Aug 5th and Wed Aug 6th in the mornings from 8.30am to 9am, and again in the afternoons, from 3.30 to 4pm. You certainly don't have to purchase books from the Book Fair, but there are some great books for reasonable prices and the school receives a commission on the sales, which we then use for books for the children to read in class.

Book_Fair_Poster.pdf

Book_Fair_Poster _pdf 1.27 MB

Marist Sports Day

On Wed Aug 27 our Gr 5 & 6 students will travel to Marist Sion College in Warragul to participate in a sports day with senior students from St Angela's Warragul, St Joseph's Warragul, St Ita's Drouin and Columba Catholic Primary School in Bunyip. We are presently working out our teams and will be practising in the coming weeks.

Families are welcome to come and support us on the day.

Parent / Teacher / Student Interviews

On Fri Aug 29th we will be conducting Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews during the day. This is an opportunity for you to talk about your child's learning at school with their teacher. We are presently organising the admin side of these interviews and the information about how to book your time slot, will be on the next newsletter. For now, you could mark this important event on your calendar.

Mini Vinnies Fundraiser

In week 3 on Friday August 8th, our Mini Vinnies Team are organising a BIG fundraiser. Everyone is welcome to come in casual clothes for a gold coin donation. They are also organising a Sausage Sizzle Lunch that you can order on CDFpay ($3 for a sausage in bread and a Prima. Additional sausages are $2). The team will cook and deliver the sausages to the classrooms. They will put all the money together, and then give half of it to the Mary MacKillop Foundation (it is St Mary of the Cross' Feast Day) and the other half goes to the Opening the Doors Foundation (which supports First Nation Australians in Catholic Education). On this same day, we will all gather in our church at 3pm to celebrate Mary MacKillop's feast day, Mary is Australia's first Saint. Everyone is welcome.

Assemblies

We meet every Monday afternoon at 3.15pm to sing our National Anthem and give out our awards and Birthday certificates. Additionally, twice a term on a Friday afternoon our classes present their learning at Special Assemblies. This term Gr 1/2 are presenting their Assembly on Friday August 15th at 3pm and then F/1 class are presenting their Assembly on Friday September 12th at 3pm in the Mary MacKillop Room. Everyone is welcome!

Mini Vinnies Talent Show

This year's Talent Show will be in week 5 on Thursday August 21st at 2pm. It is $2 per student, per entry and it is $2 for each student to watch the Talent Show. It is $5 for adults to attend the Show and toddlers are free. We encourage students to enter the Show either individually or with others. Perhaps you could talk to your child about the possibility of entering the Talent Show and support them in preparing an item to perform. It usually is a wonderful event. The judges will decide a 1st, 2nd & 3rd prize in 2 age groups: F/1/2 and then Grs 3/4/5/6.

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

Trish Mulqueen

Book Week 2025 – Book an Adventure!

Get ready to celebrate the joy of reading during Book Week 2025 with this year’s exciting theme: Book an Adventure!

On Friday, August 22, students are invited to come dressed as their favourite book character for our annual Dress Up Day. We’ll begin the day with a Book Parade at 9am in the Mary MacKillop Room, and we warmly welcome all families to come along and enjoy the fun.

It’s a wonderful way to bring books to life and share in the adventure of storytelling. We can’t wait to see everyone’s creative costumes and celebrate our love of reading together!

When kids feel sad, irritable or anxious most of the time, this is not considered a ‘normal’ part of adolescence. Depression may be indicated by uncharacteristic behaviour such as social withdrawal, changes to academic performance, use of drugs or alcohol, or even engaging in risky behaviour. The symptoms and signs are a combination of what a parent can see externally, plus what a child is feeling internally.

Every child can feel sad or down in response to a particular situation. However, these feelings should only last a short time and should not interfere with a child’s day-to-day activities. Should the sadness continue for longer than two weeks, then your child could be at risk of depression. This is more than just sadness, it is a serious health problem with no singular cause. Usually depression is the result of a combination of things.

In this edition of SchoolTV parents will learn how identify the signs of depression and what the effects are on their child’s wellbeing and overall health.

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 Depression edition of SchoolTV
https://trafalgar.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/depression

2025 School Advisory Committee Members are: Brett Hicks, Scott McCartin, Lauren Baldassa, Taryn Maxwell-Garratt, Fr Bernard Buckley, Kate Westbury, Megan Shiels and Trish Mulqueen. The Committee met on Wed June 18^th 2025.

School and Parish connection was discussed with the success of the ‘King of Kings’ Film Event being highlighted. We have also celebrated the Sacraments of Reconciliation, Eucharist and Confirmation this year. The growing numbers of Our After School Hours Care program run by ‘Their Care’ was discussed. The continued work of the P&F was recognised with the recent Pie Drive being promoted. Child Safety is always discussed at these meetings and the new building project to extend the staff room and toilets, was addressed. The Committee reviewed the Parent, Guardian and Carer Code of Conduct which aims to build respectful relationships all the time. Parent’s can’t go and talk to another person’s child about a school incident, they must speak to the teacher or principal. School incidents are always followed up by staff.

The School Advisory Committee meets again on Wed Aug 6^th at 5.30pm. If you would like anything discussed at the School Advisory Committee, please see one of our members.

This year the public speaking competition is on Wed Aug 13 at 11.30 at school.

Year 3 & 4 topic: Creative Invention. If you could invent something new, what would it be? Tell us about it. What is it made of? What is it for? How could it be used? Who would use it? (duration 3 mins)

Year 5 & 6 topic: Technology. The impact of fast moving technology on our lives and the environment is often overlooked yet it can be very significant. Is technology moving too fast for humans to keep up with? Choose any technology you are aware of, eg smart phones, social media, artificial intelligence, etc (duration 4 mins)

All senior students are encouraged to enter the competition. We have asked the students who would like to enter. If your child wants to enter, we encourage you to help and support your child to write the speech. We will check in with your child and support them further by giving feedback and some time to practise at school. This really is a fantastic learning opportunity for your child and we really encourage participation.

July_2025_Their_Care.pdf

July_2025_Their_Care _pdf 5.35 MB