Messages from Don:

S J St Joseph’s School Renmark

Term 1 Week 4 ~ 24th February 2017

RESPECT ~ SAFETY ~ LEARNING ~ TRUST

Honouring Our Past ~ Creating Our Future S R

1/2 class students with their kindness rocks.

Dear Families, Friends and Students,

Whilst visiting all the classrooms

and interacting with the students, I

have experienced a true sense of

positive learning and enthusiasm. I

am also very pleased with the

positive support, interaction and

collaboration of parents/carers. This

was highlighted at our recent Assembly, volunteering in

classrooms, attendance at Induction Ceremony,

involvement in Electives and assistance at SAPSASA

Swimming. This allows us to foster a positive learning

environment at St Joseph’s Renmark.

The Season of Lent:

As a Catholic School we enjoy the many dimensions of

learning that we provide. The season of Lent is upon

us and we are so proud of the way we embrace the life

long learning experiences that this will provide. We

will enjoy eating pancakes on Shrove Tuesday and we

will join with our local parishioners for our Ash

Wednesday Mass. The students will take on the

responsibility of helping those less fortunate than

themselves through Caritas Australia’s Project

Compassion work. The students also understand and

act out their awareness that their work for Project

Compassion is more than simply placing coins in a box.

The teachable moments for promoting social action

during Lent is alive and well in our school. The Lenten

season certainly allows us to learn how we can be

better people in society and also reminds us that

learning is not only about numbers and letters.

Safety Alert about Hats and Draw Strings

The recent incidents involving children and their hats

has certainly created significant media and community

interest. Our response was immediate and direct.

Opinions in the media have questioned whether this

was an overreaction or was it a genuine concern for the

children. I need to unequivocally respond to our

community by highlighting that the safety and

wellbeing of our children will always be our first

priority with all decisions.

However, whist reflecting on this incident it does

concern me that we are in a society that does not allow

for accidents to happen without the fear of litigation or

people laying blame. I am committed to leading our

school community that promotes a learning

environment that encourages creative thinking and risk

taking. We will teach our children about resilience and

how they can deal with losing and getting knocked

down. We will not overprotect our children and wrap

them up in cotton wool. They will learn how to deal

with conflict and that it is not always bullying.

Children will learn about independence and

responsibility and how to deal with issues when they

arise. Finally, parents and caregivers are encouraged to

guide their children and not try and fix everything up

for them. Children will get hurt and have accidents and

we will help them when needed. These are the skills

that will hopefully help our children in an evolving,

complex and challenging modern day society.

Parent/Teacher Online Interview Process:

This year we will again have interviews at the start of

the year (Week 6) instead of at the end of the term.

The aim is to be proactive and at the same time

establish positive parent/teacher relationships earlier.

We are using an online system to book your times.

Please refer to the included parents details about

booking your time. Please see your class teacher if you

have any problems or questions.

THRASS Parent workshop:

I wish to thank all the parents who attended our

THRASS workshop last night. They were given

Daniel,

Kyra &

Hudson

wearing

hats

with NO

strings!

ST. THERESE’S RENMARK

Fr Paul Bourke 8582 1894

Fr John Stuart-James 8588 2452

MASS TIMES

26 February Sun 9.00am

4 March Sat 6.30pm

12 March Sun 9.00am

18 March Sat 6.30pm

UPCOMING EVENTS

February

28 Shrove Tuesday

Board AGM

March

1 Ash Wednesday Mass 9.30

3 Clean Up Australia Day

6 Parent/Teacher Interviews

9 School Photos

13 Public Holiday

INCLUDED NOTES

UNI NSW Competition reply

Clean Up Aust Day reply

Witness Magazine

strategies, information, advice and helpful hints to assist their children.

I must commend Ruth Daws and Jordan Whitelaw for their effort and

time to provide this opportunity for our community. The feedback was

very positive and validated our literacy and reading program.

Electives: Teaching, Learning & Positive Communication

We are so excited about our Electives Program and the varied

experiences this will provide. This initiative aligns with our focus on

providing a positive learning environment. I have recently received

praise and positive feedback from visiting teachers about our learning

environment. We operate with positive actions and attitudes and

regularly promote all our successes and celebrations. We also

understand that parents/carers may occasionally be faced with

challenges and questions. We welcome feedback and encourage positive

interaction and communication between staff and parents/carers. With

all grievances or questions we invite parents/caregivers to come in and

see class teachers. With this overt approach, we welcome feedback and

encourage constructive points for future consideration. We discourage a

covert approach to addressing questions as this may result in

unproductive and ill-informed gossip that may damage relationships.

We will continue to make decisions based around current educational

research. Everything we have done and will continue to do is based

around learning, resulting in improving student outcomes for your child.

St Joseph’s School is committed to moving with society and striving to

significantly improve student outcomes, underpinned by current and

progressive research. We are always consulting with other schools and

systems and our Inquiry Strategies are student centered, cater for

students’ needs and allow all children to experience success.

National Day of Action Against Bullying & Violence:

To coincide with our KidsMatter theme, “Relationships” we are pleased

to be involved in the 2017 National Day of Action against Bullying and

Violence. The day will be celebrated on the 21st of March which will

coincide with Harmony Day and St Joseph’s Day. We will soon

commence a whole school approach which will include:-

Class pledges

Visits from local police

Parent/Carers information

Group activities

Exploring the website

Launching a whole school poster competition

Discussing and identifying what is bullying and what is conflict

We will continue to promote and share progress with our community

and encourage families to visit the website with many wonderful

activities and ideas to do at home. www.bullyingnoway.gov.au

Board Annual General Meeting:

We wish to promote our AGM which will be held in the Activity/Library

Room next Tuesday 28th February at 7.30pm. We encourage and

welcome all staff, parents and friends to attend. We see this as an

excellent opportunity to share and highlight all our successes and

challenges from 2016. Furthermore, this is an excellent meeting which

highlights the partnership between staff, students, parents, parish and

the wider community. I also wish to acknowledge the wonderful support

and contribution to outgoing member, Kieran Johnson for his 6 years of

Board service. He was a wonderful support and mentor during my early

Parents

‘learning’

THRASS at the

recent workshop

Commissioning Mass.

Todd van Dyk, Fr Paul & Derek Martinson

Larissa Bright, Taylah Sanders,

Kathy Hazelwood & Pauline Haeberer.

Parish Connections:

KidsMatter

Parents & Friends News:

A very exciting day for students and parents helping

out with Electives this arvo - a big thank you to all

who have volunteered their time to make the

students experience new things!

Also, P&F will be cooking pancakes for students

through out the day Tuesday- so that will be a

delicious treat for them all! Thank you to anyone who

will want to help flip a few pancakes that day!!

Our next meeting will be Tuesday 14th March 7 pm in

the hotel lounge area. Everyone welcome!

Kristine & the P&F committee

In class, students have been learning all about

relationships. Over the next few weeks, they will

focus on Friendship. What being friendly is, what it

looks like and how to be a good friend. Staff will be

looking for students to demonstrate good, positive

and friendly behaviours.

Some of the key points that will be addressed with

students are:

If you want to HAVE a good friend, you need

to BE a good friend

Getting along with others and making friends

will make you happy

Social skills are the things you can do to get

along well and make friends

What makes a good friend

Conversational skills (including listening)

Staff have been overwhelmed at the support for our

Electives Program. The number of parents

volunteering their time to help has been amazing.

The biggest positive however, is witnessing the

excitement held by the students. Seeing students

counting down the days to their elective, being

excited and eager to learn new skills and experience

a range of activities outside the

classroom was the exact reason

we started the program. We

would like to thank all staff,

parents and friends for their

valuable contribution to the

program.

Tony Luxton, Amy Thompson &

the KidsMatter Team

days as Principal and was instrumental in shaping our

school to what it is today. I also wish to announce

the nominees for 2017. They include Kerry Dix,

Andrea Logos, Derek Martinson and Tim Preusker.

Clean Up Australia Day:

St Joseph’s has enthusiastically embraced the

initiative of being actively involved in the national

Clean Up Australia Day for school being held on

Friday 3rd

March. All of our students will be involved

in cleaning up local and neighbouring environments.

Parents are required to assist with supervision;

further information is included in this newsletter pack.

We are the stewards of creation and this activity

heightens the awareness of our personal responsibility

to ensure that we maintain a clean and healthy

environment for each other and future generations.

Uniform Review:

At the end of last year I invited parents to be involved

in a uniform committee. I thank those parents who

expressed interest to be involved and I will contact

them early next week with proposed meeting times.

The school board has endorsed a review and will be

involved in this process. I again welcome other

parents to be involved. Please express your interest

to be involved to the front office.

Playgroup:

We thank Mikalya Luxton for volunteering to continue

coordinating our St Joseph’s Playgroup. I also

acknowledge the support and help of Rachel Dring and

Elisha Brown. This is such a valuable element of our

school which fosters a positive learning environment

for our pre school students and their families.

Finally, I wish to thank all families, staff and students

for a very positive start to the year. I look forward to

sharing more experiences throughout the year.

Regards,

Don DePalma

St Joseph’s Choir:

Religious Identity & Mission:

Ash Wednesday

Next Wednesday, Ash Wednesday, is

the beginning of Lent. We invite

families to join us at Mass on

Wednesday morning at 9:30am in

the church, where students will

receive ashes on their foreheads to

remind them of the things that they

have done wrong and as a reminder

to try to live as Jesus wants us to.

During Lent we prepare ourselves for the season of

Easter. We are asked during Lent to take part in more

prayer, give up something (fasting) to show self

control and do something to help others

(almsgiving). Students will be thinking about these at

school over the next few weeks and working on how

to live a better life and think of others less fortunate

than ourselves. Ask them how they are going and

what they are doing.

Project Compassion

Project Compassion is our main

almsgiving event in Lent and an

annual Caritas fundraising and

awareness-raising appeal, which

runs in Catholic Schools and

Parishes throughout Australia.

Running through the forty days

of Lent each year, Project

Compassion is an extraordinary, ongoing

demonstration of the faith, love and generosity, all in

the name of justice and peace.

The Project Compassion theme for 2017 is “Love your

neighbour”. This year, Project Compassion

demonstrates how love for our neighbours can

transform lives. Throughout Project Compassion 2017,

inspiring stories from the Philippines, Timor-Leste,

Australia, Vietnam and Fiji will be shared, highlighting

the importance of working hand in hand with

communities around the world.

Next Wednesday each student will receive a Project

Compassion box to take home. We ask that you

encourage them to think about the little things that

they can go without (an ice-block, a small treat) and

donate the money they would have spent on these

things into their Project Compassion boxes. By thinking

of others and learning about how lucky we are,

students will learn to be more grateful for what they

have and become more selfless in their attitudes.

Sacramental Program

In newsletter pockets two

weeks ago families were sent

a flyer about our Sacramental

program for this year. Thank

you to those who have

returned this and indicated

that their child/ren will be

involved. If you are wanting

your child to receive a

Sacrament this year please let

us know ASAP.

Those who are Sacramental candidates this year will be

presented to our parish at Ash Wednesday Mass.

We also invite families involved in the Sacraments this

year to a meeting on Monday 20th

March at 7pm in the

School Library. A note with more information about

this will go home in the coming weeks.

Michael Slagter

Acting REC

We will be celebrating our R-7 St Joseph’s Harmony

and Anti-Bullying Day on Tuesday, 21st March. This

is a significant event for our community as we respect

our Catholic history and also respect and

acknowledge the cultural diversity at our wonderful

school. We will also use the day to highlight our

commitment to preventing bullying and also

fundraise for Project Compassion to help families in

need. We aim to provide an opportunity for families

and students to join together and interact in a

positive, meaningful and enjoyable way.

We value the learning opportunities that this day will

provide and invite all parents, carers and family

members to be involved. Hope to see you there.

Arrangements for Shared Lunch

This year we are looking at a new shared lunch model.

We are inviting families from different cultures who

would be interested in helping us cater for the day with

food from their culture. If you are able to assist us with

this please let Michael Slagter or Giulia Del Zoppo

know. Contact us by Friday 3rd March if you can

assist.

Parents, caregivers, grandparents &

families are welcome.

Harmony Day & Anti-Bullying Day:

Star Student Awards:

L-R: Isabelle Wutke, Lara Stoneham,

Katerina Catalano, Madden Hardwick, Kyra

Rasheed, Seth Penno, Riley Hunt.

L-R: Alana Young, Amy Logos, Ava Lodge,

Emilia Valente, Inderpreet Singh, Sophie

Kernich, Jacob Burn, Joshua van Dyk,

Connor Berryman

Kerry Dix

I have been involved with St Joseph's school for over

12 years and am keen to re-nominate and continue on

from my first 2 year term on the board. I have lived in

Renmark most of my life have spent over 20 years

working in our local health services and with the

Flinders University Rural Clinical School. I have

enjoyed my time on the board so far and am grateful

for the contribution I can make in helping our school

provide positive early school experiences that will set

a path for life-long learning, personal success,

wellbeing and fulfilment. I would love to continue in

my role on the board for a further 2 years. It would be

an opportunity to build on the knowledge and skills I

have gained in this role and further support the

ongoing development of the fantastic learning

environment St Joseph's provides for our children.

Andrea Logos

I have nominated to become a member of the School

Board to contribute to the ongoing development of St

Joseph’s, to help provide the best possible learning

environment for the children and staff.

Our family joined the St Joseph’s school community in

2015 when our three children started. They are now in

years 3, 5 and 7 and we are thankful for the growth

and enthusiasm they have shown, both academically

and personally during their time so far at St Joseph's.

I’ve previously been on the governing council for both

the kindy and school the kids last attended, along

with fulfilling the role of secretary of the Renmark

Scout Group parent committee for the last six

years. Holding these positions has provided me

valuable opportunities for input and insight into the

operations of the organisations.

If elected, I will make every effort to assist the

continued improvement and development of the school

for the benefit of the school community into the

future.

School Board Annual General Meeting:

Derek Martinson

I am excited to be re-nominating for a

position on the St Joseph’s School

board this year. My daughter Breea has just

commenced year 6, while Ebony who has finished at

St Joseph’s has just commenced year 9 at High

School.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my last two years on the

school board and serving as Treasurer this last 12

months have given me a greater insight into the

financial systems within the school. I feel the school is

going in a great direction and would love to continue

to be a part of the extended school community. Being

part of the school board has been a fantastic

opportunity to learn more about the future learning

direction of the school and if I get re-elected I hope to

continue offering support making our school

environment the best it can be for our children.

Tim Preusker

Together with my wife Karlie and three children

Maiya, Archie and Max we moved to the Riverland in

2014. At the time we only had Maiya who was school

age, since then Archie has begun school and Max will

follow in 2019. I was very impressed with St Joseph’s

as a school when we came to view it and I have

continued to be impressed by the school’s

commitment to the development of its students,

teachers and facilities and also by the school’s

positive interaction with the community.

Through my employment as Property Manager at

CMV Farm’s Lindsay Point I have gained valuable

management skills. I have always been an active

member of the community and heavily involved in

junior sport including most recently coaching softball,

junior basketball and AFL Auskick. I am a hard-

working and hands on person willing to be involved in

all aspects of the school and bring a positive can-do

attitude that I feel would be of benefit to the whole

school community. I look forward to the opportunity

to being involved in the future of the school by

becoming a board member.

PLAYGROUP Families of St Joseph’s are invited to bring along your

children aged 0-5 years to Playgroup.

Lots of fun including art, craft, outdoor play, singing, storytime and

more! Network with parents who’s children will also be attending

school at St Joseph’s next year.

Italian & Science Room 9.00am-10.00am

$3 per child or $5 per family per visit

Please bring along a piece of fruit to share.

TERM 1 DATES

10th March, 24th March & 7th April

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE

Our very first Challenge Cup activity was presented

today for recent Acts of Kindness.

In fourth place with 18.5 points was Mary MacKillop,

3rd with 20.5 points was St Patrick, 2nd with 23 points

was St Therese and in first place with 28 points was St

Joseph. Gold Captain, Ava Lodge excitedly accepted the

trophy for this Challenge. Kobi Lowe was absent,

representing our school at swimming.

Challenge Cup

SAPSASA Swimming:

Keep your kids smiling Have you received a letter from Medicare about

the Child Dental Benefits Schedule?

The School Dental Service is a Child Dental

Benefits Schedule provider. Dental care is FREE for ALL babies,

preschool and most children under 18

years at School Dental Service clinics.

Call now for an appointment.

Your clinic is: Riverland Oral Health Centre

Phone: 8580 2700

SAPSASA Swimming

A big congratulations to the following students who

represented St Joseph’s School at the SAPSASA

Swimming Carnival in Renmark today.

Brooke Allen, Harry Binder, Sophie Crook, Kobi

Lowe, Breea Martinson, Paityn Martinson, Cooper

Neef, Stephanie Prokopec, Emily Robertson, Zoe

Siviour, Darcy Slagter, Kian Slagter, Holly Teare,

Tammy Tran, Maria Tzanavaras, Paige Vause,

Mikayla Warner and Alana Young.

The events included the 100m freestyle, 50m

freestyle, 50m backstroke, 50m breaststroke, 50m

butterfly and the team relay. All students should be

very proud of their efforts. A big thankyou to the

families who helped with supervision and

timekeeping on the day.

Kyerin Grundy

School Dentist:

Darcy Slagter

Happy Birthday for the month of January:

Sophie Crook

The SRCs had their second meeting this week to discuss

some whole school activities that we could run during

recess and lunchtimes under the shelter. The students

worked together to design posters to hang up around

the school to advertise our first activity, the Beep Test,

which will run at recess on Friday in Week 5.

Emma-Lee O’Dea

As a part of the Sporting

Schools Australia Program,

we have been lucky enough

to receive a grant ($2,640)

which provides our school

with new sports equipment

and specialist coaching.

This term we have received brand new tennis

equipment, such as nets, racquets and tennis balls. I

would like to thank Mr John Pick, from the Renmark

Lawn Tennis Club, who over the next few weeks will

provide specialist tennis coaching during PE lessons for

the whole school.

Kyerin Grundy

SRC Meeting:

What’s new at school?:

Photo Day Advise:

Envelopes for our School Photos

were sent home during the week.

Please be advised of the following

details.

ALL envelopes must be

returned prior to Photo

Day, even if you do not intend to order some.

Return your envelope with payment or on-line

details to the front office.

Sibling envelopes are available on request.

Normal full SUMMER Uniform must be worn (NO

PE clothes)

Please avoid appointments on this day where

possible. Advise if you will be away immediately.

Thank you for your support and understanding.

PHOTO DAY IS THURSDAY MARCH 9th

As a part of our Leadership Program the Year 7s

walked to the Renmark Club to learn about leadership

in the hospitality industry. The students had a great

time and learnt lots about what skills are required to be

a good leader. We thank the General Manager of The

Renmark Club, Mr Darren Baker, who gave up his time

to talk to the students.

Kyerin Grundy

Year 7 Leadership:

“Mr Baker trusts and respects his workers and as Manager has to take responsibility for their actions and works with them to improve their workplace.” Maiya

“We learnt how leadership is a team role and everyone has a part to play to ensure work is a happy and safe environment.” Ava

Recycling Furniture:

A huge thank you to Adrian Hunt for his valuable time

and resources in building shelving and work bench area

in the Maintenance shed recycling old school tables and

storage trays. These will be used by Andy and the

children’s Electives Program.

Parent/carer to enter the following details.

Email : eg. abc123@bigpond.com

Parent’s Full Name : eg Lyn Leuders

Phone: eg 0123 456789

Book for: select from dropdown box how

many children you want interviews for.

Student’s name: eg Daniel

eg Reeni

Click on green Go

Website : www.schoolinterviews.com.au

Enter code : nnads

Click on green Go

Parent & Teacher Interview Instructions:

Select your times. Some times will not be

available or may already be booked.

Ensure you select Go

This screen will show the available dates and

times for each student and their teacher.

Choose one time

From the dropdown box select each students

teacher.

Click on green Go

A confirmation email will be sent.

Please see you class teacher if you do not

have access to the internet or require any

assistance.

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