Dear parents and carers,

Welcome to Term 2!

It is great to have the children back at school and I must say they look very smart in their Winter school uniform! Thank you for your efforts and thank you to Sheridan and Nichola too for helping everyone to be kitted out for the change of season.

On behalf of the community, I would like to extend a special welcome to the Prathesh Family who have joined the school this term; Angelina has joined the Yr 5/6 class and Aldhin Yr 2/3/4.

It’s been a busy holiday with a number of school events happening. Thank you to Sheridan for arranging the Dance Experience on Tuesday of the first week. This was extremely well attended, and Leanne Sims was delighted to encounter so much interest in the Grenfell community. The children had a great time! Please see the flyer below and do please contact Leanne if you are interested in enrolling your child in ongoing Friday afternoon Dance lessons here at school.

On behalf of all of us at school and the Grenfell community, thank you to Sheridan for making this possible.

Thank you to Kirsten Stevenson and Amanda Mason from Home Start Cowra for the terrific Curious and Creative Kids Workshop on Wednesday of the second week of the holidays. A large number of children from St Jospeh’s and the wider community attended this event. The children thoroughly enjoyed all the hands on opportunities provided;  from deconstructing printers and vacuum cleaners to expressing themselves with a range of art and craft materials.

We will aim to offer more school holiday workshops in future giving children and parents the chance to connect and learn through play.

Congratulations to the children who attended the ANZAC Day ceremonies! I had the pleasure of attending the March and the following service and was so very impressed with the co-operation, respect and patience shown by the children.

Well done to Year 5/6 for the outstanding original poem they produced to mark this occasion and well done Sas and Georgia for presenting this at both services.

Thank you, parents, for your support for this event!

School Attendance

There is nothing more important for the children’s wellbeing and progress at school than regular attendance. We can’t remind parents enough, of the importance of punctuality and regular school attendance of every student, every day! There is no safe number of days for missing school. If a student misses as little as four days each term they will have missed over a year of learning, by the end of their schooling.

Schools in the Archdiocese of Canberra & Goulburn work in partnership with parents/carers to encourage and support regular attendance of children and young people at school. Education in NSW and the ACT is compulsory for all children between the ages of six years and below the minimum school leaving age.

Arriving at school and class on time:

• ensures that students do not miss out on important learning activities scheduled early in the day;
• helps students learn the importance of punctuality and routine;
• gives students time to greet their friends before class; and
• reduces classroom disruption.

Lateness is recorded as a partial absence and must be explained by parents/carers. If a child is late for school by just 10 minutes per day, they will miss nearly 6 months of schooling over 13 years. If your child arrives at school after 9am, they must be signed in by a parent or guardian. If your child is experiencing challenges of attending school, we are here to help!

Sport in Term 2 will be held on wednesdays

We are delighted to announce that St Joseph’s has been successful in securing a Sporting Schools Grant for term 2. As we prepare for the Athletics carnival later this term, the 5 week program offered by Gecko Sports will give the children the skills, knowledge and experience they need to maximise their participation at this event.

Music in Term 2

Our partnership with the Young Regional School of Music is highly valued giving the students he opportunity to learn from music professionals. This term Year 2/3/4 and Year 5/6 will be participating in YRSM Music lessons with Mr Mark Corkery.

Mr Corkery will also be taking over the individual instrumental lessons. Mark has some availability should there be children who may wish to start learning a musical instrumental this term.

Assembly Schedule for Term 2

Parents, carers and friends are always welcome to join us for Friday assemblies. Please see below for the dates assembly has been scheduled during Term 2.

Australian Early Development Census

St Joseph’s, along with schools throughout the Nation, will be participating in the AEDC this term. For more information, please see the flyer included in this newsletter. Kindergarten families can expect to receive a letter with further information this week.

Jump into Joey’s – Kindergarten Enrolment 2025

With a record number of Kindies joining St Jospeh’s in 2024, we hope to continue this trend in 2025 and look forward to welcoming the preschool children to the Jump into Joey’s Program commencing next Wednesday 8^th May.

It is definitely not too soon to enrol if you have a little one at home ready to start school in 2025. We look forward to hearing from you!

In Conclusion…

Our first school community event for the term is scheduled for next Friday 10^th May at 8.30am when we will be celebrating Mother’s Day. We are hoping all St Joseph’s Mums will be able to attend and look forward to welcoming you.

Wishing everyone a positive and productive term ahead!

With best wishes,