From the Principal's Desk

Dear Members of St Joseph’s Family,

Welcome back to Term Three.  I trust everyone had a restful break.

This week I attended the Catholic Primary Principals’ Conference in Perth where the focus was on staff and student mental health and the impact this has on the future of education.  There were some wonderful reminders that if we don’t get it right with supporting the mental health of those in our School, then quality teaching and learning cannot take place.

Secondary Awards

Congratulations to those students who were awarded Semester 1 awards at last Friday’s Assembly. It was wonderful to see such a large group of students who are achieving great results.

NAIDOC

Last Friday, the whole School came together to celebrate with NAIDOC activities. Thank you so much to Mrs Noelene Boyce for the outstanding coordination of the afternoon.  Thanks also to the girls from Northam Senior High who are involved in the Deadly Sister Program and performed dances for us.

Testing

Years 7 and 9 students from St Joseph’s have been selected to take part in trials for ACARA, the organisation responsible for the creation of the NAPLAN assessments. These trials are testing the platform rather than the content and the results will have no impact on student grades and will not be reported on to parents.

Throughout next week, students in Years 3, 5 and 9 will take part in the annual online Bishops Religious Literacy Assessments. Parents will receive information about their child’s results, but it is important to note that the data is best used for the School to determine how well the Religious Education curriculum is being delivered in the classrooms.

Upcoming Events

Marcellin Day
Friday 6 August.  Students can wear blue for the day with a gold coin donation.  Student Leaders on both campuses will have food for sale.  Please note the Primary Assembly will be held at 2.15pm, the new time for Assemblies this term.

School Community Mass
The next School Community Mass will be held on Saturday 7 August at 5.30pm in St Joseph’s Church.  We look forward to sharing this Mass with many of our families.

Inter-house Carnival Years 4-12
All students from Years 4-12 are expected to be involved with the Interhouse Athletics Carnival on Friday 13 August.  This is a fun day with plenty of opportunities for taking part in events and supporting their House.  Please ensure that the correct sports shorts and tracksuit are worn by your students.

Avon Decent Street Parade
St Joseph’s is entering the Avon Descent Street Parade this year, celebrating our 50 years of amalgamation.  We would love to have students of all ages join us for the parade, in their uniform, proudly representing the School.  The parade is taking place on the evening of 13 August.  Further information was sent home this week.  We hope you are able to join us.

God Bless

Andrea Woodgate
Principal 

Primary News                                            

Welcome to Term Three

Welcome back for Term Three!  We have an exciting term ahead full of events such as Book Week, Science Week, a range of sporting carnivals and events across the Wheatbelt including the Northam Bilya Festival and the National Ballooning Championships.  I look forward to experiencing all of these for the first time and meeting more families in the process.

NAIDOC Week

Last Friday, our two campuses came together to celebrate NAIDOC Week.  This was an opportunity to not only build students’ understanding of Ballardong Noongar culture, but to strengthen the bond between our two campuses.  Students worked together to create an indigenous artwork, participated in jewellery making and had the opportunity to taste some kangaroo sausages, patties and fresh damper.  We were also blessed to have Deadly Sisters from Northam Senior High join us for a dance presentation.  Thank you to Mrs Boyce for organising such a memorable afternoon for our students.

           

Science Week 2021

On Thursday, 19 August we will be holding a Science Fun Day to celebrate National Science Week.  The theme for this year is Food: Different by Design which focuses on concepts such as ‘From Farm to Fork’ & ‘From Pond to Plate’.  We are looking for members of our community to come and share their knowledge in this area with our students.  Maybe you are a beekeeper and can bring some fresh honeycomb for the students to try, maybe you have some animals we could set-up on the oval or some tools used on your farm to harvest grain.  Whatever your ideas are, we would love discuss them and have family members involved on the day.  If you are interested, please send an email through to michelle.christian@cewa.edu.au.  Thank you in anticipation.

Marcellin House Day

On Friday, 6 August we will be celebrating Marcellin House Day.  On this day, all students are welcome to come dressed in blue clothing and our Year 6 Marcellin Student Leaders will be running food stalls at recess.  Money raised will go towards buying blankets which will be supplied to The Haven.  A group of staff completed some volunteer work at The Haven last term, and this Not For Profit centre is in desperate need of blankets to provide to homeless people across Perth.  If you would like to donate some blankets to this appeal, please feel free to leave your donations at our Primary Admin Office.

May you all have a lovely weekend with your families.

Michelle Christian
Head of Primary

School Tree Day

School Tree Day is celebrated on the last Friday in July.  This day encourages students to give back to the environment, plant some trees and have some fun. Mr Hewitt’s Gardening Club (Genius Hour) braved the slight drizzle to plant orange, mandarin, lime, lemonade, pomegranate, and pineapple guava trees in the garden.

Hopefully in the future the students at St Joseph’s will be able to enjoy some of these delicious fruits. Thank you to Ebony and Avon Valley Toyota for supplying St Joseph’s with these new trees and Mr Roberts for lending a hand on the day.

Michelle Smith
Assistant Head of Primary

Class in Focus:  Year 4 Gold

Last term, Year 4 Gold held a class Olympic Tournament with a twist.  Each student researched a traditional Indigenous Sport and adapted it to an Olympic Game style.  Students designed and ran the game for the class, including making their own equipment!

Here's some pictures of the fun we had:

                     

                                                                                                

Syona Fernandez
Year 4 Gold Teacher

Class in Focus:  Year 5 Blue

We kick-started this term with NAIDOC week, where we celebrated the massive cultural impact of our First Nation People.  On Monday and Tuesday, we focused on traditional indigenous-inspired patterns for our “Sorry Hands” and filled the palms with words based on togetherness and inclusivity.  Wednesday to Friday, we based our comprehension lessons around famous Indigenous Australians and enjoyed traditional food at our whole School NAIDOC event on Friday.  We loved learning about our own culture and the importance of promoting harmony in our society.

                         

Tim Natkanski
Year 5 Blue Teacher

Secondary News

From The Hub

My name is Emily and I’m a Year 9 student at the high school.  On Thursday mornings, 9:00am til 10:15am I volunteer at the Northam Toy Library.  Come along from 9:00am to look at the great selection of toys available for loan and then 9:30am-10:00am for a play session in the play room and also a fun filled morning of singing and dancing with Emily.  The Northam Toy Library has a variety of toys for ages 0 and up.  They are also looking for new members to join so bring your children along for exciting fun and some new toys.

Emily

Learning Area in Focus:  Food Science & Technology

Soup Kitchen
For the first week of Term 3, all classes in Years 9 to 12 participated in cooking soup for the less fortunate.  They were able to provide enough soup to feed over 100 members in the community in need.  The students made 5 types of soup: Potato & Leek, Pumpkin, Cauliflower, Chicken & Corn and Cream of Celery.  The Soup Kitchen is provided by the St Joseph’s Parish on Thursdays during the winter months.  Thank you very much to all the students – a job well done!

Year 7's Introduction to Food
The Year 7’s have had a very good start to their Food Technology lessons.  Students spend a double period each week in the Home Economics room where they cook a new recipe.  The first few weeks will be an introductory to foods with a focus on healthy snack recipes. 

                    

                                                    

Students will then progress to more difficult recipes with pumpkin soup, muffins, spaghetti bolognese and apple crumble planned for the next few weeks.  We are all looking forward to taste testing our efforts!

Kylie Wallis & Arabella Adeline
Food Science & Technology Teachers

Curriculum Matters

A well-balanced life is the key to success!

What does this actually mean?  Looking through a range of resources, not only do you identify different definitions for success, but also different concepts of a well-balanced life.  Perhaps, if we look at the balance of after-school sport and how this interacts with school commitments.  If we look at school commitments, this means keeping up with your class work, finishing textbook questions, preparing for assignments and studying for upcoming tests.

After school sport, will involve training and competitions against other teams, which may extend to the weekend.  One should not be used as an excuse for not completing the other.

Having a successful academic semester means committing to completing all requirements for that subject.  If this is becoming more difficult, or assignments are beginning to be incomplete or being submitted late, then this is an indication that there is an imbalance.

After school sport, as a part of your life balance is important, but perhaps not multiple activities, or in some cases every day after school.  A balance, a compromise must be considered, if your afternoons are occupied and you are unable to have enough energy to complete homework, something must give.

To try and get on top of the new semester, sit down and map out the key events, it may actually mean adding dates for assessments to an actual physical calendar, keeping them visible.  This means that you will more likely prepare for these, or continue to work towards completing these tasks.

If you are aware of due tasks, you need to plan your time to complete these and to plan effectively.  It is no good spending 15 minutes attempting an assignment the night before it is due, then presenting the next day with a note from a parent, that they had no time to complete it - especially if it was given a week or more ago.  Map out your time, when do you have time, what do you need to use it for? Completing assignments, finishing in class questions, reading the textbook chapter - you need a plan!

If you find yourself without adequate time, some decisions need to be made and for some people they may be tough ones.  To create time, you may need to forego an afterschool sporting commitment.  Yes, I did write this.  As fun as sport is, in most cases, this will not be a career, this is not what will enable you to enter the workforce, through competition against other candidates in the job application process.  If you are unable to complete schoolwork and your excuses are sport, you need a balance, it may mean that the balances are tipped away from school-life.

Surprisingly, school is important.  Not completing an assignment for English or Mathematics or any Learning Area, may seem a little thing, but if we relate this to the big picture, by not finishing this task, you would not have completed these concepts, which means you are behind for the next key concepts.  Once you start getting behind in concepts in Year 7, it affects Year 8, which affects Year 9 and so it goes.  Having a successful academic school career, opens up more opportunities beyond school, this opens up a diversity of professional and vocational pathways, salaries and opportunities.

Please do not limit your possibilities by not completing work and using external excuses.  Use your time wisely and efficiently and strive for success at every opportunity, especially your next assignment.

Mark Gargano
Years 7-12 Curriculum Coordinator

Zero2Hero Camp

In the April school holidays, I was privileged to attend a 5 day amazing, out-of-this-world camp in Dwellingup.  It was a real eye-opener and if you are ever given the opportunity to go – do it!  Take the chance and give it your all.

I was excited and nervous at the same time while waiting to board the bus with 38 strangers from all over WA (who I had never met before).  Driving to the beautiful Nanga Bush camp, I started to question why was I doing this and what was I getting myself into?  Little did I know how it would be some of the best days I have ever experienced and how empowering and informative those days would be!

As camp progressed, I was inspired by all our mentors, guest speakers and other campers.  Five days passed quickly with so many things to do, learn, achieve, try and discover - mental/physical activities, challenges, sharing stories, exercise, healthy eating, learning about our bodies and brains, self reflection, self acceptance, tears, laughter, friendships and more.  Learning about mental health and youth leadership in a safe environment with so many like minded people was uplifting.  It enabled us all to see that we can all make a difference and we can all do something, but it was important to look after your own wellbeing first to be able to help others.

Camp was like another world.  It changed my perspective in so many ways and helped concrete who I am, what's available and how and what I can do.  Learning and understanding more enables us all to support others rather than ignoring them, whether that be by being strong enough to stand up for a person/people to support or simply sitting by their side.  Knowing what to look for or ask and what support services are available can help others improve their mental health and well-being.

Mental health amongst our teens and peers is on the rise and needs to be spoken about freely to help break down the stigma.  The Zero2Hero camp program unleashes the heroes of today to become leaders of tomorrow by educating, equipping and empowering young people to promote good mental health in their schools and communities.  They run other programs throughout the year at a variety of places and have different incursions available to run at schools around WA.

It was hard to return back to the “real world” because you come back on such a high, a better version of yourself - wanting to make a difference.  Trying to share and implement some of the things learnt at camp can be challenging but I will chip away at it.  Thank you to all who who made this experience happen – mentors, sponsors, keynote speakers, volunteers, campers and more.  Personally I can’t recommend the camp enough and the memories will stay with me.  It was empowering and I loved it!

Skye Dymnicki

Our School

2021 School Fees

Term 3 School fees accounts have now been issued.  Unless families are paying by Direct Debit (DD) or another regular payment scheme, the School requires payment of the final 1/3rd by Friday 13 August.  Parents/guardians are advised that If you have a Centrelink Family Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card, or a Department of Veteran’s Affairs Pensioner Concession Card, and have not come forward with your card, please visit or contact the Business Manager through the Primary Office immediately, so that discounted fees can be calculated.

Steve Johnson
Business Manager

Our P&F

Term 3 News

Our next meeting is on Thursday 5 August, 6.45pm at The Grand Hotel in Northam.  Please note the change in venue.

The Year 9 Camino Walk is being held on Tuesday 10 August and once again, the P&F will provide some extra water and snacks along the way.  We are needing some parent assistance to be the support vehicle during this walk.  If you can help out on the day, please contact the P&F via email, georgiahaddrill@gmail.com or on our Facebook page.

This term, we are looking forward to providing a Canteen at the Interhouse Athletics Carnival for Years 4 to 12 on Friday 13 August. Food and drink, plus the coffee van, will be available throughout the day with more information on prices and options provided closer to the day.  Our Secondary Canteen Manager will be running it for us, along with some student helpers, however we will still require some parents to pop in and out throughout the day to assist.  Click on the link to sign up to a timeslot (you are allowed to go and watch your child in their event if it clashes with your rostered time) https://signup.com/go/ggiXNUe

Book Fair

Primary students will receive a Book Fair letter and flyer on Monday which outlines the activities for the P&F Book Fair which will run in Week 6 in conjunction with Book Week this term.  Details of the Book Fair and the Helper Roster will be updated on our Facebook page during the coming week.  Please keep an eye out for the link to the Roster – we are seeking volunteers to help us run this exciting event for our students.

Remember to join our P&F Facebook page;  https://www.facebook.com/groups/1764507137145087/?ref=share

Georgia Haddrill
President

Our Community

Extend B&ASC

Extend is the place for your children to thrive, learn and play, so what are you waiting for?  Hi, my name is Rosie and I am the Service Coordinator at St Joseph’s.  I am a Diploma qualified Early Childhood Educator and have been working with children for over 15 years, which I find very rewarding.  This term, we are exploring different countries and what makes us connected as one.  

Come along to Before School Care for a healthy breakfast and a great start to the day.  Then join us for After School Care this term to explore different countries with our extend international airport as explore and cook our way through each country which makes us who we are.  All while new friends at Extend!  Enrol and book now via extend.com.au     Rosie Ezeh, Service Coordinator

Northam Dental Clinic Update

From Monday 26 July to Friday 13 August 2021, final year students in the Curtin University Bachelor of Oral Health degree will be coming to our clinic, as part of their country placement.  Your permission will be sought prior to your child having any treatment undertaken by one of these students.

Dental students must have demonstrated a high level of clinical competence, appropriate to the procedure to be undertaken before they can undertake patient care.  These students will work under the direction of qualified dental professionals, in this clinic, to continue to provide high quality dental care to your children.  Please feel free to discuss any concerns with our clinic staff.  Annie Hayes, Northam Dental Therapy Centre, c/- Northam Primary School, Duke Street, Northam (Ph: 0458 644 530).

WANSLEA Parent & Child Well-Being Workshop

WANSLEA is coordinating a workshop designed to support parents with strategies to improve and build healthy and happy families. Topics covered include self-care and mental well-being for busy parents, mindfulness for children, developing good bedtime routines.

The workshop is being held on Monday 23 August between 6.00-8.00pm and will be held at the Bilya Koort Boodja Centre on Minson Avenue.  Refreshments will be provided.  Please register your interest with Jeni Pages 0447622736 or Esmee Ng 0430 214 474.  This free workshop is supported by the Department of Communities and Parenting Connections.

Better Health Program

Is your child aged 7 to 13 years of age, above a healthy weight and in need of support to improve eating and activity habits?  The Better Health Program is a free, 10-week, online program for children and families.  The weekly sessions offer free resources and weekly coaching calls with trained and qualified health coach to help keep you on track.  Participants are provided with a fitness tracker as well.  Get involved and start collecting weekly tokens and prizes.  To register or find out more, contact 1300 822 953 or email betterhealthprogram.org

Shire of Northam – Traineeship Opportunity

The Shire of Northam is currently advertising for a Horticultural Trainee (would be ideal for someone who has just completed Year 12 and is looking for a traineeship in horticulture, gardening experience, etc.) The Shire would support them to obtain a Certificate in Horticulture.  Applications are submitted online via an online form.  The link to the form can be accessed on the Shire of Northam Career Opportunities website page (https://www.northam.wa.gov.au/employment/horticultural-trainee/277).

Come And Try Scouts!

Scouting is fun and adventurous, and youth aged 5 (and in Pre-Primary) to 25 years can join!  Northam Scout Group meet on Mondays and Thursdays after school at 46 Burnside Avenue, Northam.  Joey Scouts (5 and in Pre-primary to 7 years) meet Mondays from 4pm to 5.30pm to 7pm, Cub Scouts (8 to 11 years) meet Fridays from 4pm to 6pm, Scouts (11 to 15 years) meet Thursdays from 6.30pm to 8.30pm.  Venturer Scouts (15 to 17 years) meet with Bilgoman District Venturer Unit.  Rover Scouts (18 to 25 years) meet with Mundaring Rover Scout Unit.

Anyone wishing to join Joey Scouts, Cub Scouts, Scouts or Venturers is welcome to come along to our meetings and try for free for a few weeks.  We are also looking for adults in the community that would like to become an adult volunteer with Scouting, from parent helpers, committee members, and Leaders – many hands make light work, so please contact us to find out more about becoming an adult member of Scouting.  Please contact Amanda Abbott, Group Leader, on 0409206607 or gl.northam@scoutswa.com.au for more information.

Northam Running Club

This local Sports Club is currently meeting at Henry Street oval at the undercover area at 5.15pm on Thursdays to do running drills.  The best place to find out about our Club is by following us on Facebook @northamrunclub   Please direct all enquiries to Enrika on 0424 399 053.

Uniform Shop 

Opening Times:                             Mondays - 3.15pm to 4.45pm       
                                                      Thursdays - 2.45pm to 4.15pm                               

Can’t Get To The Shop?

Update on Sports Shorts supply!   Uunfortunately, our supplier has advised that there are still delays getting our sports shorts back in stock.  As soon as they arrive, all backorders will be filled and distributed to students to bring home.  Thank you for your patience with this extended delay.  Please check St Joseph's School Facebook page and our School newsletters regularly for updates.

The restriction on the number of families able to access the Uniform Shop at one time will remain in place due to the amount of stock we are now carrying.  Families are encouraged to continue to order uniform items via the online shop.  Please note we are no longer accepting email or telephone orders.

Please 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 so go home on Friday.

Michelle James 
Primary - 9621 3524

Canteen News

The Canteens continue to see increased orders each week and we are seeking volunteers to work in each Canteen - anyone can volunteer; mums, dads and grandparents are all welcome and appreciated!

Our Canteen Helper Roster for the next two weeks is below.  Thank you to everyone who has volunteered to assist us.  It is greatly appreciated. 

Primary - Week 3  

Tuesday	3 Aug	Julie Sandrini
Wednesday	4 Aug
Thursday	5 Aug	Julie Sandrini &   Aimee Leeson
Friday	6 Aug	Desrae Smith	Soup of the Day:  Minestrone

Primary - Week 4

Tuesday	10 Aug	Julie Sandrini
Wednesday	11 Aug	Lisa Hasson
Thursday	12 Aug	Julie Sandrini
Friday	13 Aug	Desrae Smith	Soup of the Day:  Pumpkin

Both Canteens require help!  To run efficiently we require parent helpers.  If you are able help out, please sign up online at   https://signup.com/go/LQaHAbC

We are both looking forward to working with you.  If you have any queries, please contact us on the number below.

Kerri & Angela
Canteen - 9621 3525