NEWSLETTER

St Joseph’s Talent Show - Reece Memorial Trophy

Congratulations to our winners Cailey, Thomas and Jessica! All our contestants delighted the audience with their artistic skills and confidence. Compliments to each and every one of you. The show could not have gone on without our brilliant MCs, advertising and door staff, and contestant supporters. We appreciate your hard work and skills.

Finally, a big thank you to our judges!

This week brings to an end Term 3. We are certainly moving through what has been another busy year. During this term break I encourage you to take some time to relax and spend time with your children. I hope you can also find some time for yourself. I know our teachers will both appreciate and benefit from things moving a little slower over the next two weeks. School holidays provide both children and teachers the opportunity to refresh and recharge in preparation for the following school term.

Curriculum News

I have included two mathematical tasks which you might like to have a go at with your child/children.

This week’s Mathematical tasks:

Reception to Year 3

How many things can you find that are longer than 2 of your foot lengths but shorter than 6 of your foot lengths?

What is there in your home that is 3 of your foot lengths long?

Years 4-6

What might the perimeter of a garden fence be if the area of the garden is 64 square metres?

You have 42 metres of fence for a garden. What might your garden look like?

Happy inquiry.

Reading is another core learning area here at St Joseph’s School. Children develop their reading skills, knowledge and understanding by reading regularly. At St Joseph’s School regular reading at home forms a major part of homework set each evening. Why not create regular timeslots throughout the week whereby all electronic devices in the home are turned off and members of the family spend 15 minutes reading together. 

Happy reading.

Catholic Schools Music Festival Choir

30 of our children have been preparing since Term One for the Catholic Schools Music Festival Choir which was held at the Convention Centre on Monday September 22. Choir coordinator Janine Meyer and classroom teacher Matt Pick have spent many hours working with the choir throughout the year in preparation for the event. The Catholic Schools Music Festival Choir is held during the last week of Term Three each year. It is a wonderful advertisement for Catholic Education in South Australia. A big thank you to Janine and Matt for all their efforts in preparing our children for this year’s event.

How a Child’s Brain Develops 

The early years are critical for brain development because of the rapid growth of neural connections at this stage. It’s estimated that during the first few years of life, more than one million neural connections form every second. These connections correspond with various skills. For example, when a child is learning to ride a bike, the skills required to ride, such as balancing, pushing pedals and watching ahead need to be stored in memory. This happens with repeated opportunities to practise these skills, so that when they ride on another day, they can do so without much thought thanks to the existing connections. If the child doesn’t ride again for an extended period, they may need to make these connections all over again.

Experiences during the early years have the greatest impact on brain development - more than any other stage of life. The brain is most sensitive to stimulation during this period, so early experiences shape children’s brain development and have a lasting effect on their mental health and wellbeing. Positive relationships and rich learning environments promote children’s development while early adverse experiences may alter a child’s progress.

Most experiences occur through a child’s relationship with their family and other significant adults, including early childhood educators. Positive interactions are described as ‘serve and return’: when adults respond appropriately to an infant or young child’s needs (communicated through cries, smiles, babbling). In this way, the neural pathways responsible for communication and social skills are formed. If an adult is consistently warm and responsive to the child, the brain architecture develops in an optimal way. However, if they’re inconsistent, absent, unreliable or inappropriate in their responses, this can have a negative impact on the child’s brain architecture, affecting future learning and behaviour. Experiences in the early years affect the way children respond and react to the world they live in for the rest of their lives.

To learn more about how you can support the wellbeing of your child, visit Be You (formerly Beyond Blue). The website also provides a range of resources and ideas to support the mental health and wellbeing of our young people. I encourage you to visit the website at https://beyou.edu.au/and have a look for yourself.

Important Safety Message

Students and families are reminded to be wary of approaches from strangers, especially when they are unaccompanied or travelling to and from school. If they are approached students should not respond and should not accept offers of rides or gifts.

Students should seek the assistance of other nearby adults if they feel unsafe and should report the event to a trusted adult (parent or school staff member) as soon as possible.

SAPOL advises that taking out a mobile phone and calling police can deter the offender and they recommend the student making a formal report to their closest police station.

For guidance on what to teach your child about strategies for staying safe, view this link:  SAPOL Personal Safety | Safety for Young People

Kiss and Drop Zone Speed Limit 10km per Hour.

A reminder that the school Kiss and Drop Zone along Rosewater Terrace has a speed limit of 10km per hour. Please ensure you observe the speed limit when using the Kiss and Drop Zone as this is an area where children are entering and exiting the school in large numbers.

A reminder also that the school Kiss and Drop Zone is not a place to park your car if you need to enter the school grounds as this holds up all incoming and outgoing traffic. It also leads to children exiting their cars on Rosewater Terrace and having to manoeuvre between traffic, raising further safety concerns. If you need to come into the school grounds, parking is available along Rosewater Terrace and on Ina Avenue.

Thank you in anticipation of your support with these important safety matter.

Audiri App

To keep up to date with what is happening within our school along with upcoming school events why not download the AudiriApp from the App Store on your mobile phone. Once downloaded simply search St Joseph’s School, Ottoway and add to your Audiri page. Many of our families currently use the Audiri App to keep up to date with what is happening across our school.

Diary Dates

Term 3 Concludes - 3:00pm Thursday September 25.

Friday September 26 is a school directed non-teaching day. OSHC is available for children requiring care. See Mieke to make a booking.

Term 4 Commences - 8:45am Monday October 13.

I wish you and your family a safe and happy school holiday period.

Working in partnership with you.

Shaun O’Leary.

ctober 13.

May God continue to bless all our families throughout Term 3.

Working in partnership with you.

Shaun O’Leary.

Parent Centre - near the office entrance

Please make yourself comfortable and help yourself to tea, coffee and biscuits.

The room will be open most days 8:25am and 2:30pm

Next Mass

You are always invited to join with us at the Parish Mass and our school liturgies. The next Mass will be to celebrate All Saints fall on Saturday 1st November and so for this year we will celebrate a liturgy on Friday 31st October at 8:45am.

Confirmation - our students in the Sacrament group will celebrate their Confirmation in St Maximilian Kolbe Church on Saturday 18^th of October at 10am.

School Photo Day 

School photos will be held on Monday 20th October 2025. Students need to be in full school uniform. Neat hair with blue accessories only.

See below details on how to order your child photos.

SPiCE Program 2025 Parent and Caregiver Survey 

Our Supported Playgroups in Catholic Education (SPiCE) Program, seeks to offer playgroup participants; children, families, older friends and facilitators, a time and place to love, grow and thrive together. We aim to enable high quality supported playgroup programs within CESA schools, ensuring early childhood development and family support outcomes for children aged birth-5 and their families across South Australia.

To assist us with evaluating and developing our supported playgroups, we are asking parents and caregivers feedback of your experience at playgroup this year. When completing this survey your answers will remain anonymous.  

You will see our survey questions are categorised under our three intertwined SPiCE Program's Fundamental Pillars; Community, Learning and Faith Formation. 

We thank you in advance for your time and for your valuable contributions, as the survey will take around 10 minutes to complete. 

Your feedback is of high importance to us and provides us with important data that will enable us to continue to provide high quality supported playgroup programs across South Australia. 

Thank you for your contributions and for choosing to play at playgroup this year! 

Year 6 Students Cook Up A Coconut Treat

As part of our Multicultural Celebrations, a small group of our Year 6 students rolled up their sleeves and got creative in the kitchen - making delicious coconut waffles! The waffle mixture, kindly shared by Rosie’s mum, was a big hit and gave students a fun (and tasty!) way to explore family traditions and cultural connections. The sweet aroma filled the Front Office area, and everyone agreed: learning has never been so yummy!

Talking to your child about the age restrictions 

As we approach 10 December, when the new Social Media Minimum Age law comes into effect, it’s important for families to start preparing for the changes. 

If you have children under 16 who currently use age-restricted social media platforms, they will be directly impacted by the new law.

To support your children through this transition, it’s helpful to: 

·         Talk openly about the new age restrictions and why they’re being introduced. 

• Understand how your child currently uses social media and explore how these changes might affect them. 
• Reassure them that these changes are about safety and wellbeing, not punishment. 

To help guide these conversations, eSafety has developed practical tips for parents and carers to start these conversations to support you in starting and managing discussions in a calm and constructive way. 

Find out more

Looking for some fun ideas for the school holidays? Check out the link below.

Play & Go Adelaide

A friendly reminder that school fees are due by the end of Term 4 2025.

Please see Kali Brown our Finance Office if you require assistance with this.

Goodstart Angle Park currently have vacancies in the Nursery (0-2), Toddler 1 (2-2.5) and Toddler 2 (2.5-3 years) rooms.