October - Mission Month

Living our Mission - Faith in Action

We're thrilled to share the outstanding efforts of our students as they embody the spirit of our school mission. This month at Joey's has been nothing short of inspiring.

Our Year 6 students have truly shone with their exceptional display of community spirit during today’s Grandparents Day Market Stall event. They have dedicated weeks to preparing for this heartwarming celebration.

In the spirit of Mission Month, our school planned today as a culmination of our Faith in Action:

Socktober - Our Mini Vinnies group planned a market stall today, along with Mrs Debbie Rennes and Mr David Lynch, raising funds for Timor Leste. Their dedication and compassion continue to make a meaningful impact for Social Justice in our school and community. We were able to raise as a community over $2,600.

$20 Boss - An exciting in-school entrepreneurship program aimed at nurturing essential skills like financial capability and problem-solving. We are thrilled to see our students thrive in this dynamic learning environment. While the students usually would be able to keep their profits, they chose to donate either 60% or 100% of their earnings to Mission Australia and Timor Leste. Loana Wallace from Catholic Mission Australia came to speak with our Year 6 leaders on Monday to highlight the importance of their work this month.

Grandparents Day - A special day where our vibrant community came together to celebrate the invaluable role of grandparents in our lives. It was a joyous occasion filled with shared laughter and cherished memories. Thank you Year 2 for leading us so brilliantly in our liturgy this morning.

Attendance

A friendly reminder to please communicate all absences via the school office.

If you have emailed your teacher through the Compass App letting them know your child will be absent from school for any period of time, please assist by replying to the 'absent sms' you receive from school or by phoning the office or sending an email to sjpport@lism.catholic.edu.au so that the office staff can update your child's attendance records. 

Early Departure

Families are reminded of our early school departure sign out processes. A student cannot be signed out early by anyone other than their parent/s unless the office or classroom teacher has received permission by the parent for the alternate adult to collect their child on that particular day.

If the alternate adult is listed as an Emergency Contact they are able to collect your child from homelines, however they are unable to sign them out for early departure without parental permission on that particular day.

October is Mental Health Month

Mental Health Month is celebrated each year in October.

The theme for this year is ‘We all have a role to play’ and this month we encourage you all to think about your own wellbeing.

Wellbeing is about how happy, safe, comfortable and healthy you feel.

So, what do you do when you need to increase your wellbeing? 

What helps you feel more happy, healthy or comfortable when you feel sad,scared, nervous, worried, upset or frustrated?

To help promote wellbeing in our school we are inviting students to create a poster of one thing they do that helps their wellbeing.

We look forward to seeing all the different ways that our students improve their wellbeing.

To learn more about mental health month follow this link: Mental Health Month

Link to visuals

Kelly Russell
School Counsellor

School Travel

Students who need a School Bus Pass for 2024 can apply here. A new application will need to be submitted if they are applying for the first time, or if they are requesting additional travel entitlement because of new shared parental arrangement (e.g. joint custody).

Students who change address, school, campus location, have repeated a year or received an expiry notification from Transport for NSW for their school travel entitlement should renew or update their details before the end of Term 4. This will ensure that schools can endorse applications, and entitlements remain valid for the start of the 2024 school year. 

If a student’s distance eligibility has changed based on their grade (ie. Year 2 to Year 3), the system will automatically update their entitlement if they meet the new criteria. If they do not meet the new eligibility criteria, we will send them an expiry notification via email.

Students who have an entitlement approved under a medical condition that is due to expire will receive a notification advising them to re-apply.

Term Bus Pass holders will receive a notification to re-apply.

Students living in rural and regional (R&R) areas should receive their travel pass at the start of the new school year from their nominated transport operator. It may come via the school or be sent directly to them at home. Note: some R&R operators do not issue travel passes. Students/parents should confirm with their nominated operator if they do not receive a pass.

Congratulations to students in Hastings Sports House! Hastings  students earned the highest total of Making Jesus Real tokens last term and celebrated this term, with extended play and an icy pole.

Thank you for showing our school values and making Jesus real each day!

School Support Taekwondo

Wow! Our students continue to shine as they learn from Jayu Martial Arts Academy. Black Belts Annette Baker and Andrew Fullerton have been working hard with our students from Kindergarten to Year 6, delivering a program that not only teaches an introduction to Taekwondo, but also lifelong skills of freedom, balance and harmony.

Summer Sports Trials

St Joseph’s will send selected students to the Hastings Zone Summer Sports Selection Trials being held on Monday 30th October 2023. This is a day where children from all schools can mix socially and display their skills in Touch Football, Basketball and Cricket.

David Lynch
Sports Co-ordinator

Please note these dates can change from time to time due to unforeseen circumstances and we will endeavour to advise you of any changes at the earliest possible opportunity. Our school Google calendar can be accessed via this link for additional advanced dates -

For your convenience 2023 school term dates are listed below. They are also located on our website. Click on the words “TERM DATES” on the home page.