Dear Families,

We are already at the beginning of term 4, and the year seems to be flying by quickly. It has been a positive start for all classes, and already there have been some significant events in our community- the Canberra Trip, R-5 Cricket clinic and the continuing Year 6 outdoor education program. As the term progresses, there will be a number of class and year-level based celebratory activities for our children, as we bring the year to a close

Our term 4 school sports are all well underway, and I sincerely thank Mr Steven DeGiovaniello for his ongoing work in coordinating and communicating all of the sporting activities we participate in.

During the recent holiday break, we successfully introduced Vacation Care to St Joseph’s Kingswood community for the first time. As I visited regularly during the holiday break I was impressed with the quality of the program on offer, and I delighted in the enthusiasm with which the staff and children went about their days! We will be looking to continue offering vacation care into the future and are currently surveying the community to make sure the program we offer is tailored to your specific needs as much as we can. Please make sure you complete the survey before this Friday.

On Thursday 31^st October, we will celebrate our Italian language program with Italian Day. Signora Prestwich has been working tirelessly to put together a day of colour, fun, and energetic activity- all with a distinctly Italian flavour! Children are encouraged to dress up in Italian styled outfits for the day, and families are warmly welcomed to attend activities in the moring.

As we move ever closer to the end of this school year, teaching staff are beginning the process of preparing student reports for the end of the year, as well as thinking about the best placement of children for 2020. Both of these exercises are undertaken with rigour and integrity. As families with an ongoing partnership will know, this information is finalised and communicated in the last week of the school year.

Families are reminded that our end of year Thanksgiving Mass is to be held in our church, on Tuesday 10^th December. This is a whole of school community celebration, and all students and families are expected to attend. At this Mass, in addition to giving thanks to God for another successful year at school, we honour our graduating year 6 students, and announce both our student award winners and our student leadership team for 2020. Please make sure this important date is in your diary.

I would also remind families that our end of year “Christmas on the Green” and carols evening is to be held on Friday 6^th December from 5.30pm for a prompt 6pm start. All students are involved in this performance, and as such must attend. It is always a great opportunity to catch up with other school families and celebrate the end of another successful year. 

Have a great week everyone,

God bless,

Phil