PRINCIPAL S MESSAGE ST. JOSEPH S INSTITUTION INTERNATIONAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. Term One, 18 April 2019

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1 ST. JOSEPH S INSTITUTION INTERNATIONAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPAL S MESSAGE Dear Parents, Although it has been a short week to finish off this half term it has as always been a very busy one. It is also perhaps fortuitous that we finish this half of term with the virtue of Joyfulness. Our school community is a joyful one. You only have to look into a classroom, watch the children at playtime or in Assembly or when they are having lunch to see their joyfulness shine through. Our definition of joyfulness from the Virtues Project reads: Joyfulness is an inner sense of peace and happiness. You appreciate the gifts each day brings. Without joyfulness, when the fun stops our happiness stops. Joy can carry us through the hard times even when we are feeling very sad. Joy gives us wings. Something for us all to reflect on as we prepare for a short school holiday. Over the break, there are two groups of students representing the ES at Sporting Events. We have a four-girl team attending the ACSIS Gymnastics Championships on Friday the 19th of April and Mr V will be taking 5 boys and 5 girls to the ACSIS MS Track and Field Championships on Saturday 27th April. The very best of luck to all involved. I do hope everyone has a happy and restful holiday and I look forward to seeing everybody back at school on Thursday 2nd May. Easter Egg Roll Thursday morning, the Early Years children had a joyful time celebrating Easter together. They watched a puppet show to learn about the Easter Story and sang a song together. Then they tasted a hot cross bun and rolled eggs on the field to represent the stone that was rolled away, and that Jesus is alive! Purple Dress Up & Crazy Hair Day by Ms Kelleher What an amazing day. Today as I walked around the school I saw so many smiling faces (with crazy hair) and a sea of purple! What a wonderful community we are part of here at SJII! Thank you all so much for your generosity and kindness today. I am utterly blown away by the creativity I have seen. What a wonderful way to part ways before the Easter Break. The PCF (Purple Community Fund) will be delighted with our contribution of $5, A huge thank you to all the teachers, administration staff, leadership team and our six Service Helpers, for their helpfulness and commitment in ensuring this event was successful Celebrate The Year of Lasallian Vocations 2019 marks the 300th Anniversary of the death of our Founder, Saint John Baptist de La Salle, Patron of Saint of Teachers. The global theme for this celebration is, De La Salle: One Heart, One Commitment, One Life..

2 Our Grades 2, 3 and 4 students took part in a project, led by the Singapore Lasallian Youth Network involving seven Lasallian schools in Singapore. Students were introduced to the significance of this event and how they can contribute to the Wishes for La Salle project. Each child wrote a wish for the future of the Lasallian family. These were presented at the Tercentenary Mass on 6th April and will then go to Rome in September. Our community can view these wishes along the Gabriel Ground Floor corridor. Please take a few moments to read, reflect and appreciate the prayerful intentions of our children. CCA after the Term break A reminder that there is no CCA on Thursday, 2nd and Friday, 3rd May. Please remind your child of their arrangements for getting home on these two days. CCA - Uniform for Early Years children The Early Years children, from Prep 1 to Grade 1, should come to school in their PE uniform if they have a sporting CCA that day. This will save them the time it takes to get changed after school so we can start CCAs in a punctual fashion. Children from Grade 2 up are expected to change into there PE or sporting attire after school. Thank you again for your support. Music News Kindly note the following dates when Ensemble rehearsals will resume after the Easter holidays: 1. String Ensemble: Thursday 2nd May am to 8.15am - MR1 (Final rehearsal before the performance at Assembly on Friday) 2. Woodwind Ensemble: Thursday 2nd May to 4.10pm - MR1 3. ES Senior & Junior Choirs: Tuesday 7th May to 8.00am - MR1 & MR2 4. Brass Ensemble - Wednesday 8th May to4.10pm - MR1 We have vacancies for new members to join the Woodwind and Brass Ensembles. Please me at andrew.tan@sji-international.com.sg for more information. Red Dot Please note that the Red Dot movie trailer and book cover competition deadline has been extended to Friday 3rd May. School Hat I understand from our supplier Ten Feet Tall, that the large size sun hat is out of stock and the new shipment will only arrive in July. Parents have the option to purchase the baseball cap instead of the sun hat. Otherwise, children may wear the old school hat or their own sun hat until stock is available.

3 Dates for your Diary Thu 2 May Fri 3 May Mon 6 May Fri 10 May Term 1 (2 nd Half) Commences No CCA No CCA Book Week 2019 Term Dates

4 Book Week Deidre Hazlewood

5 Carl Rayner

6 Virtues Corner Jessie Connor This week s virtue was - JOYFULNESS. Joyfulness can be been easily seen as you walk through SJIIES. From singing during Music to creating a masterpiece during Art, it s all around us. For me personally, it s when I m dancing. Having the chance to dance with nearly the Whole school during the Zumba morning was a perfect example. The smiles that looked back at Sam and I as we boogied were so lovely and joyous. It didn t matter if the steps were done perfectly or not, it was about having a good time - and we all did! What is JOYFULNESS? JOYFULNESS is being filled with happiness. It is a peaceful sense of well-being. Joy is doing what you love. Joy is inside us all. It comes from am appreciation for the gifts each day brings. Joy comes from when we are doing what we know is right, and when we laugh and see the humour in things. Joy is the inner sense that can carry us through the hard times even when we are feeling sad. Signs of Success: You are practising JOYFULNESS when you Look inside for happiness. Enjoy whatever you are doing. Appreciate the gifts in your life and in yourself. Find creative ways to enjoy your time. Have a good sense of humour. Feel an inner peace even when things are tough. I am thankful for the JOY I feel inside. I enjoy my work and my play. I appreciate the gifts this day holds for me.

7 Walk along God s path. Saint John Baptist de La Salle Catholic Corner Jesus Camp Christ our King FOJ Team On 13th April afternoon, over 80 children participated in a Friends of Jesus (FOJ) camp to learn about and celebrate Christ Our King. Activities organised by our dedicated team of teachers helped children learn more about Lent, Easter and why Jesus is our King. We were also blessed to have 12 High School students assisting. Special thanks to Ms Anna Cyriac for help with the Preps children, Ms Marcella Sullivan for popcorn, Ms Mary Summerbell for costumes and Ms Lisa Joven for organising the delicious family potluck dinner after. Palm Sunday Mass was very special and the children waved their hands enthusiastically and sang their hearts out as we processed into the chapel. Friar Mike s homily helped us all appreciate Jesus heart of peace and love when Jesus rode into Jerusalem as he chose to ride a donkey, not a horse. The children looked marvellous in costumes as they read their parts in the Passion. Craft (Ms Catherine & Ms Wong) The craft station was a flurry of activity and excited chatter as the children created and decorated their own cross. The Early Years children personalised their crosses with delicate paper flowers, beads and colourful markers, the Middle Years children embellished theirs with sequins and a picture of the Risen Christ, while the UES children crafted elaborate paper flowers to adorn theirs. The children were full of ideas of where they were going to display their cross at home, the most popular responses being on the fridge or altar! Storytelling (Ms Connor) The storytelling session was a time for the groups to come together to listen to the Easter Story. We talked about each day of Holy Week and it s significance to people of faith. In particular, Easter Sunday, as this was the day we knew for sure that Jesus really was the son of God. Students were invited to act out certain words, such as celebrate to become more involved with the story.

8 News from Catholic Corner Continues Games (Mr & Mrs Cumming) As always, the Games Station was a big hit amongst our campers. In keeping with the theme, Christ our King, we spoke about the animals represented in the Bible- from the lamb to the humble donkey, and what these animals symbolised in the life of Christ and to us today. Our campers became active learners as they quickly waddled, hopped, and chased around the hall in an attempt to emulate some of these animals and unpack their significance to us. Prayer (Ms Ball & Ms Papaluca) At the Prayer Station children were each presented with a plastic egg, as an egg is an important symbol of Easter, representing new life. When students opened the eggs they discovered a prayer with a corresponding image inside. The easter eggs contained these items which were to help children think about the kingship or friendship of Jesus. Children were to ponder on the items inside and to think about what type of King Jesus is; just, merciful, dependable, a servant king, caring. Students were then presented with a palm leaf, and we discussed how Jesus arrived into Nazareth on a donkey, with the people waving palm leaves at him as an act of respect. On the palm leaves, the children wrote a prayer for Easter, which included petitions for their friends and family. Music (Mr John Teo and the Chapel Choir) Mr Teo and some members of the choir came to rehearse the songs sung at mass with the children and the children sang beautifully! Thank you Jesus for the wonderful time and to parents for supporting the camp!

9 Spotlight On Sport Our 12U Track & Field team will be at Singapore American School on Saturday April 27th Our 12U Tennis Team is hosting AIS the first day back after the Easter break Our ES Track and Field team (75 students) will be competing in the ACSIS Finals on Saturday May 4th LET S GO TIGERS, LET S GO!!! PE Department 8U Footballers Play Final Tournament Yesterday Congratulations to our 8U boys and girls as they played in their final friendly round-robin last night at UWC East. The boys and girls have had a tremendous season of football and they are certainly ready to play in the 9U ACSIS League next August. We would like to thank our 2 CUFA coaches (Zahid and Joo Joo) for their leadership and hard work. The boys are girls are invited to the Season's end BBQ and Swim taking place on Thursday, May 16th. Well done young Tigers!

10 News from Spotlight On Sport Continues Elementary Parents Support Group

11 Whole School News Booking is now open and we hope you can support the dinner.