St Joseph's Primary School, Penshurst

11/09/2026

10/09/2026

Importance of Connection.

Strong, supportive connections play an important role in a young person's mental health, wellbeing and development. Feeling connected to family, friends, school and community can provide children and adolescents with a sense of belonging, security and acceptance, helping them feel valued and supported as they grow.

As young people navigate friendships, increasing independence, social pressures and the digital world, maintaining meaningful connections can sometimes become more challenging. Positive relationships and a strong sense of belonging can help protect against loneliness and isolation, while building resilience, confidence and emotional wellbeing.

This edition of SchoolTV explores the importance of connection and offers practical strategies to help strengthen relationships, foster belonging and ensure young people feel supported, understood and connected.

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Connection is vital to the wellbeing and development of children and young people. Strong relationships with family, friends, school and the wider community help build belonging, self-esteem and resilience. As young people grow more independent, these connections can change, with online relationship...

07/09/2026

🌟 Student-Led Conversations 🌟
We are looking forward to our upcoming Student-Led Conversations this Friday the 11th of September, from 2:30pm.
This is a wonderful opportunity for students to take the lead and share their learning, achievements, reflections and goals with their parent/parents.
We look forward to welcoming our families and celebrating our students’ learning and progress together!
📅 Friday
⏰ From 2:30pm

01/09/2026

🏀 Hoop Time Success! 🏀

Today our 3/4 Legends took part in Hoop Time Basketball at HILAC, playing three fantastic games and coming away with two wins! 🎉🙌

A huge well done to our six students, who gave 100% effort in every game. We are incredibly proud of the way you represented our school, showing terrific sportsmanship, teamwork and respect towards both your teammates and your opponents. ⭐️

A big thank you to all the families who came along to cheer and support them. 💙🏀

28/08/2026

Today our F-6 students headed across to The Dunkeld Consolidated School, to take part in The Dunkeld Writers Festival Schools Program.
A very big thank you to the Festival Coordinators, The Dunkled Community and District Bendigo Bank and The Dunkeld Consolidated School, for inviting us and arranging transportation, so that we could attend this years children's author sessions.
The students had a wonderful morning meeting Simone Kain and Caz Goodwin. 📚

25/08/2026

Today we celebrated Book Week with our friends from the Penshurst Kindergarten -CPSG. We also had a very special book reading from local children's author Tracey Duffield Kruger.
Thank you to all the families who attended this mornings parade and for all the work you put into your children's costumes each year!

20/08/2026

Smartphone Readiness Quiz

Deciding when a child is ready for their first smartphone can be a challenging parenting decision. Readiness is not just about age. It also depends on a child’s maturity, self-regulation, judgement and ability to manage the responsibilities of being connected online.

The Smartphone Rediness Quiz is designed for parents and adult carers to complete with their child, encouraging important conversations while exploring the key skills that support safe and responsible smartphone use.

Rather than providing a simple yes or no answer, the results highlight areas of strength and where further development may be helpful. Families are also guided through suggested next steps, including a Family Smartphone Agreement and practical guidance on setting up parental controls before introducing a smartphone.

We encourage you to complete the quiz together and use the results as a starting point for ongoing conversations about safe, responsible and healthy smartphone use.

Receiving a first smartphone is a significant milestone in a child's life. While there is no universally "right" age, deciding when the time is right involves much more than simply considering their age or whether their friends already have one. A smartphone brings greater independence, along with i...

19/08/2026

Today we celebrated Indonesian Independence Day for 2026.
The students and our beautiful Indonesian teacher Mrs Patience cooked up a magnificent feast for us all to enjoy. Its days like these, that really make little schools extra special. ❤️

19/08/2026

Today we were very lucky to have an impromptu visit from Indigenous author Gregg Dreise and his beautiful family.
Gregg and his family are currently travelling around parts of Australia.
While on their journey, they have been stopping into schools and sharing their love of writing and story telling, and gifting schools and libraries with signed copies of his own book, and books from The Indigenous Literacy Foundation.
We invited Gregg and his family into our school, and when Gregg asked if he could talk to the students and read his book 'Where's my baby?', of course we said yes!
This was more than a book reading, it was a performance! Gregg taught the children Indigenous dance, and while he played his didgeridoo the kids moved and danced like the native Australian animals featured in his story.
We are so glad you and your family decided to take a big turn off the Great Ocean Road and head up to Gariwerd/The Grampians, because it brought you to us!