1
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
Principal - Kevin Warne
Acting School Council President - Anne Trevena
Telephone - (03) 57931288
Fax - (03) 57931412 Web - www.puckapunyalps.vic.edu.au/
Email - [email protected]
Alamein Road
Puckapunyal, Vic, 3662
Postal: Military P.O.
ABN: - 74134967962
Term 1 Issue 4
February 21st, 2018
Friday 23rd February
Division Swimming Carnival
Monday
26th February
Parent/Teacher
Information Sharing Session
Tuesday
6th March
School Council
A.G.M. Visiting Artist – Science
Monday
12th March
Labour Day
Public Holiday
Saturday 17th March
School Working Bee
Monday
19th March
Family Chat Group
School Photos
Thursday
29th March
Last Day
of Term 1
Inside this Issue: Birthdays/DSTA Message 2
Darwin Defenders Visit 2
School Canteen Lunches 3
Parent/Teacher Info Sharing 3
Student Awards of the Week 4
Teaching/Learning Focus 5
Well Done, Pucka! 6
Asthma/Parents as Helpers Course 7
Indo Lingo 8
Helping Your Child to Read 9
Everyday Counts! 10
On Friday, we had a very successful Years 3-6 House Swimming Carnival with
Melba House (Red) being the winners for the day!
All students performed admirably, trying their best to tally as many points for their
House as possible. The students were very competitive! It was a great team
atmosphere.
We had students of all abilities having a go for their house!
It was a great day and we congratulate all students for their performances.
The final order of the House Carnival was:
1st Melba House 318 points 2nd Bradman House 295 points
3rd Chisholm House 256 points 4th Hume House 196 points
We have seen many students improve with their swimming over the last 2 weeks or
so and the carnival was a great way to support the training. It didn’t matter what
places students came, many were delighted to just participate and give it their best.
Hannah Lucas and Finlay Koch are proud captains of Melba, as you can see below
in the photo, holding the winning House Swimming Trophy.
Thank you to all new House Captains
who on that day performed their first
lot of duties for 2018. They looked
after their teams for both sessions of
the day and helped to cheer on their
teams. Well done captains!
Thank you to all of the volunteer
parents and teachers for their efforts to
ensure a smooth event. Mrs. McCarthy
was the organiser of the event and did a
marvelous job. Thanks, Mrs.
McCarthy.
The House Carnival was also a good
opportunity to select our Years 3-6
District Swimming Team that
represented our school at yesterday’s
District Swimming Carnival. Please
see page 6 to see how our District
swimmers went.
***Have you heard your child read
today? We encourage all students to
practise their reading at home about 5
nights per week. Therefore, by now,
most students should have read at
least between 15-20 nights. Well
done if you have kept up!
***We can all work together to
rid the community of any chance
of Head Lice. Let’s check our
heads once per week!***
Proud Melba House captains,
Hannah Lucas and Finlay Koch.
2
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
Happy Birthday to Aiden Gibbons,
Jack Lindner, Harmony Cameron and
Oliver Crichton who are all having their
birthdays this week.
On behalf of the Puckapunyal Primary
School Community, we wish them all a
very Happy Birthday!
Sports for Schools: Keep these vouchers coming in.
Our school community is really supporting this and
we already have a lot of vouchers. Thanks so much!
Ride2School: We encourage active travel – walking
or cycling to school and we have our Ride2School
day coming up in March. While the weather is so
pleasant, perhaps consider incorporating active travel
into your morning and afternoon school routines.
Healthy lunch tip: use your loaf. Keeping lunches
healthy, interesting and providing variety can be
challenging. Here are some ideas for the humble
sandwich: Bread, fruit bread, rolls, wraps,
pita/pocket breads, focaccia, ciabatta, mountain
bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc.
Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA.
POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR
REWARD UPDATE We are seeing lots of positive behaviour;
most students are making great choices that
benefit everyone. Let’s keep this going!
CURRENT SCORES
Bradman - 280 points
Melba - 265 points
Chisholm - 260 points
Hume - 241 points
10 of our senior students represented our school at the
76th Darwin Defenders Day
Commemoration on Monday. Along with Mrs.
Ranger and Mr. Warne the students attended the
service at the Shrine of Remembrance. Our school
Captains, Abbey Kendell and Harry Fletcher laid a
wreath on behalf of our school. House Captains, Emily
Watson, Hannah Lucas and Finlay Koch read a
poem to the 200 people who attended the
commemoration.
At next week’s school assembly, the students who
attended the commemoration will present an oral
briefing of the day.
Our 10 student leaders at the shrine with navy and army
representatives.
Hannah, Finlay and Emily reading their
poem in front of the navy band.
School captains, Abbey and Harry with
the wreath. Finlay, Lachlan, Cooper and Harry
inside the Shrine.
Our 10 student leaders outside the
Shrine enjoying a rest on the steps.
3
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
On Monday 26th February (Monday next week!) we are
having a Parent/Teacher Information Sharing Day. The
day will be a normal school day where students arrive at 9:00
a.m. and are dismissed at 3:30 p.m. Each family will be
allotted a 10 minute time slot where mums and dads can share
any important information about their children that may help
the teacher and learning during the year. It is also a good time
for the teachers to let parents know how their children have
settled into the school year and discuss any concerns.
The interviews will begin from 2:00 p.m. and finish at
approximately 6:30 p.m. From 1:15 p.m. the students will
have a supervised lunch outside and will be participating in
sporting activities with our specialist teachers who do not
teach grades.
NB - It is too early to report on academic achievements at this
stage of the year.
Please select a preferred time slot below and return the
Parent/Teacher Information Sharing Form to school by
Wednesday 21st February (today) so we can try to
accommodate your availability as best as possible. If you
have already discussed such issues with your child’s teacher
you may not need a chat at this stage of the year.
Kevin Warne, Principal
Parent/Teacher Information
Sharing Form
FAMILY NAME: …………………………………....
Child’s Name:…………………..……Year:…...…….
Room No:.…………
Child’s Name:…………………..……Year:…...…….
Room No:.…………
Child’s Name:…………………..……Year:…...…….
Room No:.…………
Child’s Name:…………………..……Year:…...…….
Room No:.…………
Preferred Interview Times (please tick preferred time
box)
2:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. 2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
4:30p.m. - 5:30p.m. 5:30p.m. - 6:20p.m.
Canteen Helpers Still
Needed If you are a parent with some time and you can help
in the school canteen please contact the school
office. We would love to hear from you.
Tuesday March 6th is our School Council Annual
General Meeting. The meeting will take place at 5
p.m. in the school staff room. The A.G.M. is a public
meeting and all parents are welcome to attend. Our new
School Council will form for the first time after that
meeting and twice per term afterwards.
The School Canteen is open for Lunch Orders in 2
week’s time. From then, each and every Friday
students can order lunches from the school canteen.
The menu will be different each week. Please ensure
that a paper bag comes with the order. Please indicate
on the lunch bag if the money is in another sibling’s
bag.
Term 1 Menu
Friday 2nd March:
Hot Dogs - $3 each
250ml Chocolate or Strawberry milk - $2
Apple/Orange Juice Popper - $1.50
Friday 9th March:
Party Pies & Sausage Rolls $1 each or 3 for $2.50
250ml Chocolate or Strawberry milk - $2
Apple/Orange Juice Popper - $1.50
Friday 16th March:
4 Chicken Nuggets and a Serve of wedges $3
250ml Chocolate or Strawberry milk - $2
Apple/Orange Juice Popper - $1.50
Friday 23rd March: Ham & Pineapple Pizza - $2.50 each
250ml Chocolate or Strawberry milk - $2
Apple/Orange Juice Popper - $1.50
Paper Bags 20 Cents each
***Reminder – the SCHOOL BUS STOP is not a
car park or a drop off zone. Please do not park
there. Let’s keep everyone safe!***
4
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
Defence School Transition Aide Message Back at school: I trust that everyone has had a smooth and
satisfactory beginning to the school year. Changing schools,
beginning school for the first time and even returning for another
school year can be daunting for students and parents. It is great to see
parents eager to support their children at this time and be an integral
part of their education. If you have any concerns, or just feel like a
chat about school and your child, please find me!
SWAPP Select Program
I have information about the ADF partners career assistance program
if anyone is interested.
NEW UNIFORM
We have recently had a new shipment of uniform arrive that includes
shorts, tops, tracksuit pants and hats. Some parents have been waiting
on this to arrive.
Best wishes for the week.
Sue Ranger, Defence School Transition Aide
Defence School Transition Aide Message Back at school: I trust that everyone has had a smooth and
satisfactory beginning to the school year. Changing schools,
beginning school for the first time and even returning for another
school year can be daunting for students and parents. It is great
to see parents eager to support their children at this time and be
an integral part of their education. If you have any concerns, or
just feel like a chat about school and your child, please find me!
SWAPP Select Program
I have information about the ADF partners career assistance
program if anyone is interested.
NEW UNIFORM
We have recently had a new shipment of uniform arrive that
includes shorts, tops, tracksuit pants and hats. Some parents have
been waiting on this to arrive.
Best wishes for the week.
Sue Ranger, Defence School Transition Aide
Congratulations to the following students who were
‘Students of the Week’ for last week. Winners –
Maddy Buckley, Archer Hatfield, Emilia Pippin,
Rory Kennedy, Zara Marini, Samara Wildin, Olivia
Scotman, Aysa Crawley, James Van Der Waal,
Pallavi Allan-Agnew and Matilda Turner. These
students were selected because they were modelling
Confidence. This week teachers are also looking for
students who are modelling Excellence.
Congratulations to the following students who were
‘Authors of the Week’ for last week. Winners – Elsie
Charters, Hayden McBride, Sophie Van Der Waal,
Zoe Landel, Katara Govey-Haysom, Fiona Hill,
Amelia Duna, Kade Horton, Savanah Naunton,
Jack Lindner and Abbey Kendell. The students were
selected because they showed great skills as an author.
1/2 C in Room 4 won the Yard
Duty Competition. Izzy Greenwood
and Zoe Landel enjoyed collecting the
winning trophy for their classroom this
week!
Congratulations to Zara Marini, Fiona
Hill, Kirrah Horton and Brielle
Eldredge who won the raffle prizes for
‘Positive Behaviour’ this week!
3/4 P in Room 13 won
the Middle School
Times Tables
Trophy. Liam Cannon
and Melhoney Pambai are
both delighted to look after
the winning trophy this
week!
5/6 D in Room 2 won
the Senior School
Times Tables
Trophy. Jarrah Younger and
Aaron Bennett will look
after the winning trophy
this week!
5
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
Each week in the newsletter, we will give families a summary of the Teaching/Learning Focus for the week.
That can help families by: being aware of what classrooms are covering; with discussion topics at the dinner table when
discussing school (eg. ‘How are you going with addition in Numeracy this week?’); helping their children study at home,
etc. Parents have indicated that this information would be very useful. We also ask families to be aware that schools are
very busy places and events can be unpredictable at times. We therefore must remain flexible. That means, we can plan to
cover certain topics at particular times and have to change them according to arising needs.
Junior School – Preps/Foundation Rooms 6, 8 & 10 Literacy: We are learning the difference between a letter and a word and concentrating on the letters ‘O and T’
Numeracy: We are learning about the numbers three and four, making patterns and days of the week.
Junior School – Year 1s Rooms 3, 4 & 10 Literacy: .We are revising the letters ‘O and T’. We are focusing on capital letters, full stops and question marks.
Numeracy: We are working on counting in sets of 10 and looking at groups of 10. We are also estimating lengths.
Junior School – Year 2s Rooms 3, 4 & 9 Literacy: We are revising the letters ‘O and T’. We are focusing on capital letters, full stops and specifically question
marks. We are discussing the difference between fact and opinion.
Numeracy: We are sequencing numbers up to and beyond 100.We are skip counting by 2’s, 5’s and 10’s.
Middle School Years 3/4 Rooms 9, 11, 12 & 13 Literacy: Over the next two weeks we will be focusing on persuasive texts in writing and VCOP components, in
particular openers and punctuation.
Numeracy: We will also be working on the four processes in Numeracy.
Senior School Years 5/6 Rooms 1&2 Literacy: Over the next two weeks we will be focusing on note taking and VCOP components, in particular openers and
punctuation.
Numeracy: We will also be working on the four processes, estimation and units of measurement in Numeracy.
Well done to the students who attended
Early Morning Swimming.
These students went to the Area Pool
and practised their swimming before
school. They were presented with a
certificate at assembly this week.
As with other years, we will conduct Family Chat Groups
each term. On Monday 19th March, the school will have the first
Family Chat Group. The session will be held in the staffroom
straight after the Monday morning assembly (about 9:30am-
10:30am). There will be cuppas and cake as well. The idea is for
parents to chat with the Principal, Kevin Warne and the D.S.T.A.,
Sue Ranger, about the school, what we do at school, our kids, and
various issues/topics. In the past, parents have brainstormed some
ideas for sessions to cover throughout the year. Hopefully our
parents will find them useful. Please come along to the first
session even if just to say ‘hello’.
Our school intends to have an On-site
Bushfire Evacuation Practice this term.
Throughout the year we practice Lockdowns, Off-
site and On-Site Evacuations. Stay tuned.
6
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
Congratulations to the 31 students who participated in the District Swimming Carnival in Seymour
yesterday. Puckapunyal Primary School finished an impressive 2nd, which is a great effort.
We are very proud of our team because they all gave their best for their school.
It seems that all of the hard training that our students did either through school lessons, early morning swimming or
privately, paid off. Many of the students who competed worked really hard during the swimming programs where we
saw much improvement. Well done!
It is a good time to remind our students that Seymour Sharks is a great organisation where kids can receive
specialised swimming training. Most of the better swimmers from all of our schools were students from the Seymour
Sharks Club or other squad groups. This is something to consider if students are interested in furthering their
swimming!
There were many fantastic highlights and unfortunately we cannot mention all of them. However, we must
congratulate Clodagh McCarthy (12 years) and Tessa Thompson (10 years) who were age group
champions for the day. Well done champs!
Many students came home with many ribbons from their events. Some of them will represent the Seymour District at
the Division Swimming Championship Carnival on Friday.
We will report on those performances next week.
It was also terrific to hear many other students talk about how proud they were of their efforts. For many students
swimming 50m was a huge task. Well done, team.
Congratulations to the 21 students who performed so well at the Seymour District Swimming Carnival yesterday, that
they have been selected in the team to represent our school and the Seymour District at the Division Swimming
Carnival on Friday 23rd February (this Friday – yes, a big week!). The Division Swimming Carnival will involve 4
other divisions and will take place today at the Seymour Outdoor Pool. Good luck, champs!
2018 Division Swimming Team Abby Chetcuti, Abbey Kendell, Harry Fletcher, Tessa Thompson, Jarrah Younger, Jack Kennedy, Olivia Scotman, Ned
Kendell, Lachlan O’Connor, Aaron Becks, Finlay Koch, Aiden Gibbons, Caleb Baumann, Mia Shortt, Ella Padman,
Hannah Lucas, Paige Cooper, Emily Watson, Mackenzy Eagles, Mollie Kelly and Clodagh McCarthy.
Good luck, champs!
7
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
Every year there is a well-documented rise in asthma flare-ups and hospitalisations when students return to school after
the Christmas break. Asthma Australia has information for parents of students with asthma to help them prepare for
school. Asthma Australia’s website and social media provide the latest information, including a checklist of what to do to
help your child and a survey to complete to determine the impacts for parents/carers.
Asthma Australia recommends that you talk to school staff about your child’s asthma and the school’s medication policy,
provide an Asthma Plan from the doctor and supply a spare reliever puffer and spacer for your child’s use at school.
For primary aged students:
Asthma Kids
Looking for a way to help your child understand more about their asthma or about a friend with asthma? Asthma Kids is
an online, interactive tool to help primary school aged children understand what it’s like to have asthma and what they can
do to help. Watch one of the introductory videos then take Chester’s Asthma Trail. There are prizes to win too!
www.asthmakids.org.au
For secondary aged students:
Young People and Asthma Asthma Australia is working with key organisations supporting young people’s health to help improve asthma health
outcomes for 12-25 year olds. A Facebook page, Young People with Asthma – Australia, provides a range of information
for these young people and their supporters. Every two months Asthma Australia will also run a Question and Answer
session that is proving very popular. Check out the page for our posts and promotion for upcoming Q and A sessions.
Thank you to our mums who
participated in 2 sessions of
our Parent Helpers Course.
They have volunteered to help
in our classrooms, so teachers,
Jane Challis and Katie
Hartland conducted some
sessions on Numeracy and
Literacy for them.
Teachers are looking for students who are demonstrating ‘Excellence’ to be eligible for the Student of the Week award.
We encourage parents to talk to their students about our values throughout the year.
What does Excellence mean? At assembly this week, Year 6 student Hayden Clarke read out the meaning of Excellence.
‘Excellence is giving your absolute best to any task you do. When you practise excellence, you are not trying to be better
than anyone else, just the very best that you can be.’
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‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
This week I'll bring in an Indonesian topeng (mask) for the students to use. We'll share last week's worksheet
entitled Tentang Saya (About Me) and learn/extend salam (greetings).
Selamat pagi = Good morning (sunrise till 11am)
Selamat siang = Good day (11am till 3pm)
Selamat sore = Good afternoon (3pm till sunset)
Selamat malam = Good evening/night (sunset till sunrise)
Hai = Hi
Selamat datang = Welcome
FOC & FOM Language the students will hear/use this week:
Selamat pagi = Good morning
Siapa ada? = Who's here?
Ada = Here
Siapa tidak ada? = Who's not here?
Tidak ada = Not here
Berapa murid? = How many students?
Ada __ murid. = There are __ students.
Nama saya ... = My name is ...
Nama = Name
Sampai jumpa = See you later
F/1R, 1/2C, 1/2I, 2/3M Will use above language and ...
Selamat pagi/siang = Good morning/day
Apa kabar? = How are you?
Baik-baik saja = Well Biasa saja = So so
Kurang baik = Not good
Siapa nama kamu? = What's your name?
3/4D, 3/4I & 3/4P Will use above language and ...
Siapa nama Bu? = What's your name ma'am?
Siapa nama Pak? = What's your name sir?
5/6D & 5/6H Will use above language and ...
Baik = Good Bagus = Great
Senang = Happy Sedih = Sad
Lapar = Hungry Haus = Thirsty
Panas = Hot Dingin = Cold
Sakit = Sick
Siapa namamu? = What's your name?
Siapa nama Ibu? = What's your name ma'am?
Siapa nama Bapak? = What's your name sir?
Salam (Regards)
Bu Hooper (Mrs Hooper)
Guru Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian teacher)
9
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
Here are some tools to assist you when helping your child to read.
Praise and Encouragement
Praise for children is like nutrients for plants, it helps them thrive! So give daily doses!
“You are a good reader.”
“You are reading very well now.”
“It’s getting easier and easier.”
“I like hearing you read.”
“I like the way you read that.”
“You are doing very well.”
“Terrific!”
“Well done!”
“Fantastic!”
“Top effort. I like the way you tried here.”
“I like the way you figured that out all by yourself.”
“You went back and fixed this, well done.”
“How did you know this wasn’t ………?”
“First you said …… (error) and then you said ……. and that was right. What did you notice? Well done!”
“I like reading with you.”
“Wow! What a great reader you are!”
“I like sharing a book together.”
“That was a bit tricky wasn’t it?
“Let’s have another go.”
“How did you figure that out?”
“I’m proud of you.”
“Thank you for reading to me.”
*Make your comment at the end of a page or at the end of the book. Let them get through a page without interruptions
because they can lose the gist of the story if we interrupt too often.
*If your child is stuck on a word, don’t leave them hanging. That’s agony for both of you. Tell them the word and get
them to take a good look at it.
*Everyday, find something to praise about your child and how well they are reading. It doesn’t have to be about their
take-home books. You can use their favourite books or the library book they have borrowed that week. Notice how much
they are already doing that is correct. And remember reading is meant to be fun. Keep it lighthearted and positive in your
approach.
*Choose a regular, relaxed time of the day to read together. Before bed time might be fine so long as you and your child
are not too tired. Remember it is an ongoing process and small successes help keep the child interested and engaged.
Happy Reading!
Junior Team
10
‘Striving for Excellence’
Open since 1887
EVERY DAY COUNTS Primary School Attendance
Going to school every day is the single most important part of your child’s education. Students learn new things at school every day – missing school puts them behind. Why it’s important We all want our students to get a great education, and the building blocks for a great education begin with students coming to school each and every day. If students miss school regularly, they miss out on learning the fundamental skills that will set them up for success in the later years of school. There is no safe number of days for missing school – each day a student misses puts them behind, and can affect their educational outcomes. Each missed day is associated with progressively lower achievement in numeracy, writing and reading.
Getting in early Attendance patterns are established early – a child regularly missing days in kindergarten or in the early years of school will often continue to miss classes in the later years, and receive lower test scores than their classmates. It’s vital that students go to school every day – even in the early years of primary school.
What we can do The main reasons for absence are: Sickness – There are always times when students need to miss school, such as when they’re ill. It’s vital that they’re only away on the days they are genuinely sick, and setting good sleep patterns, eating well and exercising regularly can make a big difference. It's vital that holidays are planned during school holidays where possible, and not during the term if it can be avoided.
“Day off” – Think twice before letting your child have a “day off” as they could fall behind their classmates – “every day counts. “ Truancy – This is when students choose not to go to school without their parent’s permission. There can be many reasons for truancy. The best way to address this is for schools and parents to work together. If for any reason your child must miss school, there are things you can do with your school to ensure they don’t fall behind:
Speak with your classroom teacher and find out what work your child needs to do to keep up.
Develop an absence learning plan with your teacher and ensure your child completes the plan.
Remember, every day counts. If your child must miss school, speak with your classroom teacher as early as possible. Openly communicating with your child's school about all absences is a good way to prevent attendance issues being escalated to a School Attendance Officer. A School Attendance Officer is a Department of Education and Early Childhood Development Regional Director who has authority to follow up attendance issues. Attendance issues that are escalated can lead to an Infringement Notice. If you’re having attendance issues with your child, please let your classroom teacher know so we can work together to get your child to school every day.
Further information For more information and resources to help address attendance issues, visit: www.education.vic.gov.au/school/parents/behaviour/Pages/studentattendance.aspx