The upcoming holiday

period often means more

“spare” time to surf the

internet and spend time

within virtual

environments. With this

extra usage, whilst

knowing some parents

will still need to attend to

work commitments and

other duties, it is most

important to monitor

your child’s computer

usage at all times, but

especially over weekends

and when holiday periods

arrive.

What does it mean to be

safe online?

Behaving safely online

means:

protecting one’s own

privacy and personal

information.

protecting the privacy

of others (this can be

principles of safety and

responsibility are not

specific to the web,

applying to the use of the

internet both at home and

at school. The virtual

world of the internet

involves many risks.

Schools utilise and

discuss positive strategies

that help to minimise

these risks. However,

parents also have a key

role to play in keeping

children safe whilst

online. For example,

“Facebook” accounts

should only be made

available to children

above the age of 13.

Please try hard to resist

the “nagging” and the old

saying “but EVERYONE

else has an account.” This

of course is not true!

Further information can

be accessed from the web

addresses below:

http://australia.gov.au/

topics/it-and-

communications/internet

http://

www.education.vic.gov.a

u/management/lol/

default.htm

Cyber Safety

Thursday Thoughts

L a u n c h i n g P l a c e P r i m a r y S c h o o l

Issue 9

Newsletter Date 3rd April 2014

Important Dates:

April

4th

Easter Raffle drawn

4th

Easter Hat Parade

4th

Last Day of Term 1

2.30pm finish

22nd

First Day of Term 2

9.00am start

25th

ANZAC Day

Student Absent

Hot Line Number

5964 7783

sharing personal

information or images,

which in most cases is

unlawful).

selecting appropriate

spaces to work. The

home computer should

be set up in the kitchen

area or somewhere

common. Not laptops

tucked away in

bedrooms.

being proactive in

letting someone know

if there is something

that is “not quite

right‟. At home this

would be a parent or

guardian, at school a

teacher.

Ensuring a suitable

“net nanny” has been

activated on your

computer.

Of course, these

This week teachers have been busy

planning units of work for next

term. A lot of thought goes in to

ensuring that all subject areas are

covered and presented in a way

which allows for all students to be

engaged. Science is an important

part of our curriculum and is

immersed into all subject areas,

including literacy. Our Integrated

Units of study have been structured

to include a strong science element.

There are also many great Science

websites that students can access.

These include:

Science for Kids – interactive

games/ experiments/ activities.

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/

CSIRO Double Helix Club –

activities/ experiments. CSIRO

also run holiday programs for

primary school aged students.

http://www.csiro.au/Portals/

Education/Programs/Double-

Helix-Science-Club.aspx

Cool Science 4 Kids – links to

experiments, projects, Questacon.

http://www.erl.vic.gov.au/kids/sci

ence.htm

We would love to hear about your

Science experiences so please

remember to ‘share’.

on activities experienced together as

a family. Second, the most

pleasurable childhood times almost

always centre on simple,

inexpensive activities.

A few holiday ideas might include:

Ask children about their favourite

activity and take your cues from

them.

Take older children on a ‘date’,

one-on-one.

Plan an outing in advance and use

public transport if that is not your

normal mode.

Start and finish reading a novel to

older children in the holidays.

Run your own junior Masterchef

day.

Have a television free

day............... Join the kids in

playing board or card games,

Two weeks at home with the kids!

Does that mean it’s going to be a

very expensive two weeks for

families – not necessarily. There are

many opportunities for children to

be engaged and stimulated without

costing the earth.

American family researcher, John

DeFrain, has found the happiest

childhood memories that adults hold

have two common threads. First,

childhood happiness always centres

listen to or play music, share a

book or swap stories. Make the

alternative activities so good that

the kids look forward to the

‘Games day’.

Taking public transport into the

city and pretending to be a tourist

using the free tourist shuttle bus

or the free city circle tram.

The Shire of Yarra Ranges also runs

a great range of holiday activities,

including ‘Magic’ and pottery

workshops.

For more information go to:

http://www.yarraranges.vic.gov.au/

ach/Whats_On/

School_Holiday_Program

Keeping Science Alive at Launch

Page 2 Thursday Thoughts

Launching Place Primary School Carter Street Launching Place 3139 Telephone 5964 7783 Fax 5964 6171 Email launching.place.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au

ABN 96 199 518 803

Having Fun Over the Holidays

Page 3

examples for why we believe

students should or should not wear

school uniform. In Maths we have

been learning about direction. As

part of our unit Multicultural

Melbourne we have been creating

a brochure about Melbourne.

Grade 5/6:We are loving our new

table and chairs in the BER

building. We have worked really

hard on producing strong

persuasive arguments, including

great rhetorical questions. In

Maths we have been looking at

measurement—include mass,

volume and capacity. We are

looking forward to constructing a

3D volume city this week.

Principal: We have been focussing

on the CHOICES that we make at

school. Good choices are the

Above the Line choices that help

everyone feel safe. Bad choices are

Below the Line choices that need

to be fixed. These we have Zero

Tolerance for at Launching Place

School Captain’s Report Prep: We enjoyed learning about

the letters J,Z and W. We talked

about when we use lists and made

up our own list of things we need

for school. In Maths we looked at

equal groups and ordering items

from smallest to biggest. We also

started practising one of our songs

for Education Week.

Grade 1/2: We have thoroughly

enjoyed reading lots of fairytales,

looking at the different elements

such as princesses and the big bad

wolf. We have carefully planned

out our own stories which we are

beginning to write with interesting

beginnings and problems. Our

groups in Maths have explored a

lot about shapes, knowing names

and features of both 2 and 3D

shapes. We also made helicopters

in Science.

Grade 3/4: We have continued to

work on our persuasive writing

and have given our reasons and

Please Note: That other advertisements and publications published in this newsletter do not imply

school or Department of Education and Early Childhood Development endorsement.

Student Awards

Grade Prep F Braydan S

Grade 1/2 N Emily B

Ruben G

Grade 3/4 F Josh W

Grade 3/4 N Mitchell S

Grade 5/6 G Jordan B

Jazmine B

need to wear school uniform,

but should bring a gold coin

donation. The JSC will be

collecting the money on behalf

of a charity of their choosing.

This term the JSC have voted to

support the Royal Children’s

Hospital Good Friday appeal.

Have a safe and happy holiday

break. We look forward to

seeing everyone back at school

on Tuesday, 22nd April.

Friday is the

last day of term

and we remind

you that school

ends early at

2:30pm. The last day of

each term is not traditionally a

“free dress” day however this

term, due to our Easter hat

parade, free dress will be

permitted. Students do NOT

Regards,

Narelle

Messerle

and Debbie

Hobbis

Last Day of Term

Page 4 Thursday Thoughts

Parents and Friends Thank you for supporting the

Easter raffle, with purchasing

tickets and donation of Easter

goodies for hampers. Good Luck

for the draw.

Hope everyone has a relaxing

break and may be able to get

away for a short break. Drive

safely and look forward to seeing

everyone next term.

Keep an eye out for the first

meeting back in the first

newsletter of term two.

Aussie of the Month

for March

Darcy T (Junior) Ashlee S

Aussie of the Month is a citizenship award where children are

nominated and voted for by the staff. It is designed to recognize

students who consistently display a positive attitude to their work and

who relate to staff, fellow students and the wider community in a

respectful, caring and co-operative way.

Canteen If you send your child/ren’s lunch

order on an envelope please

include 10¢ in the order for the

cost of a paper bag.

Roster

April

24th

Maryann E, Janine K, Fiona T

Quiz of the Week

Guess the game that is

shown in this picture.

Write the answer down on a

piece of paper with your

name and grade, for a

chance to win a snack

voucher from the canteen.

Answer and winner will appear in next week’s

newsletter.

Last weeks answer is The

Lego Movie and the lucky

winner is Alyssa B 3/4 N

Page 5

Animal Aid Pet Picnic - Lillydale Lake.

Sunday 27th April 2014. 11am – 3pm

Animal Aid’s Pet Picnic promises to be a

whole lot of fun for all the family, including

your pets!

Pet related stalls

Food stalls

Pet competitions

Lure coursing & agility

Face painting and Cars jumping castle.

Live entertainment

Discount pet microchipping

Raffle tickets

All pets are welcome, but must be on lead or

in a secure carrier.

Dandenong Ranges National Park

Autumn in the Forest 2014

Junior Ranger Program Tue 8 Apr - Tue 15 Apr

This autumn, join park staff for a fun-filled pro-

gram of FREE and informative activities that the

whole family will enjoy. Explore the National Rho-

dodendron Gardens on their Free Family Fun Day, Climb a Mountain, get creative with clay sculpture

at William Ricketts Sanctuary, or take a short stroll around Sky High Mount Dandenong, as part

of their Children’s Week activities (gate fee ap-

plies to entry at Sky High).

Bookings Essential phone 9757 7724 (except for

FFFDay at Rhodi Gardens) For more information visit

http://parksvictoriadiscovery.eventbrite.com.au

Page 6 Thursday Thoughts

Woori Yallock Auskick Friday 4th April 4.300pm - 5.30pm

At Woori Yallock Football Club

Contact Richard Ray

On 5964 6578 or 0409 050 551

All Auskick registrations are to be

completed online.

minimarkets

The first minimarket for term two will be held at Hoddles Creek Primary School on Thursday 24th April from 3.30 until 5pm. Unfortunately due to the rescheduling of the Athletic Sports these two events will be held on the same day. WHYLD are asking you to support the minimarkets and come along after you col-lect the children from the sports. We will have some exciting new stalls in term two as well as games that everyone can play or just watch.

Lets Go Family Day Care

THINKING OF BECOMING A FAMILY DAY CARE

EDUCATOR?

Do you have a passion for working with children, and

would like the opportunity to earn a great income

from your own home.

Would you like to belong to an organization who support their educators,

without charging them any annual fees or charges?

Lets Go Family Day Care is a registered scheme with the Department of

Education, and is ccb and ccr approved.

The following requirements apply:

A minimum of certificate 3 in children’s services, or willing to study

Current police and working with children’s check

Updated First Aid, CPR, Asthma and Anaphylaxis

Please contact Olivia Moller on 59 647244 or 0402315332 for all

enquiries