- Ironbark Ridge PS

Cnr. Ironbark Ridge Road and Withers Road, Rouse Hill, 2155 Ph: 8814 5687 Fax: 8814 5698 Email: ironbarkrg-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au Webpage: www.ironbarkrg-p.schools.nsw.edu.au Nurturing personal growth through inspired learning…

Newsletter 2017

Term 4 Week 5 10th November, 2017 Be Safe, Be Responsible, Be Respectful

DATES FOR THE DIARY

NOVEMBER 14th – Band Instrument Testing 15th - 5/4K Assembly STAR Awards 16th – Be Skilled Be Fit 3 – 6, PULSE Concert 17th - PSSA 20th – 2.00 pm - Student Leader Vote: Boys 21st – Awards of Excellence Morning Tea (10am – 12pm)

2.00 pm - Student Leader Vote: Girls, Kindergarten 2018 Information evening 6.00 pm

22nd – Schools Spectactular Combined Rehearsal 1pm – 8pm, 3S Assembly 23rd – Schools Spectacular Combined Rehearsal, Leadership Camp follow up day (4 students) 24th – Schools Spectactular Preview/Evening performance 25th Schools Spectacular Matinee and Evening Performance

** Subscribe to our ‘Ironbark Ridge – Events’ Google calendar (see the app or the school website)

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

How did we arrive so quickly at halfway through Term 4? It’s hard to believe that in just a few short weeks we’ll be farewelling our current Year 6 students as they head off to High School, and celebrating a wonderful year of learning and growth with the rest of our students. Before then our students have many great opportunities to continue this growth and hard effort in their classrooms, with teachers all busily writing Semester Two report comments and finalising the measurement of each child’s individual growth. New little Ironbarkers! This Thursday 9th November was the final ‘big-school practice’ for next year’s new Kindy students. With over 150 names on our latest list it’s vitally important that we help this group of students to transition successfully into the Ironbark Ridge environment and culture. Ms Cauchi and her extended team (we’ve needed to utilise many extra teaching and support staff in the six classrooms for each of the three sessions) have worked extremely hard to prepare and deliver what has been a highly successful program. We will complete this preliminary work with a final Parent Information Evening for all 2018 Kindy parents from 6pm on Tuesday 21st November in the Hall. 2018 Kindy students will commence at Ironbark Ridge next year on Monday 5th February following their individual Best Start Assessments the week before.

Star Awards Wednesday afternoon’s assembly was the first of our two ‘Star Award’ assemblies for Semester Two. Next week we will award students from the ‘even week’ classes.

Congratulations to all students who have been (or next week will be) awarded this important Ironbark Ridge award. Students with three, six and seven Star Awards will be invited to the Award of Excellence morning tea with parents and Ms Pho &

myself on Thursday 21st November. Letters of invitation will be sent home to eligible students’ families shortly.

New Playground Markings

This week our school playground was ‘embellished’ with a range of new colourful games and markings for students to use in free play at recess and lunch, as well as for teachers to use with their classes. We now have a new maths maze, a phoneme (letters=sounds) game, a giant chess board near the Library, an exercise trail, a pair of calculating caterpillars and a wonderfully bright and colourful snakes and ladders board! Thank you to our generous P&C, and to your fundraising efforts as a school community, for these playground additions for our children to use. Our entry path is also now graced by a new school logo reminding us all to aim for ‘Strength – Respect – Excellence’. Possible Parvovirus (Slapped Cheek) Some classes in Stage 1 have recently had students affected with a persistent rash. A doctor has confirmed one case to be parvovirus. Although this is not a dangerous condition it’s advised you take your child to your GP if they have a persisting rash as described in the NSW Health Fact Sheet later in the newsletter. School Leaders Our sensational Year 5 students have recently completed the nomination process and ‘short-listing’ for their School Leader candidates for 2018. These students who have been nominated by their peers are now on show for the rest of the school, with students able to identify them by their special ‘Nominee’ badges as they move around the school. It’s a great opportunity for us all to observe the respectful, responsible and safe way these outstanding students behave. A reminder also that there are many more outstanding students in Year 5 this year and we are proud of all who show Strength, respect and excellence as Ironbarkers! Talk to you all again soon, Nick Thomson Principal

DEPUTY PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Kindergarten Orientation We have just completed three very successful Kindergarten Orientation sessions for over 150 new students and their families. This is always one of my favourite times of the year; I love meeting all of those eager little faces excited about starting school. Our newest Ironbark Ridge students have had the opportunity to meet some of our teachers, learn some ‘big school’ routines, make new friends and participate in some fun learning activities. I would like to thank Mrs Michelle Cauchi and her terrific team of teachers and support staff for all of their hard work organising this transition to school program. Starting school is a huge milestone for children and their families. The Department of Education has information for families with children starting school including information about preparing your child for school, activities, a handwriting style guide and a downloadable picture book. These can be found at: https://education.nsw.gov.au/public-schools/going-to-a-public-school/our-public-schools/primary-schools/starting-school I would also like to thank the P&C for all of their assistance with Kinder Orientation; from organising the Uniform Shop with an army of volunteers ready to give advice about uniforms and equipment, to arranging the visits from the Commonwealth Bank, Athletes Foot and Dr Shoe representatives. The support of our P&C is vital for the success of these programs. Thank you to the hardworking P&C for your ongoing commitment to our school.

Schools Spectacular – Own the Moment! The Schools Spectacular is an iconic cultural event, unequalled in the world. With a 2700 voice choir, 2300 diverse dancers, an 80-piece symphony orchestra, a world-class stage band and a vast number of outstanding solo performers, the Schools Spectacular is unparalleled in the world in terms of sheer size, scale and scope. In fact, this world-class performance is a Guinness World Record holder! Showcasing incredible talent of all ages from public schools in all regions of NSW, this is a not-to-be-missed event. The show will also be broadcast on Channel 7 later this year. This is the first year our school has been involved in Schools

Spectacular. Mrs Kop and Mrs Walker, and an army of dedicated parent helpers, have been driving our Schools Spectacular dancers to and from rehearsals for the last few weeks. The big event will be held over 2 days and nights – Friday 24th and Saturday 25th November at Qudos Bank Arena, Olympic Park. We are taking 60 students from Stage 2 and 3 to the Friday Preview performance and we have a few tickets left. If you would like your child to attend this amazing show, please speak to the office and return the note ASAP. To attend one of the other performances, please see the website – it is a terrific family night out! http://www.schoolsspectacular.com.au/

Congratulations and good luck to our Schools Spec dancers- Hannah, Charlotte M, Ella, Josh, Elli, Myah, Sienna, Summer, Annaliese, Matthew, Kaitlin, Arden and Charlotte S.We can’t wait to see the result of all your hard work! DARE Fair Our Year 6 students had an absolute blast next door at the Rouse Hill High School annual DARE Fair today. We really enjoy these opportunities to share experiences with our High School colleagues, and this event is a terrific way to introduce our students to High School, meet new people and teachers. Thank you to Mrs Chapman and Rouse High School for the opportunity to participate today.

Remembrance Day We held an assembly today to commemorate Remembrance Day, and it was a pleasure to be part of such a respectful ceremony. Thank you to Yash, William and Olivia for leading the assembly so dutifully.

Star Awards Congratulations to our Week 5 Star Award Recipients:

KM

Tiffany Tangyue Isla Jayden Eric Riley

KS

Amelie Katherine Laura Vaishnavi Aryan Niansh Cameron

1E

Francesca Logan Megan Levi Kiah

1G

Isabel Claire Isabella Marcus Ryan Ved

1R

Richlyne Saghar Rylan Helena Jisha Teyul

2C

Brinda Mila Thanishka Sophie Hoyeon Ryan

2W

Marina Kushika Addison Charlotte Chase Aiden Seif Oliver

3S

James Oscar Caeden Aidan Mohammad Jasmine Amber Tailor Eloise Brooklyn

4K

Lauren Kyle Oliver Ryan Raied Olivia Kiarna Hannah

4/3B

Namood Freya Ilona Indya Ramsey Austin Joshua

4T

Lucas Isabel Chais Vivan Este Arnav

5D

Amudha Dinali Nithya Bryan Lucas Richard

6/5S

Tegan Felicity Jayden Christine Emily Liyana Jordan Bronte Ethan Skye Ashkan Sunya

6/5F

Halle Charlotte Jade Kelly Cassie Hayley Chantal Haya Lucy Aleisha

6H

Sussana Samuel Sienna Megan Martin Darshpreet Tam Natalie Konaal Owen Trinica

Celebration Day A reminder that our Celebration Day will be held on Monday 11th December in the Rouse Hill High School Hall, starting at 9.30am. You will be given an invitation to attend if your child is due to receive an award at this special assembly. Kind Regards Kerrie Pho Deputy Principal

Ironbark Ridge Public School Parent Planner Term 4 2017

As at 10.11.17 ** Note: Dates on this planner are subject to change at the discretion of the school.

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

6

13th November 14th November

15th November 5/4K Assembly – STAR Awards

16th November Be Skilled Be Fit 3-6 PULSE Concert

17th November Summer PSSA

7

20th November 21st November Kindergarten 2018 Information Evening Awards of Excellence Morning Tea

22nd November Schools Spectacular Combined Rehearsal 1pm-8pm 3S Assembly

23rd November Be Skilled Be Fit 3-6 Schools Spectacular Combined Rehearsal

24th November Summer PSSA Schools Spectacular Preview and Evening Performance

25th November Schools Spectacular Matinee and Evening Performance

8

27th November 12pm Swim School

28th November

29th November Student Leaders Assembly 7pm P&C Meeting

30th November Be Skilled Be Fit 3-6

1st December Summer PSSA

9

4th December 12pm Swim School

5th December Public High Schools Orientation Day OC Orientation Year 6 Farewell

6th December Whole School Assembly

7th December Be Skilled Be Fit 3-6

8th December

10 11th December Celebration Day

12th December

13th December Party Days – Stage 2 and 3 No Assembly

14th December Be Skilled Be Fit 3-6 Party Days – Kindy and Stage 1

15th December 2pm Year 6 Assembly Last day for students

11 18th December Staff Development Day (No students)

19th December Staff Development Day (No students)

ADMINISTRATION NEWS

There are a number of wallets, purse, glasses,jewellery etc in the office. If you can come and check and identify any of these items we can return the items to their rightful owners.

Allison Batten School Administration Manager

Canteen News The preferred method for ordering the lunches is via Flexi-Schools. By using Flexi-Schools it streamlines our process and helps the canteen to run more efficiently. Below is a brief description of how canteen orders through Flexi-Schools works. Canteen Orders Save time and order your child's lunch online. Online ordering is a convenient way to place orders with the school canteen, providing a 24/7 payment and ordering system that can be accessed from home, work or a mobile device. No more fumbling around for coins in the morning, sending kids to school with cash, or lost and illegible orders. Online orders are faster and more accurate giving peace of mind that your order and payment is received accurately at the school. Advanced features such as allergy warnings also help to alert canteen staff when preparing meals and help keep children safe. Doris Cull School Canteen Manager

PSSA SPORT: TERM 4

STUDENTS PARTICIPATING IN PSSA TEAMS ARE REQUIRED TO BE A SCHOOL ON FRIDAY MORNINGS IN TERM 4 AT 8.45AM FOR AN

8.50AM SHARP DEPARTURE. IF STUDENTS DO NOT ARRIVE ON TIME THE BUS WILLNOT WAIT AND YOUR CHILD WILL NOT BE

PARTICIPATING IN PSSA ON THAT FRIDAY. WEEK 6 17th November AFL Wrights Reserve, Pye Road, Quakers Hills SOFTBALL/T-BALL Jonas Bradley Reserve, 165 The Ponds Blvd, The Ponds CRICKET Hills Centenary Oval NRL TAG Russell Reserve, Withers Road, Rouse Hill (Field 4) NETBALL Hills Centenary Oval

WEEK 7 24th November AFL Wrights Reserve, Pye Road, Quakers Hills SOFTBALL/T-BALL Newbury Oval, Perfection Drive, Kellyville CRICKET Hills Centenary Oval NRL TAG Russell Reserve, Withers Road, Rouse Hill (Field 3) NETBALL Hills Centenary Oval

WEEK 8 1st December AFL Wrights Reserve, Pye Road, Quakers Hills SOFTBALL/T-BALL Hills Centenary Oval CRICKET Hills Centenary Oval NRL TAG Russell Reserve, Withers Road, Rouse Hill (Field 2) NETBALL Hills Centenary Oval

KINDY CAPERS Well done to Kindy Chimpanzee and Kindy Meerkat students who have hosted the school assemblies over the last few weeks. On display, was fabulous reading and performances in front of large crowds! Well done to all of the Star Award recipients this week from Kindy Meerkats and

Kindy Seahorses. Kindy Turtles, Brown Bears and Chimpanzees Star award recipients will receive their awards next week. Please take note to bring back any borrowed library books as last borrowing is coming up due to our annual stocktake.

Tuesday the 21st November at 6.00p.m. in the school hall is our next orientation meeting for the parents. If you know someone please remind them. Kindergarten Orientation We welcomed our 2018 Kindergarten students and families to their Kindergarten Orientation sessions this term. The children had a chance to meet some of the teachers and do some fun activities in the Kindergarten classrooms and outside. Our Orientation program allows the school to get to know our newest students, ensuring we have everything ready for each of their needs. It can also alleviate any potential anxiety for students (and parents) about starting big school. It has been lovely to meet the new children and their parents. Hopefully new parents now have a better understanding of the running of the school. It has been such a positive experience for us. Tuesday the 21st of November at 6.00p.m. is our next orientation meeting for the parents. Thank you to our wonderful Stage 3 buddies that assisted with the 3 orientation sessions and taking our new parents on a tour of the school. Our last Parent Information session will be held Tuesday 21st November at 6.00pm in the school hall. Parent will receive their information packs that include their Best Start Assessment time and their official start day and time. We look forward to seeing you there. The ES1 Team

STAGE 1 SNIPPETS Term 3 is flying by so fast. We are half way through the term and Stage One are having a great time! Congratulations to all Stage One students so far who received a Star Award on Wednesday! The remaining classes will have assembly Wednesday 15th November where our students from these classes will receive their star awards. Over the last few weeks Stage One students have learned about iconic art. Some classes have been researching Australian artist Ken Done. They have been developing an appreciation for his style and his use of colour. Students have been creating their own paintings using Ken Done as inspiration. Amazing!!

A reminder to keep encouraging your children to use their home readers or read their own books at home. Reading is such an important skill and should be encouraged as much as possible! Stage One teachers

STAGE 2 SNIPPETS Everywhere teachers look we see the positive growth mindset of students, demonstrated through the persistence of bodies and minds, to achieve something new and different. Their willingness to challenge themselves and take calculated risks is so important and that is just what the students of Ironbark Ridge are doing. We could not be prouder! Students are enjoying the Be Skilled Be Fit program and developing gymnastics abilities through strength, controlled movements and balance. The determination on some faces is evident and great to watch. Students were given an opportunity to purchase creations through the KidBiz program last week. Lots of fun was had by Stage 2 and it was a great chance to support the entrepreneurial skills of our current Year 5’s.

The SRC Disco was a great success on the Wednesday night in Week 3. It was so lovely to see so many Year 3 and 4 students there. The kids looked amazing and amongst the goblins, witches and scary characters a lot of fun was had. We have two student representative council members in each class at Ironbark Ridge and the disco is a fantastic way to build school community and have fun at the same time. Any ideas the students have to enhance Ironbark are carefully considered during the SRC meetings and it is always exciting to see those ideas come together and implemented around the school.

Ironbark Ridge Public is participating in the Waste Free Lunch Day which is taking place on Wednesday 15 November 2017. The event will celebrate National Recycling Week. For this event, we ask that your child’s lunch only contain items which can be: eaten; composted; or recycled. Reusable containers are a handy way to pack a waste free lunch. Packing a waste free lunch also promotes healthy eating and may provide a better understanding of the actions we can take to reduce our waste. Thank you for supporting your child’s participation in the Waste Free Lunch Day. Have a great weekend! The Stage 2 team. STAGE 3 SNIPPETS Congratulations to all of our Year 5 students who put themselves forward for leadership this year. You all should be proud of your efforts. Congratulations to our top 8 boys: Connor V, Thomas W, Tom F, Lucas T, Richard L, Oliver A, Akash G and Aadie K. As well as our top 8 girls: Nicola K, Abby C, Ananya K, Eloise M, Zoya N, Sienna P, Kirsten S and Lilly T. Every Friday our students are now participating in Transition lessons. They have a home room class which they are allocated, two different lessons a week and different teacher expectations to deal with. The classes include music, science, dance, reading timetables/transition to high school and history. Students are issued homework in this time and are expected to follow up with the teacher if they are away. Today the Year 6 students attended DARE Fair at Rouse Hill High School and were able to participate in rides, playing games and buying food/snow cones. It is so fantastic that the High School include our students in this day and it is a great way for our Year 6 students to see just a little what the fun times at high school is like. There are some great pictures below. Electricity, informative texts and Fractions, Decimals and Percentages are a big focus in term 4 on Stage 3. It is a busy time of the term with our students being taught a lot of new content and assessed ready for reporting. Many of our students received Star Awards this week and the focus for this is about personal growth, being reflective about feedback given from teachers and developing the ability to strive for self-improvement. Another focus is participation in all areas of schooling. Congratulations to the students who were able to receive a Star Awards. Our even week classes Star Award Assembly will be next week, 15th November. Next Thursday 16th November, 16 of our most talented singers along with Miss Hoggan and Mrs Robson will be attending the Pulse concert at the Opera House. Good luck.

Students from 6/5Macaw have been creating their own Indigenous Creation Stories to read with their buddies.

The Next Page Is Too Far AWAY by Charlotte Sultana – Year 6 Macaws I’m trapped in a cage that never ends

I can only see darkness, I have no family or friends

If only I could escape and have a normal life

Maybe some siblings and a father who has a wife

I wish I could redo that tragic day

When I made one mistake and they threw me away

All my hopes and dreams were slowly eaten

When I got sent away nobody cared, down I was beaten

Now I’m slowly dying in my isolated cage

Maybe one day, I’ll have the guts to start a new page.

Stage 3 Teachers

Chinese News! Nǐmen hǎo! 你们 好! This week we were privileged to have the Rouse Hill High School Hulusi Group come and perform at our Awards Assembly. The hulusi or gourd flute is a traditional Chinese instrument, similar to a recorder, but with a beautiful oriental sound. We also challenged one of the Year 7 Chinese classes from RHHS to a Volleyball Match as part of this term’s unit on sports. The students learnt to play, score and umpire in Chinese and although the high school was too strong for us this year, everyone enjoyed the experience. It was great to see some of our past students involved in this event.

Also a reminder to all students going to China, we will be having a meeting on Thursday 7 December at 6:30pm in the Library to discuss the next steps that need to be completed over the holidays. Mrs Przyrembel – Chinese Teacher K-6

WASTE FREE LUNCH DAY Ironbark Ridge Public is participating in the Waste Free Lunch Day which is taking place on Wednesday 15 November 2017. The event will celebrate National Recycling Week. For this event, we ask that your child’s lunch only contain items which can be:

• Eaten; • Composted; or • Recycled.

This will avoid throwing items away. Suggestions of how to pack waste free lunch items are provided. Reusable containers are a handy way to pack a waste free lunch. They also make it easy to buy food and drink in bulk (instead of in single servings) which can save money over time. Packing a waste free lunch also promotes healthy eating and may provide a better understanding of the actions we can take to reduce our waste. Thank you for supporting your child’s participation in the Waste Free Lunch Day.

Demonstration Concert

Band News Is your child interested in joining the band next year? Would you like more information on the School Band program? The School Band is now taking enrolments for 2018 and participation is open to all students who are currently in year 2-5. No prior experience is required. Students are attending (or may just have) a Demo Concert by the band and Teaching Services Australia (TSA) staff demonstrating the variety of instruments available for tuition next year. They will have received a green Instrumental Band Program-Introduction with a tear-off Expression of Interest form. Students who return this tear-off form asap will be given the opportunity to test a variety of instruments to help them find the one most suited to them. They will then be given a comprehensive Enrolment Pack with the results of this instrument test. Learning an instrument in an ensemble is a great way to experience the social, educational and personal benefits that music and the arts have to offer. TSA is committed to providing a quality concert band program, with full band rehearsals, great value tuition and rent-to-buy instrument hire. This green Expression of Interest form is due back to the school office within 5 days. You can download this note at www.teachingservices.com.au or for more information email info@teachingservices.com.au

COMMUNITY NOTICES

Connect with your neighbours If you are fortunate enough to live with a sense of community, where you know the people who live near you, share experiences and help one another, then you'll probably agree, your life is richer for it. The Street by Street project is seeking community minded people to turn streets into communities in your area, through simple social activities. We'll support you to do this. Contact Irene Opper at irene@streetbystreet.org.au or 0413 706 233. See www.streetbystreet.org.au for more info. As an unfunded non profit project we rely on you to help spread the word. Your help would be much appreciated.

What's On at Penrith Observatory in December Date: 9 December 2017

Event name: You Are Here Part Three, The Universe Event details: Dr Nick Tothill

Leaving our own Galaxy behind, we travel out into the Universe, looking for the biggest objects of all. Clusters, superclusters, walls of galaxies and voids full of nothing, all pushed and pulled around by mysterious dark matter and even-more- mysterious dark energy. As we travel outwards, we travel back in time towards the beginning of the universe, and ask, 'what happens now...?' It doesn’t matter if you missed the first parts in this series.

Includes presentation, short 3D movie, tour of the dome and viewing of the night sky through a range of telescopes (weather permitting).

$18.00 Adult

$12.00 Child/Concession

$50.00 Family (2 adults + 2 children) Children under 3 years of age free.

Please Note: Parents/carers are responsible for and need to remain with their children at all times BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL

Time: 8pm – 10pm Venue Address: Penrith Observatory (Building AO), Western Sydney University, Werrington North campus, Great Western Highway, Werrington

Contact website for public enquiries and bookings: https://www.westernsydney.edu.au/observatorypenrith/penrith_observatory/whats_on