Term 3 Week 10 2015 - Bankstown North Public School
Transcription
Term 3 Week 10 2015 - Bankstown North Public School
Bankstown North Public School Innovation, Opportunity, Excellence, Success 322 Hume Highway Bankstown NSW 2200 T: 9709 5506 F: 9790 0945 E: [email protected] W: http://www.bankstownn-p.schools.nsw.edu.au Issue 15 Term 3 – Week 10 Are you reading with your child every night? If not, why not?? It’s important! Please contact your child’s class teacher if you need assistance with reading strategies. Tuesday 15 September 2015 Dear Parents and Caregivers, This weeks Principal Award recipients are: • Jamal Tabbah – 3/4A • Muhammad Mujtaba – 5/6W • Rebaz Abdullah – 3H • Mikail Khodr – 1W This weeks Certificate of Excellence recipients are: • Amara Mikati – 1W • Kevin Nguyen – 2W • Hareem Shahid – 3/4A Congratulations to these children. These awards will be presented to the children at this weeks K-6 Assembly on Thursday from 2.00pm. All parents are welcome to attend. Bankstown North Public School New School Uniforms Diary Dates Term 3 – Week 10 Tuesday 15 Sept Newsletter Wednesday 16 Sept Playgroup 9.30 – 11.00am Thursday 17 Sept Whole School Assembly Thursday 17 Sept After School AFL Program Friday 18 Sept Know Waste Program Kinders, Stages 1 & 2* (* Swim scheme students) Friday 18 Sept PSSA Friday 18 Sept Last day of Term 3 Term 4 – Week 1 Tuesday 6 October Staff and students first day of Term 4 Wednesday 7 Oct Playgroup 9.30 – 11.00am Friday 9 October PSSA I am very pleased to announce to our school community that the P&C Uniform Committee has voted, and selected the new Bankstown North Public School Uniform. From the commencement of 2016 ALL Kindergarten students will be required to wear the new school uniform. For students enrolled in years 1-6 there will be a two year transition period. Students in years 1-6 will have a period of two years before they are expected to be wearing the new school uniform. If parents and caregivers would like their child in years 1–6 to wear the new school uniform from the beginning of Term 1 2016 they are able to do so. The uniform supplier is Yeronga School Uniforms located at: 900 Canterbury Rd (between Flora St and Remly St) ROSELANDS Ph: 9759 7555 Yeronga School Uniforms is the only approved supplier of our new school uniform. Yeronga School Uniforms will also be offering an online ordering facility, however this will not be available until later in Term 1 2016. There will be an information session on using the online facility before it is introduced. Yeronga School Uniforms will have all sizes available for purchase by providing a one off onsite visit to the school on Thursday 10 December 2015 (Annual School Presentation Day). This will allow all parents and caregivers (K-6) to purchase the new uniform without having to go to the supplier. Please be aware that our school hats will also change. The new school hat will now have a red trim instead of the sky blue. The reason for this change is because the red trim coordinates well with the colours of our new school uniform. A limited supply of school hats will also be available for purchase at the school office. School bags with our school logo will only be available through Yeronga School Uniforms. Attached to this newsletter is the current price list of all items in the new school uniform range. I am aware that a number of our parents and caregivers may be concerned about the costs associated with a new school uniform, however I can assure you that both the P&C and myself have liaised with Yeronga School Uniforms in securing a price that is both fair and reasonable. The new uniforms are slightly higher in price to the old; however the QUALITY of the new uniform is superior. I am sure you will agree that the current school uniform is of poor quality and therefore does not last or wash well, hence the price reflects the quality. In addition, head scarfs for our Muslim girls will continue to be sold by the school P&C committee. The correct school uniform colour will be sky blue. No other colour will be acceptable in accordance with the schools Uniform Policy. If you have any questions regarding the new school uniform please see either myself or Mrs Tracey Quick (Assistant Principal). Please see Yeronga Uniform price list and photos of our new school uniform further in the newsletter. Current School Uniform Sale In order to make way for the new uniform, we have reduced all of our current uniform items by 50%. This is a great way for students to top up their uniform at a low cost, especially our older year 5 & 6 students in their final years at school. The uniform shop is open Tuesday and Thursday mornings or orders can be placed through the school office. Lateness Please be aware that there are still a number of students arriving late for school each day. If your child is not at morning lines by the time teachers have finished their announcements, they will be considered as officially late for school and the roll marked accordingly. If your child arrives after morning lines they are to go straight to the school office and are to provide the office staff with a satisfactory explanation to receive a late note. Teachers will not be accepting any child into the classroom after morning lines that do not have a valid late note. If your child continues to be late for school, the matter will be reported to the Home School Liaison Officer (HSLO) and a letter sent home requesting a meeting with you. It is your responsibility to ensure that your child arrives on time for school each and every day the school is opened. Kindergarten Orientation and Enrolments Our Kindergarten Orientation dates for this year are Thursday 15 October and Thursday 5 November 2015. Invitation letters will soon be mailed out to parents and caregivers of students who have already enrolled. Please be reminded that we are now accepting 2016 Kindergarten enrolments from eligible siblings. Children must turn 5 before 1st August 2016 to be able to enrol for next year. If you are aware of any parent of a child who is eligible to enrol please ask them to contact the school ASAP. Swim Scheme Congratulations to all of the students who participated in this year’s Swim Scheme, and to our parents and caregivers for enabling their child to attend. Swimming is a necessary life skill and many children drown each year as a result of not being able to swim, therefore being able to swim is vital. Thank you to Miss Katy Howland for organising this important annual event. Parking Across Driveways A reminder to all our parents and caregivers not to park across the sports unit driveway of an afternoon. By doing so, you are blocking the entrance used by student taxi transport and preventing drivers from entering and exiting the school grounds. Your attention to this matter is appreciated! Cyberbullying A reminder to all our parents and caregivers that it is strongly recommended that children under the age of 13 should NOT be using social media sites of any kind. By doing so, children run the risk of cyberbullying and are generally not mature enough to be able to deal with cyberbullies or run the risk of implicating themselves by responding inappropriately to the perpetrator. Cyberbullying is commonly defined as the use of information and communication technologies to support repeated and deliberate hostile behaviour intended to harm others. It is sometimes used as an extension to other forms of bullying and can result in the target of bullying experiencing social, psychological and academic difficulties. (ACMA). FORMS OF CYBERBULLYING: Flaming – heated exchange Harassing and threatening messages eg: ‘text wars’, ‘griefers’ Denigration – sending nasty SMS, pictures or prank phone calls, ‘Slam books’ (websites or negative lists) Impersonation - Using a person’s screen name or password eg: message to hate group with personal details Outing or trickery – sharing private personal information, messages, pictures with others; Posting ‘set up’ images/video eg: ‘happy slapping’ Ostracism – Intentionally excluding others from an online group eg: knocked off buddy lists Sexting – sharing explicit material by mobile phone. How Common Is It? “We know that 50 per cent of [United States] children report they were cyberbullied. In Australia it’s 10 per cent and that’s tracking up two to three per cent every year.” (Prof Donna Cross 2009). Effects Of Bullying Behaviour Research indicates that students who are bullied are more likely than students who are not bullied to experience impaired social and emotional adjustment, poor academic achievement, anxiety, depression, poorer physical health, higher absenteeism, increased loneliness and low self-esteem. Research also shows that students repeatedly bullying others were likely to have the same symptoms as the students experiencing the abuse. The students bullying were just as likely to have elevated levels of anxiety, to be disconnected from school and to have higher levels of depression as the students who were being bullied. (Prof Donna Cross) Bystander Behaviour Matters Most bullying takes place when bystanders are present, although most bystanders do not act to discourage it. When a bystander does act there is a good chance (around 50%) that the bullying will stop. Students who are ‘defended’ are better adjusted and report less peer victimisation one year later. Reconciliation is more likely when bystanders intervene than when teachers intervene. The majority of peer interventions are effective. Is it a school responsibility? The Student Discipline in Government Schools Policy makes plain “the school discipline policy may apply outside of school hours and off school premises where there is a clear and close connection between the school and the conduct of students”. The Suspension and Expulsion of School Students – Procedures provides that behaviour that may warrant suspension includes “hostile behaviour directed towards students, members of staff or other persons including verbal abuse and abuse transmitted electronically such as by email or SMS text message”. Addressing cyberbullying is a whole-of-community responsibility, and requires a whole-of-community response. Some Websites for you to look at to assist your children with understanding the enormity of their actions on the worldwide web: • http://www.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/technolog y/cyberbullying • http://www.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/technolog y/cybersafety • https://www.esafety.gov.au/ • http://www.dec.nsw.gov.au/students/primary/ years-3-6/get-cybersmart Update Kiss And Drop Zone Road Safety A meeting was held last Thursday 10 September 2015 with Department of Education (DoE) Road Safety Officer, Mr Ric Tester to engage his assistance in devising suitable strategies to improve our Kiss and Drop Zone. Mr Tester has written to council requesting that the signage be changed on the kerbside of Beresford Avenue indicting that it is now a designated Kiss and Drop Zone. A further meeting with Bankstown Council has been scheduled for later this week to discuss the proposal of using the cul-de-sac, or part thereof, of Beresford Road as our Kiss and Drop Zone instead of the school grounds. A further proposal to introduce staggered pick up times for parents and caregivers each afternoon will be trialled. This will significantly reduce the flow of traffic onto the Hume Highway during our peek pick up time of 3.003.30pm by reducing the congestion which occurs at the traffic lights on Beresford Road and the Hume Highway. A survey was sent home to parents and caregivers yesterday who utilise our Kiss and Drop Zone to complete and return to school by this Friday 18 September 2015. The responses provided will be taken into consideration when allocating you a timeslot with which to pick up your child. If you have any further questions about the new proposal please see me or Mr Anthony Murphy. passion for teaching drama and have recently attended a two day workshop (Friday and Saturday) at the Opera House to further their skills in drama. The Drama Club will be held one lunch time per week in Term 4 and will run as a workshop including various games which promote creative thinking, role playing and team building. A roll will be taken weekly so as to identify those students willing to regularly commit to the club. ICAS English Test Results In Term 1 2016, the Drama Club will be conducting performance rehearsals with identified students. It is envisaged that later in semester one, the selected students will perform in a school play. For further information about the Drama Club, please see Mr Jordan or Mrs McCheane. Congratulations to the following students for their excellent results in the recent ICAS English tests: Distinction Rudy Pan Darren Mok Yr 4 3 Sherry Lin Yr 3 School Environment Credit Henry Diep Mia Phan 6 3 Adeeba Rahman Jeremy Del Rosario 3 3 Merit Natalie Vuong Naureen Imran Amy Le 5 5 4 Jana Hassan Sara Khchaich Aldrin Del Rosario 3 3 3 Participation Umar Bin Amjad Ashar Nadeem Daniyal Naeem Anthony Nguyen Joseph Wang Fatehy Naqvi Qasim Khan Verica Minovska Maryam Farid Camille Del Rosario Mohammad Altaf Manura Ariyathilake 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 5 5 5 5 5 Esma Bayraktar Harris Qazi James Lu Pania Leefe Sama Hijazi Ehab Talib Khidash Naqvi Inaya Hassan Mona Bakkour Faaris Abbasi 5 4 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 3 Father’s Day I sincerely hope all our dads had a terrific Father’s Day! I did see a number of Father’s Day cards that students had made which I am sure put a smile on their dad’s faces when they received them, along with the fantastic gifts purchased from our P&C organised Father’s Day stall. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our invaluable P&C for their time, terrific support and effort involved in purchasing and wrapping the great range of quality gifts that were available for your child to purchase. As a result of gift sales the P&C raised $435.85 Drama Club Mr CJ Jordan and Mrs Kristyn McCheane will be commencing Drama Club with all students in Years 2-6 commencing in Term 4 this year. Both teachers have a Our school environment team - comprising of Mrs Anastasia Avgoustis, Mrs Vanessa Oros and our casual general assistants Mr Danny Parnell and Mr Rob Morgan, along with our student gardeners - are busy bees with big plans for improvements! You may have already noticed the improvements to our school garden beds? If not, I encourage you to take the time to have a peek! The school grounds and garden beds are a work progress and to assist our team, notes were sent home requesting assistance from parents, grandparents, neighbours and friends in our community who may have an interest in gardening and are willing to donate their time. If so, please see our school office staff. In addition, requests were also made for the donation of plants that could be propagated like daisies, lavender, ferns, bulbs and succulents. If you are able to donate plants then please see school Environment coordinators, Mrs Avgoustis and Mrs Oros. Fun Run The children had the pleasure in participating in the first ever Bankstown North Fun Run on Thursday 3 September. A very exacting course was laid out for the participants and they found themselves having to traverse all around the school. It was great to see all the children come dressed in mufti and participate to the best of their ability. As a reward each child received an ice block to help quench their thirst. Many thanks to those families who sponsored their children. The money raised will go towards obtaining educational resources for the school. Term Dates The last day of this term is Friday 18 September 2015, which is the end of this week. School resumes for all student’s K-6 on Tuesday 6 October 2015. Public Speaking Congratulations to the following students that represented our school at the District Public Speaking Competition, held at Chester Hill North Public School last Wednesday 9 September: • • • • ES1: Archer Quick - My hero S1: Mackenzie Quick - It's great to be a child S2: Allegra Oros - Let me tell you a story S3: William Dang - Things that make my blood boil Well done to both Mackenzie and Allegra who made it through to the next round. Regional Spelling Bee Results Congratulations to all our students who competed in the Regional Spelling Bee held at Georges Hall Public School last Tuesday 8 September. Our Stage 2 students, Rudy Pan and Hashir Saeed competed against 44 students and were out in Round 2 along with 10 other students. Stage 3 students were Ashar Nadeem, out in Round 6 with only 16 students left & Henry Diep out in Round 8 with only 6 students left. A tough competition, however a terrific effort made by all of these students. School Holiday Road Safety Reminder For Families With the school holidays approaching, daily routines will soon change. Different play locations and holiday destinations means different traffic environments. So to help keep our children safe, families are reminded about these key road safety points: Stop, look, listen, think every time you cross the road. If your child is aged 8 years or younger hold their hand when walking near or across roads. If your child is 9-10 years old always actively supervise them. It’s the law that everyone wears a helmet when riding a bike in a public place. It makes sense to wear a helmet when riding scooters and skateboards too! Click clack front ‘n back every person for every trip. Everyone in the car must be securely buckled up in the right seatbelt or child restraint. Talk to your child about being a safe road user. Reinforce safe road behaviours by being a good role model! Children learn safe road behaviours from the adults who care for them. Talk about what you are doing to be safe when near roads, in the car and when riding. Point out road safety differences and dangers in new environments. This is especially important when on holidays in different surroundings. Roads, footpaths, parks, carparks, bike tracks and bike lanes may look different in holiday areas. The best way to keep your child safe is to actively supervise them. Talk and teach your child about road safety every time you are out an about. Remind other adults who care for your children to do this too. You can find out more at: • Safety Town • Department of Education • Transport for NSW Staff Changes Term 4 Mrs Kareena Williams will taking maternity leave from Wednesday 7 October 2015 and will be replaced by Ms Lucy Wilkinson on Class 2W. Ms Wilkinson will be following Mrs Williams’s class program so a smooth transition will occur. Ms Wilkinson has been teaching RFF (Science) in our school since Term 1 this year and will now be replaced by Ms Layelle Ayoubi (Monday) and Ms Jenner Beeche (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday). We welcome Ms Beeche back next term from her maternity leave. Ms Layelle Ayoubi P&C Meeting Our next P&C meeting is Wednesday 21 October (Term 4, Week 3) at 9.15am in the staffroom. We look forward to seeing many of our parent and caregivers attend so we have a good representation of our school community present. Formal Assembly Our next whole school formal assembly will be held on Thursday 17 September in our school hall at 2.00 – 3.00pm. Your attendance at our assemblies is always welcome! As this is our last newsletter for this term, I would like to take this opportunity to wish each and every one a safe and happy holiday! Thank you for continued support. Jon Godwin Principal Spelling Bee On Tuesday 8 September, I had the pleasure of escorting our best FOUR spellers; Hashir Saeed, Rudy Pan, Ashar Nadeem and Henry Diep to the District Spelling Bee Final at Georges Hall Public School. This was the first time I had been to a spelling bee final and it was extremely nerve-wracking but also extremely exciting. As I sat and watched I couldn’t help but get involved as I spelt the words in my head and there were some that I found a real challenge. I was certainly glad to be in the audience encouraging our students rather than having to spell words aloud in front of a judge. The first session was the Stage 2 competition which ran from 9.30am until 11.30am beginning with 44 students. They began with a demonstration and then Round One officially began and lasted 30 minutes with two students out. Round Two lasted 20 minutes with ten more students out including Rudy and Hashir. The Stage 2 competition continued for another 40 mins and concluded with the Winner Hansel Zhang from Peakhurst Public School and the Runner-up Harrison Cotty from Croyden Park Public School. Rudy and Hashir learnt a lot from the experience and will be even more confident next year. I loved how they were listening intently as the competition continued and shaking their heads as they knew someone had made a mistake. They definitely knew how to spell the majority of words, but it takes a great deal of concentration to spell words out loud under pressure. I think it was wonderful to see them challenging themselves and they’ll both be even more prepared next year. All four boys competed confidently and bravely and I admire them for the courage they displayed throughout the competition. I think they all benefitted from being challenged and I hope they continue to look for ways to challenge and extend themselves in their learning. They represented our school magnificently and I thank them for their commitment and support of each other. Mrs Oros Rudy and Hashir The second session began promptly at 12.30pm until 2.30pm beginning with 40 students. Round One lasted 19 minutes with three out. Round Two lasted 15 minutes with five more students out. Each round got gradually shorter and shorter and more and more students were knocked out. With each round that passed I could see Ashar and Henry secretly celebrating that they were still in. They looked my way and I’d acknowledge their achievement and communicate my congratulations with a secret thumbs up or a smile. Unfortunately Ashar left at the end of Round Six with only seven students remaining out of the original 40 students. Henry managed to last until Round Eight with only four students remaining. Ashar and Henry were both pleased with their achievement, as they both managed to go further this year than last year, which was their goal going into the competition. It’s always important to focus on what has been achieved. The Winner from Stage 3 was Vivian from Bankstown Public School and the Runner-up was Kurt from Newbridge Heights Public School. Ashar and Henry Bankstown North Public School Uniform (Please keep as a reference along with the Yeronga Uniform Price list) OUR GREEN TEAM ACHIEVEMENTS Written by Mrs Oros Congratulations to the students who have been working hard as part of our GREEN TEAM to help improve our school environment. The students have enjoyed working as a team and solving problems to complete challenges along the way. Both Mrs Avgoustis and I have noticed “authentic learning” taking place as students have become interested and motivated to achieve a goal. Our students have been demonstrating what engaged learners look like in the OUTSIDE learning environment. We are so lucky to have such a wonderful environment at our school, and it is improving every day. We thank parnets What are students LEARNING while they are GARDENING? Students are LEARNING ; • • • • to build and maintain a COMPOST to make and look after a WORM FARM to PROPAGATE plants to tell the difference between WEEDS and QUALITY PLANTS ( the ones that we actually want in our garden beds) • • • • the VOCABULARY of GARDENING including the names of TOOLS and PLANTS to VALUE the ENVIRONMENT to CO-OPERATE and help each other to work as a TEAM We have both witnessed students; • working together • following instructions • asking questions • learning and using new vocabulary e.g a rake is not a broom • solving problems • using initiative e.g using a wheelbarrow saves a lot of time • demonstrating leadership • using organisational skills We’d like to make special mention of some students who have displayed outstanding skills throughout this process and have demonstrated a high level of responsibility and motivation working on our gardens at every opportunity including recess and lunch time. We are very lucky to have these students who have demonstrated “Skill with Honour” to help us work towards achieving our environmental school goals. Peter Mitreski Taha Abdulkhalek Kaiya Oaariki Ayham Darjazini Daniel Ali Abass Fakih Jad El-Ali Corey Caltabiano Louay Zreika Adam El Kabbou Selina Kurkomaz Nana El Akkaoui Jamal Jbara Ezekiel Saili Melissa Ali Wafa El Dannaoui So far we have ACHIEVED; • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • THREE operational compost bins ONE operational worm farm TWO vegetable gardens with VEGETABLES growing! TWO vegetable gardens ready to plant seeds/vegetables ONE bare garden bed planted with native grasses. TWO garden beds planted with flowering plants. THREE garden beds WEEDED and re-covered with CARDBOARD and BARK to minimise weeds PROPAGATION of lavender, succulents and daisies PATHS in our Little Forest/Mini Rainforest a hole for our FROG POND ONE LARGE BUG MOTEL 1m X 1m X 1m ONE MINI BUG HOTEL SUPPORT from our COMMUNITY a WATERING routine for our new plants and new garden beds the successful REPOSITIONING of many plants to better positions PLANTING our first RAINFOREST PLANT called a BIRD’s NEST in our MINI RAINFOREST a STRATEGY to STOP students walking in our gardens Keep your eye on the TORCH newspaper for the photos of our Bug Hotel as well as a story. Grandparents Day Bankstown North Public School will be holding a Grandparents Day on Thursday 29 October. Do you have a photo of your child with one of their grandparents? We would like to make a school video presentation at assembly on this date, so we need you to look for a photo that your child can bring in. Choose the clearest one you have and put it aside. Next term we will be asking you to send it in for just one day. All photos will be returned. Mrs Hawryluk District Public Speaking Last Wednesday 9 September, I had the privilege of adjudicating at the District Public Speaking Competition held at Chester Hill North Public School. The schools being represented were Bankstown North Public School, Chester Hill Public School, Yagoona Public School, Bankstown Public School, Chester Hill North Public School and Bankstown West Public School. In my role as adjudicator, I was given the difficult task of deciding on the students that would progress to the next round of the competition. Students were judged on different aspects, including the content of their speech, the originality of their ideas, the manner in which they spoke and how their information was organised. Our Early Stage 1 representative Archer Quick, spoke about the affection he has for his sister in his topic ‘My Hero’. Archer’s speech was warm and he demonstrated great courage in his first year of public speaking. Mackenzie Quick from Stage 1, had wonderful stories to share about her own life and gave us good insight into why she believes ‘It’s great to be a child’. Mackenzie’s speech and her ability to reach out to an audience meant that she was one of the two winners chosen from her Stage. Our stage 2 representative Allegra Oros, whose topic was entitled ‘Let me tell you a story’, also won a place in the next round of competitions, delivering an unforgettable speech about her great nana! I think we’d all like to have known this wonderful character brought to life in Allegra’s speech! Finally, William Dang, and his unique speech on ‘Things that make my blood boil’. William’s wit and dry humour were certainly on display, as he took the audience through a mock radio show listing the top ten things that really get his blood boiling. I was most impressed with William’s use of the English language to demonstrate sarcasm. I would like to congratulate the students mentioned above for their CALM PRESENCE ON STAGE. As adults, we can appreciate how difficult it is to speak publicly in front of others, and how especially daunting it is when you are speaking in front of an UNKNOWN audience. Honourable mentions go out to Allegra Oros and William Dang for their impromptu speeches. These speeches always prove a challenge for students, given that students are allowed only five minutes to prepare a speech on an unseen topic. Allegra shared her thoughts on two events in her life which made her proud of herself, whilst William attempted to convince the audience that technology is making us lazy. Both students spoke for the required time and there was sense and purpose in what they said. Well done Archer, Mackenzie, Allegra and William. I am certain this was an experience you will not soon forget! Mrs Papadakis Swim Scheme Swim Scheme has been running for just over a week, and it’s amazing to see the amount of progress all our swimmers have made in such a short time! I would like to thank Mrs Morgan and Mrs Gadd for accompanying the swimmers each morning to the pool. A special thank you goes to Ms Tariq (Ali 4/50), Ms Aslam (Harris 3/4A) and Ms Hashmi (Shayan 2P) for coming as spotters. Miss Howland Camp The closing date for camp deposits has now passed. For those students who have booked their place at camp, it is now time to begin making payments towards the cost of camp. Early next term, a note will come home to these students regarding medical information for camp. Please be on the lookout for this note, and return it as soon as possible to Miss Howland. Miss Howland Camp Organiser Stage 2 21st Century Learners This term I had the absolute pleasure Jeremy Del Rosario (3H), Adeeba Sherry Lin (3/4MG), Darren Mok Khchaich (3/4A), Mia Phan (3/4A), (3/4A) & Hareem Shahid (3/4A). of working with Rahman (3H), (3/4MG), Sara Aymel Husain I would like to sincerely thank and commend them for their outstanding enthusiasm towards learning. I have been very lucky to work with these 21st century learners and as such we have set up a blog to share some of the ways we have been extending our learning. We would love for you to see what we have been up to this term by visiting our site at the following web address. • http://extendyourlearning.weebly.com/ Junior T-Ball vs Birrong PS Player of the Match Encouragement Award Score - Evangelista Saili - Allegra Oros - 9-5 The Junior girls were looking so much more confident and were able to apply all of the skills they have been practising during training. Azalia Samasoni was chosen as captain and she did a wonderful job of organising positions, as well as planning the strategy and communicating with her team during the game. Azalia chose Evangelista Saili as Player of the Match. Evangelista must be congratulated for her outstanding level of play, not only in her pivotal position as pitcher but also her hard hitting, to score not only a home run as first batter, but also an amazing hit to get three of her team mates home as the last batter. Allegra Oros was chosen as Most Improved due to her ability to hit the ball confidently to a brilliant position, which made it difficult to stop. Her great hits helped achieve points for our team. Well done Allegra! Remember we have training on Monday and Tuesday afternoons and the girls are also pushing to add an extra training session on a Friday morning. Miss Wilkinson Stewart House To help those in need, a Stewart House Bag (eldest child only) was sent home with the last newsletter. The bag can be filled with clothing in good condition and is not to be used for other items you wish to dispose of. These bags are to be returned to the hall doors by Thursday 17 September PSSA T-Ball and Softball - Week 8 What an encouraging first week with two fabulous games won against Birrong Public School. A big thank you to all players that returned their NOTES and MONEY on time. Just a reminder that the girls require SHIN PADS with LONG RED SOCKS. It was great to have girls that were organised to play which shows not only responsibility but a commitment to your team. Well done girls! A special thank you to both Evangelista Saili and Azalia Samasoni for playing with the Seniors this week. Unfortunately we did not have enough Senior players. Luckily both girls have been coming to both T-Ball training and Softball training to improve their skills, so they were eager to accept this challenge. Congratulations girls! Another great example of “Skill with Honour”. It’s great to see you challenging yourselves girls. Senior T-Ball vs Birrong PS Player of the Match Encouragement Award Score - Talia Jbara - Elissa El Chami - 6-4 Talia Jbara led her team confidently and organised the positions and ordering of batters. She discussed strategy and reminded her players of some of the rules. I could definitely notice the difference in her confidence as Captain with the extra skills she learnt as a District Representative. Congratulations to Sajah Jbara who Talia chose as the Player of the Match. She did a great job on first base and managed to hit the ball very well! Sajah has also demonstrated a big improvement since becoming part of our District team. Elissa El Chami was chosen for our Encouragement Award. Although she started the Softball season extremely nervous and quite anxious, she has worked hard improving her skills by coming to training. Elissa managed to hit the ball and make it all the way home twice. A fabulous effort Elissa! Keep up the great work girls. Our next skill to practise is to keep running while the ball is out of the pitcher’s hands. This was a skill Birrong was very good at. Our aim is to learn and improve a particular skill every week. Vanessa Oros AFL - Week 8 Junior AFL vs Condell Park PS Player of the Match - Jad Derbas Score - 31-7 marking and scoring. Condell Park were not going to give up without a fight, making a comeback in the last third. Luckily, time was on our side and the game was over before they could cause any damage. The final score was: 30-21, our way. A HUGE thank you to these junior players for helping us out again! For this first return game, I chose the players of the match. They were: Junior player of the match - Jad Derbas for consistent effort Senior player of the match – Zac McIlwraithCampbell for his skilful kicking and passing Last Friday, 11 September, we had a bye, so we used the afternoon as an extra training session which always comes in handy! Our focus was kicking with accuracy, as it’s not just about being a great kicker BUT kicking within the posts and kicking to players who can best carry the ball forward towards the goals. Friday, 4th September, marked the return matches for summer PSSA teams. Our Junior and Senior AFL teams played against Condell Park Public school at Thurina Park. I can’t wait for our next match in Term 4 boys! You definitely inspire me with your enthusiasm and it’s a pleasure to be able to coach you! Mrs Papadakis Given the amount of time that had lapsed since their last official game earlier in the year, I expected this initial encounter to be a challenging one. I had told the players that they should prepare themselves for difficult matches and to use this first round as an opportunity to revise their knowledge of the game. All I can say, is that I was most pleasantly surprised with every passing minute that our players were on the field. They managed to remember all the skills we had practised earlier in the year AND displayed an overwhelming determination to prove themselves on the field. That they did, easily securing wins in both the junior and senior games. Shine A Light Performance Our junior team beat our opponents by 31-7! An obvious weakness in Condell Park’s defence meant that our boys were able to pass the ball easily between players, who kept looking for opportunities to score. The boys were relentless in their efforts and neither heat nor injury could get in their way! Senior AFL vs Player of the Match - Score - Condell Park PS Zac McIlwraithCampbell 30-21 Many of the junior players were then ‘played up’ and had a very short time to catch their breath before they were back on the field, playing with the seniors. This game proved to be as intense as the first, with some excellent Our book week ‘Shine a Light’ performance was held last week and all the children who attended had an enjoyable time. Mrs Moro School Fun-Run Mozart The children enjoyed their first ever Bankstown North Public School Fun Run. The weather was perfect for the event and we thank the families who have already returned their sponsorship money. If you have any left at home, please send into the office ASAP. We are very excited to announce that all students in Years 3 to 6 will be attending a Shakespeare theatrical performance in Week 2 of Term 4. Students will be entertained by professional actors from the Bell Shakespeare company in a production titled ‘Just Macbeth! (abridged)’. A perfect introduction to Shakespeare for primary students, Just Macbeth! (abridged) is a really fun and entertaining version of Shakespeare’s great big gory tragedy. We are extremely fortunate that the Bell Shakespeare company are offering this experience free of charge! We can’t wait for our students to experience this high quality production. Mr Jordan and Mrs McCheane ABORIGINAL MURAL COMPETITION Dear Parents and Caregivers, As part of our plan to improve our school environment, we have been given permission to create our first MURAL. We think our first MURAL should pay respect to our Aboriginal elders past, present and future and demonstrate a strong connection to the Gadigal people of the Eora nation. These are the people who were the original custodians of the land on which our school was built. We would like to create our mural with the support of community groups including; The Bankstown Art Society, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Committee and Bankstown Council. We would also like to use the wonderful and creative ideas of our students. We invite ALL students K-6 to create an original piece of artwork to be used to help us create our first mural. Students can work in class with the help of their teachers or at home with the help of their parents. Finished artworks will be due in Term 4 on Friday of Week 4, so you have all of the holidays to get thinking, do some research and start creating. Do you want to create an artwork using earthy, traditional colours? Or do you want to experiment with a range of different colours? Do you want our mural to look like a traditional cave-painting? Or do you want it to be more modern? Maybe you would like to see a combination? You might like to explore how we can use hand-prints? Certificates and prizes for 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th will be awarded to students in each Stage. Artworks will be judged according to; COLOUR, DESIGN, SPACE, ORIGINALITY and ABORIGINAL ELEMENTS. We would like our MURAL to tell a story or have a message. We would like SYMBOLS to be used to create MEANING. We want COLOURS to be chosen for a reason to create an EFFECT. We have very talented students at our school and we would like to utilise all of your wonderful ideas to design a meaningful and beautiful mural created by our present students to pay respect to elders past, present and future and demonstrate the value our Aboriginal culture. . Jon Godwin Principal Vanessa Oros & Anastasia Avgoustis Environmental Co-ordinators WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING IN 3/4MG? POETRY….. I Remember Poems I remember I sat on my big new mat. I remember at school playing cricket with a ball and bat. I remember that I jumped in my pool. I remember I was walking then I found a tool. I remember buying a budgie at the bird shop. I remember cleaning my house with a mop. I remember that I bought a jumper with a hood. I’m glad I can remember these memories are good. By Rani I remember my cousin playing with me. I remember falling on my knee. I remember Faaris being my friend. I remember drifting around bends. I remember my first day of school. I remember swimming at Birrong pool. I remember at school, making new mates. I'm glad I can remember, these memories are great! By Darren Dylan Thomas Portraits Have you ever seen a fish? Scaly skin, egg laying, swaying tail. By Mohamad Have you ever seen a phoenix? Fire covered, mythical bird, red-coloured. By Sherry ` CHARACTER DESCRIPTIONS….. Have you ever seen a cat? Fluffy fur, pink nose, lightweight. Cute animal. By Sama Have you ever seen an xo? Green and white, smart device, fun games. By Hashir Louie is a homeless, lonely dragon. He is a purple dragon and has dark, blue, sharp spikes going down his spine. Louie has big, red eyes who also has sharp, black, long claws and is kind and generous. By Lyn Louie is a lonely, homeless little dragon who has purple skin with orange spots. He also has scaly skin. Louie has spikes along his spine and he also has a tail that looks like an arrowhead. Louie has big black eyes that shine. He has big floppy ears that hang down like a dog. Louie has four sharp claws that are very long. Louie is a sad and lonely dragon who has no friends but is very friendly to people. Louie is a lonely, homeless dragon. He is a purple dragon By Layla with spots and really scaly skin. Louie has sharp claws, spikes across his spine and black eyes. His ears are really floppy and he has a spiky tail. Louie found a friend called Bron. He saved the day because a mean, nasty dragon tried to eat the teacher. Louie bit the dragon’s tail and it turned into a statue. By James K WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING IN 3/4MG? ABORIGINAL ART…… STYLES Elements of Art Dot Painting Studying X-Ray Painting Cave Painting Traditional & Contemporary Boomerang Colours