31 August 2016

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

The last few weeks have proven what a vibrant and dedicated community we have at Windsor State School. We are now in Week 8 of Term 3 with three weeks remaining before holidays. “Every Day Counts”, so teaching, learning and assessment will continue to the last day of school on Friday 16th September. Please consider that your child may miss important assessment if they are absent from school during this time.

Throughout the term there have been many additional opportunities for students to explore their interests, enrich and extend their learning at school and beyond. I’d like to pay tribute to everyone who has been involved in facilitating engaging curricular and extra-curricular learning for the children this term, in areas that include Literacy, Numeracy, STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, The Arts and Mathematics), Health and Physical Activity and Leadership. The Year 6 students Canberra trip was an amazing experience for students and I thank the staff involved for their dedication and hard work. We have also had professional authors and scientists visit the school to enhance our learning programs and we thank them for their time and expertise also. All learning opportunities develop students’ curiosity and engage them in critical thinking and problem solving, where they enquire, question, analyse, hypothesise, imagine, evaluate and create.

I’d also like to thank the parents in our community who frequently go above and beyond, often balancing their own careers with supporting the school in various ways, whether it be in classrooms or by organising community events. I’d particularly like to thank the volunteers who work daily in classrooms to assist our children in achieving success. Your service to the school is invaluable.

Welcome to Ms. Candice Lines, the new Coordinator at Windsor Helping Hands Outside School Hours Care. Candice has a Bachelor of Teaching and a Bachelor Degree of Child and Family Studies. She has experience working in disability care, trauma care, child care and management of OSHC. I would also like to thank Mrs. Shannon Howieson for her commitment to Windsor over the past 4 years and wish her well in the future.

Farewell also to Mrs. Rhona Chapman who replaced Mr. Smail whilst he was on secondment. We thank her for so capably teaching 4D and welcome Mr. Smail back to Windsor SS.

Please be reminded to notify Admin, or log on to QParents, if your child is absent and/or your family intend to take extended leave from school. Under the law, you must make sure your child is enrolled and attends school on ALL school days unless you have a reasonable excuse. You must not keep your child away from school for minor reasons. Under the law, schools must monitor attendance of students and follow up with parents and caregivers any unexplained absences.

Parents and caregivers have a key role in ensuring all students attend school every day. Join one family as they discuss the importance of going to school and why every day counts.

Windsorfest Spring Fair is approaching quickly, Sunday 16th October…less than 2 months to go! This is our major fundraising event for the year and the children are very excited. Twelve months ago, we had no one to organise this event; however, in typical Windsor SS custom, we now have a wonderful team! The Windsorfest committee is working extremely hard to make this year’s event the best we’ve ever seen. I’d like to thank all members of this P&C subcommittee for their hard work and determination so far. Much time goes in to organising a large event for the community and I’d like to encourage others who can assist to come to meetings every Monday night in the library from 5th September.

Have a happy and successful week!

Matt Keong
Principal

WindsorFest

Raffle Tickets

Pease return any unsold tickets to the office asap!

Who’s going to be lucky in the raffle draw?

New selling dates – can you volunteer a couple hours of your time to sell raffle tickets at Lutwyche Shopping Centre? 10th Sept, 1st Oct & 8th Oct, pick a time via the RAFFLE SELLING ROSTER !

Voluntary Gold Coin Entry to WindsorFest

Grab your ticket stub after making a gold coin donation on entry to WindsorFest to enter the draw for a fantastic lucky door prize donated by Ray White Lutwyche. The prize is a registered box trailer loaded up with gardening goodies from Bunnings – valued at around $2,500!!! Donate $5 to be able to enter the draw 5 times!! Head over to the Ray White Lutwyche stand in the Jazz Bar area to hand in your ticket stub to go in the draw! Not keen on the gold coin entry fee? No worries! The gold coin entry is not compulsory, your family will still be able to enjoy WindsorFest.

Rides Pricing

Unlimited ride wristbands for sale now!

Wristbands include unlimited rides all day and can be used on all rides operated by Carnival Land. Activity Passes can be used on all rides, activities and most P&C operated stalls.

Prices on the day $45 per wristband or $5 per ride. Activity Pass will remain at $25 on the day.

Tickets on Sale Now!

Click here for details on all the rides included with each option and to buy online now. Also keep an eye on the weekly update for details of when our pop up ticket stall will be at school.

Did you know that we’re outsourcing this year?

We listened to your responses to our survey earlier this year. You asked for less volunteering and more enjoying! So to alleviate the load on the school community we have engaged an event manager, Iconic Productions & Events, to assist with making WindsorFest a fun and successful event for our school. Iconic are experts on running markets and one day festivals. You may have visited one of their markets at Carseldine, Nundah, Milton or Kuraby. They also manage the annual Tenerife Festival. Iconic will be setting up and packing up (or bump in and bump out for peeps up on their market speak!), collecting rubbish and handling all infrastructure on the day.

P&C Stalls, Food Trucks & Market Stalls

Iconic also have amazing relationships with food trucks and stall holders. Yes, that’s right Food Trucks! You’re going to be amazed at the selection of food and market stalls on offer at WindsorFest. But don’t despair! We’ll still have our favourite P&C operated stalls such as strawberries & cream, cakes stall, sweets stall, sno cones, fairy floss, lob-a-choc, dunk tank, side show alley, show bags, face-painting, crazy hair and more! The tuck shop will even be open and selling your favourite tuck shop fare. Head over to the tuckshop area, put your kid on a pony and you can enjoy a zing for a change!

Cash donations for Windsorfest are also most welcome via EFT transfer (Windsor SS P&C Association BSB: 064-114 Acct No: 00900697 Payment Ref: WFest Donate). We appreciate your support in ensuring the success of Windsorfest.

Working Bee

We would like our school to look its best for WindsorFest so, on Sunday 11th September from 8am, there will be a Working Bee to lay mulch and plant some new gardens.

We have over 500 new plants to be planted at our working bee to rejuvenate our gardens around the Harris Lane entrance. There will also be 50 cubic meters of mulch to spread over the gardens. We need as many people as possible to help get this work done as quickly as possible.

The working bee will go ahead even if it is raining – we can save time on watering! If you can bring wheelbarrows, gardening gloves and hand tools for planting, it would really help. More information will come from the P&C leading up to the Working Bee.

Prep 2017 Interviews

We have now completed Prep interviews for 2017 students. If you know of people who live in our catchment and intend to enrol at Windsor SS in 2017, please ask them to contact Admin on 38664333 to arrange an interview asap.

Bridge to Brisbane fundraiser

On Sunday 28th August many of our staff walked or ran the course of the Bridge to Brisbane as part of “Team Eloise”. Brisbane turned on glorious weather and it proved to be a great day for all the participants. “Team Eloise” has raised over $16,000 which is a fantastic effort. If you would like more information regarding The Eloise Gannon Foundation or would like to contribute to the Foundation please visit the link below. Thank you to everyone for showing their support.

The Foundation was created to honour the memory of Eloise Gannon who, at 15, died unexpectedly due to Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome (WPW). The Foundation was formed with the specific goal of raising awareness of WPW, and other cardiac arrhythmias, to help reduce the incidence of Sudden Cardiac Death in our youth.

For those of you that aren’t aware, Eloise is the daughter of Nikki Gannon of our administration team. For more information regarding The Foundation and their goals please visit the link below. Thank you for your support.

Deputy Principal’s Report

NAIDOC Week

As NAIDOC Week was during the school holidays, we are celebrating NAIDOC Week at Windsor State School in this week. On Monday, we commenced our NAIDOC celebrations with a special parade. During the week, special guests will be visiting the school and conducting sessions.

On Friday 2nd September, Luke Mallie, an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artist and graphic designer, will facilitate workshops for Year 3 students that complement their current Technology unit. Some of Luke Mallie’s artworks are currently on display in the school foyer. Also on Friday, Paul Craft, an Aboriginal cultural educator from Burragun Aboriginal Cultural Services, will engage Year 4 students in cultural sessions that complement the current Year 4 Science unit.

One of the special guests at our NAIDOC Week Parade was Karen Lea, Regional Community Education Counsellor. She spoke to the students about the history of NAIDOC Week and this year’s theme – Songlines. During her address, Karen shared a poem that she has written about NAIDOC. A copy of this insightful poem is available by opening the link below.

Thank you to our NAIDOC Week Student Ambassadors, Dawson and Naomi, who have helped prepare and support the events this week. Also, a special thanks to Mrs Keough, who has worked tirelessly to help organise the variety of experiences available at Windsor SS during NAIDOC Week.

Pastoral Care Focus

Emotional Resilience

Things to Say to Encourage Emotional Resilience

• “You didn’t let yourself get too angry.”
• “You’ve learned how not to get too nervous.”
• “You didn’t let that setback stop you from trying.”
• “Even though you didn’t do as well as you wanted, you are still positive.”
• “You seem not to have blown that negative event out of proportion.”
• “Keeping your cool helps.”
• “You see, you can get through the tough stuff.”
• “You chose not to upset yourself about what happened.”

Emotional Resilience Behaviour

• Does not get too down when schoolwork is not good
• Keeps trying in the face of setbacks
• Handles teasing or social difficulties without getting too upset
• Manages frustration when he/she does not understand something right away
• Manages frustration of having a lot of work to do
• Controls anger when treated unfairly
• Manages nerves when taking exams or performing in public
• Is able to say “no” and stand up to negative peer pressure
• Calms down quickly after getting very upset

Eliminate the Following Types of Thinking

• Self-Down: Don’t put yourself down when something bad happens
• Needing to Be Perfect: Mistakes are normal along the road to success. It doesn’t have to be perfect.
• Needing Approval: Don’t be too worried about what others think of you. You are you.
• I Can’t Do It: If you think you can’t, you can’t
• I Can’t Be Bothered: Doing things you don’t like to do is key to your success
• Being Intolerant of Others: Do not judge people. It is good to find out more about them.

Father’s Day Stall – Thursday 1 September 2016

It’s that time of year again! The Father’s Day Stall is being held on Thursday 1 September in the school hall and every child will have the chance to buy gifts for either $5 or $10.

The stall will be open from 8:00am with children able to shop before school. Classes Prep to Yr 4 will be allocated a time during school to shop. Yrs 5 and 6 will not be allocated a time during school and will need to shop before school or at first break.

There is no limit on how many each child can buy!

Jump Rope for Heart!

FUNDRAISING HAS NOW FINISHED – OVER $7000 RAISED!

Windsor State School has participated in the Heart Foundation Jump Rope for Heart program and we thank you all for your support! The School Captains and Vice Captains, together with the support of the Student Council, have run this exciting project as part of the City Cluster Leadership Program.

Last week, the students completed Jump Rope for Heart at Windsor SS by participating in Jump-Offs. These sessions were facilitated by the student leaders and provided a great opportunity to be active at school.

If your child collected sponsorship with a hardcopy form and cash , please ensure all money and registration forms are handed in to the Office by Thursday this week (at the latest).

The students’ Jump Rope for Heart Thank You Prizes will arrive later in the term or early next term.

Thank you to the students, parents and community for your support.

The Breathe Project

Just Breathe…These simple words have been flying around our school this week along with one simple breathing technique. This technique aims to enhance mindfulness and wellbeing and reduce stress and anxiety.

The Breathe Project is an independent health promotion initiative empowering youth, schools and communities with one simple breathing technique. The project teaches students and teachers how to practically use this technique and integrate it into the classroom.

This term, Breathe Project Founders Kat & Bodhi dropped in to educate Windsor SS students and teachers on how to breathe correctly and they also encourage parents to join the project. More information is available at:

QParents

Our school now has QParents. Parents should have received an invitation email or letter by now and it’s great to see that so many parents have registered already.

If you have not received an invitation, please advise us immediately. QParents will soon become an integral part of how we communicate with parents. Get on board to enjoy the ease and convenience that QParents offers.

Help us become more ‘paper-less’ by registering for QParents now!

School Stuff

Now that everyone is back at school with all their Booklist items for the year, Schoolstuff is entering their low season. From the 15th February through to the 4th October, they are open from 9am to 4pm Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays. There are three simple methods for filling orders through Schoolstuff:

• ONLINE: Go to the link below at any time to place your order. You can either have your order despatched to your chosen address or it can be collected from our warehouse. Orders are despatched on Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays.
• PHONE: Call us on 33917000 and we will place the order for you.
• RETAIL STORE: Visit our store at 81A Caswell St East Brisbane for an instant service. Our staff will pick and pack your order for you while you wait. The store is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays 9am -4pm throughout the year, including school holidays.

Master Teacher’s Report

Literacy Update

This week is National Literacy and Numeracy Week. The purpose of this week is to help raise awareness of the importance of literacy and numeracy at school and beyond. If you wish to find out more, please go to the literacy and numeracy week website.

Reading

Something to Ponder:

Current research says that if we want to produce readers, we have to get them reading.

Children who have been read to for 30 minutes a day from birth through age five receive over 900 hours of brain food.

Children who have been read to for 30 minutes a week from birth through age five receive 130 hours of brain food...which is great...but a 770 hour deficit when compared to the first group.

The good news is that reading to your child is powerful, no matter what age they are. Experts recommend that parents read to their children through high school. It is never too late to read to your child, no matter what age they are. So grab the comics, the newspaper, or a really great novel, curl up on the couch...and read!

Reading is an active process that requires reflection and problem-solving. It is also a process where one is continually learning and improving with each and every book read.

One strategy that guides students in their journey to becoming successful, life-long readers is the comprehension strategy: Infer and support with evidence. Inferring is a mental process that helps readers make conclusions about the text. Since authors often provide clues instead of clear descriptions in their writing, giving children the skills necessary to make inferences is crucial to successful comprehension.

Writing

I am very pleased to report that last week, I hosted a successful Master Teacher Meeting. During the meeting, we moderated a variety of genre work samples from Years 2, 4 and 6. We found consistency of marking across our schools. This means that a “C” standard at Windsor is the same as a “C” standard at all neighbouring schools.

Writing Highlights

During the last two weeks at Windsor, the students in many of the classrooms have been busily using the app, Book Creator on their Ipads to create, illustrate and publish their stories.

Having fun writing a retell of “The Cocky, the Crow and the Hawk”.

5C wrote group narratives based on the poem, “Waltzing Matilda”.

Year 2 and 3 have been working on the writing strategy, Show, Don’t Tell.

Sorting sentences according to the criteria show or tell. Names (2C)

Telling Sentence:

Joe was nervous on his first day of school.

Show:

Joe was going to school, his heart was beating as soon as he was in the grounds his feet were stuck on the ground like ice. Joe couldn’t walk one step his head was beeping like a truck reversing fast. He was sweating like a pig as soon as he was in front of the classroom. He could not let dads hand go everyone was looking at him and he was crying like bright raindrops.

Jarah (3D)

Show:

Joe was shaking uncontrollably like a Jaguar and his whole body was trembling as he slowly entered his new school. Joe was clinging firmly on his mother’s dress with bright blue tears streaming down his gaunt face.

Jackson (3C)

Schoolstuff

**SALE**

What? Old curriculum text & work books and HUGE range of stationery
When? Starts Monday 5th September 2016
Where? Schoolstuff.com.au
81 Caswell Street
East Brisbane
Times? Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm