8 June 2018

Newsletter Articles

DATE CLAIMER

PRINCIPAL’S NEWS

Dear Parents/Carers and Community

I would like to thank the leadership team of The Willows for their teamwork over the past fortnight in my place due to an unforeseen family circumstance. I particularly thank Mrs Amanda Souter who was Acting Principal and Mrs Kate Haines who was in the Acting Deputy Principalship during this absence. It is great to see that our team has the capacity to continue the work.

Over the following fortnight our school team are busily preparing the end of semester report cards in readiness for distribution in Week 11. I would like to thank Mrs Kym Clay (A/HoC) and our Curriculum and Pedagogy Team, Mrs Jodie Gausden, Mrs Sarah Platt, Mrs Ivana Simkin, Mrs Dianne Ganly and Mrs Paula Prideaux for their support of our teaching staff during this time. When reports are distributed, parents are welcome to contact class teachers for discussion in the first instance.

Earlier in May, the statewide process for the appointment of the substantive Deputy Principal position at The Willows State School took place. I thank my fellow panel members, Mrs Robin Sprott (QTU Representative/ Principal Northern Beaches State High School) and Mr John Kratzmann (Panel Member / Principal Kirwan State Primary School) for their involvement in this highly competitive process. I am now able to confirm that the successful applicant for this position is Mr Cameron Tod who has been acting in this position for the past 18 months. Congratulations Mr Tod.

For Semester Two, 2018, we have advertised for an additional Head of Curriculum (focus on Teaching and Learning) position. This position has been created through the targeted resourcing of our professional development for teachers. This recruitment and selection process will be confirmed this week and announced through our next newsletter.

Over the past fortnight our team at The Willows have presented to other state schools the work of Age Appropriate Pedagogies. It is excellent to see that our teachers are being provided with opportunities to showcase their learning and the high levels of student achievement occurring at our school. I would like to thank Ms Bonnie Stewart, Miss Kayleigh Bradshaw, Mrs Debbie McCoy and Miss Julia McLennan for their excellent work in this area and additionally I would like to thank Mrs Souter, Mrs Clay and the Curriculum and Pedagogy Support team for their support within the coaching framework.

Last month, Mrs Rachel Bentley (PBL Coach North Queensland Region) conducted the School Evaluation Tool (SET) at The Willows. This data collection process is an annual process for all school implementing Positive Behaviour Learning (PBL). This data and subsequent actions will be presented at the upcoming P and C Meeting (next Tuesday) and we look forward to sharing these baseline results with you.

The support of our P and C is again always of high standard and we thank all of our parents/community and volunteers who supported the Mother’s Day Stall and all other fundraisers currently occurring at our school. The funding we receive from our P and C is substantial and contributes to every students learning. Thankyou to our P and C members and supporters.

Kind regards

Helen McCullough
Principal

NOTICE TO PARENTS

Parents and carers please be reminded that it is not appropriate to approach other children to deal with incidents. If you observe something occurring that you believe needs attention please notify administration so that it can be handled by school staff.

DOGS AND OTHER ANIMALS ON OUR SCHOOL SITE

Background and Intent

• It is recognised that dogs and other animals and pets perform a useful function in our community
• When dogs and other animals and pets are in public and on school grounds, owners and handlers are obliged to comply with local laws and community expectations
• It is important that anyone walking their dog and coming into the school grounds, and otherwise having animals at school follow the safety rules in relation to animals and the safety of our students
• Animals in schools are subject to additional EQ policies regarding ethical treatment and related record-keeping
• Education Queensland policies have been consulted in determining this policy.

Policy and procedure for community members

1. Dogs and other animals (other than local wildlife) are not permitted on school grounds without permission of the principal.
2. With this permission, the following conditions will apply for animals other than local wildlife:
     a.  They must be appropriately restrained as per council regulations
     b.  Dogs are controlled at all times on lead by a person at least 16 years of age and able to restrain the dog.
     c.  They are appropriately registered through statutory procedures, eg, TCC registration
     d.  They have a temperament suited to being around children and crowds. Those that have difficult temperaments and are fearful, timid or dominant should not be taken onto the school site.
     e.  Hygiene with respect to dogs and other animals is maintained through:
         i.   appropriate cleaning of any toileting behaviour (carry plastic bags to do this)
         ii.   keeping dogs and animals out of sandpits or other play areas (keep to paths and passageways, and out of lunch and play areas)
         iii.   only healthy dogs and animals on the school site (to prevent cross-infection to other pets etc)
         iv.   keeping dogs and animals from licking or other means of transfer of any infection.
3. Service dogs (seeing-eye, hearing assistance, etc) are allowed on the site with their owner and must abide by the above conditions and accommodated appropriately with suitable shelter and nourishment while on site.

RESPECT OUR STAFF

RESOLVING ISSUES SCHOOL FACT SHEET

BEFORE SCHOOL PROCEDURES

In the morning at The Willows, we are supervised from 8am in the Main Covered Area. The students are expected to be seated and following instructions from the student leaders and staff. To help our students we ask that parents and family members model the following behaviours at our school

• Sit quietly
• Listen to the speakers
• Follow instructions
• Keep noise to a minimum

We appreciate you being a part of our Respectful community and modelling our expectations.

The Outside School Hours Care facility is an option for parents to book/use and parents/carers who have early starts and late finishing times are encouraged to access this facility.

ATTENDANCE

Every student in our school is important to us and we are committed to providing personalised education suited to their needs. The very first step in that is maximising learning time and we believe that if students attend every day and every learning minute of the day we are improving their opportunities for academic success.

Students can come to school from 8am. If they arrive at 8am they go to the Main CPA. At 8.15am year 3, 4, 5, and 6 students are escorted by at teacher to TCBC. Students are expected to be at school in the classroom ready to start work at 8.45am. Students who are late to school are encouraged to complete any work missed in their own time. Please note that lateness and early departure have an impact on student learning.

THE WILLOWS WAY IS 100% ATTENDANCE.

Just a little bit late doesn’t seem much but did you know…….

Arriving late and leaving early can take up a lot of learning time

YEAR LEVEL PARADES

This year our students will have year level parades weekly and full school parades as scheduled on our school calendar.

Note the time and place for all year levels.

Prep – Monday 8.45 am in Junior CPA
Year 1 – Monday 12.50pm in Junior CPA
Year 2 – Tuesday 8.50am in Junior CPA
Year 3 – Monday 2pm in TCBC Conference Room
Year 4 – Tuesday 2.30pm in TCBC Conference Room
Year 5 – Mondays 11.40am in TCBC Conference Room.
Year 6 – Mondays 2.30pm in TCBC Conference Room.

Parents/Guardians are most welcome to attend.

APPOINTMENTS WITH STAFF

Throughout the course of any day and week, the administrative and teaching staff of The Willows have significant commitments to the Teaching and Learning of our students. If you are needing to see one of the staff, please help us by arranging an appointment time at a mutually beneficial time. This can be done by contacting our office, email or by talking with us.

2018 PREMIER’S READING CHALLENGE

The Premier’s Reading Challenge is an annual state-wide initiative for state and non-state schools and home-educated students from Prep to Year 9, as well as children (aged up to five years) enrolled in an early childhood centre. The Premier’s Reading Challenge aims to improve literacy and encourage children to read for pleasure and learning.

In 2017, over 155,000 young Queenslanders from 850 schools and 410 early childhood centres took part in the challenge reading a total of 2.16 million books.

Many of our students and some full classes will be participating in the challenge and we look forward to seeing our students actively engaged in reading. If you student is interested in participating please ensure that they let their teacher know. All students who participate will receive a certificate from the Premier.

More information can be found at the following website.

SCHOOL DISCO

Our next school disco is on the 14th of June. Please note the attached image that indicates details regarding those able to attend the junior and the senior disco and finishing times.

Note that all students must be dropped off and collected at the door and we would appreciate it if parents adhere to these pick up times so that our supervising staff can get back to their families.

ICAS

Last week 54 of our students participated in the Educational Assessment Australia ICAS tests for Science. ICAS is an independent, skills-based assessment program which recognises and rewards student achievement. Certificates will be presented on parade when they arrive.

Students will also participate in the English test on Tuesday 31st July, 2018 and Mathematics on Tuesday 14th August, 2018.

NEWS FROM THE GUIDANCE OFFICER

Parents/ Guardians

I hope you have had an amazing term to date. I have been away over several weeks on Long Service Leave and have started back in my Guidance role this week - Week 8. Should you wish to speak with me, please do not hesitate to call the office to make an appointment.

Miss Narelle

SUPPORTING READING DEVELOPMENT AT HOME

Reading is an important lifelong skill and parents and carers play an important role in supporting their child’s reading development. To support the variety of reading activities that children engage in at school, parents and caregivers can visit the ‘What works’ section of the Autism Hub and Reading Centre’s website (https://ahrc.eq.edu.au/resources/what-works/reading).

Additional resources can also be located on Literacy and numeracy – Parent resources. This Queensland government webpage provides ideas on how to engage children in reading at home. Literacy and numeracy – parent resources provides suitable ideas for supporting reading in all phases of learning.

To find out more, visit:

Prep to Year 2:

Years 3 to 10:

Years 11 to 12:

PREP ENROLMENTS 2019

Enrolment packages are now available from the office for Prep aged children for 2019. Eligible children must be turning 5 before 30th June 2019.

If you already have other children enrolled at our school you only need to bring the child’s Birth Certificate to collect your package.

If you don’t already have children enrolled at our school you will need to bring the child’s Birth Certificate as well as proof of your residential address, which can be a lease agreement or rates notice.

Please see our office staff for an enrolment package today.

YEAR 5 NEWS

In year 5, we are learning how to write a historical narrative. We are pretending we are back in time when the first settlers arrived in Moreton Bay, which is now called Brisbane. We are learning to use complex sentences, put the events in chronological order, use historical terms, text connectives, and choose vocabulary to develop our ideas.

PE & SPORT NEWS

ATHLETICS CARNIVAL

In Week 10, on Tuesday 19th and Wednesday 20th of June we will be holding our annual Athletics Carnival. It is a wonderful school community event in which all students participate.

The program has been included to allow you to make arrangements if you would like to come along and support your child/children as a spectator. Our students really enjoy having lots of spectators to encourage their efforts. We hope you can make it!

SUN SAFETY

We all need to be vigilant when it comes to looking after our skin. As we know, living in Townsville increases our chances of getting skin cancer in later years. Prevention is the best strategy to protect our skin.

STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO BRING THEIR HAT TO SCHOOL TO SCHOOL EVERY DAY!

Even though we want our student to become independent, what can you do to help?

• Help them get into the routine of keeping their hat in their school bag or on their head (prevents them leaving it at home or in the car)
• Make sure their name is written clearly and neatly on their hat
• Wash their hat every few weeks

SEASON 2 SPORT

Congratulations to the Year 5 and 6 students who were selected to represent The Willows in Touch and Football in the Thuringowa Interschool Sports competition.

The training times for both sports is listed below:

Regards
Cathy Pilcher and Jenny Deuble
PE Teachers
PE DEPARTMENT

KIRWAN HIGH OPEN DAY

P&C NEWS

Holiday Bonanza Raffle

How does a $2000 Flight Centre voucher sound for your family? Even better still, how about being able to redeem it at any time of year, for any destination of your choosing? That’s our major prize in our upcoming Holiday Bonanza Raffle. This raffle is unique to our P&C, so any ticket that you sell or buy, has a good chance of being a winning ticket!

The prizes up for grabs are (tickets are $5 each):

• 1st Prize - $2000 Flight Centre Voucher
• 2nd Prize - 2 night stay at Mission Beach Resort for a family up to 5, including breakfast (valued at $600)
• 3rd Prize - The Ville $250 voucher to spend on accommodation or an onsite restaurant
• 4th Prize - 2 night stay at Rollingstone Beach Front Resort at a beachfront powered site (or put towards an upgrade to a cabin if you wish!)

We will be sending home an expression of interest to aid our team to know which families are willing to sell tickets for us and make the process as efficient as possible. Tickets are limited, and are strictly tracked to ensure they are returned to us sold and/or unsold. Therefore, tickets will only be allocated to families who indicate they will sell them, or who would like to buy them. If you are interested in selling tickets for us, be sure to return the form ASAP!

Trivia Night

The P&C have a trivia night planned in August, which is just around the corner. We are planning on a movie theme, and hope to have many teams to bring families together. We will also be drawing our winners of our Holiday Bonanza Raffle on this night!

Many hands make light work, so if you have expertise or advice to share, we’d love to hear from you. We’d also love to hear from any businesses that may be able to assist with prize donations!

Entertainment™ Books

We are selling the popular Entertainment™ Books, to raise money for our School. The Books sell for $60, and the P&C get to keep $12 for every one we sell. It’s not too late to purchase one as the offers inside are valid until June 2019.

The Entertainment™ Books are available as a Book (with a gold card and vouchers) or as a Digital Membership that puts all the offers on your smartphone to redeem at the touch of a button.

Order online through the P&C directly at this link:

Once ordered online, if you opted for the book version, it will be available to collect from the office or the OSHC right away.

If you have not received an order form or has misplaced it, you can collect one from the office or OSHC, and collect your book immediately (or an email will be sent to you for the digital version).

The Athlete’s Foot

If you are needing to buy shoes, for yourself or your kids, don’t forget our support from The Athlete’s Foot. For every pair of shoes you buy, The Athlete’s Foot will donate $5 to our school! Simply mention that your kids go to our school when you buy shoes from the Castletown or Willows stores.

The Athlete’s Foot have already donated $400 to the P&C, what a great effort and please keep it up!

School Buy

Do you shop online generally? Perhaps order your groceries online with Woolworths? Maybe even Webjet, Interflora, Australian Geographic or Smiggle?

SchoolBuy has partnered with hundreds of great retailers to turn online shopping into money for schools. Shop at over 200 online stores listed on SchoolBuy and a percentage of what you spend goes to your chosen school. It’s fast, it’s easy and it can make a difference!

There are millions of items that can be bought through SchoolBuy to support our school – and every purchase helps. Just remember to visit SchoolBuy first before shopping online. Simply by clicking the link on the SchoolBuy site, the online store you are visiting will know that SchoolBuy sent you and which school you want to support.

You don’t pay any extra, and just by doing your usual shopping, you can fundraise for the school! Plus you still get all their best online deals and can take advantage of any special offers or sales on the retailer’s website.

Just go to the website below and select The Willows State School.

Contact Us!

Like us on Facebook to keep up to date with school and P&C events. (Search for The Willows State School P&C.) You can contact us sending a pm to the page. Alternatively, you can contact us via email at willowspandc@gmail.com

P&C Meeting

Our next P&C meeting is on the 12th June 6pm in the TCBC Conference Room. Don’t forget you can bring the kids if you need to!

See you round!

DEFENCE NEWS

Hello Defence Families,

As from the 18th May Correna will be away on leave until the end of term. Correna will be returning back to school on 16th July, which is the first day of Term3. I will be filling in for Correna during term 2 and overseeing all defence students and programs. I can be contacted through the office, by email lnawr0@eq.edu.au or stop by L Pod to have a chat. I am available Monday, Thursday and Friday from 8:45am-3:00pm.

WELCOME HOME

A big welcome home to our defence members who have recently returned from deployments. There has been a lot of excitement in the weeks leading up to the homecomings. The defence students involved enjoyed designing and decorating welcome home posters.

Deployments are a part of the Defence Force family lifestyle. PLEASE LET ME/TEACHER KNOW IF A LOVED ONE IS GOING AWAY. The impact of a parent’s absence due to a deployment can have a huge impact on the whole family, especially children. Sometimes, children lack the language to communicate or understand their feelings and can often express themselves with behaviour that is inappropriate or out of character. At TWSS we aim to support students during parental absence due to a deployment. Make sure you let your child’s teacher and DSTA know if you or a partner will be away for an extended period of time. Having this knowledge will go towards supporting the student at school.

Please remember to call or e-mail me if a parent is going to be away due to a deployment. I rely on your communication to me so I can best support the student during this most challenging time. I appreciate all those parents who have been e-mailing me in regards to parent being away on deployment or courses/training. It is always helpful and beneficial to know those students and be able to best support them and regularly communicate when they may be feeling sad, lonely or just not coping. Defence Community Organisation is available to all Defence members and their families. Defence Family Helpline operates 24-7 on 1800 624 608 or e-mail defencefamilyhelpline@defence.gov.au or Contact VVCS on 1800 011 046 for support

Just a reminder if you have been posted into Townsville this year that your child/children may be eligible for EAS (Education Assistance Scheme). All defence families can access financial assistance for education costs incurred as a result of postings. Students may be entitled to up to 14 weeks of tutoring in Maths and English subject that has been identified by the school as representing a gap in learning. You have 18 months from starting at a new school to access and complete the tutoring. This scheme is very beneficial for students. Please see me if you would like assistance to complete the form or you can ring the DEFENCE HELPLINE on 1800 624 608.

If you want to know about upcoming DCO programs, events, and activities or information about events and services in the wider North Queensland community you need to be on the mailing list. E-mail DCO office in Townsville dco.townsville@defence.gov.au and leave details, name, member name, address, email, mobile/home number, children’s names. Form attached.

Are you on the DCO mailing List?

Join DCO Townsville mailing LIST NOW if you want to receive updates from DCO. Contact them directly at dco.townsville@defence.gov.au or phone 07 4753 6539.

DATES AND ACTIVITIES TO REMEMBER

PATH TO WELLBEING FORUM- HELD AT RSL

HOLLYWOOD THEMED CHARITY BALL-FUNDS RAISED TO MATES4MATES

FREE EMPLOYEMENT PATHS WORKSHOP

Experience Works will be running a 1 day intensive employment workshop for Defence Partners on Thursday 19 June.

IMPORTANT NUMBERS AND CONTACTS FOR YOU TO ACCESS.

Defence Community Organisation is available to all Defence members and their families. Defence Family Helpline operates 24-7 on 1800 624 608 or e-mail defencefamilyhelpline@defence.gov.au

Mates4Mates (Family Recovery Centre) 40 Anne Street – 4771 9600

Support and Mental Health Services for ADF Families

Townsville Community Mental Health - 4433 3000
Centacare - 4772 9000
Relationships Australia - 1300 364 277
Veterans and Veterans Families (VVCS) – 1800 011 046 (eligibly applies)

DFA Defence Families of Australia – 1800 100 509

National Delegate for Northern Queensland - nth.qld@dfa.org.au

LORETTA - TERM 2 AVAILABLE from 8:45am – 3:00pm, Monday, Thursday, Friday Call by for a chat, call through to the school on 47 991 333 (ext. 323) or send me an email Loretta lnawr0@eq.edu.au

Loretta Nawrocki
Defence School Transition Aide