14 December 2018

Newsletter Articles

DATE CLAIMER

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

This is our final newsletter for the school year and I would like to congratulate and thank each and every person who has contributed to our school throughout 2018. This year has been a successful year at The Willows and has seen us making gains in our priority areas of Reading, Writing, Australian Curriculum, Positive Behaviour Learning and Positive Partnerships. We are in a great position to continue this work next year and I look forward to your continued support of your child’s education.

As the year closes, we farewell our Year 6 students and wish them all the best at high school. We have enjoyed celebrating the end of primary school with them at this week’s Graduation, Awards and End of Year Celebrations.

As the year progresses, there are a range of things that happen to set up for the next school year. Staffing a school of our size is often complex and takes time. For this reason, as per previous years the release of student class teachers will be available in the New Year. The initial classes are Pre Day 8 and are subject to change up until the third week of the new school year. This is departmental procedure and I thank you for your understanding and patience as we work through these processes.

In closing, I would like to thank each and every student, teacher, non-teaching staff member and parent/carer and community member for their sustained effort to make our school an outstanding State School. Thank you for being part of it! See you in 2019.

Kind regards

Helen McCullough

BEFORE SCHOOL PROCEDURES

All students are seated and supervised in the Main CPA from 8am.

At 8:15 am

Yr 3 – 6 students move to TCBC
Prep – Yr 2 students move to Junior CPA
Please remember your hat every day.
Students will have a quiet activity and the opportunity to have some outside movement time prior to learning.

At 8:45 am

All students move to classrooms to commence learning.
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 families 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 8.50am. 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

Reminder that students arriving after 9am need to come through the office.

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.

ENROLMENT SESSIONS IN 2019

We will be running enrolment interviews in the week before school starts at the beginning of 2019 for anyone moving to our wonderful school. The sessions to be held are:

• Tuesday 22nd January 2:00 – 3:00pm
• Wednesday 23rd January 4:00 – 5:00pm
• Thursday 24th January 4:00 – 5:00pm

Please phone the office from Monday 21st January on 4799 1333 with all enrolment enquiries, or to make a booking.

KEEP A WATCH ON OUR SCHOOL

With the holidays fast approaching, we need you to look out for after-hours crime in our school. If you see anything suspicious, please call School Watch on 13 17 88.

The School Watch program is a partnership between the Department of Education, the Queensland Police Service and the State Government Protective Security Service. It aims to reduce vandalism, theft and arson in Queensland schools.

If you do see something suspicious, please don’t attempt to intervene. Call the School Watch number and let the local police or State Government Protective Security Service deal with the matter. Keep the number handy—13 17 88—and let’s work together to help create a safer school community.

Chappy News

A very Merry Christmas to our entire school community.

Willows Christmas Concert BBQ

I would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who helped run the sausage sizzle on the night of the Christmas carols, and most importantly, thank you to everyone who purchased a sausage or a drink. The money raised goes towards Chaplaincy resources and will be a great aid come 2019.

I would like to wish all our school community a joyous, loving and safe Christmas and holiday season. I cherish the relationships I made during 2018 and cannot wait to serve the school community again in 2019.

Chappy Adam

P & C News

President’s Message

I would like to congratulate our departing Year 6 students, and wish you all the best for your high school years and beyond. Many of you have been with us for seven years now, but whether you’re a recent part of our Willows family, or have been here longer, you have all shaped our school and should be proud of where we are now.

We’ve had a fantastic 2018, and are very proud of the contributions we’ve been able to make to our school. 2019 is looking just as good, and I particularly look forward to seeing our new playgrounds popping up! There are people working behind the scenes to make any of this happen. Huge thanks to the P&C Exec, Committee Members, all of our volunteers, and all of our fantastic school staff who offer us their support.

There are a number of families who have been a big part of our school and P&C over the years who are now leaving our school, due to relocation or due to watching the last of their children move to high school. Thank you so much for your contribution, your help, and your support over the years. You will be missed!

See you all in 2019!

Kookaburra Student Packs

So easy to order all your booklist needs, order from the comfort of your own home and no running around finding everything! Fantastic prices on quality brands. And you will be supporting your P&C.

2019 Prep families can order too!

The School Pickup option has now closed. If you chose this option, here’s a reminder of when and where to collect your pack/s in January. If you can't collect personally, send a friend, relative or neighbour!

School Pick Up Times (from our school's OSHC building)

Saturday 12th January 2019 02:00 pm – 04:00 pm.
Sunday 13th January 2019 10:00 am – 12:00 pm (midday).

Home delivery continues to be available, however, Friday the 14th December is the last day to order for guaranteed delivery by the 18th January.

Go to the link below
Select "Order a Student Pack"

Username: thewi003
Password: Student9 (is case sensitive)

You can either select a complete Student Pack which will contain all the items from our booklist, or you can customise and select items individually (the suggested quantities are the quantities from the school booklists). You can order extras for home if you like! There are also some optional items available for your shopping convenience, such as contact paper, book covers and left handed scissors.

Note: Tissues/A4 Paper/Laminating sheets are bulk delivered to the school just before school starts and these will be distributed to classrooms on your behalf.

The School Locker

The Willow State School have partnered with The School Locker and a rebate will be made to the school on absolutely every purchase made in store!

The School Locker offer parents the convenience of shopping at a local store (Domain Central) for all your school needs, including music and sports equipment, shoe fittings, stationery and technology. They are open 7 days, including late night trade with ample parking. Soon they will be stocking The Willows State School uniform and new style hats with toggle! (from January 2019)

If you don’t want to order your bookpacks online through Kookaburra, The School Locker can help you pick your book pack from their supply of stationery items (they have all of our booklists ready to go).

The Athletes Foot

Purchase a pair of shoes for any family member and just mention you are with The Willows State School, and The Athletes Foot will donate $5 back to our school. The Athletes Foot offers quality well-fitting shoes that will last the distance.

School House Shirts

School House Shirts are available in various sizes from the tuckshop for $30.

For any new families to our school (and our new Prep 2019 families), these are not a compulsory shirt, and are only worn on Wednesdays and official school sports days.

Label Partners

If you’re already getting prepared for the new school year with personalised labels and lunchboxes, don’t forget our label partners!

We have partnered with two personalised label companies (Stuck on You, and Bright Star Kids) and a percentage from every sale goes towards the P&C, providing you select our school’s details at the checkout.

Stuck On You - At checkout, click "Have a Crew/Fundraising Code?" link, type in "thewillowsstateschool" (no spaces).
Bright Star Kids - At checkout, click "Link a Fundraising Account", enter "Willows" in the search and select our school.

These suppliers also have many other products available other than personalised labels, such as t-shirts, bento boxes, and backpacks.

EZ Covers

At EZ Covers they have created an easier and cheaper way to cover school exercise books.

Their unique covers are made in a range of sizes that fit all school books in many colours and designs. And the best part is they are reusable from year to year.

It's easier than 123! Simply slide in the front and slide in the back. Hey presto, you're finished! No more wrangling with contact paper.

Go to the link below

Use the code – EZ15 at the checkout and select The Willows State School! (please be sure to use the EZ15 code to give us a rebate of 15c per cover, rather than the standard 5c)

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 P&C meetings are held on the second Tuesday of the month at 6pm in the TCBC Conference Room, and will recommence in February 2019. Our AGM will be held in March.

See you round!

Defence News

SOMETIMES THE SMALLEST THINGS TAKE UP THE MOST ROOM IN YOUR HEAR
Winnie the Pooh

Hello Defence Families.

It is hard to believe that the school year is nearly over. What a packed year it has been. It is with a heavy heart that I say good-bye to 29 amazing students from 17 families. I will miss you all very much. This year has been lots of fun and we have all achieved so much here at The Willows. Remember to make contact with your DSM at your new school. All the best on your new adventure to your new home and make lots of great friends at your new school. I would also like to wish all defence families a wonderful holidays and a most enjoyable Christmas. Stay safe and spend much deserved time with your loved ones. Look forward to seeing you all back at school in 2019.

Remember to e-mail with any questions you may have on cwhee36@eq.edu.au

IMPORTANT FOR STUDENTS RELOCATING; 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 any subject that has been identified by the school as representing a gap in learning. We may reimburse fees for tutoring required to fill any gaps in understanding or curriculum caused by changing schools. 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 Helpline for updates 1800 624 608

Are you a member of the FREE ADF Family Health Program? If you said No you should be. Just read the fact sheet below and register now to access the FREE health benefits available to all defence families.

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. You can e-mail DCO office in Townsville dco.townsville@defence.gov.au and leave details, name, member name, address, email, mob/home number, children’s names or collect a form from me. I have attached a copy of the form below.

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.

Townsville Gone Troppo Newsletter

DCO Townsville's Gone Troppo Newsletter is available to view on the DCO website and click on the latest edition to download

DATES AND ACTIVITIES TO REMEMBER FOR DECEMBER

15th December 8.30am – 11am Come & Try Dragon Boat racing, Where: Rossiter Park pontoon
18th- 22nd December Stable on the Strand
21st December Riverway Movie Night- Sherlock Gnomes
Are you looking for a Job? Come and join Employment Pathways Workshops.

Looking for more activities in Townsville then check out the link below

CONTACTS

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
OPEN ARMS (Veterans and Veterans Families) – 1800 011 046 (eligibly applies)

DFA Defence Families of Australia – 1800 100 509 or at the link below
National Delegate for Northern Queensland – Chandell Derham at nth.qld@dfa.org.au
Remember I am available anytime from 8:00am until 3:30pm, Monday to Friday.

Correna Wheeler
DSM - Defence School Mentor