4 April 2019

Newsletter Articles

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Welcome to the end of Term 1. This term has been a challenging term and I am continuously proud of the efforts, contributions and dedication to the teaching and learning agenda at our school. Our students and teachers have done an exemplary job in their units of work whilst establishing routines that are not quite the same as we have when we have sunny weather.

Day 8 / 28 decisions have now been finalised and all communications around this departmental process have now been communicated regarding staffing allocations. This coming week we farewell Mrs Jenny Armit who has self-identified for a transfer from our school. Mrs Armit has been a teacher at The Willows for 17 years and she is looking forward to a new adventure at North Shore State School. We also farewell Miss Rebecca Williams. Miss Williams has worked at The Willows since 2016 and she is relocating south. Miss Alysha Burford has also been on contract this term and we thank her for a great job done on 6AND. Miss Burford is often at our school and we look forward to seeing her in the future. Mrs Andersen will be returning in Term 2. On behalf of The Willows SS we wish these staff members all the very best.

RAIN RAIN GO AWAY – WILLOWS KIDS WANT TO PLAY!

The wet weather conditions of Term 1 have set a number of our planned projects significantly behind. We will continue to work within what we are able to do and hopefully the installation of our playgrounds, the construction of our multi-purpose play and shade structures etc. will be able to commence soon. I thankyou for your ongoing patience, support and understanding.

I absolutely acknowledge my staff…wet weather and excessive heat conditions are not the easiest processes and I absolutely take my hat off to the entire Willows Staff for the comradeship, the support and the commitment to student safety. A great job team, thankyou!

ATHLETICS CARNIVAL 2019

The ovals are going to take some time to dry out and many of our resources are on backorder as we speak. Both HPE sheds were devastating to clean out, with very few of the teaching and learning and our resources able to be kept. As a result of this we have hired the Sports Reserve on the 22nd of May for our Athletics Carnival and this carnival will be for the competitive events in Years 3-6. The Preps, Year 1’s and 2’s will have their carnival on the morning of the 17th of May. This is unavoidable and at the forefront of this decision is the safety, enjoyment and comfort of students and staff – Athletics is the best day of the school year and we are confident this will be a great one!

ANZAC DAY – 25 APRIL 2019

The Willows State School will be participating in the parade at the Thuringowa Service this year. This is a fantastic opportunity and we look forward to seeing many students and their families marching with us this year and representing our school. Student are to wear full school uniform (no sports shirts) for this event. All schools are to form up by 8:30am behind the Weir State School (students should arrive not later than 8:30am). Step off for the March to the Riverway Cenotaph is 9:00am. Anzac Day service will commence at 9:30am.

I wish each of you a safe, happy and well deserved break and look forward to Term 2 at our school.

Kind regards
Helen McCullough - Principal

GENERAL NEWS

Flood Education Supplement

Assistance that is available for isolated families affected by the flood event in February 2019.

The Flood Education Supplement is a one-off $1 000 payment for each eligible student to assist isolated families affected by the flood in North Queensland with education and related costs. To receive the assistance families must have been:

• Receiving any of the qualifying payments, and
• Had a family home in one of the affected Local Government areas in North Queensland
• Local Government areas of Burdekin; Burke; Carpentaria; Cloncurry; Douglas; Flinders; Hinchinbrook; McKinlay; Richmond; Townsville and Winton

If a qualifying payment still needs to be claimed families have to 23 April 2019

ATTENDANCE – Being Late to school can result in a lot of lost learning time.

This term we have had an increasing number of late arrivals in the morning. Please note that students are obliged to attend school from 8.50am to 2.55pm every day. Teachers start teaching at 8.50am so it is important that all students are in class ready to start at 8.50am. Having students arrive late has an impact on all students learning.

Reminder that a student that comes 10minutes late everyday ends up losing 50 minutes of learning time a week and that adds up over a term.

Please support our students and ensure that your student arrives on time.

RACQ Road Safety Education Program

SCHOOL PHOTOS

Reminder that our prep students will have their individual shots and group shots early next term. We will advise on the date once it has been confirmed. Sibling photos would have been done this week but if you have a prep student and you missed out on sibling photos please let the office know and we can organise these when they come back next term.

Any questions regarding order and payment can be referred to;

MSP Photography
161 Ross River Road
Mundingburra 4812
Ph 07 47252999

VOLUNTARY FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION

General Information:

• A voluntary financial contribution operates at The Willows State School. Parents/caregivers are strongly encouraged to participate as your contribution makes a direct difference in the resources available for your child/ren. It assists us to provide them with an enhanced range of learning materials and equipment.
• The purpose of the contribution is to enhance the level of resources available so that maximum student outcomes can be achieved by providing Library and Reference Books, Home Reading Books, Art and Craft Materials, Sporting Equipment and Classroom Technologies.
• All contributions to this scheme are gratefully received and make a significant difference to the education opportunities of all students.
• Payment does not cover items such as general stationery, admission to sporting venues, excursions and transport costs.
• Payment is now due to enable us to be a great school for your child/ren and every cent will be used to support your child/ren this year at The Willows State School.
• The Willows State School has maintained the current contribution of $40.00.

Specific Conditions:

• Parents who are experiencing financial difficulties may make a Payment Plan with the Business Manager to pay the contribution via regular instalments. All discussions will be held in confidence.

How can you pay your contribution?

Payment can be made at the office every day between 8:00am and 3:30pm, using cash, debit or credit cards. You may also pay your contribution by direct deposit into the school bank account.

Details are as follows:

The Willows State School
BSB: 064 823
Account: 1022 1460
Reference: (Student's surname and Roll Class) e.g. Brown 2BOU
Important: If you use the direct deposit option, please ensure you USE A CLEAR REFERENCE. We will be unable to receipt your account if we don’t know who the deposit belongs to.

We thank you for your support of our voluntary contribution scheme. Please read the following information about the scheme. Please don’t hesitate to contact the office if you require any further information.

Barbara Anderson - Business Manager

2019 NAPLAN Testing Brochure

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

From 14 to 16 May 2019, Year 3 and 5 students will be sitting the 2019 National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) Tests. These nation tests provide information on how students are performing in the content strands of numeracy, reading, writing, spelling, punctuation and grammar. Please find the brochure link below with more information about NAPLAN for your perusal.

NAPLAN testing will be conducted on paper in 2019. It is imperative that all Year 3 and 5 students arrive at school on time and prepared for the tests.

Please ensure that your student has the following materials that all participating Year 3 and 5 students will require to complete the NAPLAN tests:

• 2B or HB pencils
• An eraser
• A sharpener

To enquire about special provisions or exemption from NAPLAN for you student, please contact Claire Franklin (Head of Special Education) before 3 April 2019. Should you have any further queries regarding NAPLAN, please contact Mrs Patricia Winter (Deputy Principal Years 3/5) or Kym Clay (Head of Curriculum).

Yours sincerely
Helen McCullough
Principal

SCHOOL WATCH

We need everyone to look out for after-hours crime in our school. If you see anything suspicious, please don't attempt to intervene.

CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The following document outlines the curriculum for Term 1 for all year levels

We hope that you have enjoyed the many articles from all of our year levels showing you our curriculum, teaching and learning in the classroom. The first newsletter for next term will include a curriculum overview for term 2.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Positive Behaviour Learning

Over the past weeks, The Willows students have been learning about how to report and not tolerate bullying. Teachers have been discussing which people they can report to. Our most recent focus lessons have been around positive interactions and “filling each other’s buckets”. We do this by showing each other kindness in our words and actions. We have also celebrated our first round of 75 stars. The students had a great time.

Bullying, No Way – National Day of Action

The Willows State School says “Bullying, No Way! Take action every day”. We proudly participated in the National Day of Action against Bullying and were involved in a range of activities to help empower our young people to be part of the solution when addressing bullying.

Our students have been involved in lessons around appropriate behaviour and recognising what bullying is and is not. They have created school banners and message flags resembling our school wide message. They were proud of the stance.

WOWs

Ask your Willows learners if they got a WOW today. All our students do an amazing job being Safe, Respectful and Responsible; we celebrate them by giving out a WOW slip so they can then put it in their class raffle box. Each week at Year level Parades a winner is drawn out from each class. They receive a prize from the tuckshop. Waldo, Olive and Willow love seeing all the ‘WOW’ students in our school.

Rewards

We know you will have been hearing about the 75 Star Reward for students, which is always a fun time. These reward sessions commenced at the end of Week 8. Each year level participated in a variety of planned activities for their students who earned 75 Stars on their star chart. Awesome to see so many of our students striving and earning 75 stars and beyond.

At the end of Week 10 the classes also celebrate with a planned activity for all the students who have had No Major behaviour throughout the Term. Some of the activities included, Easter craft, movies, games, outdoor activities and biscuit icing.

We have enjoyed seeing the students coming to school with smiles, modelling Safe, Respectful and Responsible behaviours each day.

Well Being

From The Guidance Officer

Worries and Anxieties: Helping Children to Cope

Children, like adults, have all sorts of strong feelings about what is happening to them. At times, the world can seem frightening or uncertain, which may create fearfulness, worry or anxiety.

Different Types of Anxiety

Fears and Phobias

Very young children often develop fears and phobias. These can be triggered by changes (going to childcare, separating from a parent), or particular things (spiders, snakes, monsters etc). Fears like these are common but with encouragement and support most children learn to overcome their anxiety.

General Anxiety

Some youngsters feel anxious most of the time for no apparent reason – it may be their temperament or may be a pattern of behaviour that is shared by other members of the family.

School-Related Anxiety

School refusal can be caused by anxiety – separating from parents, fear of bullying, problems with friendships, trouble with school work or teachers are worth investigating

Home Related Anxiety

Family problems (money issues, squabbling, separation/divorce), death of a family member or friend, harsh discipline or a traumatic experience eg burglary can be a cause of anxiety (as well as depression).

What are the Signs

• Feeling sick – stomach aches, headaches. Not being able to stomach food.
• Feeling tense, fidgety, needing to go to the toilet often
• Feeling fearful or panicky, breathless, sweaty
• Being irritable, tearful, clingy or having sleeping difficulties
• Withdrawing from social contact

Anxiety can limit a person’s experiences in life. It can contribute to lack of confidence, loneliness, health problems and learning difficulties. The emotional effects if not remedied can be long lasting.

What to do

• Talk to your child –show your child that you care and want to understand the reasons for their anxiety
• Give comfort, reassurance and practical help with how to cope eg. encourage helpful thoughts rather than focussing on unhelpful thoughts. (There are children’s books to help children cope with divorce, death, anxieties.
• Prepare your child for changes. If possible give sufficient warning – talk to them about what might happen and why, as well as ways to manage the changes
• For children with school/ separation anxiety, regular routines and consistency around sleep, and getting ready for school, having breakfast etc will generally improve the outcome
• Be aware of school or family situations that may be creating worries for your child
• Be aware of your own anxiety and protect your child from taking on your woes
• Use relaxation techniques eg controlling your breathing, listening to peaceful music, doing something you enjoy
• Encourage daily exercise, healthy eating , drinking plenty of water, and most importantly getting enough sleep – children need at least 8 to 9 hours – Healthy body helps keep us on top of difficult situations

If your child is so anxious that they can’t cope, more specialist help may be needed. Have a chat with your guidance officer, and/ or see your doctor.

Adapted from Mental Health and Growing Up, 3rd Edition – Factsheets

Defence News

HELLO TO ALL DEFENCE FAMIIES

Week 10 is here and it has been a super busy time with the ever present rain. We have all managed to come through the other end. All students are saying they are looking forward to the school holidays. Wherever you are going or doing may you have a wonderful, safe and happy time with family? Remember school starts next term on Tuesday 23rd April, see you then.

Next term don’t forget to join us on Wednesday 24th April at 2pm for our Anzac Day ceremony at school. There will be badges, ribbons and wristbands available for sale from 50c-$5 on Tuesday 23rd April. Also come along and march with the school in the Thuringowa March on Thursday 25th April. Look forward to seeing you there. My door is always open if there are any concerns you wish to discuss please give me a call, drop in or email me cwhee36@eq.edu.au anytime.

Geckos have some great activities coming up over the school break, a holiday program and an Easter party a must for kids to attend. Book now.

April School Holiday Activities at Geckos. Read the attached flyer for more information and contact Geckos to book.

Easter Party at Geckos on Wed 17th April from 1700-1930H. Cost is $20 per family. Flyer attached.

Medallion Presentation for Military Kids is on 15th May at Geckos family Centre. If a serving defence member has recently returned from deployment you child/children may be eligible to receive a Kids Medallion. More information and how to register please refer to attached flyer. RSVP must be received by 29th march so medallions can be ordered.

Still trying to find clubs, groups, and activities for children, what to see and do, you must look at the link below this is an amazing on-line resource for defence member and families to find information on their new location.

Rex D Dog Welcome Packs are available for the first time from Defence Housing in Townsville. If you have just arrived and would like a pack for your child, please contact them.

Kidsmart Relocation Program-was a huge success with all participants happily completing the 4 week program. Many new friendships were formed during this program. If you are posted/moving at the end of the year please look out for the next program to be run in term 4. I am also interested in holding a Kidsmart Deployment program in term 2 for students whose parents are on or going on deployment this year. If there are any families interested in registering students please let me know. This is a great resource for student to assist with coping while a loved on is away.

DATES TO REMEMBER

4 April - Coffee Connections – Oliver Brown, The Strand, Come along for a chat and relax

4 & 6 April - First Aid Course at Geckos Contact Geckos for further information on 4411 7031.

7 April - Dogs Day Out

27 April - My Dad and Me Playgroup-Geckos Family Centre call 4753 6539 to register

7th May - FamilySmart :Military Life Workshop. Tuesday 7 May 10.30am – 12.30pm or 5.30 – 7.30pm. ADF members and their partners in Townsville are invited to our FamilySMART: Military life workshop. This two-hour interactive workshop is designed to help new Defence couples adjust to military life. Topics include challenges and opportunities of military life, maintaining healthy relationships, self-care and support options. Contact DCO for details and to register.

DON’T FORGET to Register for DCO mailing list NOW for all the upcoming events in your local area.

GECKOS AT LAVARACK BARRACKS is a place for defence members, partners and families to build friendships, socialise and access information to assist with the challenges of the defence lifestyle. Open most days with lots of events organised. A great place to meet other defence spouses and the younger ones can play together. Host of events and activities are organised.

Defence Family Helpline 24/7 1800 624 608

Open Arms call 1800 011 046

DFA (Defence Families of Australia) Chandelle Derham 0418 796 561 nth.qld@dfa.org.au

Geckos Family Centre-Nth Qld Lavarack Barracks Contact for enquiries on 4411 7031

Defence Holidays NQ 07 4725 3842 at Lavarack Barracks opp Gym admin@defenceholidaysnq.com.au

If there are any changes with the home dynamics, please be sure to contact the class teacher/or myself so we can best support the student at school. I am available to talk anytime at school. My hours are Monday to Friday 8:00am-3:30pm, phone me on 4799 1333 ext 323, or e-mail me cwhee36@eq.edu.au anytime.

My aim is to assist to empower students at school by developing RESILIENCE, CARING AND TRUST. Students with these life skills will be ready for the future.

HAVE A HAPPY AND SAFE HOLIDAYS

Correna Wheeler
DSM
Defence School Mentor

P and C News

General Meeting

Our next meeting will be held 14 May 6pm in TCBC Conference Room.

The role of the P&C includes helping people come together, making suggestions to/asking questions of the Principal, getting to know each other, feeling that you can contribute to the school & having fun during this precious time of your child’s life. The more members we have actively participating in the P&C association the better we can achieve our objectives.

Please consider coming along to a P&C meeting and getting involved – it’s a great way to meet new people and really contribute to your child’s school experience.

School Banking

School Banking day is Wednesday

Remember, Wednesday is School Banking day and students should bring in their weekly deposit.

For every deposit made at school, students will receive a silver Dollarmites token (electronically). Once students have individually collected 10 tokens they can redeem them for an exclusive School Banking reward item in recognition of their regular savings habits.

School Banking is also a great fundraiser for our school. Our school receives a Regular Savers Contribution of $5 for every 10 deposits processed per student as well as an Annual Contribution which is based on the number of students who made at least one School Banking deposit in the prior year.

If your child has lost their book, they can bring their money to school in a sealed envelope with a note on the next School Banking day. We will issue them with a replacement.

Thank you for supporting the School Banking program. We would also like to thank Kelly and Christine who volunteer as our School Banking Co-ordinators and process our banking every week.

All you need to get involved in the School Banking program is a Commonwealth Bank Youthsaver account. You can open an account for your child in one of two ways:

1. Online
   Visit commbank.com.au/schoolbanking and click on the link to open a Youthsaver account.
2. In branch
   Visit a Commonwealth Bank branch with identification for yourself and your child, like a driver’s licence and birth certificate.

If your child has an existing Commonwealth Bank Youthsaver account they can start banking straight away. They just need to bring their deposit in every week on School Banking day using their Dollarmites deposit wallet.

School House Shirts, Hats and Water Bottles – available from our Tuckshop!

School House polos are available in various sizes in all house colours for $30. For any new families to our school (and our new Prep 2019 families), these are not a compulsory shirt, and if purchased are only to be worn on Wednesdays and official school sports days.

Water bottles are available in all house colours - $5 each.

These hats are a brand new style with an adjusting toggle (as sold at The School Locker) available in four different sizes in all house colours on the reverse side - $15 each

The Athlete’s Foot

If you are needing to buy shoes, for yourself or your kids, don’t forget our support from Athlete’s Foot. For every pair of shoes you buy, The Athlete’s Food 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.

2019 Fun Fair – 16 August

We have the wheels in motion to organise this year’s bigger and revamped Fun Fair! It is a team effort and isn’t possible without volunteers. If you are available to help with either the planning or assistance with little jobs along the way, please get in touch!

There will be something for all the family, so keep the date free - Rides N Slides, Pop Up Food Trucks, Market Stalls, School stalls, Cake Stall, Glow in the Dark Disco, Entertainment, Bar, Cafe Quiet Zone and more! Lots of new concepts, but we will also revisit a few old favourites.

We are wanting to hear from market stall holders who may be interested in holding a stall at the Fun Fair. We are also after entertainment options, such as performers or sports demonstrators. Please spread the word and contact us if you are interested.

We will once again be holding our ever popular Tombola stall. Tombola is a great stall where you buy a ticket, and have a 50% chance of winning a jar of goodies!

We'd love if you could start collecting glass jars (and their lids). Any size jar is fine, big or tiny, it's all part of the fun. Removing the label would be a great help to us too, and please ensure that the jars and their lids have no smell (i.e. no garlic jars please!)

Perhaps you might also start collecting knick-knacks to fill the Tombola jars. Ideas are: stationery items, chocolates (Freddo frogs, other varieties), USB sticks or small electronic goodies, chalk, novelty games, hair ties, costume jewellery, puzzles, basically anything that will fit in a glass jar. Any foodstuffs will need to remain inside their packaging within the jar.

We will also be holding a Children’s Second Hand Book Stall. If you are having a clean out of your kid’s book shelves, please consider sending the books to us. Please note – children’s books only, no adult fiction.

Thank you!

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 by sending a pm to the page. Alternatively, you can contact us via email at willowspandc@gmail.com

See you around!

Prep News

Writing

In Term 1 we have been learning how to write sentences. We are learning that our sentences need full stops, capital letters and finger spaces. Everyday we practice our letters and sounds to help us write independently. The photos showcase some of the amazing writing that is happening in Prep Scuderi.

Maths

This week we have been learning about patterns. Here are some photos of us making a pattern. We have also been working on numbers to 20.

Prep 75 Star Rewards Day

All the Prep classes participated in the rewards day. The students had the opportunity to engage in a variety of activities outside to celebrate their excellent behaviour. They all had lots of fun and are looking forward to the next rewards day.

Year 1 News

Year 1 students participated in the 75 Stars Rewards Day on Friday Week 8 where they took part in a variety of construction activities and completed some wonderful directed drawings!

To be successful students needed to consistently demonstrate how they are safe, responsible and respectful learners in order to reach 75 stars on their stamp chart.

Year 2 News

This week the year 2s have been working very hard to create their plans for their imaginative narratives. Students need to have a title, orientation, complication and resolution to be successful. Here students are using their imagination to paint the complication for their imaginative narratives. This activity helps the year 2s to bring their stories to life and assists them to be creative when writing their narratives.

Year 3 News

Newsletter – Year 3 (English Unit 2)

Over the past few weeks the year 3 students have been busy learning about narrative writing and reading comprehension. The focus book for this unit is Matty Forever, which is a narrative story based on friendship, acceptance and trust. The learning intentions for narrative writing is – learning to write and imaginative narrative on a familiar theme of ‘friendship’ that develops characters. Students have been busily learning about the structure of a narrative, including a title, orientation, complication and resolution. Not only have they learnt about the structure of a narrative, they have learnt about noun groups, verb groups and descriptive language and how this can be used to engage the audience with emotions and paint a picture in the readers head. It has been great to see such enthusiastic writing being created around the theme of ‘friendship’.

Students have also been engaged with the story “Matty Forever”, reading and learning how to answer comprehension questions related to each character. The learning intentions for reading comprehension is – learning to comprehend literal and implied meaning in a text (Matty Forever) and identify and explain the author’s use of language. Students have also been reading the chapters in reading groups to familiarise themselves with the story and there has been a great improvement in their reading. It is great to see how energetic and successful the year three students at The Willows State School are towards their English learning.

Year 4 News

Year 4 Mathemagicians

It is a very busy time in year four! We are all working very hard at completing all our end of term tasks and finalising assessments.

In particular, our Maths learning has seen us do quite a bit of investigating over our last two units of work. It has provided great opportunity for group and partner work, which has helped our teamwork skills too.

We have been using our mathematical knowledge to:

Recall multiplication and division number facts
Choose and apply efficient strategies for multiplication and division problems
Identify a missing addend using addition and subtraction
Choose and use the most efficient strategy
Show and explain working to verify an answer.
Using number sentences.

Below are some photos of 4CHR working in pairs to use problem-solving strategies to identify unknown costs of items.

Year 5 News

Marvellous Maths

Year 5 students have been working extremely hard in Maths this term and are successfully learning about a large number of topics. These include:

• how to solve simple problems involving the four operations using a range of strategies
• to check the reasonableness of answers using estimation and rounding
• to identify and describe factors and multiples
• order decimals and unit fractions and locate them on number lines
• add and subtract fractions with the same denominator
• continue patterns by adding and subtracting fractions and decimals
• list outcomes of chance experiments with equally likely outcomes and assign probabilities between 0 and 1
• pose questions to gather data, and construct data displays appropriate for the data
• finding the area of rectangles using appropriate units
• finding the perimeter of rectangles
• converting between 12- and 24-hour time

Children’s work demonstrating how a 4-digit number can be shown in a variety of ways – written in words, displayed using equipment, on a place value chart, expanded out into H T O and put onto a number line.

Year 6 News

Grade 6 Mathematical Guided Inquiry

Year 6 students have been using strategies to solve a measurement

inquiry question, investigating how many chairs fit into TCBC for a school assembly.

Students discovered what factors they needed to consider when planning their investigation and the math skills involved when conducting the investigation.

Students devised strategies by exploring measurements of the chairs and hall. They planned a layout of the hall making sure to consider all key factors and drew a sketch to match. Students were able to take their measurements and calculate area of the space available for chairs. With some clever reconstruction of their findings onto grid paper, students were able to produce a scaled, labelled diagram and finally calculate the number of chairs that would fit into the space.

‘We did an investigation to see how many chairs we could fit in the hall for assembly. We enjoyed measuring the area of different sitting places. It was fun measuring with the trundle wheels and measuring tape,’ said Bella, Maryanne and Bailey from 6E LAN.

Community Events & Notices

Triple P’s Power of Positive Parenting FREE SEMINAR

Hosting Opportunity

GSF Confidence Conference & Workshops