8 June 2022

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Pride and Key Messages – Michelle Donn

2022 School Explicit Improvement Agenda (EIA):
Every Student is a Reader and a Writer – Aim for the ‘A’
Inclusivity: Everyone Counts!
Wellbeing and Engagement for All

Welcome to Week 8 of Term 2. We now have just 12 school days left in Semester 1. It has been a busy week as we are getting closer to the end of the teaching and learning cycle with a range of assessment tasks requiring completion. This week we also have some extra-curricular offerings for all students in ‘Backflips Against Bullying’ (today), a visit from the Australian Ballet (Thursday) for some short workshops with a small group of students and our Student Council’s PJ fundraiser on Friday to support their chosen charity, Ronald McDonald House. Trials for field events for our Athletics Day Carnival are also in full swing at lunch times.

Teaching Staff Capability Development - Cluster Moderation

On Monday afternoon teaching staff from The Willows SS met with their cluster colleagues from Weir SS and Rasmussen SS to engage in Cluster Moderation of student English writing samples. This twilight session provided a rich opportunity to engage in professional conversations with teacher colleagues to ensure consistency and rigour of judgments about student achievement on English summative assessment tasks against aspects of the Australian Curriculum achievement standards.

NQ Regional Project - Towards Zero

On Tuesday morning I attended the Term 2 Towards Zero meeting at North Shore SS with our P-2 Deputy Principal, Mrs Souter, and Support Teacher-Literacy and Numeracy, Mrs Menzies. Ten Townsville primary schools are collaboratively working together to share practice and progress on the implementation of the systematic teaching of synthetic phonics in the early years with a goal of having all children able to read at an age-appropriate level.

Semester 1 2022 Student Reports – to be emailed in Week 10 from Wednesday, 22 June

The Willows State School will be emailing Report Cards again this semester. To ensure all parents and caregivers receive their child/children’s Report Cards, it is important that the school has your current email address recorded in OneSchool. If you are unsure that the school has your correct current email address, please ring/email the office to confirm.

Report Cards will be emailed to all parents/caregivers recorded as receiving correspondence.

Report Cards may get lost in a ‘Junk’ folder. To help avoid this, you can add the address from which report cards will be generated - Application.ONESCHOOL@qed.qld.gov.au to your list of safe senders now.

Staffing Update

• Mrs Emma Slatter has advised she will be continuing on leave for the remainder of Term 2. Mrs Siobhan Moule and Mrs Samantha Carter will continue to share the teaching of 4C until the end of term.
• The recruitment and selection process for the substantive role of Head of Special Education Services (HoSES) at The Willows SS has now been finalised. I wish to advise that Mrs Marnie Fader has been the successful applicant. Mrs Fader will be coming to us from Hervey Bay, where she has held a substantive HoSES role for the past 5 years. Mrs Fader will officially take up duty at The Willows SS from the commencement of Term 3. Mrs Jodie Robinson, Inclusion Teacher, will continue to act in the HoSES role at The Willows SS for the remainder of Term 2.

Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD)

Every year, all schools in Australia participate in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). The NCCD process requires schools to identify information already available in the school about supports provided to students with disability. These relate to legislative requirements under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and the Disability Standards for Education 2005, in line with the NCCD guidelines (2019).

Information provided about students to the Australian Government for the NCCD includes:

• Year of schooling
• Category of disability: physical, cognitive, sensory or social/emotional
• Level of adjustment provided: support provided within quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary, substantial or extensive.

This information assists schools to:

• Formally recognise the supports and adjustments provided to students with disability in schools
• Consider how they can strengthen the support of students with disability in schools
• Develop shared practices so that they can review their learning programs in order to improve educational outcomes for students with disability.
• The NCCD provides state and federal governments with the information they need to plan more broadly for the support of students with disability.
• The NCCD will have no direct impact on your child and your child will not be involved in any testing process. The school will provide data to the Australian Government in such a way that no individual student will be able to be identified – the privacy and confidentiality of all students is ensured. All information is protected by privacy laws that regulate the collection, storage and disclosure of personal information. To find out more about these matters, please refer to the Australian Government’s Privacy Policy.
• Further information about the NCCD can be found on the NCCD Portal.
• If you have any questions about the NCCD, please contact the school. Data submission in Queensland state schools is required to be finalised by early in Term 3.

COVID-19 Positive Cases Notification to School Community

Over the past week we have continued to be notified of positive test results for COVID-19 in our school community.

May I remind you to continue to:

• monitor yourself and your family for COVID-19 symptoms that can include fever, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, runny nose, headache, fatigue, diarrhoea, vomiting or nausea, loss of smell and/or taste.
• stay home if displaying any symptoms, or feeling unwell. You should attend your local Queensland Health testing clinics where students are prioritised to get a free rapid antigen test (RAT).
• Continue to follow all Queensland Health advice .

If students become symptomatic while at school, you will be contacted to collect them. You will also be provided with a free rapid antigen test (RAT) to administer at home.

If your child tests positive to COVID-19, please follow Queensland Health guidelines for reporting the test result, isolation and quarantine.

Quarantine requirements for close contacts

• Close contacts who do not have COVID-19 symptoms no longer need to quarantine. Students who are close contacts must notify their school that they are a close contact.
• For 7 days after becoming a close contact, students over the age of 12 must wear a face mask while outside of their home, including at school, and when outdoors if unable to physically distance. Queensland Health also recommends that children under the age of 12 wear a face mask when it is safe to do so.
• It is recommended that students undertake a rapid antigen test (RAT) on the first day they leave home, and every second day (e.g. days 2, 4, and 6) until they are no longer a close contact.

Close contacts who develop COVID-19 symptoms must not attend school and should isolate until their symptoms resolve.

DATE CLAIMER: P&C Fun Fair – Friday, August 19 – Term 3, Week

Please note this date in your calendar NOW. Please also view the more detailed information provided by the P&C later in this newsletter regarding year level stalls and requests for donations over the coming weeks. Your support with our Fun Fair is much appreciated. All funds raised go back into the enhancement of school facilities.

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL)

Over this current fortnight (including Week 9) our PBL school-wide focus theme has been on ‘Be a Bully Blocker.’ This focus is designed to reinforce the messages that have been shared by the ‘Backflips Against Bullying’ team who performed at our school today. At The Willows we promote all members of our school community deserving to come to school feeling safe and respected. Our classes will be learning ways to use words to solve problems and how to help people if they see bullying happening. Your support in discussing these values and expectations with your child is also much appreciated.

I am also looking forward to the vast majority of our students continuing to work hard and follow our school rules to achieve participation in our 75 Star Rewards and/or Silver Star Rewards in Week 10.

The Willows State School Attendance Strategy – Every Day Counts!

School attendance is compulsory under the Education Act. If children are going to be absent from school for any reason parents are requested to inform the school by phoning 4799 1333 or emailing admin@thewillowsss.eq.edu.au.

If your child is absent from school on any given day and we are unaware of the reason for the absence an SMS message will be generated asking you to contact the school regarding your child’s absence. Students are encouraged to come to school on every day they are well enough to attend.

2023 BYOx Expression of Interest Process

The Willows State School is continuing to grow the successful introduction of the BYOx laptop program for students in Years 4, 5 & 6 in 2023.

Participation in the program is voluntary and we are currently seeking expressions of interest from families for students who may be interested in participating in the BYOx program at The Willows State School in 2023.

• Students who are currently in the BYOx program do not need to attend an information session and will receive a program re-commitment letter in Term 3 2022. This will give the student and family the opportunity to elect to stay in the program in 2023 or opt out for 2023.

WHAT IS BYOx?

BYOx stands for ‘Bring Your Own’ device. The BYOx program maximizes learning opportunities as students have 24-hour access to school resources through their device.

BYOx devices will have access to the same resources as school owned devices including filtered internet via the schools wireless network and FREE software.

This device MUST BE a windows based laptop and meet the minimum specification as outlined by the school.

Parent Information Sessions

Parent Information sessions will be held in Term 3 for interested students and families. To participate in the BYOx program the parents and students must attend a session to receive more detailed program information.

Please complete the survey below if your child is interested in participating in the BYOx program in 2023 and indicate which information session the family will likely attend.

Please note that completing this survey does not indicate a firm commitment to moving forward into the program.

Survey Link below:

Have a happy, healthy and safe week. Our next newsletter for Term 2 will be issued on Wednesday, 15 June.

Warm regards,
Michelle Donn
A/Principal

General News

2022 ENROLMENTS – NOW OPEN FOR ALL YEAR LEVELS

Our school is now taking enrolments for the 2023 school year, please get your enrolment forms in early. Should you know of friends or family looking to join our great school, please inform them that they are welcome to contact the office for further information and to obtain an enrolment package.

Prospective 2023 Prep students may also like to consider attending our Willows Warriors Pre-Prep Program on a Wednesday as a great transition and orientation process. Please contact our school office for further information about this.

Peek at Prep

Prep Vision Screening at The Willows State School – 19-21 July, 2022

The Primary School Nurse Health Readiness Program aims to optimise the health and wellbeing of Queensland children during their transition to primary school, with a key focus on vision screening for prep students. This program is a state-wide initiative and offers free vision screening to prep students in state, catholic and independent schools.

Registered nurses based in communities across Queensland work with the support of Children’s Health Queensland to deliver the screening service and capture important data about the health of Queensland children.

At The Willows State School the vision screening process is scheduled to take place on 19, 20 & 21 July. Consent forms will be emailed to parents/carers for completion online. If you require a printed copy of the consent form please contact our office.

Vision screening is vital in early childhood, particularly for conditions such as amblyopia, or a ‘lazy eye’ which, if not detected and treated early, can lead to blindness. Vision loss can result in children struggling at school and having poor learning outcomes and can also lead to behavioural issues and difficulty with concentration. The Primary School Nurse Health Readiness Program provides the opportunity for visual abnormalities to be detected early and, in turn, minimise the impact on a child’s learning.

If visual abnormalities are found during a child’s screening tests they will be referred to an eye health professional for further assessment. The Primary School Nurse Health Readiness Program will follow-up with parents/guardians to discuss the outcome of this further assessment.

Upcoming Events

Positive Behaviour Learning

Defence News

HELLO and WELCOME TO ALL DEFENCE FAMILIES

Week 8 - Hope you are all keeping well. Thank you to those who attended the Biggest Morning Tea last Friday. It was a great opportunity to have a chat about what is happening at home and school with parents. If you would like to donate, please use the link below. Thank you for your support

At Kids Club last week we made stress balls with rice and balloons. This is such an easy activity but lots of fun for all ages. This week we are making spiders to fly in the wind and octopuses. Remind children to attend at playtimes to make a craft or play board games with friends, it’s a lot of FUN!!

School holidays are fast approaching so don’t forget to make plans with your children to visit some of the wonderful spots around us - Pallarenda, The Strand, Riverway and Movies to name a few. Day trips to Magnetic Island, Charters Towers, Cardwell, Burdekin Dam, Ayr and Ingham all are on our doorstep and are filled with loads of things to see and do. Get out there and enjoy our bit of paradise. Contact Defence Holidays NQ on 07 4752 3842 for more information.

Are you looking for Child Care? The Coral Sea Child Care Centre in Kirwan is part of the One Tree Defence Child Care Unit, offering priority access for Defence families in Townsville. Additional information about this service can be found by visiting One Tree Community Services website.

Students have been informing me that their parents have left already for training exercise offshore. If you or your spouse are going away soon, please email me the details of when they are going and possible return date so that I am able to support your loved ones here at school. These times when you are away can be very challenging for the whole family at home. Some days at school may be a rollercoaster of emotions and having this information can very be valuable when supporting emotional students. Thank you to those parents who have already informed me that they are going away, I appreciate your support.

Defence Families of Australia are looking for your support. They are looking for several local families to participate in a photography project to highlight some of the unique benefits and realities of Defence family life in a natural and candid way. Each shoot may take around three hours and is proposed for June/July 2022. It sounds like fun for the family. There is a flyer attached with contact details.

If you just posted into Townsville this year or in the last 18 months, your children may be eligible for Education Assistance. This is available for students who move to a new school due to a posting. You have 18 months to apply and use the Education Assistance. If you have posted in this year and would like your children to benefit from some extra tutoring, you can do so NOW. Just contact the Defence Member and Family Helpline 1800 624 608 or email education.supportprograms@defence.gov.au for the form. I have copies of the Education Assistance form at school that I can have the teacher sign and return home with student upon request. One hour of tutoring per subject (Maths and English) for up to 14 weeks can be accessed. Reports are no longer required to access this service. Please contact me if you have any further questions about the form. This is a valuable resource to assist students with their learning and therefore assist with their transition into a new school. This builds self-confidence and resilience in children. I am always available to answer any questions about your student’s transition into their new school. You can ring the Defence Family Helpline on 1800 624 608, visit DMFS website or collect the forms from me. For more information visit the link below

Kookaburra Kids is a worthy organisation for children aged 8-18 years, who have a parent serving and ex serving members of the ADF with a mental illness as a result of their military service. They provide fun activity days, camps and mental health education. Go to their website at www.kookaburrakids.org.au to read more or call Hannah in Townsville on 0484 544 451 to register. It is a wonderful way to meet new friends and have fun.

Geckos Family Centre at Lavarack Barracks is excited to announce that large renovations will occur to the internal facility from 5 May – 30 June, 2022. The internal facility will be closed for this set period over this time. All weekly groups, school holiday activities and special events will continue (at various locations). The playground will remain open for families to utilise throughout this period. Check out their Facebook page to keep up to date with the activities and events held throughout the year or phone them on 07 4411 7031 for more details.

TO BE UP TO DATE WITH WHATS ON IN TOWNSVILLE CHECK whatson.townsville.qld.gov.au , follow on Facebook or call 07 4411 7031.

DON’T FORGET to Register for DMFS mailing list NOW at MemberandFamilyHelpline@defence.gov.au or follow on Facebook for updates.

DATES TO REMEMBER

Saturday 25th June 10am-1pm - The Oasis Townsville is celebrating their 1st Anniversary and are having an Open Day to celebrate. Veterans, ADF members, their families and the Townsville community are invited to attend. Come along and listen to the 1RAR band and watch the Highland Dancers.

When: Saturday 25 June, 10am-1pm
Where: The Oasis Townsville, 1 Staging Camp Avenue, Oonoonba

IMPORTANT NUMBERS

Defence Family Helpline 24/7 - 1800 624 608 - Need Help give them a call

DMFS Office at Nathan Business Centre on Ross River Rd, call 07 4430 3879

Open Arms support former and current serving ADF personnel and their family members can use the service also call 1800 011 046 www.openarms.gov.au

Mates4Mates – Townsville FRC 4771 9600 townsville@mates4mates.org

Café now Open from 9am-12.30pm every day, you are welcome to attend for a chat and to have a look around.

The Oasis Townsville for Ex-ADF Community in Townsville hello@theoasistownsville.org.au

Dirty Books Café – 1 Staging Camp Avenue, Oonoonba – 07 4759 8777

DFA (Defence Families of Australia) – NQ Delegate Larissa Ostermann 0418 796 561 nth.qld@dfa.org.au

DSNG Defence Special Needs Group - 1800 037 674 www.dsng.org.au

Beyondblue.org.au www.australia.gov.au

Geckos Family Centre Nth Qld Lavarack Barracks - Contact for enquiries on 07 4446 1238 or follow on Facebook.

Kookaburra Kids Charity Organisation Mental Health Service - 1300 566 525 www.kookaburrakids.org.au or contact Hannah Galliner 0484 544 451/1300 566 525

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

My hours are Monday to Friday 8:00am-3:30pm. Please phone me anytime for a chat on 4799 1333 ext 323, or email me cwhee36@eq.edu.au . I look forward to meeting you.

Correna Wheeler
Defence School Mentor

A BEAUTIFUL DAY BEGINS WITH A BEAUTIFUL MINDSET

Student Council News

Engagement and Wellbeing

Student Council Reminder of Term 2 Charity Fundraising Event

Our Student Council are looking forward to our upcoming school fundraising event. PJ Day is on Friday 10 June and all funds raised will be donated to our school charity, Ronald McDonald House North Australia. It will be great to see all the staff and students come to school, dressed in their favourite pjs. The Student Council aim to raise $1000, so come dressed up and bring your gold coins.

Ensure all clothing worn is appropriate for school, sun-safe and students are wearing normal school footwear (no slippers).

Date: Friday 10 June 2022 - Gold Coin Donation

Music News (The Pitch)

Prep News

This term in Mathematics, Prep Row have been learning about shapes and different ways of sorting them according to their characteristics. We have also been learning how to represent numbers from 1-10, compare amounts, counting on and subitizing.

In English, we have enjoyed listening to and presenting our retells to our peers. We have also been busy making and reading words from our new sounds and writing about an event from The Gingerbread Man or The Little Red Hen.

HASS has given us the opportunity to talk about special events or objects that help us remember important celebrations with our families.

Year One News

How fast is Term 2 flying by? As usual, we are hard at work in our Year 1 classrooms and being part of some great learning moments.

In Maths, we have been completing a Guided Inquiry into what our favourite Australian coin is and how we can share what we know about the coin we’ve chosen. The students have been very creative coming up with ideas for how they can share information about their coins with suggestions such as posters, short books as well as drawing and labelling their coins.

In Science, we have continued our learning on materials. We have led scientific investigations into what material is best to make changes so it becomes a floating boat. The extra challenge has been adding marbles and other objects into our boats and seeing if they stay floating. It has been great fun seeing what changes we need to make to have successful floating boats.

Year Two News

In English this term, Year 2 students have been learning to create and present an innovation of a known poem to a familiar audience. Students have been rehearsing their innovated poem with fellow class members and have been receiving whole class and peer feedback on their presentation skills. We have been focusing on using a clear voice, varying tone and pace and using pause and expression for effect when presenting to our audience.

Year Three News

This term, in Maths, year 3 students have been having a lot of fun, amidst some stressing of their ability to recall addition and subtraction facts within a time limit. Next semester, we continue their fast recall of sums so help them by practising at home.

This term, we are also using location, position and pathways to create a game. We can’t wait to see what they come up with.

Year Four News

This Term for Health, Year 4 have been exploring things that make us different and form our identities. This could be being born in a different country, speaking a second language or attending church on the weekend.

With all of this knowledge, the students then compared emotional responses of two characters to the same situation. This emphasised the importance of positive communication, which ties in perfectly with our current Positive Behaviour for Learning focus: Be a Bully Blocker. Giving students the knowledge and skills to recognise positive interactions and participate in them.

Year Five News

On Thursday two Kirwan Police Station senior constables visited our Year 5 students. The students learned about police officer roles and responsibilities as helpers in our community. They enjoyed the stories and examples of law in practice and were interested in their official uniform. We really appreciate the time the police officers took to visit our school.

Year Six News

Year 6 have arrived home safely after completing their three-day adventure on Magnetic Island. It was a busy but exciting camp that had students participating in a range of character-building and team strengthening activities. Over the Monday and Tuesday we enjoyed a range of activities, including archery tag, stand-up paddle boarding, catapults, leadership activities, raft building and beach games. The most enjoyed activity was stand up paddle boarding. Although the rough weather on Monday meant those groups were mostly surfing than paddling boarding, much enjoyment was had by all during this session.

Wednesday took a more relaxed approach, with most of the groups going for a hike to a lookout, where we saw beautiful views around the island. Heading back to the campsite, we took some time to play more games and just chill out and relax before catching the ferry home.

We were very well fed during our stay, with burgers, spaghetti bolognese and even pancakes and ice-cream fuelling our energy to complete our activities.

Overall, whilst we were all quite exhausted, both staff and students had an amazing time over at Magnetic Island. We thank the team at Apex Camps for a wonderful stay, as well as the organisation from our staff behind the scenes to ensure everything ran smoothly.