Goondi SS Newsletter 10th Feb 2021
From the Principal
Dear Parents and Carers,
We have had a fantastic start the 2021 school year. Once again, thank you to our parents and carers for ensuring that our students began the school year with their booklist requirements, and in full school uniform.
Parents and carers play a critical role in their child’s learning and there are many actions that parents can take to assist and improve their child’s learning. Making sure your child attends school every day is the single most important thing you can do in your child’s educational journey.
We know that most absences are mainly due to illness and only a very small number of students finish the year with 100% attendance. However, it is the unexplained absences and lateness which have a negative effect on a child’s learning. Therefore, at this time of year we ask that you make every effort and sacrifice to get your child to school on time each day of the school year. This will ensure that your child will be given the best chance to be successful at school and really make the most of the opportunities for learning that primary school offers.
Examining attendance data shows that regularly missing school is directly related to poor student outcomes. A student who misses an average of ten school days a year will have missed an entire school year by the time they graduate high school.
Our school target this year is once again set at 95% for all students and we will need your support as parents and carers to ensure that we can achieve this. Remember – “Every Day Counts.”
Finally, again welcome back to school and all of our staff look forward to working with you through the year.
Regards,
Peter Begemann
Principal
STUDENT NUMBERS
We have been very fortunate this year to see an increase in our student numbers at Goondi State School. We now have 387 current enrolments. We have been able to provide a 3rd Prep class which also means each of the classes will be smaller, which is great for our students.
IT’S HEALTHY LUNCHBOX WEEK
School is back and so is the daily lunchbox routine.
Healthy Lunchbox Week, 7th to 13th February 2021, provides a great opportunity to highlight the importance of nutritious and tasty lunchbox fare.
Encourage your children to be involved in the process: let them choose their favourite fruit and vegetables from the supermarket. Allow them to prepare and pack their own lunchbox. And remember—a balanced diet of nutritious food is an important part of everyday life and helps children to focus, develop and grow.
COMMUNICATION
There are many forms of communication at Goondi State School. We encourage positive communication with your main connection to the school, your class teacher. This can be done easily through the use of ClassDojo messaging or arranging a meeting. Goondi also offers the fortnightly newsletter, email and Facebook. Please help us to improve communication and by ensuring your contact details are up to date.
STUDENT UNIFORM
Our student uniform instils a sense of pride in the school, is sun safe, and is designed to ensure that students can participate in the full range of school activities offered. It also:
- Promotes a safe learning environment by enabling ready identification of students and non-students at school;
- Promotes an effective teaching and learning environment by eliminating the distraction of competition in dress and fashion at school;
- Fosters mutual respect among individuals at the school by minimising visible evidence of economic, class or social difference; and
- Promotes a supportive environment at the school by fostering a sense of belonging.
Our student school uniform consists of the following:
School polo shirt (royal blue with printed school logo)
Royal blue shorts or royal blue pants (boys)
Royal blue skort, royal blue skirt or royal blue pants (girls)
School hat (wide brimmed royal blue)
Shoes – joggers only
White ankle length socks
School uniform items can be purchased through P&C uniforms on the address below or from the unfiorm shop which runs at school each Thursday from 7:45am – 8:45am
P&C ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The P&C’s Annual General Meeting will be held on Monday 15th February in the school library commencing 5:30pm.
Please consider being part of our P&C. We are a great school with strong academic results, terrific students, dedicated staff and great facilities. To complete the picture we need a strong P&C that is composed of parents who have many years of involvement and new parents with fresh and new ideas. P&C meetings seldom go for more than 1.5 hours and everyone has an opportunity to get involved in the discussions and to put forward ideas.
SCHOOL CROSSING
At this time of year we ask that you assist us to promote road safety among our students and help to set the ‘right’ example by always using the school crossing whether it is manned by a crossing supervisor or not. We ask that students are not called by parents and carers to cross the road to meet them in any location other than the crossing. This places students at risk and encourages others to do the same. We also relay this message to our students at assembly.
PARKING
Safety is our first concern. Therefore, we ask that all parents and carers obey the traffic and parking rules to ensure the safety of our students and other members of our school community.
- We ask that parents and carers use the 5 minute parking bays appropriately. These parking bays are designated for parents to collect their child from the pick-up area and then leave.
- Avoid parking on footpaths or driveways. This is an extremely unsafe practice that hampers driver visibility and puts the lives of students walking to and from school at risk.
BULLYING
There is no place for bullying at Goondi State School. Those who are bullied and those who bully are at risk for behavioural, emotional and academic problems. We take bullying seriously. As stated on the Bullying No Way website, children and young people need to know that they are being heard and that their feelings matter, and that their issue will be investigated respectfully. Bullying is defined as the following:
Bullying is an ongoing misuse of power in relationships through repeated verbal, physical and/or social behaviour that causes physical and/or psychological harm. It can involve an individual or a group misusing their power over one or more persons. Bullying can happen in person or online, and it can be obvious (overt) or hidden (covert).
Single incidents and conflict or fights between equals, whether in person or online, are not defined as bullying. However, these conflicts still need to be addressed and resolved. Examples of behaviours that do not constitute bullying include:
- mutual arguments and disagreements (where there is no power imbalance)
- not liking someone or a single act of social rejection
- one-off acts of meanness or spite
- isolated incidents of aggression, intimidation or violence.
Goondi State School will recognise the Nation Day of Action against bullying on Friday March 19th.
WHAT DID YOU DO AT SCHOOL TODAY?
We all know that on many occasions a response to this question is usually along the lines of ‘Nothing’ or ‘I can’t remember’.
Below are some ideas that give a better chance of starting a more positive conversation with your child:
- What was your best moment at school today? (or what was your worst moment at school today?)
- Tell me something that made you laugh today
- Who did you help today? Who helped you today?
- When were you the happiest today?
- Tell me about three different times you used your pencil today at school
- Tell me one thing that you learned today
- What was the coolest (saddest, funniest, scariest) thing that you saw today?
- What do you think you should do/learn more of at school? (or what do you think you should do/learn less of at school?)
- What part of the day do you look forward to?
- If you got to be the teacher tomorrow what would you do differently?
Term 1 Calendar
School Events
Wed 3rd & Thur 4th Mar - Prep Vision Screening
Wed 24th Mar - Inter-house Cross Country
Thurs 25th Mar – School Photos
Tues 30th Mar – Parent/Teacher interviews
P&C Events
Mon 15th Feb – P&C Annual General Meeting 5:30pm
Followed by the P&C meeting which will run directly afterwards
Student of the Week
Term 1 / Week 3
PREP - Jaxon, Maya and Ethan
Year 1 - Ngamata and Eamon
Year 2 - Brayden and Jamaul
Year 3 - Brayden and Daniel
Year 3/4 & 4 - Addison and Remy
Year 5 - Kai and Faith
Year 6 - Cohn, Treye and Lyla
Italian - Shelby
Super Learner - Graham
Art - Chenae
Prep Classroom Capers
Welcome to the start of a fabulous year!
We welcome all our Prep students to our school and our classrooms. We have hit the ground running this term learning lots of new things already. We love going to Letterland to learn about the letters of the alphabet and their sounds. We are getting really good at spotting the letters in words we see around the classroom.
In Math we are learning lots of things including numbers, different ways we can represent the numbers, counting and how we can sort items into different categories just to name a few!
All students have settled into the school routine well and we enjoy seeing their happy, smiling faces each day.
Regards
Angela and Anita (Prep A), Sam and Amanda (Prep B), Siobhan and Donna (Prep C)
Year 1 Classroom Capers
Wow, what a busy start to the year it has been for all of our Year 1 students and teachers. Our goals this week are to work quietly at our desks and follow teacher directions.
Last week homework was sent home. Each night your child is expected to write out their spelling words, practice their sight words and do some reading. A reminder that homework folders need to be returned each day to school.
In Maths, we are revising teen numbers and using MAB blocks to show the value of each digit. We are also investigate duration of time and looking at how long things take.
In English, we have started writing imaginative recounts and learning the structure of these.
In Science this week, we are looking at features of the night sky and describing what we would see.
In History, we have been discussing what the past, present and future means. Class Dojo is still being set up, keep an eye out for your invitation.
Have a great week,
Hayley, Leigh and Fiona
Year 2 Classroom Capers
Welcome to all our Year 2 families this year. It has been a wonderful start to the year! It has been great to see so many happy and keen students returning to school.
The first weeks of term have been focused on the behaviour expectations in the classroom and developing routines. It will be a fun term as students develop their imaginative recount writing skills in English while working on their grammar and punctuation skills.
Maths will show them different strategies they can use to solve problems.
Student will be hands on in our ‘All Mixed Up’ Science unit and investigate different materials and conduct experiments.
HASS will develop students understanding of their place in the world and how they have connections to places.
All our best, Miss Mollenhagen, Mrs Hollywood and Mrs Spataro.
Year 3 Classroom Capers
Welcome to Year 3. We are looking forward to building learning relationships with both our students and their families and we welcome Ms Robyn Scheiwe to our team. Thank you for purchasing the necessary stationery items needed for the year. If you are still gathering a few items, we are eagerly waiting. By now, everyone should be associated with our homework procedure. Homework is to be returned everyday and kept in chair bags.
This term our focus in English for the first 5 weeks is Exposition writing and will change to Narrative for the remaining weeks. As we are preparing for NAPLAN, we aim to expose students to all mathematic concepts and will explore a new focus each week. A new challenge for Year 3 is learning multiplication number facts and we started with the 2 times tables. This week we will learn two easy ones, the 1’s and 0’s. Our Science unit will be ‘Living and Non-Living’ where we delve into categorizing items under headings.
HASS begins with ‘My Country’ to help understand our unique communities.
Art and Technology will be alternating Tuesdays and our library day is Friday.
Until next time, Robyn, Janelle and Lizette.
Year 3/4 & 4 Classroom Capers
Welcome back to school. Our year has started very positively with most students arriving on Day One equipped with their book list requirements and prepared for learning. Our attendance has also been very good.
This term, our novel study is “Matilda” by Roald Dahl and our genre for weekly writing is Narrative.
In Maths we are consolidating working with 4 digit numbers and introducing 5 digit numbers. We are also investigating fractions, calculating duration of time and investigating chance and data.
In Science we are studying properties of materials, in HASS we are developing mapping skills in readiness for learning about Early European Explorers and in Technology we are investigating bridges.
Homework starts this week. The Welcome Letter sent home on Friday has other important information to facilitate a smooth start to the school year.
Please sign up to ClassDojo’s as soon as possible as this is a very convenient communication system used at Goondi.
Until next time, Kath, Lisa and Kerry.
Year 5 Classroom Capers
What an incredible start the Year 5 students have had to 2021! It is wonderful to see so many students putting their heads down with clear vision goals to ensure a very successful term and year. We also thank all parents and carers for their support and a smooth start to the year.
Remember ‘Every Day Counts’ and it is also advisable for your child to eat healthy food and get enough sleep to ensure they are able to perform their best to achieve success. This term in English the students’ focus is on Reading strategies and Exposition writing. Students have already started writing opinion pieces on a variety of different current topics such as ‘Pollution’.
In Maths, students have been reviewing and consolidating knowledge and skills such as mental computations and the Bar Model.
This term, Science has the students investigating light sources and learning how it can impact our lives.
In HASS (Humanities and Social Sciences) our first unit is investigating ‘Needs and Wants’ and we are having some in-depth conversations.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any concerns.
Cheers, Rebecca, Emily & Kerry.
Year 6 Classroom Capers
Welcome to Year 6. This term we will be taking a trip back in time and investigating the history behind the landing at Gallipoli and the First World War. This will be a key focus for English as we will be writing imaginative recounts about the experiences of the Australians and New Zealanders. This will be supported through our novel study of “Scarecrow Army” by Leon Davidson.
In Maths this term, we will be introducing a new mental computation strategy each week and expanding our problem solving knowledge and application of The Bar Model strategy. Students will be also introduced to many new Maths concepts such as exponential notation and square and triangular numbers.
Science will power up with our term focus on electricity - ‘It’s Electrifying,’ which links in with our Term 2 Digital Technology unit that enables students to apply concepts of coding practices in order to design and create a personalised game.
In HASS, we will be focusing on Australia’s Federation and the significant people who had a major influence on the ‘Road to Federation’ and the birth of our country.
We look forward to a productive and rewarding year with our Year 6 students. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Thank you kindly for your support.
Marica Cunningham, Aaron Harbour, Melanie Worth and Janette McClelland
The Arts
Welcome to The Arts! “Every child is an artist” Pablo Picasso.
This year at Goondi we are thrilled to announce our new specialist area of learning - The Arts!!! Each term, students will participate in fortnightly lessons focusing on the four strands - Visual Art, Dance, Drama and Media. In Term One, students will explore their visual artistic talents through a variety of mixed media to create their own works and to enhance their fine motor skills, creativity and imagination. Already we have brainstormed the meaning of Art and why it is so important! We have also started interpreting famous artworks and questioned the differences between Traditional and Contemporary Art and Realistic and Abstract Art. Just a reminder that students need their Art Folio every lesson which includes an A4 Visual Diary, HB Pencil, Rubber, Ruler, Sharpener, Scissors, Felt Pens and Coloured Pencils. Thank you to everyone who has done this so far, and I look forward to sharing some of your child’s artistic achievements in our Newsletter and on our Facebook page.
This week we congratulate our Student ‘Artist’ Of The Week - Chenae from Year 1 for creating this brilliant paper collage inspired by the famous artist Henri Matisse. Have a wonderful term and let’s get creative!!!
Francesca Rosa (Art Teacher)
Breakfast Club
Breakfast club is back 2021! Thanks to Woolworths and some banana growing friends every Monday, Wednesday and Friday there will be a light breakfast of fruit, boiled eggs and banana milkshakes on offer. All students are welcome to enjoy.
Sue Edwards
Student Wellbeing Officer
Library News
Welcome back to a new school year! It has been great to see both old and new faces and to launch into another great year of books and reading. Each class will visit the library weekly and junior students will need a library bag to borrow. I have spoken to all classes about caring for their books at home and being responsible for returning them on time. Junior (P-3) students have a weekly loan period and seniors (4-6) have a fortnightly loan period with the opportunity to extend their loans. Books must be brought back to the library for extension.
Preps and Year Ones may borrow one book, Year Two borrow 2 and students in Years 3-6 may borrow three books. Exceptions are always made for avid readers. Please take the time to share library books with junior students and to generally encourage reading at home. The benefits of reading are widely known and include expanding your child’s vocabulary, improving their oral language and literacy, increasing their general knowledge and their empathy toward others.
Read everyday!
Kerry Green
Teacher Librarian
Italian
Saluti (Greetings)
At Goondi State School students in Years 5 and 6 learn Italian. Welcome back (bentornati) to those students who were taking Italian last year. Welcome (benvenuti) to those students learning Italian this year for the first time.
In our Italian lessons we will be starting the year learning some Italian songs: Ciao buongiorno in Year 5 and a welcome song in Year 6. Ask your child to sing a song to you! Songs are excellent ways to build confidence, enhance pronunciation and improve fluency when learning another language.
Exercise books will be collected regularly and feedback provided. Encourage your child to speak Italian with you and discuss what they are learning!
Arrivederci (Goodbye)
Signora Lazzarini
Music
Welcome back everyone and I’m looking forward to another wonderful year teaching music at Goondi. In Week 7 this term the whole school will be attending performances by Katisha Adelaide, a very talented violinist, looping artist and singer who has performed in countries all around the world. Permission notes will be going home shortly with details regarding costs and times. I am sure the students will learn a lot from Katisha’s performances, as well as having the opportunity to experience ‘live music’.
Kerry Macgillivray
Music Teacher