EDITION 6, Friday, February 17, 2017 To View Online Click on ' No Images? Click Here' No Images? Click here The Newsletter of the Roxby Downs Area School A BIG WELCOME TO OUR NEW TEACHERSIn this Edition:Regular Items: Principal's Report, R-6 and 7-12 Assistant Principal News, Important Dates, Community Notices Also in this Edition:
IMPORTANT DATES: This term we have the introduction of 3 way conversations, these dates can be seen here, as well as our swim carnivals and school early closure on February 21st. You can access all the important dates and a printable version at the link below. PRINCIPAL'S REPORT A warm welcome back to all staff, students and parents to what we trust will be a very successful and rewarding year. The year has begun on a very positive note from a student and staff perspective and so the challenge now is to maintain this momentum. The atmosphere across all class rooms has been very settled and at this early stage the students are highly engaged. 3-Way Conversations: We are hopeful of building on this positive start to the school year through our first meetings with parents in week 4 and 5. ‘3-way Conversations’ is a new initiative, and has replaced acquaintance night and end of term interviews for term 1. The concept is that teacher will meet with the student and their parents/caregivers for 20 minutes, identifying the students’ key areas for growth, developing achievable goals for the year ahead. It is important that we challenge our students to be the best they can, and that parents/caregivers get the opportunity early in the year to share the aspirations they have for their child/ren for the year ahead. By the time this newsletter article it sent out, all families would have booked interview times for week 4 or 5. School Uniform Shop: From 1st March 2017, RDAS parents/caregivers will be asked to order the majority of their uniform purchases online, through Devon Clothing. Having Devon clothing manage the large proportion of our stock will be a considerable saving to the school in both time and money. We will; however, continue to stock the complete range of lines and sizes at school. The purpose for maintaining this stock is:
The details about the online ordering process will be communicated to parents through the schools facebook page and via email over the coming days. Student Enrolments: Our enrolment as of the school census day, Monday 6th February was 656, which is 60 more than at the same time last year. Our reception numbers in 2017 are on par with last year; with 58 reception students starting school for the first time in 2017 (we had 61 reception students at the same time last year). Along with the new reception students, we have had 50 new enrolments to the school across Years 1-12 (we had 58 in 2016). Students numbers are predicted to continue to grow. We have factored this into our staffing, with Yr 3-6 primary classes having an average of 24. Reception classes are already at the recommended maximum, which is cause for concern. School Finances: Term 1 can be a difficult time financially for many families, with a number of expenses falling due at the same time. Many parents elect to spread these expenses over the whole year (at no additional cost), and authorise monthly payments from their bank. If you are interested in investigating this option, please contact Annie Uhlik at the school. In 2016, we implemented changes to the travel arrangement for school camps and excursions, to reduce the cost to families. In the past, the travel costs for camps had averaged between $70 and $120. These changes will mean the travel cost for each camp and excursion will be set at a maximum rate of $30 per student, with the balance of the costs coming out of the school budget. This has reduced the cost of some camps by as much as $90 per student. Site Security: Over the Christmas holidays we had a further 10 external camera’s installed across the site, bringing the total number of camera’s to 14. These cameras are all motion sensitive and will accurately transmit and record any movement they sense in the school after hours. The data is then saved to the school computer systems for future reference. The installation of security cameras is a proactive step on behalf of the school to ensure our facilities are not subjected to senseless vandalism. Staffing Update: We welcomed a number of new faces to our leadership team for 2017. The leadership team is: Principal: Steve Bennett (I have Long Service Leave booked for term 2 and so Ann O’Sullivan will be Acting Principal in term 2.) Deputy Principal (Years R-12): Ann O’Sullivan Assistant Principals: Jessica Bawden (Year R-6) and Lee Copeland (Year 7-12) Year Level Coordinators: Ally Christall (Yr R-2), Jayne Winter (Yr 3-6), Daniel McGuire (Yr 7-9) Georgia Boylan (Yr 10-12). Curriculum Coordinators; Emy Nicholson (STEM), Beth Elliott (Student Wellbeing) New Staff for 2017: We also welcomed 20 new staff to our school. The vibe around the school generated by the new staff has been infectious and has helped to make this one of the best starts to a school year I can remember in my time as Principal. New SSO Staff: Ms Francis In Special Education (2 classes) –Ms Carter and Ms Yates In Junior Primary: Ms Bowley, Ms Dyson, Ms Thiele, and Ms Williams. In Middle Primary: Ms Jones, Ms McHugh, Ms McGuire, Ms O’Dea, Ms Renshaw, Ms Richter and Ms Searle, In Secondary: Mr Blows, Ms Burns, Ms Edwards, Mr Friedel, Mr Konstantinoff and Mr Turner. All of our new staff have made a positive start to the year and are looking forward to their time at RDAS. Student Free Days for 2017: Please take note of the following dates: · Term 2: wk 10 – Monday 3rd July – SFD – Staff wellbeing focus. · Term 2: wk 10 – Tuesday 4th July – Conference in Port Augusta - Sir John Jones. · Term 3: wk 6: Friday 1st September – Planning day for AC and moderation/ assessment. · Term 3: wk 7: Monday 4th – Whole School Closure - Day of local significance. · Term 4: wk 3: Friday 3rd November - First Aid training for all staff. Governing Council Elections for 2017: We have 3 of our current Governing Council representatives with one more year of their two-year appointment to serve; Todd Parker, Jo Gordon and Wes Knights. We have 5 members who have completed the 2nd year of their two-year appointment: Di Gardiner, Mandy Masters, Karena Scott, Tanya Parker, Sandy Gibbs. Many thanks to each of these members for their efforts in the past two years, for some it’s been well in excess of 2 years. Vacancies for 2017: We have 5 vacancies on Governing Council for 2017 and so now is the time to give some thought to becoming involved. GC meet twice per term for 2 hours on a Tuesday night, and all members contribute to the running of the school by being involved in the various committees run in the school; Finance, Parents & Friends, Canteen, Uniform, OHSC, ICT, Canteen, Facilities, Wellbeing. If you are interested in being involved, please complete the nomination form in the newsletter and hand it in to the front office marked: ‘2017 Governing Council Nomination’ – by Wednesday 15th March. Kind Regards, Steve R-6 ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL REPORT Welcome to 2017 Welcome back to 2017 and a warm welcome to new students and families. We have 46 new students to Roxby Downs Area School from Reception to Year 6 as well as our brand new Reception students for 2017. We have now increased by 4 classes to cater for our new students. New Staff for R-6 We welcome 14 new staff members to our R-6 cohort. Kathy Hoffmann Reception/Yr 1 Mel Emery Yr 1 Madeline Williams Yr 1 Danielle Thiele & Naomi Bowley Yr 1/2 Hannah Dyson Yr 2 Stephanie Richter Yr 2/3 Mel Jones Yr 3/4 Kylie McHugh Yr 3/4 Ellie O’Dea Yr 4/5 Courtney Searle Yr 4/5 Megan Renshaw Yr 5/6/Special Ed & NIT. Alice Carter & Kiara Yates Special Ed Already class teachers have been busy setting up and planning for the year ahead. We have an extremely committed team of teachers who began work for 2017 well before the students first day. The amount of time and love that goes into setting up your child’s classroom is enormous and as leader of the cohort I am proud of the dedication and commitment from all teachers across R-6. Events This Term There are a few events to highlight for Term 1. Firstly, the Special Education and R-7 classes are swimming in Weeks 2-4, you will have had notes go home with your child. We also have the 3-6 Swimming Carnival scheduled for Thursday 2nd March and the R-2 Splash Day on Friday 3rd March. Later in the term we also have the Student Voice induction, school photos and 3 Way conversations in weeks 4 & 5. All of these dates and more are listed on the Term Planner. Homework Policy This year we are implementing the R-6 Homework Policy. This was mentioned in classroom notes at the beginning of the year. With this change last year this policy ensures we are working towards a model that considers the important balance between home and school yet encourages your child to develop lifelong thinking and learning skills. All classes are continuing homework that consists of daily reading and the completion of any unfinished classroom tasks as the individual class teacher sees fit. Assemblies The structure of Assemblies will be two R- 6 Assemblies Week 3 & 9 Friday 9am School Hall and R-12 Assembly in week 5 to introduce our new Student Voice. 3 Way Conversations In weeks 4 and 5 of this term we are implementing a new system of parent-teacher interviews that will include students. We will work as a team with parents and students to set learning goals for the year which will be reviewed. We feel that working in partnerships with families and students will enable our students to fully reach their potential. Please ensure you have made a time to meet via online booking or ring the school for further booking assistance. Look forward to seeing you then. Police Clearances for Parent Helpers The safety of your child at RDAS is a priority and we encourage parent participation and involvement in your child’s learning. Therefore, if you would like to assist with swimming in any way, undertake regular involvement in your child’s class or go on camps, sleepovers and excursions parents are required to have a Police clearance. They are relatively easy to complete. Collect a form from the front office, complete it and return to the front office for processing. The school pays the fee. Relief Teachers in Roxby Downs A reality of schooling in Roxby Downs is that there is a limited supply of relief teachers which impacts a large site like RDAS significantly. We do all we can to minimise disruptions to classes and the staff at RDAS is flexible and cover colleague’s absences where possible however there will be times when primary classes need to be split. In these instances, class teachers plan the learning activities for the day and students are engaged with combination of curriculum from their home class and the class in which they are spending the day. If there is an occasion where your child’s class is split there will be a member of the leadership team in the classroom to organise the morning. The roll will be taken and students will take their bags and pencil cases etc. with them to the class where they will spend the day. At all times, we aim to minimise the disruption to students learning and put support structures in place for those students who may find the process unsettling. I look forward to meeting new and working with existing families to establish inclusive learning opportunities for all students. Warm wishes, Jess Bawden Assistant Principal 7-12 ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL REPORT Welcome 2017 has seen a number of changes to the secondary school, including a number of new teachers right across the year levels, all of whom have brought high levels of energy and enthusiasm. New Coordinators for 2017 We also have a new Middle School Coordinator in Dan McGuire, and Senior School Coordinator in Georgia Boylan. Both are excited about the challenges this year brings, and plan to develop the variety of offerings for all students. The first few weeks have been extremely positive in what is going to be a busy term 1. 3 Way Conversations Weeks 4 and 5 see the introduction of 3 way conversations between students, parents and staff. This exciting initiative allows positive early communication between school and families to develop student goals and future pathway options. WASSAC Comes to RDAS In Wednesday of week 5 we have our secondary swimming carnival, which is closely followed by our Athletics carnival in week 6. Results from this carnival will be used to determine our squad for the WASSAC carnival which RDAS is hosting in week 8. This involves schools from all over the western region of the state competing in an interschool athletics carnival. Students will then be selected from this to compete in the state titles at SANTOS stadium in Adelaide. BYOD for All Year 7-12's BYOD continues to be a focus in 2017, and it has been encouraging to see a large percentage of students bringing devices on a regular basis. As students’ progress through secondary school it is important that they have access to a reliable device that they can access at school and at home. Kind Regards Lee Copeland
SISTER PAT'S THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK INTRODUCING THE RECEPTIONS OF 2017 FIRST ASSEMBLY FOR 2017 Friday week 3, we had our first assembly for 2017. We were treated to a "movie" of Miss Thielie and Miss Bowley's Year 1/2 class performing a dance to the song "Fight Song". They did a brilliant job and everyone enjoyed their performance. Mrs Greenfield's Year 6's and Miss Grillo's Year 2's were fantastic at co-hosting our assembly. Thank you to all our parents and caregivers who came to our assembly today. It was a great turn out. We know that the students always love to see you attend. RDAS SPECIAL CLASS WELCOMES 2 NEW TEACHERS 2017 has started well in the Special Education Class. This year we have two classes, Miss Carter and Miss Yates’ home groups. We have spent some time getting to know each other and have enjoyed our swimming lessons this week. Miss Yates’ class has enjoyed so far: Rick- We have played basketball, made book covers from bubble painting, read Handa’s Surprise and tasted fruit from the story. We also have been learning about even and odd numbers, using a number chart and playing number splat. Jake- I go to Mrs Greenfield’s class in the mornings, so I have two classes! Braeden- I like swimming and we have been doing work on numbers. David- We have been doing maths with numbers, made book covers and I have three classes because I go to Woodwork and PE. Miss Carter’s class has enjoyed so far: Max- I like doing Banana Banana Meatball on GoNoodle. Mia- I like swimming. Nola- I like reading Handa’s Surprise and The Very Cranky Bear. Braydey- I like counting with fish. Colby- I liked bubble painting in Science. 3/4 KM MRS McHUGH'S CLASS BEATING THE HEAT WITH SMOOTHIES
Thank You For Reading Our First Newsletter For 2017. Next Edition - Thursday 9 March, 2017 |