Gisborne Primary School

8th October 2020 No. 29

CHALK TALK

Diary Dates

2020 TERM FOUR: OCT 2020 *Mon-Wed 12th to 14th Oct Prep Health Assessments / School Nurse

*Wed 14th Oct School Council Meeting 7pm

*Frid 23rd Oct Public Holiday (In lieu of AFL Grand Final public holiday) NOV 2020 *Tues 3rd Nov Melb Cup Public Holiday

*Thurs 5th Nov Starting School parent workshop

*Wed 11th Nov School Council Meeting 7pm

*Wed-Frid 25th to 27th Nov Grade 4 Camp

*Mon-Wed 30 Nov to 2 Dec Grade 6 Camp DEC 2020 *Tues 8th Dec State Wide Transition Day

*Wed 9th Dec School Council Meeting 7pm

*Mon/Tues 14th to 15th Dec Grade 2 Camp

*Frid 18th Dec Last day Term 4

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

Dear parents and carers,

On behalf of our school, I want to say a big thank you to all our students, parents and carers for your continued resilience and support throughout this year. I know remote and flexible learning has not always been easy, but through our collective efforts, our students have continued to make valuable progress in their learning. Term 4 is important for every student, and our teachers will strive to deliver high-quality learning for everyone. Our focus for Term 4 is on making sure that every student is supported in their wellbeing, learning and transition needs as we look towards the end of the 2020 school year and ahead to 2021.

Building Project and Playgrounds Update We have fast tracked the building project during Term 3 while children were learning remotely. All the services trenches were prepared and the site cleared on Brantome St for the new gym and on Prince St for the new admin building. We hoped to have the playground reinstated on Fisher St by the start of next week, but due to Coronavirus issues with supply of materials, some of the new equipment won’t arrive until later in the term. We are actively working with Macedon Ranges Council to release Brantome St for basketball/netball courts next year. Other parts of the 5-year Master Plan, including the removal of portables near the oval, will also free up play space in the future. The following website is currently being created and updated by the Victorian School Building Authority that oversees this project: https://www.schoolbuildings.vic.gov.au/schools/Pages/GisbornePrimarySchool.aspx.

The students have told me they are really enjoying the freedom to play on the oval at every break now that we have staggered recess and lunch times. We are continuing to upgrade other play areas around the school and teachers are also providing inside lunch activities.

Health and safety measures The Term 3 remote and flexible learning arrangements were put in place to significantly reduce the movement of more than one million students and their families across Victoria, to help slow the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). Thanks to you and your family for contributing to this on behalf of our school community. As on-site schooling resumes, we will continue to have in place strong measures to protect

the health and safety of students, staff, families and the community. This includes

restricting parent access to school grounds and continued emphasis on hand hygiene and

physical distancing where possible. Please give particular attention to reducing the risks

associated with congregation at school gates. We will be focused on three key priorities in

term 4:

Mental health and wellbeing

Our highest priority will be the wellbeing, particularly the mental health, of every student

and member of staff. This means effectively mobilising all available resources to support

our most vulnerable students and enabling staff to access the relevant support services.

PTO>

WELCOME BACK TO TERM 4 AND ONSITE LEARNING! I SEE PEOPLE....

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE CONT’D Our 2 further key priorities in Term 4:

Learning and excellence

Some of our students have thrived in the remote and flexible learning environment, others have maintained their

learning progress, and some found remote learning challenging, despite their best efforts and those of their

families and teachers. Our priority will be supporting both those who need to catch up and those who have

progressed to continue to extend their learning.

Transitions We will make every effort to ensure successful transitions for children moving from kindergarten into Prep and the Year 6s moving into Year 7. In next week’s class newsletters, the teachers will be outlining news for each year level including information about camps which will be going ahead this term. Please let me know tomorrow if your child will not be attending camp.

Enjoy the rest of the week. Julie Soutter

SOGGY SOCKS!

DUE TO THE RECENT RAIN MANY OF OUR PLAY AREAS ARE WETTER THAN USUAL. CONSIDER

SENDING A SPARE PAIR OF SOCKS TO SCHOOL AND A PLASTIC BAG SO STUDENTS CAN CHANGE THEIR

SOCKS AFTER LUNCH.

THE BEES KNEES Grade 5 Virtual Bee Excursion – T3

On Wednesday, in Week 10 of Term 3 the Grade Fives had a visit on WebEx from a beekeeper called Sam Harrison! He lives in Melbourne and his hives are in Ascot Vale. Upper Deep Creek Landcare Network kindly paid for this really good day! Sam gave us a thorough education about the different categories of bees and how they live and work for their leader the queen bee!

Later in the day after Sam had given us information about bees’ lives, we “virtually” visited his hive which had over 50,000 living bees! The hive is run by one specific bee called the queen bee. A large proportion of the hive are worker bees and tradie bees! The bee excursion was really a great way to end the term.

It was an amazing experience, thanks to Sam Harrison. Also thank you to Landcare for generously letting us experience the life of a bee and how a beekeeper works! Thanks also to the Year 5 teachers for organising this virtual excursion.

Submitted my Monique M & Cruz M Grade 5

Announcement of Finalists – Victorian Education Excellence Awards 2020 Julie Soutter named as a finalist in the 2020 Victorian Education Excellence Awards

Forty-one finalists from government schools across 14 award categories have been shortlisted for the Victorian Education Excellence Awards 2020 and we’re delighted that Julie Soutter is among the finalists.

Julie has been chosen as a finalist in the Outstanding Primary Principal Award and will attend an online award presentation ceremony on 20 November, 2020 where the winner will be announced.

Julie was nominated for her dedication to developing the Professional Learning Community initiative within her own school and the wider educational network which has inspired a deeper understanding of how excellence in teaching and learning improves student-learning outcomes and builds professional trust and community.

Award categories include outstanding primary and secondary teachers, principals and business managers, school improvement, Koorie education, inclusive education and education support. Specialist award categories will also recognise excellence in global teaching and learning, and in physical education. In 2020, two new awards have been added which celebrate the work of teaching teams that have delivered outstanding provision for high-ability students in primary and secondary school. All finalists are in the running to win professional development grants of up to $25,000 to support their work in schools.

The Victorian Education Excellence Awards highlight exemplary government school education and innovation in Victoria. The awards demonstrate what success in public education looks like and to be a finalist is a great achievement and should be celebrated.

It is just one way Victorians can be proud of the great government schools in their communities and the people who work in them, highlighting Victoria as the Education State. For more information about the Victorian Education Excellence Awards and a full list of finalists visit www.education.vic.gov.au/veea

Do you have any spare wool to donate to gps?

This term during lunch time play breaks various teachers are running special activities for students. Mrs ST is running a FRIENDSHIP BRACELET MAKING CLUB. Donations of wool to complete this popular activity would be greatly appreciated. Send any donations to school with your children who can give it to their teacher who will pass it to Mrs ST. Yours in friendship! Mrs ST

MESSAGE FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

Caring Hearts, Caring Minds, Caring Actions

Welcome back

Welcome back to all of the students, staff and families. It has been a

smooth start back in the classroom with happy smiley students and

excited staff.

As many of you are aware, there are extensive building works underway

within the school. We understand that this can cause some worry and

confusion regarding accessing different areas of a school (for sibling pick-up etc.) and for play time

options. We encourage you to have a chat with your child/ren about the various changes in the

school grounds and keep positive about the upcoming changes - they will be amazing (once they are

complete).

Staff have communicated with their students about the yard and the different activities they can

engage with outside. Many have been on a tour around the building works and discussed with the

students what is happening in the different areas. We are offering some inside activities to support the

students with different activities during the longer break. The new gym and admin buildings will be

fabulous additions to our already amazing school.

Planning for 2021 classes

Later in the term, staff will start the process of working together to

create classes for 2021. When creating classes, we consider many

factors to ensure classes are balanced to allow for all students to

work to the best of their ability in their learning environment.

Students will again be given the opportunity to nominate a few

friends they would like to be in a class with, however, students and parents need to realise that

we do everything we possibly can to have students with one of their friends. If staff feel that these

combinations are not in the students‘ best interest for learning, they will not be put together. As

you can appreciate with 530 students, it is a challenging task and we look for the best outcome

for all students and staff.

If you have any parental requests for your child/ren for 2021, please put it in writing and send it by

email to me by Friday October 23rd. You must outline the educational reasons for your request;

any other request will not be accepted. If you sent a request in last year, you still need to send a

request in for 2021 to demonstrate it is still relevant for the following year. Teachers spend hours

creating classes to ensure the best combinations for all students and we appreciate you putting

trust in our staff when doing so.

Attitudes to school Survey

The Attitudes to School Survey is an annual student survey offered by the Department of

Education and Training to assist schools in gaining an understanding of students' perceptions and

experience of school. Students in Year 4, 5 and 6 will complete the survey online during school

hours using a purpose built secure online survey tool. The information gathered from the survey is

very important to the school data, the Annual Implementation Plan and whole school goals. A

letter outlining further information about the survey will be sent home to the relevant families in

the next few days and be completed by the students this term.

Thank you for a positive first week back.

Enjoy the weekend.

Regards, Lisa Maxwell

Let us introduce you all to… Mrs ST (Sinclair-Thomas)

Favourite pet or animal: My super cute cat June that we got from the pound in January.

Kids: Two very cheeky boys, Lugh is 14 and Redmond (Red) is 12.

Where did you grow up: In the South Island of NZ. We lived on a sheep farm, about 45 minutes’ drive from the nearest town which was Blenheim.

Do you shop at Woolies or Coles?: I shop at both of them from time to time, but mostly I shop at the Foodworks in Gisborne.

In your opinion, what is your favourite thing about teachers: My favourite thing about teachers is that they are curious about life and learning and I find people like that really fun to be around.

Favourite sport and why: I love Rugby Union. It’s the sport I grew up watching. In New Zealand it’s the law to love rugby and if anyone asks you must say that the All Blacks are your favourite team.

Hobbies: I love to read. I know all teachers say that but it’s actually true. I also really like camping, hiking and watching tv with my boys.

Favourite food: Avocado and peanut butter on toast – together – with chilli!

If you won $1 Million dollars, what would you do or buy with it? I would give lots away and go back to Sri Lanka for a very long holiday. I love Sri Lanka.

If you got a puppy, what breed would it be and what would you name it? A Jack Russell and I would call it Jane.

Interview and writing by our GPS

Communication Leaders

George B & Jackson C

IT’S A JOKE!

Submitted by George B & Jackson C — GPS Communication Leaders 2020

The child comes home from his first day at school. Mother: What did you do today? Child: Not enough. I have to go back tomorrow!

< COOL DOES IT! George & Jackson

SUBDUED>

DOES IT?

Congratulations to the following students below who received a Student of the Week Award in WEEK 10 (Term 3)

PD — Eliza B 1C — Cohen H 1C — Charli M

4A — Alana D 4B — Roxy M 6C — Skyler K

Maths Games Principal Awards The following students have worked hard during remote learning to continue excelling in their Maths. These students are part of our Maths Games team and achieved good results over the four contests. Well done. Thank you to Mrs Milson and the Year 4 teachers who support the students to achieve these results. We will acknowledge our Maths Olympiad students in next week’s newsletter.

Cooper I (4A) Alana D (4A) Asher B (4B)

Alicia A (4B) William B (4B) Jake T (4C) Riley S (4C)

IT’S A BRAVE NEW WORLD! ~ PARENTS VICTORIA ONLINE CONFERENCE

Changes, challenges & opportunities

Parents /carers, school leadership / staff and school councillors are invited to attend the 2020 Parents Victoria Online Conference.

The theme of the forum is a Brave New World: Changes, challenges and opportunities for families and schools. This year’s conference program includes presentations from expert speakers and groups on mental health support for students and parents, connecting school communities and engaging families. Deputy Premier and Minister for Education James Merlino will open the conference and answer questions submitted by schools and families.

To submit a question email office@parentsvictoria.asn.au by Sunday 11 October.

Details on the conference and how to register are provided below.

Date: Monday 19 October 2020

Time: 10am to 1.15pm

Cost: The conference is free but registration is essential.

Registration: The conference will take place on Zoom. Par ticipants will be emailed a Zoom link on 18 October.

For more information visit the Parents Victoria website.

Footy Star Academy are thrilled to once again be offering weekly clinics for primary school aged children in Gisborne, with maximum group sizes of 10. For a short video providing more information about the program, Visit: https://rb.gy/aphf6l or call Clinton Young (0437 847 248) or Bec Young (0438 317 641). 'Come and Try' sessions are available for all new children. We hope to see you there.

Community News

Community News