term 1 dates - plymptoncollege.sa.edu.au

Issue 2 I March 2016

Excellence | Integrity | Respect | Responsibility 1

22/3— Year 8 Vaccinations

25/3— Good Friday

28/3— Easter Monday

29/3— Open Day

Congratulations FREEMAN on your Sports Day win!

Term 1 Dates

MARCH

Like us on Facebook and download our free William Light

Skoolbag App to keep up to date with the school year!

William Light Open Day 29th March

Principal Talk and School Tours

9:15am and 6pm



From the Principal

I t is hard to believe that we are half way through the term already and I am pleased to report that there have been many student successes and exciting

initiatives in progress at our school. Sporting Events Last week year 5 to 7 students participated in the Beach Volleyball Competition against other schools. Supervising teachers, Sue Pretty and Stan Pulgies were impressed with their efforts, behaviour and their teamwork. All teams did extremely well, in particular the William Light girls team who were undefeated and presented with gold medals! Friday’s Sports Day was an outstanding success! We were very fortunate with the weather and it was wonderful to see students from Reception to Year 12 display excellent attitude and support of others. There was a good balance of competition in the relays and fun in the many novelty events. I would like to thank the parents who could attend and helped create the community feel to the day. Congratulations to everyone who participated and well done to Aitken (Green) Team for winning the Team Spirit Award and to Freeman (Orange) for taking out the 2016 winning shield. A day like this takes a great deal of organisation and a huge thank you to Richard Gabb, Gary Gulliver, Sue Pretty, Desi Pontikinas and the staff team for making it so successful. I would also like to acknowledge groundsman Stephen Williams for his hard work and the SSO team for their assistance. Chinese Bilingual School Consultation Thank you to parents who have attended one of three community consultation meetings to discuss the possibility of William Light becoming the first Chinese bilingual school in South Australia. For those who could not attend, we have valued your feedback through feedback sheets, phone calls or individual meetings. With the strong partnership with West Torrens Council and the support that we have received, we feel that William Light is well placed in the second stage of the application process. We realise that due to work and family commitments, not all parents were able to attend the meetings. We would like everyone to have their say and encourage you to complete a short survey at : https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/H5PHRXB and return it by Thursday 24

th March.

Governing Council At the Governing Council AGM, the annual report was presented covering student achievements and highlights of 2015. A copy for your perusal is available from the School Office or available on the school website. We would like to thank the retiring Governing Council members Doug Smith (Chairperson) and Eugene Calabretto for their valuable contributions. We welcome the following members: Megan Mahon (Chairperson) Leanne Young (Deputy) Samantha Malliotis (Treasurer) Simon Tsiaparis (Secretary) Edith Colmer Chelsie Hagan Ajay Shah Rochelle Poynter Jodie Foster We still have two vacancies and we encourage you be part of the Governing Council. We meet twice a term on a Thursday evening from 7 pm – 9 pm. The Governing Council presents the views of parents and help leadership with the future direction of the school. If you are interested please obtain a nomination form from the school office or ring me for more information. I hope you have a relaxing and enjoyable Easter.

Linda Richardson

Year 12’s Getting Home Safely SAPOL’s Road Safety Section recently delivered a road safety presentation to Year 12 students entitled “Getting Home Safely”, presented by a currently serving Police Officer. This presentation is designed to empower young people to make informed choices, educated decisions and to foster change through open discussion on subjects such as peer group pressure, choices, risks and consequences associated in driving a motor vehicle. The session documented an actual fatal crash which occurred on ‘Muck-up Day’, the final day of school when an 18-year-old driver crashed the vehicle he was driving while unlicensed, drink driving and speeding. The crash killed one friend and seriously injured the driver and another friend. SAPOL’s presentation explores the crash and the subsequent social and legal consequences with the students.

Greg Warnes Deputy Principal

Surfing Earlier this term a group of students from Year 7 through to Year 12 hit the beach for a couple of days surfing at Southport. First time surfers quickly showed their ability in popping to their feet and catching waves, whilst more experienced surfers tuned their skills and gave advice to the beginners. In Term 4 there will be another 2 days of surfing offered to students. Be quick to sign up as places are limited and will fill fast.

Mr Bailey & Mr Gabb

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/H5PHRXB



Sports Day

Student Achievements



Visit from Tokyo Students from Hosei High

Surfing Day

Student Achievements Bamboo Theatre



Awards 2015

Congratulations to the following students for being the ‘highest academic achievers’ in 2015:

Year 7 – Ben Lo

Year 8 – Matthew Zhylikovsky

Year 9 – Saiyuri Pillay

Year 10 – Ramsha Memon

Year 11 – Zoe Skoumbros

DUX (Year 12) – Bansari Shah (pictured below with Deb Graham DECD Education Director)

These students were presented with their certificates at an awards assembly in week 5. Congratulations to all

students who received awards for 2015!

Commitment to Study Shontae Caesar–Colgrave

Aarav Shah

Teagan Staples

Khaye Verano

Daniel De Feudis

Phan Yindeeteep

Prishay Sewrathan

Olivia Slee

Cadee Donaghey

Jordan Mavros

Peter Nangle

Lucy Probyn-Shingles

Alex Hernandez-Sanchez

Naomi Chloupek

Donna Holland

Ryo Ogawa

Vicky Shan

Haru Fukuoka

Andrea Jimenez Mena

Sam Perez

Sam Cahilig

Nicole Garcia

Harry Nangle

Aqmal Pulle

Megumi Sasaki

Azuma Kawakami

Joshua Peter

Academic Excellence Amber Harrowell

Ben Lo

Shaheryar Rizvi

Natalie Ing

Vinny Bhatti

Louise Smith

Matthew Zhylikhovsky

Aldrianna Manalansan

Donisia Skoumbros

Tish Magsarjav

Saiyuri Pillay

Lily Kennedy

Ramsha Memon

Simran Bachhal

Bethany Ing

Revania Pillay

Emily Schinella

Britto Shajan

Lalita Tembang

Sarah Dodd

Harkaranveer Singh

Zoe Skoumbros

Tertiary Studies & Careers Expo

TSCEA Expo will be held Sunday 10th and Monday 11th April 2016 at the Adelaide Convention Centre. Sunday 10am – 4 pm and Monday 9:30am—1:30 pm. Free admission. At the TSCEA Expo you will find Universities from around Australia and Overseas, including ALL public SA Universities. Come speak to representatives from Universities, TAFESA, Defense Force, Government Agencies, Gap Year Programs and Scholarships. Visit www.careersevent.com for more information.

2016 Materials and Services Charges Thank you to those families that have paid their M&S fees. Parents and Caregivers are reminded that the 2016 Materials and Services Charges are due by Friday 15 April 2016 (last week of Term 1). Government legislation passed at the end of 2003 has enabled schools to pursue overdue accounts from Term 2 onwards. Options for paying your account include: Payment via cash, cheque or credit card (except American Express) at the School Office or credit card payments over the telephone. Payment via BPOINT on the school website (www. wlightr12.sa.edu.au). Regular payments via direct debit facility- please contact the school Finance Officer. If you have applied for School Card assistance and are awaiting approval, or if you believe you are eligible for the School Card assistance and have not yet applied, please contact Cathy on 8297 0488 for further details. If you have an authorised part payment plan in place, please check your statement and contact the Finance Section of the school if you have any queries/concerns. Thank you. Cathy Wisdom Finance Officer

Student Achievements



English Bamboo Theatre On Wednesday March 3

rd, 2016, a Sydney Company

called Bamboo Theatre gave a performance about Cyberbullying and the consequences of illegal use of social media. Year 8 and Year 9 classes attended as well as the Japanese students from Hosei High School in Tokyo, Japan. Students in Ms Monahan’s Year 8 & 9 English classes wrote reviews of the play. We publish a review by Aarav Shar in Year 8.

Review On Thursday March 3, the Bamboo Theatre did an awareness performance on Cyber Bullying. The actors were Emily and Eliza. They performed three scenarios. The first one was dress up meltdown. The second one was about nude photos, relationship break-up and revenge. The third one was about Facebook fake identity. The first scenario was about a girl who cared a lot about parties. She cared so much that she kept everything ready in advance, like what to talk about at the party and what make-up and clothes she would wear. She sent photos of what she was going to wear. Her friend sent those photos to people who were attending the party. When she realised that her friend had shared those photos she had a meltdown and decided not to go to the party. She didn’t want anyone in the party to know what she was wearing until she arrived at the party. The second scenario was about a girl who sent nude photos to her boyfriend. Their relationship did not go well, so the girl broke up with the boy. He was very angry so he sent all the nude photos to the entire school! The girl suffered embarrassment and humiliation. Sending nude photos is a crime. She had to change schools. The third scenario was about a girl who was flirting with her friend’s boyfriend. Her friend got jealous and made a fake Facebook account of the person who became her friend’s crush. She talked to her friend on Facebook like she was her crush. She sent all their conversations to her class. When her friend realised that she was talking to her friend and not her crush and all her conversations were sent to her class she was devastated. So she ran away from her home. The girl who created the fake Facebook identity had committed a crime. She was expelled from school and had a criminal record for fake identity. Technology is great but if it is used with a bad intention or the wrong way it is way more dangerous than it is good.

Aarav Shah Year 8 English

Hello From the Resource Centre

Term 1 is in full swing and with it the Premier’s Reading Challenge for 2016 is underway. As in previous years, there is a wealth of information on the Premier's Reading Challenge website at http://premiersreadingchallenge.sa.edu.au/prc/ On the website you will find booklists for the age and developmental ranges of your child/ren. There are also printable forms to fill out on behalf of your child/ren to par-ticipate in this year's challenge. The challenge aims to

encourage students to read 12 books between now and September 2016. This can be a fantastic family activity as children don't have to read the books all by themselves but this can be part of family reading times, such as when children are tucked into bed to help settle them for sleep! Once the participation form is completed, children can bring their reading logs to school and have either their classroom teacher, myself (as teacher librarian) or even a librarian in a public library can verify their reading during the challenge by signing the form. Please visit the website for more information. If you have any questions please feel free to send me an email: [email protected] We will be holding a Scholastic Book Fair during the week of 6th April to 14th April. The Book Fair is a great way for students and families to purchase books that are reasonably priced. The Book Fair will be open during lunch times during that week. It will be located in the Resource Centre. Additionally, the Book Fair will be open to families during report collection on April 13th. This is a great win-win for families as well as the William Light Resource Centre as each purchase counts towards allowing me to order more books to add to our library collection. CAN YOU HELP? We are looking for parent helpers to lend a hand in the Resource Centre. We have many jobs that we are responsible for and we would like to share our space (and some of our jobs) with you! The types of jobs will vary over time starting with shelving books and help with getting books ready for borrowing. If you would be interested in volunteering your time and would like to help out please contact the School Office for volunteering information. Happy reading!

Sarah Bennett Teacher Librarian

Community Meals Family Favourites

You are invited to come and enjoy a family fun night with good company good food a warm welcome and fun games at: Faith Lutheran Church, 2 Ailsa Ave, Warradale. Please RSVP – Karen Douglas 0403 932 278, Donna Albrecht 0458 234 167 or the church 8377 1731 for more information or if you will be attending. IT’S FREE and if you need transport please let us know. Upcoming community meal dates: Friday April 8 – 5.30-8.00pm Friday May 13 – 5.30-8.00pm Friday June 10 – 5.30-8.00pm "I really enjoy coming to these meals, they are a great way to share good home cooked food, build friendships, spend time with family, have some fun and let someone else do the cooking! " Tiffany Boyer, Pastoral Care Worker William Light R-12 School

http://premiersreadingchallenge.sa.edu.au/prc/

mailto:[email protected]



Bilingual School Initiative Information & Community Consultation Session Feedback

Thank You

Ni Hao and thank you to all the parents/caregivers who came to our first Chinese

Bilingual School Community Consultation Sessions. It is great to receive lots of

support from our community and we always love a chance to discuss the benefits

of this initiative with you and answer your questions or concerns. Please do not

hesitate to contact us if you need further clarification regarding this initiative. We

look forward to having more opportunities to share more information with you.

Ms Linda Richardson (Principal) Ms Kylie Tuckey (Assistant Principal) and Mr Erik

Ma (Chinese Language Teacher)

The PROPOSED Bilingual Program

Implementation Process

The proposed bilingual model to be implemented will:

•Begin in Year 3 in 2017, with 50% of the curriculum taught in Chinese and 50% in

English.

•Expand progressively each year to include students from Years 3 to 12.

•Begin in 2017, with Reception to Year 2 students and Year 8 students having a

daily lesson in Chinese to prepare them for entrance into the bilingual program.

Teacher Feedback

‘Being a teacher at William Light R-12 School I am excited about the incredible

possibilities that the Chinese Bilingual program will to bring to our school. Already

as a staff member I have been provided with early opportunities in staff meetings

to learn greetings in Chinese and in anticipation I have chosen to take this learning

into my classroom. ‘

‘I believe that it would be beneficial for our students to have the opportunity to

engage in a bilingual program as it will broaden their horizons as learners.’

‘Learning another language and learning in another language will potentially boost

their learning skills as they will be vicariously learning transferable skills.’

BILINGUAL SCHOOL

APPLICATION PROCESS

FEQUENTLY ASKED

QUESTIONS

Q: Will speaking two or more languages at home affect the way

children learn English? A: No. A good knowledge of your native language can actually help your child with learning the language of the wider community – for example, English in Australia.

Excellence, Integrity, Respect, Responsibility



‘Language skills and cultural sensitivity will be the currency of this new world order.’

‘The benefits to the community in general are invaluable as bilingual students will have

the tendency to step out of their comfort zone and reach out to the world with the

confidence of speaking and writing in Chinese. Economically speaking, South Australia

as a whole will see lots of benefits in the near future if every child is bilingual.’

‘We believe this would be very beneficial for our children moving forward. Great op-

portunity for them.’

‘Good idea. Allow students to learn another language. Allow students to gain

knowledge, experience and cultural enrichment.’

For our child, speaking more than one language easily is linked to:

Better academic results – this is because bilingual children can often concentrate

better, have better analytical skills and are better at multitasking.

Increased sense of self-worth, identity and belonging – this includes feeling good

about cultural heritage and minority language, feeling confident about

communicating and connecting with extended family members, and being able

to enjoy art, music, movies and literature in more than one language.

Diverse career opportunities later in life.

For our community, when children speak more than two languages, it

means that:

Everyone in the community gets a better appreciation of different languages and

cultures.

Children can travel easier and potentially work in different countries and cultures

in the future.

Children understand and appreciate different cultures.

Parent/caregiver feedback

Benefits

8

Excellence, Integrity, Respect, Responsibility

term 1 dates - plymptoncollege.sa.edu.au

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