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Friday 4th August
- Curriculum Day - no students at school
Monday 7th August
- 1/2W Kitchen class
Tuesday 8th August
- Girls Soccer Team - Loddon Mallee Primary Region Finals Swan Hill
Wednesday 9th August
- Year 5 & 6 Passions & Pathways excursion
Monday 4th September
- PJ Kitchen class
Wednesday 6th September
- Indigenous Literacy Day - Busking for Change
Thursday 7th September
- Whole school Excursion - Melbourne Museum - info will be on XUNO in the coming weeks
Thursday 14th September
- Mount Alexander Chess Tournament - select students - info to come
Friday 15th September
- Last day of Term 3 - 2:30pm finish
NAPLAN – NEW PROFICIENCY STANDARDS
As mentioned last time new standards were introduced to NAPLAN reporting. This reporting replaces the previous numerical NAPLAN reporting bands and national minimum standards. Education ministers agreed 2023 was the right time to introduce this change alongside moving NAPLAN to March. Proficiency standards provide clear information on student achievement. They are set at a challenging but reasonable level expected for the child at the time of NAPLAN testing, based mainly on what has been taught in previous years of schooling.
The 4 proficiency levels are:
- Exceeding: The student’s result exceeds expectations at the time of testing.
- Strong: The student’s result meets challenging but reasonable expectations at the time of testing.
- Developing: The student’s result indicates that they are working towards expectations at the time of testing.
- Needs additional support: The student’s result indicates that they are not achieving the learning outcomes expected at the time of testing. They are likely to need additional support to progress satisfactorily.
Comparing current NAPLAN results with previous results is not practical however what NAPLAN assesses has not changed.
We are celebrating our recently released school results in the table below, which compare how our students performed against similar and other schools in our network.
Well done everyone!
Exceeding or strong |
WFPS % |
Similar schools % |
Network % |
Reading Year 3 |
70 |
69 |
54 |
Reading Year 5 |
88 |
78 |
74 |
Writing Year 3 |
70 |
78 |
68 |
Writing Year 5 |
79 |
73 |
63 |
Numeracy Year 3 |
70 |
68 |
59 |
Numeracy Year 5 |
67 |
70 |
56 |
Grammar & Punctuation 3 |
60 |
54 |
42 |
Grammar & Punctuation 5 |
71 |
63 |
57 |
Spelling Year 3 |
60 |
54 |
41 |
Spelling Year 5 |
63 |
62 |
55 |
CURRICULUM DAY ON FRIDAY 4TH AUGUST
This is a reminder that this Friday 4th August is student-free at Winters Flat, with class teachers looking forward to attending a day of seminars with renowned mathematicians Jo Boaler and Cathy Williams – founders of the youcubed website. Jo lectures at Stanford University and has a very impressive academic bio.
REGIONAL SOCCER FINALS ON TUESDAY 8TH AUGUST
Next week bright and early) we are taking a team to the Regional Soccer finals in Swan Hill. The girls’ team did so well last term at the district competition held at Chewton and made it to this next level. We wish the team all the best for their big day representing Winters Flat and sincerely thank parent volunteers as well as Helen and Stephen for driving the team all that way.
PRE-REVIEW SELF EVALUATION TERM 3 REMINDER
Just reminding everyone that our School Review is scheduled for Term 4 but during the pre-review stage this term we will be seeking feedback from students, staff, school council and families. Thank you to the family members who have already been in touch. If you would like to be involved in forums in coming weeks, giving feedback about our school which could shape future strategic directions, please let me know: Suzanne.Kinnersly@education.vic.gov.au.
BUSKING FOR CHANGE – 6th SEPTEMBER
NATIONAL INDIGENOUS LITERACY DAY
Rehearsal are well underway for our Busking for Change song Words Make the World Go Around – a fund-raising initiative for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. Annabelle and Harry have been teaching the song to students for the past two Fridays.
Time to get sponsors for your child/ren as we will all be singing the song as a whole school event.
Please register your child/ren at https://buskingforchange.ilf.org.au/register-student for online sponsorship and share with family and friends.
We will all perform the song at a special assembly on Wednesday 6th September here at school and we are hoping to have a great audience to encourage us. We are currently exploring other ways to help celebrate the day and promote the cause of indigenous literacy.
As a school community we have a goal to raise $250.00. All funds raised help kids and families in remote Communities access and create books in the languages they speak at home. Please check out our school page https://buskingforchange.ilf.org.au/o/winters-flat-primary-school and learn more about this joyful fundraiser that helps us all to be changemakers.
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STATE CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Congratulations to Atti for making it through to the State Cross Country Championships held at Yarra Glen last month. We were so impressed by your determination and staying power. Well done to Atti, you have made us proud.
Although his time , along with the other runners, was slow due to the heavy mud on the track; Atti had a great time and was very happy to have made it so far, to represent the school.
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EARLY AUGUST BIRTHDAYS
Ava M – 11 in the first week of August
Bec – in the first week of August
Persephone – 11 in the second week of August
Leo – 8 in the second week of August
Peggy – 10 in the second week of August
Hip Hip: Hooray
Hip Hip: Hooray
Hooray: Hip Hip
COVID, FLU AND FREE RAPID ANTIGEN TESTS
We currently have families dealing with COVID and with the usual winter bugs doing the rounds, we have struggled to replace staff who are unwell. If your child is symptomatic we request they be kept home as even the spread of colds and flu has an impact here at school. In recent days we have been forced to split classes as there were no relief teachers available. With the continued rise in case numbers in Mt Alexander, please be aware that we have plenty of free rapid antigen test kits available at the school office.
Testing is strongly recommended for students and staff who are symptomatic.
After doing the tests at home, if it is positive, you are advised to:
- let the school know
- keep your child at home for 7 days
If you feel unwell, please call a GP or the National Coronavirus Helpline on 1800 020 080.
For more information on how to manage your symptoms at home, please visit https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/managing-covid-19-home
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Suzanne Kinnersly
Principal.
School Uniform
There are a large amount of students who are wearing non-uniform items to school. Please remember that school uniform tops are to be worn at all times. School uniform jumpers and jackets are also required. Other items of clothing such as pants, skirts, leggings and shorts must be navy.
Secondhand uniforms are available at the office.
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Breakfast Club Volunteers Needed
We are looking for volunteers to run Breakfast Club on Tuesday mornings from 8:15am to 9:15am for the rest of Term 3. Please contact the office if you are available for one or more mornings. An info sheet is available to support volunteers in the running of the morning.
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Karen Mahoney & Kitty Ward
Office
PJ
Heart - Care for Self
Angus - Care for Self
1/2W
Willow - Care for Others
Elan - Care for Self
3/4H
Tanmay - Care for Self & Care for Others
Odetta - Care for self
4/5C
Ava M - Care for the Environment
Lucinda - Care for the Environment
5/6B
Michael - Care for Self
All of 5/6B - Care for Others
NEWS | Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program
This week in the Kitchen and Garden..........
What we're cooking in the kitchen this fortnight...
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Jerusalem Artichoke Soup
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Spanakopita
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Potato Gnocchi with tomato and Garlic Sauce
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Fennel, Chickpea and Red Cabbage Salad
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Passionfruit Yo Yos
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Chefs of the week:
3/4H: Nova, Ella, James, Pez
4/5C: Bonnie, Persephone
5/6B: Brock, Frankie, Michael, Noah
Remember the recipes are available on our school website, so you can try them at home.
Kitchen volunteers
We would love some kitchen helpers in our cooking classes. They are held fortnightly on Mondays (even weeks), and every Wednesday, between 11:25am & 1:25pm.
What you can expect from a class: Students work in six groups to make six different dishes. Once a group finishes their dish, they clean up their bench, do dishes, and set the tables. Around 1:00pm, we all sit down together and share the meal.
Volunteers will need to sign in via the visitors log in the office and show their WWCC and Vaccination Certificate. Please contact the Karen or Kitty in the office if you would like to volunteer.
Gardeners of the week:
3/4H: Jaicey
4/5C: Ginger
5/6B: Aurora, Indi, Michael
National Tree Day
The Prep class celebrated National Tree Day by planting seeds that have been collected from native plants on our school grounds. They planted Silver Wattle, Black Wattle, Poa, Billy Buttons, Rushes, Bottlebrush & Wallaby Grass. We will raise them at school and sell them next year.
Cath & Terry
Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden
AT SCHOOL – WEAR IT PURPLE!
Coming up on August 25th is Wear It Purple Day! Wear It Purple strives to foster supportive, safe, empowering and inclusive environments for rainbow young people. Wear it Purple was founded in 2010 in response to global stories of real young peoples, real heartache and their very real responses. In 2010, several rainbow young people took their own lives following bullying and harassment resulting from the lack of acceptance of their sexuality or gender identity.
At Winters Flat Primary School, we are proud of our students, families and broader community who identify as part of the LGBTQIA+ community. We want to celebrate rainbow young people and send a loud and proud message to them that they are cared for and accepted.
On Friday the 25th of August, students are invited to wear purple and bring a gold coin donation for the Winters Flat Ally Network. Parents are invited to join in on runnings an activity on the day (still to be decided). If interested in lending a hand, email Lz evmdunn@gmail.com
AT HOME – SELF-REGULATION
Self-regulation is the ability to control our thoughts, feelings and behaviours in ways that help us to function day-to-day and achieve our goals. Building self-regulation skills, particularly early in life, lays the foundation for children’s positive social and emotional development. Children, indeed, struggle with self-regulation and often need adults to not only support them during times of distress but also, to model self-regulation day to day. There is no doubt that regulating one’s emotions is a challenge, especially in the busy and demanding context of family life.
Here are some handy strategies to support self-regulation in young people:
3-8 years: https://raisingchildren.net.au/school-age/behaviour/behaviour-management-tips-tools/helping-children-calm-down-3-8-years
One strategy that can help re-frame our response to ‘bad behaviour’ (which is often actually emotional dysregulation) is the concept of Time-In. Though it is often used for toddlers, the idea is equally as useful for all young people. Time-in (as opposed to time-out) is an important strategy that involves staying close to your child and offering comfort and reassurance while they are struggling with their emotions. It also involves letting your child know that you understand how they’re feeling.
Read more here: https://raisingchildren.net.au/toddlers/behaviour/behaviour-management-tips-tools/time-in-helping-toddlers-calm-down
IN THE COMMUNITY – WINTERS FLAT FOOD BANK
We are still taking donations for our Food Bank. The boxes are currently empty, so if you can, drop in a few items. Details below.
Until next time!
Hannah O’Keefe
My work hours are Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 9:30-2:30 and Thursdays from 8:30-4:30. Write me an email (hannah.okeefe@education.vic.gov.au) or give me a call via the school office or on 0475 800 377.
RESOURCES
Please find a list of Wellbeing helplines and support services on the Winters Flat website.