ZOO TRIP

I was very proud of the behaviour of all the students from Winters Flat PS who attended the zoo yesterday. We had perfect weather and just the right amount of time to attend the education workshops and see the amazing facilities and exhibits. I would also like to thank the parents who attended with us and supported the staff to make the day run so smoothly.

 

WENDY OATES AND LIZ OLD RETIREMENT ASSEMBLY – 2.30PM THIS FRIDAY

To officially send off two long-serving and beloved members of staff, we are having a retirement assembly to celebrate the careers of Wendy Oates and Liz Old. Both have been on Long Service Leave for 2019 with their retirements becoming official at the end of Term 2. Please come and join us in Oak view on Friday at 2.30pm.

 

DATA ANALYSIS AND THE SCHOOL REVIEW

I am inviting parents/carers to join me tomorrow (Thursday) at 9.00am in the staff room if you would like to participate in analyzing responses to the Parent Opinion Survey data for 2017 and 2018. (2019 data not yet available).

If you can make it please email me via: winters.flat.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au

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2020 VISION AND THE SCHOOL REVIEW – STUDENT FORUMS

We have given our students the opportunity to give their responses to the questions posed:

What would you like to see more of?

What would you like to see less of?

Are there things we could be doing that we currently don’t do?

What needs to change?

Using the following areas for consideration:

• Classroom learning experiences
• Friendships and social group experiences
• Playground and facilities experiences

 

A random selection of students from Years 4-6 were also invited to respond to the 2017- 2019 Attitudes to School survey data which the Department of Education and Training conducts annually.

 

THE MORE YOU LOOK THE MORE YOU SEE – INSTALLATION OPENING

We will have an official viewing for our community of the Art Installation on Wednesday 18^th September from 3.15pm – 5.15pm. The location is the classroom next to Performing Arts near Oak view. Save the date!

 

SCHOOL COUNCIL VACANCY – PARENT/CARER

We currently have a vacancy on the Winters Flat School Council. If you would like to nominate please ask at the school office for a nomination form. Nominations close Friday 13^th September.

 

INTA CARE FINISHING AT THE END OF TERM

Inta Parsons has informed me that Inta Care will no longer be offered for students before and after school. On behalf of the families who have used Inta Care I would like to thank Inta sincerely for the wonderful service she has provided.

To access the other After school care programs available, please contact the school office.

 

KRYAL CASTLE CHESS TOURNAMENT

Another outstanding effort by the team. See Harry Poulton’s article.

 

PARENTING IDEAS – MICHAEL GROSE

This week's article is celebrating the legacy of fathers and father figures.

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Suzanne Kinnersly

Principal.

UNIFORM SHOP

The Uniform Pop-up Shop will return from next Tuesday 10th September. It will be open every Tuesday in the library from 8:30am-10:00am, unless notified otherwise. Contact the office if you have any queries. Thank you for your patience & continued support.

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VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

We are seeking some volunteers to help us with contacting our readers. Contact is supplied. If you can help out, please contact the office on 5472 1522. 

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HATS

Just a reminder that it is compulsory for students to start wearing their hats now. Hats must be wide brimmed. If you need to purchase one, they are available at the office for $14.00. If a child is without a hat, they must play in a shaded area.

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TOMATO FUNDRAISER

Help us to raise funds for Winters Flat Primary School by germinating tomato seeds into seedlings. We plan to sell the tomato plants at fundraising events in November/December.

We need 12 families to take home a germinating kit. Your job will be:

1. plant the tomato seeds
2. care for the seedlings
3. repot 25 seedlings into tube stock pots
4. drop them back at school ready for sale.

Kits to be collected this week and returned by Nov 11th, Term 4.

You’ll be given seeds/pots/tray/seed raising mix/clear instructions. We ask if you can please provide the potting mix/soil.

If you are interested in helping us by raising some tomatoes, please leave your name, email and phone number at the office.

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NO GARDENING CLASSES

Please note that there will be no gardening classes on Monday 9th September, Tuesday 10th September, Wednesday 11th September and Monday 16th September as Terry will be away.

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Karen Mahoney & Renae Wilson

Office

TWILIGHT FAIR

Our annual Twilight Fair will be held on Friday 6th December from 5pm-8pm. If you can help out in anyway, please fill out the form attached and return it to the office. We can't wait to celebrate our year's achievements with you.

The next school council meeting is scheduled for Monday 16th September 2019 at 7pm.

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Katie Wilson

School Council President

Thanks,

The Fundraising Subcommittee

THIS WEEK IN THE KITCHEN & GARDEN...

What we're cooking in the kitchen this week...

Mini Baguettes

Celeriac Remoulade

Madeleines

Braised Capsicum, Onion and Tomato with Bay Leaves and Thyme

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Remember, all our recipes are available on our school website, so you can try them at home.

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And what we're harvesting from the garden...

Jerusalem artichokes

Mint

Shallots

Garlic chives

Leafy greens

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Jane & Terry
Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden

JUNIOR LEARNING COMMUNITY

P/1 A | Lily W

For showing Care for Others by always being a kind and friendly member of the class. Thanks for your beautiful smile Lily!
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P/1 A | Atticus B

For showing Care for Others by helping his Prep friends and being encouraging of others to do their best on their Check-Ins. Keep it up Atti!
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P/1 J | Harvey W

For showing Care for Self by working hard to stretch out new words in writing. Well done Harvey!
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P/1 J | Gulliver W

For showing Care for Self by having a positive approach to all parts of the day. Keep up the great effort!
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MIDDLE LEARNING COMMUNITY

2/3F | Archie K

For showing Care for Self by being organised and on time every day.
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2/3F | Wren B

For showing Care for Self by staying focused and completing tasks in the set time.
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2/3W | Sam G

For showing Care for Others by allowing others to speak, listen and learn.
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2/3W | Indiana B

For showing Care for Others by allowing others to speak, listen and learn.
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SENIOR LEADERSHIP COMMUNITY

Milla B

For showing Care for Self as she is only new to this school, but is always in the right place at the right time and ready to learn. Great job!
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Huckle S

For showing Care for Others by being a great role model to others in the SLC, as you diligently complete all tasks to the best of your ability and with a very pleasant demeanour. Keep up the great work!

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Lilli D

For showing Care for Self by her commitment to hard work and the extra hours she is putting into her novel for her Literacy Project.

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Ashton C

For showing Care for Self with his enthusiasm, motivation and creativity working on the Literacy Project. Well done on the 'extra yards' being put in at lunchtime.

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Lukas K

For showing Care for Self with his enthusiasm, motivation and creativity working on the Literacy Project. Well done on the 'extra yards' being put in at lunchtime.

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Louis W

For showing Care for Self with his enthusiasm, motivation and creativity working on the Literacy Project. Well done on the 'extra yards' being put in at lunchtime.
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FRENCH

Jasmine K

For her great effort during the "les vetements" (clothing) exercise.
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Makinti K

For her thoughtful illustration of Paris..

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Polly C

For her lovely Paris inspired illustration.
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Chilli H

For always being ready to learn and participate.

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POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR FOCUS

This week's positive behaviour focus is:

Showing care for the environment by helping to keep the classroom clean and tidy.

The following students are recognised for their abilities to do so:

Evie M

Sam G

Sascha N

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BEST CLASS ATTENDANCE (CUMALONG CUP)

The class with the best school attendance for the week ending 23rd August is 23F.

The class with the best school attendance for the week ending 30th August is P1A.

Kryal Castle Chess Shield

On the 23rd of August Winters Flat made the journey to Victoria's own winter wonderland, Ballarat, and attended the inaugural Kryal Castle Chess Shield held in a picture post card perfect setting that could have been in medieval Europe. Two days before we arrived, the hills surrounding the castle were blanked in snow.

Upon arrival we were guided to the Banquet Hall, also known as the Abbey Tavern, where the tournament was held, by guides dressed in medieval paraphernalia and the women dressed in courtly gowns & period costumes. The Banquet Hall had a huge open fire place which was augmented by a modern heating system, none of which seemed to avail against the arctic conditions.

The Banquet Hall had medieval lighting which left the room very dark. At the end of the Hall was a bar with a sword that looked like it belonged to Vlad the Impaler. The kids were in their element! In between rounds there was so much to see including the Maze and 'Knights Tower and Throne Room'.

The kids seemed to have a built in compass and with out any encouragement quickly located the 'Dragons Labyrinth', 'Dungeon and Torture Museum' and the 'Tooth Fairy Lolly Shop', all places of great educational value.

Our team consisted of; Lewin Blanch, the best year 4 chess player in rural Victoria and in the top 12 chess players for his age in Victoria, Kai Henderson, Zephyr Norden-Williamson, Iestyn Cotterell, Felix Mensah, Caleb Mountford, Stanley Maloney-Kearns, Arki Snowball and Byron Plousi. All these students have shown fine commitment to the school chess program and have worked consistently throughout the year. One enduring lesson school chess programs teach, which generalises to other areas of students lives, is goals plus hard work equals success (G+W=S).

There were 21 schools participating and nearly half were from Melbourne including View Bank P.S., Richmond West P.S., Pascoe Vale P.S, Mooney Ponds P.S, Glenroy Central P.S, Montmorency P.S., and a host of local Ballarat Schools.

With so many Melbourne schools competing and well coached Ballarat schools in attendance we knew the competition would be stiff. The students brought us their results at the end of the rounds and they were doing well, and one could predict a top 8 finish. As the results were read out in ascending order, at the end of the day, starting from 21st WFPS name wasn't mentioned and when they got to the top three we heard the name Cambridge P.S. and suddenly a 1st or 2nd place result was looming. The excitement was growing amongst the team. The Tournament Manager called out WFPS 2nd place! Wow what a mighty achievement. Mt Blowhard came 1st beating us by only 2.5 points.

Congratulations to our top boards, Lewin, Zephyr, Kai, Caleb and Iestyn who performed brilliantly on the day and whose efforts won Winters Flat the Runners up Trophy. Also to Felix for his commitment and consistent work which is bringing big improvements. Stan, Arki and Byron, our novice players, battled on all day and remained tireless and optimistic against the toughest competition we have faced this year.

I would like to thank WFPS staff for all their support and particularly Suzanne, our principal, who once again drove the kids to the tournament and supported and encouraged them all day. The day would not have been possible without her generosity.

WFPS developed the school chess program under its SPACE Philosophy which strives to develop each child's Social, Physical, Academic, Creative and Emotional wellbeing. The SPACE philosophy places a strong emphasis on EQ and thinking outside the box. This has enabled the school to compete state wide against the best chess kids in the country, often with great success. The school chess program is an example of the WFPS SPACE Program in action and of the school delivering on its goals, realizing its vision and making its mission statement a reality.

On Wednesday the 18th of September Winters Flat will be competing in the Mt Alexander Chess Challenge at Castlemaine Secondary which is a WFPS initiative.

We are looking for parent volunteers who would like to help out on the day.

We would also like to thank Rotary Castlemaine for its ongoing support over 12 years and donating $1000.00 again this year to support the upcoming Mt Alexander Chess Challenge.

Harry Poulton

Chess Tutor

ART MASKS

In P/1 this term we have been using the book Animalia by Graeme Base as inspiration for a theme letter of the week. 

Here we have our team of talkative, talented and terrifying, yet tender, tigers of P/1 out to play some terrific tricks!

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ART PROJECT

Our garden continues to grow with the construction of some amazing large shapes and beautifully finished ink and marker detail.

Some dates to look forward to:

Thursday Sept 12 at 11am

We look forward to a visit from Mel and Sas of Gung Hoe Farmer’s Market.  They will be talking about their passion for growing and their experiences as farmers.  This links in well with our SAKG Program but also our focus for our art project about looking at the small details in nature. Parents and carers are welcome to attend.

Friday Sept 13 at 2.15 -3.15pm

Art workshop for parents and carers.  You are invited to participate in a student led workshop and learn some of the sculpting techniques utilised in the project.  Your work will be included as part of our whole school show.  Please register your interest at the office.

*All participants will require a current Working With Children Check.

Wednesday September 18  from 3.15 – 5.00pm

Exhibition opening and showing for completed ‘The More You Look the More there is to See’ at Winters Flat PS.

Saturday October 12 from 2- 5pm

Lot19 Sculpture Prize opening featuring ‘The More You Look the More there is to See’ as part of the group exhibition.

October 13 – 27 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday 10am- 5pm

Sculpture Prize at Lot 19 exhibition continues.

A big thank you to everyone who dressed up for Book Week and came along for our parade and reading and sharing sessions.

Great to see everyone getting involved and sharing their passion for reading!

The Prep-Grade 3's had a lovely visit from the Life Education Van on Wednesday 21st August.

 

Students were provided with the opportunities to develop strategies and practice the skills required to lead a healthy lifestyle.

 

Students had lots of fun meeting Healthy Harold and being involved in fun and exciting hands-on activities.

 

What a fantastic was had by all at the Zoo yesterday! A huge thank you to Suzanne and Karen M for the organisation, all the teachers and aides for their help, and to all the parents and carers who came along for the day to help supervise. Thank you to all the students for engaging in the programs and demonstrating the values taught at WFPS. 

WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR COMMUNITY...

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CASTLEMAINE YOUTH THEATRE

After School Drama classes are lots of fun, and focus on working together, building confidence, making friends and creating plays from the children’s own ideas.

If you would like to find out more, please call Kirstie at Castlemaine Youth Theatre on 0427274383, she would be very happy to talk to you about drama classes for your child.

Please make sure to call first as a booking is needed before attending.

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