26 October 2015

Newsletter Articles

Principal's Message

Parent Forum

Thank you to those parents who attended last Monday's special presentation of our Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) school-wide initiative. The response from those parents who attended was positive and we are pleased that forums such as these contribute to building effective partnerships between members of our school community so that students can benefit in their learning and behaviour.

A note with further information has been sent home to all families to explain the purpose and structure of PBL so that parents and carers are fully able to understand and support the program. Thank you to Kathie Anderson and the hardworking team of teachers who are managing the implementation of this initiative. Please see more information later in this edition of the Patter.

Festival of Children's Music

Our Stage 2 students were present to support their classmates at last Wednesday's matinee performance of The Festival of Children's Music. Our junior choir gave outstanding performances as part of the 300 strong massed choir at both the Matinee and Evening Performance at The Concourse Chatswood. Congratulations to all our wonderful Stage 2 singers. Thank you to Mrs Cipollone for training the choir and giving up her personal time to ensure that our students have quality creative arts opportunities and experiences.

P&C Fundraising Barbecue

Thank you to the great team of parents who volunteered their time and energy to ensure plenty of sausage sandwiches were ready to feed hungry shoppers at Bunnings Belrose last Saturday. Special thanks to Beck and Michael who organised this great fundraising effort. It was a superb result with $1000 raised for our school.

Kindergarten 2016

Tomorrow our Kindy transition program continues with an Orientation Morning for parents followed by the Taste of Kindy session 1 on Thursday October 29. We hope that all our Kindergarten 2016 students and their families enjoy the next two weeks in preparation for their start to 'big school'.

Bare Creek Trail Run

Best wishes to our P&C Bare Creek Trail Run committee and all members of our school community who are volunteering or participating in next Sunday's exciting event. Thank you to Linda, Kerry Cameron and students who organised a promotional article for publication in The North Shore Times. Thank you to Tongy and his team for their dedication and hard work in ensuring that BCTR continues to be an important highlight in our school's social and fundraising calendar.

Next P&C Meeting

The next P&C Meeting is an important one as it is the last meeting before the Annual General Meeting. Please meet in the staff room at 7:15pm this Wednesday October 28.

Selective High School 2017

Applications for entry to selective high schools in 2017 opened on 13 October 2015 and will close on 16 November 2015.

Applications can only be made online through the following website during this time. Interested parents should read the application information and the parents' overview at the following link.

Best Wishes

Gillian Tegg

Inspiring & Nurturing Successful Lifelong Learners

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL)

Following the Parent Forum on Monday 19th October we are pleased to announce the full implementation of Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) at St Ives Park.

This initiative builds positive behaviour which us leads to engagement in learning. Research shows that students can achieve greater educational success in a safe, positive learning environment where there are high expectations for students, staff and parents.

We are very committed to the active involvement of parents and the community in the implementation of PBL.

As staff we explicitly teach students the school's expectations of Respect, Responsibility and Person Best, helping them to make positive choices and appropriate decisions.

We have a positive reward system to recognise and provide incentive for students who are demonstrating these expectations.

Positive Reward System

Catch cards are free and frequent everyday rewards that teachers can issue in any setting to any student displaying the positive behaviours that we expect.

If a child receives a Catch card they write their name on it and place it in the perspex box in the foyer. Every Monday there will be a draw for the winners of a Canteen Voucher.

SIPPS Merit Award System

Students from each class will be awarded professionally designed and produced merit certificates at assemblies. These certificates are awarded to students who are clearly displaying behaviour that demonstrates Respect, Responsibility or Personal Best. Awards can be earned in all school settings eg. the classroom, on the playground, at the canteen, at sport etc

The following information shows how the awards accumulate:

Three Merit Awards = One Bronze Award
Three Bronze Awards = One Silver Award
Three Silver Awards = One SIPPS Gold

Please note SIPPS Gold will be awarded at the assembly immediately following the accumulation of 3 Silver Awards.

STRATEGIES FOR DEALING WITH UNACCEPTABLE BEHAVIOUR

Minor incidents of inappropriate behaviour are managed by the classroom teacher as follows:

• Class teacher will remind/reteach the appropriate behaviour
• Use PBL language around expectations to reinforce the appropriate behaviour
• Class teacher will issue a Think Slip and record on the school spreadsheet.
• 2 Think Slips in a term = student will complete a Reflection Sheet under teacher supervision. The reflection sheet will be sent home.
• On the 3rd occurrence of a student not meeting the same expectation, the class teacher will contact the parent/s
• The next incident will be referred directly to the Principal or Executive

Examples of minor incidents include out of bounds, rough play or name calling.

Major incidents of inappropriate behaviour are managed by the Principal or Executive

• Send Orange Card to Principal or Executive
• Incident investigated by Principal/Executive
• Time out for lunchtime completion of Reflection Sheet. Phone call to parents and Incident Letter sent home. Principal/Executive records on spreadsheet
• 2 x Orange Cards in a term = student completes Reflection Sheet supervised by teacher.
• Reflection Sheet sent home
• Principal warning of Suspension Letter/Suspension Letter sent home
• Parents contacted and files are kept with the Principal

Examples of major incidents include aggressive/intimidating behaviour, physical violence or damaging property.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF PBL FOR SIPPS?

• Clear guidelines, leading to a happier and safer classroom and playground environment.
• Student behaviour will be monitored consistently.
• Communication with parents will improve, thereby encouraging shared decision-making resulting in excellent welfare outcomes for our students.
• Students will be counselled more effectively and more often.
• Data will be collected to reflect the incidence of both appropriate and inappropriate behaviours. This will inform decision-making, allowing the teaching staff, with students and parents, to improve student welfare over time.
• The data will reflect a decrease in the incidence of inappropriate behaviour at St Ives Park Public School.
• Student engagement and learning will be optimal.

Happy Harold and the Life Education van revisit SIPPS

This Thursday 29th October at 2pm, Life Education offers a face-to-face opportunity for parents and carers to engage with their experienced educator, Libby Rowe, by visiting the mobile classroom on site in the school grounds.

You are invited to attend this free parent and carer information session to learn about the contents of the program. This is a great forum to increase knowledge, share views with other parents, and develop strategies to help raise happy, healthy children.

Please RSVP to kathie.anderson@det.nsw.edu.au if you are interested in this opportunity

Stage 2 RawArt

Throughout this year, Stage 2 students have had the opportunity to participate in a collaborative RawArt learning project. As part of the program Grades 3 and 4 learnt about a variety of different art processes and techniques, including collage and camouflage, abstract portraits, clay modelling and chalk pastels. Additionally, students learnt about the artist Picasso, his life, artistic technique and artworks.

Integration played a key role in this program, with students able to learn new techniques while developing and consolidating their pre-requisite knowledge of the HSIE, Science or Visual Arts unit focused on in class.

The aim of RawArt is to instil a love of Visual Arts in students, while encouraging creative thinking when using different media platforms. After such fantastic learning experiences it will be a pleasure to watch our creative artists continue to grow and expand their knowledge of artistic techniques in the future.

Sarah Beaumont-Jones

Stage 3 Coding Boot Camp @ MacICT

On Monday 19 October, stage 3 students visited the Macquarie ICT Innovations Centre to gain experience with a range of coding platforms to use in their classroom with their BYOD devices and our desktop computers.

Coding is becoming an increasingly important skill in 21st Century life, as technology becomes more integrated into our everyday activities at school. By learning to code, our students can begin to enhance their skills in mathematical and computational thinking, design and problem solving, and communicating their ideas clearly.

Coding is increasingly finding a place across a wide range of syllabuses, such as Mathematics, HSIE and even the Creative Arts. By understanding how to code, students do not just learn how to make software but can also explore how the world around them works.

As part of our future technology plans, our intention in stage 3 is to integrate opportunities to use coding to complete tasks through project-based activities in order to create games, animations and possibly even artworks in future years.

Mr Guzman

Notes from Office

Kindergarten Orientation 2015

Welcome to all families attending our Kindergarten Information Morning on Tuesday 27th October 9.30am – 11.30am. Taste of Kindy mornings follow for the enrolled kindergarten 2016 students on Thursday 29th October and Tuesday 3rd November: 9.10am – 11.10am.

Life Education – Healthy Harry

The Ku-ring-gai Willoughby Life Education Mobile Classroom will be visiting our school from Tuesday 27th October to Friday 30th October. Notes have been sent home to all students and were due back by Friday 23rd October. If you have not done so already please sign and return the permission note ASAP.

Permission to Publish Information and Photographs

Please return the general 'Permission to Publish' student information form which has been sent home with all students. This is the same permission parents and caregivers are now asked to sign at enrolment on the new NSW Department of Education enrolment form and will update our data base and school records.

Lost property

Please could all parents check the name on your child's hat and jacket/jumper.

Music News

I want to congratulate all of the students at SIPPS for an amazing SIPPS Spectacular at the end of last term. I also want extend my thanks to all of the teachers at SIPPS for their contributions and assistance in making it an outstanding production. All of the children worked very hard - the teachers were very proud of their efforts and achievements!

We had another busy week on the music calendar at SIPPS as our Junior Choir performed at the Chatswood Concourse at the Children's Festival of Music. They rehearsed well and did an outstanding job making our school very proud! All remaining students from year's 2, 3 and 4 attended the Matinee performance. We hope they enjoyed the performance and feel inspired to join the Choir next year.

Our other school Music groups will continue this term. The Recorder Ensemble continues to practise in preparation for our end of the year events. The Arts Alive Choir is taking a break for the first half of term, but will start meeting again for rehearsals in Week 6.

All of the classes continue to enjoy a range of learning experiences during our class music time at SIPPS. The music lessons include composition, playing tuned and un-tuned percussion instruments, use of recorders to learn musical notation, listening and appreciating activities and moving in response to music.

Library News

Scholastic Book Club

Issue 7 brochures were distributed to the students via their class teacher last Thursday (22/10/15). If you would like to order books from the brochure for your family, simply visit the website below, or download the Scholastic LOOP app and follow the simple instructions. There is no need to return anything to school. Books ordered by families online will be delivered to the school and then distributed to the students.

The closing date for online entry is Wednesday 28/10.

Library Book Reminder

Would all families please check for any library books that may be living in your house. I will be issuing reminder notices next week to try and recover books that were due back to the library in Terms 1 and 2. As the Library gets closer to implementing the new library system Oliver, in the library, I need to locate overdue books. If you have a query or question regarding the reminder note that is sent home, please write me a reply and return the note to me.

PSSA

The venue for the junior touch football teams is Hassell Park and the senior teams play at St Ives showgrounds. Parents are most welcome to come along to cheer on the teams.

Parents & Citizens Association

Tennis Courts

SIPPS Tennis Courts available for permanent and casual hire. To arrange a booking please call Vera Dedijer 0403 500 301 or sippstennis@gmail.com

BBQ Saturday 17th October

Saturday 17th October saw St Ives Park PS have the opportunity to raise funds for the school by running the BBQ at Bunnings Belrose. The day was a great success, raising over $1000 for the school, and was only possible due to the amazing volunteer helpers who came along on the day to help. A huge thank you goes to the following people : Nathalie, Charles, Adel, Clive, Michael, Linda, Nadine and Sony. You all worked incredibly hard and put in so much effort to help benefit the students. Thanks again!

Beck and Michael

P & C MEETING WEDNESDAY 28TH October 7.15 pm

Please note that our next P&C Meeting is on Wednesday 28th October at 7.15pm in the Staff Room. All parents and carers are most welcome to attend.

As this is the last P&C Meeting before our AGM on 18th November, please let me know if you are interested in taking on any of the Executive or Committee roles for next year. At the AGM, all positions are declared vacant for re-election, and are as follows:

Office Bearers:

President
1 Vice President
Treasurer
Secretary

Committee Members:

Canteen Coordinator (may be shared)
Uniform Shop Coordinator(may be shared)
Tennis Court Coordinator
PR Coordinator
Class Parent Coordinator
Environment coordinator
Bare Creek Trail Run (2016) Coordinator
Voluntary Contributions Coordinator*

*This is a proposed new position. More information on all of these positions available. We also need one or two delegates to represent our school at the Northern Sydney District Council Meetings, which take place quarterly at different local schools.

Joining our committee is a great way of getting involved in your children's schooling, making new friends, and finding out what is happening before it happens!

KeithOliver@Hotmail.com

Uniform Shop

The UNIFORM SHOP is open every Wednesday in the odd weeks of term – the next date being 4th November 8.30 am to 9.30 am.

Bare Creek Trail Run

Sunday 1st November 2015

If you want more information contact

COMMUNITY NOTICES

WAHROONGA FOOTBALL CLUB & WEST PYMBLE FOOTBALL CLUB

COMBINED 2016 SELECTION TRIALS

AGES: G11, G12 & G14 For girls turning 10 – 14 years old in 2016
DATES: SUNDAY 08 NOVEMBER AND SUNDAY 15 NOVEMBER
TIMES: 4:30 – 6:00PM
VENUE: Charles Bean Oval, Eton Rd, Lindfield
BRING: Water bottle & sunscreen

PLEASE PRE-REGISTER AT

CONTACT – Stephen Wilson 0412 501347 or g12.agemgr@wahroongafc.com.au