July 2015

Newsletter Articles

Principal's Ponderings

A very warm welcome to our new look Newsletter. I trust that this format is easy to read and access, appealing to the eye and a much looked forward to monthly occurrence.

What a wonderful time we had at Cluster Musters. Thank you to each of our students who participated and who are doing so well with their Musical and Sports Muster practice. Thank you to Home Tutors and Mums who participated and joined in the sessions. It is lovely to catch up.

Just some quick reminders of some of the topics at Cluster Musters, what is happening in the lead up to Sports Muster and some new banking processes for families.

iAIM: Please encourage your children to add up those minutes of training for Sports Muster. Will Narungi or Kanyanna reach the highest point tally for their House?

Travel to Term Three Cluster Muster, Sports Muster and Term Four Minischool: To receive your RREAP funding for travel please email Michelle Aspinall (maspi3@eq.edu.au) with the number of kilometres you travelled to Cluster Muster from your home to the venue your children attended. After Sports Muster and Minischool you will be asked to do the same for the trip from your home to Charleville, and the venue your children attended for Minischool respectively. We will then tally total kilometres travelled and distribute the funding accordingly.

BPoint banking for schools: All State Schools will be using the new system. Please look out for the information in your mail bags. This should make depositing money into the school account easier for you. If you have any queries please contact Virginia who will help you through the process.

Welding competition: Have you started a sculpture to grace our school grounds as a unique example and proud display of something that depicts your property or home? Please see the Arts and Crafts information booklet for the details.

School Opinion Survey: I encourage you to take the opportunity of completing the school opinion survey that some of you may have received details of in the mail. This is your opportunity to have a say about how well our school is performing. Students who receive the on line details are also encouraged to complete the survey. While these questions are for all state schools in Queensland and therefore have some questions that are difficult to relate to our context, your input is highly valued in the results. These results are shared with the school community and will be used to look at trends and considered in the Quadrennial School Review which will take place in 2016.

This term has commenced with a flurry of activity. So much to do, so little time! I wish you a wonderful term and look forward to the upcoming events of Sports Muster, Management meeting, Years 3-6 camp, AADES conference and any visits from families to Charleville.

Jenny

"I am not a teacher but an awakener."
Robert Frost

From the Deputy's Desk

Welcome back to term 3! I hope that everyone has had an enjoyable break away from the class room and is refreshed and ready for another busy term full of learning.

This term sees us getting warmed up and ready for Sports Muster, which is coming up in just a few short weeks from now. If you haven't already started you may like to begin training for the parent/teacher/student relays and of course the tug-of-war! Unfortunately I must remain neutral but I would love to see mums vs dads on the tug-of-war field. Of course no one likes to see a man cry so we will be most gracious when defeating those men!

Thanks to all who were able to attend the Cluster Musters that took place in week one. All the kids had a great time catching up with friends and battling the elements to refine their skills in preparation for long jump, shot put, ball games and all the other field events. We even discovered that teddy bears do roll while practising for tunnel ball in Cunnamulla!

It was great to see everyone getting into the spirit and raising funds to assist in reducing the cost of camp with the Fun Run being held at Cluster Musters as well. Please remember that you are able to continue to raise funds up to Sports Muster. Jenny Juniper has kindly offered to collect all Fun Run forms and money for me over the two days. Be sure to pop in and check out the book display when you drop off your envelopes.

Photos for this year's Sports Muster will all be taken on Thursday afternoon. You will soon receive your photo envelopes in the mail. Please ensure that you bring these in to Sports Muster with you. Your child will hand their envelope to the photographer on the day.

School opinion survey log in and passwords were sent out at the end of last term along with your student's report card, I encourage each of you to ensure that you complete this survey prior to it closing on 31 July. If you have any problems with logging on please contact Michelle Aspinall for another password.

Camp is also fast approaching. Thanks to all who have completed and returned the additional medical and dietary information forms. If you still have these at home please send them in to me as soon as possible.

I look forward to seeing each of you at Sports Muster.

Cheers Kate

PLO Prattle

Welcome to Term 3. Have you been in training for Sports Muster? Not long to go now. NARUNGI to WIN.

Sometimes getting children into a good sleep pattern can be quite stressful on parents and any other children in the family if you have "a non-sleeper". Following is an article from Michael Grose around getting good sleep habits for children.

SLEEP HABITS FOR CHILDREN

Sleep research shows that children who develop good sleep patterns usually carry these into adolescence, and beyond. If you are a parent of young children struggling to get them asleep or battling kids who want to stay up longer then a proper working knowledge of good sleep habits and sleep hygiene is a must…

GREAT SLEEP HABITS INCLUDE:

1. Regular bedtimes. Kids may fight this but be regular during the week and let kids stay up a little later on the weekends.
2. A wind down time of up to 45 minutes prior to bed. This includes, removing TV and other stimuli, calming children down and limiting food intake (and caffeine for teenagers).
3. Bedtime routine such as story, teeth cleaning that signals psychologically that it is time for sleep.
4. Keeping bedrooms for sleep and not TV or devices. Bedrooms that resemble caves seem to be recommended.
5. Maximising the 3 sleep cues of: darkness (cave-like bedroom), lowering body temperature (baths can be good for this) and melatonin (hormone that prepares you to sleep).

It seems sleep is one thing we can all be educated about. We take it for granted and often view poor sleepers through a behavioural lens. Better knowledge of the biology of sleep and also sleep patterns will go a long way to helping kids and teens get a good night's sleep. I believe it is an absolute essential for good modern parenting. Michael Grose

I hope you enjoyed your break and have come back refreshed and ready for a busy term. Keep warm.

Cheers

Helen, Parent Liaison Officer

Curriculum Corner

Last term, Kate Lofthouse, Alison Simmons, Leonie Herwig and I spent two fabulous days at Roma Middle School attending a maths professional development. They were an excellent two days and we all came back feeling very excited by some new possibilities and ways of approaching mathematics. More to come at KSC next year!

The Australian Curriculum has a strong focus on deep-level understanding and mathematical reasoning. The focus is no longer on drill and skill and students can no longer answer routine mathematical questions and achieve an "A". Instead, students need to be able to understand what they are doing and know why the formulas and strategies work to be able to apply this knowledge in various situations.

This has meant a change in thinking for many people. It has meant a change in the way we teach and the way we assess.

Teachers have had many complaints over the years that the Guide to Making Judgements (GTMJs) don't accurately reflect an A and B standard for student expectations. In recent times, we have been looking more carefully at our assessment tasks and deciding what needs to be adapted/changed/added to assessment tasks so that the grades accurately reflect the expectations of students. This ties very closely with the types of questions being asked.

The information that follows in this article has come from the presenter of the abovementioned PD and it aims to provide more information on why additional questions might be added to assessment tasks and how students can work towards those higher grades if that is the level they are capable of achieving.

MATHEMATICS EXPLAINED:

Within the mathematics curriculum there are four proficiency strands which need to be assessed: Fluency, Understanding, Problem Solving and Reasoning. Within each strand, there are some key principles:

Once we have an understanding of the proficiency strands, we are able to look more closely at the types of questions being asked in the assessment tasks. In many cases, closer inspection is showing that whilst the "C" standard is accurate, there may not be sufficient questioning/activities to demonstrate an "A" or "B" standard. This is resulting in teachers opting to add extra questions to allow students to demonstrate deeper and flexible thinking. The types of questions being asked will often help understand the grade level being aimed at. Below are some examples which may (not always) apply in assessment tasks:

Problem Solving:

Step 1: Decide on the type of question

Step 2: Decide which of these descriptors matches the student work:

Reasoning: The mathematical process followed to solve a problem

Understanding: Patterns, principles and connections between mathematical concepts

As you can see, to get an "A", students don't necessarily need to be progressing to the next year level's work but they do need to have a very clear and flexible understanding of mathematical concepts and be able to apply this in unfamiliar situations. Drill and skill has its place within fluency, but we need to be mindful of the other proficiency strands as well.

So, next time you are tempted to go back and just teach students the way you learnt, please reconsider. The curriculum and expectations have changed. Students need to be able to not only do the mathematical questions but understand what they are doing as well. This understanding will enable students to work beyond the questions they've been asked and apply this understanding in many various times throughout their schooling and life.

* Much of this information is the work of Tierney Kennedy. More information can be found on this website:

Spotlight on Junior Secondary

We had an enquiry recently asking where to enrol in the Western Alliance.

Well, actually, you don't enrol with Western Alliance. There is no Western Alliance State School. We have staff, students, home tutors, three principals, classes, instruction materials, text books, lessons, exams, a logo, a handbook, Western Alliance camp … all the things that make a school a school. The Western Alliance, however, is not a school with a front gate you can walk through.

The dictionary describes an alliance as an association formed for mutual benefit; a relationship based on interests, nature or qualities.

The mutual benefits of our Western Alliance are evident: when you hear 93 students from all around Queensland, interstate and overseas engage in an on-air lesson with their peers and their teacher; when you see thirty-five students from the western corridor of Queensland meet and interact at a Multischool; when you see ten secondary teachers come together to discuss pedagogy, curriculum, individual student needs and operational issues; when you see three Principals excitedly (yes, excitedly) planning the next enhancement for the Alliance.

What do you see when these groups of people are together? You see learning in motion; growth and development of young people who have a wonderful lifestyle but who need to have education as well; you see laughter, tears and fun, and you know that this is possible because we have combined our resources and formed relationships.

Since its inception, only a few short years ago, we have continually looked for ways to improve the Alliance and its offering to students within the parameters of our staffing and budget. We consider the Alliance not only in terms of the three schools but also an Alliance between students, parents and staff. As we approach Semester Two we will begin actively planning for the Alliance in 2016. We welcome parents input into this planning, so we would encourage you to send an email or make a phone call to your base school principal with your ideas. Students have this opportunity to provide input at Multischool and camp. Please be assured we do consider all suggestions. One of the strengths of the Alliance is our strong relationship based on the mutual benefit of schools and parents working together.

Thanks to the students, home tutors and staff for their efforts in Semester One. We look forward to working with you again next semester.

Digital Discoveries

New Password System

At the end of Term 1, 2015 we saw the introduction of a new password system for our students. This now means that individual student passwords need to be changed every 90 days in order to reduce the likelihood of hackers getting into our systems and thus protecting our students.

After 90 days students will be automatically prompted to change their password when they visit any Education Queensland website (eg. eLearn, iConnect and Webmail). Students will be presented with a screen like below on which they can change their password. If a teacher or technician resets a password for a student, the student will also be presented with this screen to change their password at first log on.

This means that the school no longer has a list of passwords for students and the importance of keeping your own record of student passwords is vital. It is suggested that Home Tutors use the password card template to have passwords handy for students.

P & C News

Sports Muster

Not long now till Sports Muster on 13 & 14 August. We look forward to catching up with everyone there.

A big thanks to all those who contacted Julie and Tracy to volunteer in the canteen. It was wonderful to see the support flood in quickly.

Thursday morning the P and C will also be hosting the smoko challenge. The smoko challenge is run over Sports Muster and Swim Muster with parents providing a delicious array of smoko items for Sports Muster and the staff providing for Swim Muster. Anne-Marie Flynn (gfcolamba@gmail.com) and Christy Bredhauer (lambertstud@activ8.net.au) have kindly offered to co-ordinate this. Please let them know if you can help by providing a home bake for the Thursday morning smoko.

Thursday night will be a night to relax and socialise at the school with the Charleville Guides catering and ICPA BOTA running the bar. Come along and meet new friends and catch up with old ones.

Battery Drive

The battery drive is continuous, so ask your family and friends if they have any old batteries and contact Sally and Damian Campbell on abc_campbell@harboursat.com.au.

Grants

If anyone hears of a grant going around, please let Greg Keith gregandsarah@antmail.com.au or Michelle Freshwater psecr4@eq.edu.au know. We are always looking out for ways to fund money to assist our students, families and the school.

Below are photos of some of the items purchased to use for the musical later this year and the swim vests for swimming and lifesaving training. These purchases were made possible through the Queensland Government's Caring For our Community grant. What fantastic resources for our school.

Fundraising

The P&C have set a new goal - to help fund a playground at the school. There will be more about this in future newsletters.

CHARLEVILLE SDE FUNDRAISER - PIE DRIVE

BAKEAROMA offers you the usual favourite flavours but also added to tantalize your taste buds this year are a few more choices.

Tai Chicken, Butter Chicken, Chicken Garlic, Beef Burgundy, Plain Beef, Curry Beef, Steak & Onion, Steak Kidney, Mushroom Beef, Cracked Pepper, Steak & Bacon & Cheese, Chicken & Cheese, Tomato & Onion, Chicken Curry & Mango, then there are the dessert pies: Apple Pie, Jam Lattice, Peach Pie, Pineapple Pie, Apricot Pie, Pecan Pie, and let us not forget those yummy 6 pack of Lamingtons.

Why not give yourself a break from cooking and order some delicious family sized pies.

When placing your orders, please note that if you need to contact me my details are on the bottom of the form. Unfortunately my email address has been incorrectly typed on the form, my correct email is: our.cottage@bigpond.com if you require a new order form send me through an email and I will forward you a copy.

COLLECT YOUR PIES AT SPORTS MUSTER ON THE FRIDAY – All pies will be frozen for your convenience.

PLEASE SEND COMPLETED ORDER FORM AND PAYMENT TO THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS BY 1ST AUGUST 2015

EUNICE CAMPBELL, CLARAVALE, MITCHELL, QLD, 4465 EMAIL: our.cottage@bigpond.com MOBILE: 0428232721

August meeting
August 19th @ 7.30 pm

Via Teleconference O7 31815999
Conference Code; 2901452267#
Hope you can make it.

REMINDER……

All memberships are NOW DUE

If you have not been receiving the documents for the meetings, your membership is not current for 2015. Please email the secretary on psecr4@eq.edu.au.

Girl Guides – Camp Camelot

Eight Lone Girl Guides, based at Charleville SDE, travelled to Tambo to camp with the Major Mitchell Girl Guides from across South West Queensland, including Charleville, Longreach, Roma and Wallumbilla.

Camp Camelot Guides and Leaders

The theme was Camp Camelot with girls grouped together in Patrols named after different shaped tables. There were Knights of the Triangle, Square, Hexagon, Diamond and Octagon Tables.

Working on their Patrol Shields

Though it was cold and we did have ice on the tents in the morning, the girls had an awesome time meeting new friends from across Queensland and participating in a range of activities. We managed to keep warm with lots of winter clothing (layers and layers of clothing!) and plenty of beautiful hot food and drink.

For many of our Lone Guides it was their first Girl Guide camp and meant they had to learn the Guiding way for some tasks – like having to wash and dry your own dishes.

The girls also learnt the joy of making and exchanging 'SWAPS' – Special Whatchamacallits Affectionately Pinned Somewhere. There were bottle trees from Roma, gum nuts from Wallumbilla, bilbies from Charleville and of course shields from the camp.

There were activities involving patrol challenges, including one where one girl had been injured and the rest of the patrol had to care for her until the apothecary arrived.

The biggest activity was the GPS challenge in which the girls had to locate 10 hidden treasures using hand-held GPS devices. As Tambo has lots of wide open spaces, the girls had to walk quite a distance to find all ten treasures, but none complained – they just kept on walking and hunting down those treasures.

All of the girls from Distance Education behaved brilliantly at the camp and came away with lots of stories, new friends and new skills. The leaders, Kookaburra and Seagull, thank every single one of them for doing yourselves, your families, our unit and school proud. BRAVO!!

If anyone is interested in joining our special Girl Guide unit, please contact Kookaburra (Sam Owczarek on sowcz1@eq.edu.au

Amazing Creations from the P&C Picture Products Fundraiser

Schoolroom Sound Waves Ideas

NATIONALLY CONSISTENT COLLECTION OF DATA ON SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH DISABILITY – 2015

Dear Parents

Our school is participating in the collection of nationally consistent data on school students with disability. A fact sheet has been attached for your information. We will be collecting information already available in the school about the support that is being provided to students with disability. Better data will help the Government plan for students with disability. The data collection will have no direct impact on your child and they will not be involved in any testing process.

As part of the national data collection, the privacy and confidentiality of all students will be maintained because:

• personal or confidential information will not be provided to anyone not authorised to see it
• personal details, student names or any identifying information will not be included in data sent to the local education authority or to the Australian Government.

All information is protected by privacy laws which regulate the collection, storage and disclosure of personal information. If you do not want your child to be counted in the data collection, you must email the Principal to apply for an exemption by next Wednesday 5 August, 2015. A decision to exclude your child will not affect the support they currently receive. If you have any questions about your child being included in the data collection, please contact Lyndleigh Keogh at CSDE on 4656 8921.