Derrinallum P-12 College
Community Newsletter
www.derrinallump12.vic.edu.au 22nd November, 2019 Edition 36
Integrity, Teamwork, Support, Empathy, Respect.
From the Principal
Campbell Street Derrinallum Phone: (03) 55976625, Fax: (03) 55976646 Victoria 3325 Email: [email protected]
MGM Txt Only Number: 0427016460
Guess what, the weather will be perfect on Sunday? Yep, our school working bee. Fine and sunny. Just don’t forget your hat! We have a list of jobs for tidying up the grounds and we’re hoping we have plenty of helpers on deck! You can join us for a sausage sizzle and chat after as we admire all our hard work! Please, if you can bring along gardening tools like secateurs, shovels and outdoor brooms that would be great. If you’re like me and have soft delicate hands because you don’t do much hard work, gardening gloves would also be a recommendation. No skill required, just your community spirit.
Stranger Danger
There have been reports of strangers approaching school students in other towns within the Corangamite Shire.
These incidents have been reported to the police. This is a timely reminder to discuss stranger danger with your child. We know that our students usually travel to school on the bus or by car and they don’t usually walk or ride their bikes, however, please make your children aware of child safety practices and stranger awareness whilst out in the community.
Explain clearly to your child;
Don’t talk to strangers
Don’t go anywhere with anyone you don’t know
Don’t get into a vehicle with a stranger
Don’t accept gifts, treats or lollies from a stranger
Don’t tell a stranger your name and address
Always tell someone if a stranger approaches you
Get help if you feel unsafe
A great strategy is to familiarise your children with your local community and let them know where they could go for help if they needed to. For example, the public library, a shop or a friend/relatives house.
Staffing 2020
We are chipping away at our staffing for 2020. We are pleased to announce that Miss Summerfield-Owers will be joining us again in 2020. She is a talented teacher and we are very happy to have her on board again. Hopefully we will have some job advertisements up for positions by next week. These jobs are in the final stages of being finalised and will go up as soon as they are ready.
Planning for 2020
At school council this week I talked extensively (really, I talked a lot!) on my plans for the school’s direction for 2020. These plans include a number of changes to the way we focus our efforts at the school as well as how we operate in a teaching capacity. We will be working with a more refined focus on academic achievement for all students as well as an increased focus on student and community engagement and student and staff wellbeing.
We are looking at adding an Advocacy Program for Years 7-10 to help develop skills essential for life and school, which aren’t covered in conventional curriculum as well as a period of Literacy a week for Years 7-10s where we explicitly develop the skills of students for reading and writing. Everything we do will be data driven, done with intent and linked strongly to our Annual Implementation Plan.
Transition
Last week we ran our Kinder to Foundation transition and this week hosted two days of Year 6 to 7 transition. It was great for the Year 6’s to have a sole focus on them as they adjusted to what school will be like as they move through to high school. They will do the same again next week.
Continued……….
Safe Schools Training and MATE Bystander
Fitting in with our new refined focus for 2020, this week teaching staff participated in professional learning about the Safe Schools program. As a safe school we are committed to providing educational facilities and practices which are inclusive for the LGBTI community. The professional learning that the staff participated in taught them about the close link between the treatment of young people in the LGBTI community and their potential to succeed and live full and happy lives. We also sent Linda Grills and Andrew Stephen to participate in MATE Bystander training. MATE provides a highly interactive way to understand what respectful relationships are. The program empowers communities to prevent violence and teaches how to intervene in safe and responsible ways.
Next week Kristy Riley, Daisy Green and myself will undertake the Respectful Relationships training. We hope to have all staff eventually attend this professional learning to strengthen their understanding of the program and curriculum delivered within it.
Year 12 Graduation Dinner
Friday night the year 12 students and their families will be joined by staff of the college as we celebrate their graduation. There has been lots of planning go into the night and it will be a wonderful celebration of all of their work. I’m sure that in next week’s newsletter we will have some photos to show off.
Mobile Phones in 2020
Next year the State Government is implementing a state-wide ban on the use of mobile phones in schools. This includes any device with connectivity such as iPads and watches. There will be more information come out about this before the end of the year when we finalise our new mobile phone policy.
Berrybank Wind Farm Toy Drive for Christmas
Berrybank Wind Farm and Vestas are organising a Christmas Toy Drive. Donated toys will be distributed to disadvantaged families in the local communities surrounding the Wind Farm. If you would like to donate any toys or money for the Toy Drive these can be dropped off at the Berrybank Wind Farm site offices. For further details please contact Michelle Housego, Vestas, Berrybank Wind Farm, [email protected] or 0436 921 153.
Special shout out to…
The staff in general do a great job at the school but this week I’d really like to point out Mrs Marks. She compiles the newsletter each week and has to chase me up most times for my article but she never complains (at least to me). Mrs Marks has a number of roles at the school including being the Library technician and Bus Coordinator and is currently working with Kelum Fernando our IT tech to streamline our computer processes. Amongst all her other jobs she’s doing I asked Mrs Marks to look into getting some additional flag poles so the school can proudly fly the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags alongside the Australian flag. Like a flash, she has made
arrangements and hopefully we’ll see them installed before the end of the year.
Thank you for yet another great week. I am genuinely looking forward to the working bee on the weekend. I can’t wait to see community members coming in to contribute to our wonderful school!
Caitlyn Fitzgerald - Principal
Students Of The Week
Kirra Srdoc for her great work in Maths.
Patrick Greig for saying and
segmenting sounds when reading and writing.
Parents/Guardians who are signing out students.
If your child is not travelling home by bus, please inform Gaye in the Library to avoid any confusion.
All changes to bus travel MUST be recorded.
In the interest of safety for all students who travel on school buses, it is important to remember the following:
Be at the bus stop at least 10 minutes before the bus is due to arrive at your stop. Bus drivers are not required to wait if you are not there.
Provide a note for any change of bus travel. Please contact Gaye in the Library for any unscheduled bus changes.
Behave appropriately when waiting at the bus stop and whilst travelling on the school bus.
Wear your seat belt at all times.
Don’t distract the driver whilst he/she is driving.
Remain seated until the bus comes to a stop.
Never cross the road in front of a school bus. Always wait until the bus moves off before crossing the road. It’s hard to see oncoming traffic that may be obscured by the bus. Gaye Robinson-Marks - Bus Coordinator
School Buses
Chrissy’s Book Review
Mr Smith’s Maths Question Of The Week There were no correct entries for last week’s
problem so we have the same problem this week.
Get your entries in!
This week’s question is: What is the smallest number of marbles greater than 10 that if I put them in groups of 4 it leaves 2 extra marbles and putting them in groups of 9 it leaves 6 extra marbles?
Title: Tracy Lacy is Completely Coo-Coo Bananas!!!
Author: Tania Lacy
Suitable for: Advanced junior readers
Tracy Lacy is Completely Coo-Coo Bananas!!! is a hilarious tale of twelve-year-old Tracy Lacy and her two best friends, following their transition from primary to secondary school. Featuring themes of individuality, friendship and self-acceptance, the tale carries the important message that you don’t need to be someone else to fit in. This is aided by the illustrations, courtesy of Danielle McDonald, and the tale being written in Tracy’s perspective; it makes the characters incredibly relatable, and the storyline is both easy to follow and is enjoyable to read. I found this story incredibly hilarious, and loved how the images reflected the established personality of the titular character.
Rating: 5/5
Tracy Lacy is Completely Coo-Coo Bananas!!! is
available in the school library, and is a great story
that celebrates being unique and proud of it!
Year 6 Transition Program
Maths Food Technology
English
Visual Communication Science
PE Languages
Performing arts Year 6 students from Derrinallum P-12 College and Lismore Primary school participated in two days of the Year 6 into Year 7 Transition Program this week. The purpose of the transition days are to help students become more confident and familiar with the workings of the senior school at Derrinallum P-12 College. Across the two days, students completed a range of activities including a data sampling exercise in Maths, cooking cinnamon scrolls in Food Technology, earning their Bunsen burner license in Science and practising their archery skills in PE.
The students participated well in all classes, and impressed staff with their skill and enthusiasm. Senior school teachers are
looking forward to welcoming the students back to the senior school next Tuesday, for the third day of the program.
Kristy Riley – Year 7 Transition Coordinator
Sheet Metal
Year 6 Transition Program
Calendar of Even
ts - Term 4
W eek 8 W eek 9 W eek 10 W eek 11 2 5 th Nov e mbe r
Year 11 exams & orientation week2 nd Dec e mb e r
Year 9/ 10 exams and orientation week9 th De c e mbe r 1 6 th De ce mbe r
Ballarat Excursion Year F-4 - Play Centre Year 5-9 - Bounce2 6 th Nov e mbe r
Year 6>7 Transition Day3 rd De ce mbe r
Year 7/8 Portland Camp begins1 0 th De ce mbe r
State-wide Transition Day all year levels1 7 th De ce mbe r
Recognition Evening - whole school - 6.30pm start2 7 th Nov e mbe r
Foundation Transition Day 9am-1pm Year 7-10 Science Excursion Warrnambool4 th De c e mbe r 1 1 th De ce mbe r 1 8 th De ce mbe r
Xmas Lunch - Students & staff2 8 th Nov e mbe r
Year 2 sleepover F/1 extended stay5 th De c e mbe r 1 2 th De ce mbe r
Grade 6 Celebration Day and Dinner1 9 th De ce mbe r
Pool Day Last day for students2 9 th Nov e mbe r
Year11s finish6 th De c e mbe r
Year 10s finish Year 7/8 Portland Camp ends F-6 Responsible Pet Ownership1 3 th De ce mbe r 2 0 th De ce mbe r
Calendar of Even ts -
Term 1 -
2020
W eek 1 W eek 2 W eek 3
28th January Teachers return to school.4th February10th Februa 29th January5th February11th Februa 30th January6th February12th Februa 31st January6th February13th Februa 1st February7th February14th Februa
