Grafton Public School

Grafton Public School
A Tradition of Excellence
Locked Bag 9024 Grafton 2460
PHONE: Primary - 66421000 Infants - 66422286
Email: grafton-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au
Term Calendar - Click Here
Term 1 Week 10: Monday 30th March 2015
School Website - Click Here
In this week’s newsletter…….
* Grandparents Day was brilliant
*Principal’s Message
* Easter Activities
Upcoming events
Parent/Teacher Evenings begin this week till Thursday 2nd
April
Tuesday 31st March—Easter Hat Parade
Wednesday 1st April—DP and Principals Awards
Thursday 2nd April—Last day of Term 1. Cross Country and
Swimming Novelty Carnival Day
Easter Activities
Our annual SRC Easter Hat Parade will be held tomorrow, Tuesday 31st March at 12 noon, near the school hall, on the
Primary Campus, and we invite parents and carers to join us for the occasion. This is a Kinder to Year 6 activity. Kinder
and Year 1 students have made their creations in class time and they look fantastic. The children had a lot of fun
making them. There are no prizes for the best hats. All students who enter will each receive an easter egg, so we hope
all of the older students get gluing and painting at home so they can join in the fun.
The P & C Easter Raffle tickets are selling well. Sold tickets and monies should have been returned to the office by
now, so that the raffle can be drawn at the Easter Hat parade. Please return any outstanding tickets before Tuesday
9am so the tickets can be folded and added to the box ready for drawing .
A HUGE thankyou to all of the families who have supported the raffle. Our P & C committee worked on Friday
afternoon and assembled 58 baskets of Easter Eggs (yes 58!!!) which will be given away on Tuesday.We have several
“non-chocolate” prizes on offer as well but you’ve got to be in it to win it, so return those raffle tickets when you can.
Good Luck!!
The last day of Term 1 is Thursday 2nd April.
Students return to school for the start of Term 2 on Tuesday 21st April.
Grandparents Day was great!!!!
It was the highlight of 2015 so far and will be a special memory for all of our students. It was the day grandma and
grandpa came to visit their school!
Grafton Public School’s annual Grandparents Day held last Thursday was a wonderful occasion with hundreds and
hundreds of grandparents visiting all of our classrooms from Kinder to Year 6. It was the largest number of special
visitors we have ever had! Grandparents looked around the classrooms, flicking through bookwork and reading
together with their grandchildren. The students and their special visitors also enjoyed a delicious afternoon tea.
Although it was an extremely hot day for all, our school was crowded with excited children and smiling grandparents
and it was such a lovely sight to see.
Thankyou to the many, many nans and pops, and grandmas and grandpas who took the time to come along last week,
especially those who we know had travelled extremely long distances to be a part of the day. It meant so much to the
children to have you here!
Brief but Important…….
* Our P & C “Mums Retreat” fundraiser was featured in last week’s newsletter and is a popular end of year activity
for many of our mums. It is a ladies weekend away on the Gold Coast, shopping, surfing, relaxing or a combination of
all. We leave on Friday 20th Nov. and buses return around 8pm Sunday 22nd Nov. Spots are booking fast so if you
wish to join us, please let Miss Karen know in the office ASAP.
* Although there are “Children Crossing” flags displayed at the designated crossings on Bacon and Mary Streets,
sometimes cars just do not stop or do not see the children from behind the trees. We are speaking to all of our
students this week about stopping first at the crossings to look both ways before they cross. We would appreciate
you talking to your children at home about the crossing as well as the safety of our students is a major concern for
us.
School Photos
School Photo Day at GPS has been scheduled for Friday 24th April. Order forms for school photos were distributed
to all students last week. These can be returned anytime before photo day
If you would like a sibling photo order (these are the ones with the red square at the top) these can be obtained from
either office. Sibling photos will be taken before school from 8am on photo day, are only available for students at GPS
and are ordered on the day by taking your completed envelope with you to the school hall.
Advanced Life Photography offer the following discounts for larger families.
MULTI CHILD DISCOUNT: Purchase any two complete packages [A-D] for separate children within the one immediate
family and receive a) the third child's complete package, within the immediate family, half price, and b) the fourth and
subsequent children from the immediate family free.
"Immediate Family" are brothers / sisters within the same household".
Cross Country/Swimming Carnival
It will be a day for House Spirit when our school Cross Country event and Swimming Novelty Carnival are held this
Thursday 2nd April. What a busy and fun day! Students will march in houses over to Westward Park for the Cross
Country event at approximately 9am then march to the pool at around 11am.
The children will compete in groups according to the age they turn this year. For the Cross Country event, children up
to and including 10 years will run 2 laps (2000m) of the clearly marked course whilst our 11, 12/13’s will also run 2 laps
of a longer course(3000m).
Classes will be practising over the running course in the time leading up to the day. For this reason it is requested that
children bring suitable footwear to school over the next few weeks.
On the day, children are asked to wear their house colours and will get changed into their swimwear at the pool. Please
remember no crepe paper or hair spray at the pool. Children are required to wear joggers until they get to the pool
and are asked to bring a hat, drink bottle, towel and sun screen. Lunch and recess can be packed or there are limited
canteen facilities at the pool.
All children are encouraged to participate as these are House Points Events and Age Championships are up for grabs in
the Cross Country event. Please note that only children in Years 3-6 will be involved in the Swimming Carnival and only
Year 2 students turning 8 years old this year are allowed to enter the Cross Country Event.
We invite any family members to join with us to cheer on the competitors as they battle around the running course or
collect as many corks as they can in the cork scramble!!
DON’T FORGET TO RETURN THE BLUE SWIMMING CARNIVAL NOTE!!!!!
From the Principal
Dear Parents and Carers,
Term 1 draws to a close with a big week. Firstly our Easter Hat Parade on Tuesday, our Principal and Deputy Principal
Awards on Wednesday and our school PSSA Cross Country on Thursday morning leading into our Novelty Swimming
Carnival at the Grafton Pool with the option of utilizing the slide. (You little beauty!) This seems to sum up the speed of
our term which started with a flyer – all grades and class near to capacity, then the PSSA swimming carnival; CSI
Science for Y5 & Y6 at SGHS; Band and Choir commencing; Aboriginal Dance and Didgeridoo Lessons commencing; Class
Information Evenings; School Disco followed by our Green teams – clean up the school day; the Prefect, SRC and Library
monitors badge presentation; National Ride to School Day – an amazing response!; Harmony and Anti Bullying Day;
Grandparents Day; Special Education Unit students Annual Review meetings and finally Parent-Teacher interviews. PLUS,
we taught Reading, Writing and Arithmetic had some fun, laughed and also ensured all children were connected to PE,
Health, Music, Art/Craft, Computer Studies and Science. Add into this the PSSA cricket and swimming and trials for
Rugby League, union and football and we are starting to need a little extra oxygen.
In our staffing we also: lost Mrs Pereira to South Grafton Primary school, as she gained a permanent position as a
Special Education Teacher; witnessed Miss Callander take up alternative duties when she applied for Expression of
Interest appointment to a non-teaching Assistant Principal’s role at Moree East PS; and we have temporarily lost (only
for eighteen months) Mrs. Fletcher who applied for and gained the temporary appointment as an Instructional Leader –
equivalent to a Deputy Principal, at South Grafton Primary School to develop their teachers with their teaching
practices.
We have also been working with a number of students who are experiencing difficulties with their entry/participation in
the broader community – school, whereby they are expected to grow socially as well as emotionally. Some have medical
diagnosis, others possible pathologies and yet others are just quirky, for want of an adjective. We attempt, with their
families, their transition into the next outer layer of human interaction, school – a big community of people, away from
the intimacy of mum, dad and family by providing support scaffolding into this next outer layer of social existence. Some
parents find this confronting. Nothing is perfect yet compassion and consistency along with a plan for growth generally
works along with patience and time.
Next term also starts with a quick jump from the blocks. Firstly, after a review of the program with staff, the canteen
and a sample of our parents, we decided to returning to our original recess and lunch breaks as we found there were
many students who were not eating their food, students returning to class who had experienced issues in the playground
early in the day thus upsetting their learning program and teachers finding the times were not suiting their practices.
We will still have an hour in the afternoon and a mid-period of one hour and forty minutes. School will start and finish at
our usual times. Recess will be from 10.50am till 11.15am and lunch will be 12.55pm till 1.45pm. Parents of children on
regular medication during school hours are asked to contact the office with arrangements for the new times.
We will also witness Kinder to Year 2 commencing their time with Happy Harold and the Life Education Van in Week 1,
our school photos on Friday of Week 1 and then also at the end of Week 1 – ANZAC Day – celebrating 100 years of
History. Our school will proudly be a part of the ANZAC Day march.
Our school provides many opportunities – it is up to the children to make the most of these, with your encouragement. A
rule of thumb that we try to apply for those with multiple talents– keep representation to your best areas as you can
spread yourself thin, causing you anxiety and costing others an opportunity.
Currently, we are only a few students away from gaining another class. This may come early next term as long as we don’t
lose students. If our numbers increase we will review our current structures and keep any dislocations to a minimum
maximizing the educational opportunities for our students.
I hope you find time for reading, relaxation and reflection. In the Christian religion, Easter is a time of cleansing and
rebirth. I hope you have time for thought and action.
Enjoy the break with your children/family.
Kind regards,
Will Randall—Principal
Disney on Ice
Disney Anyone?? A school holiday treat?? In connection with our Performing Arts Program, we are running a bus
up to the Disney on Ice show "Dare to Dream" in Brisbane on Saturday 27th June at 2.30pm. Tickets will be $85
each, which will include the matinee performance, bus travel up and back and a yummy morning tea on the journey
north. We would appreciate you “sharing” our Disney post on Facebook to help spread the word.
If you wish to join us, please give your name to the office ASAP so we can confirm tickets. A $20 deposit must be
paid by the end of April and full payment must be received by June 5th.
All children must be accompanied by a supervising adult. The schedule for the day will be given out closer to the
date.
Infants Roster
Canteen
31/3/15 Marcus Marcus
1/4/15 Help wanted
2/4/15 Suze English
Holidays
Tues 21/4/15 Marcus Marcus
Primary Roster
31/3/15 Cheryl and David Maunder
1/4/15 Kathy Crawford
2/4/15 Closed due to carnivals
Holidays
Tues 21/4/15 Help wanted
THE PARKING RANGER AND THE POLICE ARE ON THE LOOKOUT
We have been asked by the authorities to remind all of our parents that the area directly in
front of the Infants Campus is a “Drop Off” area only. Between 8.30am –9.30am and 2.30pm –
4pm, cars are not allowed to park in this area. Cars are allowed to drop off passengers only.
A time limit of one minute applies and drivers must stay with their vehicles. Vehicles must
reverse park to let the student/s out but only have the one minute time limit.
Please always abide by road rules and be sensible drivers while dropping off and collecting your children. Stick to
the 40km limit in the school zone, watch the crossings and obey the parking instructions. This is just a friendly
reminder as we have been advised by the authorities that they will be doing a blitz on school areas in the near
future.
Below are some helpful websites regarding school zone safety:
http://roadsafety.transport.nsw.gov.au/stayingsafe/schools/
http://roadsafety.transport.nsw.gov.au/downloads/safety-around-schools.pdf
http://roadsafety.transport.nsw.gov.au/stayingsafe/schools/backtoschoolsafety.html
Home Study Programs
Caution - Free Home-study Websites and Apps: We have been alerted recently to more “aggressive” practices
from home-study/tutoring companies which advertise as “free” but strongly suggest that you upgrade to a premium
service for a fee. The school began using “Mathletics” many years ago, but this program became expensive. We were
also using Studyladder and providing home log-ins but this program has also become more limited regarding free
content. While many of these programs are helpful, they often encourage you to pay a monthly fee for full access.
The school does not endorse ANY of these companies and urge you to look widely at genuinely free alternatives.
Stand-alone apps which are paid for and downloaded avoid the problem of you being targeted for expensive add-ons
(as long as you don’t have to be on-line to use them). You are welcome to view apps that we use at school on our
tablets, please just ask your child’s teacher.
Library News
When is the Book Character Parade Mrs Avery????? I have heard this question asked a number of times this term.
Term 3 Week 7 would be the answer! (Exact day of the week yet to be confirmed). With so many students and
parents eager to participate, the day is always a lot of fun.
Our first Book Fair of the year opens on Friday 15th May (Week 4 of next term) and closes the following Friday 22nd
May (Week 5). Donations received at Grandparents Day will go towards the purchase of books from this Book Fair.
Keep on Reading!
Mrs Avery
Tennis News
Congratulations to the GPS Tennis Team of Noah, Blake, Whitney, Lydia, Mikayla and Alecia who defeated Westlawn
PS 8 sets -0, in the 2nd round of the PSSA Knockout Tennis. All students played well and showed fantastic
sportsmanship and team work on such a hot day.
Good luck in the next round.
Beating Picky Eating :Children with strong food preferences who limit their intake of the needed variety of foods
can be a challenge.
Some of the following ideas may be helpful:
* Remember: Parents choose “which” foods, children decide “how much”.
* Create a positive environment at the table, make meal times pleasant.
* Be a good role model.
* Stick to a routine.
* Provide the same meals for the whole family.
* Take children shopping, involve them in planning and preparation.
* Limit sweet drinks and juice so children have an appetite.
Bike Bus
Assembly Award Winners
Each week we will try to acknowledge the children who received awards at their grade assemblies in the previous week.
Congratulations to the following students who received awards last week:
Kinder: Ivy Eggins, Paige Tilse, Max Middelbosch, Cloe Highly Peacock, William Marshall-Atkinson, Keira Cooper, Tristan
Messer, Toby Woods, Makayla Kleinschmidt, Hank Williams, Riley Tobin, Lilly Fahey, Nathanial Lasker, Isabella
Battaglini, Elijah Waite, Ashby Dendle-Gadd, Khoby Tonkin, Ashleigh Bulmer, Raymond Randall, Sebastian Chivers,
Nikita Vitnell, Abby Blanch, Indiana Hall, Kane Tucker, Zayden Third, Elisabeth Kennedy, Ari Tomlinson, Anabel Bridges
-Hanson, Deacon Konemann, Talia Causley, Eliana Jackson, Aiden McBeath
Year 1: Harrisan Dendle-Duroux, Lei-Keisha Armstrong, Zahli Laverty, Jesse Brown, Cruz Boyd, Keira Reynolds,
Clementine Eaton, Cadence Anderson, Riannon Aldcroft, Lincoln Riepon, Tamika Nicholson, Chelsea Winters, Elissa
Whatley, Jayden Stephens
Year 2: Lachlan Simmons, Willyam Collins, Riley Smidt, Archie Eggins, Shaniqua Williams, Jake Boyd, Jordan
Durrington, Shelera Williams, Talija Laverty, Rachelle McLane, Dominic Blanch, Mia Grieve, Lotte Pereira, Jordan Baker,
Xavier Corcoran, Anique Davis, Sebastian Pousima, Tabitha Franicevich, Brodie Millard, Cedar Jamieson, Jarrah Skinner,
Joshua Anderson, Bohdi Stewart
Year 3: Zac Maginnity, Adrian Armstrong, Skye Gallagher, Ethan Howe, Hayley Tucker, Brooklyn Roach, Macy’Rose
Potter, Aidan Gibbs, Abby McBeath, Hannah Watkins, Blade Collins, Brayden Shiels, Isabella Riepon, Jordan Hure, Diane
Suey, Tyra Dare-Purcell, Molly Murray, Aliyah McKenna
Year 4: Caitlin Chevalley, Karmelita Suey, Beau Brinkworth, Riley Cahill, Zac Hayes-Love, Sienna Hall, Isabella Mitchell,
Connor Delaforce, Rachael Martin, Amy Carter, Nathan Collins, Chelsea Scott, Harley Spiteri, Jacob Brugnatti, Layla
Warren, Martina Williams, Megan Smith, Liam Mitchell, Stella Lydon, Zayden Plumb, Isabelle Ellis, Ezekiel Smith,
Elizabeth Evans
Year 5: Lewise Weatherall, Tyleah Larcombe, Hadassah Litchfield, Courtney Cummins, Jordan Loadsman, Rahni
Cansdell, Lili Kreis, Bethany Rigby-Pierse, Laura Hennessy, Samuel Kennedy, Blake Robertson, Caleb Shiels, Aillyn Brown,
Jack Lougher, Tae-Arleigh Donnelly, Hope Endean, Jack brown, Sean Thorley, Tessa Darby, Jacob Toovey, Shameeka
O’Dwyer, Brooke Borg, Abbey Daniels, Felicity Ellem
Year 6: Sean Barnes, James Deefholts, Connor Rooke, Sarah Hiatt, Mikayla Cooper, Mitchell Cachia, Jackson Ellis,
Darcy Walters, Halle Ensby, Damon Striegher, Jordan Hollingworth, Tye Weeding
Support Unit: Chelsea Willard, Cain Cavanagh, Aaron Beilby
Community Notices
Grafton City Soccer Club is seeking extra players in the
Under 6’s and Under 7’s age groups!!
If your child would like to play soccer, please contact club
registrar, Doug Scott on 0429 360 264.
2pm 14/4/15
10.30am 15/4/15
Community Notices