13th November 2014

Principal: Mrs Bec Maxwell
24—32 Grogan Street
Mossman. QLD. 4873
13th November 2014
Ph: 07 4098 1631
Fax: 07 4098 2267
We are part of the Catholic Parish of Mossman—Port Douglas
www.staugs.qld.edu.au
email: secretary.mossman@cns.catholic.edu.au
Shared Wisdom is an important part of the way that I work as
a leader in a learning context. The basic philosophy of a
shared wisdom model of leadership is the belief that no one
person has all the knowledge, instead everyone has
knowledge to contribute and as the leader you listen to the
wisdom of everyone as you lead people to a decision.
I firmly believe that each and everyone of us has an important
contribution to make to the success of our school and it is my
role as the Principal to listen to as many people as I can.
Thank you to those parents who have taken the time to come
and meet with me and help me to get to know their children
and understand their dreams for the children. Thank you to
the School Board who have also helped me to understand and
come to know the dream of the community in relation to our
Catholic Parish
Mossman and Port Douglas
St Augustine Church
24 Grogan Street,
Mossman
Saturday 6:30pm, Mossman
Sunday 7:00am, Mossman
school. And thank you to our teachers and school support
staff who have been patient with me as I have come to know
them and understand the work that they do.
Over the past month I have spent a significant amount of time
consulting with as many people as possible and listening very
carefully as we went through the decision
making process around our class structure
for 2015.
The wonderful part of this
process was that everyone involved was
able to keep the children as the focus of
the decision. Please refer to the section in
which the class structure is explained.
Thank you
Co-responsible in faith and
development
St Mary Church
2 Endeavour Street,
Port Douglas
Sunday 9:00am, Port Douglas
We acknowledge the traditional custodians of this land, the Kuku Yalanji and Yirrganydji peoples,
and pay our respect to the elders, both past, present and future.
St Augustine’s in 2015
Class Structures
6th November 2014
Staffing
After a wide ranging consultative process which
Each year there are staff changes as families and people
included teachers, the School Board, Catholic
move onto new opportunities. This year we will be saying
Education Services in Cairns and general input
good bye to:
from parents we have decided to go with 8 classes
1.
Ms Leah Whiting
in 2015. Those classes are:
2.
Ms Stacey Neller
1. Prep
2. Prep
3.
Ms Christina Wight
3. Year 1
4. Year 2/3
4.
Ms Fatima Patel.
5. Year 2/3
6. Year 4/5
We are saying hello to Ms Lauren Scaroni who currently
7. Year 4/5
8. Year 6
teaches in Mount Isa.
We are still in the process of
If any parent wishes to meet with me to discuss
interviewing for another teacher.
Until we have made that
how this structure will support their child’s learning
appointment we are unable to finalise teacher allocations.
please feel free to come and see me.
As soon as we are able to we will inform families through
the newsletter.
Teacher Professional Learning Initiative
Next year we are undertaking an extensive Professional Learning initiative with our
teaching staff.
We are establishing Professional Learning Communities (PLC”S).
The PLC’s will comprise of teaching teams, e.g. the 2 Year 2/3 teachers will be a
team.
Each team will have a term during which they will engage with an Action
learning process.
The focus of the Action Learning will be literacy and will be
determined by our student achievement data — NAPLAN, Whole School Diagnostic
Tests and Teacher observations of their students.
www.phf.org
Action Learning requires the teachers to be involved research of current
pedagogies (i.e. teaching strategies and theories) and in this they will be supported by CES through their Literacy Coaching
initiative. As part of this process the teachers will be co-planning, demonstration teaching for their peers, gathering their own
data of student and teacher development and presenting research findings to the rest of the staff. This is an exciting initiative
and will require a significant contribution from our teachers—to support them with this we have worked within our budget and are
able to arrange for the teachers who are directly engaged with the Action Learning to have extra release time. The desired o utcome of this initiative is an improvement in student outcomes in the area of literacy and to build the capacity of our teachers.
Current research tells us that the single most important contributing factor in achieving an improvement in student learning is the
capacity of the teacher — so we are going to give our teachers an opportunity to grow and enrich their current good practice.
Wow, Week 6 of our final term and only 3 weeks to go!
This term has been fast and furious, packed with so many
good things and still more to come. Heading towards the
end of our school year we find ourselves and our children
getting tired, run down (physically, mentally and emotionally) and yet we know there’s still so much to do! So,
some food for thought as we journey towards the end of
an enormous year; try using the KISS Strategy (Keep It
Simple Silly!)-
Ten Ways to Simplify Your Life
Adapted by Andrea Dean
Simplicity is about eliminating clutter – from your mind, your
home, your relationships and your lifestyle.
Following are ten ways to begin.
1. Get a clear idea of what you want your life to look like. This
picture will help you discover what you must eliminate.
2. Let go of projects, roles or self-imposed obligations that take
up time and keep you away from what you really want.
3. Say No to what you don’t want in your life. Say Yes to what
you do want.
4. Schedule “break” days for yourself where you don’t do anything but what you really want. Don’t cancel them.
5. Make a “to do” day and get all those chores and errands done
in a single day.
6. Create space. File away or toss out; give away, sell or trade.
7. Make and return phone calls only during certain hours.
8. Shop only when you have to. Question your purchases. Consuming less is good for the planet, too.
9. Ask for and accept help. Delegate chores. Hire work done
when possible.
10. Remember to breathe, to ground yourself and be
physically present.
A gratitude list will help you discover what really matters to you.
Simplifying means making choices that will
improve the quality of your life!
Gayle Duncan
(Social Emotional Learning Coordinator)
Monday
17th November
Swimming
Tuesday
18th November
Wednesday
19th November
Swimming
PaCE Parent &
Community Forum
Thursday
20th November
Friday
21st November
Swimming
Miss Ruth
Miss Ruth is a school officer she helps people with their learning you will see
her helping students around the school.
Q. What hobbies do you like to do
in your spare time?
A. Water skiing and help out with
the Port Douglas Surf Club and
camping.
Q. What your favourite food?
A. water melon and mango.
Q. What’s your favourite TV
show?
A. Arrow.
Q. What is the most important thing
in your life?
A. Family.
Q. What got you involved in the surf
club?
A. They talk and where promote t he
surf club and come one
day and
try it out.
Kai Pendlebury and Tom Reinhold
Mrs Santarossa
Mrs Santarossa is a secretary at our school front office, she has worked for St. Augustine’s for 10 years and
7 of them were spent in the office. Mrs Santarossa is a working mother of 4, Josh, as the oldest, Zayden, Kodie and Shae, as the youngest. Mrs Santarossa is a lovely, warm, smiling face of the office and we are lucky
to have someone like her. Our curiosity in our teachers, teacher aids and school officers has brought us to
interviewing each one to see what they’re really like, we interviewed Mrs Santarossa and we were surprised
with some of her answers.
Q:What did you want to be when
you were growing up?
Q If you didn’t work at our
school, what and where
would you work?
A: a nurse
Q:if you could have any superpower what would it be?
A: to be like Spiderwoman
Q:What do you do on Sunday
mornings or days off?
A: Sleeping in or camping
A: drive those huge mine
trucks
Q: If you could have any
animal as a pet, what
would it be?
A: a pug dog
By Emma Pedley &
Brooklyn Henry
The following article has been derived from the website www.addictions.com/video-games and looks at how young people (and adults) can become
addicted to online or video gaming, the effects of such an addiction and how parents and friends can support those who may develop an addiction to
gaming.
Defining Video Game Addiction : Unlike substance addictions, video game addictions cannot be defined so clearly. It can take more than just an insight
into a person’s ability and enthusiasm in a video game to define it as an addiction. Psychiatrist, Michael Brody, believes a true addiction to video games
is a compulsive disorder and defines this addiction as follows:
A need for the person to play the game or take part in gaming behaviour more and more (develops a tolerance).
Irritability or miserableness related to not getting the video game action required.
He goes on to say that gaming addiction has all the withdrawal symptoms of substance abuse addiction such as insomnia, anger, violent behaviour and
other disturbing disorders, which are treatable with time and therapy.
Research methods suggest that video gaming increases the dopamine production which can lead to increased satisfaction similar to the use of drugs,
such as ecstasy or other stimulants. Video game addiction is not only attributable to a chemical imbalance in the brain, but also, a psychological need or
desire to play.
Recognising Signs of Video Game Addiction in Adolescents.
Following are some behaviours that could suggest that your son/daughter could have or be developing an addiction:
They only feel happy when gaming …. If you recognise that your son/daughter are only happy when they are gaming, they could have a problem.
Distracted by video games, e.g. “Hey Mum, can I play my video game when I get home?”, or does not seem to think about anything but video
games.
Spending more time playing games than socialising ……. Staying home to play games rather than go out and spend time with friends could be a sure
sign of video game addiction.
You catch your child playing video games when they are not supposed to be. If they are placed on video game restriction, should be doing homework or is not supposed to be playing the game could also be a problem with addiction.
In some extreme cases gaming has led to death whereby the person has been so pre-occupied with the game that food, water or taking care of one’s
self have been neglected and led to death.
Harmful Effects.
There are many harmful effects to gaming addiction apart from isolative behaviour and social skill deficits, which include:
Increased risk of ADD or ADHD due to the highly interactive nature of video games.
Learning disabilities that result from slowed responses versus the intense video games.
Increased risk of light-induced seizures from video games.
Musculoskeletal disorders of the upper extremities from sitting for prolonged periods of time or from only using the upper body.
Increased weight gain from lack of exercise.
Lowered metabolism.
Aggressive thoughts and behaviours especially present in children who excessively play video games when they are under 10 years old.
Poor social interaction.
Poor cooperative interaction (a “must win” mentality).
Controlling or Limiting the Risk of Gaming addiction.
There are many steps that parents can take to limit the risk of addiction ….. The following steps can be taken to prevent addiction in your son/daughter:
Limiting time to one hour or less per day ….. Video games should not consume a child’s fun time. After one hour, gaming should cease and active
play takes its place.
Monitor game playing time …… active monitoring allows parents to notice when their child is playing video games e.g. when they are sad, depressed, bored or in another state of mind.
Pay attention to problems that result from gaming, such as, noticing that a certain game causes your child to react poorly, have a negative attitude
or otherwise show signs of problems when playing, consider taking their privilege away for a time.
Tantrums after time limits if your child throws a tantrum, shows signs of anger and depression after their video game time limit is up, consider
placing even stricter limits on their usage.
Parents also need to monitor the type of games they are allowing their child to play. I meet with many students who tell me that they are playing games
which are not rated G or PG. Many of these games promote violence and some present an inappropriate regard for females. If you are allowing your
child to use computer games or Apps, be responsible and take the time to view the game yourself so that you know what your child is playing. If you are
concerned about the amount of time your young person is spending on video games or in fact, the internet in general (Facebook, Ipads etc.), don’t hesitate to seek support from suitably qualified professionals. Start by taking charge, be the parent, turn it off and remove it from sight if necessary & don’t
bring it out unless behaviour improves!
Michelle Hall
(Guidance Counsellor)
Brinklow Family 14th November
Herrington Family 21st November
Johnston family 28th November
Baldwin Family 5th December
All Bama Parents &
Community are invited…
to Have Your Say!
Wednesday 19th November 2014
Where: Mossman Shire Hall, Mill Street
Time: Sign In 5.30pm and Start from 6pm to 8pm
Forum:
Adults Only Event
Mayi/Kai Kai: Light Supper will be provided
Transport: Coral Reef Coaches Bus will pick up
from the following locations and deliver you back
to your home.
Bus Pick up Locations: Old Wonga Beach
(Primary School & New Wonga (BP Servo); Cooya
Beach (Shops) / Port Douglas (St. Mary’s Church);
Four Mile Beach (Shops near round-about); Mossman Gorge (Car Park / Phone box).
Pick up Time for All Locations:
4.45pm to approximately 5.15pm
Shaping Our Children’s Education and Learning for Successl
Proudly supported by:
Mossman Parent & Community
Engagement (PaCE)
Mossman State High School
Douglas Shire Softball
Come to our Social Day November
16th 12-2pm CWA hall, Port Douglas
if you are interested in Playing,
Coaching, Umpiring, Scoring.
Visit our Face Book
Page Douglas Softball
P & F Working Bee
Sunday 16th
November
9am—12pm
All Welcome!!