newsletter-2015-04-28 - Albany Hills State School

Albany Hills State School
Strength through Knowledge
Tuesday 28 April 2015
Edition 12
What’s on
April
28 P&C
29 & 30 Year 4 Excursions
30 District Boys Touch
Trials
May
1 Gala Day
4&5 Prep 2016 Information
Sessions
5-7 Mothers’ Day Stall
5 Senior Assembly
6 Junior Assembly
6&7 Regional Rugby
League Trials
9 Uniting Church Fete
12 School Council
Nominations Close
12-14 NAPLAN
22 Gala Day
June
5 Gala Day
Reminders
Front Gate
Closed
8:30am - 9:00am
and
2:50pm - 3:15pm
Back Gate
Open 7:30am
Closed 3:20pm
Closed weekends and
school holidays
Uniform Shop
Tues 2.30 – 3.30pm
Wed 8am – 9.30am
Thurs 8am – 9.30am
Fri 8am – 8.30am
2:30 – 3:30pm
Money Collection
Mon - Fri
Place in window box
outside school office.
Office Hours
Mon-Fri
8:00am – 3:00pm
A message from Mr Rod Mason...
Dear Parents and Caregivers
Allan Rollo Retires
I am sure there would be a great number of past students and their families that would wish Allan all the
best in his retirement after 44 years of service to education. Twenty- seven of these years was at Albany
Hills and no doubt he has contributed much to the culture of learning and community engagement in the
school.
Beyond the classroom Allan made his mark as a coach and manager of inter-school and representative
sporting teams, no doubt making a significant difference to the lives of many students. Allan’s commitment
to his colleagues is fondly remembered by long serving staff as he supported staff new to the profession
as well as those new to the school.
Teaching is a vocation that reaches into our desire as human beings to make a difference to the lives of
others. Allan can take great satisfaction that the school community of Albany Hills benefited from his
commitment to the learning and well-being of the students placed in his care.
We Did Remember Them
The ANZAC ceremony held at the school on Friday was notable for the atmosphere created for the
students. Speakers focussed on the personal aspect of the conflicts, emphasising the sacrifice that has
contributed to our freedom and way of life. The choral item presented by our students was exemplary,
many thanks. I am sure the many parents who attended appreciated the messages and were impressed
with the attentiveness of their children.
Preps for 2016
Mrs Henderson is busy preparing for the information sessions for prospective Prep enrolments for 2016.
On Monday 4 May and on Tuesday evening prospective parents will come to the school to learn about
what the Albany Hills Early Years Prep program offers their children. Having spent a term with this year’s
Preps I can attest to the quality of the teaching and learning that occurs. They are a very happy and
engaging group of students, always keen to learn and have a chat – a testament to their teachers and the
partnership forged with parents.
Parents are our best ambassadors and are asked to spread the word amongst their contacts so they may
take advantage to learn about this wonderful Prep program.
Parents are also invited to the Under 8’s Day on the 18 May.
Thought for the Week
Parents are our partners in their child’s education.
As a child’s first teacher, a parent provides the basis of language development and establishes norms of
behaviour. Formal schooling builds on these so it is vital there is agreement on expectations lest the child
becomes confused. At Albany Hills parents and teachers are building these solid partnerships through
formal interviews and regular communications, resulting in us knowing more about the students in our
care.
Rod Mason
Principal
Student Absences
Phone: 3264 0760 Email: studentabsences@albahillss.eq.edu.au
Keong Road
PO Box 378
Albany Creek Qld 4035
Albany Creek Qld 4035
The Herald: herald@albahillss.eq.edu.au
Phone: 07 3264 0777
Fax: 07 3264 0700
Student Absence: 07 3264 0760
Email: admin@albahillss.eq.edu.au
Website: www.albahillss.eq.edu.au
studentabsences@albahillss.eq.edu.au
From the Deputies……
School Council
Elections
This term will see elections held
for positions on our School
Council. The process will
involve the adoption of a
constitution at both staff and
P&C meetings. These will be
held on 28 April. The draft
constitution is available from the
school office or on the school
website (documents section).
Nominations for two parents and
two staff (one teaching and one
non-teaching) will be called with
nominations closing on 12 May.
The election will take place at
special meetings (one for
parents and one for staff) on 26
May. These meetings will be
held in the school. As the
appointed Returning Officer, I
will be overseeing the election
process.
These two websites provide
additional information:
http://education.qld.gov.au/scho
ols/independent-publicschools/resources/ipsprospectus.pdf
http://education.qld.gov.au/scho
ols/about/school-councilhandbook.html
The first is an overview of
Independent Public Schools, and
the second has details on how
School Councils are formed and
operate. An information package
for prospective nominees will be
available soon.
- Steve
ANZAC Assembly
Last Friday, our school
commemorated ANZAC Day
with a special whole school
assembly. Australian Defence
Force representative Captain
Clayton Baker from the
Australian Defence Force spoke
at the assembly and Private
Michael James
provided the
flag protocol.
Each class had
two
representatives
laying a
wreath. The whole day was a
great learning experience for our
students. Thank you to Karen
O’Connor, our Defence Force
Teacher Aide in particular, and
the many other school personnel
and volunteers involved in the
organization of this important
annual school event. The school
captains, student leaders and
those who performed on stage
are congratulated on their efforts
and participation.
Prep Enrolments
2016
If you are planning to enrol your
child in prep for 2016, please
contact our school office to
receive your enrolment forms.
Students born between 1 July
2010 and 30 June 2011 are
eligible for Prep in 2016.
Important information sessions
for parents will be held in May.
Parents may choose:
Monday 4 May 9.00am 10.30am or
Tuesday 5 May 6.30pm 7.30pm.
Future students and their
families are also invited to join
us for Under Eights’ Morning on
Monday 18 May.
Under Eights’
Morning
Our annual celebration is a
morning of free choice activities
for children in P-2 on Monday 18
May from 9am to 10.30am. This
year’s theme is Voices of
children—Look, listen, hear and
respond. Family, friends and
visitors are welcome.
Do You Love Our
School?
We are seeking testimonials
from parents, students, past
students and community
members for our new website.
If you think Albany Hills State
School is a great school, and are
willing to have your thoughts
published, please write 1-10
sentences saying why you think
this, and email with your name
and contact details (only your
name will be published) to:
admin@albahillss.eq.edu.au
NAPLAN
National Assessment Program
- Literacy and Numeracy
(NAPLAN) equating study
As you may be aware, NAPLAN
tests are administered to Year 3,
5, 7 and 9 students in May each
year. You may not be aware that
each year a sample of students
in these same year levels, from
across Australia, are also
required to sit the NAPLAN
Equating Study.
Equating is a process carried out
to enable the results of tests
completed year to year to be
reported on the same
assessment scales. For
NAPLAN, a representative
national sample of students is
selected annually to participate
in this additional equating phase
or equating study so that
NAPLAN test results can be
compared over time.
The Australian Curriculum,
Assessment and Reporting
Authority (ACARA) manages the
NAPLAN Equating Study, and
the assessment contractor is the
Australian Council for
Educational Research (ACER).
ACER is responsible for all
aspects of the administration of
the equating tests.
This year, Albany Hills State
School has been selected to
be part of the Equating Study
in the area of Numeracy only.
25 students from Year 3 and 27
students from Year 5 have been
selected. This will involve the
classes 3BC and 5JS
respectively. The NAPLAN
Equating Project Team at ACER
has selected the classes at
random, to ensure a range of
student abilities in the test
sample. If students are absent
from those classes on the testing
day, students may be selected
from other Year 3 and 5 classes
to take their place.
These students will complete a
paper-based assessment,
similar to a regular NAPLAN
test, on Thursday 30 April.
If you have any questions please
do not hesitate to contact me at
swied3@eq.edu.au , or your
child’s class teacher.
2015 NAPLAN TESTS
In Week 4 of this term, students
in Years 3 and 5 will sit the
annual NAPLAN (National
Assessment Program – Literacy
and Numeracy) tests.
The dates for the tests are as
follows:
Tuesday 12
May
Wednesday
13 May
Thursday 14
May
Language
conventions
(spelling,
grammar and
punctuation)
and Writing
tests
Reading test
Numeracy test
brochure entitled “NAPLAN:
2015 Information for Parents”.
More information can be
obtained from your child’s class
teacher or at www.nap.edu.au
If you have any questions or
concerns around exemptions,
withdrawals or special
considerations, please do not
hesitate to contact your child’s
teacher, or me at
swied3@eq.edu.au
Smile!
School photos will be taken on
27 and 28 May. Our students
always look outstanding in
photos with formal school
uniforms including plain black
shoes, navy socks, school
coloured hair accessories and
adherence to
jewellery rules.
Payment
envelopes with
information will be
sent home soon.
Stay Informed!
There are at least four easy
ways to stay informed about
what’s going on at Albany Hills.
Website:
www.albahillss.eq.edu.au
Twitter: @AlbanyHillsSS
It is important that Year 3 and 5
students are present on these
dates so that they are able to sit
the tests under the same
conditions as their classmates.
Friday 15 May is set aside as a
‘catch up’ day for the tests,
however, this will usually be
done under the supervision of a
teaching staff member in the
administration building. We
strongly advise that you ensure
your child is present on the set
dates to participate in the tests
with their classmates.
This week, parents of students in
Years 3 and 5 will receive a
QSchools app:
download and
make Albany Hills
a favourite
Facebook:
Albany Hills State
School Parents page (managed
by parents)
Kind regards
Steve Wiedman
Beth Henderson
Deputy Principal
Teaching and
Learning
Partnerships
Teachers are currently preparing
students in Years 3 and 5 for the
National Assessment Program –
Literacy and Numeracy
(NAPLAN). NAPLAN is a
measure to determine whether
students are meeting important
education outcomes in literacy
and numeracy. The four tests
across three days (12-14 May)
focus on reading, writing,
spelling, grammar and numeracy
skills. Although the tests focus
on skills that are already learnt
through the curriculum, teachers
are ensuring students are
familiar with format of the tests.
The test questions are multiple
choice or require short
responses. The writing task
requires students to write a text
in response to a prompt.
For more information and ways
you can support your child in
NAPLAN , visit www.nap.ed.au
or contact your child’s teacher.
Jodi MacDonald
Master Teacher
Curriculum Corner
It’s not too late to enter Young
Scientist of the Year! Entries
were to be handed in by last
Friday but we will still be
accepting entry forms this week.
Forms can be found here on the
school website for anyone who
missed out.
We will be commencing
lunchtime meetings in the
coming weeks to support
students with their
entries. Details of
these meetings
will be sent home
with students
who have
submitted entry
forms.
Christie Meiklejohn
Head of Curriculum
Mothers’ Day 2015
In Australia we celebrate
Mother’s Day this year on
Sunday 10 May.
You can show your mums you
love and appreciate them by
giving gifts, making breakfast for
her, doing chores and even
visiting our Mothers’ Day Stall
here at Albany Hills State
School.
This year my family will
participate in the Mothers’ Day
Classic.
This is a walk or run for Breast
Cancer research. It started in
1998 as mums walking in the
park and has grown to a national
event with last year seeing
130,000 people participating in
11 cities and 88 regional
locations. A total of $24.3 million
has been raised to date. To find
out more visit
www.mothersdayclassic.com.au
Order your new 2015|2016
Entertainment Membership
today to receive up to $195 in
Early Bird Offers!
Choose from the traditional
Entertainment Book or the NEW
Entertainment Digital
Membership, which puts the
value of the Book into your
iPhone or Android smartphone!
Each membership has hundreds
of 50% off and 2-for-1 offers for
restaurants, cafés, attractions,
hotels, shopping, groceries and
travel and contain over 2,000
offers that you can use
whenever you like until 1 June
2016. PLUS Albany Hills P & C
retains 20% of the price of every
Membership sold which goes
towards our fundraising!
Order now:
http://www.entbook.com.au/2215
7v4 If you have any questions,
please do not hesitate to contact
Melissa Dunning
0447 711 139
Harvey Boardman 5CB
Community News
Auskick
Albany Hills State School
First session Tuesday 5 May
3:20 – 4:20pm
Length of program is 7 weeks
Cost is $70
For more information visit
aflauskick.com.au
or call 3865 8700
Bushcare
Bushcare at McConachie Street,
Albany Creek May 10. All
welcome. For details contact
janet@themangoman.com.au
Movie in the Park
Apex Albany Creek 2 May 6pm
Jacaranda Park Albany Creek.
Cheeseburgers,
hot
chips,
popcorn, drinks and chocolates
will be available for purchase.
P&C News
Tuckshop Roster
Fete Newsletter
4 May – 8 May
Monday
Sandra C
Amanda G
Kym
Tuesday
Michelle L
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Fete News
Karen C
Teritia P
Natalie F
AnneMaree H
Sharon S
Leah R
Lou L
Lynda A
Bring Week
This week’s item is pasta spirals.
Please drop them into us at the
tuckshop.
Entertainment Books
The new 2015 | 2016
Entertainment Books are coming
soon! A book will be sent home
with each family for you to check
out, on 30 April 2015.
We can email you the Fete
Newsletters straight into your
inbox so you don’t miss out on
all the latest updates, activities,
competitions and information.
Subscribe by emailing us at
albanyhillsfete2015@gmail.com
Fete Committee
Albany Creek Uniting
Church May Fair
We are having our annual May
Fair on Saturday 9 May. Albany
Hills Junior Choir, Senior String
Ensemble, Senior Choir and
Senior Concert Band will all be
performing from 12 noon. Please
come and support them, and
enjoy browsing the stalls and
having a bite to eat from the
barbecue or morning teas.
Any queries, please contact
Heather Golding on
0403 007 578.
Breast Cancer
Fundraiser
Be Uplifted Inc Breast Cancer
Charity is holding a Girls Night
Out movie night to see Pitch
Perfect 2 at Stafford Cinemas on
Wednesday, 13 May,
6.30-6.45pm screening
Tickets $25 (includes goodies
bag)
Phone Wendy 0408 751 577