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Phone 9757 2666 Fax 9757 2863

Margaretriver.ps@education.wa.edu.au www.mriverps.wa.edu.au

CHALK DUST CHATTER 6th February 2017 Newsletter issue: 1

Uniform Shop

Tuesday & Thursday

8.30-11.15am

9270 4688

margaretriverps@uc.ubd.net.au

It was fabulous to see so many beautiful smiling faces back at school last week. Students settled in really

well and there was a lot of fun back to school activities happening in the classrooms.

Pictured here are students from Room 20 painting a picture of their first day in Pre-primary,

(playing in the sunshine and dreaming of vanilla and chocolate icecream);

and a group of friends, happy to be back spending fun lunch breaks together.

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Welcome Back We loved seeing so many excited students back at school on Wednesday last week ready for the new school year. There were plenty of happy parents dropping students off to classes and meeting teachers for the year ahead. Thank you for making sure that students came with uniforms and all of the items on their equipment lists. We commenced the year with a short whole school assembly before recess to remind ourselves of the Margaret River Primary School Values:

Cooperation

Respect

Empathy

Enthusiasm

Honesty

Flexibility

We now have around 960 students enrolled across the school as we continue to grow in size each year. We look forward to an exciting year ahead and we extend a very warm welcome to all of our new school community members and families. Best wishes for an amazing year at Margaret River Primary School.

Class Allocations The allocation of students to classes is undertaken at the end of each school year and is amended as new enrolments arrive during the holiday period. As you can appreciate, the allocation of nearly 1000 students can be quite complex. Please do not ask for students to be moved into another class as requests cannot be accommodated. It is normal for students to be placed in classes with a new peer group and this is part of the learning experience of school and life. Students have the opportunity to play with friends that they have made in previous years during recess, lunch breaks and after school.

Kiss & Drive Parking Now that you have shown students to their new classrooms, we encourage you to make use of the Kiss and Drive drop off zone in the laneway on the south side of the school. Please pull up onto the yellow marked area during drop off and pick times and do not park on the gravel area at any time. Thank you for helping keep the traffic flowing around the school.

Year 3 – 6 Sports Carnival in Term 1 The Year 3—6 sports carnival will be held in Term 1 this year to avoid a conflict with lots of events, in what is always a very busy last term of the year. We will again be adopting the rotation format which increased participation throughout the day. Further details can be found on the Term Calendar which will be sent out this week.

New Primary School A new primary school is now under construction in Rapids Landing. The school will be opening its doors for the beginning of the 2018 school year. We will keep you up to date throughout the year as the new Principal is appointed, the school officially named, local intake areas confirmed and staff appointed. The community will be invited to join in many of the processes and we will share details with you as soon as we are aware of any.

It’s great to have you all back again and I look forward to seeing you around the school.

Aaron Thomas, Principal

Merit Certificates Room 4 Amelia Otto

Room 4 Tahlia Hester

Room 5 Silva Holzmann

Room 5 Jack O’Brien

Room 6 Rory Wilson

Room 6 Arley Dowding

Room 7 India Ashworth

Room 7 Louie Giibbs

Room 8 Solomon Seroney

Room 8 Saffi Harris

Room 10 Drew Hastie

Room 10 Lourdes Sutherland

Room 15 Max Nelson

Room 17 Kai Ensley

Room 17 Freya Campbell

Room 22 Anae Short

Room 22 Jasper Middleton

Room T1 Kyan Lantzke

Room T1 Lucy Bebb

Room T2 Tom Guja

Room T4 Lucy Sanders

Room T4 Billie-Violet Mahon

Room T6 Liam Walker

Room T6 Kade Guja

Room T8 Holly Vardy

Room T8 Rafael Merle

Bee-Bop-A-Lula Year 2 - Room T1

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Teacher to Parent Information Sessions These sessions are being held Thursday 16th February. They are an

opportunity for parents to attend their child’s classroom where teachers

will outline routines and procedures for the year ahead. This is a general

session and is a good time to make an appointment with the teacher

should you require a one on one meeting.

A staggered timetable has been developed to try to accommodate parents with more than one child.

Times are as follows—all meetings are to be held your child’s classroom.

3.30-4.00 Years 5/6 4.00-4.30 Kindy/PrePrimary

4.30-5.00 Years 3/4 5.00-5.30 Years 1/2

Music News

Rock Bands Auditions for MRPS 's Rock Bands will be held in WEEK THREE during lunchtimes in the Music Room. Once selections have been finalised, students will be notified. If your child is keen to be a part of one of the rock bands, they must come to the Music Room this week and obtain an AUDITION note. Bands are open to students in Years 3 - 6. Students must have at least 1 to 2 years experience on their chosen instrument/s and a sense of commitment. Having said that, they may have only just begun learning but picked up their particular instrument at an advanced level. Notes should be returned to the MUSIC ROOM as soon as possible to allow for auditions to begin in Week 3. The students are coached by local musicians and there is a cost payable to the coach each term (2017—$110.00)Thank you.

Choir (Dreamcatchers) All students from Years 3-6 are invited to join the Dreamcatchers. Choir will commence WEEK TWO. All interested students should rock up to the music room at 1.05 after they have eaten their lunch. Dreamcatchers will then meet weekly every Wednesday at lunchtime in the Music Room ( 1:05 - 1:40). There will be times that extra rehearsals will be required. There is a Choir contract that is read and completed by you and your child/children outlining the expectations required. All SIM students are encouraged to be a part of the Dreamcatchers as it enhances their instrumental skills.

School of Instrumental Music (ISSM formerly known as SIM) Program The ISSM program for Years 5 & 6 will commence in Week 3 - Timetables will be displayed on the Music Room Noticeboard. Please check this Noticeboard regularly. Welcome and congratulations to our Year 5 2017 beginners. We welcome back our marvellous instrumental teachers: Mrs Sunny Hardy - Woodwind, Mrs Johanna Nordstrom - Brass and Mr Bruce Godden - Guitar. Loan forms for Year 5 Brass and Woodwind students are now available from the front office. Please complete this form and return it to the front office with your payment for the year. No instruments will be distributed until forms are completed and payment has been made. Thank you. Assessment of any new year 5 enrolments for 2017 will be conducted this week so they have the opportunity to be included in the SIM program which commences in Week 3 in transportable room T3. Thank you To the Willcox family for their donation of a guitar to the music room.

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P &C

Do something good for your school The Margaret River Primary School P & C is a group of volunteers who support our school by doing these

things:

1. Coming to P&C meetings (once a month, 10 meetings a year)

2. Giving our Principal parent feedback at P&C meetings

3. Managing the school Canteen

4. Fundraising for our school

5. Working out how to best spend the money we've raised

6 Helping out in any way we can

If you can do any of these things, we’d love to meet you.

Keep your eyes peeled for the date of our next meeting,

which we’ll announce soon. This will be advertised on our school calendar

Canteen News

Our canteen at MRPS operates 5 days a week and caters for over 950 students and staff. As you can

appreciate, this means there is a lot of food to organise and orders to fill. Our lovely canteen ladies are

once again on the lookout for some volunteers to help out this term. No food preparation is required,

just helping out with orders, unpacking deliveries and serving at the counter. Volunteer hours are ap-

prox. 8.50am –11.30am and having volunteers help us keep our canteen prices down. If you think you

may be able to help out for a few hours, whether it may be once a term or every few weeks, you can

speak to Jude or Desiree at the canteen.

Alternatively, you can email your name, contact and the days/times you are available to Lee-Anne at

the front office at lee-anne.townrow@education.wa.edu.au. Thank you.

Please also note that the canteen has a new Summer Menu with a few changes, it is available online.

Name

Phone Email

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Kitchen Garden News

We extend a hearty welcome to our Year 4 students who are joining the program for

the first time. You will have fun and learn lots about gardening and preparing tasty,

pleasurable food much of it being grown in our own garden. Welcome back to our

Year 5 students who will build on their knowledge and skills and continue to have fun

caring for plants and preparing and sharing the great recipes from the kitchen.

Our classes will be beginning kitchen garden lessons in week 2 and we would love to have some volunteers

to help us get started. Our specialists are Ange Packer-Savic in the garden with Sarah Goodwin in the kitchen.

Can you assist your child’s class during their timetabled session? If you can help out please contact your

child’s teacher on Monday as the program begins on Tuesday. The timetable will be sorted by then. At the

beginning of each school term the Year 4s start with a kitchen class and the Year 5s start with a garden class.

There will be a parent information session organised soon to explain our program and our goals and where

you will also have an opportunity to confirm regular volunteer sessions or however you may wish to assist

throughout the first semester.

The kitchen garden program is a valuable one and with your help it

will continue to be a most wonderful experience for our students in

2017.

Many Thanks, Geoff McLeod Kitchen Garden Coordinator

Keep up to date with school news

This year we would like as many parents/caregivers

as possible to download our MRPS school app

which is available via Googleplay or Itunes.

We will be using it more frequently as a method of

communication and it is a great way to receive

notification of any upcoming events and changes.

The app is also a quick and convenient way to notify

us of any absences. Once received, a reply email

will be sent from our front office staff advising your

student’s details have beeen updated.

Other features of the app include the term planner,

the canteen menu and our school contact details.

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Student Health and Wellbeing MRPS Code of Conduct incorporates six core values:

Cooperation, Empathy, Enthusiasm, Flexibility, Honesty and Respect

(SDERA) School Drug Education & Road Aware Welcome back, I hope you had a safe, fun holiday season with lots of quality time with your children.

While parents and family will always have the primary role in children’s safety and wellbeing, education is vital

for children and young people to thrive in an increasing complex society. The school implements this Challenges

and Choices (SDERA) program, as part of our schools EQ health program. Every newsletter there’s an article

about one of the 5 focus areas: Resilience and Wellbeing, Drug Education, Passenger & Pedestrian Safety and

Safety on Wheels. We change focus areas depending on what the Inquiry topic is. We share vital information and

some interesting statistics. The aim of the SDERA program is to educate children and families with the hope of

empowering them to make personal and socially-responsible decisions. Last year Margaret River Primary School

achieved the Gold target through lots of work and dedication from the students and teachers at Margaret River

Primary School.

SDERA This term I will talk about Safety on Wheels and Passenger & Pedestrian Safety as the year 4s will be

participating in their Wharncliffe Mill bike camp, we have our ride to school day this term, plus every day we

have many children using wheeled devices to get to school. Cycling, riding and other wheeled devices are

healthy and environmentally friendly activities, as well as being convenient modes of transport. We are very

lucky to have so many tracks and cycling paths in Margaret River with such impressive scenery.

Before you start, you have a check list. Please remember to go through these safety precautions regularly;

• Check that your child has a fitted helmet and protective gear

• Make sure wheels spin freely

• Check tyres (worn or flat)

• Fix any lose wheel nuts or broken spikes

• Are the brakes working?

• Make sure chain is clean and can move freely, it should be kept lightly oiled.

• Has your bike got reflectors? They should be at the front and back of the bike.

• Does you bell still work?

• Check there are no sharp edges

That’s it – you’re done. Did your child’s bike or wheeled devise pass the safety check? If not, get it repaired

straight away. Don’t risk their safety. Did you know a bicycle helmet is designed to offer the wearer protection

and if worn correctly, may decrease the risk of a head injury by up to 85%? Non-helmeted cyclists are three

times more likely to be killed as a result of a crash.

Thank you for playing a vital role in your child’s road safety education.

For more information visit www.sdera .wa.edu.au

FOCUS CORE VALUE

Enthusiasm

One of Margaret River Primary School Virtues is Enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm is when we have a strong liking for, or interest in someone or something. We can display enthusiasm

in our schoolwork by trying extra hard and listening carefully to instructions when the teacher is talking to the

class. Remember nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.

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This group is to help parents build emotional intelligence in their children and has no religious content..

Out There - MRPS cannot assume responsibility for students attending non-school activities.

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Out There - MRPS cannot assume responsibility for students attending non-school activities.

Piano lessons for Beginners

with Lucy Taylor

Simply Music is a revolutionary playing based piano method. Students can, on average, confidently play between 30-50 songs within the first 12 months of lessons.

Enquiries and bookings call or text Lucy on 0448 491 795

TIMETABLE 2017

www.outlouddance.com.au MONDAY – OUTLOUD STUDIO 1 OPEN BEGINNERS TAP DANCE (ALL AGES) 3.45 – 4.30PM 8 – 10 YRS JAZZ/HIPHOP 4.30 – 5.30PM 10 – 12 YRS JAZZ/HIPHOP 5.30 – 6.30PM MONDAY - STUDIO 2 ADULTS BARREFIT/CORE CLASS 9.15 – 10.30AM ADULT BARREFIT/CORE CLASS 6.00 – 7.15PM ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TUESDAY – OUTLOUD STUDIO 1 2 – 4 YRS BEG BALLET 3.45 – 4.30PM 8 – 10 YRS BALLET 4.30 – 5.30PM TECH/TURNOUT DEVELOPMENT CLASS 5.30 – 6.30PM LYRICAL/CONTEMPORY 6.30 – 7.30PM TUESDAY – STUDIO 2 5 – 7RS GLEE CLUB (ACTING/SINGING) 4.00 – 5.00PM ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WEDNESDAY – OUTLOUD STUDIO 1 TODDLE BOP JAZZ/HIPHOP ( 2 – 4 YRS) 9.30 – 10.15AM 5 – 7 YRS BEG BALLET 3.45 – 4.30PM 5 – 7 YRS JAZZ/HIPHOP 4.30 – 5.15PM JNR TEENS JAZZ/HIPHOP 5.15 – 6.15PM INT TEENS/SNR TEENS 6.15 – 7.15PM WEDNESDAY – STUDIO 2 ADULTS BARREFIT/CORE CLASS 5.45 – 7.00PM --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THURSDAY - OUTLOUD STUDIO 1 OPEN JNR BEG ACROBATICS ( 4 – 7 YRS) 4.00 – 4.45PM OPEN GIRLS CHEERLEADING TROUPE 7/OVER 4.45 – 5.45PM ADULTS ONLY DANCE FIT 6.00 – 7.00PM THURSDAY – STUDIO 2 8 – 10 YRS GLEE CLUB (ACTING/SINGING) 4.00 – 5.00PM 10 – 13YRS GLEE CLUB (ACTING/SINGING) 5.00 – 6.00PM ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FRIDAY – OUTLOUD STUDIO 2 ADULTS BARREFIT/CORE CLASS 9.15 – 10.30AM

A huge thanks once again to Karen, Rob and the Settler’s Tavern team for their recent donation of $500 collected from their Open Mike Night and bar collections. Your ongoing support for our music program is very much appreciated.

NOTICE of AGM Margaret River Junior Football Club

Wish to advise they will be holding their AGM on Monday 20th February 2017 at the Hawks Football

Club, Gloucester Park commencing 6.30pm. All people interested in Australian Rules football for children attending pre-primary through to year 8 are

invited to attend. ALL WELCOME

For further information please contact; Garth Miller - 0407389377