W H A M

Conf idence Commitment Co-operat ion

Curios i ty Creat iv i t y Empathy

Respect Tole rance In tegri t y

Enthusiasm Independence Apprec iat ion

Landscape Drive T: 9842 7744 E: milgate.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au East Doncaster 3109 F: 9842 7044 W: www.milgateps.vic.edu.au

W h a t ’ s H a p p e n i n g a t M i l g a t e

No 17/12 - 22 November, 2012

MATHS TALENT QUEST SUCCESS

3JG

Congratulations to 3JG whose project

‘The Clever Choice Supermarket’ was

selected as the best Year 3 class project

in Victoria and was entered into the

National MTQ competition.

This is an outstanding achievement, well

done 3JG!

SWIMMING SUCCESS

Ethan G.

Ethan represented the Metro East District in the North vs East 7-10

swimming competition on Sunday 28th October. He competed in the

8y.o. categories and placed:

1st - 50m Individual Freestyle

1st - 200m Freestyle Relay

1st - 200m Medley Relay

Ethan also competed in the Victorian 7-10 Metro Competition on Sunday 11th November. Again he competed in the 8y.o. categories and placed:

1st - 200m Medley Relay

2nd - 50m Individual Freestyle

Congratulations Ethan this is a wonderful result for all your efforts!

DIARY DATES 2012 Fri 23 Nov R.E. Celebrations [Prep to Yr 2: 11.25 – 11.55am] [Yrs 3 – 6: 12.05 – 12.35pm]

Fri 23 Nov Level 2 Careers Expo from the Past [2pm in Stadium]

Mon 3 Dec 2013 Prep Information Evening [7pm]

Mon 3 Dec – Fri 7 Dec Year 4 Bike Education

Wed 6 Dec Parent Helpers Morning Tea

Mon 10 – Fri 14 Planning Week for Teachers

Tue 11 Dec School Council Meeting [7pm]

Thu 13 Dec Carol’s Night [7pm]

Mon 17 Dec Year 6 Excursion to Fun Fields

Mon 17 Dec Year 5 Excursion to Movies & Park

Tue 18 Dec Year 6 Graduation

Thu 20 Dec Meet new Teacher & Class for 2013

Fri 21 Dec Last day of Term (Assembly 12.30pm and early dismissal at 1pm)

DIARY DATES 2013 TERM 1 - 2013 TUE 29 JAN – THU 28 MAR

Tue 29 Jan Curriculum Day [NO STUDENTS]

Wed 30 Jan First Day for students in Yrs 1 - 6

Thu 31 Jan Prep students first day [8.50am – 1pm]

Fri 1 Feb Prep students [8.50am – 1pm]

Wed 6 / 13 / 20 Feb NO Prep students – only by appointment for individual assessments

FROM THE PRINCIPAL

We are coming to the busy part of Term 4 with many end of year activities and celebrations such as:

Year level end of year celebration activity days, Year 6 Graduation, Year 4 Bike Education, whole

school Christmas Carols night with a theme of ‘Christmas Around the World’, Parent Helper morning

tea, School Council and P&F celebration dinners, etc. On Friday 23 November is the RE celebration

at Our Lady of the Pines school. The students will be doing a presentation and readings about

Christmas and the other students will sing Christmas songs. Parents are welcome to attend (Prep –

Year 2 at 11.25am and Years 3-6 at 12.05pm). Thank you to the RE teachers who organise the

performance and for the time they give to the school on a voluntary basis throughout the year. On

Thursday 22 November the students who learn to play instruments through the instrumental music

program, performed for their parents and friends. There are many talented students who sang and

played guitar, keyboard, violin and drums. On Wednesday the Prep – Year 2 sports were enjoyed by

all students taking part in: running, skipping, egg and spoon, ball tosses, basketball, etc. It was great

to see many parents helping and also watching the students participate. On Friday 23 November in

the afternoon, Level 2 (Years 1 and 2) will be having a Careers Expo where they will be presenting

their learning and projects. This is a great opportunity to come and see the great learning that is

taking place for students at Milgate.

STAFF RETIRING Last week we farewelled Lily Ch’Ng our Multi-Cultural Education Aide who has retired. Lily has

worked at Milgate PS for more than 20 years with many of our families from overseas and from Non-

English speaking backgrounds. She has assisted students in the classrooms and families as they

have adjusted to life in Australia. We thank Lily for her many years of service to the Milgate PS

community and wish her all the best in her retirement.

John Vincent, our maintenance man, will also be retiring at the end of the year. John has worked for

many years at Milgate taking care of our grounds and maintenance needs. We thank John for all his

work in the school and wish him all the best in his retirement.

STUDENT REPORTS There has been information in the media recently about teachers in some schools not writing full

student reports for December in line with the Australian Education Union current bans. All teachers

at Milgate PS have made a decision to write full student reports so all students at Milgate will receive

a complete December report. The teachers have been very busy writing the reports over the last few

weeks and these will be sent home to parents on Monday 17 December. Thank you to the staff for

the preparation time, commitment and care they have given to reports and the continued learning

program for your children.

SCHOOL COUNCIL On Tuesday night it was the last formal school council meeting for 2012. Each of the sub

committees of the school council tabled a report, the draft budget for 2013 was presented and there

were discussions in regard to facilities and possible options for the Milfete funds raised. One of the

options is to install an electronic screen and data projector in the stadium which could be used for

presentations at assembly, film nights, PE presentations, etc. Also the purchase of a public address

/ PA system that could be used for outside activities and also in the stadium. Prices have been

sourced for these. In 2013 the school council will work on a list of resources / learning requirements

/ facilities for the next few years in consultation with the P&F and staff. This list will then be

prioritised and we can work towards implementing them.

MULTI-CULTURAL COMMITTEE A Multi-Cultural sub-committee of the P&F has recently been started. The purpose of this is to

organise events that celebrate and highlight various cultural celebrations. The first one they are

planning is activities around the celebration of Chinese New Year in February. There will be a

presentation at the whole school assembly and activities during the week. In Education week in May

2013 there will be a whole school international focus with activities around various cultures. We

have a wonderful and diverse multi-cultural school community which is a great resource for us to

learn from each other about the different cultures.

Thank you to Louisa Angeloglou who has initiated this committee and leads it. Parents are welcome

to come and join the committee – if you are interested please contact the school office. One of our

parents, Rhobi Crosby, has volunteered to put new families from overseas in contact with other

parents who can speak their language and assist them. If you know anyone who would benefit from

this, please contact the school office.

DATES FOR STUDENT BOOK PACK COLLECTION Parents will soon receive a letter about student Book Packs for 2013. The payment for these can be

made at any time between now and the end of the year.

Book Packs can be collected from the Community Room on the following days and times:

Friday 7 December 8:30am - 10am 2pm - 4pm

Monday 10 December 8:30am - 10am 2pm - 4pm

Tuesday 11 December 8:30am - 10am 2pm - 4pm 4pm - 6:30pm

Friday 14 December 8:30am - 10am 2pm - 4pm

Debbie Mierisch Principal

FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

AUSVELS AND AUSTRALIAN CURRICULUM As mentioned in the last WHAM over the final newsletters for 2012 I will explain the introduction of

AusVELS and the Australian Curriculum. In 2013 the Domains of English, Mathematics, Science and

History will be introduced to Victorian schools. AusVELS will be slightly different in structure and

curriculum content to VELS.

The VELS curriculum is currently set out into six different levels from Prep to Year 10. AusVELS will

change to include eleven different levels.

School Year Level Current VELS Level AusVELS Level

Prep 1 Foundation

1 2

1

2 2

3 3

3

4 4

5 4

5

6 6

ENGLISH (VELS) The focus of the current VELS curriculum is on the following three dimensions:

Reading

Writing

Speaking & Listening

The learning in these dimensions is interrelated. For example, Speaking and listening contribute to

the development of students’ reading responses. Writing contributes to communication about texts

read or viewed and to reflection and learning.

ENGLISH AUSVELS The focus of AusVELS is now on the slightly different content areas of:

Reading and Viewing

Writing

Speaking & Listening

The Australian Curriculum: English is organised into three interrelated strands that support students'

growing understanding and use of Standard Australian English (English). Together the three strands

focus on developing students’ knowledge, understanding and skills in listening, reading, viewing,

speaking and writing. The three strands are:

Language: knowing about the English language

Literature: understanding, appreciating, responding to, analysing and creating literature

Literacy: expanding the repertoire of English usage.

Aims The Australian Curriculum: English aims to ensure that students:

learn to listen to, read, view, speak, write, create and reflect on increasingly complex and sophisticated spoken, written and multimodal texts across a growing range of contexts with accuracy, fluency and purpose

appreciate, enjoy and use the English language in all its variations and develop a sense of its richness and power to evoke feelings, convey information, form ideas, facilitate interaction with others, entertain, persuade and argue

understand how Standard Australian English works in its spoken and written forms and in combination with non-linguistic forms of communication to create meaning

develop interest and skills in inquiring into the aesthetic aspects of texts, and develop an informed appreciation of literature.

(http://ausvels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/English)

As you can see there are slight changes to the English curriculum in AusVELS with an increased

focus on the areas of Language, Literature and Literacy. Our English Whole School Team, led by Ms

Williamson, are currently designing the teaching and learning program for 2013 using the AusVELS

curriculum at the present time.

If you would like to learn more about AusVELS and the Australian Curriculum please visit the

AusVELS website at www.ausvels.vcaa.vic.edu.au.

Mark Roberts Assistant Principal

HELPERS REQUIRED STUDENT BOOK PACK COLLECTIONS HELPERS REQUIRED

We need some parents who are able to assist with book pack collections. We require 1-2 parents per

session so if you are able to help for a session (or part of a session) please either email us your details

OR complete the form below and return it to the Office.

STUDENT BOOK PACK COLLECTION HELPER

Name:

Contact No / Email:

Please tick boxes for session/s you are able to assist with:

Friday 7 December 8:30am - 10am 2pm - 4pm

Monday 10 December 8:30am - 10am 2pm - 4pm

Tuesday 11 December 8:30am - 10am 2pm - 4pm 4pm - 6:30pm

Friday 14 December 8:30am - 10am 2pm - 4pm

Or email the above details to milgateps@edumail.vic.gov.au.

PREP ENROLMENTS for 2013 We are still accepting Prep enrolments for 2013. Interested parents are able to book a personal

school tour with either Debbie Mierisch (Principal) or Mark Roberts (Assistant Principal).

If you have a child, or know anyone with a child, who will be starting Prep in 2013, please let them

know they can enrol their child now. Enrolment packs are available at the Office or you can

download the enrolment form from our school’s website.

PE/OUTDOOR EDUCATION NEWS

SPORTS TEAM RESULTS:

Manningham Division Boys Rounders Final played Thu 22nd Dec against Donburn PS.

SSV Eastern Regional Basketball Finals played Tue 13th Nov at Maroondah Basketball Stadium. The girls played some hard fought games and placed 2nd in their pool. Well done.

SSV Eastern Regional Softball Finals Green Girls Softball Team played on Thu 8th Nov at Waverley Softball Centre. The girls performed extremely well and placed 3rd overall in Eastern Region, which is an outstanding effort.

OUTDOOR EDUCATION: All Prep – Yr 5 students would have received an

“Expression of Interest Form to be a Parent Helper on the 2013 Camps” on

Wed 7th Nov. If you are interested in being considered as a Parent Helper in

2013, please fill in this form and return it to Mr Will by Friday 14th December.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION: Many thanks to all the Staff, Students and Parent Helpers who assisted

in making the Prep – Yr. 2 House Sports such a huge success on Wednesday 21st November. It was

fantastic to see all the students participating with such enthusiasm and getting into the house spirit.

A reminder for Year 4 students to return their Bike Education permission forms to their teacher.

If you wish to know more about how you could help out with any aspect of the PE/Outdoor Learning

Program, please contact James Will at school or have a look at the Physical Education Handbook on

the Milgate PS website under the NOTICES section.

James Will PE/Outdoor Learning Coordinator

OVERSEAS TRAVEL DURING JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2013

Dear Parents,

To ensure a place is reserved at our school for children from families travelling overseas during

February 2013, could you please fill out the following details and return to the school office by Friday 7th

December 2012.

Yours sincerely,

Debbie Mierisch

Principal

Notification of Overseas Travel during January/February 2013

Child’s Name: Class [2012]:

Last day at

Milgate 2012:

Starting day at

Milgate 2013:

Parent’s Name: Signature:

Literacy - Poetry We wrote poems inspired by the Commonwealth Bank

commercial ‘Ode to Can’ presented by Toni Collette.

Here are three of them.

Ode to

Visible

In this world, there is a word, That stops you from being seen.

And keeps you alone, When you’re unhappy.

They don’t see your grief, They ignore you.

Not help you, Like you can’t be seen.

There’s no one to talk to, No one to answer. No one who’ll care,

No one to spare.

Because the word invisible, Keeps you camouflaged.

From the world that keeps moving, When you want it to stop.

Though this negative word, Keeps you hidden.

That can change to the opposite, When you take off two letters.

We can take off the ‘in,’ We can do it today.

We can change it in an instant, And you can go your own way.

There’s someone to talk to, Someone to listen.

Someone who’ll answer, Someone who’ll care.

Remove the ‘in,’ And we can become visible.

Visible to the World, With the removal of two life-

changing letters.

By: Hayley and Cody. 5TW

Ode to

Disable

There’s a six letter word, As deadly as any.

It holds back the few, And puts a stop to the many.

You’re unable to do this,

Unable to do that. Unable to try, Unable to cry.

He’s unable to write, Get away from fright.

Unable to see the distance, Or to push the resistance.

Because unable can’t resist, The chance to stop a human.

But those six silly letters,

Can change in the time of a click. When shortened to four.

We can avoid ‘un,’ And have more fun.

We can push not fall, And we can do it all.

We’re able to try,

Able to say hi. We’re able to follow our religions,

And make our own decisions. Who wouldn’t avoid the ‘un,’ Who wouldn’t join in the fun.

With the avoiding of two ghastly letters.

By: Adam, Mahnoor and Jess. 5DM

By: Year 5 Ode to

Unstoppable

There’s a 9 letter word. That holds you back.,

And stops you in your tracks. It won’t let you believe,

What you want to achieve.

You can’t be at your best, Because you’re not as good as the rest,

You feel like you’re in the blues, Because you have no way of knowing

any clues.

She’s stoppable in every way Why can’t she think of anything to say,

He’s stoppable, He gives up before he even tries.

By adding two letters,

The word is now completely changed. It changes in an instant,

When changed to eleven.

We can add an ‘a’ and then an ‘n.’ We can do it now,

We can do it today. We can start a new day everyday.

We can follow our dreams,

We can say anything we please.

Because we are the ones who are UNSTOPPABLE!

By: Thomas, Harry, Angelica and Emily. 5KW

CASSE (Creating a Safe and Supportive Environment) Community News

Teach 'life' skills

Be aware of a worrying trend that continues to pop up in the media: the sense of entitlement (i.e. the

“system” must give me what I deserve) among children and young adults today. Skills for success in this new

century have been identified by experts as:

• Professionalism/work ethic

• Oral and written communication

• Teamwork/collaboration

• Critical thinking/problem-solving skills

Will your children be ready with the skills required to lead a successful life in this “new world?” We believe,

considering all of these points, that modelling and encouraging positive, inclusive behaviour in our homes

and schools is not only the right thing to do — it is the wise thing to do to prepare our children for a

productive, adult life.

Celebrate the positives in everyday life

Bring the positive in life right into your home, and live it!

So much news each day is negative! Let’s make an effort as families to pay attention to the positive in

everyday life. At family meals each night, ask for examples of observed positive behaviour - from positive

deeds performed by family members themselves, to observed instances from the day. These examples could

come from observed behaviours in real life, at school or work, or other situations. Examples can also come

from academic lessons learned or from something you read about in the newspaper, a magazine or see on

TV.

Reward your children with extra praise for positive thinking in tough situations. Praise workers in your home

or others in your daily travels in front of your children.

by Jane Searle (CASSE facilitator)

MILGATE ANNUAL CAROLS NIGHT 2012

‘CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD’

THURSDAY 15TH DEC 2011 7.00PM

THURSDAY 13TH DECEMBER 7PM

CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD - PROGRAM

CHOIR: We’re Getting Ready for Christmas

The Virgin Mary had a Baby Boy

The Little Drummer Boy

ALL: DING DONG MERRILY ON HIGH (France)

PLAYGROUP: JINGLE BELLS

PREPS: Christmas in Italy & America: La Befana [AWAY IN A MANGER]

MANDARIN ITEM: PREPS – We Wish you a Merry Christmas

GRADE 1: Christmas in Sweden & Germany: Julafton [O CHRISTMAS TREE]

GRADE 2: Christmas in Greece & Austria: Agios Basilius [SILENT NIGHT]

GRADE 3: Christmas in Mexico & England: Gatatumba [O COME ALL YE FAITHFUL]

GRADE 4: Christmas in Netherlands & America: Sinter Klaas en Zwarte Piet

[SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN]

GRADE 5: Christmas in America & England: Winter Wonderland / DECK THE HALLS

GRADE 6: Christmas in Australia:

AUSSIE JINGLE BELLS / Happy Christmas War is Over

STAFF: Christmas in Spain: Feliz Navidad

RAFFLE

ALL: WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS

Students

Bring a rug or cushion to sit on Wear school uniform Add a decoration such as a Santa hat,

Christmas earrings or Christmas

T-shirt

Sausages, drinks and ice creams AVAILABLE to

purchase 5.30 - 6.30pm

PARENTS & FRIENDS

DONCARE CHRISTMAS TREE Christmas is fast approaching and it’s time to show our true Christmas spirit - generosity. We’re

supporting Doncare again this year [a very worthwhile charity that helps many families in our local

area].

The Christmas tree is up in the Office foyer and it’s great to see your gifts coming in already! You can

help us support Doncare by placing a gift under the tree (no wrapping please) by Wednesday 5th

December. Our wonderful school community has always been so generous at this time and we know

this year will be no different! Thank you for all your fantastic support.

CHRISTMAS RAFFLE We have 3 fabulous Christmas Hampers packed full of goodies for the whole family to enjoy! It’s just

$5 for 5 tickets with the winners being drawn at Milgate’s Carols Night on Thursday 13th December.

Flyers and raffle tickets have been sent home this week. Please make sure you write a name, contact

number and grade on EACH ticket stub [remember to keep the tickets for yourself and just return the

ticket stubs]. Good luck everyone!

MULTI-CULTURAL SUB-COMMITTEE We’re already planning for Chinese New Year 2013 [Year of the Snake]! We sent home a notice last

week asking for helpers with a number of workshops we’d like to run during the week of 11th February

2013. If you can help please return your form to the office – we’d love to hear from you.

Please contact Louisa on 0400 289 272 or angeloglou@bigpond.com if you have any questions.

Amanda Raymond President - 0428 121 067

SCHOOL FUNDRAISER – CLOSING SOON

SNAPATOONIES Just a reminder about the Snapatoonies School Fundraiser. Orders are required back to school by

Friday 30th November for delivery on Friday 14th December - in time for Christmas.

Snapatoonies is a great Christmas present for children 0 – 5 and with 16 episodes to choose from

there is a DVD for every child. Both the DVD sales and online downloads benefit the school. Preview

all the episodes online at www.snapatoonies.com.au/myfundraiser and click on the Milgate PS link.

COMMUNITY NEWS Please see our Community Noticeboard (located opposite the Art room) for any interesting community events. The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) does not endorse the products or services of any private advertiser. No responsibility is accepted by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) or Milgate Primary School for accuracy of information contained in advertisements or claims made by them.

Basketball – Eastern Bulls Recruiting now for Boys and Girls Under 8 and Under 10 programs. Beginners and experienced players all welcome. All new registrations will receive FREE uniforms including training uniform.

Children’s Performing Company of Australia 2013 auditions commence Nov & Feb at 18 convenient locations across Melbourne. Call 9384 1644 to book your free audition now! www.cpca.com.au

CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS: Focus on Christmas Sunday 2nd December [10am – 12.30pm] FREE Christmas Family Program including craft making, dress up for family nativity photo, interactive Christmas story telling, Christmas karaoke, sausage sizzle, tea & coffee. Manningham Uniting Church, 104 Atkinson Street, Templestowe [enter from carpark in Wood St behind 7-Eleven]. Come anytime and stay as long as you wish.

Salvo Community Christmas Celebration Sunday 2nd December [3.30 – 4.30pm followed by a sausage sizzle (gold coin)] It’s beginning to feel a bit like Christmas... The story of Christmas is unfolding at the Salvo Community Christmas Celebration: MUSIC, MUSIC, MUSIC...a Salvo brass band, a primary school choir, local Salvo rock band 'Problem Child', some jazz, and of course community Christmas carol singing...It is all a part of the annual Community Christmas Celebration fun taking place at The Salvation Army, 37 Taunton Street, East Doncaster. Bring the whole family: kids, mums, dads, grandies and favourite aunts/uncles! We are all looking forward to the beginning of the Christmas Season. Join us, please @ the Salvos.

Each student receives a certificate from their teacher detailing the reason for their award.

Congratulations to these students on a job well done!

MILGATE ACHIEVERS

TERM 4 Week 5 Week 6

PJP Kristen T. Charlaine L.

PPM Oliver K. Isabel C.

1LS Noel C. / Alyna N. Kerry Z.

1MT Jayde P. Kayley L.

1SL James C. Kosta M.

2RW - Rohan H. / Emily H.

2SB Thomas C. Aidan G.

2WH Jo-Yen T. Jayden O.

3EB Josh B. Monique H.

3JG Jessica M. David H.

3LH Kirstie S. Emre K.

3PK - Whole Class

4AD Jarryd W. / Spiro D. Manisha K.

4BW Matthew G. Alex CH L.

4GA Nicholas Y. Elle B.

5DM Jeremy O. Adam P.

5KW Maddie F. Jasmine G.

5TW Justin B. Ian A.

6CH Winnie M. / Jemma P. / Tina Y. Daisy N.

6FB Kevin Z. Sabine J.

6KG Warren C. / Edita S. Micayla V.

6YP Blake F. Carmen C.

ART Ellie M. [4AD] Christian T. [PPM]

Learning Support

Zara S. [4GA] Najee D. [6FB]

LOTE Diya D. [2RW] Taya M. [3EB]

MUSIC Mia K. [3LH] Heather G. [2RW]

PE Ella A. [6FB] Lara J. [3LH]