Southport Special School

KIT Keeping in Touch with Families

Term 3 Week 8, Friday 6th September 2019

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Date What’s On! Date What’s On!

Monday 9Th September Primary Assembly Friday 20th September Last day of Term 3

Wednesday 11th September Salaka Drum Performance Monday 9th October Queen’s Birthday – Public Holiday

Thursday 12th September P & C Meeting Tuesday 8th October First Day of Term 4

Monday 16th September Secondary Assembly Monday 14th October Secondary Assembly

Tuesday 17th September Art Show Monday 21st October Student Free Day

2019 School Improvement Priorities:

Data Informed teaching and Decision Making Communication

Dear families and friends of Southport Special School,

Term Three is always a very busy term with so many additional activities to enrich the school day. Last week was

Science week and this year the STEAM team put on a wonderful exploration of space for all the students to take

part in. We thank them for the thought that went into providing activities to reach each member of the school

community.

SSS KIT – Term 3 Week 8 2019

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The Sensory Garden is nearly complete with members of the P & C and Deputy Principal Tracy Cronin working on

some finer adjustments with the company that created the garden to ensure it is accessible for all students. Over

time more scented plants will be added to enrich the experience further.

Thank you for your input into the school’s moto and vision statement. All of the information and suggestions

from staff and parents have been collated and we will be able to let you know the outcome after the next P & C

meeting. If you have been thinking about joining us at the P & C we love to welcome new faces, the next meeting

is this coming Thursday 12th September at 9.30am, held at school.

The Heads of Curriculum have been working hard to update our Whole School Curriculum and Assessment Plan

and are excited to have the first draft ready for discussion at our planning session in Term Four. We look forward

to these opportunities to plan together and set the agenda for the Annual Implementation Plan after input and

collaboration from all staff.

Congratulations to Sue Lowry and Rebecca Anderson who presented a very successful second day of training in

Process Central Curriculum Access to thirty staff from special schools across Queensland. The participants were

also treated to a delicious lunch that was created and served by our senior hospitality students, it was very well

received and helped to showcase the skills of our students.

Denise Maindonald and Emma Rawnsley, teachers from our AAC team, returned from the AGOSCI conference

with some exciting ideas to enhance our students’ access to both low and high tech communication systems.

More from them in the report below.

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We would also like to acknowledge and thank Greg Read

for the donation of this fabulous new bike. I am sure the

students will be delighted with this addition to the bike

program and will enjoy many years of its use.

We hope to see you at the Art Show on Tuesday 17th. I

have had a preview of some of the art to be displayed

and have been delighted at the vast range of ideas from

our staff and the creativity of our students.

Details are below on page nine.

Warm regards

Lisa

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From the Junior Teams

For Prep students, writing is much more than just making marks on paper. It is about creating texts. To support our students, all classes are using PODDs and Aided Language Displays to allow students to talk about and make choices about their writing. Some classes have implemented parts of the Balanced Literacy approach to writing which involves students creating a sentence then working with that sentence over the week. Each student’s sentence then becomes a book for everyone to enjoy in the classroom library. In addition, students continue to work on pencil grip and making marks on paper, copying letters and name writing.

In Humanities and Social Science lessons students in Junior Team Two have been learning that a ‘place’ has features. They have been exploring community picture scenes such as the beach or the park, and sorting items that go with that scene such as a bucket and spade or swings. To further support students’ understanding, most classes have been focusing on question words such as ‘where’, ‘when’, and ‘what’. Some classes have visited local play centres or parks in the area and recreated them in a simple map. Outings have also allowed for many autonomous communication opportunities and challenged students to identify what they might see and later sort/comment on the things they actually saw.

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From the Middle School Teams

Middle School students have been developing their literacy skills by using concepts of print, sound and letter knowledge and self-monitoring strategies on a daily basis. They have been reading and writing every day. This includes reading PM readers with an adult, guided reading, library visits and borrowing books, self-selected reading and sight word practice. They also complete handwriting and morning session activities such as the days of the week, months of the year and the weather.

As part of the Humanities and Social Sciences unit, students in Middle School Team Two have been investigating and exploring the features of familiar places within their local community. Students use the five ‘W’s - what, when, why, where and who - as a guide to help identify, describe and recognise different places, people and the significance of each of these within their known community.

Students are also learning that maps, drawings and photographs are representations of places they can visit, as well as providing information about where they are going and what they might see and do, before they actually get there. This helps students to anticipate predictable events such as excursions and routine school activities.

Some students are learning about Australia and looking at different states. Which state we live in and using google maps to locate our address.

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From the Junior Secondary Teams

Students in Junior Secondary Teams have all been working on their Numeracy skills. They have been using visual displays, concrete materials and Information Communication Technologies (ICT’s) to assist them in learning about number and place value. When counting, students have been working hard on the concept that each object must be counted only once, the arrangement of objects does not affect how many there are, and that the last number counted answers the ‘how many’ question. Students have also been working on developing their fluency with forwards and backwards counting. When learning about sequencing, students have been working towards understanding that numbers are said in a particular order and there are patterns in the way we say them. Here are some examples of students focusing on their number recognition, counting and sequencing skills.

Supporting the English unit of work this Semester, Crossing the Globe, students in Junior Secondary have been learning about different countries and exploring the various cuisines related to those countries. Students have been learning to use concepts about print to locate and record information as they use digital texts to research information about particular cuisines. Students have been developing their navigation and ICT skills needed to successfully identify information on a website. After information is interpreted and gathered, the outcome has been some delicious meals of pizza, soup and sushi. Yummy!

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From the STEAM Team

Last week the STEAM Team put together a fun filled Science, week long display for all students to explore, investigate and create. The theme was Space. Activities included specimen collecting, light box sensory experiences, constellations, an obstacle course, outer space yoga, galaxy bottles, space jigsaw puzzle and a light table. There was also rocket and astronaut photo booths, and alien and astronaut BeeBots. The students loved the activities and were thoroughly engaged.

From the Senior Team

What a fabulous term for our recycling crew. Our trip to the Cash for Cans centre was a huge success. Over $100.00 raised by our senior families and staff. That’s over 1000 bottles and cans counted, delivered and sorted by our hard working seniors. Thank you to everyone who supports our seniors. We are very proud of their hard work. They are learning various skills – sorting, counting, team work, communication, following directions and road safety.

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From the HOC Team

Over the past few weeks the HOC Team have been working on the Whole School Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Framework (WSCARF). This framework will include information about:

Junior School Unit Plan Cycle – three years

Middle School Unit Plan Cycle – four years

Junior Secondary Unit Plan Cycle – three years

Senior Schooling– Year 10 Unit Plans – single year

Senior Schooling – Year 11 & 12 – Program Information

Vocation and Education Training (VET) Course Information

Unit Plans are currently being written and reviewed ready for implementation in Semester 1 2020. The Curriculum Team continue working on the Multi-Disciplinary Unit, which will include three learning areas from Humanities and Social Sciences, The Arts and Technologies.

This week we welcomed staff from various special schools across the southeast corner of the state for the second day of the Process Central Curriculum Access (PCCA) professional development. PCCA is the rebranded Process Based Learning, a process central pedagogical approach for students accessing the curriculum through the General Capabilities Literacy Levels 1a, 1b and 1c. The two day course included topics such as early communicative, cognitive and subject development; Individual curriculum plan writing; understanding early mathematical development; embedding Intensive Interaction into the classroom and meeting the national curriculum requirements. Sue Lowry and Rebecca Anderson presented these days and feedback from attendees was extremely positive.

From the AAC Team

Denise and Emma had a great time in Perth last week learning and consolidating knowledge around best practice for introducing, using and extending Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC), social skills, and literacy/writing skills at the 2019 AGOSCI Conference. They also had an opportunity to network with companies such as AssistiveWare, PODD, Scope, Key Word Sign Australia and Link Assistive as well as touch base with colleagues from Beenleigh Special School, Claremont Special School, and Currumbin Special School. We look forward to sharing this information with students, staff, families, friends, and the local community.

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SSS KIT – Term 3 Week 8 2019

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Southport Special School Art Show

The Art Show is fast approaching and the staff are very excited, preparing for the event. We cannot wait to see our students showcase their artwork and feel proud that they have participated in a community event that raises money for therapy equipment for their school.

Our benefactors for the Art Show have been very kind and we would like to say thank you to:

• Woolworths Runaway Bay

• Woolworths Smith Collective

• Coles Runaway Bay

• Doterra – Gift Pack ($300)

• Sheraton Hotel – Dinner for two

• Parkwood Mini Golf – Two Tickets

• Southport Sharks – Gift Vouchers

• Veterans’ Support Group – Three $40 Kids Art Pack

• Mudhavi Muncie Pottery – Gift

• Sean Scott Photographer – Gift

The Lucky Door Prizes are varied and many! Buy a ticket and you are in the running for the above in the Prize Draws.

Please show your support to the students and school by attending the Art Show. We do not get many opportunities to come together as a community and celebrate our students’ achievements, raise money for our school and have a lot of fun in the meantime!

A big shout out to our silent supporters of the school in this Art Show Project: Bunnings Southport, Veterans Support Group, Ashmore Men’s Shed, Lifeline and Karen Cuttler.

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Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L)

Be Safe Be Kind Be a Learner

Each week classes concentrate on one of the School Rules in a lesson. Specific lesson plans are available however teachers are welcome to adapt these lessons to suit their class cohort. This coming fortnight focus lessons are:

Junior School – Review and celebrate achievements

Middle School – Review and celebrate achievements

Junior Secondary – Review and celebrate achievements

Senior School – Be respectful at school

Until next fortnight… Thanks to all our wonderful families