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Monday 26th February
- Curriculum Day - no students at school
Wednesday 28th February
- No Preps at school
Thursday 29th February
- School Picnic - 5pm - 6:30pm - all families invited - BYO picnic dinner & picnic rug
Monday 4th March
- Welcome to Country Ceremony - 9:30am - families invited to attend
Tuesday 5th March
- Year 4 - 6 Parent Teacher meet & greets 3:30pm - 6:30pm - bookings through XUNO
Thursday 7th March
- Year Prep - 3 Parent Teacher meet & greets 3:30pm - 6:30pm - bookings through XUNO
Monday 11th March
- Labour Day public holiday - no students at school
Tuesday 12th - Thursday 14th March
- Naplan testing
Wednesday 13th March
- School photo day - full school uniform required
Sunday 17th March
- Working Bee 9:30am - 11:30am
Monday 18th - Friday 22nd March
- Whole school swimming lessons - see XUNO
Friday 22nd March
- Harmony Day
Thursday 28th March
- Last day of school - 2:30pm finish
CURRICULUM DAY – NO SCHOOL MONDAY
This Monday 26th February is a Curriculum Day. Teachers are gathering with some other Mt Alexander Schools for a seminar on the 6+1 Writing Traits with literacy guru (and former Principal at Campbells Creek) Narissa Leung.
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BACK TO SCHOOL PICNIC 5:00pm – 6:30pm (next) THURSDAY 29th FEBRUARY
This is an opportunity to catch up with the families in your child's class. Also a great time to meet members of the current School Council. Please bring your own picnic food and drinks. We’ll provide watermelon and oranges.
WELCOME TO COUNTRY – 9:30am MONDAY 4th MARCH
The traditional Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony with Uncle Rick Nelson and presentation of school leader badges will take place at the Creekview forecourt. We look forward to seeing families and friends who would like to take part.
MEET AND GREET INTERVIEWS COMMENCING MONDAY 4th MARCH
This is an opportunity for parents and carers to provide information about their children to teachers, especially things that they may not know about. Children are welcome to attend. Sessions will be 10 minutes in the junior learning community (Prep-3) and 15 minutes in the senior learning community (4-6). Bookings via Xuno, or contact your child’s teacher if booked out.
NAPLAN
Testing for students in Year 3 and Year 5 commences on Wednesday 13th March. All NAPLAN testing is online via a locked-down browser, with the exception of Year 3 Writing which is pen and paper.
LIBRARY DONATION THANK YOU
Thank you to Lenny’s family who donated books back to the school library from the Mango fundraiser Stoneman’s Bookroom voucher. They are great titles, and we really appreciate your generosity.
FOOD IS FUEL
A reminder to please ensure your children have enough to eat at school. We suggest some fruit for 10.00am Munch and Crunch, a healthy snack which includes carbs for 11.00am and a balanced healthy lunch for 12.25pm. Some ideas at 50 Fun School lunch ideas.
SCHOOL COUNCIL – COMMITTEES AND VOLUNTEERS
Today we are calling for nominations for the 2024 School Council. We currently have 5 parent and 2 DET employee vacancies. I have included information about the role of parents and carers on school council. If you would like to join or re-join council, please complete the attached self-nomination form or collect one from the office. Nominations close on Wednesday 6th March.
This year we are once again inviting parents and carers to consider joining one of the School Council sub-committees here at Winters Flat. Thank you to those who have already signed up. We will have School Council members available to chat at next Thursday’s (29th Feb) picnic.
We have vacancies in:
- Buildings and Grounds – manages grounds of the school and identifies building maintenance issues
- Fundraising – organises and coordinates fund raising opportunities
- School Community engagement – looks for ways of involving our community and the wider Castlemaine community in school life, as well as promoting our school
- Sustainability – supports the ResourceSmart 5 Star rating through daily school routines, leadership, curriculum and innovation.
If you have an interest in joining any of these committees please complete the attached Volunteers form, email winters.flat.ps@education.vic.gov.au or phone: 5472 1522. It is not necessary to be on Council to participate. Thanks to those who have already expressed interest. We will send out a meeting schedule as soon as possible.
Volunteers are welcome in every classroom as well as the Kitchen/Garden and specialist areas.
If you have the time and inclination, please let us know. Volunteers at school must have a Working with Children Check.
BIRTHDAYS
Isobel – 9 in the third week of February
Sid - 12 in the third week of February
Sam – 6 in the third week of February
Izzy- 8 in the third week of February
Odetta - 10 in the fourth week of February
Rex – 10 in the fourth week of February
Marg – Big Birthday in the fourth week of February
Perryn – 10 in the first week of March
Hip Hip: Hooray
Hip Hip: Hooray
Hooray: Hip Hip
COVID SCHOOL PROCEDURES
According to the Department of Health community transmission of COVID-19 is currently decreasing across Victoria.
Schools will make sure your child is as safe as possible and will focus on:
- washing hands
- physical distancing
- rapid antigen testing
- Outdoors when practical
- Air purifiers indoors
- mask wearing – recommended but not mandatory
Free rapid antigen tests
Free rapid antigen tests are available from the office.
Testing is strongly recommended for students and staff who are symptomatic.
After doing the tests at home, if it is positive, you are advised to:
- let the school know
- keep your child at home for 7 days
- contact the Department of Health via the COVID-19 Positive Rapid Antigen Test Self-Reporting Form or call centre on 1800 675 398.
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Suzanne Kinnersly
Principal.
XUNO
XUNO is the school’s main channel for communicating important information to parents. We encourage all families to be regularly logging into XUNO, either via the website or the app.
Each time an events/fees/Interviews are added, XUNO will send an email alerting you they are in the app needing to be actioned. At the beginning of the year and each term you will receive many emails as we add items to the calendar to communicate important dates to parents ahead of time.
We will also send out occasional emails with information that needs to be communicated outside of a newsletter week.
Currently, the app gives you access to:
- Messages (send and receive messages to your child’s teachers)
- Timetable
- Calendar
- News
- Attendance (to add a reason for an absence on the day of absence, or to provide a reason for previous absences)
- Events, Camps & Excursions (and the ability to approve events)
- Payments (to pay for any camps/excursions)
- Parent Teacher Interview Bookings (ability to book)
If any families are having issues with logging onto XUNO, or trouble navigating the app, please contact the office.
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Camps, Sports & Excursions Fund (CSEF)
CSEF is provided by the Victorian Government to assist eligible families to cover the costs of school trips, camps and sporting activities.
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If you hold a valid means-tested concession card or are a temporary foster parent, you may be eligible for CSEF. A special consideration category also exists for asylum seeker and refugee families. The allowance is paid to the school to use towards expenses relating to camps, excursions or sporting activities for the benefit of your child.
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The annual CSEF amount per student is:
- $150 for primary school students
- $250 for secondary school students
- New applicants should contact the school office to obtain a CSEF application form or download from the website below.
- If you applied for CSEF at your child's school last year, you do not need to complete an application form this year unless there has been a change in your family circumstances.
- You only need to complete an application form if any of the following changes have occurred:
- new student enrolments; your child has started or changed schools this year.
- changed family circumstances; such as a change of custody, change of name, concession card number, or new siblings commencing this year.
Check with the school office if you are unsure.
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Volunteering at school in 2024
There are many opportunities to volunteer at school - reading with students in the junior year levels, assisting in kitchen & garden classes, being a part of our human library, working bees, etc.
Volunteers who are onsite with children during school hours are required to have a current Working with Children Check. Volunteer WWCC are free to obtain and can be applied for here.
An important reminder for volunteers: on arrival, you will need to come to the office and sign in, and then come back to the office and sign out when you leave.
Any questions/queries about any of this, please contact us in the office on 5472 1522.
If you wish to be put on the list to help with volunteering with a range of tasks, please fill out this form. Paper forms are also available from the office.
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Parent class reps for 2024
We are currently seeking parent class representitives for each class, please fill out the form here if you are interested.
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Sushi on Fridays
We are continuing Sushi on Fridays again this year.
Please make sure you update your child's class to assist with the distribution of the sushi at school.
Here is a reminder of the steps you need to do to order Sushi.
- Go to www.schoollunchonline.com.au to register your family
- Choose ‘My orders’ and select ‘Create order‘
- Select the date of the Friday you wish to order for
- Add items to order by clicking on the ‘tick’
- Select ‘add to bag’
- Review order and check it is all correct, then click ‘next’
- Choose how you want to pay and then select ‘submit’
*Update your billing details under the tab ‘my account’
*Pay as you go or top up your account regularly
*No minimum order or long term commitment
*Order ahead up to any time within the current term
Orders need to be made by 5pm on Thursday to ensure order is placed for Sushi at lunchtime on Friday.
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SAKG Laundry Roster
If you are able to help with the SAKG laundry, please contact us in the office.
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Chess Club
The format for Chess club has changed this year. Chess club will happen each Wednesday from 1:30pm - 2:30pm.
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Karen Mahoney & Kitty Ward
Office
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P/1J
- Ryan - Care for Self
- Ivy- Care for Others
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P/1R
- Tobias - Care for Self
- Archie - Care for Self & Care for Others
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2/3H
- Leo - Care for Self & Care for Others
- Jamie - Care for Self & Care for Others
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4/5/6C
- Annabelle - Care for Self & Others
- Eisa - Care for Self
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4/5/6B
- Raph - Care for Self
- Ella - Care for Self
Students in the JLC have been creating all kinds of beautiful artwork!
Why I Love Summer by P/1J:
Portraits by P/1R:
Aerial Illustration Postcards by 2/3H. Students wrote a letter on the back of their postcards, detailing their experiences.
AT SCHOOL
School staff have been busy the past few weeks supporting children with their new classrooms. There are a lot of faces and names to learn as well as adjusting to expectations and routines. This is a big and often challenging time for many children and is a time we as school staff observe to make sure they are settling into safe and positive friendships, being engaged in learning and generally having a good time.
The Children’s Wellbeing Continuum is a tool designed for teachers and parents to reflect on a child’s wellbeing at a point in time. It can support health literacy, and early identification and action when children are struggling. We often use this tool as school and thought we’d share it with you. You could also use it and bring it to a meeting if you are concerned about your child’s wellbeing.
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Lunch Clubs
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AT HOME
There is actually a term called “after-school restraint collapse”, which is the ‘meltdown kids have at home after holding it all together. Have a read about post-school day conversations: https://www.abc.net.au/everyday/how-to-ask-kids-about-day-at-school/101990370
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Parent Resources
The Australian Government has funded an excellent resource for schools. Here I have included a link to the page for parents where you can find information and advice about important topics like bullying, online safety, communicating with your child and the school, and much more. https://studentwellbeinghub.edu.au/parents/
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Screen Time
This is a handy resource for families wanting to tackle the very tricky topic of screen time. Many of us struggle to balance the amount of screen time our children have. This is a great resource to get the conversation started and has some practical advice about a family media plan. https://raisingchildren.net.au/school-age/play-media-technology/screen-time-healthy-screen-use/healthy-screen-time-6-11-years
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Mental Health Checklist for children aged 6-12
This checklist aims to measure a broad range of social, emotional or behavioural difficulties your child may be experiencing. It’s suitable for kids aged four to 16. The questions relate to how your child has been thinking, feeling and behaving in general. Your responses provide you with a score. The higher your score, the more likely your child is experiencing a problem that would benefit from professional support. Based on your score, you are provided with some guidance for seeking further support. https://healthyfamilies.beyondblue.org.au/age-6-12/mental-health-conditions-in-children/child-mental-health-checklist
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Until next time!
Hannah O’Keefe
My work hours are Mondays and Tuesdays from 8:30-4:30. Write me an email (hannah.okeefe@education.vic.gov.au) or give me a call via the school office or on 0475 800 377.
RESOURCES
Please find a list of Wellbeing helplines and support services on the Winters Flat website.
This week in the Kitchen and Garden..........
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What we're cooking in the kitchen this fortnight...
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- Vegetable Gyoza
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Asian Cucumber Salad
- Tempura Fritters
- Seeded Brown Rice Salad
- Plum and Quince Upside Down Cake
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.Chefs of the week:
2/3H: Odessa and Harriet
4/5/6C: Eisa, Nova, and Pippa
4/5/6B: Athene, Persephone, Ava, Peggy, Freya, Jasmine
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Remember all the recipes are available on our school website, so you can try them at home.
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Kitchen volunteers
We would love some kitchen helpers in our cooking classes!
They are held fortnightly on Mondays (even weeks - 4/5/6C), and every Wednesday (even weeks - 4/5/6B; odd weeks - 2/3H), between 11:25am & 1:25pm.
The Prep/1 classes will have a special cooking class each term.
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What you can expect from a class:
Students work in groups to make seasonal dishes, using produce from our garden. Once a group finishes preparing their dish, they clean up their bench, do dishes, and set the tables. Around 1:00pm, we all sit down together and share the meal.
Volunteers will need to sign in via the visitors log in the office and show their WWCC. Please contact the office if you have any questions or would like to volunteer!
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In the Garden:
Gardeners of the week:
2/3H: Izzy H, Maeve, and Hermione
4/5/6C: Atti and Raph
4/5/6B: Pippa, Pez, and Annabelle
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Cath & Terry
Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden
On Friday 16th February, P/1J and P/1R were lucky enough to receive a visit from the Tseng and Tang-Parsons families who taught us about Lunar New Year. The students learned about the story of the Zodiac, sang a traditional Cantonese song, made decorations that are used to bring good fortune, and ate delicious homemade Lunar New Year treats. They also received beautifully decorated red envelopes which contained a chocolate coin and a dragon sticker. The students learned the proper way to receive these envelopes and accepted theirs with two hands and a word of thanks in either English or Cantonese.
Fiona, Tina, and the entire P/1 cohort wish to extend heartfelt thanks to the Tseng and Tang-Parsons families for generously sharing their rich culture with our classes. The immersive experience broadened our horizons and created a great deal of joy throughout the day. The effort invested in making this cultural exchange a memorable and enriching experience for all was immense, and we are truly grateful for every moment.
