30 August 2016

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Term 3 is certainly moving along very quickly. A reminder - there is a ‘School Closure Day’ next Monday the 5th of September (Week 7).

This day was approved by Governing Council to align with the Royal Adelaide Show which gives families the opportunity to take their children to the event.

Everybody here at QAS has been thinking of Mr Winther as he is currently away due to a medical condition. We wish him all the best for a speedy recovery and hope that he is taking some time to rest at home. The Junior Primary students have been busy making ‘Get Well’ cards and below is a message from all of us for Mr Winther.

Welcome to the new families who have enrolled or returned to Quorn Area School this term. We hope that you are all settling in well and staff look forward to working with you.

Bookings for Three-way Interviews are now open. We are hoping to see both parents and students attending these interviews next week. The interviews provide the best opportunity for you and your child(ren) to have a three way conversation about your child’s learning. Specifically, teachers will discuss with you your child’s work habits, attitude, results and behaviour. Thank you for taking the time to be a part of your child’s education.

Secondary subject counselling is currently taking place for the 2017 school year. Please contact Sarah Bury or Luci Legge if you have any questions or concerns. Parents are encouraged to be a part of the process.

Week 4 was ‘School Services Officer’ (SSO) National Recognition Week. The theme this year was ‘SSO’s: The Key to Quality Education’. Quorn Area School wanted to recognise the amazing work by all of our SSO staff who go above and beyond in all areas of their roles. We are certainly very lucky to have the brilliant and dedicated SSO’s who do so much for the school community. We celebrated in style with a morning tea in the staffroom. Classes made ‘recognition’ cards along with a token of appreciation which was presented by students at the morning tea. Each SSO was acknowledged with a small poem read by the student and handed their thank you token. Below are some photos of the celebration.

A huge thank you once again to the Parents and Friends team along with a number of helpers who donated their valuable time working on a ‘busy bee’ to improve school equipment. Time was spent sanding and painting the new boat for the Junior Primary playground. We can’t wait to see the finished product!

There have been some excellent things happening within the school over the last couple of weeks. Well done to the SRC for organising the ‘Milkshake Day’ last week. It was a great fundraiser and we would also like to thank Hollie Hancock and Heidi Roberts for donating their time to assist. The Year 6 Peer Leaders alongside Miss Carcuro, have also been super busy organising ‘Toastie Thursday’ and ‘Finke Friday’. There was a visit from Augusta Park Primary School Year 3/4 class who came to have a look at the billabong and school garden. Mrs Taylor shared some interesting stories with the students. Fletcher Dighton-Hoare and Karl Finlay represented the Year 8/9 MNSEC Football team in Adelaide last week in the State Country final. The boys put in an amazing effort, however were runners up on the day. Our senior secondary students (boys and girls) competed in the SSSSA Volleyball competition last week and represented QAS with pride. There is an SRC Father’s Day stall coming up this Thursday and Friday in Miss Carcuro’s office. Gifts range from 50 cents to $10.

Quorn Area School is hosting an ‘Open Night’ in Week 10 this term. The night will involve all staff and students showcasing the amazing work that has been completed throughout the year. There will be items including choir, performing arts and music throughout the night. There will also be static displays of work and plenty of activities for parents to participate in, along with some food items showcasing the fresh produce from the school garden. It will be great to see as many students involved in the night as possible and we look forward to demonstrating the wonderful learning that is happening here at QAS across a number of curriculum areas.

‘It’s All Good!’

Sarah Bury-Deputy Principal

Primary Report

Reed’s Ramblings

Some students in our class have been working on their photography skills. Here are some photos by Julian.

Fitness Report

By Katrina, Jada, Tallara, Eva, Mahli, Ethan, Noah, Riley, Axel, Sam and SSO Jane

This term we have been participating in a variety of fitness activities which included, music, dance, finding sight words, numbers and letters. Some activities involved obstacle courses and activities involved mixing with the secondary classes.

On Wednesday mornings, the F/1/2 class are visited by the Year 7/8 Care group class. In Term 2, the classes combined to read to each other. This term they join together for fitness activities. The children have enjoyed obstacle courses on the Junior playground, jogs through the garden and most recently they have joined the secondary classes in the Gym for some dancing. The photos show how much fun we have been having.

Students’ thoughts

• We have had a busy fortnight. In Week 4 it was Science Week. The theme was robots and drones.
• Mr Pilz organised some great activities for us. He borrowed some robots from another school for us to use. We learnt about programming the robots to move in particular ways.
• Matthew Reed brought in some of his robots to show us. They were cool to watch.
• We had lots of fun and we mixed with students from Mrs Ikiua Brooks and Mr Baker’s class.
• Thank you Mr Pilz and Matthew.

Science Week

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Science Week

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Week 5 was Book Week. This year the theme was Australian story book characters. On Wednesday we had a special parade. Some of us found the theme a bit tricky so we came as our favourite story book characters instead. Everyone received a prize for participating. Thanks to Mr Unger for organising this for us. After recess we were split into groups and participated in some special activities. We made musical shakers, windmills, masks, coloured in pictures of the story characters and planned a little game. This was lots of fun and we would like to thank Mr Unger, Miss James, Mr Baker, Mrs Ikiua Brooks and Mrs Reed for organising all this for us.

Book Week 2016

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Book Week 2016

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Counsellor Report

Hi everyone,

What a busy term it has turned out to be. I know many students and parents know me already, however, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself to a few new families. My name is Monique Carcuro and I am the School Counsellor, my primary responsibility is to promote academic, personal and social development of all students, however, I also have a teaching role.

I am here to offer support for both students and families and also liaise on your behalf to the school community and wider community organisations to help meet the needs of all Quorn Area School students and families.

Any student can request to meet with me and I also encourage parents to reach out if you have concerns regarding your child. Please call the school and request a meeting or for a return phone call so you can let me know if I can be of some assistance to you.

‘Aspiring to Inspire’

Monique Carcuro

2016 Parents in Education Week

LIVE WEBINAR

Brought to you by the Department for Education and Child Development and delivered by renowned international and national child development and learning experts on how parents can support their children’s learning and development at every age and stage.

Date: Thursday, 15 September 2016
Time: 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM in the QUORN AREA SCHOOL STAFF ROOM
Facilitator: Monique Carcuro

There will be two speakers:

Jodie Benveniste – What parents can do to support children’s development and learning

• children’s brain development in the primary school years
• what’s happening in children’s social and emotional lives
• what this means for learning and how parents can help.

Jodie will also discuss the importance of parent wellbeing and how nurturing yourself supports children’s development and learning. She is a psychologist, parenting author and Director, Intuitive Parenting. She helps parents identify what is important in their parenting and to find ways to be their best.

Andrew Fuller - Unlocking your child’s genius

• children’s learning potential
• how parents can help children unleash their potential by supporting:
• creativity
• motivation
• decision-making
• concentration.

Andrew is a clinical psychologist, researcher, author of books for parents and teachers and a popular speaker. He works with schools and communities to improve the wellbeing of children, young people and families.

Report Format Opinion Survey

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students,

A survey has been made accessible online via the link below and we invite you to take part to seek your views on the new student report format (handed out to students in the last week of Term 2 as an end of semester report).

The survey is being conducted to collect feedback from parents, guardians and students in regards to the content, format and accessibility of student’s achievements. The survey outcomes play an important role in developing the most suitable and accessible report format for families.

Your feedback counts and your response will be considered when formatting the next report.

Please note that your response is private and confidential. Individual respondents will not be identified in any way.

Milkshake Day

Father’s Day Stall

SRC will have a Father’s Day stall set up outside Miss Carcuro’s office on Thursday 1st & Friday 2nd September. Gifts range from .50 to $10

Finke Friday’s

Calling all BMX Bandits, ride your bike to school on Friday 9th & 23rd September and join the Peer Leaders in Lake Gilbert at lunchtimes to race the Quorn Area Schools BMX Track.

This is a trial for primary aged students only (GRADE 3-5). This is not competitive racing, however, if you would like your time recorded you can try and beat your PB (personal best) the following Friday.

Toastie Thursday

Toastie Day was a success last Thursday 25th August, a huge thank you to Hollie Hancock and Heidi Roberts for the preparation work leading up to the day.

You will be able to order Toasties for lunch on Thursdays at the canteen for $3.00 and a jelly cup for $1.00.

Subject Report

Sport - SAPSASA Athletics

Congratulations to all SAPSASA athletics students who represented our school last Friday, 26th August at Stirling North. All students gave 100% on the track and field, with students placing and others achieving personal goals. It was great to see the student’s camaraderie on display with teammates running alongside the track full of encouragement and others standing by to give moral support. Thank you to Tricia Lehmann and Vicki Fuller for time keeping and officiating, also thanks to parents who assisted with transport and organisation throughout the day. Participation in these events wouldn’t be possible for our students without this support.

REPRESENTING STUDENTS:

Max Agnew, Richard Lyman, Geri Tschirner, Joel Finlay, Jayde Finlay , Emily Eckert, Maya Omonte-Kramer, Lachlan Finlay, Isaac Finlay, Declan Finlay, Kolt Fraser
Dayne Hancock, Reece Freer, Ethan Baker, Brooke Maison, Emily Taylor, Ella Maison, Kirsty Stuart, Bailey Stirling, Zoe Maloney, Mackenzie Chapman, Rivah Shaw and Casanne Shaw

SAPSASA Athletics, 26th August 2016

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SAPSASA Athletics, 26th August 2016

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Sport - SAPSASA Netball/Football

A total of 20 girls from Port Augusta, Quorn and Roxby Downs travelled to Adelaide to represent Northern and compete in the SAPSASA Netball Competition at Priceline Stadium. There were 8 Divisions in the competition.

Jayde Finlay was in the Division 2 Northern Side. Out of 9 games they won 6 and drew 1 and finishing third overall. Zoe Maloney was in Division 6 and only lost one game. They ended up equal top with Gawler.

All girls played extremely well and showed fantastic sportsmanship on and off the court. We were very lucky with the weather with Thursday night's rain clearing just in time for the final matches on Friday morning.

Declan Finlay and Kolt Fraser represented Quorn in the Northern's Division 2 SAPSASA Football team. They played nine games during the week and won 2.

Congratulations to all four students on an outstanding week.

Sport - SSSSA Volleyball

14 Students represented Quorn Area School in the Open Knockout Volleyball competition held in Adelaide on Friday 26th August. Both the girls and boys had mixed success throughout the day. Further details regarding results will be in next fortnight’s newsletter.

Vocational Education

Open day at MTA (Motor Trades Association) Adelaide for those interested in automotive careers

Music/Choir

Our Port Augusta Choir concerts – officially, the Crossroads Music Festival presented by the Combined Primary Schools choir – are only three weeks away! This year there are two evening concerts, Wednesday 21st and Thursday 22nd September (Week 9) at the Lea Memorial Theatre. Ella Maison, Kathleen Medlam and Emily Taylor will perform their solo parts at the Thursday night concert only. Each concert begins at 6.30pm sharp and concludes around 8.30pm. There will also be an interval where food will be available for purchase. Tickets for these two concerts are now available from the Finance Office. Adults are $8 and children $4.

Five of our choir students, Austin Clancy, Alisha Medlam, Kathleen Medlam, Emily Millington and Emily Taylor will be performing in Adelaide at the Festival Theatre on 16th September (Week 8). If you would like to attend, please contact the school for information about how to book tickets.

Our QAS choir will also be performing at the Probus Annual Meeting on Tuesday 6th September (Week 7) and the QAS Open Night on 29th September (Week 10). We hope to see you there!

Vennessa James and Sharon Taylor

Book Week

Nancy had fun with the Storytime children during Book Week

Parents and Friends

A Working Bee was held on Saturday 20th August to continue with the development of the Junior Primary Playground. Pictured below are images of the development

Miss Densley’s class from Augusta Park Primary School came to visit us at QAS and learn about our garden and billabong, and then headed to the Pinkerton Creek to measure possum habitat trees with Andrea.

Mrs Taylor speaking with APPS students during their visit last week.

Library

ebooks available for your phone or tablet:

Download the ePlatform App for your device – open the App Store on your device and search for ‘Wheelers ePlatform’ (a free download).

Open the App and search for ‘South Australian Public Library Network (SAPLN)’.

Sign in using your library card barcode and PIN – if you do not know your PIN (or barcode) then come and see us in the library, we can easily find it for you.

Then browse and borrow ebooks!