17 March 2020

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

I was fortunate enough to take part in an event on the weekend, organised by the Year 11 & 12 Integrated Learning cohort lead by Mr Griffiths. Integrated Learning is a subject framework that enables students to make links between aspects of their lives, their learning about themselves and their capabilities. The day was a great success for the students, not only in their endeavour to raise money for the McGrath Foundation, but also their efforts to liaise with our community to host an event for everyone to enjoy. I would like to thank all of those who were involved in supporting our learners and making the day possible. A more detailed report will follow in the next newsletter.

As we have already seen across the world, the COVID-19 situation is expected to continue for some time and as such, our preparations must be for both the short and medium term. Every effort is being made to minimise disruption to student learning here at Quorn Area School, unfortunately however we are in the midst of cancelling the MNSEC Athletics event and postponing the MNSEC Formal to a later date. These directions from the Department are about supporting the effort to contain and slow the spread of COVID-19, as schools play a vital role in assisting our communities to contain the virus. We’re working closely with SA Health and we will continue to follow their advice and guidelines. We will send through regular updates as they become available.

Aspiring to Inspire
Monique Griffiths

Whole School News

We are now at the beginning of Week 8 and our learners are making good progress in all subject areas. As a school, we are always looking at what we can do to help our learners achieve at the highest possible level. We have identified some areas that we would really like to focus on which will require parent support.

Daymap Use

We are currently looking at how frequently our parent/caregivers access Daymap to interact with their child’s learning at Quorn Area School.

Daymap provides the school community with great information about your child’s attendance to classes and the work they are completing.

Each of your child’s school reports since the introduction of Daymap is accessible at all times on Daymap.

If you haven’t had access to Daymap or would like to, please email me and I will generate a password reset link. Furthermore, if you would like me to show you the basics of how to access the site and the more important features please contact me. Your child’s learning and progress is a joint effort between the school, the learners and the parents/caregivers and we would appreciate your support. My email address is matt.griffiths310@schools.sa.edu.au

Reports

Our teachers are currently in the process of writing reports for our learners to provide valuable feedback on their progress and future directions for improvement. This term we will once again publish the first batch of reports (Friday of Week 9) without the grades which allows our learners to read the feedback and self-assign a grade during their Monday Week 10 Caregroup lesson. We will then publish the full reports on Friday of Week 10. By doing this it gives parents and learners the chance in Week 10 to contact the teachers of classes to clarify any questions they may have about the reports. If you have any questions about thi process please send me an email or contact the school.

Secondary Parent – Teacher Contact

As a staff group we are always trying to improve our relationships with parents and families through frequent & open communication. If you have any questions that you would like to ask to the class teachers directly, their contact details are listed below;

Matt.Griffiths310@schools.sa.edu.au
11/12 Integrated Learning, 11/12 Nutrition & 11/12 Psychology

Bradley.Forkert285@schools.sa.edu.au
11/12 English, Research Project, 7 English

Faruk.Pathan723@schools.sa.edu.au
7 Science, 7 Math, 9 Science, 9 Math, 11/12 Math

Sambi.Sambi575@schools.sa.edu.au
8 Math, 8 Science, 10 Math, 10 Science, 11/12 Math, 11/12 Biology

Travis.McDonald470@schools.sa.edu.au
7/8 Technolgies, 9 Technologies, 10-12 Technologies

Sarah.Bury988@schools.sa.edu.au
7/8 HPE, 9/10 HPE, 9 English

Megan.Novillos702@schools.sa.edu.au
10 English, 10 PLP, 11/12 English

NAPLAN

It is the acronym that makes most parents, students and teachers stress. Ultimately it is not something that we need to stress about as this nationally based assessment provides the school with information about the things we are doing well and the things that we need to improve on as a site. The more students we have participate in the assessment the more information we can gather about student learning. This information will then allow us to make more informed decisions about our teaching programs ultimately benefiting your children.

Please speak to your class teacher about NAPLAN if you have any concerns or hesitations about the national assessment.

The annual NAPLAN Online testing window begins on the 12th May (Term 2 – Week 3).

Matt Griffiths
Secondary School Coordinator

National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence

Friday the 20th of March is The National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence (NDA). This year to acknowledge the importance of spreading awareness, Quorn Area School students will be involved in a 50 minute session to further develop their understanding of what bullying is, what you might already know about bullying and what you would do if you were being bullied or witnessed bullying. A buddy system consisting of 3 group members, all of different ages (foundation – yr 12) will be implemented to allow a collaboration of teamwork and peer leading. This buddy system will also be put into effect on several separate occasions throughout the year to strengthen communication between varied age groups.

On Friday the 20th of March, students will be encouraged to wear their House colours (Kanyaka and Yarrah) in order to earn points for their team and develop their understanding of bullying.

Following this day, we will be running a selection of fun activities on the 9th of April. On this day Quorn Area School senior secondary students will be facilitating activities for the primary and secondary learners. There will be a colour theme as well as a BBQ lunch provided. Watch this space for more information in the next newsletter.

This will be a follow up of the Friday session and will be an exciting way to conclude the first term.

Aiden, Tayla and Shalaynee

Homework Club

SSSA Swimming

Siblings Tayla, Jayde & Joel Finlay along with Aiden Hately-Bell recently competed in the SSSA Swimming carnival in Adelaide on Tuesday 3rd March. Their selection in this team came from impressive performances at the Quorn MNSEC carnival. We would like to thank the parents of these students for transporting them to this event and giving them opportunities to further succeed.

Primary Report

Miss Tomney’s 2/3/4 Class

We have had a very busy term so far. We are working really hard in all learning areas.

Literacy

In Literacy we have been focusing on understanding text we are reading. Students have been completing different literacy activities to extend their learning and increase their understanding of different text.

Numeracy

In our class we have been focusing on place value and how we can create numbers in different ways. Students have been really engaged in different station work that we have been doing. Some of our favourite activities is a dice game where we have to roll a dice a certain amount of times and write the number in different ways. Another favourite activity is creating a number with numicon shapes and walking around the class and identifying what number other people have. We are about to start a new topic based on numbers to 1000, 10 000 and 100 000.

Drama

In Drama, we have been focusing on re-enacting a part out of a picture book. Students have just finished writing their scripts and are now going to start practicing their script so they can perform their scene to the class.

Amber Tomney
2/3/4 Class Teacher

Young Writers

Congratulations to these young writers for working hard to achieve their writing goals.

They have set new goals for themselves and are working hard every day to improve.

What is MAPPEN?

Students in the Primary classes have possibly been going home and discussing their ‘Mappen’ lessons. You may be wondering what exactly is Mappen?

In a nutshell, Mappen is an online curriculum and professional learning program for Australian Primary schools. Designed by Australian teachers, top in their fields, with an understanding of how diverse and ever changing our world is.

It comprises of 32 units of work, integrating Science, Health, HASS (Humanities and Social Sciences – which is the old history, geography and social studies), Design Technology and General Capabilities (which is thinking and social skills).

The units are designed using a thematic approach to develop curriculum knowledge, thinking strategies and ways to connect learning to our everyday lives. This makes the learning highly engaging and relevant to students and teachers.

Most importantly, the program values and uses the principles of visible learning and student driven skill development at every stage.

Last year our school began implementing Mappen in some classes as a trial. The success of this trial led to the decision to increase the implementation of Mappen to all primary classes – Foundation to Year 6. The Foundation to Year 4 classes have 5 lessons per week with me and the Year 5/6 class have their lessons with Matthew Buckingham.

At Quorn Area School we have been working towards helping students become ‘assessment capable learners’ and Mappen supports this process completely.

After careful consideration it has been decided to report on Mappen as one subject rather than trying to isolate each curriculum area within the units of work.

I am happy to discuss any concerns or questions you may have.

Term One

In Term One the classes have mostly focussed on the Health Curriculum and the General Capabilities Strand of the Curriculum. There has also been some work within Science and Design Technology and HASS. The Mappen strand was called ‘Identity’

Foundation

The unit was called – Shaping our Identity.

Students learnt about good habits for our mind and social skills for how to work effectively with others.

The students set goals and have given a short presentation about objects in their 'Identity Container'. They have learnt about the identity of other students in the class as they created pictographs.

Students learned about 'Sometimes' foods and 'Always' foods and considered how they use their bodies.

They have learned how to get help in the classroom and in the schoolyard and how to use objects safely.

The Year 1 / 2 Class

The unit was called ‘Growing Older and Wiser’

Students have learnt about staying safe and taking responsible risks, healthy food, expressing their emotions clearly, and dealing with conflict. They have investigated how they have changed in their life and reflected on the things that they will be able to do in the future.

The Year 2 / 3 / 4 Class

The unit was called ‘The Game of Life’

Students have considered ethics, customs, hobbies and sports, and people who are important in their lives as they developed cards to play in 'The Game of Life'. They have learned which health messages in the media are safe to trust and how to say no when someone is pressuring them.

Next term sees more emphasis on the Science Curriculum as we delve into a unit called ‘Change’.

• Foundation - The Changing World.
• Year 1 / 2 – ‘Stimulating Science’
• Year 2 / 3 / 4 – ‘Into the Unknown’

Senga Reed

Learner Wellbeing & Engagement

Quorn Area School Community Library

Book Fair

SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR IS HERE Please make plans to visit and invest to enrich children’s learning. SAVE THE DATE Tuesday, 17th March – Saturday, 21st March at Quorn School & Community Library Remember, every purchase made earns learning and literacy resources for our school. Payment options are stated in the letter sent to you. Reading for pleasure unlocks the power of information and imagination! It helps children discover who they are… Our Book Fair is a reading event that brings the books, which our learners want to read right into our school. It’s a wonderful selection of engaging and affordable books for every reading level. Every year, friends and families come together to promote reading books and lifelong learning at our Book Fair.

Meet Libby

Libby is the new app that allows you to borrow thousands of ebooks and audiobooks for FREE using your smart device OR Microsoft Devices with Windows 10+… Just log in using your Library SA OneCard and PIN

Public Libraries SA Digital Collection

The SA Public Libraries has a digital catalogue so that everyone has access to thousands of audiobooks and ebooks, you may be interested in using this link here:

Premiers Reading Challenge

We have commenced our annual Premier’s Reading Challenge from 28th January, 2020.

Premier's Reading Challenge (PRC) is a literacy engagement program that was introduced by the Premier in 2004 to:

• Encourage students to read more books and enjoy reading
• Improve literacy levels.

The Challenge requires students to read 12 books between the beginning of the school year and early September.

How can you find out about the Challenge?

All information about the Premier’s Reading Challenge can be found at the link below. Accessing the Challenge guidelines is very useful.

Who can participate?

All students from Reception to Year 12 are encouraged to participate, including South Australian government and non- government school students and students undertaking home education.

Students can read a combination of books from the Challenge booklists and books of their own choosing. Students can choose to read books in languages other than English. The booklists are available on the Premier’s Reading Challenge website.

• Reception to Year 6 students select at least 8 books from the booklists on the Premier’s Reading Challenge website and 4 books of their own choice.
• Year 7, 8 and 9 students select at least 4 books from the Premier’s Reading Challenge booklists and 8 books of their own choice.
• Year 10, Year 11 and Year 12 students select 12 books of their own choice at an appropriate literacy level.
• Students are encouraged to keep reading once they have completed 12 books.

Awards - the ‘Olympics of reading’ and beyond...

Students who complete the Challenge receive awards from the Premier for their achievements in a similar fashion to sporting stars!

Awards for completing the Challenge are:

• Certificate – first year
• Bronze medal – second year
• Silver medal – third year
• Gold medal – fourth year
• Champion medal – fifth year
• Legend medal – sixth year
• Hall of Fame medal – seventh year
• Reader for Life – eighth year
• Reader for Life bronze – ninth year
• Reader for Life silver – tenth year
• Reader for Life gold – eleventh year
• Reader for Life champion – twelfth year
• Reader for Life legend – thirteenth year
• Reader for Life hall of fame – fourteenth year

Premier’s Reading Challenge Ambassadors

Ambassadors are high profile South Australian identities, who are keen to promote the Challenge and spread the message that reading is ‘cool’. Adelaide United Football Club, Link Lightning, Adelaide Football Club, Port Adelaide Football Club and the Thunderbirds are joint ambassador teams with the Premier’s be active Challenge.

Benefits of taking part in the Challenge

• Raises the profile of reading, libraries and literacy in schools
• Gives students a focus for their reading
• Encourages students to read more books and enjoy reading more - the more you read the better you get at it!
• Encourages boys to participate by being ‘challenged’
• Offers incentives for reluctant readers
• Builds self-esteem and pride, school unity, and a sense of achievement
• Increases the involvement of parents in their child’s reading
• Increases library borrowing
• Contributes to increased literacy levels.

Premier’s Reading Challenge Digital Collection

here is a snapshot of what the site looks like..

• They have recently created a dedicated section for the PRC!
• This way, learners can access a collection of PRC audiobooks and e-books (see links + images below) and easily borrow digital content from their own devices.
• as long as they have signed up for a FREE Libraries SA membership and have access to internet.

Direct links to digital collection arranged by Year Level

ONLINE PRC COLLECTION FOR RECEPTION TO YEAR 2:

ONLINE PRC COLLECTION FOR YEAR 3 TO 5:

ONLINE PRC COLLECTION FOR YEAR 6 TO 9:

ONLINE PRC COLLECTION FOR YEAR 10 TO 12:

OSHC

Vacation Care – April School Holidays

Parents and Friends

Easter Raffle

Sustainability in our School

Did you know……

• Sending a sandwich and a muffin in plastic wrap everyday equates to 105metres of plastic wrap in one lunch box
• Quorn Area School spends $3086 per year to have both general and recycled rubbish collected from the school. If we reduced this by 1/3 that would mean over $1000 we could spend on fun things for our kids – more fun that rubbish collection!
• The general rubbish bin at our school ( 3 cubic metres) is collected each fortnight at a cost of $85.50

To help cut down the rubbish in our school one of our fundraising efforts in 2020 will be selling reusable wraps, pockets and food covers at the school. We have selected some products from 4myearth which we think will help families make lunch boxes easier to pack – stocks will arrive in the next few weeks so watch this space for more information.

Miscellaneous Reports

SAASTA 2020

On the 2nd of March Nuala Wilton travelled to Whyalla along with the indigenous students from Leigh Creek Area School for a week long SAASTA (South Australian Aboriginal Secondary Training Academy) trip where she attended workshops in order to complete various assignments. In these workshops she learnt about Aboriginal art, went to Nunyara Aboriginal Health Service Inc., and participated in various football activities and activities to help young adults with identity. There were 4 indigenous Port Adelaide players there including, Jarrod Leinert #40, Sam Powell-Pepper #2, Karl Amon #15 and Steven Motlop #6. During this week of workshops, Nuala was given time to complete multiple parts to a massive assignment. Along with all these super educational activities, Nuala met her favourite Port Adelaide player Zak Butters #18 and watched all the players train ready for their game. She is looking forward to the second SAASTA workshop in Term 2.

St Ann’s University Residential College

St Ann’s College provides student accommodation in a safe, inspiring environment for those who are completing their University degree, TAFE course or Foundation Studies in Adelaide. Our mission is to provide a secure collegiate environment that promotes the highest standards of academic achievement and personal development for the benefit of the individual and the wider community. Our students are largely made up of people from regional South Australia, with approximately 20% from interstate and overseas.

Each student has their own bedroom equipped with a bed, desk, chair, wardrobe, fridge, split system air-conditioner and FREE unlimited Wi-Fi. All rooms are cleaned weekly with rubbish taken out daily by our cleaning staff. Our kitchen staff provide students with three delicious healthy meals per day and are accommodating of specific dietary requirements.

I would like to extend an invitation to you and your students to come to the College and take a personal tour with one of our students to see our facilities and grounds for yourself. If you are not able to attend the College as a group, I strongly advise your students to attend the College for an individual tour at a time that suits them best. This can be arranged by calling the office on 08 8267 1478.

Denise von Wald
Principal – St Ann’s College