Macedon Primary School Newsletter

3 March 2021

School Values: Respect, Responsibility, Creativity, Integrity, Teamwork

Principals Report

Dear parents,

Library Learning Hub Construction Update

The Victorian School Building Authority (VSBA) contacted me recently about commencing the Library Learning Hub project that we received a $370 000 grant for in late 2020.  The project will be led by the VSBA in collaboration with the school and the VSBA have outlined that the first part of the process will be to appoint a head consultant for the project via a tender process.  

Once a head consultant has been appointed we will begin the design and then construction.  A timeline for project has not been established yet so I will keep you up to date as we make progress.  This is an exciting project for the school and I am looking forward to the opportunities this will provide our students once it is completed. 

 School Council Elections

The nomination period for our next school council representatives has now closed and an election will be held.  The following parents have been nominated for the vacant positions on council.  Thank you for your interest in the process.

Sarah Turner

Sam Evans

David Wylie

Ben English

Nina Moncrief

Jessica Ramsden

You will receive ballot papers by the end of this week and the ballot will be open between 8:30am Friday 5 March and 4:30pm on Thursday 11 March.  The ballot box will be at the front office, I encourage you to drop your voting slip off once you have filled it in.

Professional Learning Community – Whole School Reading Focus

Seven of our staff are completing the Department of Education, Professional Learning Community (PLC) training at the moment.  A large focus of the PLC training is using the results of student assessment and evidence of learning data to identify areas for our improvement.  We are early on in this process and we have identified our first narrow focus for our improvement journey.  We will be focusing on the teaching practices that will support our students to improve their reading.  In the 5/6 area we have identified that some of our students need support with finding the main idea of a text, in the 3/4 area we will be developing teaching strategies that help our students make inferences about the text which is the skill of reading between the lines.  In our Year 2 classrooms we will be supporting our students to identify and use common suffixes and our Year 1 students are also learning to identify the main idea of a text. The Foundation students are still settling in and our Foundation teachers will soon have a chance to analyse the entry level assessment data.

One of the research based high impact teaching strategies that we know has an impact in classrooms is giving the students multiple and varying opportunities to interact with new information to form new learning.  It takes “three or four experiences involving interaction with the relevant information for a new knowledge construct to be created in working memory and then transferred to long-term memory” (Nuthall, 200, p.93).  We will be learning about how to best do this in our classrooms to have a positive impact on our students' learning.

Clean up Australia Day – Friday

Our students will be participating in clean up Australia this Friday.  We will be cleaning up Middle Gully, the main school site and some of our older students will be making their way to Ash Wednesday Park and the reservoir to do some cleaning up.  I think this is a great way for our students to complete a simple action that will have an impact on our community.

Thanks and have a great week.

Matt Forrest

Principal

Important Dates

5 March - Clean up Australia Day

8 March - Labour Day Public Holiday (no school)

19 March - Ride to School Day

24 March - House Cross Country - Tony Clarke Reserve

31st & 1 April - Year 1 and 2 MGR Camp

1 April - Last Day of Term 1 - 2:30pm dismissal

19 April -  School Curriculum Day (no students)

20 April - First Day of Term 2

From the Office

Medications at school

If your child needs to take medication at school, it needs to be stored in the sick bay and a Medical Authority Form needs to be completed. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Asthma and Anaphylaxis Students

The Department of Education requires each student that has Asthma or Anaphylaxis to have a Management Plan. The plans are written up by the school and will be sent home with the students for parents to sign and return to school. We also require any students with Asthma to fill out a school camp and excursion form that needs to be completed prior to the students going on camps or excursions. 

Messages for students

If you need to get a message to your child, please ensure you call the office prior to 3:15pm. The end of the school day is very busy in the office and we are not always able to leave the office to locate children and give them the message.

Absence Notifications

If your child is late or absent from school without explanation from parents, an SMS will be sent to Adult A at around 10.15am. Please respond to the SMS promptly. Please note the following: 

If your child is LATE FOR SCHOOL, a parent must accompany the child to the office when you arrive, sign your child in the Early Leavers/Late Arrival book and take a “Late Pass” for your child to hand to their teacher. Rolls are marked promptly at 9am. If the music has finished and your child is not yet in class, they have probably missed the roll.

If your child will be ABSENT FROM SCHOOL, we ask that you either:

  • Log onto Skoolbag and record the absence
  • Phone the school on 5426 1518 and leave a message on the absence voicemail; or
  • Send an email to the school’s email address; macedon.ps@education.vic.gov.au

If you need to take your child EARLY FROM SCHOOL we ask that you:

  • Call or email the office to advise what time you will be collecting your child so we can have them ready at the office.
  • come to the office to sign your child out.

Working With Children Checks

All parents, carers and other visitors to Macedon Primary require a current Working With Children’s Check to volunteer at the school. To apply for a volunteer WWCC you simply log on to

https://www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au/ (its free!)

If you have a current WWCC or VIT and have not advised the office, please bring your card into the office to have it photocopied or simply take a photo of the card and email it to the office at macedon.ps@education.vic.gov.au

If parents do not have a current working with children check, they cannot attend camps/excursions.

Julie  and Emma

Student Achievement Awards

F/1 TT - Shannon B - For working hard on all set tasks.

F/1 MS - Cameron C - For writing a fantastic weekend recount!

1 KH - Caitlin L - For doing an amazing job with her writing. 

1/2 KB - Baylie H - For looking after our room and caring for class belongings.

2 RG - Zara G - For being an excellent leader during mathematics!

2 RG - Alexander W - For designing  an outstanding abacus during mathematics!

3 VW - Estee F - For fantastic contributions to reading group discussion.

3 VW - Tom G - For a great effort with planning and writing his narrative.

4 CS - Quynn K - For being kind and thoughtful of your classmates.

4 CS - Johanna D - For being kind and thoughtful of your classmates.

4 CS - Raven G - For being kind and thoughtful of your classmates.

4 CS - Freya D - For being kind and thoughtful of your classmates.

6 AB - Kody S - For excellence self-awareness during his learning.

6 AB - Cassie I - For excellent confidence with all her learning and being a great leader.

News Hounds

This week, our News Hounds Scarlett, Oscar P and Lydia bring you an investigative report into the buddy bench and an interview with one of the buddy bench’s creators. Students should speak to Bu Deryn if you would like to join News Hounds.

Thank you to Emily B for demonstrating how to pack up the chess pieces and to Mrs Tadd for being a good sport.

The Buddy Bench Needs You!

Lately the Buddy Bench has been neglected and we have been seeing many faces with nobody to play with!  Just a reminder that if you are sad, go to the Buddy Bench, and if you see someone there, come help them. Also, please remember to clean up the chess after you’re done and put it in the big white box.

An interview with Mrs Tadd

Mrs Tadd has been at Macedon Primary School for 12 years. Her favourite colour is aqua, and she is in Mitchell House. Her favourite excursions are Werribee Zoo, Ballarat Wildlife Park and the Melbourne Aquarium. She helped make the Buddy Bench and the tinfoil scarecrow and the birds in the foyer with the Year 6s in 2016.

Mrs Tadd’s favourite thing about the school is, “All the staff, the children and their families. And I love the adventure track and Middle Gully.”

Ride2School Day - 19th March

Some of our students and Mr O featured in a news article in this week's Sunbury and Macedon Star Weekly.  This year's ride to school day is on Friday the 19th of March.

National Ride2School Day is Australia's biggest celebration of active travel and one of the best days on the school calendar. It's a day where students, teachers and parents discover the joy of riding and kick-start healthy habits for the future.

Rhubarb Ice cream

Today the students in Years 5/6 SK and 6 AB made rhubarb ice cream over at the JCB. Over the last few weeks, children have been working over at Middle Gully to cultivate the fruit and vegetables that have grown there over summer. Last week the Year 6 students cut Rhubarb and this week with the kindness and generosity of Angela Driden (Jasper and Sienna’s mum), we all made Rhubarb Ice cream using a churner. The ingredients were stewed rhubarb, thickened cream and raw sugar. Did you know that rhubarb is actually a vegetable! Like tomatoes are a fruit! And bananas are a herb!

Who knew??

Sunsmart Reminder

Although it may still be cold, Victoria’s UV levels are on the rise so please check the daily local sun protection times to see when you need to be SunSmart.  The sun protection times are a forecast from the Bureau of Meteorology for the time of day UV levels are forecast to reach 3 or higher in your location. At these levels, sun protection (hat, clothing, sunscreen, shade and, if practical, sunglasses) is recommended for all skin types

When outdoors, whether that be for the two hours of permitted exercise in metropolitan Melbourne or if you’re lucky enough to be allowed outside for longer, to  check the sun protection times and use sun protection accordingly. For more information for families please check out https://www.sunsmart.com.au/communities/parents

Middle Gully Update

We are happy to be able to welcome parent helpers back to our Middle Gully program. The sessions run from 2:00pm to 3:30pm on Thursdays. 

Please make sure that you have a valid Working With Children Check and that this has been shown to the office. 

The dates are as follows:

March 4 – 4/5BT

March 11 – 5/6SK

 March 18 – 3VW

Grade 1 and 2 camp will have their Middle Gully session on either 31st March or 1st April.

 

Outside School Hours Care

Our rates are: $15.00 for Before School Care (7:00am - 8:45am) and $22.00 for After School Care (3:30pm - 6:30pm). All you need to do is call the school 5426 1518 or email oshp@macedonps.vic.edu.au to book.  If the unexpected happens and a casual booking is required within 24 hours, please contact the school via phone, we cannot accept walk-ins after school.  Please note that enrolment forms need to be completed at least one business day before the first session of care.

Please pay through the school via Direct Deposit, using the following details (not BPay):

Account name: Macedon Primary School

BSB: 063-840

Account: 1003 4330

Vicki, Helen, Karen & Marie.

OSHC Enrolment update forms

If your child is going to attend OSHC next year, an update form needs to be completed. Paper copies are available at the office or your can download them from below.
Download

Ranges Music Network

The Ranges Music Network has had a fun start to 2021 with our music programs during the school day as well as Ensembles before and after school.  Students at Macedon Primary are busy jamming together while learning Guitar, Bass, Harp, Voice, Violin, Keyboard, Doods & Toots, Woodwinds, Brass and, of course Drums!

 

We're keen to get as many drummers making a beautiful noise as we can as part of our after school Big Bang group.  Are you interested in playing drums but don't know where to start?  Then sign up for our Big Bang Open Day -- this week from 3:35 to 4:35 after school on Thursday!  Email our Program Director, Shaun Evans at shaun@rangesmusic.net to sign up.  See you there!

 

Community News

Squishy Mini Bookstore Book Launch

We find ourselves at an exciting moment in history. For the first time, trans and gender diverse people are being seen and heard. Thanks to tireless activism, and an increased visibility worldwide, these lived experiences (the joyful, and the painful) are no longer able to be ignored. And so, The Pronoun Lowdown is here to demystify and celebrate trans and gender diverse excellence. Woven together with author Nevo Zisin's own pronoun journey, this colourful hardback sheds light on the complicated history of gender around the world, in language and across time. Nevo shares their ideas for how young trans and gender diverse folk might begin to navigate their identities, as well as simple suggestions for friends and family on how to provide the best support possible. 

 

https://shop.squishyminnie.com.au/p/the-pronoun-lowdown-demystifying-and-celebrating-gender-diversity-abe0b334-caa5-41ce-b78a-d40c2bf61c2c?barcode=9781925811803&search_key=pronoun

Macedon Primary School

Macedon Primary School acknowledges the Wurundjeri people as the traditional owners of the country upon which we learn and work. We recognise their continuing connection to land, water and community and pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging.