23 February 2017

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

It has been a very busy and smooth start to the school year with many activities already starting and being organised. I would like to thank our Manly Vale staff who presented outstanding information nights to communicate expectations and organisation for the year ahead. The information evenings were extremely well attended by parents and caregivers with record numbers. Thank you for your enthusiasm and support. Parent/Teacher interviews will take place this term in weeks 10 and 11. If you require an interview prior to then please email the school and it will be forwarded to your child’s teacher.

The P&C have received many offers for volunteers and are very excited with the plans for 2017. If you were not able to attend an information evening, all class teachers are compiling class lists for the Class Coordinator to form a contact group for each class. Please fill in the slip sent home and return it as soon as possible so the lists can be finalised.

National Apology Anniversary

Monday 13 February was the anniversary of the National Apology speech given by Kevin Rudd to acknowledge the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders being the traditional owners of the land. Miss Sussanna created a wonderful power point presentation to be used in all classrooms so students and teachers were able to discuss this memorable occasion in Australian history.

PSSA

Tomorrow is the first round of PSSA. This year we are excited to be sending two new teams to represent the school in the tee-ball and softball competitions. Thank you to our PSSA committee, Mr Dylan and all the staff who have volunteered to coach the teams. PSSA coaches take on extra duties as they do training sessions and have more commitments on Fridays. The following staff members are coaching the following teams: Ms Cash – Girls Eagle Tag, Mrs Ward – Boys A Eagle Tag , Mr Guzman – Boys B Eagle Tag, Mr Dylan & Mrs Fraser – Volleyball/Newcombe Ball, Mr Bennett – Cricket and Mrs Humphreys – Softball & Tee ball. We wish all the teams the best of luck in the summer PSSA competition and expect lots of positive feedback on Manly Vale sportsmanship throughout the season. Please ensure your child has returned their permission note and has signed the PSSA Code of Conduct.

School sport for 3-6 students is arranged by Mrs O’Grady and will also start tomorrow. The program will focus on teaching students sporting and fundamental movement skills.

Bus Issues

Some issues with the buses being late and not following correct route drop-offs and pick-ups in the morning and afternoons have been reported over the past two weeks. Thank you to the concerned parents for alerting us to the issues. I have been in contact with the Bus Depot manager. All buses travelling through the Forest/Allambie area are having time delays due to the road works. In this case, if buses are late in the morning, all teachers are notified and students enter their classrooms as soon as they arrive. In the afternoons, if the buses are late, we will send out a push notification on our Schoolzine App which can be downloaded following the instructions below. Please direct all feedback and complaints straight to the bus depot feedback line which ensures messages are recorded and problems are dealt with. The number is 131500.

Ribbons

Tomorrow the swimming carnival ribbons will be handed out at our lines assembly in the morning. Congratulations to all competitors and ribbon winners. Good luck to our Zone swimming team who will be representing our school at the next level. Please ensure all notes are returned to Mrs Ward as soon as possible. Thank you again to Mrs Ward, Mrs Birrell & Mr Dylan for your organisation of the swimming carnivals.

Badges

On Friday 3 March SRC badges will be handed out at the Friday morning assembly to students who were voted in by their peers to represent their class at the Student Council meetings. This forum is a special opportunity for students to engage in a democratic process throughout the year. In doing so, students are able to put forward class suggestions for school changes, present these at student council meetings and students vote on the suggestions. The suggestions are then taken to the principal, staff members or P&C etc for approval. We have had excellent suggestions in the past and our ‘Buddy Bench’, science week and computer time at lunch; are some examples of these. The SRC is where students have a voice and bring about change in our school. Congratulations to the following students for being voted as Student Council Representatives:

S.R.C. LEADERS FOR 2017

Library Badges & Bus Monitor Badges

The students in year 5 who have volunteered to be library and bus monitors will receive their badges on Friday 10 March and their names will be printed in the newsletter prior.

House Captains

The Macquarie House Captains are Hannah Lambley and Jonathon Levingston and the House Vice Captains are Ariel McLaughlin and JD Scoon. Sorry for the misprint.

High School Transition

On Thursday we had a transition to high school night where the Principals Paul Sheather (Balgowlah Boys) and Christine DeGallo (Mackellar Girls) spoke to stage 3 parents. Due to a change in policy and annual boundary rearrangements both of these high schools are now considered our local high schools for entry in 2018. There is a school locator tool that confirms your address and local high school and this can be accessed via the following link:

High school ‘Expression of Interest’ forms and steps to complete the form will be sent out to year 6 families on Wednesday 8 March. Miss Phillips is able to answer any questions and help with the forms which aren’t due back to the school until Wednesday 15 March.

Year 6 students will receive flyers throughout the year from Mrs O’Grady and Mr Guzman regarding high school open days and enrolments. These are handed out as soon as we receive them from the high schools. Parents have been advised that it is their responsibility to check all high school websites for dates and information. Students attended Open Days at Mackellar Girls and Balgowlah Boys on Tuesday and the year 7 academic placement tests for specialised programs at these schools are being held on Thursday 16 March. Year 6 students received a flyer for this last week as applications to sit the test close tomorrow Friday 24 February.

The Selective High Schools Test will be held on Thursday 9 March. If your child is sitting this test you filled in the application form last year and should receive an email from the Selective High Unit with information regarding any requirements.

ICAS Competitions

The ICAS competitions note will be sent out shortly. If you intend for your child to sit selective high or opportunity class (OC) placement tests we require the English and mathematics ICAS tests results for school rankings. Please ensure these notes are sent back by the closing date which is Friday 24 March as test papers need to be ordered and arrangements made to deliver the tests. If your child is away on the ‘competition’ dates they will be caught up during the week.

China Study Tour – 19 March-29 March

It is with great excitement that our China Study Tour is fast approaching. We have received overwhelming interest in hosting the students but still require more families to host students. During their stay, the students will have a very full program including excursions outside the school setting, English lessons and visits to all classrooms K-6. We believe this is an excellent cultural opportunity for our students to be exposed to and experience. Thank you to the families who have sent in their expressions of interest to host. An information evening will be happening on Tuesday 28 February and more details will be shared that night.

Scripture & Ethics Classes

Last week scripture and ethics classes started. Thank you to Mrs Poole for all the organisation of these classes and volunteers. Thank you to the ethics and scripture teachers for the time you have committed to volunteer at the school during the year.

School Photos

The whole school photo day is being split over two days as we have grown in size and it will be more manageable for Advance and the school. K-2 will have class and individual photos on Friday 31 March and 3-6 will have class and individual photos on Monday 3 April. There will be more specific information sent closer to the date regarding times and uniform expectations. Order forms will also be sent out soon.

Extra-Curricular Sport Success

Congratulations to Matthew Evans (year 5) who was selected to play in the Manly Warringah Jnr Cricket Association U11 Representative President’s Cup Team. The team had an undefeated season and won the grand final.

Congratulations to Hilton Kennedy (year 5) for achieving excellence in tennis and being awarded several tennis trophies for being such a remarkable player.

Thank You

Thank you to the Davies family for donating pristine furniture, toys and games for our kindergarten classrooms. It is lovely to be able to pass on almost-brand-new items for our classrooms.

Front Gate

The P&C spent a lot of money to create a lovely entrance to our school. In the afternoons, students are jumping the fence and using the entrance as climbing equipment. To prevent injury and preserve the area and keep it intact we ask that students walk through the gate and use the designated exit and entrance to the school. Please encourage your child to do this as well.

Mrs Lee Returns

Mrs Lee has had a wonderful family overseas holiday and is returning to school on Monday 27 February. Thank you for your support and kind encouragement as I have relieved in the position as Principal.

Lisa Phillips - Relieving Principal

Newsletter articles

Closing dates for newsletter items during Term 1 2017 are Tuesday 7 March, Tuesday 21 March and Tuesday 4 April.

Dates for Your Diary

Swimming Carnival

It was a huge Manly Vale team effort this year at our annual swimming carnival. The weather was not on our side. The whole school came together against the elements of the storm. Even though the start of the carnival was outside and very wet, participation from the children was excellent. Thank you to all the parent helpers, students, spectators and staff for their wonderful involvement at the Swimming Carnival. I would like to extend a special thanks to Manly Pool Lifeguard, Jono Colwell (Charlie 3C) and all the parents that were involved in helping out on the day. Whether it was being a lifesaver, assisting with timekeeping or judging your efforts were appreciated. Children always love to see their parents take part in activities. Ribbons and announcement of the winning house will be announced at Friday morning assembly. A note will be sent home with children if they are to attend the District Carnival on Monday 6 March. Students who had the fastest 3 times in the 50m freestyle, or the 2 fastest times in all other events will represent Manly Vale Public School at this carnival.

Due to the weather at our Swimming Carnival we were unable to run the Junior, 11 years or Senior Butterfly events. Manly Swim Centre has offered to give Manly Vale Public School time next Wednesday 1 March at 2.00pm to complete these events. We have limited time at Manly Swim Centre so only students who are capable of competitively swimming 50 metres butterfly and have already performed at a high level in their races are eligible to apply.

Congratulations to all the children who participated and the wonderful achievements.

Melinda Ward

Surf Education

It was a gloriously sunny and warm day last Thursday for all of Stage 3 to spend at Manly Beach for the practical session of their Surf Education course. The ocean played its part offering a calm swell and no stingers. Students worked their way through a series of rotations to improve their awareness and skills in surf safety. It was wonderful to see all students achieve their personal best in swimming around buoys, floating in currents, paddling on foam boards and dolphin diving through waves. A big thank you to Lisa Cash for organising the excursion.

Summer PSSA

Summer PSSA commences this Friday. Last Friday notes were sent home with all the players who were selected in teams. The prompt return of these notes is greatly appreciated.

This year we are sending a record number of teams for Manly Vale Public School. They include: 2 senior boys and 2 junior boys eagle tag teams, 1 senior and 1 junior girls eagle tag teams, 1 senior and 1 junior cricket team, 1 volley ball team and 1 newcombe ball team and for the first time in many years 1 softball team and 1 tee ball team. Please refer to the permission note sent home for coach and playing ground information. Don’t forget to write PSSA on any Friday lunch orders so the canteen can prepare for our early departure.

Training is an important part of being in a PSSA team and it is expected for students to attend. If your child is unable to attend training or a game it is polite for the student to see their coach ahead of time. All trainings will occur on Friday morning and they will begin this week starting at 8.10am and finishing at 8.40am.

• Cricket, boy’s eagle tag and girl’s eagle tag training will be held at David Thomas oval. The teams will walk back to the school with their coaches.
• Softball, tee ball, volleyball and newcombe ball will be held at school.

As draws become available more information regarding specific ovals for cricket and softball/tee ball will be available at the office.

In case of wet weather and cancellations we aim to notify the community as soon as possible by placing it on the website and sending a message via our Schoolzine App. Please try to use these forms of communication rather than calling the office. Sometimes this decision is not made until later that day as we try to play the games if at all possible. The cancellation of games due to weather is a Zone PSSA decision and applies to all sports on the day.

Well done to everyone who trialled this year. It is wonderful to see so many athletic and energetic students enjoying sports. Best of luck to all the teams and we are sure your will represent Manly Vale with skill and great displays of sportsmanship.

Owlets Coordinator position vacant 2017

The P&C are looking for parents interested in coordinating the Manly Vale Owlets playgroup on Monday mornings from 9.00-11.00am. This can be a shared roll between parents if desired. Volunteers are responsible for setting up the school hall for a morning of play and age-appropriate craft and activities. Morning tea is provided for parents. Owlets playgroup is a great way for potential students aged 0-5 years to get to know our fabulous school and parents to meet other families. If you are interested in the position or would like further information please contact Kyrralyn on 0422 404 273.

Canteen Volunteers Roster Term 1, 2017

MANLY VALE OSHC CENTRE

M: 0430 369 288 E: mvoshc@primaryoshcare.com.au

Dear Families,

We have been enjoying pattern formation and exploring with colours through craft activities and making creations with the Hama Beads. This week we have begun our Health and Wellbeing program with the children. On Mondays we have Emily our Netball coach coming. She has a lesson with the children in 3-6 and then K-2. The children were grouped and worked on their skills together. The Sustainability club has been going very well. Our plants are growing big and strong due to the rain over the past few days. Some of the 3-6 children have suggested collecting rain water to ensure that we are re-using the rain water. Kindy club has been lots of fun. We have started setting up our kindy area this week. On Sunday, some of our team members attended The Bear Cottage Open Day and met the wonderful, devoted team and were taken on a tour of their facilities.

From the Manly Vale OSHC Team

Community Notices

High School Open Days 2017

Enrolling in high school – Parent information evening

Monday 27 February 2017, 7.00-8.00pm, Northern Beaches Secondary College, Freshwater Senior Campus Theatre, Harbord Rd, Freshwater. Places are limited, booking is required online. For details phone: 9939 6942.

Free ANZAC Exhibition for Students

FREE tickets are available for Australia’s largest travelling exhibition, the Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience. The interactive exhibition displays over 200 artefacts from the Australian War Memorial, which tell the story of our nation’s involvement in the First World War.

International Convention Centre Sydney, 15-27 April 2017. BOOK FREE TICKETS NOW. For enquiries, please email groupbookings@spiritofanzac.gov.au or call 8572 8763.

Advertisements