William Street, East Maitland 2323 Phone: 4933 7524 Fax: 4934 5012 Email: maitlande-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Respect, Responsibility, Learning, Co-operation and Participation

30 November 2016 No. 37 (Week 8 Term 4)

Educating Communities

Presentation Day This year, only the one Presentation Day will be held. Presentation Day will be on Friday, 9 December 2016 at Maitland Federation Centre. Further information will be provided in due course. End of the Year As the year draws to a close, it is important that we maintain the high standards that we set and expect throughout the year. Please assist us to support our students to enjoy what should be an enjoyable time of the year by encouraging your children to remain focussed and reminding them of school expectations. Whilst there are many different opportunities and activities taking place over the coming weeks, it is vital that routines and expectations are adhered too to make this time a happy and successful one. High School Orientation Just a reminder that for most of our Year 6 students high school orientation day is next Tuesday, 6 December 2016. We wish all of our Year 6 students the best as they begin their journey into the next phase of their life. Kim Dudgeon

Newsletter Week 8

MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Congratulations Kowen! Kowen placed 2nd at the National Championships for Wheelchair Shot Put! Thank you again to everyone for your support of Kowen in making the trip to Sydney. We look forward to providing a few more details and a photograph next week. Well done Kowen! 2017 Planning To assist us in our planning for 2017, if you know of any planned enrolments for next year we would appreciate your advice. Similarly, if your circumstances are changing and your child/children will not be attending East Maitland Public School next year, please also advise us at your very earliest convenience. As I am sure you can understand, anticipated student enrolment is a large determining factor in whole school planning and it is of benefit to everyone for our information to be as accurate as possible. Carols On Wednesday, 7 December 2016, the staff and students will be celebrating the spirit of the festive season through a morning of Christmas carol performances. On this morning the students from each grade, the support unit, the ukulele group and the school concert band will each perform a routine for their families and other students to enjoy. The performances will begin at 9:30am and finish at approximately 11:00am. During the morning the P&C Christmas raffle will be drawn. Following the performances, families are invited to stay for lunch. Lunch is a BYO picnic, so we hope to see lots of picnic rugs, fun and laughter to celebrate this special time of year. Year 6 will be selling cool drinks, and a coffee van will be in attendance for other refreshments.

Opal Cards Please read the following information regarding bus passes. School travel passes only need to be updated when a student: changes address, or

changes school or campus.

A new application is required when: applying for an SSTS pass for the first time,

enrolling in Kindergarten,

progressing from Year 2 to Year 3,

progressing from Year 6 to Year 7, or

requesting an additional pass as a result of a new

shared parental responsibility situation.

For more information on planning your schoo l t rave l , v i s i t www.transportnsw.info or contact your local operator.

Music Scholarship 2017 In 2017 Mr Ward is once again offering a

music scholarship to two lucky students at East Maitland Public School. The scholarship includes the use of an instrument and lessons each week for one year. If you are in Years 2, 3, or 4, please write, in no more than 100 words, “Why music is important to you”. Closing date- Friday, 9 December 2016 Please hand your submissions to Mrs Hookway. Good Luck

Band Concert The band will be performing on Thursday 1, December for Years 2-5 from 9:30am until around 10:30am. This concert will be a chance for the students to show their progress and also to present the band awards for 2016. Howard will again be offering two scholarships next year, the students need to write why music is important to them and hand it back to me by next Friday, 9 December 2016. The scholarship includes lessons for 12 months and hire of an instrument. Tracey Hookway Illnesses At School The last few terms at school has seen a high level of illnesses. Following is some information to remind our children the importance of washing hands. Washing Hands Is The First Line Of Defence Against Germs

Children love to play around in mud and places that are dirty. They also bring back germs and diseases. Washing hands regularly and properly is essentially the first line of defence against illnesses and infections. Germs mainly spread through:

touching dirty hands or surfaces

through contaminated food and water

through being in contact with someone who has

an infection

through contact with a sick person’s bodily fluids

When children come in contact with germs, they can easily get sick if they touch their eyes, nose, or mouth. Once a child gets infected it is just a matter of time before the whole family gets infected. To avoid this making sure children are washing their hands can prevent many diseases from common cold to serious infections like flu, hepatitis, and diarrhoea.

Importance Of Washing Hands

The importance of washing hands cannot be stressed enough. And washing hands is not limited to adults alone, children, pre-schoolers, toddlers everyone should wash their hands before and after eating, after using the toilet and when they come home. Keeping the germs from spreading, washing hands becomes even more important we are with someone who is sick.

Make your child learn the importance of hygiene

– explain why is it important to wash after using the toilet.

Before meals, as this is one way that germs go

inside.

When being around sick people.

By Michael Grose

Helping kids focus in the age of distraction

By Sarah Wayland

Finding ways to turn your kids from flitters to focusers – how teaching your children to ‘stick with it’ can have lifelong benefits. As a society we often debate about the ’right’ amount of screen time, and with the introduction of personal screens

over the last decade, to add to TV, laptops and desktops, the focus on a single task has slowly ebbed away. The

British Psychological Society found that too much screen time (more than their recommendations of no more than 2

hours per day) could unintentionally cause permanent damage to a child’s still-developing brains. Impacting the

capacity to focus, to concentrate and to give attention to tasks.

Distraction is often managed through the delicate art of re-direction or encouragement to combat the ‘but I just

can’t do it!’ However, has this brave new world of binge watching TV, entertainment on demand and socialisation via

hand held devices created kids that always have options for those tasks that require some stubborn determination?

If so how might this new way of living and relaxing challenge our kid’s capacity to stick with a difficult task when they

have a world of entertainment at their disposal?

Dr Daniel Goleman, an award-winning psychologist and TED speaker, emphasises the need for people to engage in skills

that foster emotional intelligence. Goleman’s belief is that ‘Kids learn best when they can maintain sustained

attention, whether to what a teacher is saying, their textbook, or their homework. The root of learning is keen focus;

distractions kill comprehension. But the new normal for young people continually interrupts their focus with

distractions.’

Neuroscientists tell us that the more a young person can practice keeping focus and resist distraction, the stronger

and more richly connected this child becomes. By the same token, the more distracted, the less so. Rebecca finds

that the evidence is clear in our own homes and in classrooms ‘we now have young people who are experts at ‘flitting’

from one device to another’ and she refuses to take a defeatist approach because without refocusing those ‘flitters’

to ‘focusers’ who risk the next generations creative or scientific masterminds we risk losing children who are able to

‘sit still and agonise over a task long enough to see it through to its marvellous end’

Tips for helping kids maintain focus and attention 1. Build your child’s focus

As with all tasks the aim is to start small and build your child’s capacity to master the concept of ‘sticking with it’.

Cath, a school counsellor, finds that she can use the same strategies with the teens she works with and her

primary school aged children when she gets home: ‘it’s all about breaks and rewards. Set a timer between breaks

and then on a break they need to do something active like a push-up. Then there is a little reward for staying on

task for a particular amount of time.

2. Remember it’s all about the journey

Parents and researchers agree that understanding what can be gained from being focused is the key to engaging

your ‘flittering’ child. Our solution driven society is often focused on what we receive at the end rather than the

process to get there. Teaching your children to tolerate the unexpected can have wonderful benefits, as can

sitting with something that may have previously been viewed as unachievable.

3. Keep calm and focus

Use calm methods to engage children who become distracted: ‘breathe, relax and high five each other’ when

working alongside your child or when with a group of children. Talk about what might be achieved at the end and

make it a fun process.

Screens, for all their negatives and benefits, are here to stay. Many argue that they provide complexity and new

experiences to our children’s world by identifying exciting technologies but they also provide avenues to ‘opt out’ of

the hard yards.

Reaching what you thought was unattainable by engaging in a single focus and ‘sticking with it’, can provide lifelong

lessons.

If you are unable to come on your day please

phone or msg Jacki - school 4933 7524 or mobile 0419143528

Canteen Roster

5/12 Georgia Fletcher Nina Mauriere

6/12 Adora McDonald Judy Lawler

7/12 Kath cant Gail Leckie

8/12 Linda Boardman Judy Drap Emma Johnson

9/12 Hayley Lindsay Connie Kavanagh Janee Binnie

Linen Roster 02/12: Jo Proctor 09/12: Grisel Milford - Chilvers 16/12: Katie Brown

If you are unable to change the linen on your

allocated date let me know and I will arrange a

swap.

Thank you

Katie Brown

Canteen News Helpers We will be needing volunteers for 2017. If you can spare 3 hours once a month, please fill the form in on the last page and return it to school. Important Information The last day for lunch orders will be Friday, 9 December 2016. The canteen will still sell ice blocks and drinks until Friday, 16 December 2016.

PARENT ONLINE PAYMENTS (POP)

Our online payment system is now available. This facility is available through the school website. It is a great way to make payments if you are unable to get to the school and is very user friendly.

K Aqua

Ryder Hill

Olive Moad

K Burgundy

Kaden Selder

Lincoln Moad

K Rose

Sienna Bramley-McCauley

Josef Duchon

K Violet

Ailly Scarfe

Peyton Monnox

1 Cyan

Ella Williams

Serena Currie

Emerson Parker

1 Mauve

Inura Dekumpitiya

Rydah Osborn

Ruby-Lou Crick

2 Denim

Brandon Waretini

Emille Ritchie

1 Tangerine

Holly Ford

Bailey Dumbrell

1 Scarlet

Chase Kasteel

Emilee Lancaster

2 Plum

Nate Wetini

Kara McInnes

2 Emerald

Dakota Faddy

Jarrod Nimmo

3 Gorton

James Deveigne

Jake Angelkovic

Dayna Robson

3 Holt

Tyler Caddy

Millie Newberry

Paige Twaddell

4 McMahon

Allie Dever

Will Passfield

Shreyash Karajagar

3 McEwen

Rameez Hassan

Amarli Flynn

Nikolai Duchon

4 Menzies

Charlie Williams

Talia Waqa

Jonah Fletcher

4 Whitlam

Millie Crowe

Rhys Pickard-Ling

Sophia Brace-Thomson

5 Fraser

Tyler Rickard

Sienna Flynn

Ella Wilks

5 Keating

Charlotte Gillespie

Chase Corry

Rebecca Wilson-Roper

5 Hawke

Emily Slater

Jayden Nicholes

Yazmin Hellyer

6 Gillard

Lotus-Lea Lockyer

Zack Stewart

Kasey Biffin

6 Rudd

Elijah Redding

Paige Andonovski

Arielle Taylor

Events / Reminders

7 Dec Carols

9 Dec Presentation Day

14 Dec Year 6 Farewell

15 Dec Class Activities / Excursions

16 Dec Year 6 clap out

End of term 4

Unwanted Uniforms If anyone has uniforms they no longer need would you please bring them to the office. We are always in need of spare clothes and they could also be used in the uniform shop as pre-loved items.

P&C News Uniform Shop

The last day the uniform shop is open for this year

is Thursday, 15 December 2016.

We will be open on Friday, 27 January 2017 (pupil

free day) from 9:00-11:00 for your back to school

needs.

We need volunteers for 2017! If you can help or would like to find out more please contact us at eastmaitlandpublicschoolpandc@gmail.com or leave your contact details at the office and we will ring you. You can volunteer as many or as few times as you like. It only takes 40 minutes and you can get rostered on as many times per month as you like (normally we try for twice a term). New helpers will be rostered on with someone with experience, but it is not too hard. At the moment we do not have many volunteers for 2017.

Christmas Raffle We already have so many fabulous prizes! Handmade queen sized quilt Handmade table runner. (see pics

below). Family pass to the Hunter Valley Gardens Light

Show. Gift voucher to a local beauty therapist. Dinner at a local restaurant?. Free double pass trampoline session at

GravityX. Handmade queen sized quilt Handmade table runner. (see pics below) Tickets have been sent home. They are in a sheet of ten and we ask that you fill them in with your contact name and details and send them back to the school with correct money. They are $1 each. Thank you to all those who have already donated and purchased tickets.

Garden Club The P&C have agreed to help the garden club with a small wish list of items to keep them running in 2017. Well done to the students, Mrs Hobart and Mrs Tomasevic, the gardens are looking great. Mangos The mangoes arrived yesterday. Thank you Kath Cant for organising this year’s fundraiser. Bookkeeper Position We are currently looking for a Bookkeeper. Our current bookkeeper will not be involved with the school next year, and has offered her full support and handover to the new position holder. If anyone is interested in this position that covers the canteen, uniform shop and fundraising activities you will need to have the following:- Competent with MYOB or similar to complete –

entry of income and expenditure, bank reconcil iations, payroll, BAS, monthly management reports and yearly payment summaries.

Superannuation reporting procedures, preparation of Workers Compensation documentation and Insurance Renewals

Preparation of financial reports to present to monthly P&C meetings

Any questions, enquiries or applications to be emailed

to eastmaitlandpublicschoolpandc@gmail.com

Our next meeting won’t be until early 2017. Date to be advised next year.

Tues 2.15-2.45pm Thurs 8:30-9am

Wk 8 29/11 Renae, Davina 1/12 Jodi and Deslie

Wk 9 6/12 Connie, Denyse 8/12 Jodi and Bron

Wk 10 13/12 Renae, Grisel 15/12 Jodi, Bron and Deslie *stocktake*

Stockland Stars Shop, Vote & Win!

S tock land S tars re tu rn ing to S tock land Green H i l l s November 2016 For the past 9 years, Stockland Green Hills has been supporting local primary schools with the Stock-land Stars program. This year, we invite your school to join us for the chance to win a share of $12,000 in Stockland Gift Cards. All participating schools will receive a 3D star to decorate (supplied by Stockland Green Hills) in your chosen design & returned to the centre. The stars will then be displayed above the Customer Care Desk. Customers can then vote for their favourite star, with every purchase they make of $10 or more in centre entitling them to 1 vote. Voters will also be rewarded with weekly prize draws during the pro-gram period. How your school can participate Participating schools will receive one blank 3D star to be decorated by the students of your school. The theme for this year’s star design will be “Christmas”. This theme can be portrayed in whichever way you prefer to showcase the Christmas and holiday period - so let your imaginations run wild! The stars will be displayed from Monday 7th November until Sunday 1st January 2017 for family, friends and shoppers to vote for their favourite and help your school win. Customers who register to vote are also eligible to win a $500 Stockland Gift Card each week. This year voting will be simple, where shoppers can simply take a photo of their receipt using their smart phone and submit instantly via a dedicated website. For those not smart phone savvy, there will still be the traditional entry method available via Customer Care. If you choose to vote on your smartphone or tablet - Go to stocklandgreenhillsstars.com.au and register as a voter. Follow the prompts to upload your valid receipt using your smartphone or tablet camera. Upload one receipt at a time. Stockland Customer Care receives a notification to verify your vote and updates the school tally. Retain your receipts in case your purchases require further validation by customer Care and for

the voter’s draw. School prizes to be won Prizes will be awarded as follows for each band: 1st Prize: $3,000 Stockland Gift Card 2nd Prize: $2,000 Stockland Gift Card 3rd Prize: $1,000 Stockland Gift Card

Key Dates Customers can register from: Monday 7 November Voting Starts: Monday 7 November Voting Ends: Sunday 4th December at 4pm Winners announced: Thursday 8th December 2016

Please help our school to by registering and voting.