DATE: Thursday 19th March 2015 ISSUE 7

Our Purpose: The Monmia school community is committed to providing

innovative programs that stimulate and challenge each student to develop

lifelong learning skills and strategies. We provide a safe, nurturing

environment where teachers, students and parents work in an effective

partnership. www.monmia.vic.edu.au.Ph: 9364 1007

MONMIA MESSENGER

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

Dear Monmia Families,

Great Things I Noticed this Week

1. Our Wodonga PS visitors commented on the lovely "tone" that we had in our school and

how closely aligned we are in our visible learning practice. Thank you to all the teachers,

ES staff and students who spoke to Pam, Damian and Leanne. Thank you to Vineta

Mitrevski for organising our visitors.

2. Jayden (1/2D) was grinning from ear to ear as he proudly showed Vineta, Lucy and I his

achievements of working well. He was so proud of himself. Thank you for sharing this

great moment Ms Bernardo.

3. Nana (1/2B) shared her wonderful story about a leprechaun with me. It was very

descriptive so that I had a clear image in my head of what the leprechaun looked like.

Thank you Nana and Ms Molony for sharing this with me.

4. Students that I spoke to about their student led conferences were beaming proudly as

they explained to me how confidently they spoke about their goals and the “evidence”

they shared of their achievements with their parents/guardians. 5. Great excitement at assembly when grades were being given a country to explore for

“Cultural Diversity” week.

Cultural Diversity Week

I hope that in celebrating “Cultural Diversity” week parents/guardians/grandparents have had a

chance to share their story about coming to Australia. At Monday’s assembly I shared my own story

of how my parents came from Trieste, Italy to Melbourne Australia in 1957. I also explained to the

children that when I started school, I couldn’t speak English. All the families that were our friends all

spoke Italian so I didn’t learn it until I went to school. I am looking forward to next week’s assembly

when the classes will share what they have learned about their grade’s country.

Digital newsletter

Earlier this term I informed the school community that in Term 2 the newsletter will be going digital.

This means we will not be sending hard copies of the newsletter home. There will be some copies at

the administration desk. The newsletter will be emailed to families until our new website is up and

running. We will be sending home a note where parents/guardians can write their preferred email to

receive the newsletter. With our website we will also have a school app which means the newsletter

will be able to be accessed through the app. Please ensure that we have your email address so we

can send the newsletter to you electronically.

Homework feedback

Thank you to the parents/guardians who have taken the time to provide me with feedback on

homework. We will use this information as we proceed with the review of the homework policy.

DATES FROM THE DIARY

Fri Mar 20 National ‘We Say NO to

Bullying!’ Day

Fri Mar 27 Last Day of Term 1

Early Dismissal 2.30pm

Mon Apr 13 First Day of Term 2

Wed Jun 3 -

Fri Jun 5 Grade 3/4 Camp

Cave Hill Creek

Fri Jun 26 Last Day of Term 2

Early dismissal 2.30pm

Mon Jul 13 First day of Term 3

Mon Aug 17 -

Fri Aug 21 Grade 5/6 Camp

Canberra

Fri Sep 18 Last day of Term 3

Early dismissal 2.30pm

Mon Oct 5 First day of Term 4

Fri Dec 18 Last day of school for 2014

Early dismissal 1.30pm

School Council

The first meeting of the new school councillors met on Monday to elect office bearers and nominate

for subcommittees. Congratulations to all the new school councillors including Al Ozmal who filled

the last vacancy we had.

Office Bearers

School Council President: Mary Papaioannou Vice School Council President: Leila Sheikh Correspondence Secretary: Vineta Mitrevski

Minute Secretary: Lucy Vorpasso Treasurer: Julie Chitsos

Subcommittee Convenors & Members

Education Vineta Mitrevski Julie Chitsos Leila Sheikh Diana Masalkovski Buildings and Grounds Lucy Vorpasso Satish Shettigara Justin Belovitch Sharon Di Bella Marisa Barberi Al Ozmal Irene Zervos

Warm Regards,

Lorraine Bell Principal

Finance Lorraine Bell Julie Chitsos Marisa Barberi Norma Smith Vineta Mitrevski Community Liaison Amanda Spiteri Mary Papaioannou Dean Squires

PRA Amy T for always doing her best finishing her work with an artistic flair!

Thank you also for being a great classroom helper.

PRB Charbel G for showing respect towards others and our school. Thank you

for your help Charbel!

1/2A Cruz M for his excellent work on collecting and presenting data.

1/2B Christopher V for making great choices in his learning!!! Fantastic!

1/2C Phillip M for researching so many interesting facts about Argentina! Well

done!!

1/2D Jacqueline K for always being ready to learn and having a positive attitude

everyday at school! Keep smiling Jacqui!

3/4A Charlize L for being a focused learner who always works to the best of her

ability. Well done Charlize and keep up the fantastic work!

3/4B Adam S for presenting his goals so confidently during his student led

conference.

3/4C Chelsea V for being an excellent private secretary to me - helping me to be

organised by remembering ‘Student of the Week’!

3/4D Hannah M for being such a helpful and thoughtful student. We are so lucky

to have you in our class.

3/4E Maria B for excellent sitting on the floor during learning discussions.

5/6A Judy Y for completing all her class work and contributing to class

discussions.

5/6B Sarah J for the wonderful way you conducted your SLC, articulating what a

visible learner does.

5/6C Breanna A for tracking her learning by recording her progress against goals.

You are a great learner!

5/6D Aya T for being a responsible and reliable school captain - what a role

model.

5/6E Alannah M for being such a model student

A Scrumdiddlyumptious Egg Hunt!

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Monmia Primary School is a KIDSMATTER school. As a positive school community, Monmia Primary School is having another spectacular event to celebrate a highly

successful term.

On the last day of school the staff and students will come together to have a whole school

CHOCOLATE EGG HUNT. All students will participate in the egg hunt at 12.30pm

and search around the school grounds for the prized eggs. All students will receive some free chocolate eggs.

DATE: Friday the 27th of March, 2015 TIME: 12.30pm – 1.00pm

We know we will have an exciting end to term 1!

Lorraine Bell (Principal)

SUNSMART POLICY At Monmia Primary School, all students must wear a wide brimmed or legionnaire’s hat during recess, lunchtime and during outdoor activities such as Physical Education and Sport Sessions from the start of September to the end of April. Please ensure your child’s hat is in the school bag every day. If the hat has been lost, a new hat must be purchased from the school office for $11.00. Thank you for your support with this very important Health and Safety measure. Warm Regards,

Lucy Vorpasso

Assistant Principal - Student Engagement and Wellbeing

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

ARTSHOW 2015

It is that fun time of the year! We are beginning all the exciting preparations for the

annual “Monmia Artshow”. This year’s Artshow will be amazing with the theme

“ The Art Of Science”.

This year, we would like to invite the Monmia Community to take part in the display.

If you are a budding artist or have created something from recycled materials please

contact me.

Stay tuned for more news about the theme, ideas and art exhibits on show.

Thank-you

Lisa Tate Visual Art Teacher

PAYMENTS AT THE OFFICE

When making payments for any items at school, can we please ask that

parents supply the correct money as we do not have change at the Office.

Also, just a reminder that we now have EFTPOS available.

SPOTLIGHT ON BOUNCE BACK

A WELLBEING AND RESILIENCE PROGRAM

THE FOCUS FOR THIS WEEK IS:

Values that underpin Bounce Back ! RESPECT for OUR SCHOOL,

PROPERTY and the ENVIRONMENT

Dear Parents and Guardians,

This week I would like to continue with the Core Values that underpin the Bounce Back Wellbeing and Resilience Program. This week we will look at RESPECT for our school, property and the environment. Property refers to the things that we own, the things that belong to us. Most of us own lots of things. Some things are expensive and difficult to replace. Other things may not cost much but can still be very valuable to us. No matter how much something has cost, we should look after our belongings. Here are some tips for caring for our own property:

Name your belongings.

Use things only for the purpose for which they were intended.

Pack away your belongings when you are finished using them. It is important for students to be responsible for their own belongings as well as looking after school equipment and other children’s property. Parents can help by ensuring all items of clothing and other equipment are clearly labeled with their child’s name. Other people value the things that they own and they expect you to value them too. People are usually happy to let you use their belongings if they think that you will look after their property. The school owns lots of property to help you learn and to help you play happily and needs you to care for such things as school equipment, classrooms, buildings and gardens. Here are some tips for caring for the school’s property or other people’s property:

Make sure you ask before you borrow something belonging to someone else.

Always return property as soon as you have finished using it.

When returned, make sure that the property is in the same condition as when you borrowed it.

Put things back in their correct place so others can use them too. Our school environment is part of the bigger environment of Victoria, of Australia and of the World. We try to look after the environment by reducing the amount of waste that we send to landfill by not using excessive packaging with our lunches and trying to create a ‘Nude Food School’. We should also conserve water and to reduce energy consumption by turning off lights and appliances and by shutting doors. FAMILY ACTIVITY: As a family, you might like to make a list of what your family can do at home to respect the environment. I hope you have found this article interesting and useful and I look forward to any feedback you might like to share with me.

Warm Regards,

Lucy Vorpasso

Assistant Principal - Student Engagement and Wellbeing

Student Engagement and Wellbeing

Dear Parents and Guardians, Monmia is a Bucket Filling School! We fill buckets and we don’t dip! We use our lid to keep our bucket full and keep the drops in! I continue to be astounded at the number of ‘drops’ we keep finding in the community bucket and in the yard duty folders. I love reading the ‘drops’ and I love sharing them with you. We share the ‘drops’ at Monday morning assembly which is a great way to start off the new week. Remember that when you fill someone else’s bucket, you fill yours as well so keep filling buckets! Here are some we would like to share with you. Don’t forget to keep filling buckets all year!

Happy Bucket Filling!

Kind Regards,

Lucy Vorpasso

Assistant Principal

Student Engagement and Wellbeing

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

Cassie Ward Performing Arts

Commemorative Badges

and

Wristbands for Sale!!!

There is a selection of badges and wristbands available for sale at the

Office ranging from $1 to $10 to commemorate ANZAC Day.

Please drop in if you would like to purchase one.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

Student Led Conferences for students in Years 1-6 were held throughout this week, with the final evening being

yesterday for the students in year 1/2. We had a response rate/participation rate based on the bookings made online as

follows:

Yr 5/6- (66%)

Yr 3/4- (63%)

Yr 1/2- (64%)

Our teachers would like to congratulate all the students for doing an outstanding job presenting their learning goals for

Semester 1 to their parents/guardians. This opportunity allowed our students to demonstrate self- confidence and

responsibility for their learning. A very big thank you and our appreciation to all parents/guardians who attended their

child’s Student Led Conference, reinforcing their interest and commitment to their child’s learning. We look forward

to celebrating the progress each student makes as they achieve their social/emotional, reading, writing and

mathematics goals in term 2.

For those parents/guardians who did not attend the student led conferences I would like to hear from you. This will

help us understand the reasons for your non-attendance. We want to be able to see all parents/guardians at the next lot

of student led conferences.

Return this slip below to the front office or leave it with your child’s teacher.

………………………………………………………………………………………………..............................

Engaging in a conversation with your child about school and their learning can be difficult at times.

Start with sharing your story about your day before you begin with asking them about their day.

What are you most proud about today?

What did you discover today?

How it made you feel today? Why?

What next? What could you differently?

Then….

Try these questions which might help you get a different response beyond what you are currently getting!

What are you most proud about your day today?

What feedback were you given today?

How did that make you feel?

Who was that from?

What could you do differently tomorrow?

Vineta Mitrevski Assistant Principal

My child is in year….

I did not attend my child’s student led conference because:

Further comments

All away games have a $6.00 bus fare which is payable before the game.

Sports: Soccer, Netball, Bat Tennis and Teeball

FRIDAY 20/03 VS KEILOR VIEWS (HOME)

FRIDAY 27/03 VS HILLSIDE (AWAY)

Soccer and netball at Sydenham-Hillside Primary School – Hillside Campus. No teeball or bat tennis games.

FRIDAY 17/04 BYE

FRIDAY 24/04 VS KEILOR (AWAY)

Soccer at Keilor Park Recreation Reserve. Netball, bat tennis and teeball at Keilor Primary School.

FRIDAY 01/05 VS MARY MACKILLOP (AWAY)

Soccer at Green Gully. Netball and bat tennis at Mary Mackillop Catholic Primary School. Teeball at Keilor Views Primary School.

FRIDAY 08/05 VS TAYLORS LAKES (HOME)

No girl’s soccer match.

FRIDAY 15/05 GRAND FINALS

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

TERM 1 & 2

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

If your child is absent from school it is crucial to inform the school as to the reason for the absence. To communicate a student absence to the school please: make a phone call to Norma or Catherine in the school office between 8.30am to

9.30am on the day of the absence. send an email to the school’s email, monmia.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au, to inform

the school of the absence. send a written note and/or certificate to the classroom teacher when your child

returns. Thank you for your support with the school’s attendance procedures.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

Reminder: School banking is every Thursday

Rewarding good savings:

To help reward individual savings efforts, every time a student deposits into their Youthsaver account

through School Banking, regardless of the amount, they’ll receive a Dollarmites token.

Once they’ve collected 10 tokens, they can redeem them for a variety of exciting reward items. They’ll also receive a certificate when they reach certain savings milestones.

Available in Term 1 when you have collected 10 tokens are:

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

Cultural Diversity Week

Monday 23rd March

Assembly

Grades share 5 facts about their chosen country with the school

The National Assessment Program- Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual assessment for

students in years 3,5,7 and 9. It has been an annual event for schools since 2008.

On Tuesday 12, Wednesday 13 and Thursday 14 May, students will undertake the 2015 NAPLAN

assessment.

NAPLAN is made up of tests in the four domains of Reading, Writing, Language Conventions

(spelling, grammar and punctuation) and Numeracy.

NAPLAN assesses skills in literacy and numeracy that are developed over time, through the school

curriculum. NAPLAN is not a pass or fail type test, but rather shows how individual students are

progressing in numeracy and literacy skills against national standards for all Australian children.

All students are encouraged to participate in the tests. Students with a disability may qualify for

special provisions that reflect the support normally provided to them in the classroom.

An individual student NAPLAN report will be issued later this year. Parents can use this information

to monitor how their child is progressing and to identify any areas of concern. Keep in mind that

NAPLAN tests provide point- in -time information in relation to student performance.

More information is available at www.naplan.edu.au

Below is a timetable indicating the scheduled tests which are undertaken in the morning on the

official test dates.

Please avoid making appointments for your child or children during the above dates if your child is a

year 3 or year 5 student.

Vineta Mitrevski Assistant Principal

Tuesday 12th May Wednesday 13th May Thursday 14th May

Yr 3 & 5

Language Conventions

(40mins)

Writing (40mins)

Reading

Yr 3 (45mins)

Yr 5 (50mins)

Numeracy

Yr 3 (45mins)

Yr 5 (50mins)

PARENT HELPERS REQUIRED 2015 ARTSHOW

Monmia Artshow needs helpers!

Would you like to be a part of an exciting/ fun team of people?

This team will assist in the setup and organisation of the 2015 Artshow.

Please fill in below form or contact Lisa Tate (Visual Art Teacher) if you

are interested.

Thank-you

Lisa Tate

Visual Arts Teacher

I would like to assist with the 2015 Artshow.

Name: ………………………………..…….……………………

Email: …………………………………..……………………….

Phone number: …………………………………………

Child’s name/ grade: …………………………..………………………….

…………………………………………………..…..

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

MONMIA FAMILY

& FRIENDS

Friday 20th March Final Day To Return Raffle Tickets.

Friday is the last day to return the raffle tickets for the Easter Hampers. If you want to be in the draw to win

one of our fabulous hampers please put your child's name and class on each ticket and return them with your

money to the school by Friday. Winners will be drawn on Monday 23rd March at assembly.

Fun Run Sponsorship Forms

Thank you to all who returned the sponsorship forms on time. Your contribution is always appreciated.

The final chance to send off for prizes was by today. We will be working hard to

ensure all the students receive their selected prizes as soon as possible.

President

Sharon Di Bella

sharondibella@optusnet.com.au

0412 052 266

Secretary

Diana Masalkovski

0438 661 876

Parent Liaison

Leila Sheikh

0432745589

leilasheikh34@hotmail.com

NEXT MEETING

Date To Be Advised

Easter Hamper Raffle

Raffle Draw at Assembly on Monday 23rd March.

Students who win a prize will be taking their hampers home on the day.

Second Hand Uniform

Sales

Every Monday at 3.00pm.

If you’re Interested... If you would like to join our Family & Friends Committee and be a part of our friendly team all you have to do is

obtain a membership form from the front office, fill it out and return it to the school with your $3 membership fee.

This will allow you to receive email reminders to keep you in the loop with upcoming news and events and

attendance to our meetings once a month. It’s a great way to become part of the Monmia Community.