Excellence, Opportunity, Success Page 1

Yates Matters Yates Avenue Public School

71 Yates Avenue, Dundas Valley, 2117 T: 9874 6302 F: 9804 6260 Email: yatesave-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au Website: www.yatesave-pschool.nsw.edu.au

Issue 4 - Term 1, Week 7 Wednesday, 14th March 2018

CALENDAR Thur 15th March – Selective High School test Fri 16th March – Parent Working Bee & BBQ Wed 21st March– Harmony Day Thur 22nd March – School Photo Day WHAT’S DUE? Overdue – Summer PSSA part/full payment Wed 21st March – School photo money envelopes Thur 29th March – ICAS permission note and payment

ACCOMPANYING NOTES Harmony Day information ICAS permission note – Years 3-6

FROM THE PRINCIPAL Parent Working Bee & BBQ – Friday, 16th March Thank you to the many parents who have confirmed their attendance at the working bee this Friday, 16th March, starting work at 3.30pm. We have a long list of jobs, including spreading mulch, preparing garden beds, planting new shrubs and flowers, and cooking sausages for dinner. Don’t forget to BYO tools and children. Tell Them From Me - Online Student Survey

In the coming weeks, our school will take part in the Tell Them From Me online student survey. This will provide us with valuable feedback on what our students in Years 4-6 think about school life and how engaged they are with school. It will also help us to further improve our student wellbeing, engagement and teaching and learning practices. School Photos – Thursday, 22nd March School photos will be taken next Thursday, 22nd March. Could you please ensure that your child is wearing their full summer school uniform on the day. Money envelopes are due by Wednesday, 21st March Student Leadership Induction Congratulations to all those students who were inducted into our school leadership team on Friday, 2nd March. Under the guidance of Mr McNeilly and Mrs Kissane, our school leaders are already setting a great example for other students, by encouraging them to be learners who are safe, respectful and responsible.

Staffing News I am pleased to announce that the process of appointing a new teacher in the support unit is complete and the successful applicant was Miss Emma Lodewijks. Miss Lodewijks is currently teaching in the support unit at Rydalmere East PS and has great expertise in teaching students with special needs. She will commence her duties at Yates from Monday, 19th March. Parent Concerns – Contacting the School From time to time, you may have concerns about your child’s learning and wellbeing at school. It is important that you follow the correct process when addressing these concerns, in order for it to be resolved in a constructive and timely manner. If you are concerned about an issue that has arisen in the classroom or playground und, please follow these steps: 1. First phone the school and make an appointment

to see your child’s teacher. 2. If you are still not satisfied with the response,

speak to the relevant Assistant Principal about your concerns.

3. If the situation has not been resolved to your satisfaction, contact the school and make an appointment to see the Principal.

Have a great week

David MacSporran Principal

Issue 4 – Term 1, Week 7 Wednesday,14th March 2018

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assembly at 12:10pm under the Library COLA. After the assembly, our celebrations will continue in our new Harmony Day garden. Each class will be planting “harmony day” flowers that we can enjoy for many years to come and remind us that we are “growing together in harmony” at Yates Ave. As orange is the official colour of the day, students may wear mufti and come dressed in something orange or wear their national costume. We look forward to celebrating the day with you.

FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS Student Leadership Day Last Wednesday, the School Captains, Vice-Captains and senior SRC representatives attended a Student Leadership workshop at Carlingford West Public School. This is part of an ongoing series of leadership workshops involving students from our local community of schools. The day began with some fun ice-breaker and team building activities. Dave Garland, an Aboriginal Education Officer, gave a presentation on leadership which focused on respecting country and culture. After a sausage sizzle lunch, the students completed an outdoor orienteering activity, in which they interpreted cryptic clues to locate a message. The day finished with the students reflecting on what they had learned. Our students conducted themselves in a manner of which they can be proud. They formed new relationships and developed important leadership skills. We are now looking forward to Term 2, when Yates Avenue Public School will be hosting the next Community of Schools Student Leadership workshop.

Michael McNeilly Rel. Assistant Principal

ICAS Competitions During Term 2 and 3, we will be providing all students in Years 3-6 with the opportunity to participate in the International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS). ICAS gives teachers, parents and students a comprehensive report of achievement in the areas of English, Mathematics, Science, Spelling and Writing. As this is an extra-curricula activity, payment is required with the permission note. Entry fees can be paid online using the Parent Online Payment (POP) on our school website. Please return the permission slip and payment by Thursday, 29th March.

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) Focus Area – In the Playground

When playing in the playground, we are Learners who are:

Safe Walk on hard surfaces. Wear your school hat at all times. Stay in bounds.

Respectful Play in the correct grass area. Play fairly and be inclusive of others. Be considerate of other students’ space.

Responsible Play the right game in the right place. Use equipment correctly and return what you

have borrowed. Use the toilet before the music begins

On Friday 16th March 2018, Yates Avenue Public School, like many other Australian schools will celebrate the eighth National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence (NDA). The National Day of Action is Australia’s key anti- bullying event for schools and, in 2018, schools are called to imagine a world free from bullying. Students will be engaging in classroom discussion and activities to build greater awareness and understanding of bullying so that they are better equipped to contribute to a world where bullying does not exist.

Harmony Day – 21st March 2018 On Wednesday 21st March, we will be celebrating Harmony Day at Yates Avenue. Harmony Day is about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. The message is “Everyone Belongs” and this year’s theme is “Growing Together in Harmony”. The celebrations will begin at 11:15am with a Family Picnic lunch on the lawn. Picnic blankets and picnic baskets are most welcome. This will be followed by a whole school Harmony Day

Issue 4 – Term 1, Week 7 Wednesday,14th March 2018

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XOXOXOX

FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS A very warm welcome to all school families, including our new Kindergarten students. It has been wonderful to see all K-2 students settle into their new classes and begin the learning programs for 2018. All students are working hard to be safe, respectful and responsible learners.

KL had a great time practising their numerals in the ‘great outdoors’ and writing monster descriptions!

1D measuring using informal units and making Chinese lanterns. ‘What a Good One Looks Like’ (WAGOLL)

1/2T have been learning to use adjectives and similes to enhance their writing.

Mrs Stacey Talbot K-2 Assistant Principal

PRESCHOOL NEWS Clean Up Day On Friday 2nd March, the Preschool Turtles participated in Clean Up day. They enjoyed working together to clean up our gardens and outdoor play spaces. We love spending time in our outdoor learning environment every day. Through our play, we are learning many lifelong skills about how to care for and show respect for the environment. Thank you everyone!

Crazy Hair Day Last Tuesday, the children arrived at Preschool with “crazy hair” and gold coins to support the year 6 fundraising day. Our school leaders, Stephen and Kylah came to visit and we enjoyed putting our coins into the box with all the other gold coins. Thank you to all our parents for supporting the day and for creating some amazing crazy hair styles.

Mrs. Lawson and Mrs. Lilli

OFFICE NEWS

Office hours: 8:30am to 3:30pm Monday to Friday Any families with change of information please inform the office. All notes will be sent home on Wednesdays with the school newsletter. If you would like to receive your newsletter by email, please inform the office. Parents/Caregivers please pick up your change from the office. PLEASE NOTE: NO PAYMENTS CAN BE MADE ON THE SCHOOL WEBSITE FOR P&C MONIES, e.g. UNIFORM SHOP, SCHOOL CANTEEN etc.

Kim Copping School Administrative Manager

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SPORTS NEWS Zone Swimming Carnival Congratulations to all the competitors who participated at the Zone Swimming carnival. Mrs Leivesley and Miss Salvagio had a great day with all our representatives! An extra big thank you to all the parents and family members for supporting their children and all the students from Yates! A huge congratulations to Gina Choi for making it to the next level! We wish her all the best at the Sydney West Swimming Championships this week.

Elizabeth Salvagio Sports Coordinator

PSSA

Carlingford Netball Club

If you are interested please contact our Club Registrar Sue Oliver on 0419 406 004 or via email: gsoliver@bigpond.net.au

Further information can be found on our website www.carlingfordnetball.com.au

Our Under 7s and Under 8s teams

are looking for players (born 2010 &

2011- boys and girls) wanting to play

netball in 2018 Winter season.

Family and Relationship ServiceFebruary – April 2018

Bookings essential 9895 8144 or email education@anglicare.org.au(If the phone is unattended please leave a message and a staff member will return your call.)

Anglicare Family and Relationship ServiceLevel 5, 31 – 39 Macquarie Street, Parramatta 2150ANG 4222

Course name and description Date and time

Parenting After SeparationThis five-week program includes:

• education on the importance of children’s emotional and physical safety

• recognition that distress felt in separation is a normal process

• acknowledgment that separation creates change which can be viewed as a destructive event or a time for personal growth

• education on awareness of parents’ actions impacting on themselves and their children.

Friday mornings

16, 23 February & 2, 9, 16 March

10.30am – 12.30pm

OR

Wednesday evenings

21, 28 February & 7, 14, 21 March

5.30pm – 8.00pm

1-2-3 Magic® & Emotion CoachingThis three-week program is designed to assist parents and caregivers of children aged 2-12 years to:

• increase their knowledge about what works in managing difficult behaviour

• lessen their feelings of frustration

• get better results with less effort and stress.

Wednesday evenings

28 March & 4, 11 April

5.30pm – 7.30pm

Engage 4 MumsThis four-week program is designed for mums who have limited time with their children.

The program includes:

• healthy and unhealthy relationships

• effects of domestic violence on children

• children’s need for attachment and security

• using play as an engagement tool

• self-care strategies

• building a life-long relationship.

Thursday mornings

15, 22, 29 March & 5 April

10.00am – 12.30pm

Childminding is not available for these courses

Managing anger is one of the biggest emotional issues that children face. Children who can learn to manage their anger have a head start on handling fears and other emotions.

Currently, our community is undecided about how to handle anger. In fact, anger is discouraged as we see no place for it in homes, schools or community. ‘Civilised people don’t get angry’ seems to be the accepted wisdom so we tend to encourage children to bottle up anger rather than let it out.

Anger needs to be managed, rather than simply avoided. Bury anger deep-down and it will go away is the attitude! This doesn’t work for many children as bottled up emotions don’t always dissipate. They simmer away, eventually spilling over into physical violence or hurtful verbal abuse, which so often backfi res on the angry person.

Kids need to learn that anger can be expressed in ways that are not hurtful to anyone including themselves. Here are six steps that parents can use to help kids of all ages keep their emotions under check, and respond safely when emotions run high:

1. Understand it: Help kids understand the events and situations that trigger angry responses. These situations will vary, but may include, playing rough games, not getting their own way and being teased by others. Help kids to refl ect on the events that trigger a ‘wobbly’, so they can take preventative measures. This type of self-knowledge is really helpful for older primary school children and teenagers

2. Name it: Help them recognise the physical signs of anger, such as clenched fi sts and teeth, tension around their shoulders and heavy breathing. Then assist them to develop a vocabulary around anger. “Mad as a snake”, “about to lose it”, “throwing a tanty” are some possibilities. Children can probably generate more! Naming emotions promotes good emotional literacy in kids.

3. Diffuse it: You need some strategies to diffuse anger and bring down emotional levels in kids. Distraction and time out can be effective for toddlers with short fuses, and even shorter attention spans. For older children, parents should use diplomacy rather than discipline. You may need to give some kids some space on their own before attempting to talk. Listening to their story,

validating their right to be mad and focusing on feelings are some ways to diffuse anger. Sometimes knowing that someone else knows how you feel is enough to make anger go away.

4. Choose it: Help children understand that they do have a choice about how they respond to their anger. They may feel like lashing out, but they don’t have to get physical or verbally aggressive when they get angry. Let kids know in clear terms that slamming doors, throwing things and refusing to cooperate are the wrong ways to display anger. Help them understand that while you are on their side, as they mature they need to choose socially acceptable ways of handling anger.

5. Say it: Encourage children to express how they feel verbally, rather than bottle things up or become aggressive. The use of I statements is one way of letting others know how they feel. ‘I feel really mad when you say nasty things to me. I really don't like it!’ is one way of being heard and letting the anger out.

6. Let it out safely: Boys, in particular, need physical outlets for pent up anger. They may go for a run, belt a pillow or play a physical game to let their frustration out. Some kids may even pour their anger into a letter, some work on a productive activity. Help children fi nd legitimate outlets for their anger.

Parents need to role model healthy anger management so children see fi rsthand how adults handle anger in mature ways. That means parents take time to listen to each other, talk things through and fi nd healthy physical ways to let off steam when you feel yourself getting to boiling point.

The maxim for families who want to learn to manage anger in healthy ways should be: “There is nothing so bad that we can’t talk about it. However there are behaviours that are not acceptable.”

Published by Michael Grose Presentations. All rights reserved.

For more ideas, support and advice for all your parenting challenges visit: www.parentingideas.com.au

PO Box 167 Balnarring VIC 3926 P. 03 5983 1798 F. 03 5983 1722 E. offi ce@parentingideas.com.au

||INSIGHTS||by Michael Grose - Australia’s No 1 parenting educator

© 2009 Michael Grosewww.parentingideas.com.au

Helping kids manage angerKids need to learn that anger can be expressed in ways that are not hurtful to anyone including themselves.