8 August 2018

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Dear Parents/Caregivers

2019 Enrolments

To assist our planning for 2019 would you please let the school office know if your child/ren will not be attending Somerly Primary School next year.

Kindy Enrolment for 2019

We are now taking Kindergarten applications for 2019, if you have a child that was born between 1 July 2014 and 30 June 2015 please come into the front office for an application form.

As Kindy is non-compulsory, enrolments will be on a first in basis.

When applying we need a copy of your child’s birth certificate or passport, visa if applicable, current Medicare immunisation details and proof of address.

If you know someone who has a child due to start Kindergarten next year, please let them know that enrolments are open.

Please click on the link below to access the Application for Enrolment for Kindergarten in 2019.

If you have a student in year 6 please note that high schools are now taking enrolments for year 7 students in 2019.

Book Week Celebrations

The theme for the 2018 Book week is “Find Your Treasure”.

Our pirate lunch will be held on Wednesday 22nd August, the lunch will consist of a chicken burger, drink with a bonus eye patch. The cost is $5.00, orders can be placed in the P&C box in the front office.

On Friday 24th August, we are excited to see how many pirates attend our school for the Pirate dress up day.

Grandparent’s Morning Tea

We are hosting our annual morning tea for all grandparents on Tuesday 21st August at 10:00am. All grandparents are invited to attend and spend some special time reading with their grandchildren.

Athletics Carnival

A reminder that our annual athletics carnival will be held on Friday 31st August.

New students

I would like to extend a warm welcome to Aryan who recently commenced at Somerly Primary School.

Tracey Renton
Principal

Merit Certificates

Room 1: Lily and Enzo; Room 2: Jai B and Acacia - Mai; Room 3: Braxton and Hannah; Room 4: Liam and Kelvin; Room 7: Mkenji and Ava; Room 8: Lua, Angus and Arhum and Oscar; Room 11: Moksh and Chloe; Room 12: Aaleyah and Phoebe; Room 13: Sydney and P.J; Room 14: Laken and Sophie; Room 15: Taj and Grace; Room 16: Devon and Jaego; Room 17: Room 18: Elvis and Sam; Room 23: India-Anna, Fletcher and Koby; Art: Beyla and Angus; LOTE: Katy, Phillip and room 11; Music: Sam and D.J.

Stars

Behaviour Focus

Our behaviour focus for Week 4 is: -

Library

• We use our manners with all staff
• We use quiet voices
• We treat all library resources with care

Students Late to School

If your child arrives late to school, they are missing critical morning routines and learning activities. The school day begins at 8:40am and students will be considered late if they do not arrive by this time. If your child arrives after 9:00am you are required to enter through the front office and provide us with a reason for the lateness. A late slip will be printed for you to give to the class teacher.

Not Feeling Well?

If your child is not feeling well before school, please keep them home and notify the office by phoning 6206 4200, sending an SMS to 0437 480 486 or emailing somerly.ps@education.wa.edu.au.

Late Collection of Students

Somerly Primary School has a student finish time of 2.45pm each day. If your child has not been picked up before 3pm, you will be required to come to the front office to sign them out.

JUMP ROPE FOR HEART

Friday the 3rd of August, Somerly Primary School did jump rope for heart. It was an amazing experience teaching and helping the younger students having fun and learning skills. The Heart Foundation’s Jump Rope for heart is a high intensity, fun activity that increases fitness and allows participation by all, including teachers. Although at the start of the day some students didn’t know how to skip, by the end of the day they all could achieve a basic skipping activity. At the end of the day all students had an amazing experience and an incredibly fun day.

Alischa, Jade, Tiane and Kaitlyn

Learning Focus

Literacy

Year 5 Book Club

During the cold and blustery weather, the Year 5 Book Club, hosted by Ms Lipman, decided that the best thing to do would be to curl up with a good book! The children made themselves cosy and comfortable; some even made cubbies and held torches as they had seen in books, to quietly read and relax. The children discussed their reading with each other; favourite novels were shared and recommendations were made.

Previously the group were able to be the first students to browse through the latest books to arrive in the library; some shortlisted titles from the Children’s Australian Book of The Year.

The Book Club is held weekly for interested children from Year 5. It is great to see our students really 'hooked' on reading and sharing their love of reading with others.

Numeracy

Numeracy Open Morning

Thank you to everyone who attended the Numeracy Open Morning and Parent Workshop Session on Wednesday 1 August. Students loved engaging in a range of activities and sharing their learning with those that attended. I hope you enjoyed visiting classrooms and were able to gain insight into how children at Somerly Primary School are developing their numeracy skills. At the Parent Workshop, I talked further about ‘Mental Computation’ and how important it is for students to develop number sense. We discussed a variety of mental and written strategies that students are being taught at school. As a result of feedback from this session, I will be including examples of these strategies in newsletters and some practical strategies that you can use at home.

Subitising

Subitising is a powerful tool and refers to the skill to instantly know how many objects within a small group, or ‘knowing at a glance’. For example, when a die is rolled the observer is able to immediately know how many dots are on the face without the need to count. Subitising is a building block for addition and subtraction; by being able to see how many objects are in front of them, children start to understand how many they have when you add or take one away. Initially, starting with small collections below 5 in standard arrangements (like the die pattern) is ideal. Beyond this we start to use patterns to subitise, such as with the number 6 our brain may see two collections of 3. It can be interesting to talk to your child about how they see the patterns with larger numbers and to then use non-standard arrangements.

The great news is that one of the best ways to support your child at home is by playing games. It is very important to know that one of the key things to know is that this should be a fun process. Board games, such as Snakes and Ladders, are a great way for students to start practising. When they roll, just ask them, “How many dots can you see?” and “How many squares are you going to move?”. Dominoes are another great game that encourages children to use subitising and allows students to practice their matching skills as well. Dot cards can be used to play games such as Snap, War and Concentration.

Jodie Brown
Numeracy Specialist Teacher

Art

Senior students

Senior students have completed Art Responses about artist Ash Keating’s recycled art installations. Driving our Inquiry-based learning project were these questions:

How might art created from recycled materials inspire effective action for sustainability?

• Analyse how artist Ash Keating constructs meaning – recognising skills, techniques, materials and forms.
• Manipulate visual and spatial ideas using available clean waste/recycled materials and digital technologies to make a small-scale installation and/or poster.
• Select suitable materials and art forms to communicate the concept of sustainability and persuade others to take action for sustainable futures.

You will see our posters around the school soon. Any small change to Reduce waste, Reuse suitable items, Refuse single-use plastics, and Recycle at every opportunity is very much appreciated.

Telstra Digital Futures – Vote Now!

The Fathering Project

Inaugural Dads / Father Figures and Child Event;
Bunnings DIY

The Fathering Project is an opportunity to have fun with your kids and become part of a strong and supportive network of dads and father figures connected to Somerly Primary School. Our inaugural event is in partnership with Bunnings Mindarie.

WHEN: Wednesday 15th August 2018
TIME: 4:45pm – Afternoon Tea
5:00pm – Fathering Project Guest Speaker
5:15pm – Bunnings DIY Session (approx. 1 hour)
WHERE: Somerly Primary School – Please meet at the Front Office
WHAT: A fun, social, DIY session with your child / children. An opportunity to ‘get on the tools’ together.
RSVP: The number of students attending (accompanied by their dad / father figure) is capped to 25 (First in first served). Please RSVP by calling Somerly Primary School on 6206 4200.

Entertainment Book

We are fundraising for our school with the Entertainment Book

Order and receive your NEW 2018/2019 Entertainment Membership!

Please support our fundraising by purchasing the 2018/2019 Entertainment Membership from us today. Hundreds of great value offers are ready for your enjoyment, while also helping our fundraising! Be quick, the new Membership is selling fast! Click the link to purchase!!!

Entertainment books are available at the school office.

P & C

Pirate’s Lunch

We will be holding a Pirate’s lunch on Wednesday 22nd August 2018. Students will be able to order a chicken burger and a drink for $5 with a choice of lettuce and mayonnaise. They will receive a bonus pirate eye patch! Order forms have been sent out to all families. Please complete the order form, enclose the correct money in an envelope and place in the P & C post box, which is located in the school office. Orders need to be returned by Friday 17th August 2018.

Please note, there will be no P & C lunch orders on Wednesday 15th and Wednesday 29th August.