25 August 2021

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Dear Parents/Caregivers

OUR SCHOOL VISION IS TO SUPPORT STUDENTS IN BECOMING STRONG, THOUGHTFUL AND INDEPENDENT INDIVIDUALS WHO ASPIRE TO BE THE BEST THAT THEY CAN BE. OUR ETHOS OFFERS STUDENT CENTERED EDUCATION THAT IS FOCUSSED ON BOTH THE PRESENT AND DEVELOPMENTAL NEEDS OF STUDENTS.

Time flies when you are having fun and the first five weeks have definitely been busy. I am looking forward to the next 5 weeks with all the events coming up, including Book Week, The Digital Olympics, our Athletics Carnival - the Somerly Olympics, our Interschool Carnival and our Principal’s Lunch.

A focus for the school is recognising the contributions of members of our community. We recently acknowledged the hard work of our Breakfast Club Coordinator Cheryl Deville for her countless hours and commitment to supporting our students. I would also like to acknowledge our other Breakfast Club volunteers Nicki, Paris, Marian, Mavis and Laura for their assistance. I would also like to thank Mr Arthur Ventham our School Board Chair and his anonymous donors for the donation of two new toasters for our Breakfast Club.

I would also like to recognise our Manager of Corporate Services, Mrs Susan Rose who was recently nominated for a West Australian Education Corporate Services Staff Association, Outstanding Service Award. Mrs Rose is exemplary in her role as Manager Corporate Services and the school has been extremely lucky to have her commitment, experience and dedication.

NAIDOC

Last week we were able to successfully hold our postponed NAIDOC Week Excursion to the Perth Hills Discovery Centre in Mundaring. Every two years Somerly Primary School participates in a whole school excursion as part of our NAIDOC Week celebrations. All students and staff had a fantastic time participating in a range of activities learning about Aboriginal culture and history. I would like to thank Mrs Carroll for her organisation of this event, as well as all the parent volunteers who helped to make this a successful event.

School Board

I would like to welcome our newest Somerly Primary School Board member Nikunj Chauhan. Nikunj is stepping onto the School Board as a parent representative and I look forward to sharing his profile with you in the next newsletter. Nikunj will be joining the rest of the School Board at a dinner at Parliament House that is being held courtesy of Mr Mark Folkard MLA.

Our next School Board meeting will be an open Board meeting at 9am on Monday 9th September. This is an opportunity for you to come along and see what being a member of the School Board is all about. At the meeting we will review our Voluntary Contributions, conduct a review of the draft School Business Plan for 2022 – 2024 and look at our School Board effectiveness survey to plan for future Board improvement. Please email your interest in attendance for this Board meeting to Zoe.Hadley@education.wa.edu.au. Morning tea will be provided.

Fathering Project

Last Wednesday 18th August we held our second successful Fathering Project event of the year. A big thank you to Mr Daniel Gane for organising a fantastic event and to all the dads/ figures that attended. The dads/father figures and the children had a great time making juggling balls and then testing them out, followed by some exploration with the spinning plates and frisbees.

The Fathering Project is a great way for dads/father figures to get together and meet other dads/father figures in the school, whilst spending time with their children.

2022 Planning and Kindy, Pre Primary Enrolments

It is that time of year where we begin to start planning and preparation for the 2022 school year. If you are leaving the school at the end of the year, please inform the front office as soon as possible

Please ensure you enrol for Kindergarten and Pre Primary for next year.

Parent Information Sessions – Half Day Close

As part of our commitment to improving parent communication regarding student progress, our Term 3 Parent/Teacher meetings will be held on Friday 10th September commencing from 12pm. This means school will finish at 11.45am.

Timeslots for the parent meetings will be released today, Wednesday 25th August at 5pm. Please click on the link below to access bookings. Please book as soon as possible. If you are unavailable to attend a parent meeting on this day, please contact your child’s classroom teacher to organise an alternative time.

Please note due to teacher absence, Room 9 Mrs Julie Donohue parent interviews will be conducted on Thursday 9th September from 9am to 12pm.

Zoe Hadley
Principal

Merit Certificates

Room 1: Addison and Ashley; Room 2: Elsa and Benyamin; Room 3: Tyson, Jozef, Esmé and Annalise; Room 4: Kylah and Logan; Room 7: Patrick, Harlow and Chloe; Room 8: Eliano and Madalyn; Room 9: Sanaver and Elvis; Room 11: Amir and Poppy; Room 12: Maverick; Room 15: Mariia and Madeline; Room 16: Marley and Imran; Room 17: William and Tyler; Room 18: Atarina and Nate; Room 20: Noah; Art: Raiden – Room 11; Music: Baxter – Room 14 and Zaina – Room 15

Stars

Behaviour Focus

Our behaviour focus for Week 6 is:-

Whole School

Safety

• We walk on paved areas
• We keep hands, feet and objects to ourselves
• We report concerns for student safety or wellbeing to a staff member
• We seek help from our network if we are feeling worried or unsafe

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.

Waste Wise Schools

Containers for Change

Thank you to all students, staff and our many families that have contributed to our Containers for Change Fund Raising Scheme, all moneys raised are put back into our students for activities and excursions.

So far this term we have collected:

Week one: 193
Week two: 457
Week three: 222
Week four: 281
Week five: 206

Thank you for your continued support, there is a large bin located at the front of our school for easy drop off!

Let’s see how many we can collect this week!

Waste Free Wednesdays

Our Waste Free Wednesdays have been a huge success and we have had many students trying to make a difference!

Gardening Club

Students have been enjoying our new lunchtime Gardening Club every Thursday. Last week we planted Blueberry seeds.

Fathering Project Event Summary

Circus Skills

On Wednesday the 18th, a group of Somerly dads and father figures (shout out to the uncles and granddads!) came down to the school with their kids for a bit of circus fun. We made juggling balls, tried the spinning plates and practiced throwing some frisbees. All this while snacking on party food and listening to circus themed tunes!

Calling All Dads/Father Figures!

The Fathering Project is looking for name suggestions! If you think of yourself as the creative type, please send suggestions to daniel.gane@education.wa.edu.au. To get your brain juices flowing, here are a few names that are already being used by some other groups: The LADDs, The Family Jewels and Dad’s Garage.

We are also currently taking suggestions for events you would like to participate in. Please email suggestions to the address above and stay tuned for updates on our Term 4 activity!

Mr Daniel Gane
Fathering Project Program Coordinator

Book Week

What a wonderful start to Book Week 2021 we have had! At the opening on Monday, Ms Hadley, Mrs Carroll and Miss Bue performed “Oh, the Places You'll Go!’. Students were also challenged to redesign the cover of their favourite book, with our winners being announced on Monday. Congratulations to William (Kindy), Logan (Pre-Primary), Mirriam (Year 1), Tien (Year 2), Tina (Year 3), Emily (Year 4), Aarav (Year 5) and Laken (Year 6). We hope you enjoy your $15 voucher to spend at the Book Fair!

Aussie of the Month

Each month we have a focus area for Aussie of the Month. Staff look out for students displaying the focus area in all areas of school life.

Our focus for July was ‘Caring for the Environment, this included looking after the school environment, recycling and being waste wise’. Congratulations to the winners Tyson and Cora.

Tyson was recognised for rescuing an injured bird on school grounds. His calm courage and demeanour shone through, allowing the bird to stay calm, whilst Mrs Carroll attended to the bird’s foot, which was badly wrapped in cotton. Your care towards animals is to be commended. Well done!

Cora was recognised for the great responsibility she is showing as a Waste Warrior. Cora shows great maturity in ensuring the food scraps and recycling is correctly done. She is training other students in the role, ensuring that they are recycling correctly and looking after the environment. Well done!

Our August Aussie of the Month focus is on Literacy skills, sharing books, improvement in English and responsibility in the Library.

Our September focus is Sportsmanship, accepting diversity, including everyone and encouraging others.

If your child is doing anything in the community that could link to these focus areas, please let the office know.

Sports Carnival

The Somerly Primary School Sports Carnival will take place on Friday 3rd September 2021.

Please refer to the timetable below for the event schedule.

A coffee/snack van will be available on the day.

Swimming Lessons

Information regarding Pre-Primary to Year 4 In-term Swimming Lessons will be sent home this week. Lessons will take place at Aquamotion Wanneroo from Wednesday 13th October to Friday 22nd October 2021 (Weeks 1 and 2 of Term 4). The cost of swimming lessons is $45. If you have credit on your account due to swimming lessons being cancelled last year, this can be used to pay for the swimming lessons.

Please note, due to the setup of the change rooms at Aquamotion Wanneroo, students will get changed back at school. Students can wear hooded towels or dressing gowns to keep warm during transition from pool to school.

Learning Focus

Block 2

Years 5 and 6 have been participating in the OzHarvest Feast Program this year. Students have been learning valuable cooking skills whilst making some healthy recipes focussed on limiting food waste. They have thoroughly enjoyed the recipes so far and a crowd favourite was the Honey Soy Noodle Stir Fry we made this week!

P & C

P&C Profiles

Name: Safiyyah Khan

P&C Title: Executive Member

How many children of yours attend Somerly Primary School and what year/s are they?

1 little girl in year 1.

What do you like most about being part of the P&C?

I love the fact that we are an understanding and fun group of parents. Each and every member is different and they bring out the best in our little team.

Is there something you'd like other parents to know about the P&C?

We bring the fun to each of our meetings. We are welcoming to any new members that join in the P&C, and not forgetting - we are a friendly bunch!

Name: Sheldon Clark

P&C Title: Executive Member

How many children of yours attend Somerly Primary School and what year/s are they?

3 x kids - year 1 and 2x year 6.

What do you like most about being part of the P&C?
Meeting new parents, teachers and people through the school.

Is there something you'd like other parents to know about the P&C?

As a FIFO dad, I was still accepted in by the team, I can come to meetings when available and help as needed.

Name: Nikunj Chauhan

P&C Title: Member

How many children of yours attend Somerly Primary School and what year/s are they?

1. Year 1.

What do you like most about being part of the P&C?

Exciting exchange of ideas, various events and initiatives.

Is there something you'd like other parents to know about the P&C?

It's an opportunity to engage more with school and contribute to community.