Alawa Primary School Newsletter

We are now heading into a busy time of year in all classes as teachers are collating information and writing reports to inform families and parents on how students have finished the year. As well as this, our teachers continue to work hard to deliver quality programs. It is wonderful to see students continuing to apply themselves to their learning.

TRANSITIONING TO 2022 CLASSES: In  the next couple of weeks our students from Transition to Yr 3 and 3/4 will be visiting the learning areas and meeting some of  the teachers that may teach them next year. We believe it is really important to give students the opportunity to think about next year, consider where they will be and who may teach them.

If you have a child in Transition, Year 1, 2, 3 or 3/4 you may like to discuss with them the changes they will be having next year. There will also be an extra opportunity for students who require that extra opportunity to relay further concerns/worries that they may have. Please let us know if your child may need this further support.

OUR MINDFULLNESS COMMUNITY ROOM

As I have shared with you last term, Alawa has been fortunate enough to have won a grant from Smiling Mind. This is a non-for-profit web and app-based meditation program developed by psychologists and educators to help bring mindfulness into the school.  After discussing options with our Wellbeing Team, our Council gave approval to repurpose and upgrade the Community room to become our Mindfulness room. This room will provide a space so we can help our students better understand and manage negative thoughts and feelings in a more positive way. It will allow small groups and/or individuals to spend time practicing mindfulness strategies. This may include:

·     Exploring rich literature that teaches about regulating emotions

·     Opportunities to explore the Smiling Mind app to develop mindfulness skills to feel better and reduce anxiety.

·     Counselling/Play therapy from outside agencies

·     Relaxation and Breathing exercises

·     Mindful artwork

·     Or just taking the time to observe your thoughts, feelings and the sensations around you

Our SRC and other students cross the school have been part of the decision making on how this will look. In the coming week our Wellbeing team, along with Michael our Maintenance Officer will work together to prepare/paint the room. If you would like to contribute in some way or would like to find out more information please don’t hesitate to get in contact with me.

https://www.smilingmind.com.au/at-home

So in this busy time of year, don't forget to take the time to slow down, breathe and listen to your body as we deal with the stresses of life that you may be facing. Have a lovely week!

 Genevieve Donohue [Assistant Principal]

Students at Alawa receive raffle tickets [house points] for their attitude and behaviour in the playground and out the front of the school at the end of the day. These are then counted on a Friday along with the points for students in full uniform, wearing house shirts etc.  At the end of each term we also include the points earnt through the recycling project and water bottle checks.

In Week 6 of Term 4 Goyder was ahead of Manton and Finnis. 

Goyder is in the lead for the year!

Muster is held at Alawa after each recess and lunch break. This gives us an opportunity for everyone to settle from playtime, share any celebrations and work on consistency of messages and expectation.

Each day we allocate class points during Muster time recognising those students who were ready and waiting to go back to class calmly and quietly after break times. The winning class from each 3 weeks will receive ice-blocks from Ms Cartwright and get to choose 5 songs that will play before our bells for the following 3 weeks.

In Week 6 of Term 4, the class with the most points was... Year 2 Bernardino with 150 points!

I would like to say a huge thank you to the Alawa students and their families who supported our Defence Kids Club free dress day on Friday Week 5 by bringing in a gold coin donation. We raised an amazing $310 that we have donated to Mates4Mates. The money raised will be used by our local Mates4Mates branch to benefit Veterans in our NT community.

You will remember earlier this term I mentioned some helpful tips for posting and how couples can support each other through the process. This week I would like to follow on from that with some suggestions for helping children through the relocation process. This week’s suggestion are specific to preparing to leave your current location. Next fortnight I will include some tips for once you are in your new location.

•  Talk about the posting – early and often. Give your child as much information as possible before the move, as far in advance as possible; more lead time means more time for the child to get used to the idea.
• Encourage children to express their emotions. Accept their feelings and respond with understanding. By expressing your own feelings in healthy ways, children will recognise that they are not alone in their feelings.
• Encourage children to create a scrapbook of their former community, school, home and friends. Allow children to maintain contact with former friends as long as necessary (telephone, mail, postcards, photographs).
• Be prepared for signs of stress from children of any age. Pre-schoolers may regress to thumb sucking, baby talk or other behaviour they had left behind. School-age children may intensify natural habits: a shy child may become shyer, an aggressive child more aggressive.                     
• Involve children in some of the decision-making. Keep options within your range of acceptability while giving your child a sense of participation. Be prepared to honour their decisions
• Read stories about moving to younger children. Use a toy truck or dolls to act out the packing and moving process.
• While packing for the move, respect your child's need to keep some items before you throw them away. These items may represent security to your child.                                    
• Host a farewell party for the children. Plan the party with a theme in mind that connects with the new location (landmarks eg. Sydney Harbour Bridge, state flower, sport team, etc.). Create activities that focus on moving, for instance, "Pin the House on the State.”
• On moving day, keep some special items (favourite doll, toy, teddy, blanket, etc.) with you for ready access.

Suggestions Credit: Ken Welsh: NSW Regional Education Liaison Officer.

Katie Wedel [Alawa Defence Mentor]

Preschool has begun its inquiry into all things space. The children have been captivated by learning about all the planets in the solar system and have so many questions and enthusiasm around this fascinating topic. Some children have been really interested in the concept of gravity and we have been able to explore this through games, experiments, and real-life clips of astronauts in space.

We have created a space centre complete with astronaut equipment, a control panel and lots of information texts about space. Small groups have been investigating the space centre and taking on different roles as astronauts, ground control, assistants, and space navigation specialists. There have been lots of excited count downs as the Alawa Preschool rockets prepare to leave earth - 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Blast off!

We look forward to learning even more about space through play and exploration.

Alice, Emma, Kelly and Flor [Preschool Team] 

Kitchen has seen some incredibly delicious recipes being made. 

Buddy Oliver's yoghurt flatbread was very popular and went really well with curries. Year 3 Hughes and 3/4 Baines made a Nepalese style potato curry - Alu Dum and 4/5 France made a Sri Lankan style lentil curry.  So much fun.

We also had a go at using yeast to make some lovely bread rolls. They took the whole 2 hours to make as the dough had to have kneading time as well as two rising times. The rolls were very tasty and went really well with the vegetable soup we made. We als​o used the digital microscope to watch yeast activating in sugar and warm water.

We will be holding our first ever Alawa Masterchef competition on Thursday 25th. Great to see so many teams entering and will be so exciting to see what they will cook.

Buddy Olivers Flatbread

• 100g self raising flour
• 4 tablespoons greek yoghurt

Combine ingredients into a dough. Divide into 4 pieces and cook in a dry frying pan until lightly brown

Enjoy with any toppings you enjoy or as a side to a curry or soup.

Tina Sullivan [Kitchen Teacher] 

What’s New in the Library?

We have recently subscribed to some different Kids magazines which as they come in will be displayed and available for students to read and use both within the library and the classroom. Magazines provide students the opportunity to build their background knowledge in nonfiction through manageable chunks of information presented in an engaging format. Our magazine stand is located next to the New Books shelf and will have magazines such as Kids National Geographic, Extreme Explorer, Double Helix, Wacky but True and OWL.

If you happen to have any magazines at home you are looking to throw out please consider donating them to the library to add additional variety to our collection.

Miss Sacha [Library and ICT Manager]

Our Mission - is to provide the Alawa School community with delicious healthy meals and snacks and to create meaningful links to our kitchen garden program.

LUNCHTIME SPECIALS: Weeks 6 -10

Available every day lunch only [Wednesday - Friday]:

- Mini beef burgers  $3.50

- Spaghetti bolognaise small serve $3.50 or large serve $5.50/Gluten Free Spaghetti $6.50

Wednesday - Nachos - Large size $5.50, Small $3.50

Thursday – Sushi, Tuna and corn OR Chicken and cucumber - one size only $5.50

 Friday – Chicken fried rice - Large size $5.50, Small $3.50

A reminder that our school Cafe is open Wednesday to Friday ONLY. Closed on Monday and Tuesdays. 

Order online at www.quickcliq.com.au