The Punchbowl Press

Our school is participating in an exciting initiative to recognise students from Preschool to Year 6 called 'Aussie of the Month'. The program recognises personal endeavour, achievement and contribution to the community and reflects some of the values we share as Australians. 

Each month one student from Preschool to Year 2 and one student from Year 3 to 6 will be nominated by the relevant team to receive the Aussie of the Month Award. This Award acknowledges outstanding performance in such areas as:  

• Mateship - Displaying a spirit of generosity and compassion 

• Respect - Showing respect to self, others or the environment at school and/or in the community 

• Inclusion -  Including others and celebrating the differences and uniqueness in all of us 

• Work Ethic - Dedicated to trying their best and always putting in a great effort 

Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) is operating at  Punchbowl Public School in 2021.  Fun Kids OSHC is providing Before School Care, After School Care and Vacation Care within the grounds of Punchbowl Public School.

Fun Kids OSHC prides on providing children with safe, fun, play based learning experiences with a positive attitude. From exciting activities, healthy nutritious food, to warm and caring team members. Copies of the enrolment form can be obtained from the front office or alternatively you can access more information by visiting https://www.funkids.com.au/punchbowl/, phoning 0422968085 or email punchbowl@funkids.com.au 

It has been a great term in the SaCC centre. Families and friends have been attending programs and playgroups in our centre where discussion takes place and social connections have been built.  

TAFE English Class

A group of 15 parents started an Beginners English this course during Term 1 which was facilitated in partnership with TAFE NSW.  Dimitra, the educator, provided amazing support to all participants over the semester and we thank her for her work. This course concludes at the end of the term and participants who completed the course are looking forward to receiving their certificates.  

Play-to-Learn playgroup

The parents and their children had fun learning through play and participated in a variety of activities, storytelling and singing. Play-to-Learn groups run on Tuesday and Friday from 9.30am – 11.30am.   We welcome our new  and existing families to our community and are very happy to socialise and find new friends. 

Zumba Class

Parents enjoyed exercising together and learning routines with Anna our Zumba instructor every Monday morning. Come and join us on Monday for a good sweat in a positive place. 

Term 3 Courses

There are a number of courses and workshops being organised for Term 3 in our SaCC. Please contact Asenati for more information if you are interested in the following courses.

•  Bringing up Great Kids
•  Floristry
•  Beach Safety program

The SaCC centre would like to wish our families a happy and a safe break.

Learning about SPACE  

For National Simultaneous Storytime we made a Rocketship, as the story sparked interest about Space. We continued learning about Space in the following weeks, to follow children’s interests and extend on their explorations. Children were captivated and shared what they know about the moon, the sun, the stars and the planets. 

We planned a range of learning experiences for children, such as making the planets using papier-mache, to create our own Solar System to display, making rocket ships, and using construction materials to use their imagination to create their own. We set up our collaborative play area to include books about Space, construction, children’s artwork for them to further explore. There is so much to learn about Space and extend on children’s knowledge and vocabulary.  

Here are some comments from some of our students: 

Maryam (Wombats class): Out of space has lots of planets and shooting stars. You need a rocket to get there. Astronauts jump on the moon. You can see grass and water on the planet Earth. You see a sun. The sun is hot and it can burn you.  

Rifai (Wombats class): I made a telescope. I can see the moon. 

Wafa (Possums class): People see the aliens in the rocketship. 

Chloe (Possums class): We can float. 

As the weather has started to become colder and wetter, we are staying indoors more and exploring music through instruments and the sounds they make as well as using visuals to choose which songs to play. The children are enjoying belonging to our musical group and becoming musicians! 

Congratulations to Kindergarten students on completing their first semester at school! They have shown that they can follow the Punchbowl Public School Values by being ‘Safe, Respectful, Learners’. Kindergarten students have participated in a variety of different programs this semester which include gymnastics, Healthy Harold and Observatory Hill. They have also developed their literacy and numeracy skills. Keep up the great effort Kindergarten!  

Students in Kookaburras and Owls have been very busy bees during this term. 

For art lessons, we made still life collage of flowers in a pot. We learned about colour combinations and collage techniques to create our unique colourful piece of artwork.  

We also made 3D butterfly pop-up cards. We had to design a symmetry butterfly outline then cut along the line carefully to make the butterfly shape. It was a simple and awesome skill we learned. 

We also had a fabulous time at school incursions, watching Bell Shakespeare. We discovered that the story of Romeo and Juliet was written over 400 hundred years ago. The Bell Shakespeare vision is to create theatre that allows audiences of all walks of life to see themselves reflected and transformed through the prism of great writing.   

We also attended a Healthy Harold Life Education workshop.  Loveable giraffe Harold gave us lots of amazing information about our human body and how to keep it healthy and safe.  

We had lots of great memories from our learning experience. 

This term Stage 1 students participated in the Life Education program ‘Safety Rules!’. They investigated safety in a range of situations and environments, people and places to go to for help, and how friends can care for and support each other.   

This term stage 2 have been learning public speaking skills. They have chosen topics and presented to their peers. They have learnt to write persuasive arguments, use palm cards and engage an audience. The students have also had an amazing opportunity to participate in Bell Shakespeare, the drama activities have helped with being more confident in front of an audience and using their voice effectively. 

Feathered Friends 

Stage 3 had an amazing incursion with Feathered Friends. Feathered Friends brought six endangered birds and told us all about them. They were kind enough to let a few children hold the birds. 

Cross Country 

Each year stage 2 and 3 participate in a race called cross country. Depending on the students age you at least have to complete two full laps around the school field. Students love competing against each other and trying to win this fun race. 

Simultaneous Storytime 

Simultaneous story time it’s the time where we get to read an exciting book and this time it was about space. The book was called Give Me Some Space. The teachers from Stage 3 made rocket ship hats and made balloons with different coloured planets. 

By Khadijah and Dalia 5Fireball 

Year 1 and 2 Community Language students were learning about food and their names in Arabic. They were excited to conclude the unit they were learning of ‘What’s for Dinner?’ by participating in the making of ‘Fairy Bread’. The students spread the butter on their piece of sliced bread, then sprinkled hundreds and thousands on top of the butter. The students were overly eager to taste their finished fairy bread. Look at our students and teachers enjoying what they made. 

National Simultaneous Story time 

Our Punchbowl School Community participated in the National Simultaneous Story time event on the 19 May 2021. Students and staff tuned in to a story read by NASA astronaut Dr Shannon Walker. The story, Give me some space by Philip Bunting, was read from the NASA Space station, thrilling our students as they watched her floating in zero gravity. Stage 1 students were able to make connections between the story and their learning in the classroom and library. Benjamin from 1 Manta Rays explained that “gravity is a force that keeps us on the ground. Without gravity things will float into space”. This special event reinforces the importance of reading, a habit we must all try to develop and maintain. 

MyOn 

This is a good resource which gives students access to thousands of books online. They are also able to access the books from home using their unique login details. Developing daily reading habits will assist children in all areas of their learning and also prepare them for academic success. Please provide your child with the opportunity to read at least ten minutes each day. To access MyOn visit https://www.myon.com/login/index.html 

“I read a book about forces. You can make a door move with push or pull forces”. 

Neli- 1 Manta Rays 

“Reading with MyOn is good. I like it because when I don’t know how to read a word I listen to it on MyOn”. 

William- 1 Manta Rays 

Benefits of reading 

Some benefits of reading are listed below. For the full article visit https://childrenslibrarylady.com/8-benefits-to-reading-with-children-every-day/ 

1. Improves Reading Skills – practice makes perfect! 

2. Boosts Vocabulary and Literacy Skills 

3. Improves Writing Skills 

4. Builds Confidence and Independence 

5. Broadens Minds and Develops Empathy 

6. Academic Success 

7. Develops Imagination 

8. Reading is Fun! 

Riverwood Library services 

Find out what is happening at your local library. There are plenty of fantastic services available including programs in several community languages. To learn more about the services provided at libraries located in the Canterbury Bankstown area click on the links below. 

General information 

https://www.cbcity.nsw.gov.au/community/library-knowledge-centres/locations-memberships/riverwood-library-knowledge-centre 

Events 

https://www.cbcity.nsw.gov.au/community/library-knowledge-centres/programs-events-calendar 

School Holiday Programs 

https://www.cbcity.nsw.gov.au/community/community-services/children-families/school-holidays-programs 

In our library sessions we coded Ozobot, a tiny robot, to move in the shape of a house. We had many attempts coding an octagon and a decagon, that was hard. We decided to try to code the shape of a house. It was a bit tricky and we had to problem solve to get the angles right. This is how we coded the steps to make the shape of a house: 

• move forward 50mm 
• turn 30 degrees 
• move forward 50mm 
• turn 120 degrees 
• move forward 50mm 
• turn 30 degrees 
• move forward 50mm 
• turn 90 degrees 
• move forward 50mm 

By Nathan and Ahlan 4 Resilience 

I learn how to code Bluebot. I press the buttons one at a time to make Bluebot move forward, backward, turn left or turn right. I can code Bluebot to move on an alphabet mat one letter at a time. I can code Bluebot to spell a word from my spelling list. 

Jasper 1 Octopus 

I like to play with Bluebot because I can let it spell a word. 

Parishay 1 Octopus 

Our winning chess and debating teams were honoured with a lovely visit from Mr Andrew Fielding. Mr Fielding presented each of the students with a certificate in recognition of their outstanding efforts in chess and debating. All of our students are demonstrating team work, eagerness to learn and having a go at something which takes them out of their comfort zone. They are blossoming as learners, growing in confidence and resilience. We look forward to celebrating their continued success as learners. 

The Gardening group have flourished in their knowledge and experience of gardening this semester! Stage 2 and 3 students have been very busy planting, mulching, weeding and watering new plants in the office area.  Please stop and admire the new flowering plants outside the office.  Spring is sure to bring much colour to the Punchbowl.

Thank you to Miss Clare from Panania Free Ranger for your wealth of experience and enthusiasm in the garden. Your passion for gardening is contagious.  

Parents must ensure their children attend school every day. On occasion, your child may need to be absent from school. Justified reasons for student absences may include:

• being sick or having an infectious disease
• having an unavoidable medical appointment
• being required to attend a recognised religious holiday
• exceptional or urgent family circumstances e.g. attending a funeral

Parents must provide an explanation for absences to the school within 7 days from the first day of any period of absence. Where an explanation has not been received within the 7-day timeframe, the school will record the absence as unjustified on the student's record.

Principals may also request medical certificates or other documentation when frequent or long term absences are explained as being due to illness. 

Skoolbag allows you to send notes to explain absences electronically. All you need to do is go to 'Forms' on the Skoolbag app and select ' Absentee Form'.  You may also choose to send in a paper note or call the office on 9750 5055.