KMS Newsletter Term 1 Week 11
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From the Principal’s Desk sideline having a significant impact on shaping their attitudes for life. Autumn is here: the weather is cooler, Parents can look to protect their children daylight saving has finished and for many from potentially painful or frightening families the winter sporting season has situations like the trials and tribulations of commenced with the early rounds of making teams by avoiding or providing netball/footy and practices for soccer and excuses. The alternative is using this hockey. We know the value of physical opportunity to prepare through practice, activity and the benefits for the brain and face fears in competition, humbly accept body however participating in sport has both wins and losses: all which teach and additional benefits. build skills and confidence and applies to S trong evidence exists that sport provides life. the opportunity to practise and strengthen This newsletter contains numerous many personal dispositions including examples of sporting opportunities for KMS respecting your opponent, responsibility to students. These, combined with the your team and yourself, persistence, weekend sporting competitions, are accepting defeat, celebrating success with assisting to build powerful learners for the integrity and self-discipline. future. We congratulate the Athletics squad for a great achievement, placing fourth overall at the C-Division Athletics Championship at SANTOS stadium in Adelaide on Monday. It was a close competition with just 40 points between the overall winner and fourth position. The boy’s team won the C1 Boys’ Championship, with the girls placed sixth. Head of PE and Health Mr Luke Driver said many students achieved personal bests During the season numerous lessons exist and said it was a very proud day for their around cooperation and communication. teachers, school and themselves. A report Resetting and regrouping is learnt during will be published next term. Well done! the struggles and challenges of competition. Coaches and parents are critical in Term 2 2017 supporting children to grow these Resumes Monday 1 May, 8.30am dispositions through their approach to Enjoy a safe and relaxing Easter winning, losing, respecting coaches and the and school holiday break. opposition. Children learn from what they see and hear with supportive parents on the Principal’s Report Continued: Early school siren (8.40am) Based on feedback from students and staff the trial of Governing Council Vacancies the 8.40am siren has enabled a smooth start to the Thank you to all who attended the recent Governing school day and therefore will continue next term. We Council (GC) Annual General Meeting. will continue with the 8.30am siren to indicate yard supervision has commenced and then the 8.40am siren The following were elected to GC positions: is a reminder that school starts in five minutes. The Chairperson: Michael Glasson 8.45am siren will sound for the start of morning care Deputy Chairperson: Scott Mercer group. Secretary: Lynlee Sloper Treasurer and Finance Committee: Mark Northcott and Parent Teacher Interviews Scott Mercer As first term concludes we thank all for a solid and Grounds Committee: Michael Glasson and Luke productive term where quality learning relationships Browning have been established, smooth routines implemented Decision Making Committee: Lynne-Marie Power and and many significant and important school events and Lynlee Sloper celebrations have occurred. Canteen Committee: Catarina Harmer There were 720 interviews with R-12 parents last week, Agricultural Committee: Andrew Pearce and Brian providing an opportunity to invest time to identify Crosby goals and ways to achieve these next term. The one- Bus Committee: Andrew Pearce, Brian Crosby and Scott on-one discussions enable a positive and productive Mercer. start to next term. Literacy Improvement Team: Rosemary Cock Numeracy Improvement Team: Brian Crosby Have a safe, relaxing and restful holiday. Powerful Learning Team: to be advised Sport and Recreation Committee: to be advised. A number of vacancies exist for committee membership Cheers and we encourage all interested in representing the Debbie Terrett parent body to attend the next meeting on Wednesday Principal 10 May, in the KMS Hospitality Centre on Doswell : Ebony Hall, Year 4 teacher Terrace at 7pm (near the Community Library). Staff Profile Representation of families is crucial for a healthy school: Ebony studied a Bachelor of Education (Primary and we look forward to seeing you at this meeting. Middle) at the University of South Australia. Ebony is a familiar face at KMS having completed a Year 8/9 We thank retiring GC members Anna Wuttke, Kate English placement in 2015, relief teaching on Yorke Monger, Wade Della Torre, Rachel Larwood, Charisse Peninsula in 2015, and teaching at Wallaroo Primary Peterson and Amelia Phillips for their time and School in 2016. contribution to school life, with all serving on various What are you looking forward to this year at KMS? committees over a number of years. I am looking forward to having my own class and watching them grow and improve in all areas of learning over the year. I’m looking forward to trying Staffing News lots of new and creative ideas in the classroom and We thank Erin Schneider (Assistant Principal/Daily working with excellent educators. Operations) and Rachel Foster (Disability Unit) for their What are your hobbies and sports? leadership this term. We welcome back leaders Mr Dave I LOVE sport! I play netball for the Ardrossan Roos and Love and Mrs Sandy Mumford who are returning from basketball for East Coast and I like watching footy. I leave. also love travelling (I returned from Europe earlier this We farewell Vicki Golder and John Andrew from the term) and music. Unit, Sallyanne McNicholl who is commencing maternity leave and Karm and Gerrard Kleinig who will be on leave next term. Next term we also welcome back Ms Andrea Harvie to the Unit, Mrs Julianne Wyatt to RESM, Mr Stewart Rhodes to the Tech/SOSE role and Ms Holly McClure to the English/SOSE position. Miss Danielle Hicks and Miss Megan Tucker will share the Senior Counsellor position in Term Two. Year 4 students Lana and Charlotte with Miss Hall. Sub School News R-6 Corner and Middle School Help your child prepare for NAPLAN by reassuring What is NAPLAN? them that NAPLAN tests are just one part of their In Term 2 Week 2, KMS students in Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 will school program, and remind them on the day to try sit the annual National Assessment Program – Literacy their best. The use of services by coaching providers is and Numeracy (NAPLAN). not recommended. All students in these year levels are expected to What additional support can schools provide for participate in tests in reading, writing, language students with special needs? conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and All students are encouraged to participate in NAPLAN numeracy. All government and non-government tests. Students with a disability may qualify for education authorities have contributed to the adjustments that reflect the support normally provided development of NAPLAN materials. in the classroom. Students who have a temporary Why do students do NAPLAN tests? injury may also be reasonably accommodated. NAPLAN is the measure through which governments, A formal exemption may be granted for a student with education authorities, schools, teachers and parents can significant intellectual disability and/or significant determine whether or not young Australians are coexisting conditions, or for a student who has recently meeting important educational outcomes in literacy and arrived in Australia and has a non-English speaking numeracy. The tests provide parents and schools with an background. understanding of how individual students are Tarryn Germein and Chris Morrison can provide more performing at the time of the tests. They also provide information on special provisions or the process schools, states and territories with information about required to gain a formal exemption. how education programs are working and what areas need to be improved. How is NAPLAN performance measured? NAPLAN tests are one aspect of a school’s assessment NAPLAN is not a pass-or-fail type test. Individual and reporting process; they do not replace the extensive student performance is shown on a national ongoing assessments made by teachers about each achievement scale for each test. Each test scale has 10 student’s performance. bands and all year levels are reported on the same What will be tested and how? scale. Six bands are reported for each year level for NAPLAN tests the sorts of skills that are essential for each test. One of these bands represents the national every child to progress through school and life, such as minimum standard for students at each year level. A reading, writing, spelling, grammar and numeracy. result at the national minimum standard indicates that NAPLAN content is aligned with the Australian the student demonstrated the basic literacy and Curriculum. For more information on this please see the numeracy skills needed to participate fully in that year NAP website: www.nap.edu.au. Questions are multiple- level. The performance of individual students can be choice or require a short written response. The writing compared to the average performance of all students task requires students to write a text in response to a in Australia. prompt. What happens if my child is absent from school on To give you an idea of what the tests look like, sample test days? questions and a sample writing task are available on the Where possible, we will organise for individual NAP website: www.nap.edu.au students who are absent at the time of testing to Who will run the tests? complete missed tests at another time during the NAPLAN tests are conducted at schools and testing week. Individual students are not permitted to administered by classroom teachers, school deputies or sit tests after Friday 12 May 2017.