Baler Bulletin Baler Close, South Hedland WA 6722 A.B.N

Baler Bulletin Baler Close, South Hedland WA 6722 A.B.N. 12 533 442 065 Phone: (08) 9172 1955 Fax: (08) 9172 1588 Email: [email protected] Department of Education Security: 1800 177 777 Police: 131 444 or 9160 2100 South Hedland

From Our Principal 29th MAY 2019

School Values Baler Dear Parents and Caregivers, Sea of Cultures We are already half way through term 2 and I am sure all families are looking forward to the extra-long weekend coming up at the end of this week. A school development day is scheduled for this Friday (31st May) and as such students do not attend on Friday. Monday 3rd June is a designated public holiday. I am pleased to welcome some new members to our school board and report that all school board members will be undertaking board training this week along with a number of other board members from other schools. The school board plays an important role in contributing to good school governance so that school resources are used efficiently and community expectations and the school’s priorities reflect the needs of students. Our school board members are:

NAPLAN: All year 3 & 5 students were provided with opportunities to complete NAPLAN online testing and Iam pleased to report that we did not experience the major difficulties experienced by many other schools with Upcoming events the online platform. Teachers and students reported that they were not unduly affected by some minor glitches which we were able to manage effectively. Due to the difficulties and adjustments having to be made by a large number of schools Baler will be taking a cautionary approach to the results of this year’s Assembly J5 NAPLAN when making comparisons around how Baler has fared against state and national results. We are Fri 31st May proud of the way all of our students completed the testing and thank Ms Orford for her diligence and ex- School tensive planning. Violence in Schools: Development Day Earlier this year the State Government released the ‘Let’s Take a Stand Together’ document in response to Violence in Schools. Fortunately, at Baler I am pleased to report that most students behave respectfully. At Mon 3rd June times though a very small number of students across all schools can be physically aggressive. This is never WA Day Public acceptable and this document sets out 10 actions to help school staff, families and communities work together on this complex issue. I encourage all families to read my letter to the community explaining this Holiday document and the ‘Lets’ Take a Stand’ statement. Both are contained within this newsletter. Fri 7th June Good Standing: As part of the “Let’s Take a Stand Together” statement every public school is required to add ‘good stand- Assembly J4 ing’ requirements to it Behaviour Management Policy. A good standing requirement stipulates that stu- Fri 14th June dents who do the wrong thing will have privileges removed – such as being banned from certain school Faction activities. Students can earn ‘good standing’ back by making amends and behaving well. What this means and the specifics of how this will look at Baler is still being determined by our Behaviour Committee. Once Athletics Carnival a draft has been ratified by staff this will then be presented to the school board for discussion and endorse- ment in order for it to be shared with the whole school community in a future newsletter or Skoolbag app notification.

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE From our Principal :

Congratulations: Congratulations to the following staff members who have recently welcomed additions to their families. Mr Bald- win & Miss Muir, Mrs Jensen, Miss Tree, Miss Owens – congratulations to all of you and welcome to the wonderful world of parenthood! Last term we had a number of children in Years 4-6 who were selected to take part in academic extension pro- grams fun for the Hedland network of schools. Congratulations and well done to all students involved. I am al- ways in awe of the achievements that the students involved in this program are able to demonstrate. Baler students were provided with opportunities in both Coding and Public Speaking. At the conclusion of the six week course students were invited to present their work to parents and friends. This included a Public Speaking Com- petition held at Matt Dann Theatre. This term 10 students have been selected to take part in Music and Robotics. Other opportunities for our students coordinated by Miss Orr are within the area of Student Leadership. Our student leaders have recently put a proposal together and written to myself and the P&C seeking support for a sen- sory garden that they wish to develop at the back of the school. They want this to be a calm and tranquil place for students and staff and wish to develop it as a parting gift and their legacy to the school. Our future is in good hands with motivated students like this! Parent Interviews: All parents should have been offered the opportunity for a one on one parent interview with their child’s teacher and should have received an invitation to make an appointment earlier in the year. With student reports being issued at the end of this term I again encourage parents to contact teachers. What is in your child’s report should not be a surprise and an interview is an ideal opportunity to have a more in depth conversation with the teacher in regards to your child’s progress. An interview as opposed to an incidental conversation allows the teacher to be prepared and have relevant work samples ready to share with you.

ANZAC Assembly: In week one of this term we held our ANZAC assembly and the many positive comments from parents, staff and community echoed my own thoughts. This was a special event at which all students were equally respectful and reflective. The choir was outstanding and the student leadership team who hosted our assembly supported by Miss Orr was equally outstanding. Thank you also to Mr Green who coordinated the art work and back drops.

We have a number of significant events happening this term. Please keep an eye out for skoolbag reminders and can I please remind all families to make sure you turn notifications on, on the app so you do not miss these important reminders.

Kind regards, Karen Burgess

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UNIFORM SHOP School Development Days 2019 Uniform shop will be open Thursday 31st January Monday 8-8:30am Friday 1st February Wednesday 8– 8:30am Friday 31st May Any orders can be placed via email at [email protected]. Friday 2nd August Payment will be cash/card on pickup or via Friday 18th October bank deposit: BSB: 066 528 ACC: 0090 4355 once cleared they will be available! Orders done through a trust/corporation must have Childs name in reference on bank deposit and an email to uniform shop with order form and copy of receipt for proof of payment.

As a parent you are required to send your child to school everyday unless you have provided a reason for them to be away. There are many schools already using SMS to com- municate with parents about unexplained absences. We understand that at times life gets busy and parents often forget to write that note or contact the class teacher explaining an absence, so to assist Baler PS will be phasing in the use of Message U, an SMS supported platform in the next few weeks. If you have forgotten to provide a reason to the school about why your child is away, you will auto- 2019 matically receive a text message advising you of the ab- SCHOOL HOURS sence. To assist the school staff, please respond as detailed in the message. You do not need to install any app or soft- 8:00 am Classrooms open ware on your mobile. 8:20 am Lessons start

10:30 am Recess

10:50 am Lessons resume

12.50 pm Lunch

1.20 pm Lessons resume

2:20 pm End of day

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE ANZAC DAY

On May the 2nd we took time to reflect and give thanks to those who fought for our freedom in our whole school ANZAC Commemoration Ceremony. Lead by our Student Councillors, we welcomed official guests Mayor Camilo Blanco, representing the Town of Port Hedland, Major Guy Warnock and Warrant Officer Sharon Stratton representing the Pilbara Regiment, our P&C President Hailee Heta and our School Board Chair, Michelle Boothey. In memory of the fallen, each class laid a wreath and created stunning artworks. The school choir led by Miss Fitzgerald sang a moving rendition of I am Australian and Can you hear the Children Marching. LEST WE FORGET

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For the Love of reading .. By Mr Holden Some of you may have been wondering why the funny costume at our assembly last term, well I am here to set the record straight, I did it all in the name of love, a love for reading! The teachers in Kestrel block found that some of our students were not handing in their Bal- er BookWorms and as such were not reading at home. So we wanted to do something about it! We made a competition where each class had to bring in as many reading experiences each morning as they could and we kept a tally for students to see how their class was tracking. The winning class got to choose a Kestrel teacher and what they wore for a day. Kestrel 2 won and they chose me and that I would wear a unicorn outfit. Unfortunately for me it was also on the day we had our assembly. Congratulations to Kestrel 2 and to all the students who participated.

The Wizard of Odd Easter Hat Parade ! Our students celebrated Easter with a Easter hat parade congratulations to all the winners and to all the students who participated.

A huge congratulations to those students selected in the cast of the upcoming musical The Wizard of Odd at the Matt Dann Theatre in August. This production includes students across all Hedland schools.

DOROTHY: Felicity Stewart, Year 6 MUNCHKIN LAWYER: Tayah Larado, Year 5 EMERALD CITY GUARD: Tanikia Keep Year 4 MUNCHKIN: Charli Stainton-Rea Year 5 CHORUS: Elizabeth Hatwell, Year 2, Kiara O'Driscoll Year 2, Ashley O'Driscoll Year 4, Reauscille Robinson Year 6

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE Interschool Swimming Carnival

On Thursday 9th May, Baler participated in the 2019 Hedland Primary School Network Inter- school Swimming Carnival. The Baler team were eager to improve on last years’ performance and after a quick pep talk and a pre-carnival selfie, the fire in our belly burnt strongly! And improve we did! We had podium finishers in most races and our students proudly showed off an abundance of ribbons. Baler took home a very well earned second place! This year was the first year that the races were timed, which means that everyone who came first in their race/s is a current record holder! Congratulations to all those students. As usual, our students did us proud in their attitude, behaviour and sportsmanship and proved, yet again, why Baler students are the best. Now we turn our attention to Athletics and our carnival on the 14th of June. Please let Miss Ward know if you can help out on the day. Regards, Heidi Ward Physical Education Specialist

Champion Boy / Girl and runner ups for Yrs 3-6 Swimming

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE The 2019 Faction Athletics Carnival The 2019 Faction Athletics Carnival is only 2 weeks away, on Friday 14th of June! All students from Pre-Primary to Year 6 are involved in events. The students have been working hard in morning fitness, PE lessons and afternoon athletics practice to prepare for what will be a day of fun, sportsmanship and friendly faction competition. New this year, is the addition of Champion and Runner Up Champion Boy and Girl medals for Years 1-6. Run sheets will be sent home shortly so that you know what event/s your child is in. Canteen: Please be reminded that the canteen will be offering a special lunch menu. Please order and pay for any lunch orders prior to the day. Recess ordering will not be available. Any and all help would be greatly appreciated so if you are available please let Miss Ward know. Alternatively, if your child/ren will be absent on carnival day, please also inform Miss Ward.

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE Baler Learning Club Compact Signing Baler Learning Club students had a wonderful start to the year learning a range of new skills from teamwork and collabo- ration to robotics and coding. We had a very special afternoon tea for family members to showcase what we have been working on and also a chance for students to sign contacts to show their commitment to the program.

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE Speak out Competition

At the end of last term, students who had been taking part in the Public Speaking Enrichment Program, had the opportunity to compete in the 4th Annual Baler Speak Out Competition to a pan- el of BHP judges. This year we saw a range of speeches, from Saving the Environment to why Minecraft is better than Fortnite. I didn’t think it was possible to top the standard of speeches we saw at last year’s competition, but once again the students out- did themselves to showcase their talents. Big congratulations to Tayah Larado, whose speech on why we should read more took out first place, closely followed by Jade Roil who encouraged us to think more carefully about the impact Cyber Bullying has on us all. Tayah and Jade, alongside Abu Remy, Lincoln Gill, Shayli An- drews and Felicity Stewart then got to represent Baler in the In- terschool Speak Out Competition at the Matt Dann Theatre, where the best year 4-6 speakers in Hedland got a chance to showcase their talent. Well done to Shayli Andrews for taking out the runner up place in this competition.

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE Student leadership Conference The BHP Pilbara Education Partnership, Hedland Academic Enrichment Program sponsored an exciting opportunity for our future leaders on Tuesday 28th May. The Student Leadership Conference 2019 (First ever for the region) in Port Hedland at the Matt Dann Theatre had 150 students leaders in attendance and an array of guest speakers such as; Lauren Graham (Industrial Automation Coordinator) from the Pilbara Port Au- thority, Kelly Howlett from Care for Hedland, Warren Wellbeloved (Acting General Manager Rail) from BHP, Anthea Bird (Director of Corporate and Performance) from Town of Port Hedland, and John Coutis (International and national inspirational speaker, leader and author). Students were provided with real life examples on how to develop their leadership potential, from changing careers, to climbing mountains, and overcoming extreme difficulties. From this experience students have gained a greater understanding on what it means to be a leader and to lead when be- coming more involved in school initiatives and local community projects.

Kind regards, Kylie Unkovich Headland Academic Enrichment Co-Ordinator & Teacher Port Hedland Primary

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE Leadership Program - OWLS (Older Wiser Library Seniors) Last term students went on an excursion to the Court House Gallery to meet with the OWLS to discuss beautifying an area in Hedland with a mural to reflect living in Hedland. The Town of Port Hedland have kindly accepted our grant proposal to decorate the wall of the South Hedland Library. Students from Cassia, Baler, South and Port Hedland Primary schools presented an array of suggested artwork to the OWLS showing their flare from creativity and willingness to be part of a community project. The OWLS unan- imously decided that all submissions would need to be included in the final mural design as the presented artwork was of a quality that made it too hard to judge. Plans will now be made to create a final mural based on incorporating all the de- signs presented to the OWLS. Stay tuned for further updates!

Partnership with sister school in Bali Baler Primary School is proud to present its recent partnership with a school in Pecatu, Bali through the Adopt a School initiative. A special thanks to Mrs. Simone Gill for organizing the delivery of the Baler school shirt as a memento to our sister school during her recent family vacation to Bali.

Thank you

Varin Rikhraj (Pak. Rick) Specialist Indonesian Language Teacher

CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE Baler Primary School supports the SES and in recognition of all of the assistance they have provided to the school and the community over the years. We ask everyone to support us and celebrate WOW Day to thank the hardworking SES volunteers in Western Australia. This year is particularly momentous for the SES in WA, celebrating 60 years of service to the community.

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CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE CONNECT ENCOURAGE ASPIRE Car Park It seems as if the car park continues to cause issues. The car park at the front of the school does not belong to the school, it comes under the jurisdiction of the Town of Port Hedland and as such we encourage families to direct their concerns and complaints to the Town of Port Hedland. We are working with the TOPH to investigate solutions but if families continue to express their concerns then we can only hope to move the process along a little quicker. We would however like to point out a number of things for the safety of your children and to lesson congestion: ● Cars parked in bays need to reverse park – this is clearly signed ● Those picking up children need to be aware that the ‘kiss and drive bays’ are just that. Please do not park your vehicle there – again this is signed but some families continue to ignore this. If your children are not there waiting then cor- rect protocol is that you move on – do another lap in the hope they will be there as you come around next time – this is to avoid congestion which has be- come very common. Rangers have asked the school to start recording number plates of vehicles who park in the kiss and drive area. ● The gravel area on the corner of Baler Close is able to be used for parking – please park and come over to collect your children. Having them walk / run through the car park is not safe.

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