DATE: Thursday 22nd October 2015 ISSUE 32

Our Purpose: The Monmia school community is committed to providing

innovative programs that stimulate and challenge each student to develop

lifelong learning skills and strategies. We provide a safe, nurturing

environment where teachers, students and parents work in an effective

partnership. www.monmia.vic.edu.au.Ph: 9364 1007

MONMIA MESSENGER

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Dear Monmia Families,.

GREAT THINGS I NOTICED THIS WEEK 1. I was so impressed when Taylan came and shared his story that he had written by himself. He

was very proud that he achieved his writing goal. Way to go Taylan! 2. I was thrilled when FJ excitedly shared his goal achievements with me. He was beaming from

ear to ear!! 3. The school leaders shared their final proposal for the fitness program they are recommending

the school follows to both improve fitness and integrate this with mathematics data work. These young leaders had worked hard on preparing this document so that they could share it with the Guiding Coalition for their approval.

4. The first Prep Orientation session was a terrific success with the new 2016 Preps quickly engaging in the class activities organised by the teachers. Thank you to Genevieve Vidmajer and Mandy Peters for being so encouraging and welcoming of these students. Parents/Guardians were provided with an Ausparenting session delivered by Lucy Vorpasso which affords parents/guardians with strategies to help their child with transition into primary school.

5. Brayden sharing his poem on Benji his dog was amazing to listen to as he wrote it in first person, second person and third person modes. It tugged at my heartstrings with the last line stating “You’re just a ghost”

6. Jade’s poem on the Big Tree gave me shivers as she described “the leaves crying, ‘help me’ and “the chainsaw chops the trees arm off”.

Japanese Week is next week and the Japanese lunch for students is on Wednesday 28 October. Thank you to Melissa Broso for organising this special week to engage students in a variety of Japanese cultural activities. On Multicultural Lunch Day we are going to launch our new school website and the school app. Every family will receive a magnetic postcard for their fridges with the website address and the school app. Download the #MonmiaPS App through the link on the website www.monmia.vic.edu.au.

SCHOOL ORGANISATION We have started our planning for school organisation in terms of staffing and number of year level classes. The staff will be involved in a consultation process for the structure of the school.

As we are also trying to finalise staffing for next year, it is vital that we have accurate details of enrolments for 2016. If you are transferring out of the area at the end of the year or know of new families enrolling at Monmia next year it is very important that you let the office know as soon as possible by completing the slip on this page of the newsletter.

The process for placement of children takes staff approximately 4 weeks to complete, as there are many factors to be taken into consideration. The process moves through a number of stages to ensure students are in a grade that will maximise their learning and social opportunities and that the grades across the school are evenly balanced.

Besides the “in depth” contribution of the class teachers, children also have input in

nominating students with whom they work well not necessarily their friends. However,

occasionally children may choose friends who may not allow them to maximise their learning and

social potential. In these instances the school will intervene as it is our core purpose to ensure every

child has an opportunity to develop to their full potential.

DATES FROM THE DIARY

Fri Oct 23 Book Club Orders Due

Tue Oct 27 Prep Orientation Session2

Tue Nov 3 Melbourne Cup Day

Public Holiday

NO SCHOOL THIS DAY

Thur Nov 5 Multicultural Lunch Day

Tue Nov 10 Prep Orientation Session 3

Tue Nov 17 School Council Meeting

Tue Dec 8 Grade 6 Secondary School

Orientation Day

Thur Dec 17 Grade 6 Graduation Night

Fri Dec 18 Last day of school for 2015

Early dismissal 1.30pm

Wed Jan 17 Twilight Picnic

At Monmia we are fortunate to have such wonderful teachers, who work exceptionally hard in collaborative teams to ensure all children receive the same educational opportunities.

As teachers are not allocated to grades until all children have been placed it is school policy that requests for specific teachers will not be accommodated. It is essential that if there are requests related to student’s educational needs parents/guardians notify the school in writing and due consideration will be given to these. Once the grades are finalised we are unable to make any further changes. Even if parents/guardians have made specific requests in previous years, we ask that a new written request be made for 2016. If the request is not in writing and addressed to me, it will not be taken into consideration. All written requests must be handed into the office by FRIDAY 30 OCTOBER 2015. Any requests after this date will not be considered.

Parents/Guardians have entrusted the school to make good decisions about your child all year.

Please trust that we will place your child with his/her best interests taken into account.

Warm Regards,

Lorraine Bell Principal

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REMEMBRANCE DAY POPPY APPEAL

This term we will be selling poppies, wristbands, pins and bag tags for Remembrance Day. The costs of these items are $1-$10 and they will be

available for sale at the Office .

The proceeds from the sale of these items allow the RSL (Returned Services League) to assist the men and women who served during the war and to support

their families.

PRA Brandan M for excellent reading and being very enthusiastic learning new

things. Great job!!

PRB Lana S for an amazing effort when writing unknown words. I love how you

are stretching out the sounds and writing what you can hear.

1/2A Alexander V for writing a procedural text using his own structure and

features.

1/2B Madeline C for always completing tasks to the best of her ability and then

helping others!!!

1/2C Ayden B for measuring the perimeter of objects in the classroom and writing

about his findings!

1/2D David M for his huge improvement with his reading. I love the way you are

using different strategies to predict tricky words. Keep it up and you can

achieve anything!

3/4A Nicolas T for his improved effort in completing his homework every week.

Well done Nicolas and keep up the great work.

3/4C Mohamed K for trying hard to achieve his goals especially in reading where

he has lifted his level. Good work for practising more often!

3/4D Mindy K for having achieved 100% improvement on her PAT Reading Test

result. Congratulations Mindy!!!

3/4E Tyler A for always looking on the bright side and modelling green light

thinking. You are a very positive person Tyler!!

5/6A Sam A for approaching mathematics with a positive attitude and working

co-operatively with other students.

Jordan B for putting a huge effort into his literacy – all with a smile and a

positive attitude!

5/6B Damien D for showing a focussed attitude to all set tasks and completing

them with great effort! Well done.

5/6C Brayden V for your touching poem about your dog, Benji, written from 3

different points of view.

5/6D Sanja D for an impressive drawing of the Harpy Eagle for our rainforest

mural. What an artiste!!

5/6E Olivia T for working hard on your reading and comprehension skills!

Languages Mohamed T of 3/4D for your fantastic poem about Japanese and Japan.

Keep putting your best effort into your work!

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Enrolments for 2016 are now being taken. If you have a child that will be turning 5 before 30 April 2016 and you want to enrol them for Prep, please see Catherine or Norma in the office for an enrolment pack.

Parents/Guardians enrolling their child will need to provide their child’s birth certificate or passport as well as their completed immunisation certificate.

Appointments for school tours are available on request and can be booked by calling Norma or Catherine in the Office.

If you know of neighbours or relatives living in our area who want to enrol their child/ren for 2016 please ask them to contact the school for an enrolment pack.

To secure a place in our Prep 2016 intake School Council has stipulated a $50 non-refundable deposit. This security will be deducted from the 2016 Resources and Materials Charge.

Enrolments will not be accepted without the deposit or the required certificates.

Confirmation of enrolment will include a gift for each 2016 Prep student of a Book Box and book to start them on their reading adventure!

PAYMENTS AT THE OFFICE

When making payments for any items at school, can we please ask that

parents supply the correct money as we do not have change at the Office.

Also, just a reminder that we now have EFTPOS available.

We are all starting to look forward to the Multicultural Lunch on

THURSDAY the 5th of November.

Put this date in your diaries and prepare your taste buds for a big feast of food from all around the world.

Please note: the canteen will not be open on this day.

Kim Renda

3/4 Classroom Teacher

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If your family is leaving Monmia please complete

the following form and return as soon as possible

to the Office

Planning for 2016 School Year

Child’s Name:

Child’s Year Level in 2016:

New School in 2016:

Reason for transfer:

Next week is the big week! There will be

many special activities happening to

celebrate the language and culture of

Japan both in the timetabled classes and

also during lunch time. The sushi lunch is

one of the main events which will be held on Wednesday 28th October. A reminder

that the orders are due by this Friday the 23rd of October. Due to such a big demand,

the provider will not accept any orders after this date.

Plus there is currently running a mascot drawing competition. Due to the few number

of entries, the closing date for this competition has been extended to Monday the 2nd

of November. Students are encouraged to be creative and to design a mascot which

reflects the Japanese language or Japanese culture. There are more guidelines

specified on the competition entries which you can get from the office or from the

Japanese Room.

Melissa Broso

Japanese Teacher

SPOTLIGHT ON BOUNCE BACK

A WELLBEING AND RESILIENCE PROGRAM

THE FOCUS FOR THIS WEEK IS: GREEN LIGHT THINKING

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Dear Parents and Guardians,

To emphasise LOOKING ON THE BRIGHT SIDE OF THINGS, it is very helpful to focus on Green Light Thinking instead of Red Light Thinking. Just like traffic lights, unhelpful thoughts are RED which means STOP as they make us feel upset, angry or nervous. Helpful thoughts are GREEN which means GO as they make us feel strong, brave and happy and focus on the BRIGHT SIDE OF THINGS. We all have thoughts about ourselves, others and situations and these thoughts can either help build resilience or hinder our resilience. When we focus on Red Light Thinking, we think of the things that are negative which makes us feel sad, disappointed, hurt and negative. On the contrary, when we focus on Green Light Thinking we think positively and feel, happy, confident and successful. When we use Green Light Thinking we are able to keep a healthy perspective on situations. When Green Light Thinkers try something new they always say ‘I can do it’. This makes them try something new straight away, instead of procrastinating and they are more likely to be successful. If they don’t get it right the first time, they are more likely to bounce back and try again. Family Activity As a family discuss the following situation and see how many more statements you can come up with using GREEN LIGHT THINKING.

I hope you found this article interesting and useful and I look forward to any feedback you may have.

Warm Regards,

Lucy Vorpasso

Assistant Principal Student Engagement and Wellbeing

A student is about to stand up in front of the class and give a presentation.

RED LIGHT THINKING – UNHELPFUL

“I hate speaking in front of the class”. “I am not good at this”. “I will make a fool of myself”.

GREEN LIGHT THINKING – HELPFUL

“I can do this”. “I have practised at home and all I have to do is try my best”. “I will look at people in the eye and try my best”.

UNHELPFUL

HELPFUL

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The canteen will be OPEN on Monday 2nd November,

the day before Melbourne Cup Day.

Every student that places a lunch order on this day will receive a

FREE SUPER DOOPER.

Please note that the canteen will be CLOSED on

Thursday 5th November

due to Multicultural Lunch Day.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Monmia is a Bucket Filling School! We fill buckets and we don’t dip!

We use our lid to keep our bucket full and keep the drops in! I love how the Bucket Fillers Philosophy has been embraced by our school community this year. I know that we can keep filling other people’s buckets and make Monmia Primary School a warm, positive and caring place to be. When we all fill other people’s buckets then all community members benefit from these acts of kindness. There is so much to acknowledge at Monmia Primary School! Here are some ‘drops’ for you to read.

Remember that when you fill someone else’s bucket, you fill yours as well so keep filling buckets Monmia!

Happy Bucket Filling!

Kind Regards,

Lucy Vorpasso

Assistant Principal

Student Engagement and Wellbeing

Student Engagement and Wellbeing

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MonmiaPS

NEXT MEETING

Monday 9th November

9.30am

MONMIA FAMILY

& FRIENDS

President

Sharon Di Bella

sharondibella@optusnet.com.au

0412 052 266

Secretary

Diana Masalkovski

0438 661 876

Treasurer/Parent Liaison

Leila Sheikh

0432745589

leilasheikh34@hotmail.com

Spring and the Melbourne Racing carnival is well and truly in the air

and to celebrate Family & Friends have organised an out of uniform day

on Friday 30th October 2015.

The theme will be Spring Racing Carnival and/or Spring

Colours. Boys and girls are invited to wear spring colours in the theme

of the famous Melbourne Racing Carnival.

Hats and big, bold colours for the boys and headbands and fascinators

for the girls...we’ll let you decide!

Girls must wear appropriate footwear, sandals and shoe string straps are

not allowed. Students will be required to bring a gold coin donation in

exchange for coming out of uniform.

.

CADBURY CHOCOLATES Just a reminder that there are still some boxes of Cadbury Freddo Frogs available at the office for purchase for $20 a

box. If you are interested in purchasing a box please see

Catherine at the front office for assistance.