semester 1, 2017 - ssens.wa.edu.au
TRANSCRIPT
End of Term 2 :
Friday 30 June
Start of Term 3:
Monday 17 July
Semester 1, 2017
Hello to all our Sensory school families It has been a very busy semester for SSEN Sensory as we continue to focus on teaching and learning and supporting our students, schools and families in a variety of ways. I have been able to visit students around our state and see the strong supportive collaboration provided by our visiting teachers and schools. Relationships are vital as this is the basis for effective and successful outcomes for our students. From my observations and interactions I can see the positive engagement and triumphs achieved with many tasks, lessons and interactions.
Our Sensory school continues to work together to develop a strong focus on valuing difference, equity in learning and empowering all. It is about working together as a team, being committed to making good things happen. We continue to adapt and adopt new ways of thinking, doing and working together and this ensures our service and support to students and families remains responsive. Great teams are focussed on achieving greatness together. We have a great team at Sensory who always want the best for all students.
On behalf of staff, students and families, I would like to take this opportunity to wish Paula Bridges, Associate Principal, farewell and a happy retirement. I thank Paula for her service and contribution to deaf education over many years. As a teacher and administrator she has dedicated her time and has been committed to providing the best for staff and students.
Enjoy this newsletter. It certainly celebrates a variety of events and occasions that have occurred during the year so far.
Holidays are just around the corner, so delight in some special times with your family and friends.
Regards Rick Firns Principal
PADBURY PLAYDATES
Families of children aged 0-3 are invited to join us at Padbury on Fridays from 10am -12noon in Weeks 1,3,5,7 and 9.
The first date for Term 3 is Friday 21st July.
This is a good opportunity for children to have a play together and parents/carers to have a chat.
All you need to bring is a piece of fruit to share!
We look forward to seeing you soon!
Peer Engagement Days: Year 6s and 7s
Peer Engagement Days for years 6 and 7 take place twice a term at the WA Foundation for Deaf Children in
Cottesloe.
The Year 6 and 7 groups are specifically designed to help children develop the necessary social and emotional
skills and build their resiliency to enable them to adapt to life at secondary school. Using the PATHs (Promoting
Alternative Thinking Strategies) program as a guide, children are exploring the themes of making and keeping
friends, emotions and feelings, empathy, helpful and unhelpful thinking as well as developing problem solving
skills.
As part of the year 6 and 7 Peer Engagement Days, a series of three Teen Triple P seminars are being
presented to parents by the SSEN:S psychologist.
If you would like more information about this program or would like to enrol your child please email:
Sensory Vision Education is a statewide service that supports students and their schools and families with diagnosed vision impairment. Our Visiting Teachers fly and drive throughout the state to deliver educational support to more than 400 young children and students. Visiting Teachers support student access to the core school curriculum and actively teach relevant elements of the Expanded Core Curriculum.
It gives me great pleasure to announce that we have fully resumed our early intervention education support services for babies and young children. Our early intervention services include parent education and child development through early learning experiences via home and/or playgroup visits. Individualised programs focus on the child’s needs and may include the development of: conceptual understanding; sensory development; emergent literacy and numeracy; tactile skills; functional vision skills; orientation and mobility; and emergent braille reading and writing skills. Our program links to the Developmental Journal for Babies and Children with Visual Impairment, the Expanded Core Curriculum and the Early Years Learning Framework and supports a smooth transition to school.
Other news relates to our upcoming planned excursions which are designed to support education, pastoral care and community engagement. An exciting event is the forthcoming excursion to the 32nd National Braille Music Camp (24 June to 1 July 2017) in Mittagong, NSW. This camp provides the opportunity for secondary braille music students to enhance their braille music skills and to improve their self-determination, social skills and independent living skills. Participants take part in instrumental, choral and braille music lessons and the culmination of the camp will be a vibrant performance evening. The students are able to share musical opportunities with other students and will have an amazing time developing lifelong friendships and music expertise.
An expression of interest for our anticipated Landsdale Farm excursion for students in Years 3-6 will be soon distributed via your Visiting Teacher. It is expected that the excursion will take place on August 29. Last year’s excursion was a wonderful opportunity for our vision students to experience farm life. This year, we require parents to coordinate their child’s transportation to and from Landsdale Farm. Educational extra-curricular activities enable the students to share time with others who have vision impairment and to make firm friendships. The opportunities enhance their social skills, leadership skills, orientation and mobility skills and social and emotional outcomes. We are once again looking forward to a successful and fun day together.
Rebecca Hunt
Acting Associate Principal, Vision Education
We have been busy in Lighthouse Littlies this semester getting to know each other and the community helpers in
our neighbourhood. We have had a visit from the fire department, the local police station and the St John’s
ambulance. We loved looking at the uniforms, protective equipment, vehicles and sirens the most. We were even lucky enough to climb aboard the ambulance, the paddy wagon and even got a chance to use the HUGE fire hose to put out our imaginary fires. This term we are learning
about the Circus and at the moment we are camping and reading ‘Wombat Stew’. We are very excited as we are making our own ‘gooey, brewy, yummy, chewy, Wombat
stew!’
Make a difference! Members of the Youth Advisory Council (YAC) showed both strong leadership skills and confident communication skills in the planning, organising and running of the successful quiz night on 25th March at Telethon Speech and Hearing Centre in Wembley.
Their endeavours were supported by the Telethon Youth Leadership Team (YLT), The WA Foundation for Deaf Children and the Family Network Group (FNG).
The money raised is to be used towards a camp for deaf and hard of hearing students in years 6 and 7 organised by The WA Foundation for Deaf Children which will occur during the October holidays.
On 9th May YAC members and YLT members celebrated their achievement with pizza and cake while reflecting on what they learnt about event planning, their own growth and the challenges they had to overcome. The positive sentiment expressed was that individual strengths combined to ensure team success!
Student highlights of the Quiz Night:
- Entertainment by MC Stewart Carter and Vanessa’s Stunt Group
- Generosity of people buying raffle tickets and bidding for the silent auction
- Fierce competition between tables and 2 tables finishing on the same points
- Roz Luce and Pam Davies being there for us
- The new principal Rick Firns coming
- The venue organised by Geoff Reader
- Table decorations inspired by Sophie Makse
- The support of our families
My name is Shamira. I’m in Year 7 and I’m nearly 13 (it’s my birthday soon!). I use braille to read and write.
Braille is fun because I can write funny books and put crystals on my nails to make braille words!
Last week I read a silly book in braille called The Mummy Book. Then I wrote a funny book about Werner, who is
my dad. I was practising writing the ‘er’ contraction, which is dots 1, 2, 4, 5 & 6 in braille. I want to learn more
braille contractions this year.
I also did a really cool activity at school to put braille on my fingernails! I had to decide which words I wanted on
my nails, spell them, and count the braille cells to figure out whether the words would fit. Then I had to remember
the dot numbers for each letter or contraction so I could tell my teacher where to stick the crystals. I couldn’t wait
to show my friends and family, and now they all want braille nails too!
Little Camilla Rose is the youngest recipient in WA of a cochlear
implant for a unilateral sensori-neural hearing loss (where one ear hears
normally and the other ear needs assistance). She enjoys her sessions
practising to hear with two ears!
My sparkly braille
nails Reading with my
SSENS visiting teacher Making my own book The finished product—
braille with colourful
illustrations!
Eric,
Head Boy
More info here:http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-22/deafblind-journalism-student-breaking-down-
barriers/8461230
Article taken from:
Despite being profoundly deaf, Edwin has begun to
learn to play the trumpet this year. Here he is with
his mentor Sammi, at band practice. Edwin’s
progress is a testament to the team work of his
school, his Educational Assistant, his music teacher,
and his family along with support from committed
SSENS:DE teachers.
School of Special Educational Needs: Sensory
33 Giles Avenue, Padbury WA 6025 Mailing Address: PO Box 724 Hillarys WA 6923 Phone (08) 9402 6409 Fax (08) 9402 6141 [email protected] www.ssens.wa.edu.au Email: [email protected]