22 June 2018

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Message

Another term seems to have flown by and we are once again looking forward to the school holidays. It has been a busy couple of months for our students and staff; swimming, cross country and camp have been added to the usual classroom routines. Nonetheless, the additional workload has not dampened our students’ enthusiasm. They have continued to work hard, particularly on our home reading and maths programs. This is evident from the number of students who have been awarded 100 badges for reading and gold badges in Mathletics. It has been lovely to see the pride children feel when they reach these milestones.

Another important focus this term has been the teaching of protective behaviours to our students. This is a safety awareness and resilience building programme which helps children to recognise any situation where they feel worried or unsafe, such as feeling stressed, bullied or threatened, and explores practical ways to keep safe. Your child may have talked to you about some of the activities they have worked on in class. These include identifying early warning signals in a potentially dangerous situation, differentiating between safe and unsafe secrets and establishing a network of trusted adults. This work is an important element of our pastoral care programme and a practical support to the work you do with your children to keep them safe. If you need more information about this, please have a chat with your child’s teacher.

Finally, I would like to acknowledge and thank Vicki Rasmussen for her huge contribution to Mullaloo Heights over the past 9 years, through her work as Chair of the Board and, previously, the School Council. Due to an incredibly busy life and many work commitments, Vicki has stepped down from the Board this year. This has left rather a large gap, as you can imagine. I am sure you will join me in thanking her for the time and energy she has committed to improving our school for the benefit of our students. She has been an articulate voice for the parent body, challenging decisions and holding the school accountable when needed. She has also been a positive advocate for our school and a continued source of support to school administration, past and present. Her passion and drive will be sorely missed.

In light of this, I would like to congratulate Andrew Ridley for being voted as new chair by our current Board. We look forward to working with him over the coming years. Of course, this leaves a vacant position for a parent representative on the Board. If you are interested in joining, please forward an expression of interest; details on how to do this are outlined in a later section of the newsletter.

Enjoy the last week of term and have a happy and safe holiday.

Caroline Booth
Principal

Dates to remember

Expressions of Interest for School Board

We are currently seeking nominations for a parent representative to join our school board. This is to fill the spot vacated by Vicki Rasmussen, longstanding Board member - see principal’s message. The School Board plays a major role setting the school’s long-term future and maintaining an oversight of its operations. Below is an overview of what this may entail:

Boards take part in:

• Establishing and reviewing the school’s objectives and general policy directions
• Planning of financial arrangement to fund those directions
• Evaluation of school’s performance in achieving these
• Formulating codes of conduct for students at school

Boards determine:

• In consultation with students, parents and staff a dress code for students when attending school

Boards promote:

• The school in the local community

Boards do not:

• Intervene in the educational instruction of students
• Manage the day to day running of the school (for example, managing staff or assigning students to class)
• Intervene in the management of a school fund
• Represent any specific interest groups or dominate the agenda by special interests

If you are interested in joining our Board, please email an expression of interest to Caroline.Booth@education.wa.edu.au by Friday 20th July (Week 1, Term 3). If you would like more information about what this position will entail, please email or call Caroline. If we have more than one nominee, we will run an election in which the parent body vote for their preferred representative. Once all nominations are in, we will let you know whether this is required.

Room 7 Assembly

What a wonderful history lesson we received yesterday from Room 7. We were shown games children played in the past, how to tackle housework and even a taste of a typical school day. Congratulations to Room 7 for giving us an accurate taste of life in the olden days. We were all very impressed with your excellent knowledge, clear explanations and creative costumes. For those who missed it, don’t be disappointed, we have photos below!

Merit Certificates

Reading 100 Club

Mathletics Gold

Aussie of the Month

Aussie of the Month for June is Gemma.

Gemma is a courteous student who displays great empathy towards her classmates. Her kind and caring nature makes her a popular group member.

Congratulations, Gemma

Aussie of the Month

Tips to Keep Our Students Safe

At school, we talk at length with the students about strategies to stay safe. Here are some pointers to share with your children if they are walking to and from school without an adult.

• Always walk with a friend.
• Always walk on the right hand side of the road so that you can view cars driving towards you.
• Don’t walk too close to the road.
• If a passing vehicle stops nearby, never get too close.
• Be alert – wearing earphones and headphones can reduce your awareness considerably.
• Stay in view – don’t go into hidden areas, for example, behind bushes, building sites or shopping centres.
• Make sure your mobile phone is turned on.
• Don’t hesitate to run from a situation if you feel scared.
• If you are worried by an stranger’s behaviour, tell a trusted adult – your parents or a teacher.
• Always go straight home.

Musica Viva Incursion

On Thursday, 7th June, Adam Hall and The Velvet Players performed for us at Mullaloo Heights PS. The students enjoyed some fabulous jazz music and had lots of fun as well during this show.

Getting lost in music during Musica Viva

Parent Information

Use of Staff Car Park

In the interest of safety, parents and students are NOT permitted to access the school through the staff car park on Charonia Road before or after school. Our staff car park is out of bounds to all pedestrian and motor traffic other than staff themselves. The staff car park is not to be used for dropping off or picking up your children.

There are two pedestrian paths/access points either side of the staff car park on Charonia Road to facilitate SAFE entry to our school. The staff car park in Charonia Road is our Emergency Access point also. This must be free to allow ambulance, fire trucks and other emergency vehicles entry at all times. Please do not block access to the bitumen area.

Belridge Secondary ESC Transition Morning Tea

Belridge Secondary Education Support Centre is holding a Parent Information Morning Tea on Friday the 29th of June for parents/carers who may be interested in enrolling their child at Belridge SESC in 2019.

Belridge Secondary Education Support Centre is an Independent Public School catering for students with special educational needs in Years 7-12. Belridge Secondary Education Support Centre is co-located with Belridge Secondary College and the two schools work alongside each other to provide the best educational opportunities and experiences for all students.

Transition Days

As part of the transition from Year 6 to Year 7, students will participate in four transition days that will take place in Terms 3 and 4. On the transitions days, students will tour the school, meet teachers and ask questions, find out about the dress code, learn what they will be doing in their first year and meet other students.

Transition Days for 2018 will be held on:

Day 1: Term 3, Week 5, Thursday 16th August 2018
Day 2: Term 3, Week 9, Thursday 13th September 2018
Day 3: Term 4, Week 3, Thursday 25th October 2018
Day 4: Term 4, Week 9, Thursday 6th December 2018

P&C News

Community News