Port Augusta West - Week 3 Term 2
Principal's Report
It has been exciting to watch the developments of the ‘Sanderson Street’ garden progress over the last few weeks. We were fortunate enough to receive an upgrade grant in 2023 through ‘The Schools Upgrade Fund’ via the Australian Government. It has been a drawn-out process which has taken significant time, however it has finally all come together. The first part of the process involved the building of the retaining wall. This was followed by the installation of an irrigation system. Plants were purchased through Arid Lands, and we would like to extend a huge thank you to the volunteers who assisted with the planting during the term one break. Mr Cleary has been busy spreading the mulch and waiting for more plants to complete the garden upgrade.
The Read, Write, Inc family information session was a success on Wednesday. Connecting families to the curriculum is crucial for fostering student success and creating a supportive learning environment. I would like to thank Paul Kalfas for facilitating the session and hope that the information provided gives you an insight into the phonics program that we are using. I would like to remind families that teachers are always available and accessible to address your questions, concerns and feedback.
At Port Augusta West PS, we take pride in every aspect of our school, including our outdoor spaces. Our school yard is not just a place for play and recreation; it’s also a reflection of our commitment to creating a clean, safe and welcoming environment for all. We are delighted to see a much cleaner school yard with far less rubbish this term. Students are remaining seated on the benches to finish their lunch/snacks, before they make their way to the oval/court/playground areas. Keep up the wonderful sense of pride everyone!
Our upcoming Student Free Day on the 7th of June will see staff engaging with ‘Our Strategy for Public Education’ which has a focus on children and students learning and thriving. We will be looking deeper at the four areas of impact which include Wellbeing, Equity and Excellence, Effective Learners and Learner Agency. Our world is constantly changing and the future we’re educating our children and young people for will be vastly different. Public Education intends to stay ahead of these changing demands and support children and young people to learn and thrive as they prepare for their futures beyond the classroom.
We are committed to maintaining a safe, respectful and inclusive environment for all. Our grievance procedures are designed to uphold these values and ensure that every member of our school community feels heard, valued and supported. I have attached a copy of the School Grievance Procedures for your perusal.
Sarah Bury
Every Child ~ Every Classroom ~ Every Day
Classroom Chatter from 3C
Last term Room 3C learnt about mammals, fish, birds, reptiles and amphibians! They researched and made information booklets about sharks, dolphins and frogs then they read them to Ms. Cornhill’s Reception class. The class were also lucky enough to have a few special visitors – Spyro the Bearded Dragon (reptile) and Kiki the African Parrot (bird) visit for a hands – on interactive information session hosted by Dakoda (SSO.)
To conclude their units of work on different animal groups, students went on an excursion to Arid Lands Botanic Gardens. They explored the garden and went on an animal hunt to find and identify Australian animals under each group.
I learnt that if lizards are scared and people try to catch them their tails might fall off. Blake
Did you know you can teach birds to talk? Hassan
Spyro the lizard ate meal worms. Eshaal
I loved the excursion and we had to respect the animals. Mason
I had fun playing on the nature garden and looking for animals. Emilia
We found some bilbies and bats in the garden. Lilly
I liked walking around the gardens. Hazel.
The one animal we didn't find was fish.
Science
Excursion to Arid Lands
Report Reading
Assembly Awards
Our assembly times allow us to acknowledge our students based on the three values of our Positive Behaviour for Learning Program. These values include Respect, Resilience and Relationships.
Congratulations to the students who were awarded for their efforts during the week 3 assembly.
Do it for Dolly Day
Do It For Dolly Day was a great success on Friday of week one. Our school raised $190 for the Dolly’s Dream Foundation. The focus of the day was to raise awareness to END BULLYING and to share the message to ‘be kind and speak, even if your voice shakes’. I would like to acknowledge some of our Yr. 6 students who took on a leadership role and facilitated some short activities with the classes which focused on being kind. Well done to Indy, Luca G, Addison, Luca H, Marleigh, Maddison, Karmenpreet, Piper and Dakoda who demonstrated initiative with taking on the challenge of organising these activities. Each student was given the opportunity to decorate a butterfly, love heart or flower too add to our kindness tree. Another activity involved students in decorating a butterfly cupcake and watching the film clip called ‘Speak, even if your voice shakes’ written by Tom Curtain and performed by Sara Storer and Tom Curtain. There were also activities held during the break, which involved students in face painting, chalk designing and musical chairs.
SAPSASA
On Friday, 10th May PAWPS participated in SAPSASA netball. One team was coached by Sam and they won 3 games but lost 3 games. Luckily enough they made it to the division one semi-final but unfortunately went down to Caritas finshing fourth overall. The other team was coached by Mr Shanahan and even though didn't win a game, they still tried their hardest. Overall, we had an amzing time and we'd like to thank the teachers who made this happen. It was great to see so many family and friends out supporting us.
Maddison
Last Friday, the Year 5 & 6 boys competed in SAPSASA football at Central Oval. We competed against other schools around Port Augusta and did well to go through undefeated to reach the grand final. Unfortunately we lost by 3 goals to Roxby. We played great all carnival and were able to play well as a team throughout the whole day. Thanks to everyone involved.
Kohen
Children's University Spotlight
Iylah Grantham
Children’s University is up and running at Port Augusta West!
Students have been meeting with Co-ordinators Sarah Bury and Jane Mount to catch up on the Children’s University news, share the evidence and learning experiences they have been engaged in outside of school and log their hours in their personal passport. It has been very exciting to see the energy and enthusiasm the children have put in to recording their experiences to provide evidence of their learning. Many of the public venues such as zoos and community sights provide a Children’s University worksheet for students to fill in about their discoveries.
Iylah Grantham, Year 1, and her Mum went for a walk and found out interesting new things about the Port Augusta Foreshore.
“A long time ago camels came in on the big boats. When the camels came, the people put them on the desert. The desert is hot and there are some mountains. I think they were putting stuff on the camels to walk it to places,” Iylah explained. “It was fun. I liked it.” Great job, Iylah!
We were able to extend the sign up date till this Friday for our students and we have a strong cohort of over 20 participants of learners from all age ranges in the school. It’s going to be an exciting year!
Q.. How can I record my evidence?
A.. There are many different ways to show your evidence.
You can fill in a record sheet provided by a venue, or write a page about what you did and what you learnt. You can take photos, or bring in something that you learnt to make. You can keep a log of your sports training, or music or dance lessons, and then explain what the experience was like. You can make a video or a powerpoint or a poster. You can fill in an online quiz on a short course on the Children’s University portal. What we want to see is what you learnt from what you did.
We are currently planning a parent information session with Richard from the Children’s University. Watch this space!
Autism Inclusion Teacher
Reading a picture book about Autism
During Autism Acceptance Month, some classes read a picture book about autism. I would like to share some of their wonderful learning experiences as reported by the teachers.
One of the books was called “All my Stripes” and some classes viewed YouTube versions as well. Mrs Maloney’s class followed the story with making colourful zebras and puppets to enhance students’ engagement and it was very successful!
Some of the students' comments included “We are all different/ Our brains work differently/ If we were the same, the world would be boring!”. In Ms Mount’s class, a student came up with the slogan for autism “Just People, Just Different”!
We have found that it is not easy for students to understand autism and neurodiversity, nor easy for us to teach about these topics. However, our school values the importance of an inclusive society and we are all learning together to work towards it!
If you have any questions or concerns, please come and have a chat anytime.
Kyoko Miyamoto Autism Inclusion Teacher
Classroom Chatter From 3D
Mrs Keeler/Mr Menzies Year 2/3 class displaying their beautifal art pieces below.
We have just started to learn about Pablo Picasso and his Cubism style of art. My Favourite part was to colour it in and outline it in with black pen. By Indie Budd
Cubism is a style of art that takes landscapes, objects, people and transforms them into geometric shapes. What I found challenging was following instructions from the video. By Izna Noor
Miscellaneous
