1 December 2016

Newsletter Articles

A Note from the Principal

As the school year comes to a close, our minds and hearts are filled to the brim. It’s been a great year! What a school! Together we have learned much and shared many experiences.

Special thanks to all of you who have contributed in ways small, large and unimaginable! So many of you have supported our work in countless ways and contributed to the P&C to provide additional resources to do what we dream and know is good for children. Thanks for getting your children to school on time each day, for kind notes of encouragement that mean so much, for sending your kids with healthy lunches obviously packed with love, for making sure homework gets done… and handed in. Thank you for providing rich and engaging, well-rounded experiences for your children and knowing that education is about joy, wonder and fostering curiosity, along with the development of social skills so needed to succeed. For these, and a million other things, the Staff at Butler are truly grateful.

To those of you who are leaving us for new places and adventures, we wish you all the best. Congratulations to our very capable Year 6 students who are venturing onto a new stage in their academic career!

And, best-wishes, albeit with saddened hearts, to Mrs Jill Dodge, Ms Amie Turner, Mrs Lina Stravens, Ms Julia Chalmers, Ms Lesley Sherriff, Ms Amy Marshall, Ms Shelley Ockleford, Ms Sarah Hutchings, Mrs Jessica Locke and Ms Anna Redknap as they move to new locations and positions. Butler Primary School has been extremely lucky to have had such outstanding professionals as part of our team and they will undoubtedly be a great asset to their new schools.

I would also like to farewell Julia Hewitt who has taken the giant leap into retirement. We thank her for the commitment she has given to the students in her care and wish her all the best for the future.

As we farewell some of our staff we will also be welcoming Ms Haylee Smith, Ms Gemma Jones, Mr Peter Malins, Ms Shannan Robinson, Ms Kerry Buhner and Ms Bianca Capello to Butler Primary School in 2017.

Student reports will be sent home on Tuesday, 13 December and class lists for 2017 will be displayed on Monday, 12 December. The class lists are subject to change depending on any variations in enrolments.

2016 has been a fantastic year. Our commitment to continuous improvement has helped us to remain focused on the things that are important. We have reviewed many of our programs including our school values and as a result of this work have identified five core values (respect, responsibility, integrity, community and aspire) that underpin the vision of our school.

Our final newsletter will be available on Thursday, 15 December 2016.

Mrs Julie Woodhouse
Principal

Students not Returning 2017

If your child will not be returning to Butler Primary School in 2017, please advise the school office in person or on 9562 1804 as soon as possible.

Update Student Contact Information

If you have recently changed mobile numbers or moved address, it is important you update your contact information with the office. Please also advise if there is a change to any of your emergency contact information.

Siren Times for 2017

Please note the siren times for the start and end of the day will remain the same for 2017. However, there will be a change to Recess and Lunch times due to changes in our timetabling.

2017 Siren Times

Late to School

Many students are arriving late to school. If your child is late for some unforseen reason, they are required to report to the Administration Block and request a ‘late’ note before attending class. Every time a child is late to school it is recorded on our system. Unfortunately, we have many students who are consistently late. This not only impacts on their learning as they miss the introduction and goal setting for the lesson, it also disrupts the lesson for the entire class, students and the teacher.

Missing a few minutes a day may not seem like a big deal, but your child may be missing more than you realise if he or she is continually late. Current research shows that mornings are the most productive time of the day for student learning.

We request that parents / guardians endeavour to get their children to school prior to the commencement of the school day and we look forward to your cooperation.

Absentee Messaging Service

Sending a text message to Butler Primary School to notify of your children’s absence is now available with many families embracing the ease of this service.

A reminder to families to please send absentee messages through to 0419 091 075 with the all of the following details so that we can correctly update student records:

• Full name of your child/children
• Reason for absence
• Date of absence

When messaging please do not use emoji’s or symbols as our system does not recognise them and delivers the entire message without any content. Absences can still able to be phoned through to 9562 1804.

As per Department of Education policy, it is the parent’s responsibility to notify the school of the reason for your child’s absence/s within three days of the absence. Failure to do this will mean that the absence will be marked as “unacceptable reason” affecting your child’s education.

Butler College Enrolments

Please collect an enrolment application from the College or from our website. Over the next few weeks we will be organising timetables in readiness for 2017 and would appreciate your support with information about your child’s enrolment. If you have received a letter of acceptance from the College confirming a place for 2017 could you please sign and return as soon as possible. Thank you.

Please contact Butler Administration on 9561 4200 if you have any questions.

Butler College office will be closed as of Thursday, 15 December and reopen on Wednesday, 25 January.

Butler College Science Expo

We invite Year 4 and Year 5 students, parents and caregivers to the 2016 Butler College Science Expo.

The Science Expo will provide the opportunity for Primary School students to familiarise themselves with high school science equipment as well as experiencing a variety of science experiments.

Details of this event are as follows:

Date: Monday, 5 December 2016
Time: 4.00pm – 5.00pm
Where: Science block Rooms B.04 and B.05

For further information please see the attached document.

Butlers Got Talent 2016

On Friday, 18 November we were treated to the 2016 Butler’s Got Talent showcase. What an amazing array of talent we have at this school! There was dancing, singing, jokes, comedy, gymnastics and plenty more! Well done to all the contestants who participated. We are all very proud of you!

Here is a snap shot of the great entertainment:

And the WINNERS are…

1st place - Jordan

Congratulations to you all!

Miss Jurgowiak
Music Teacher

Information for Parents of Year 5 students.

Department of Education Gifted and Talented Secondary Selective Entrance Program.

The Department of Education will be holding an information presentation relating to the Department of Education Gifted and Talented Secondary Selective Entrance Programs for students entering Year 7 in 2018. The evening will cover all programs including Academic, Arts and Languages and will be held at Balcatta Senior High School on Thursday, 2 February 2017 at 6.00pm.

If you believe Gifted and Talented Programs are suitable for your child, click on the information below to find out more information.

Merit Certificates

Term 4, Week 6 Merit Certificate recipients:

Term 4, Week 7 Merit Certificate recipients:

News from Year 1

During Week 6 the Year One students were very excited to welcome Mr Hibbitt into our classroom to play the ukulele. Mr Hibbitt is Thomas Hibbitt’s grandfather. Mr Hibbitt engaged the students in a variety of enjoyable and fun Christmas songs while playing the Ukulele. The children joined in with excitement and happily sang along! Year One students had a fantastic time getting in the spirit of Christmas and thoroughly enjoyed learning about the Ukulele.

Miss Connor

Pre-Primary and Year 5 Butler Fire Station Incursion

On Tuesday, 15 November, the Pre-primary and Year 5 students were lucky enough to have fire officers from Butler Fire Station visit as part of our study about Bushfires and Community. They enjoyed dressing up in a range of specialised protective wear and learning about the equipment used in a range of situations. They finished the incursion with an in-depth question and answer session.

News from Antartica

The Governor-General Peter Gosgrove visited Casey Station on the 25 November. While there he discussed Dr Ben Galton-Fenzi’s scientific experiments relating to the Totten Glacier. Dr Galton-Fenzi also spoke of the partnership experiment with Year 3 Room 15.

Ms Galton-Fenzi

2017 Kindy Applications

If you are looking for a place in Kindergarten for 2017 for your child, please contact the school office on 9562 1804 to discuss as we are accepting late applications. If your child was born between 1 July 2012 and 30 June 2013 then they are eligible to attend Kindergarten in 2017. An application form is available below or from the school office.

When submitting your application we are required to sight your child’s birth certificate, immunisation details, proof of residence in Butler and any visas the child may have.

From the Library

Overdue Library Books

The library is in the yearly process of stocktake. This job is very important to the Butler Primary School community. Unfortunately things are not running as smoothly as they should be as there are many student library books overdue. All student library books were due back last week. Parents, if your children have not returned their overdue library books by this Friday, 2nd of December 2016, an invoice will be issued for the replacement cost.

Scholastic Book Club Issue 8 has been ordered and will arrive at school within the next couple of days. Books will be delivered to your child’s classroom unless you have asked us to hold the order in the Library.

Kind regards
Mrs Pengelly

Chaplain’s Corner

HI Everyone,

We are in Week 8 and on the home stretch now. It isn’t long until a very welcome break will be upon us.

Our VALUES for this term are: Sensitivity, Charity, Compassion.

“Never apologise for being sensitive or emotional. Let this be a sign that you’ve got a big heart and aren’t afraid to let others see it. Showing your emotions is a sign of strength.” – Brigitte Nicole

Have a fantastic fortnight everyone!

Mrs Hunter
School Chaplain

Canteen Corner

NEW SUMMER MENU OUT NOW!

Have you tried out our online ordering system below at:

Please make sure all orders are in by 8.35am for to ensure students receive their lunch that day.

The canteen staff love to see orders appearing through the online system! Ordering online also assists the canteen in streamlining their operations including stock management.

Also, a reminder to parents using online ordering to check that your child’s room number is correct for this year.

Kindy students are also able to order their lunch from the canteen.

Mrs Siakia
Canteen Manager

P&C News

P&C AGM will be held on 15 February at 6.30pm. We look forward to seeing you there.

The Christmas Disco was fun and the kids had a ball. Many thanks to those parents who did volunteer, your help and support is invaluable to making these events happen. Awesome job by DJ Jordan for entertaining the kids!

Andrea Brennan
P&C President

BUTLER OUT OF HOURS SCHOOL CARE

Butler’s YMCA provides affordable care before and after school, every Monday to Friday.

Parent Parking

Parents are reminded that parking is not permitted on grassed kerbside areas around the Pre-primary car park and along Tollesbury Avenue, as well as the bricked median strip in Cambourne Parkway or across any footpaths. Please consider the safety of all other road users and pedestrians when parking and leaving schools grounds.

All usual road and parking rules apply around the school and parking fines are issued by rangers (who visit frequently) to those not adhering to the road rules. Please download the map below for parent parking information.

It is great to see that more families are walking their children to and from school or parking in the community centre car park and walking their children from there, helping to ease traffic congestion around the school.

Community Events

A1 LEARNING ACADEMY – Learning Holiday Progam

Once again, the annual A1 Learning Holiday Program will be up and running in the last two weeks of January, providing a boost into the new school year.

Programs include help for students who are struggling with literacy or numeracy skill development, a general academic boost for all students, transition to Pre Primary and Year 7, self-esteem boosting, NAPLAN and GATE preparation and extension for gifted and talented students.

Students are given a variety of stimulating activities by highly qualified, experienced Teachers within a small group setting of up to 6 students or individually.

JANUARY HOLIDAY PROGRAMS

Make a huge difference in 2017

• Pre Primary to Year 10
• Reading, writing, spelling, phonics, grammar & editing
• Mathematics
• Preparation for 2017 (all years)
• Extension & help for struggling students
• NAPLAN, GATE, OLNA & scholarship preparation
• Study Skills
• Self-esteem boosting (lots of bribery & rewards)
• Programs based on Australian Curricula requirements

Julia Gilmore (M.Ed.,B.Ed.,Dip.Tch) - 0411 420 218

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