THE TERRACE TIMES

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

Good afternoon Parents / Caregivers,

Welcome to this edition of the Terrace Times.

School Council
As Principal, it is my responsibility to call for nominations for School Council Members, Parent Representative.  Therefore, nominations are now open.  There are three Parent Representative positions available.  Please read the information and nomination form attached.  If you are interested in running for School Council, please complete the nomination form and return it to the school office before 3pm 14th February.  Should more than 3 parents nominate for these positions, I will hold an election on the 15th February.  Please read Adam’s School Council note later in this newsletter and if you have any additional questions regarding the School Council, please don’t hesitate to contact Adam or myself.

Departing Staff
It is with great sadness that I announce the following staff will not be with us at Anzac Terrace in 2019.

Slavica Zivkovic
Slavica has only been with us for the last 18 months, but she has made a significant contribution to our Early Childhood Education.  In fact, it was only yesterday that I received a letter from a parent outlining what an incredibly positive impact Slavica had made with her son.  The letter concluded by saying Slavica was such an asset to Anzac Terrace … I couldn’t agree more.  We wish her the best of luck with her future teaching endeavours.

Chris Jones
Chris is retiring again …She’s made more comebacks than John Farnham.  Chris promises that this is the last retirement … we’ll see.  But seriously, Chris’s contribution to our School Choir over the last three/four years and her work in the library has been exceptional.  Reading the reports from choir performances and watching our choir in action is testament to the amount of work Chris has put in to our students.  You can see the enjoyment in the students’ faces as they sing, but importantly, you can see the enjoyment in Chris’s face as the students perform.  You are leaving big shoes to fill.  Good luck to yourself and Ken on your retirement.

Jan Bowers
Jan has been an integral member of the Anzac Terrace family for the last 29 years. We had a function for Jan last Monday, and in the formal letter I read to Jan, I said “During your career you were a dedicated and professional teacher at all times. You had a genuine love of children and were a “natural” at knowing their needs, relating to them and enjoying their successes. You chose a most suitable career for you!”  I think this sentence sums up Jan very well.  Jan, your valuable contribution to Anzac Terrace as a teacher and previously as a parent will be sadly missed.  Thank you for all that you have done for Anzac Terrace Primary School.  Good luck to you and Kim in retirement.

Neil Strachan
Where do I start … Neil announced his pending retirement to staff last Friday.  Neil has been a member of the school leadership group for the last 27 years.  If you have a look at the honour-boards in the school office, you will see how many times he has been asked to lead the school in the absence of a Principal … this is testament to the quality of his leadership.  Neil has helped build this school to what we see before us today. We, as the Anzac Terrace Community owe him a debt of gratitude.  On top of this, your IT knowledge will be sorely missed (you don’t mind if we ring you up when we can’t get the Interactive Whiteboards to start do you?)  On a personal note, I will miss Neil’s experience, his obvious corporate knowledge, but mostly his friendship … who am I going to talk about Lawn Bowls with now??  Good luck to you and Kerry in retirement. 

Permanent Staff
I have great pleasure in announcing Ms Amanda McAlpine, Mrs Magdalene McCulloch, and Ms Jessica Patterson have been granted permanency at Anzac Terrace Primary School.  This is great news and augers well for our school’s future.  Congratulations to all.

Edu Dance
I am very pleased to announce that Edu-Dance will be continuing at Anzac Terrace in 2019.  It will start in week 2 of the Term 1.  Edu-Dance is performed by all students from Pre-Primary to Year 6.  The cost in 2019 will be $35 per child.  You will be able to pay that in advance from mid-January via the Qkr! App.  Look out for an announcement via Connect when this will be available.  

Thank Yous
To ALL the staff at Anzac Terrace, my heartfelt thanks for the year.  2018 has been the ‘Year Of Change’.  With the ERG, new committees, extra staff meetings, greater workload … the list goes on.  I truly appreciate your professionalism, your commitment to your students, and your ‘Can-Do’ attitude.  2019 promises to be a stellar year.  I would also like to take this opportunity to personally thank Mrs Sue Harrison, Mr Neil Strachan and Mrs Liz Page for their resolute support and help throughout the year … we have been tested.

I would also like to thanks Ms Tamara Breen and all of The P&C Committee.  As I have stated previously, your donations of over $30,000 to our school this year alone is very much appreciated.  We couldn’t do what we do, if you didn’t do what you do.  We are so thankful for your unwavering support of our great school.

To Mr Adam Cheetham and Dr Steph Tarbin and all our parent and staff representatives on the School Council … again my immense gratitude for your efforts and guidance all year.  I know I wouldn’t have got through this year without your help.

Merry Christmas
Finally, I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a safe and prosperous 2019. Have a great festive season, and I look forward to seeing you all next year.

Stuart Blackwood
Principal

Saver Plus Program

Saver Plus is a national matched savings and financial education program that assists people to save for education related expenses, by matching their savings dollar for dollar up to $500.

Saver Plus was developed by Brotherhood of St Laurence and The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ) in 2003. The program is funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services and ANZ and is delivered, in Western Australia, by The Smith Family and Brotherhood of St Laurance.

Since its inception, Saver Plus has reached more than 36 000 families nationally, helping them save over $18.5 million. Independent research by RMIT University in Melbourne found that three years after completing Saver Plus, 87% of participants continue to save the same amount or more. Participants also reported having more control over their finances and improve overall wellbeing.

For more information download the Saver Plus Back to School Flyer or Saver Plus Fact Sheet.

HONOUR CERTIFICATES

Congratulations to the following students who were presented with an Honour Certificate at the last Assembly.

RoomName
ECB 2Talula H and Trinity K
ECB 3Chloe C and Jacob S
2Millicent B and Dex H
3Jet S and Ava T
5Kai C and Arwen L
6Mason K, Poppy K and Matthew Z
11Ava C and Blake C
12Georgia B and Seth W
13Maddison B and Shaun M
14Ellie A and Copernico J
15Hayden K and Ashleigh S
17Lovely Ann B and Claudia I
18Zoe E and Harry O
ArtPhoenix D and Matthew Z
LibraryHarry O and Bryce T
SportEleni A, Ella M and Ella S

Students receive Honour Certificates as acknowledgement for achievement in academic success, social skills and thoughtfulness to others.

Being a Reading Sensation

As most of our students read each night, the BEARS reading program is not extra work for students, parents and caregivers or teachers, it is simply a method of calculating the number of nights the students read, and then rewards them at strategic numbers, eg 50, 100, 200 and so on.

Well done to the following students who have read for –

50 Nights
Room 6Abdul B
100 Nights
Room 6Matvei K
150 Nights
Room 5Rosalie T
Room 6Albert K and Poppy K
200 Nights
Room 11Tide D
250 Nights
Room 5Kai C and Antonin C
300 Nights
Room 5Abigael I

REMINDERS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

DateEvent
Wednesday 12 DecemberYear 6 Graduation
Thursday 13 DecemberFinal Assembly and Last Day of School
Tuesday 29 January 2019School Office will reopen (7.45am to 3.30pm)
Friday 1 February 2019Requirements pre-ordered from Ziggies will be available in the School Hall between 2.30pm and 4.00pm.
Friday 1 February 2019Uniform Shop Open
Between 2.30pm and 4.00pm
Monday 4 February 2019Start of School Year for all Students except Kindy Blue.
8.30am – 2.45pm
Tuesday 5 February 2019First day for Kindy Blue Students.
8.30am – 2.45pm

Salvation Army Food Drive 2018

Thank you so much to everyone who donated to this fantastic cause.  Once again, we have had an amazing result.  This year we collected just over 1000 items!  Well done everybody.

Because of your generosity, families in need will be celebrating this Christmas.

Thank you.

Jan Bowers and Lynda Francis – Co-Ordinators

Message From Your School Council

Hello Parents and Friends,

As School Council Chair, it is my pleasure to look back and present this report outlining School Council business during 2018.

Due to natural turnover of council members we were lucky to welcome 3 new members of the Council this year.  Sue DeWitt, Rebecca Benson and Mike Smith joined the team.  I am grateful for their and all Councillors service this year.

School funding remained a concern this year.  Due to a shortfall in the funds promised by the Department of Education which never arrived, due to unintentional overstaffing in 2017, the School Council was presented with a lean but balanced budget to endorse.  Responsible management by the Admin Team and Finance Committee this year will mean a better start to next year.

The Council continues to self-reflect so as to continually improve our processes and governance.  Early in the year, we undertook self-assessment which informed future development opportunities for the Council.  As a happy coincidence, the Department piloted a new training program for School Councils which Mr Blackwood and Dr Steph Tarbin were lucky enough to attend.  Further training opportunities both face to face and online will be undertaken by the other Council members next year when it becomes more widely available.  To allow the time for this, the Council has agreed to meet more often to ensure the core business of the Council is not affected.

Next year will be the school’s 50th Year Anniversary. The Council formed a subcommittee at Mr Blackwood’s request to organise events to celebrate this tremendous milestone.  Other members of the school community have also joined the committee to assist with preparations and the Council has been briefed on the plans throughout the year.  The plans are well advanced thanks to the great work of the Anniversary Committee.  The Council congratulates all involved on their commitment to the school and looks forward to seeing how it all comes together.

Anzac Terrace Primary School has the best administration, teaching and support staff.  Our Council continues to publicly acknowledge their great work and again submitted applications for the WA Education Awards for Primary Teacher of the Year and for Support Officer of the Year.  Whilst we were unable to secure a win for those two worthy applicants, we remain so grateful for the contribution Mrs Ashmore and Mrs Penn make to our school every day.

As the school moves toward 2020, work continues on a longer-term vision for the school named aptly “Towards 2020”.  The staff continue to develop plans for and sustained improvement over the medium term.  The Council has been briefed on progress each meeting and supports the work that the Admin, Teaching and Support Staff are undertaking to consistently improve and target best practice in teaching and learning at ATPS.

Following the release of the NAPLAN results the Council was briefed on these pleasing results overall, but some areas of improvement were identified in the early years. Through monitoring of this data, Teaching and Administration Staff had identified the problem and a change in approach has been agreed and implemented. The Council remains supportive of the schools attempt to resolve this issue and will monitor progress.

I would like to finish by thanking all members of the School Council for their contributions throughout the year.  If you have been on a subcommittee thanks for your additional commitment.  To Steph our ever-dedicated Secretary a big thanks.  Wishing all a safe and happy Christmas period.

Kind regards,

Adam Cheetham
ATPS Council Chair

FROM THE P&C

Tablet Raffle Winners

Our Tablet Raffle was drawn on Friday 30 November at our Parent Assembly.

Congratulations to Lacey Johnston and Narlia McGarry our two winners.

The P&C would like to thank Dave Kelly for donating the 2 Tablets.

Thank you to everyone who bought a ticket. We raised a total of $670.

ANZAC TERRACE PRIMARY SCHOOL PLAYGROUP

If you are looking for a place where your little ones can play with other children or you are looking for a bit of socialising then click on the link below for more information.

Play Group

OSHC program phone: 0428 197 483

OSHClub WA Head Office: 03 85649000

Coordinator: Monique Wright                 Assistants: Chloe Wade & Amy McEwen

All families must be enrolled to attend the program, remember this is easy and free!! Please create an account online at http://www.oshclub.com.au all bookings and cancellations can also be managed via your online account. For on the day bookings please contact the Coordinator direct at the program.

We currently have vacancies for parents looking for or requiring before and after school care for this year or next year.
Feel free to come in and see us in our Oshclub room located at cluster C to grab a handbook on how to create an Online account, we are happy to help.

Next Year Keyed Up Music will be teaching after school Guitar lessons. Lessons start from $17.55 for a group lesson. If you are interested please ring Therese on 1300 366 243 or enrol at www.keyedupmusic.com.au/enrolment-form

 

DISCLAIMER

The School provides information on Community activities that may be of interest to students and families but does not have specific knowledge of these activities and does not endorse or recommend a particular product or service that is listed.