GHPS Life 

ICAS ASSESSMENTS 2021

Last year, Greenhills Primary School offered students in Years 2-6 an opportunity to participate in the English, Science and Mathematics ICAS Assessments.

We would like to congratulate the 25 students who participated in their efforts in last year’s assessments. Students will receive their certificates this Friday 25th February.

We would like to acknowledge the results of the following students:

*High Distinction: The top 1% of participants                   Distinction: The next 10% of participants

Becc Stephens

Learning Specialist

High-Ability Practice Leader 

INTERSCHOOL SPORT 

Greenhills A VS Plenty Valley Christian College  – AWAY

Greenhills B - Bye

DISTRICT SWIMMING CARNIVAL

Overall Team Result: 2nd (out of 10 schools)

** students that placed in the top 4 (after combining heat times) are mentioned below:

COMMUNITY SPORTING ACHIEVEMENTS

If your child achieves something special (grand final win, most valuable player award, best and fairest etc.), please email me (jordan.daley@education.vic.gov.au) through photos and an overview of the achievement to post in Contact. It is important to celebrate and recognise such successes with the school community.

REBEL COMMUNITY KICKBACKS PROGRAM

Greenhills Primary School is involved in the Rebel Community Kickbacks Program

What can you do to help Greenhills primary School benefit from this program?

Staff, family and friends can link the school to their Rebel Active Loyalty Program account and instantly start earning credits.

Thank you, 

Jordan Daley

FROM THE OFFICE

Thank you to the families who have made a family contribution through Compass.

This has been our first year using Compass for Parent contributions and has been a learning experience for us all.  If you are experiencing difficulties, please call or drop into the office and we will do our best to assist you.

Student Information

Student enrolment information will be emailed out next week for review, please look out for the email.

Afternoon Messages

We offer this service for urgent messages only, please contact the office before 3:00pm where possible.

iPads 

All student owned iPads, that have been delivered to the school have now been set up for student use. If you are still awaiting delivery or your iPad, please let your child’s teacher know.

Medication

If your child requires medication, please label the medication with your child’s name and class and complete the correct form which can be found at the office or on our website: www.greenhillsps.vic.edu.au.  The medication should be left with Karen or at the office.

Lost property

Please remember to label your child’s drink bottle, hat and uniform as we regularly have a large amount, of unlabelled items which sadly cannot be returned to students.

CSEF

CSEF is provided by the Victorian Government to assist eligible families to cover the costs of school trips, camps and sporting activities.If you hold a valid means-tested concession card or are a temporary foster parent, you may be eligible for CSEF.  The allowance is paid to the school to use towards expenses relating to camps, excursions or sporting activities for the benefit of your child.If you received CSEF in 2021, there is no need to re-apply, we can rollover your application from 2021. However if you have a sibling that started school this year, we do need this form completed.

First round applications must be submitted by 26th April 2022 

Attached below is the application form for 2022, copies are also available from the office.

Victoria, Nicole, Kiera and Karen

The School Finance and Administration team

Connected Schools – How to Help Your Child be a Good Friend 

by Shona Hendley 

Winnie the Pooh once said that “a day without a friend is like a pot without a single drop of honey left inside,” and my bet is that when he said this, that he wasn’t talking about any friend, he was talking about a good friend.

Being a good friend and knowing what a good friend entails is an integral component of friendship. Research says that kids start making meaningful friendships from around the age of four and from that point onwards, friendships will contribute to their wellbeing, learning, confidence and mental health.

But understanding what a good friend is can be tricky, so here are some strategies you can use to help explain what being a good friend means to your child and how they can be one.

Defining what it means to be a good friend

While most adults know instinctively what a good friend is, explaining this to kids can be difficult, says Reach Out’s Online Community Coordinator Janine Nelson.

Pinpointing some of those elements of what being a good friend means can be a great way to start.

For example, “being a good friend means including concepts of respect, loyalty, providing support and having fun together “, Nelson explains.

“Good friends typically display behaviours such as being trustworthy, someone who is around for the hard times not just the good times, and someone you can laugh with. Good friends respect your boundaries, and make you feel comfortable being yourself.”

Healthy Harold and the team at Life Education add that “generally, being a good friend involves loyalty, empathy and trust. A good friend would listen, be an upstander instead of a bystander, be forgiving, be patient, and respect your opinion. They are empathetic, and able to put themselves in your situation.”

What a good friend is can vary and change

It is also critical for kids to know that a good friend can be different for different people and that what we view as a good friend can change over time and as we grow.

“As kids grow older, it’s important to help them understand that there are many different types of friends and that these relationships can change over time,” says Nelson.

Helping your kids understand that this is normal and that it doesn’t equate to failure, while also supporting them through these changes is important.

Teach your child friendship values.

Life Education says that helping your kids understand what specific values are associated with friendship is key to understanding what a good friend looks like and how to be one.

“Friendship values include being a loyal friend, accepting differences in a friend, standing up for a friend, being kind and supportive to a friend and including a friend in games,” they explain.

Teach and model the social skills that underpin successful friendships

While knowledge and values are a key underpinning, consolidating these with skills is the next step.

Life Education suggest you “explain to your child that just as they can get better at swimming by practising, they can also get better at making and keeping friends by practising social skills such as smiling and greeting classmates, sharing, cooperating, negotiating, being positive, having an interesting conversation, playing games well (e.g., being a good winner and loser).”

Praise the good stuff

Provide positive feedback when you observe your child using social skills or values that have the potential to contribute to the development of their friendships. This will help reinforce the values that make a good friend.

Empower them to find their own solutions

Don’t always try to fix every problem that arises, be present and support the children as they try to find a resolution. Create an environment where no questions are off limits so that nothing is too uncomfortable to discuss.

Friendships in adolescence are different

As your kids grow into teens, friendships often take on a different significance and influence. Reach Out advises some additional strategies for parents with pre-teens and teenagers to use to help support them being a good friend. Work with your teen to set expectations around how they should treat their friends. A reminder of the values of a good friend and the skills that a good friend utilises can be helpful.

Be supportive if your teen comes to you about an issue with one of their friends without necessarily always trying to solve the problem. Listen openly and non-judgmentally without jumping into solution mode can be helpful. Model the behaviours of being a good friend. For example, you could get your teen involved if you are cooking a meal to support a friend and use the opportunity to talk about why that is important to you.

In closing

Helping your child understand the distinction between being a friend and being a good friend is important but supporting them to become one can be a tricky process. It can vary depending on you, your child/ren, the friendships and over time. Experiment with different strategies and techniques and see what works best for you and your child/ren.

Parents Partnerships Leader Roslyn Mackie

STUDENTS OF THE WEEK

Term 1 Week 4 - Presented at assembly Friday 11th March 2022 

HERE ARE THE SUPERSTARS FOR THIS WEEK!

OSHCLUB NEWS 

Dear Parents and Guardians, 

Preps! 

It's been wonderful meeting all of the new prep children that have been at Before- and/or After-School Care with us since they started last week! For families considering enrolling with us here at Greenhills OSHClub, please feel free to drop by to see us and meet the team, get to know the space, and ask any questions you may have. You can find us in the school library at the moment, but we will hopefully be returning to the STEAM room soon. All preps are dropped off at their classroom by a staff member who waits with them until their teacher arrives at the end of Before-School Care and then picked up for After-School Care and escorted back to the OSHClub space where they're signed in for the afternoon's care. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to give us a call or text on 0437 928 183 or email us at greenhills@oshclub.com.au. Our hours are 6:45am to 9am for Before-School Care and 3pm to 6:30pm for After School Care. We hope to see you soon! 

Clubs Are Back! 

Starting next week, we're going to be introducing some new and exciting clubs for children to participate in during After -School Care! The clubs are "Club Chef" on Mondays, where children will cook something tasty; "Art Attack" on Tuesdays, where children will get to show off their creativity each week; "Potterhead Club" on Wednesdays, where children will do an activity based on the part of the story they'll be listening to being read that day; and "Game On" on Fridays, where children will be able to play in team games each week, sometimes playing sports they may never have tried before! If you would like to book your child(ren) in for any of these awesome clubs, please do so through the iParent Portal or by calling or texting us on 0437 928 183 or email greenhills@oshclub.com.au.

OSHClub's More Fun Than... 

OSHClub has a new competition that could see a family win FREE Before- and After-School Care for Term 2 this year for one child, for the recurring bookings made for the term. The competition runs from February 1st to April 7th 2022, with each child with a booking getting an entry into the competition, making it an even chance for everyone to win! Good luck! 

OSHClub’s On The Move! 

After a few weeks in the school library and the school hall demolition nearly complete, OSHClub will be moving back to the STEAM room on Tuesday March 1, no delays withstanding. We will have signs up on the library reminding children to go to the STEAM room, and children in Prep will still be being picked up and taken to OSHClub each day. If you have any questions, please let us know by either calling or texting us on 0437 928 183 or emailing us at greenhills@oshclub.com.au. See you soon!

If you need to make a booking, please do so through the iParent Portal or contact the service on 0437 928 183 or greenhills@oshclub.com.au. Greenhills OSHClub is open 6:45-9:00am for Before-School Care, 3:00-6:30pm for After-School Care and 6:45am-6:30pm for Vacation Care/Pupil Free Days. 

OSHClub Service Phone: 0437 928 183 

OSHClub Service Email: greenhills@oshclub.com.au 

Coordinator: Megan Statham-Danckert 

Educators: Jordan Martin, Jorja Sullivan