From the Principal's Desk
Welcome to Week 2!
ATHLETICS CARNIVAL:
Due to the pouring rain last Friday we have rescheduled the track and field events.
The Field events will be held at school this Wednesday from 9:00am - 1pm.
The Track events will be held the following day at Harris Park on Thursday 1st August from 9:30-12:30. Students will get on the bus at 9:05am. Please pack lunch as it will be eaten back as school.
Parents are welcome to attend both sessions and cheer our students on.
KINDERGARTEN 100 DAYS of SCHOOL!
On Monday Kindergarten celebrated 100 days of school. We dressed up as oldies, did lots of learning involving the number 100 and had heaps of fun.
UNE DISCOVERY VISIT:
Yesterday we celebrated Science week. Thanks to the UNE Discovery team who provided hands on activities for students in K-6 and to Karen Dunham and Year 6 for organising and presenting items as well.
GYMNASTICS:
All students K-6 will be participating in gymnastics at the Armidale Gymnastics centre for the next 4 weeks.
Gymnastics lessons build strength and flexibility. It helps children to grow in self-confidence and mental toughness. Additionally, gymnastics encourages kids to set goals and how to have the discipline to achieve them. It helps children how to overcome their fears. It also improves motor skill development and accelerates learning.
ABORIGINAL LANGUAGE:
This Friday we are fortunate to have Dave Widders visit the school to introduce our K-2 students to the Anaiwan language, Aboriginal culture and history.
JUMP ROPE FOR HEART
Martin's Gully students are raising money for the Heart Foundation by baking cupcakes. This week Stage 2 are baking cupcakes for us to sell (and eat)!
The Stage 2 bake stall will be held this Friday 2nd August. We had to make this change due to Year 2-6 being at the the athletics carnival. We will hold it at second half lunch as this is when Kinder will be back from their excursion. Students are still welcome to bring in their baking Thursday, however we will sell on the Friday.
It is a gold coin donation to buy a cupcake, and all funds raised go to the Heart Foundation.
We are also spending lots of time learning to skip and also learning new skipping tricks during our PE lessons each day.
PUBLIC EDUCATION WEEK:
Next Tuesday 6th August, Martin's Gully are hosting the Armidale Network Public Education Week Awards Ceremony. Our choir will be performing at this special event. This ceremony is by invitation only, therefore families are not invited to attend.
OPEN CLASSROOMS:
On Wednesday 7th August, we are inviting our parents and community members to visit the classrooms to celebrate Public Education week. Classrooms will be open for you to visit from 10:15 - 11am. Each class will be playing Maths games and we invite you to join in and watch the wonderful learning that takes place each day in our school.
YOU CAN DO IT!
This week we are sharing ideas on how to eliminate the ideas of “Needing to Be Perfect”.
One of the greatest mistakes a child can make is being afraid to make mistakes. Mistakes are a natural part of learning and while it is good to do the best you can in your work, it is not helpful to insist that everything important is done perfectly. Even the greatestscientists and inventors bumble and stumble their way to success. For older children, it can also be explained that demanding perfection of oneself leads one to be so worried that it lessens one’s ability to perform well.
Instead, a child should be encouraged to develop the positive Habit of the Mind called “Risk Taking.” In Risk Taking, a child prefers to do his/her best but accepts that mistakes are inevitable and frequently good as one is learning something new. Other suggestions for eliminating a child’s need to be perfect include the following:
• Have your child make a list of the things s/he always wanted to do but was afraid of not doing perfectly. Encourage the child to agree to try one of these activities.
• Encourage your children to identify areas of weakness. Have him/her agree to try activities in these areas. When the child has attempted such an activity, point out that the child now has evidence that s/he can tolerate doing things imperfectly.
• Encourage children to stop thinking about how well they are doing at school and, instead, encourage him/her to get involved in activities unrelated to school.
• Remember to acknowledge and praise your children for attempting things and not doing them perfectly.
We can teach our children that there is a continuum of achievement and that achievement is not an all (perfection) or nothing (complete failure) outcome. Encourage your children to set goals at a place on the achievement continuum where they do not have to be the best in order to learn something and have fun.
Road Safety Message
The beginning and end of the school day are busy times for pedestrians and vehicles outside schools. Parking signs around our school have been planned with your child's safety in mind. It is helpful for everyone if you park safely, even if you have to walk further to the school gate.
For more information please see the Drive and park safely near schools information sheet below.
ATTENDANCE MATTERS
Dates for your calendar:
Term 3
Week 2
Wednesday 31st July - Field Events at school - 9am-1pm
Gymnastics - K-2 11:00 -12pm (Just for this week)
- Stage 3, 1:40-2:40pm
Thursday 1st August - Track Events at Harris Park - 9am-12:30pm
Gymnastics - Stage 2, 1:40-2:40 (just for this week)
New England Sings Rehearsal
Friday 2nd August - K-2 Aboriginal Language sessions
Kindergarten attending a puppet show at Newling PS from 9:40-11am
12:30pm Assembly Stage 3
Jump Rope For Heart Fundraiser - cupcakes being sold at lunchtime. To buy a cupcake please bring a gold coin for each cupcake.
Week 3 Public Education Week
Tuesday 6th August - Armidale Network Public Education Week Awards Ceremony – hosted by Martin’s Gully - Invitation only
Wednesday 7th August - Gymnastics Stage 2 &3
- Public Education Week Open Classrooms - 10.15am to 11.00am
Thursday 8th August - Gymnastics K-2
NERAM Artist Outreach - Stage 1
Friday 9th August - Armidale Zone Athletics
Week 4
Monday 12th August - Todd Woodbridge Cup (Tennis) – Stage 2
- PSSA Gymnastics
Wednesday 14th August - Gymnastics Stage 2 &3
Thursday 15th August - Gymnastics K-2
Friday 16th August - Assembly Stage 2
Week 5
Monday 19th and Tuesday 20th August - Stage 2 Overnight Thalgarrah Excursion
Wednesday 21st August - Gymnastics Stage 2&3
Thursday 22nd August - Gymnastics K-2
- New England Sings rehearsal
Week 6
Tuesday 27th August - Tennis skills – all classes
Thursday 29th August - Kinder Thalgarrah Excursion
- ASC Taster Day 9.30am to 12.30pm – Year 6
Friday 30th August - Assembly Stage 1
Week 7
Tuesday 3rd September - Tennis skills – all classes
Wednesday 4th September - North West Athletics
- Stage 1 Thalgarrah Excursion
Week 8
Tuesday 10th September - Tennis skills – all classes
Thursday 12th September - New England Sings Rehearsal
Friday 13th September - Assembly Kindergarten
Week 9
Tuesday 17th September - Tennis skills – all classes
Thursday 19th September - Taster Day ASC – 9.30am to 12.30pm
Friday 20th September - Slime Fest Day
Week 10
Tuesday 24th September - Tennis skills – all classes
Friday 27th September - Last day Term 3