From the Principal's Desk

Harmony Day

Harmony Day (Tuesday 21 March 2023) is part of Harmony Week that celebrates Australia’s amazing cultural diversity. During this week, our school will celebrate inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for all Australians, from the traditional custodians of the land to those who have come from many countries around the world.

This week of inclusiveness is celebrated from Monday 20 – Sunday 26 March 2023, so there are plenty of opportunities to create and participate in activities all week long.

Harmony Day itself falls on 21 March, which co-incides with the United Nations’ International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

With its motto ‘Everyone belongs’, Harmony Day is a day we appreciate our differences and similarities, promote inclusiveness and show mutual respect for everyone, regardless of race, colour, religion, or background.

Why We Love Harmony Day

It celebrates diversity
You can celebrate your own way
It unites cultures

Statistics show that diverse communities, companies and civilisations are happier, healthier and more prosperous. So, including everyone really does make the world a better place!

PAX Word of the Fortnight: TEAMWORK

Teamwork involves including others, allowing everyone to have a voice, leadership skills, listening skills, sharing and being respectful of others. At MGPS, we are all part of the team.

Discussion points: How do you demonstrate good teamwork in class, during games or sports and in the community?

Dates for your calendar:

Martin's Gully Cross Country - Thursday 30th March
Autumn Festival 1 April 2023 - Martin's Gully PS will be part of the Armidale Community of Schools (ACOS) Autumn Festival. This will be held on the Saturday 1st April.
Easter Hat Parade - Thursday 6th April
School Photo Day - Tuesday 2nd May
An Evening with ACOS - Students from 3-6 Thursday 10th August at 6pm.

Attendance Matters:

We have set our school a target to achieve 90% attendance 90% of the time for 2023.

Can you help us do this? Can you make appointments or attend extra curricular activities outside school hours? Coming to school each day between 8:30am and 9:00am and leaving at 3pm is just a simple way we can achieve this together. Let's do this together.

Staff Spotlight:

Grace Cudmore

Hello! My name is Grace and I am Martin's Gully Public School's new Social Work Student from the University of New England, participating in the Universities Social Work in Schools Program (SWIS).

I am currently starting my first placement and am thoroughly loving being apart of the incredible MGPS Team. I will be at the school 5 days a week until the completion of my placement. A bit about me as a person, I am a 3rd year social work student, I have a background in volunteer work with young kids and youth, I am from a rural farming family and I love that I have the opportunity to work at Martin's Gully Public School.

As a social work student, my role within the school is to provide support, provide programs, and provide a safe space for students, staff and parents from within a school setting. Support within a school setting means that my door is always open. I will work with students to enable them to feel empowered and self-determined, be a listening ear to hear when they are struggling with big feelings and emotions, but also be a person that is here to chat to in general about anything and everything. Providing support for the students of Martin's Gully may look like having individual sessions with students, walking around the playground at lunch time and recess, building relationships with the students and staff, participating in class activities and sporting activities, helping students with learning how to cope and manage their emotions, helping to build their self esteem, self control, communication skills, problem solving skills, as well as teach them ways to use relaxation techniques to alter their thoughts, feelings, and ways of processing their emotions. I am always in the playground and floating in and out of classes as I feel it is vitally important for the students and staff to feel comfortable around me, to know my face, to know that I'm open and approachable, and to know that I am a safe person to talk to at school.

If a student is to have an individual session with me, I will work with the teachers and school to make sure it is as minimally disruptive to their learning as possible. One on one sessions will be initiated via a referral from a teacher and/or referral from a parent/guardian. If I am asked to spend time one on one with a student, I will contact the parent of the student in order to receive premission to work with that child. I will also ask for permission to have another session or continuous sessions if it is felt to be necessary to follow up with the child.

Please know that providing support and a safe space for students within the school is my biggest and most important goal. Please do not hesitate to contact me via email either if there are any questions or queries at grace.cudmore2@det.nsw.edu.au. I am very excited to have been given this opportunity and am thoroughly invested in each and every child's wellbeing within the school.

Edie Jackson-Rose

Hi MGPS families! My name is Edie Jackson-Rose but known as Mrs Rose in our wonderful community. I have been working as a teachers aid here at Martin's Gully since the first lockdown of covid days and have been very lucky to experience time working across the majority of the year's at our school, seeing first hand all the wonderful students and amazing caring teachers we have. Before working at MGPS, I have had experience at Drummond Public school and the small school of Ebor both very rewarding experiences which helped me gain a variety of skills to bring to my role. I love helping and supporting all of our teachers and students here constantly learning and growing along side them. I also take a big interest in helping our students with learning challenges and social needs, making sure everyone feels they are included and can walk away with the same opportunities as everyone else. Which leads me into my second job as a disability support carer with my husbands company New England Support Services. When my husband and I first got together he could see how much I loved being able to help others fulfill their goals and the care and nuturing that is required in such a workplace. He recruited me instantly always making sure I had the freedom to stay in both workplaces to allow me to do what I love. I feel having experience in this line of work and being able to bring my knowledge and experience into the school environment helps, enhances and maintains our schools passion for enriching every student with their potential possibilities.

When I'm not busy working and convincing my husband to take some down time, we love to spend our time playing with our two fur babies, trying out new food spots and adventuring off to find spots to fly our drones. I was born and raised here in Armidale and showing my Maitland born husband the beauty of this place is always a fun experience for us.

Felicity Pennington and Peta Deiderick