Junior School Council Representatives (JSC)

2021 JSC reps:

JSC REPS	2021
GRADE	Student	Student
3A	Eleanor	Angus D V
3R	Elise M	James K
3T	Scarlett M	Daniel Z
3V	Lily C	Frank Z
3/4L	Chantelle C	Albert B
4H	Kate S	Archie P
4M	Lenny R	Josephine A
4V	Ines P	Jack B
5/6C	Amber S	Tegan D
5/6E	Archer S	Charlotte L
5/6H	Sienna S	Max A
5/6K	Tyrese U	Adi R
5/6O	Theodora P	Liam C
5/6WM	Alice M	Charlotte C

The JSC is led by the Student Voice leaders Ella and Lucas and meet regularly with Sam Anderson and myself. The badges are ordered and we hope that they can be presented before the end of this term to our young leaders.

Student Voice leader, Ella spoke at the recent School Council February meeting from my office. Ella spoke about some of the projects happening around the school including the new retaining wall and modifications to the layout near the library and the redevelopment of the oval banks as a sensory garden, slides and garden classroom.

Lucas, our other Student Voice leader, will speak at the March meeting to our new 2021 School Council.

Icy poles:

Our JSC reps are selling icy poles to the students on Friday in week 5, 7 and 9. Funds raised will go to projects voted on by the students. These will include a community organisation and a school based project. The students are gathering student opinion and this will be announced in the next newsletter.

Retaining Walls- What is behind the fence?

Jack hammering and excavators are fascinating to watch as the retaining wall near the library is being demolished and new walls and steps to be built. The aim is for the works to be completed by the end of the April school holidays.

The massive amount of brick and concrete rubble is being taken away and has revealed an open, different landscape. We are hoping to extend the area to use this untapped space. Look out for more information as it released.

Clean Up Schools

Level 3 students- on Friday were contributing to the Clean Up Australia campaign by donning on yellow gloves and searching for rubbish.

I remind all families that NUDE FOOD makes a difference so please keep up the effort.

We have made a difference in the rubbish collected at our school and we can continue to improve the results with everyone making an effort to reduce and reuse! Labelled lunch boxes and reusable containers make a difference.

Term 1 Sunday 21st March Working Bee

The times of working bees for the year will be varied because Sunday does not work for everyone. If you can see a project or regular maintenance task that you could do and our working bee times do not suit you, please let the office or myself know. And please join us on Sunday 21st March to help on our first working bee for 2021.

Garden Classroom and Sensory Garden

We have a large long term project that needs people power- the 'out of bounds' oval banks. A creative playground, sensory garden and open garden classroom plan has been drawn up by Matthew and Bridie from Rocketbox Playgrounds.

Over the next 2 terms we are trying to clear one section of this overgrown space. If you have some time to give to the school, Paddy O’Neil our maintenance person will be available on a Thursday morning to guide you on what has to be done.

Meet Paddy near the Verdale school entrance on a Wednesday morning for clearing and culling. No experience necessary but a willingness to pull weeds or slash. We are aiming to clear one section at a time, starting with the north-eastern end close to the veggie patch.

2021 School Council Nominations

Thank you to the parents who have nominated for our School Council in 2021.

The advertised 6 additional parent positions have been filled:

Sherol Singh
Chris Stolke
Sudeep Bhattacharyya
Paul Wong
Luke Low
Simon Davies

These parents will be joining our current school councillors:

Parents (total of 10 Non DET employees)- Mark Davies, Sartaj Singh, Chris Robinson, Rob Kennedy

DET employees- Fiona Graham, Marika Ferguson, Meg Hubbard, Colleen Stavrakis, Liz Barr (5 members)

Kate McLeod attends as a visitor.

I would like to acknowledge the contributions of Chris Roche, Lloyd Lazaro and Sabreena Dowell who resigned their positions in 2020 and Bec Garland and Darran Low who did not renominate for School Council this year. Lloyd was our school council president for 11 years which has been acknowledged in previous newsletters. Chris Roche has been an advocate for many different projects for the school and the community. Chris, Bec and Darran have contributed to the lively council meetings, building projects and many school events over the years and Sabreena has contributed to the many fundraising initiatives. I appreciate their support to the school and the strategic planning for our future direction. As parents, you are invested in our school to be the best educational setting it can be for all children.

Next School Council Meeting on Wednesday 24 March at 7pm in the library and /or remote depending on COVID restrictions.

Class Ambassadors Meeting

Friday 5 March at 9.10 am will be the first Class Ambassadors meeting for 2021. Thank you for all the parents who have volunteered to help. We will meet at the Munro St entrance outside if weather permits. If you can't make this time, please let the office know.

Our P&F will have information to share at this meeting.

School Photos

Just a reminder for school photos Tuesday 16 March. All students are expected to be in full school uniform. I remind families that leggings or pants should not be worn with the summer dress and hair accessories should only be in the school colours. Head bands and scrunchies are available through PSW for purchase that match the summer school dress.

HARMONY DAY – Friday 26 March

Our classes are preparing to celebrate Harmony Day in acknowledgement of how we belong. Planning is well under way with a world map in our foyer. All our families’ heritage will be represented with dots for the birthplace of every student’s parents. Students can dress in traditional costume from their country of birth or in the bright colour of orange for Harmony Day. More information will be forwarded to families in the near future.

Bike Riding

Students in foundation to level 3 can ride to school with adult supervision. Students can ride school from level 4 without adult supervision if they have parent permission and they follow the school’s guidelines about safe travel including not riding in the school grounds.

I remind families and bike riders that the bike shed is not locked and therefore not secure after hours.

Physical Education