50 years of Blackburn Lake Primary School

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1 No 39 thinking respect responsibility attitude care JASON S JOURNAL The Principal s Message Dear current and former students, families and staff of Blackburn Lake Primary School You are invited to help us celebrate 50 years of Blackburn Lake Primary School Friday 5th December between 1:00pm 8:00pm 1: pm: Afternoon tea, school tours and memorabilia display pm: Special school assembly 4 December 2014 In this special year of the school s 50 th Anniversary, this term all students have been investigating a unit of study on the theme of Celebrations. Earlier this week the students of the school had a 50th celebration with their Buddies, and in the Monday afternoon heat enjoyed lunches together, a gelato treat, as well as the side show alley activities prepared by the students of Years 3 & 4. Tomorrow afternoon we welcome Back to School former students and staff from 1:00pm (including a special early Assembly from 2:45pm). The students are preparing for a special stage show incorporating our biennial Carols by the Lake (programs for this event were sent home on Monday; with some available tomorrow night should you forget to bring this along) pm: Live band, with light food options - Ice-creams, coffee; glow sticks and 50th memorabilia for sale (wine glasses with / without wine) 6:00-8pm: Christmas Carols by the Lake, and school choir. BYO food and drink, otherwise purchase dinner at school, with a pm Lions Club Sausage Sizzle pm Ice Creams & Drinks - Grade 6s selling (fundraising for their end of year celebrations). Please bring along your picnic rugs or outdoor chairs and find a place on our outdoor basketball courts (and if raining we will move into the DJC) Look forward to seeing you at the school tomorrow. TRANSITION TO 2015 At Blackburn Lake Primary School it is our goal to ensure that students are supported to cope and accept changing environments and expectations. Transition programs assist students to retain a sense of continuity and enhance coping skills as they leave familiar learning environments and move into new organisational structures and social challenges. When we think of transition we tend to think of the transition from Kinder to Prep and Year Six to secondary school. These are both important successful programs in our school however the teachers at Blackburn Lake Primary School are dedicated to ensuring a smooth transition from and within each year level. We do this in more subtle ways such as our whole school teaching practices, and also events (eg. our Buddy Program). These wonderful activities allow students to interact with different year levels, different teachers and within different expectations.

2 Next week we will formalise two transition events firstly a TRRAC Into Transition Meet Your Level day on Tuesday, and secondly a TRRAC Into Transition Meet Your Teacher time on Friday: Tuesday an opportunity for 2014 classes to experience activities with their current classmates and a variety of teachers at the next year level, then on Friday, an hour with their 2015 class and teacher. A brief booklet completed in this Transition Time will be sent home to families next Friday 12th (along with reports) to inform parents of their child s placement for next year. STAFFING 2015 It is at this time of the year that schools are aligning themselves in terms of their teachers for the following year. Congratulations to Kym Morgan who has secured a position at Orchard Grove Primary School following seven years at BLPS. Other staff movement that I can confirm is Jacinta Gibson and Ade Karmouche finishing their positions at Blackburn Lake Primary School at the end of the year (Jacinta travelling with family and Ade making a return to retirement ) and likewise Chris Brown and Natasha Chidgey not returning from their leave from the Department (Chris entering a new career in banking, and Natasha continuing her valuable work at Anglicare). I thank these teachers for their contributions to the strong BLPS culture and wish them a prosperous future. STUDENT LEADERS 2015 Students from Grade 5 have been invited to apply for a 2015 formal leadership role, with these students making outstanding presentations to selection panels this week (compromising of staff and current School Captains/Vice Captains). I thank this year s Grade 6 role models for their extraordinary leadership and wish all Grade 5 children good luck with their applications with announcements to be made before the end of the school year. VALE PHIL HUGHES As a cricketing fan and a father it s been a sad and confusing week with the tragic loss of Phillip Hughes. Phil was the 408th Australian to play Test cricket for his country and his commitment to hard work, his integrity and his attitude towards life is a perfect example for all no matter their age. The death of a 25 year old cricketing prodigy has been an opportunity to remember the amazing accomplishments of a very talented cricketer who worked extremely hard and never let any setback derail him or have a negative experience get to him - something that all of us, cricketers or not, can learn from and hope to apply in our own lives. As a father, I was proud to see the reverence shown by my boys as they wore a black armband respectfully at a recent cricket match, with this developing after many conversations at home last week recognising that people die daily both locally and globally. One website I found helpful as a parent was with this tragedy a reminder to us all to enjoy the beautiful moments in our lives before we regret taking them for granted. I hope to see you at tomorrow s special 50 th Anniversary whole School 2:45pm where we will welcome our visitors, sing Home Amongst The Gum Trees, enjoy a number of instrumental items and (as we always do) celebrate our Students of the Week, Regards, Jason Walker - Principal walker.jason.r@edumail.vic.gov.au Friday 5 December 1:00 3:30pm 3:45 6:00pm 6:00-7:30pm DIARY DATES FOR TERM FOUR Back to School celebration for former students/staff 50 th celebration on school oval & BYO Picnic Christmas Carols and Stage Show Thursday 11 December am CHRISTMAS STALL in DJC Foyer Monday 15 December Grade 6 s Bounce Thursday 18 December 6.00pm Year 6 Graduation Friday 19 December 1:00 1:30pm Canteen End of Year Madness! Assembly 1pm Last day of pm early dismissal The school will be closed over the Christmas & holiday period. The School Office opens again on Tuesday 27 January 10am to 7pm & Wednesday 28 January 9am to 5pm for families to make payments and collect Pupil Packs (student supplies)

3 Term Thursday 29 January commences all 9.00am DIARY DATES FOR 2015 Tuesday 27 January 10.00am 7.00pm Parent Contribution Payments & Pupil Pack collection Wednesday 28 January 9.00am 5.00pm Parent Contribution Payments & Pupil Pack collection CURRICULUM DAY - No Students at School Thursday 29 January 9.00am Term One commences - All Students commence Monday 9 March Labour Day Public Holiday Friday 27 March 2.00pm 2.30pm Assembly (Term 1 concludes EARLY DISMISSAL) Friday 3 April Good Friday Monday 6 April Easter Monday Monday 13 April 9.00am Term Two commences Saturday 25 April ANZAC Day Monday 18 May CURRICULUM DAY - No Students at School Monday 8 June Queen s Birthday Public Holiday Friday 26 June 2.00pm 2.30pm Assembly (Term 2 concludes EARLY DISMISSAL) Monday 13 July 9.00am Term Three commences Friday 31 July CURRICULUM DAY - No Students at School Friday 18 September 2.00pm 2.30pm Assembly (Term 3 concludes EARLY DISMISSAL) Monday 5 October 9.00am Term Four commences Monday 2 November CURRICULUM DAY No Students at School Tuesday 3 November Melbourne Cup Public Holiday Friday 18 December 1.00pm 1.30pm Assembly (Term 4 concludes EARLY DISMISSAL)

4 Update on our 50year celebrations Do you know anyone who was once a student or teacher at Blackburn Lake Primary School? If so, invite them Back to School for a School Tour and Afternoon Tea on Friday 5 th December. 1pm to 3.30pm. Contact the school office for bookings pm to 6.00pm 50 th Party Picnic with BYO Picnic, Live Band, Light Food options & Coffee Cart. 6.00pm to 7.30pm Stage Show Christmas Carols, School Choir & other Musical Items. Did you know that BLPS lost its entire archives in a fire during the late 1990s? As a result we are hunting for any old school memorabilia that our community may have and is happy to share with us Old photos, uniforms, artworks, school notices, it doesn t matter what it is we would love to see it. On Sale at the 50th Anniversary Party to support our Celebration: BLPS 50 th Anniversary Wine Glasses with our very own Wine Fundraiser Wines (glass + wine $12 and refills $6) BLPS 50 th Anniversary Tumblers and soft drink (glass + soft drink $10) Jumping Castle (gold coin donation) Coffee and Hot Chocolate Sausage Sizzle (courtesy of the Lions Club) Ice creams, Thank-you water and Glow Sticks (courtesy of our Grade 6 students) STUDENTS OF THE WEEK We congratulate the following Students of the Week to be presented at Friday s School Assembly Principal s Award Zach P P-E Choosing to write a report about Blackburn Lake Primary School when Free Writing Assistant Principal Joy G 5/6M Jasmine K 5/6D Sharing in & respecting another s cultural background & differences Sharing in & respecting another s cultural background & differences Prep A Prep E Poppy V-R Evan P Consistently taking pride in her work & producing neat hand Writing Making great decisions about his behaviour, in the classroom! Prep L Miika S Designing a creative new school uniform Prep S Gellian His wonderful singing during our Carol practicer 1D Charlotte A An interesting & informed definition of Celebration 1J Harriet D P Her fantastic Christmas poster shaped as a tree very clever! 1L James B His outstanding poster about Chinese New Year well done! 2C Rory H The wonderful improvements he has made to his Writing great effort Rory! 2D Afnan T Working hard in class to improve his understanding of division 2S Lana P The effort she has made in all areas of her work especially in her

5 presentation 3A Tiffany Y Showing great leadership & teamwork skills during our excursion to the Maroondah Indoor Sports Centre 3J Gabby K Throwing herself into every activity with enthusiasm during our excursion 4A Tamsin K Participating in all sports at the Rings excursion enthusiastically & with a smile! 4E Elise D Consistently showing a fantastic attitude, both in the classroom and out in the yard Superstar! 4N Kinnon McD His informative & interesting presentation on Cerebral Palsy lots of information for us to think about thanks Kinnon 4S Liana R The thought & detail you put into making your Wedding Diorama well done! 5/6D Lachlan F Demonstrating a clear argument on why school times should be changed you modelled fantastic public speaking qualities 5/6K Darcy E-S Using excellent creative thinking skills to create arguments for her discussion on Who should pull Santa s Sleigh 5/6M Bridget D Clearly presenting her teams point of view in a debate on Whether Homework should be given to Students or not 5/6N Bryce F His commitment & persistence in Writing his Leadership Speech 5/6T Art Jasmine S 4E Excellent focus in class & delicate shading & colouring work Italian (LOTE) Ryan S 1L Accurately Writing a birthday invitation card Music Andy G 1L Charity O 1L Stella McG 1L His great teamwork whilst playing the Marimba in Music Her great teamwork whilst playing the Marimba in Music Her great teamwork whilst playing the Marimba in Music Phys Ed Hamish C 2C His demonstrating how to play Klop to his classmates AMAZING ART As you may have seen the Reflective Garden is taking shape. The vertical poles are in and the mosaic cones and caps are in place. Also the beautiful mural done by our Artist in Residence is positioned in the corner of the garden. Dean has done a great job installing it. The next stage is laying all the 200 mosaic pavers in the garden so watch this space! MAGICAL MUSIC NOTES Everybody has been rehearsing, and there is an air of anticipation throughout the school. Tomorrow is the day! You re Invited We have our 50 th Celebrations as well as our Christmas Carols. The festivities begin at 1.00pm with Coffee and Cake and a chance to reminisce in the DJC foyer. From 3.45 we have wonderful band who will entertain us for the afternoon before the Christmas Carols kick off at 6.00pm. Looking forward to seeing you there! Ensemble News String Stars Well done for a fantastic year StringStars, with your final performances tomorrow at Assembly and the Carols. Remember that there is no rehearsal next week, but will be a strings concert and celebration in the DJC at lunch. Congratulations Liam P 5/6D Violin Grade 3 A+ Fintan M 5/6K who has been nominated for the Junior Performer in an Open Production at the Music Theatre Guild of Victoria to be awarded soon. We wish you all the best with your nomination.

6 Music Musings If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music. Albert Einstein How Music can help your brain Sam Collins Music Coordinator (collins.samantha.s@edumail.vic.gov.au) What Absorbs More Heat? When you're out in the sun on a hot summer s day it pays to wear some light coloured clothes, but why is that? Experiment with light, colour, heat and some water to find out. What you'll need: 2 identical drinking glasses or jars Water Thermometer 2 elastic bands or some cellotape White paper Black paper Instructions: 1. Wrap the white paper around one of the glasses using an elastic band or cellotape to hold it on. 2. Do the same with the black paper and the other glass. 3. Fill the glasses with the exact same amount of water. 4. Leave the glasses out in the sun for a couple of hours before returning to measure the temperature of the water in each. What's happening? Dark surfaces such as the black paper absorb more light and heat than the lighter ones such as the white paper. After measuring the temperatures of the water, the glass with the black paper around it should be hotter than the other. Lighter surfaces reflect more light, that's why people where lighter coloured clothes in the summer, it keeps them cooler. Rainbows form in the sky when sunlight refracts (bends) as it passes through raindrops; it acts in the same way when it passes through your glass of water. The sunlight refracts, separating it into the colours red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. NOTE: SCIENCE CLUB 1.40pm WEDNESDAYS LUNCHTIME in 4E (Ewan s room) SUPER SPORTS REPORT MORNING MOVERS Morning Movers has officially ended for It has been a quiet end to the year with Volleyball practice and our CD player not playing! We will be back next year! SPORTS UNIFORMS - NEED TO BE RETURNED TO SCHOOL ASAP! Now that our sports commitments are finished it is time to check those wardrobes and cupboards for any lost tops or uniforms. Please check carefully and return any strays to school as soon as possible. SCHOOL SWIMMING PROGRAM In 2015, we will again be swimming during week 1 and week 2 of Term 3. Our program will again run for 9 days finishing on the second Thursday. Phil Lumsden Sports Coordinator

7 On the 29 th of November, 7 teams from the Blackburn Lake Netball Club competed in the Melbourne Eastern Netball Association Grand Final. Three of the teams included the under 11 s yellow team, the under 13 s white team and the under 13 s red team. The under 13 s red put up an amazing fight but unfortunately lost by a mere 2 goals. The under 11 s yellow had more luck winning by 2 goals against Holy Spirit pink. The under 13 s white were playing against their arch rivals, Mullum. They won by a huge 11 goals leaving Mullum devastated. We would like to thank the coaches and parents for supporting us on the day. Good job to all the teams that competed. Go Lakers!!!!!!!!!!!!! PARENTS ASSOCIATION Show your support for the PA and like us on Facebook (Blackburn Lake Primary School PA Committee) or drop us a line via the PA Mailbox in the School Foyer or send us an blps.pa@gmail.com KEY DIARY DATES FOR NOVEMBER Tuesday 25 November 7.30pm PA Annual General Meeting Saturday 29 November am Election Day Sausage Sizzle & Cake Stall Sunday 30 November pm Whole School invitation to Bounce (see below) Christmas Stall Thursday morning 11 th December Come along and select some special gifts for your family and friends. We have lots of fun Christmas novelty gifts, some handmade gifts and special Christmas food hampers! Items will be priced from $1 to $10. Please bring your shopping bag or a box so that your treasures get home safely. We are setting the stall up on Thursday morning, and then when all is ready, the children will come down with their siblings to make their purchases in the DJ Centre. If you are able to help with the set up or with selling items at the stall, please click on the following Doodle Poll link to let us know your availability or contact Robyn on or Simone on Thank you! Election Day Sausage Sizzle report: With a hot day forecast for this year s state election, we had hot bipartisan sausages, cold drinks and icy poles for sale to the school to capitalise on the Polling Booth status of the school. Although numbers were down on last year s election, we raised $ for the school. A huge thank you to our many volunteers, as well as our customers for making the day a success. We also thoroughly enjoyed the shade provided by our new school marquee another addition to the school thanks to the wonderful fundraising efforts of all our parents and helping friends! Cake Stall thank you Thank you to our Blacky Lake families for baking and bringing your contributions to the Cake Stall for Election Day. The cake stall raised over $1,400 for the school, spurred on by the enthusiasm of parents and kids baking for school House Points.

8 The competition was close! Here are the results: Acacia 23 points Waratah 22 points Jacaranda 15 points Kurrajong 17 points These points will be incorporated into this week s House Points to be announced at the special early assembly for the school s 50 th Anniversary. We also wanted to make some special mentions for outstanding contributions: Simone Taylor and Kate Bonda for bringing in lots of gingerbread houses, perfect Xmas gifts Susanne Sands for the amazing pudding mud cake The Eaton family for the cupcakes with chocolate teddy bears Gallagher, Griffiths and Bailey families for bringing in heaps of everything. We also had a lovely community member bring in a card and donation, saying a large thank you to all you wonderful mums and dads who cook all year round. Here are some photos of the cake stall and the amazing baking: UNIFORM SHOP OPENING HOURS in MPR Monday Afternoon 3.30pm 4.00pm Thursday Morning 9.00am 9.30am NEWS: Year 6 POLOS are now available to be purchased LAST DAY OF UNIFORM SHOP - NEXT THURSDAY 11 th DECEMBER ***Don t forget everyone needs their hats in term 4*** SCHOOL BANKING - Every WEDNESDAY is School Banking Day LAST DAY OF SCHOOL BANKING FOR 2014 Please note that the last school banking day this year is WEDNESDAY 10 DECEMBER Reward items can still be ordered on the day and hopefully received by the last week of school. If not, we will get the reward to you in the first week of term ACHIEVEMENT CERTIFICATES As a school banker you will receive a Dollarmite Achievement Certificate when you reach 10, 20 and 30 deposits in the year. Congratulations to the following school bankers for receiving their certificates this week: SILVER Certificate for making 20 deposits: Ruby V-R, James E GOLD Certificate for making 30 deposits: Holly Y Your certificates will be passed to you through your classroom teacher. REWARD ITEMS For every deposit you make, you earn 1 Dollarmite token. When you have saved 10 tokens, you may redeem them for one of the following rewards: Sea Streamers Set of 4 scented pencils Shark plush key ring Light blue wallet item Knuckles game item OUT OF STOCK Whale Shark Pencil Case Penguin Key Ring Projector Cup Handball Money Tin

9 Headphones item Pat, Pru or Spen moneybox item (please specify). Thanks everyone for supporting the School Banking Program. Regards, Vickie Liew, School Banking Coordinator M: REWARD ITEMS UPDATE FROM COMMONWEALTH BANK It is great to see so many students reaching their goal of 10 tokens as we get close to the end of the school year. However, as a result we are experiencing unprecedented volumes of reward orders and unfortunately have run out of stock of a number of reward items. From the feedback we are receiving we understand that the Swimming Bag and the Projector Cup still remain very popular. In order to not disappoint students we have placed additional orders for these two items. Given production times we will not receive delivery until Term 1, We will send out all orders for these items placed now, in Term 1. You are able to continue ordering these two items as normal (there is a notation next to the item that they are on backorder, due Term 1) and they will be sent to your school as soon as they arrive in Term 1, next year. There are 3 items still available for immediate delivery including: Shark Key ring Sea Streamers Scented Pencils In addition to this we have the following items from 2013 still available for order: Spen Moneybox Pru Moneybox Blue Wallet Knuckles Jacks Game Headphones To help avoid disappointment we have also added two additional items for order including: Dollarmites Slap Band Ruler Dollarmites Beachball We apologise for the inconvenience and are endeavouring to do what we can to avoid any disappointment. Thank you for your ongoing support. Kind regards Veronica Howarth Head of School Banking and Youth SCHOOL BASED PROGRAMS Flight, from Icarus to the 21 st Century Blackburn Lake Primary School Coming up in Term We observed the birds in their flight, and human beings were certain they could also fly. We can certainly fly but how did we learn to travel through the air? Discover the steps from Icarus to ballooning, to the flying doctor and helicopters to Qantas. Why is the Concorde no longer flying? Do you have a family member who once flew planes? Do you know someone who is now flying planes? We discover the past failures and the huge challenges ahead. This is an exciting new WiseOnes unit. WiseOnes Application for 1 st Term 2015 This program is available for all Grade 1 - Grade 6 children who have qualified for WiseOnes. rus

10 The unit for first term commences week beginning Monday, 9 th February, The unit will run for 8 weeks commencing: 9 th Feb, 16 th Feb, 23 rd Feb, 2 nd Mar, 9 th Mar, 16 th Mar, 13 th April (Week 7), 20 th April (Week 8). Due to the shortness of Term 1, Week 7 and 8 will be at the beginning of Term 2.. I wish to enrol my child in the unit "Flight, from Icarus to the 21 st Century" starting week beginning Monday 10 th Feb, I give permission for a copy of this slip to be handed to the WiseOnes teacher. Child's Name School: Blackburn Lake Primary Date of Birth Class (2015) Parents' Names Address Phone: BH AH Mobile My child has already qualified for WiseOnes YES/NO I would like a free test for my child YES/NO. I would like my child to be tested with a fuller assessment to qualify for WiseOnes (assessment cost $240 inc GST). Please send this slip and payment of $ on Thursday, 5 th Feb, As we are a non-credit business, children will not be accepted into the program for the term unless the fees and enrolment form are returned by the above date. If paying by cheque please make it payable to Blackburn Lake Primary School. For further information please contact Pat Truscott on or Mobile: NB: Due to the Government increase of teachers wages, please note the new cost of the program. COMMUNITY NOTICES Any advertisements in this Newsletter are in no way endorsed by Blackburn Lake Primary School Juniors Field Naturalists of the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria Inc. December Excursion 7th December Visit Kinglake with ranger, Tony Fitzgerald December Christmas Party 13th December FNCV Christmas Party evening. Box Hill Whitehorse Hockey Club s Come and Try Day All Juniors aged 5-15 years are welcome to attend these sessions to find out about this great team sport. SUNDAY, 7TH DECEMBER & SUNDAY 14TH DECEMBER 10.00am noon Venue: ELGAR PARK Elgar Rd, Mont Albert North (adjacent to Eastern Freeway) Bring a friend! All participants must have a mouthguard and runners. Bring your hockey stick and shin pads if you have, some will be available for new players to try out with. Watch our website For further information please contact: Joy Valkanidis M: E: joystefanidis@yahoo.com OR John Bibby M: E: mailto:welfare@boxhillhockey.com.au

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