Welcome back to school for

2018. Our 150th year as a

school. What an exciting year we

have planned for your children as

we work towards our big celebra-

tion on November 17th.

Welcome

I would like to welcome our 27

new Preps and any other new

students we have at our school

this year. We hope that you have

a wonderful learning experience

here at Rockbank and we look

forward to working with all fami-

lies to enable all children to suc-

ceed.

Parking

Thank you to everyone for being

patient when you visit our school

and especially when you use the

car park. It is very busy out there

and we cannot stress how im-

portant it is that everyone drives

slowly and maintains calm when

picking up children. We want all

our students to be safe. If you

live nearby, please consider walk-

ing to school or try carpooling if

walking is not an option.

Principal’s Message

Newsletter F R I D A Y 9 T H F E B R U A R Y , I S S U E 1

MPSSA

SUMMER

SPORTS

Friday 16th

February

(Grades 3 - 6)

MEET &

GREET

Wednesday 21st

February

MPSSA

SUMMER

SPORTS

Friday 23rd

February

(Grades 3 - 6)

MPSSA

SUMMER

SPORTS

Friday 2nd March

(Grades 3 - 6)

FOR YOUR

DIARIES

Our grade Prep—2 students

enjoying their first Auslan lesson

Uniform

PSW stocks all our uniform items,

so we would encourage you to visit

them and purchase any items you

need. The new school dress and

winter dress are available for pur-

chase and a new polar fleece vest

will be available soon. The cost of

the summer dress is $48.95. We

understand that some parents have

been asked to pay more, so please

return to PSW with your receipt for

a refund of the difference if this is

the case.

Staff changes

We welcome Christine Niemiecki

and Brodie Collett to the Rockbank

team and welcome back Mrs Ma-

rozzi from leave.

School Council

School Council elections will be

taking place soon. If you are inter-

ested in being involved in making

school improvement decisions I

strongly advise you to nominate for

the upcoming election. We would

love to see some new people join

our committee There are several

positions up for renewal.

P A G E 2

Sharon Alton,

Business Manager

School News

Hi

I’m Sharon Alton and I

am the Business

Manager at Rockbank

Primary School.

I am married with two

children (23 & 26). I

LOVE to travel,

gardening, and going

out with family and

friends.

I have been at

Rockbank PS for 13

years. My job involves

doing all the student

administration;

enrolments,

excursions, contacting

parents, first aid,

school finances,

budgets, ordering,

wages, invoices,

banking and coordinat-

ing occupation health &

safety. I am also the

school liaison for new

estates.

I am on the school

council, fundraising

committee and am the

Rockbank community

network

representative.

Meet Our Staff

REMINDERS FROM

THE OFFICE

Bank Account details for

direct deposits

For parents/guardians

wanting to pay school

levies/camps/excursions

etc. by direct deposit, we

have this available.

BSB No. 313-140

Account No. 12055616

(Bank Australia)

Please make sure you

put your surname and

what payment is for in

the description part of

deposit.

Celebrating 150 Years Our school has a very rich history. Over the course of this year, we will be providing

you with some of the history of our school and how it came to be.

George Missen & John Corr

George Missen and John Corr (head teacher at Mt Cottrell in 1865) were instrumental

in the establishment of Rockbank Primary School. Corr set things in motion to estab-

lish a common school in Rockbank in 1865. In 1867 Corr submitted a plan to the

Board of Education and Missen then sought permission to build the school with 50

pounds that the committee had raised. The school was built and opened on October

12th 1868.

Please submit any stories or photos to rps150@rockbankps.vic.edu.au or drop them

into the school

P A G E 3

School News

Specialist Timetable

Day Subject and

teacher Notes

Monday P.E.

Mr Cassano

Please ensure students are

dressed for physical

activities including

appropriate footwear

Tuesday

S.T.E.A.M.

Grades 3—6

Mr Cassano

Science, Technology,

Engineering, Art & Maths

Wednesday Auslan

Mr Leech Australian sign language

Art/Library

Mrs Marozzi

Art—Please bring art smocks

(old clothing is fine)

Library—please ensure

library books are returned Thursday

S.T.E.M.

Mr Cassano

Science,

Technology, Engineering &

Maths

P A G E 4

School News

Happy Birthday to the following students who celebrated a

birthday in January:

Sehaj Kaur

Jaxon Zammit

Jasleen Kaur

Jake Vella

Announcements

Attendance A reminder our school day start at 8:50am and the students

are dismissed at 3:15pm each day.

It is important to be at school and on time every day.

If a student arrives after 9.00am, they are to come to

the office for a late pass before going to class.

If students are picked up prior to 3:15pm, please

advise us prior, and they will be marked as leaving

school early.

If your child is going to be absent from school please

call the office on 9747 1210 between 8:30am and

8:50am. Alternatively, you can utilise the FlexiBuzz

app to advise of your child’s absence.

January Birthdays

P A G E 5

School News

We will be having a meet and greet for

parents/carers on Wednesday 21st February

after school .

This is an opportunity to meet your child’s classroom teacher and get

some information about what the school year will look like for each

learning community.

Further information and details will be in a letter home next

week.

Parent/Teacher Forums

Financial Assistance The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) helps ensure that no student

will miss out on the opportunity to join their classmates for important,

educational and fun activities.

To be eligible for the fund, a parent or legal guardian must:

a) Be a holder of a Veterans Affairs Gold Card or be an eligible Centrelink Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card holder, OR

b) Be a temporary foster parent, and;

c) Submit an application to the school as soon as possible.

Please see the office for forms and further information.

P A G E 6

Celebrating Our Successes

House Points—Term 1

Missen 540

Peacock 490

Fisher 760

Harrison 510

Following our school values in the classroom, and the yard, is acknowledged with House

Points. Our House Captains tally the results at the end of each week.

Yard Star of the Week Making great choices in the yard is recognised with our Yard Star awards. Yard Stars are

awarded with House Points, and our Yard Star of the week earns extra points for their house

and is published in the newsletter and recognised at assembly.

Mia Bosworth

Missen House

9th January

P A G E 7

Celebrating our Successes

Students of the Week A class member from each class is recognised weekly with our Student of the Week

Award. This award recognises students who consistently display our school values.

Grade Prep –2 Yellow

Miss Mundie

Madison Being a wonderful helper for the Preps

and Miss Mundie.

Jaskiran Listening carefully and respecting the

learning of others in YP-2.

Grade Prep –2 Blue

Miss Lane

Gwyneth Making sure new students have some-

one to play with outside in the yard.

Arshpreet Being kind and caring towards other stu-

dents. Well done!

Grade Prep—2 Purple

Miss Niemiecki

Jackson Listening to and following instructions in

all lessons. Well done!

Arnav Listening to instructions and trying your

hardest during every lesson!

Grade 3—6 Green

Ms Carmichael

Nykia Independently helping your peers and

teacher when you saw that they needed

some help during writing. Thankyou!

Lincoln Being ready to learn at the beginning of

each lesson and completing tasks to a

Irae Making an outstanding transition to her

new school by being a positive role mod-

el to all her classmates. Grade 3—6 Orange

Mr Leech Carmel Being a wonderful role model to all stu-

dents of the classroom by displaying re-

spectful choices towards both the teach-

er and orange room students.

P A G E 8

School News

Social Media

www.rockbankps.vic.edu.au

https://www.facebook.com/RockbankPS/

https://twitter.com/RockbankPrimary

https://www.instagram.com/rockbankps/

P A G E 9

School News

The ‘Glasses for Kids’

program is coming to our

school.

The Glasses for Kids

program will be visiting

our school in the next few

weeks to provide free

(bulk-billed) comprehen-

sive eye examinations and,

if required a free pair of

glasses to any eligible Prep

to Year 3 students.

This free initiative is a

charitable partnership

program delivered by State

Schools’ Relief and its

corporate and community

partners, with the support

of Department of

Education and Training.

Wide Open Road Optom-

etry will be conducting the

testing session at our

school. If your child is

identified as requiring

glasses, glasses will be

prescribed and fitted on

the day and sent away for

lenses to be fitted. Once

ready, these will then be

sent back to the school for

your child.

If further testing is

appropriate to find the full

extent of your child’s

prescription a voucher will

be given for your child to

have a comprehensive eye

examination at the closest

participating optical outlet.

Children with vision

deficiencies often do not

report symptoms,

assuming that everyone

sees the world in the same

way as they do.

Undiagnosed vision

problems can affect a

child’s education and

potentially lead to learning

difficulties. Identifying and

addressing vision problems

early ensures students do

not fall behind in their

learning.

This program is supporting

the State Government’s

Education State

commitment to ensure

that all children, regardless

of their background or

circumstances, have access

to high-quality services and

support they need to

thrive and prosper. The

Glasses for Kids program

will help thousands of

children to see what is

happening in their class-

room more clearly.

Prep to Year 3 students

will be given an

information pack to take

home. This pack includes

information on how the

program works, a consent

form and brief eye health

questionnaire for parents

to complete. Participation

is voluntary, however a

signed consent form is

required for a student to

participate in the vision

sessions.

This is a unique

opportunity for schools to

participate in a pioneering

and significant public health

initiative that supports

improved learning out-

comes for Victoria’s

students.

Glasses for Kids Program—

Years Prep—3

P A G E 1 0

School News

We use the FlexiBuzz App to send instant messages, newsletters and notices. This app will help our school keep you fully informed and up to date with newsletters, notices, news and events.

Downloading is easy …

iPhone and iPad. Go to the Apple App Store and search FlexiBuzz.

Android

smartphone and

tablet. Go to

Google play and

search FlexiBuzz.

For existing

users, please

ensure you are

connected to

the correct user

groups for 2018.

FlexiBuzz

Icy Poles

Icy poles and ice

creams are sold

every Wednesday

& Friday from our

school canteen at

11:10am.

They are $1 each.

Breakfast

Club All students are

welcome to join

Breakfast Club each

Wednesday morning

between 8:00—8:30am.

There is no cost.

P A G E 1 1

School News

Please remember to ask your child each night if there are any letters or notes from school.

Often, our correspondence home will be asking for pay-ments or parent consent by a certain date. Any payments need to be in the provided envelope with your child's details. As per our Events Policy, late submissions cannot be accepted.

‘Late submissions will not

be accepted as it takes significant time and effort to organise and approve events. The office needs to complete a range of administrative and financial tasks that enable the correct Student Permission Form to be ready for distribution to families.’

We thank all our families in advance for your adherence and understanding of this process.

Notes Home

School Library Books

The Mobile Area Resource Centre (MARC Van) is a small mobile library. Mrs Marozzi brings the van each week. The MARC van is filled with picture story books, fictional novels and non-fiction books for students to borrow,

It works like a normal library, with books borrowed, then returned.

Our MARC Van is missing a large number of library books that were borrowed last year. Can we ask our

families to please check at home, and any books marked as ‘Outer Western MARC’ please be

returned as soon as possible?

P A G E 1 2

Community News

P A G E 1 3

Community News

P A G E 1 4

Community News

P A G E 1 5

Community News

P A G E 1 6

What have we been learning?

7 Perspectives Writing

Welcome back for the 2018 school year! Orange Room would like to present

our writing champions, by sharing some of our learning with the Rockbank

Primary School community. In writing, students have been exploring the use of

description and how it assists a reader. A great author provides detail to the

reader, that helps them create a greater picture and a sense of feeling about

what is written, just like they were standing right there.

We have been using the 7 Perspectives that provide a reader with a greater

description of what took place. These 7 perspectives are: Size, Colour, Shape,

Feeling (texture and emotions), Position, Number and Doing/Action.

To show you our skills, students were shown 6 different (funny) animal pictures

and were invited to describe to you (the reader) what they were looking at,

hopefully creating a great mental picture for you. – Mr. Braden Leech (Orange

Room Teacher)

The black and white ginger sausage dog is skiing on the river using only one leg. He’s mouth

is wide open with his tongue hanging out. He is making huge splashes behind him and is

wagging his little tail behind him – Sophie, Grade 4.

Onc e upon a t i me i n a mag i c a l wor l d, t he r e wa s a s ma l l ova l s ha pe d ki t t e n wi t h t he name of Ma r i j a . She ha s be aut i f ul bi g br own e ye s , a f l uf f y s o f t body and he f ur i s bl a c k a nd whi t e . Af t e r s he got i nt o be d, s he pl a y ed wi t h he r bl ue 3DS . When I l ooked a t he r , I s aw t ha t s he was ve r y f oc us e d wi t h he r e ye s on he r 3DS – Mar i j a , Gr ade 5

Simon the miniature spotty sausage dog was playing in the park with his best

friend Bouncy the ball. Simon is 4 and ½ years old, with brown and white fur and

he and his friend Bouncy love jumping around – Ali, Grade 6.

The buffalo is playing basketball, but he isn’t very good, but he is trying. He is all sweaty

from playing and only made 3 shots. He is very tall so he had to stand back at the free

throw line – Haidyn, Grade 6.

P A G E 1 7

What have we been learning?

7 Perspectives Writing

On the prickly green grass, there is a white and brown dog named Maxine. She likes playing with one particular yellow ball. Max is long and circular as well as very playful – Kirra, Grade 5.

A very small colourful dog named Shane, who is 5, is surfing through the

lake. He is so fast, that when he was surfing he got really wet. The dog is

so light that he can take one foot of the board. He splashes through the

water, taking the world record! He is so proud of himself as he finishes as he

has done the impossible – Irae, Grade 4.

In the Afternoon, Time the brown and white dog was

chasing a soft round ball outside. He was running as

fast as he could. He is s very fast runner – Boston,

Grade 3.

“Welcome back to the 2018 Hamster Chess Competition! As you can see, the tiny weeny hamsters have been focused on this move for over an hour. It is ob-vious that they are actually brother and sister, that why they are both grey and white. I bet you Sherry that if those two weren’t grey they both would look invisible in that white room they are playing in. Wow Dave, did you see that move? She has knocked out her brother’s King, she won!” said the commenta-tor. “How do you feel that you beat your brother and have won?” said the com-mentator. “I want food!” said the girl Hamster. “Very wise words there. Well

that’s all folks, make sure that you tune in next year in 2019!” – Carmel, Grade 6.