IMPORTANT DATES 2014

DECEMBER

9th School Council

11th Basketball

Clinics

Xmas Stall

Carols Night 6-8.00pm

16th Big Day Out Xtreme Air

17th Graduation

Lunch

7.00-8.30pm Ceremony

18th Term 4 Ends

Free Dress Day 1.30pm

dismissal

Xmas raffle

19th Curriculum Day No Students at

School

2015 JANUARY

30th

First day Term 1 for students

Principal’s Report Our School Vision

There is a prosperous path for every child. Each

journey is theirs to lead. There is a place in which

every child can shine. Our School Mission

Identify the talent, develop the confidence and

create the leader. New Staff

Our workforce plan is now complete for 2015.

With the additional enrolments we have recruited

a second Assistant Principal, Caleb Peterson.

Caleb will join our leadership team and bring high

level skill sets in Literacy, Numeracy and Data

Analysis. Last Monday Brooke McLean, Emily

Southward and Brett Sargent met their 2015

grades as they participated in our Up Day

orientation session. These new teachers are

dynamic and ready to give to the Parktone

Primary School Community. Our returning

teachers, Courtney Voss and Bree Jones also

enjoyed meeting their new Grade 2 children on

the day. Carols

This Thursday 11th 6-8pm we are getting together

with the school community to enjoy the children

singing a few carols. Teachers will be selling

drinks and ice-poles so the parents have the night

off to enjoy. Bring a picnic and something to sit

on. The children will begin singing at 7pm. In the

event of inclement weather a cancellation notice

will be posted on the school’s website and on the

Parktone Facebook page at 5pm. End-of-year Reports

The student’s end-of-year reports have been

written, read and signed off. It was rewarding to

see how significantly so many students have

developed in just twelve months. The Reports will

be sent home this Friday 12th.

Big Day Out

Next Tuesday is the children’s annual end-of-year

celebration. Rather than having grade parties,

we go offsite to participate in team building

activities. This year the children are going to

Extreme Air and are sure to have a lot of fun.

Newsletter Edition 21 Wednesday December 10th, 2014

Grade 6 Graduation

Next Wednesday 17th the Grade 6 children will

enjoy a special luncheon followed by a formal

graduation ceremony beginning at 7:30pm at

the Parkdale Secondary College auditorium. It is

always a sad time when we have to say

goodbye to our Grade 6 children. At the same

time it is exciting, because secondary school

education has so much to offer, and it is the

beginning of a new chapter in the children’s

lives. We will say goodbye as a whole school

next Thursday at our final assembly, by having

them walk through the students’ guard of

honour, which is a Parktone Primary School

tradition.

Last Day

As usual next Thursday 18th will be a free dress

day no gold coin donation required. We will

have our final assembly for the year at 1:15-

1:30pm.

Term 1:

The leadership team and Grade leaders

resume on Tuesday January 27th

Teachers resume on Wednesday 28th for

two days of professional learning and

preparation

Students return on Friday 30th (Preps go

home at 1pm Grades 1-6 will be

dismissed at 3:30pm)

The family picnic will be on Friday February

6th 6-8pm

Thought of the Week

With the abundance mentality, we realise that

giving a positive reflection to others in no way

diminishes us. It increases us because it

increases the opportunities for effective

interaction with other proactive people. Habit 7:

Sharpen the Saw Thank you Parktone children, teachers and

parents for another amazing year. We are

creating a welcoming and vibrant school culture

that fosters a strong sense of connectedness

and purpose. I am looking forward to an even

bigger and better 2015 with like-minded people

on a mission to identify the children’s talents,

develop their confidence and to create leaders.

Have a wonderful festive season and enjoy

being with those you love.

George Danson

PSG News

The Christmas Stall is tomorrow, Thursday 11th. Your child has the opportunity to buy a

Christmas gift or two.

Please send them along with a shopping bag to carry their gifts home in. The stall will also be operating on Friday after school. Penny and Amanda would still appreciate some help if you have some time free on Thursday or Friday afternoon.

The Christmas raffle prizes are on display in the main entrance hallway. The hampers look great and could be a real bonus this time of year. Remember to get your ticket stubs and money back to school by Tuesday, 16th December. The raffle is to be drawn at the final assembly on the last day of school, Thursday, 18th December.

Another Parktone year is drawing to a close, a big 'Thank You' goes out to all those who helped the PSG in their many and varied ways. Without you all the PSG wouldn’t function. The life of our school community is richer because of you all.

To those who have children moving on to high school or a new school next year, good luck with the next step in your child's schooling. Remember Parktone fondly and take time to enjoy the ride as they’ll be in Year 12 before you know it!

Merry Christmas everyone!

PSG

Safety Tips over the holidays

Burglary

Almost 29,000 cases of residential burglary were reported to police in the 2013 / 2014 financial year. The most alarming aspect of these reports is that in nearly half the cases there were no

signs of forced entry.

We know that moist burglaries are opportunistic and occur during the day when most residents are not home. This is particularly relevant as we plan to take a vacation and leave

our homes unoccupied for an extended period.

To avoid be a victim yourself, there some very

simple steps you can take:

Install good quality locks on doors and

windows.

Lock all windows and doors, even when you

are at home.

Make you house look occupied at all times.

Ask you neighbour to bring in your mail if

absent

Please report suspicious activity to police via

000.

Further information and advice sheets can be accessed on the Victoria Police website

www.police.vic.gov.au

THERMOMIX

Wondering what everyone is talking about? Yes, It can really knead, beat, sauté, stew, mill, grind, mix, emulsify in a matter of SECONDS.

If you are curious about all the fuss over this amazing machine, Kirsten (mum from 2b) can help. A demonstration consists of Kirsten cooking you a 5 course meal in 2.5 hours. No obligation to buy, she just wants to show off this magical machine! Give her a buzz on 0419513996, to find out more.”

Homestay Hosts Needed

Mentone Girls’ Secondary College

Our International Student Program is looking for

families in our local area to host international students.

The students are from China, female and between

14 and 17 years of age. The students’ family pay a

weekly fee to the host family to cover costs.

If you and your family are interested in learning about another culture and enjoy sharing our Australian way of life with others, please contact Doanvy Roberts, International Student Coordinator on 0419 334 305 or by email at :- roberts.doanvy.n@edumail.vic.gov.au.

Art Smart

The kids at ArtSmart have done an amazing job

this year and worked in such a huge variety of

mediums. A huge congratulations to them all!

They’ve painted, drawn, worked with clay, made

the most amazing socks, created paper-mache

sculptures, made gorgeous vases with tissue

paper, created beautiful Christmas balls, thrown

sponges at Mr Anderson to make art, made snow

to create snowmen….and more!

They are also having an online art exhibition that will be up at the end of term which will be judged by Raeline Sharp, winner of the Packing Room Prize for the Archibald!! You will be able to view this at www.artsmartforkids.com Art Smart runs in the art room on Wednesdays

and if you have any queries about it please con-

tact

Jacqui - 0438013005

The Parktone staff wish their

students and families a very

Merry Christmas and a Happy

New Year.

We look forward to seeing you

back at school in Term 1 and

hearing about your holiday

adventures!

Press release: Ray White shines a light on giving this festive season

Ray White has partnered with Rotary to deliver an inspiring Christmas campaign for disadvantaged children who may need a little extra light in their festive season.

The Little Ray of Giving campaign will launch across Australia and New Zealand from 1 December 2014 with Australians being asked to dig deep to put smiles on the faces of some special children in their community.

The gift drive was a simple way to help put a smile on the face of children and families who may need some extra cheer at this time of year.

All you need to do is wrap up your present and drop it under the tree in your local Ray White office. Tell the Ray White team if the gift is for a boy or girl, nominate an age group and your gift will be delivered by the team at Rotary to a child who will appreciate the lift to their festive season. Ray White Mordialloc located at 521 Main Street, Mordialloc have a special giving tree in their front window to collect gifts for children and families who will be doing it tough this festive season.

It’s a really simple way to put a smile on the face of a young child who might otherwise go without this Christmas.

“Sometimes just a small gift can make the biggest difference to families who are struggling at an expensive time of year.”

Ray White has run this initiative across Australia and New Zealand each December since 2012. Last year alone almost 3000 gifts were donated across 55 offices and delivered to children in need across Australia. END

Lily O’Connell

Business Coordinator

03 9586 7555

*Gifts collected during a Little Ray of Giving campaign are donated to Rotary in Australia and Ronald McDonald House Charities in New Zealand.