Snapshot Week 5 Term 4

Friday 13 November 2020

Remembrance Day 2020

On Wednesday morning, students and staff

commemorated Remembrance Day. A special thank you

to Peter Young for performing The Last Post.

Principal’s Letter - Remembrance Day

At the Remembrance Service on Wednesday, I shared some

stories of three local schools with our students. It has been

my privilege to have led these schools and to come to learn their historic connections. I

acknowledge Kerrie Davies and the Rose Park Old Scholars and Denise Schumann (local

historian) for their detailed documentation of Rose Park and Norwood through the ages.

When WW1 broke out, local troops were sent to Gallipoli and then the Somme. Pte Victor

Allen Opie, an old scholar of Norwood Primary, was amongst many who fought and died at

Anzac Cove. The impact of WW1 on the Norwood community was significant and the Head

Master Joseph Kennedy decided to build a memorial in the school grounds. The Memorial

was paid for by school children and their families and was built inside the school, not on

public land. To our knowledge, it is the only memorial built by children in South Australia.

‘I went to Norwood School with my sister and brothers. The children built the Soldier’s

Memorial with their own hands and I laid several bricks for a penny each. We climbed up a

ladder and laid them’ - Recollections of Amy Woodroofe, Norwood Public School)

If you do walk past Norwood, take a look at the white memorial on the corner of Osmond

Terrace/Beulah Road. If you look at the school playground nearby, you will see a second

sculpture that was placed in the grounds as part of the 140th birthday celebrations. Look

closely and you will see old pennies – each one placed by a Norwood student at the time to

mirror the original memorial.

Week 6

Crossing Monitors

AM

Morgan D-P

Elizabeth E

William G

PM

Wania W

Tara H

Sofia T

After WW1, RPPS had a Peace Celebration and 780 peace medals were distributed. On June

20, 1919 Colonel Stanley Price Weir unveiled the Rose Park Roll of Honour. Stanley had

attended Norwood School and was one of the few survivors of the Somme. When WW2 was

declared on Sept 1, 1939 there were more than a few challenges. At the time, childhood

diseases were a problem and the classrooms had to be disinfected to prevent the spread of

mumps, measles, diphtheria and scarlet fever. Not so unlike our situation at the moment!

Classes were overcrowded and rationing was strict. Petrol, butter, sugar, meat and fabric

were in short supply. The parents worked with volunteers from Burnside Council to dig trench

shelters in Alexandra Avenue, which were covered with corrugated iron and sand bags.

When the sirens sounded for air raids, people went into the trenches. Ruth, one of the

students at the time, remembers blacked out windows on the houses and everyone being

frightened. There were lots of American soldiers staying with local families, who rode

motorbikes issued by the Australian Army.

So many RPPS old scholars served during this war and lost their lives. People like Ellen Keats –

a nurse in Singapore and the East Indies (now Indonesia) who lost her life during WW2 and

many WW1 victims, including;

Pte Reginald & Pte Clarence Shepley – brothers, killed in France in 1917.

Pte Leslie Lehmann – killed in France in 1917.

Sergeant Roy Latta – killed in France in 1917.

Charles James – the first young man from Rose Park to enlist in WW1 – killed in the Battle

of the Somme.

In fact, there were a total of 13 Rose Park old scholars killed in France during WW1.

Highgate School is younger, opened in 1923. It missed the great losses of WW1, but has seen

other wars and has new connections with Norwood and Rose Park on Remembrance Day

this year. Firstly, we have Opie House standing on the corner of the grounds. Perhaps the

same Pte Victor Allen Opie, or at least a family member. Secondly, there is a bilingual/

binational French program and many of the students come from France, or have family

there. Given the numbers of local soldiers who lost their lives during the battle of the Somme,

it is fitting that we reflect on these connections and remember together.

Two flowers symbolise Remembrance Day at Highgate; the poppy that we are familiar with,

which continued to grow amongst the graves in Flanders Fields and was recorded in poetry

by physician Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae -

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

We also wear the cornflower, which continued to grow in land devastated by thousands of

artillery shells. These flowers were often the only visible evidence of life, and the only sign of

color in the mud of the trenches. It also refers to the ‘bleuets’ – a term used to refer to the

youngest French soldiers who wore a blue uniform.

Wednesday was a time to remember and thank everyone who has given their life during

times of war - many who died far from their homelands. Our connections across the world

are recorded in our history books, but remain very much alive today as we move forward in

peace.

Nicola Brelsford

Helmet reminder!

A parent has reported a near miss on Cudmore Avenue this week, when an RPPS student on

a bike rode out in front of the vehicle, without a helmet. All students on bikes or scooters

should wear a helmet at all times, as well as checking for traffic when crossing roads.

Pupil Free Day

Don’t forget that Monday 23 November is a pupil free day. If your child will require OSHC on

the day, please contact Billy Newman-Graves on 0437 132 522.

Bookings need to be made in advance, closing date for bookings is 6pm Wednesday 18

November. Bookings are open for all families who are currently enrolled in the service.

Science Update Term 4

In Science this term, classes have been busy working on their

Units of Inquiry to complete mini portfolios that demonstrate the

following attributes: Inquirer, Communicator and

Knowledgeable.

Students are finding new ways to

use the i r inqu i ry sk i l l s by

demonstrating their understandings

in different formats by creating a

lapbook that is centred around the

‘Central Idea’.

All students are working in the area

of “Earth and Space Science”

which includes topics around

weather , ch an ges , n atu ra l

resources, space, and natural phenomena.

Here are some students from Room 3 putting together their final

product, ready for display.

Kellie Mensforth

Parents & Friends

Fundraising Update - our fundraising focus is to purchase more Soundfield systems. These

systems allow even the smallest voice to be heard. Ask your children about their experience

with them! Staff currently using Soundfield systems speak very positively about the benefits

and are keen for all students to have access to them.

We’re also raising funds to purchase a new PA system for use in the school hall. Unfortunately,

Government funding doesn't cover this type of equipment, so it's up to us as a school

community, and we are grateful for your support. Thank you for your feedback in the recent

survey. P&F funds will be spent in accordance with the community's expectations and that

we are running the fundraising events that you want.

Cake Stall Update - Feedback from the recent P&F survey has indicated that while the cake

stall was great from a fundraising point of view, it is generally viewed less favourably by

parents. As a result, we will cease to hold the cake stall in lieu of a donation. We are asking

for the amount that you would usually have spent on cake stall ingredients/purchases over

the course of this year. Please donate to P&F via Qkr! - you will find “Virtual Cake Stall” listed

in the donations tab of the Qkr! app. We have plenty of new fundraising ideas to replace

the cake stall next year so stay tuned!

Virtual Garage Sale - The RPPS Sustainability Group and P&F are running a Virtual Garage

Sale to raise funds for the school in November and coinciding with the Garage Sale Trail. Post

items to donate on the Rose Park Primary School Sustainability Group (Facebook). Rather

than being paid for the item, “buyers” can make a donation to the school via Qkr!, and

show evidence of the donation to the “seller” (eg a screenshot, or making the donation at

the time of collection) and arrange contact-free collection via direct messaging. “Sellers”

can either post a suggested donation amount or ask the “buyer” to make an offer.

We’re hoping this will provide an opportunity for people to find new homes for unwanted

items such as bikes that their kids have outgrown and encourage people to reduce-reuse-

recycle. An added bonus will be to raise some much-needed funds for the school. The Virtual

Garage Sale will be run independently of the school and aims to be covid-safe and contact-

free.

Venues wanted! - P&F are looking to organise some fabulous Parent Nights Out in 2021

(COVID pending of course!) We are looking for venues that have a capacity of 100+ people.

We would love to support our local community so get in touch with us

at: pnf@roseparkps.com.au

IBPYP Update - Year 3

In Term 4, Year 3 classes have been inquiring into how Peoples’ Behaviour Changes a

Community Over Time. We have been exploring ways that history is recorded, how culture is

celebrated in the community and how Indigenous people are connected to country and

place. We went to Morialta Conservation Park to learn from Trent Hill about how Indigenous

people lived and used the land to survive. We also went for a local walk on Remembrance

Day to learn how history has been recorded in our local community.

Governing Council Update - 13 Nov 2020

I am pleased to announce that following our AGM on 2 November, the vacant positions on

Governing Council were filled – we had five nominations for the five positions. My report to

the AGM is available on the school website. The parent Councillors, and office bearer

positions, are as follows:

Myself, Victoria Wallis-Smith – Chair

Nick Palousis – Deputy

Todd Ballinger – Treasurer (& Chair of Finance Advisory Committee)

Kirsty Stewart – Secretary

Emma Fletcher – Chair Education Sub-Committee

Anthony Alexopoulos – Chair Sports Committee

Dev Kumaria – Chair OSHC Committee

Michelle Morris

Reza Bradrania

The GC parents have children across every year level so I’m sure many of you will know us

already. But if not, we have included a short-bio and photo on the school website – our new

Councillors will be added in the coming days.

I’d also like to acknowledge Vanessa Carne-Cavagnaro, Tim McPhee and Kristian Maynard,

who completed their time with Governing Council this year – thank you for your work and

support.

The function of Governing Council is, at times, behind the scenes and while we endeavour to

action our ‘to-do’ list, I think it’s important to recognise that we are volunteers – with work,

family and personal commitments to juggle. We always seek feedback and welcome

suggestions from the parent/carer community – if you have anything you want to ask, any

questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with any one of us, either directly

or via the Governing Council email governing.council@roseparkps.com.au

A key issue for the school is, of course, appointing a new Principal.

I want to assure the community that Governing Council has been closely involved in the

process. I was selected by Governing Council to be part of the merit selection panel. The

other members of the panel are the Education Director, a Peer Principal and the school’s

AEU Rep. I view my role on the panel as both a responsibility and privilege, and want to

assure everyone in the RPPS community that I will represent you to the very best of my

abilities.

The end of the school year is fast approaching – and what a year it has been. Here’s looking

to an exciting new chapter in 2021!

Victoria Wallis-Smith

Toilet Twinning Project – End of term 4 2020

After several weeks of ‘toilet’ issues including graffiti and vandalism, we are hoping to turn

things around by getting involved in the Toilet Twinning Project:

https://www.toilettwinning.org/

Rather than wasting valuable time and money on managing this problem, we hope to have

4 weeks of problem-free, respectful use of our facilities. If we can achieve this, we will ‘twin’

our toilets with one in a community far less privileged than ours.

You may like to discuss this with your child – the following facts are quite confronting.

2 billion people don’t have somewhere safe and hygienic to go to the toilet. (WHO/Unicef).

Almost 1,000 children die every day from preventable diseases linked to dirty water and unsafe toilets. (UN)

663 million people live without safe water. (Unicef)

Children worldwide miss 443 million school days each year because of dirty water and poor sanitation. (UN)

Sports Day - SRC Fundraiser

Icy poles will be available on Sports Day, to raise money for yard games. Please remember that parents and carers will not be attending Sports Day this year due to COVID-19 restrictions. We’ll include lots of pictures in the snapshot next week!