TERM 1 WEEK 6

Thursday 7th March 2013

Principal: Mrs Emma Jeffery Assistant Principals: Mrs Lynda Heath

School Captains: Georgie Orman and Hayden Baker Mr William Dowe

Administration Manager: Mrs Kerryn Pryor Mrs Judy McGowan Phone: 6742 1899 / 6742 1488 Fax: 6742 4217 Mrs Nicole Walsh

Email: gunnedahs-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au Website: www.gunnedahs-p.schools.nsw.edu.au

Gunnedah South Public School

Proud supporters of the

‘You Can Do It’  

Program Supporting & caring

for your children

Gunnedah South Public School

“With oar and sail ” Special points of interest:

12rh March P&C Meeting

13th March Girls Cricket

14th March Yr 5 girls campout

16th March Dr Alison Knight Workshop

School Week

MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

7

March

11

12 P&C Meeting AGM 7.00pm

13 Girls cricket @

Narrabri

14

Stage 3 Campout

15

Stage 3 Campout Dr Alison Knight Parent Workshop

tomorrow Saturday 16th

8

March

18

19 20 21

Social

Infants 5.30-6.30

Primary 6.30-7.30

22

9

March

25

26 27 28

Easter Hat Parade

11.30 in hall

29

Good Friday

A few words from our Principal...

Dear Parents and Carers

Dr Alison Knight The school has been very fortunate to have booked Dr Alison Knight to run a parent workshop here at Gunnedah South. Alison has been a doctor for over 20 years practicing medicine in both England and Australia. In the last few years she has been working exclusively in the field of nutritional medicine, specialising in treating behavioural and emotional problems in children and adolescents. She is one of only 100 doctors throughout Australia to have been trained by the Walsh Research Institute (USA) in the assessment and treatment of biochemical imbalances which can cause these behavioural and emotional disorders. This approach uses targeted nutrient therapy to treat many conditions including; ADHD, Anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Depression, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Conduct Disorder and Intermittent Explosive Disorder (anger outbursts). She has a practice in Balmain, Sydney. Alison’s presentation will focus on how the food we eat affects behaviour and health. She will also discuss pyrroluria, a condition which causes the body to be depleted in Zinc and Vitamin B6. This is a genetic condition affecting about 10 % of the population which can lead to behavioural problems.

This is a wonderful opportunity for our community to have a specialist visit us!!

Presentation date: Saturday 16th March

Time: 4-6pm.

Cost: FREE I have had the pleasure of hearing Dr Knight speak and can say that it is a presentation not to miss. I encourage all parents to attend.

If you are interested, please phone the school to book in.

P&C

The next P&C meeting is on Tuesday 12th March @ 7.00pm. This will be the AGM. All parents are welcome.

Stage 3 campout So far we have had 3 groups make the trek out to Mr Humphries farm for an overnight stay. This camp is designed for the students and staff to get to know each other ‘in the great outdoors’. I must say I was a little surprised just how keen and excited the students were about making the 11km trek!! The smiles were still there on their return. Go kids!!

Thank you to stage 3 teachers for providing this opportunity for our students.

Kindest regards, Emma Jeffery Principal

Attention Kindergarten Parents To ensure the safety of the youngest members of our school community and to make sure they getting to where they need to be in the afternoons, all kindergarten Students will continue to wear the colour coded tags. This will enable all staff to quickly identify where they should be. We ask that you support us in this and return the tags to school each day. ( we will have a few spares just in case you forget). If your child’s arrangements for going home change please inform your class teacher in writing. If the change occurs through the day a phone call can be made to the office prior to 2.30pm.

SCHOOL NEWS…

CANTEEN NEWS

MON 11/3– Kim Street TUES 12/3– Michelle Stewart

WED 13/3– Mel McCulloch

THURS 14/3– Roxanne Milne

Janelle Scott

FRI 15/3– Amber Donoghue Chritina Jones

MON 18/3– HELP NEEDED

TUES 19/3– HELP NEEDED

WED 20/3– Sharyn Hancox

THURS 21/3– Anne Torrens

FRI 22/3– Carrie Leader Heidi Mainey

Come and support our wonderful school at the

Gunnedah South School P&C

AGM Tuesday 12th March

7.00pm in the staff room

All parents welcome

.

1st Prize: Eggstra Large Special Easter Egg Basket

2nd Prize: Large Easter Egg Basket

3rd Prize: Easter Egg Basket

Tickets $1

Returned to school by Tuesday 26th March. Winners will be announced on Thursday 28th March at Easter Hat Parade.

KS Amber Smith, Ellie Cope, Sam Winnard, Taylah McAllan

KR Tiah Small, Jakoby Webber, Jackson O’Sullivan, Phoebe Street

KL Simone Donnelly, Myah Goman, Jack Fouracre, Tom Carlyon

2H Oliver Roworth, Dylan Stubbs, Alannah Skuthorpe

2M Billie Carter, Connor Wheatley, Alex Letts, Brittany Smith

2W Breeana Ward, Logan Ross, Ryan Carr

3D Nickolas Leech, Paris Thompson

3M Matthew Isbester, Archer Harrison, Hayley West

3/4S Bella Barr, Ronin Petersen, Claire McGuirk

4S Stephanie McArthur, Jade Stark, Oliver Thomas

4W Connor Poeschl, Harry Mason, Sharnie Perry, Lowanna Davison

5F Connor Gallagher, Susan McLauchlan, Steven Craig

5S Bailie Haynes, Jaden Bilsborough, Holly Austin

5Z Celeste Campbell, Holly Whitehurst, Callum Letts

5/6H James Elphick, Carter Cameron, Leytiah McNamara, Josh Green

6F Matthew Ferrett, James Staughton, Blake Blair

KB Jack Borg-Horton, Chad Fisher, Patrick Naura, Katie Eveleigh

KM Coen Fletcher, Ryley Chaffey, Mason Louis

Kitchen Declan Dean-Djuve, Jasmyn Hoppe, Copper Bedggood, Annie Elphick

Drama Coby Higgins

AP

Award Isla W

ise

Silver Daniel Pegg, Celeste Campbell, Steven Craig, Hayden Baker, Tneesha Milne, Cain Eather,

Matthew Ferrett, Matthew Mackay Zoe Fleming, Maddie Hagan, Ashleigh Mills, Paige Murray,

Samantha Randall, Jade Stark, Oliver Thomas, Lowanna Davison, Leytiah McNamara, Eli Rankmore, Stephanie Towns, Holly Austin,

Breeana Ward, Logan Ross

BOOK CLUB

Please send correct money in an separate envelope for each child to the

classroom teacher. Book club closes on THURDAY 14th

MARCH

Annual Egg Drop! At the Gunnedah South Egg Drop your

mission is to design a container that will

protect an egg from a plunge off a two

metre ladder. Your design needs to follow these guidelines:

1. The egg needs to be raw!

2. You can not attach material around the centre of the egg.

Some suggestions for your egg drop -

Balloons or a parachute to slow the egg down.

Soft crushable packing that encloses a lot of air is best. Foam rubber, feather, cotton or synthetic batting might help.

An egg-cellent activity for everyone and it’s amazing how many ways an egg can be packed in order to survive!

The Egg Drop will be held after lunch on Thursday 28th March so entries need to be brought in on the day. Good luck!!!

Easter Hat Parade!

Come and join us for the famous Easter Hat Parade in the school hall on Thursday 28th March at 11:30am in the hall. Each Year group will sing an Easter song and model their beautiful Easter hats! Expect to also see a special furry visitor arrive!

Bunny Modelling Competition Once again this year we will be having our Bunny Modelling Competition. If you want to enter you will need to get working on your masterpiece and give it to Mrs Passfield Wednesday 27th March. This will give her time to judge the entries. Make sure you have your name and class written somewhere on your

Bunny so that the judges can not see it. Some ideas to help you:

Play dough

Foam balls

Face washers

Whatever you can think of, the judges will be looking for unusual and original designs.

Egg Decorating Competition We are also having our Egg Decorating Competition this year. If you want to enter here’s what you need to do:

1. Get a raw egg. Ask mum or dad to use a needle to carefully pierce a hole in the top and bottom of the egg. Blow hard to get all of the yolk out so that your gorgeous egg doesn't end up smelling terrible!!!

2. Decorate your egg.

Please have your entry to Miss Pankhurst on Wednesday 27th March so she can have them judged! Make sure you have your name and class written on the bottom on your entry where the

judges can not see it.

Colouring Competition All students will be completing a colouring in

competition at school and winners will be displayed in the hall on Thursday 28th March .

PRIZES PRIZES PRIZES If you enter into one of the competitions you

will have the chance to win a very yummy prize!!!

Year 6 Boys Trek and Campout What a great trek and campout! The experience allowed us to demonstrate our keys to success. Getting along, resilience, persistence, organisation ... And it was great fun. All participants were asked to do their own planning and packing prior to our expedition, making decisions that would affect them over the two days. Some items were mandatory such as a broad brimmed hat and strong walking shoes. Other items were suggested. The boys were responsible for their own belongings. Take too much gear and you overload yourself for the walk. Take too little or inappropriate gear and there are other repercussions. How much water one would need on the walk was a conundrum as water is very heavy to carry. Part of the brief was for the boys to keep an eye on the weather forecast and adjust their packing accordingly. The forecast was icing on the cake and made for very real decision making.

Each day at school the excitement mounted. With the promise of a fine first day and the likelihood of rain through the night we set forth on our adventure. The children were the decision makers and as it turned out they made good decisions, as children usually do when given the opportunity. Most brought water proof gear that was light to carry and was not bulky in their packs. The conduct of the group through the streets of Gunnedah and over the rougher terrain was excellent, energetic, upbeat, light hearted and polite. Group members chatted and helped each other. Our first stop was a fruit break on the Mullabar flats. From their we travelled further north to the Old Tamworth Road, took a right hand turn and headed east to the Mooki where we crossed using some very strategically placed logs, which all children and most adults negotiated very easily. The party continued east until we reached the road through the Common to the racecourse, thence resuming our northerly route. The SES had inspected the Namoi earlier in the day and deemed it too shallow to warrant using their craft to ferry the boys across so we waded into the ankle deep water and made our way to the far bank. Mr Finlay, Mrs Hobden and Mr Clarke then took the tourists through some private land to the Orange Grove Road, negotiated the road, arrived at the “Daisy Plain” gate and tackled the final kilometre to the campsite. Upon arrival, the boys unpacked, then assembled for a review of safety rules before making off to play. The way they organised themselves, the games they played and the duration of time they played without any reliance on the adults showed how independent they could be. They returned for dinner, dripping with perspiration and enthusiasm. I think all participants expended more energy last Thursday than most year six boys across Australia. After eating a hearty dinner prepared by Chef Finlay and friends, accompanied by damper prepared by Miss Small, we had a few more games and some final preparation before bedtime. Within half an hour of going to bed the only audible sound was snoring.

As the boys had to adjust their planning prior to the campout, so too the adults. Mr Clarke, Mr Gallagher, Mr Humphries, Mr Jeffery and Mr Baker travelled out the day before and erected a marquee loaned to us by Goodwin and Kenny to ensure that everyone could remain dry, should the rain eventuate. Plans were also made before the trek for transporting the boys back to school if it was too wet. Both proved necessary adjustments. The rain came very early on Sunday morning but most of our group could not tell you when it started because they were sound asleep. The first morning of an excursion usually sees the early birds waking, beginning to chat, moving around and then eventually waking the rest. Not this time. No-one stirred until a quarter to seven, with eight and a half hours sleep under their belts. By morning the rain had lightened off to a mist. Most boys opted to go out with their rain gear on; some to play, some to gather firewood, some to explore further and some to stand near the bonfire and chat. Some were instrumental in breakfast preparations.

After breakfast we packed up, headed to the front gate to be picked up in John Millerd’s bus, kindly

co-ordinated by Mrs Heath.

Year 6 Boys Trek and Campout cont. Back at school, most with wet shoes and some with damp clothing, we were given a splendid second breakfast of bacon, eggs and toast by the kitchen crew. Dry clothes were shared around and wet ones washed and dried. Throughout the excursion it was interesting to watch how each child organised themselves, how they interacted with others, how they managed the changing circumstances, who was independent and who sought help from adults for the smallest reasons. Year six boys were given a challenge all wrapped up in fun. They learnt much and conducted themselves admirably in the process. The weather presented a small hurdle which they cleared with the ease which small hurdles warrant. Possibly the most salient lesson was that they could have taken the easy road and opted out because of the weather forecast, but quitting is a very poor default position. One needs a substantial reason to give up. And if you give up you will never know what you might have accomplished or what you may have missed out on. Take those attitudes with you gentlemen. They will serve you well and enrich your lives.

You were great boys and we look forward to your company in Canberra.

Gunnedah South Swimming Carnival

On Friday 22nd February, all students in years 3-6 walked down to

Gunnedah Memorial Pool to take part in the annual school swimming carnival.

It was an impressive sight to see everyone dressed in their house colours and

participation was an all time high. All students were great ambassadors for our school and behaviour and sportsmanship throughout the day was outstanding.

As usual there were a large number of students who

excelled in the pool. The overall age winners of the day were:

Junior Boy– Ashton Harris

Junior Girl– Sophie Williams

11 Years Boy– Jackson Carr

11 Years Girl– Anaya Baol

Senior Boy– Bayley Williams

Senior Girls– Laura Ewington

It was fantastic to see so many children participate in all the events. In some races there

were up to 7 heats. The enthusiasm in the novelty events was also excellent and a number of Encouragement Awards were handed out to children who did their best

on the day and were involved in a number of activities.

It was also a battle to see which house would win on the day. All children who participated in any event, both races and novelty events gained a point to go

towards their house. This made it a close struggle between the house groups. At the end of the day Banksia were the

winning house with a total of 294 pointes followed by Boronia, Wattle then Waratah.

A huge thank you to all the parents and volunteers who helped make the carnival such a huge success. Also, thank you to all the

teachers and staff who helped out with the preparation and organisation of the day.

A big thank you to Miss Flannery for all her hard work leading up to the carnival, you were greatly missed on the day! A great day was had by all!

Zone Swimming Carnival

Last Wednesday more than 50 children represented Gunnedah South at the Zone PSSA Swimming Carnival. All of these children swam very well with a large number going on to compete at the Regional carnival in Armidale. Good Luck to these swimmers! A huge thank you goes to Miss Stanford, Mrs Kylie Williams and all of the wonderful parents who helped on the day! Without you our carnival would not run as smoothly. This year we have introduced a $2 entry levy to our Zone PSSA carnivals (swimming, athletics and cross country) to cover the cost of a manager/teacher to take the team to the next representative level. Please be aware that all Zone PSSA trials and carnivals are recorded as School Business, therefore students must be signed back in to school. If you wish to take them home afterwards they need to be signed out in the school office.

Mrs Henderson

Stage 3 Rotations Week 7 Monday-11/3 Tuesday– 12/3 Wednesday– 13/3 Thursday –14/3 Friday– 15/3

Miss Folley - Technology

5F 6F 5Z

No

Rotations on

Thursdays

6H

Mrs Heath - HSIE

5/6H 5S 5F

Miss Small - PE/PD

5S 5F 6F

Mr Humphries -

Science 6H 5/6H 5S

Miss Zerner - Art

5Z 6H 5/6H

Miss Flannery - Drama

6F 5Z 6H

6F

5Z

5F

5S

5/6H

2W have shown an improvement in their listening skills. They are trying

hard to be patient and helpful. Congratulations 2W

2H have shown great enthusiasm whilst in the garden.

They have also proved to be efficient waters.

Congratulations 2H

The Golden Trowel Award goes to… 2H

The Golden Whisk Award goes to…….2W

Summer Squash Sweet Loaf Season: Summer – Autumn – Winter Serves: 2 Loaves Fresh from the garden: Summer squash, eggs. Equipment: Electric beaters, large bowl, bowl scrapper, spoon measures, cup measures, grater, chopping board, peeler, knife, 2 loaf tins, spray oil, chopping board, chef knife.

Ingredients 3 eggs, beaten 2 cups white sugar 1 cup vegetable oil 2 teaspoons vanilla 3 cups plain flour 3 teaspoons baking powder 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 2 teaspoons nutmeg 2 teaspoons ginger 2 cups summer squash, peeled, deseeded and grated

Method 1. Preheat oven to 165 degrees celsius. Spray the 2 loaf tins with spray oil. 2. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the eggs until fluffy. Beat in the sugar, oil, and vanilla. 3. Gradually mix in the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg. 4. Fold in the squash. Spoon into the prepared loaf tins equally. 5. Bake for approx 50 minutes in the oven. 6. Serve and enjoy!

Happy Cooking!