Leadership Update #24
Dear Families,
Today sees the end to a very busy, but rewarding semester. Thank you to students, families and staff for your ongoing commitment to learning at Happy Valley Primary School.
NAIDOC Week is held from 4-11 July and celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC Week is celebrated by all Australians and is a great opportunity to learn more about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
As NAIDOC Week occurs during the holidays, we have offered a competition to our students. This year’s NAIDOC Week theme is: Heal Country! And we have asked students to think about what this mean to them and to create a piece of art that represents this theme. Students registered interest and competition packs have been sent home. Entries are due by Wednesday 21 July, we look forward to seeing the finished masterpieces!
On Wednesday, our girls Rugby team joined a number of schools at West Beach Sports Park. Our team played well throughout the day, unfortunately losing by a golden point to become Runner up State Champions. Congratulations to the team, for many this was the first time to be involed in Rugby competitions.
This term’s Casual Day proceeds will go to Minton Farm Animal Rescue. Minton Farm is located at Cherry Gardens in and is a non-profit, non-government organisation run entirely on community goodwill and volunteer time. Minton Farm rescues animals in need and to date overall has rescued over 11,500 native animals. Thank you for your contributions towards this great cause!
Today we welcomed the Jam Band to our school. The Just Add Music Band is a group of passionate Adelaide musicians providing a fun, entertaining, interactive and educational children’s show. They aim to inspire students and help develop confidence and self-esteem through student engagement and interaction. Our students had a wonderful time and it was a great way to end the term.
Responding to Abuse and Neglect (RAN) Training has now been replaced by Responding to Risks of Harm, Abuse and Neglect – Education and Care (RRHAN-EC). This training course is now available and all volunteers must update their current mandatory notification certificate with this new training by 31 December 2021. More information will be available next term.
Thank you to all of our volunteers in the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen program, we can’t do it without you! Thursday’s superstar team of regulars, volunteered with Claire Bosworth’s class. Thanks to Sharee, Caitlin, Peter, Lars, Nigel and Susie.
We appreciate the effort required to be a volunteer at a school site and thank those who are able to contribute their time!
On Sunday the 18 July we will be having a Working Bee between 10am and 12pm. The focus for this will be planting and signage in the wetlands. Please come on down if you can!
We wish everyone a happy and safe holidays and look forward to students returning refreshed and ready to learn in Term 3!
Kind regards,
Paul and Anthea
Leadership Update #23
Dear Families,
We had a beautful, sunny day on Monday when we welcomed students from Seacliff, Woodend, Craigburn, O’Sullivans Beach, Southern Montessori and McCauley Community School for the second YELP session of 2021. Our students led the day with the Kaurna Acknowledgement, Dakota, Jack and Emma shared this role with Emma speaking her part in the Kaurna language. Housekeeping was conducted by Lilli and Eden managed the Audio and ran the ice-breaker game.
Our Eco Leaders from years 5, 6 and 7 took 3 tours around the school, sharing the different Sustainability Programs we have at Happy Valley. These included the rainwater tanks, worms, greenhouse, compost, wetlands, chooks, frog pond, Pipe/Reconciliation Garden and our kitchen.
After recess each school worked on their own projects. Our focus at Happy Valley is rubbish and recycling. Sophie, one of the Greening Adelaide Educators, spent some time with one of our groups and they talked about how we can educate our school students and the community.
Before lunch the students were put into mixed school groups and had to build a tower made from marshmallows & spaghetti. Della & Jess were in the winning group that made a tower that was over 500mm.
After lunch Cory Turner talked to the students about Kaurna Art. This was a great way to end the day.
At Monday night’s Governing Council meetin
g, the Grounds Committee presented a plan for replacing the blue boundary fence around the whole school. This will be completed with the funds provided by the State Government as part of the Priority Maintenance Project. The school will need to contribute some funds towards this and is in consultation with the Fundraising Committee. Recently a tree audit has identified some trees of concern, these along with some growth on the boundary line will be removed and trimmed over coming weeks. The school’s priority is to keep the environmental impact to a minimum with a view to revegitate several areas over the coming months.
On Friday our two Pedal Prix teams competed at Victoria Park in the Australian HPV Super Series. It was a wet and muddy day with intermittent showers. Our students performed well over the six hours and came in at 13th and 17th overall. Thank you to the families who supported the teams on the day.
Towards the end of this term we will be conducting the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). NCCD is an annual collection of information about Australian school students with disability. The NCCD enables schools, education authorities and governments to better understand the needs of students with disability and how they can be best supported at school. Please find information 23_NCCD_letter_for_parents_guardians_carers.
The Department has released another Year 7 to High School update, which can be found below.
23_7tohs-parent-update-week9-term2-2021.a4
On Tuesday HVPS hosted the School Sport SA Year 6, Round 1 Netball Knockout competitions. Clapham and Seaford Rise Primary School’s attended. We played Clapham in the first game, and were defeated 29-25. The second game, Seaford Rise defeated Clapham 21-19. Happy Valley then defeated Seaford Rise 23-8. Congratulations girls, we look forward to Round 2 at Tatachilla next term!
Kind regards,
Paul and Anthea
Leadership Update #22
Dear Families,
Yesterday we hosted the 1st round of the School Sport SA Boys AFL. St Martin De Porre, Seaford Rise and Hallet Cove East Schools joined us. We played really well and came out with 1 win and 1 loss finishing 3rd overall. We were really impressed with the sportsmanship all of our team demonstrated on the day.
Next Monday, Happy Valley Primary School is hosting the second YEL (Youth Environment Leaders) Program session of the year. Our year 5, 6 & 7 Eco Leaders will be attending along with students from a number of other local primary schools. YELP will be hosting Kaurna artist Corey Turner to run a workshop for students in the afternoon. We look forward to showcasing our school!
Our new student use of mobile phones and personal devices at school policy will be tabled at the next Governing Council Meeting to be held on Monday 21 June. Once endorsed, the policy will be distributed to families and will be in effect from Term 3, 2021.
Today our school Pedal Prix teams are competed at Victoria Park in the Australian HPV Super Series. Here are some photos from the day. We look forward to hearing about how the teams performed next week!
Have a lovely weekend.
Kind regards,
Paul and Anthea
Friday – Book Swap Trolley
Every Friday there will be a book trolley near the door of the Library.
This is our ‘Book Swap’ trolley where you can ‘Take A Book’ and ‘Leave A Book’.
You can leave any children’s book in ‘good’ condition and exchange it for anything on the trolley.
We ask that parent’s help the Junior Primary student’s with this if possible and I am always available to help.
Please come in and look at our ‘Parent Library’ titles that are available for you to borrow with some new ones arriving soon.
Robyn Overduin
Resource Centre
Leadership Update #21
Dear Families,
This week has seen a change in the weather and Winter has arrived! We understand many of our students don’t seem to feel the cold, however, we encourage all children to have their school jumpers in case they need them. There are a number of jumpers in lost property, please remember to label all clothing so it is easy for students to find misplaced items. Please remember that all students must comply with the uniform policy. We have had a few children wearing jumpers from out of school sports and activities, please support your children to wear the correct uniform.
Next Monday is the Queen’s Birthday Public Holiday followed by a Pupil Free Day on the Tuesday. Staff will be spending the day working in their professional learning teams on our Wave 1, 2 and 3 interventions and planning using the new Australian Curriculum resources.
Please find attached a Parent Update for Year 7 to High School in 2022. The update talks about benefits to all children and discusses the strengths and needs of all students moving into years 7 and 8, so that teachers can best plan for their learning and wellbeing. The Department’s key focus is to set all children up for success in high school, including those with additional needs.
On Thursday we had a number of students from our school representing Southern Valley at the State Cross Country Championships held at Oakbank Racecourse. Congratulations to those who competed in the cold weather, we’re very proud of you!
Our new student use of mobile phones and personal devices at school policy will be tabled at the next Governing Council Meeting to be held on Monday 21 June. Once endorsed, the policy will be distributed to families and will be in effect from Term 3, 2021.
We have had a group of students working in their own time, supported by Robyn and Wendy N to create an entry for a competition for a new nature play space at Glenthorne National Park-Ityamaiitpinna Yarta. The park is Adelaide’s newest national park was officially proclaimed on Thursday 28 May 2020. It includes the former O’Halloran Hill Recreation Park located 16 km south of Adelaide in O’Halloran Hill.
Students from our school were invited to create an element they wish to see in the nature play space, guided by the information collected from the community at the 2019 open days. Three of our students completed entries which are due today. We wish Billie, Emma R and Isabella all the best for their designs!
Have a safe and happy long weekend, we’ll see students back on Wednesday the 16th.
Kind regards,
Paul and Anthea
Leadership Update #20
Dear Families,
Between the 26th of May and the 3rd of June we have celebrated Reconciliation Week at HVPS. The theme for this year is More than a Word. Reconciliation takes action.
Reconciliation is a journey for all Australians – as individuals, families, communities, organisations and importantly as a nation. At the heart of this journey are relationships between the broader Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Our partnership is about to welcome a new Aboriginal Community Education Officer who will work across a number of schools including Aberfoyle Park High School.
Thank you to the families who attended our Working Bee last Sunday. We had beautiful weather and were able to mulch, spread out the bark chip pile by the front fence, tidied up trees in the Million Trees Forest and cleared out the water way in the Junior Primary Nature Play area.
We are in the process of developing a new student use of mobile phones and personal devices at school policy. Under the department’s policy primary aged students are not permitted to access their mobile phones and personal devices during the school day. Currently students are expected to drop their mobile phones off at the front office at the commencement of the school day and then collect them after 3:15pm. Any new processes will be communicated with our students and families once we have finalised the policy.
Towards the end of this term we will be conducting the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). NCCD is an annual collection of information about Australian school students with disability. The NCCD enables schools, education authorities and governments to better understand the needs of students with disability and how they can be best supported at school. Please find attached some parent and family information regarding this collection.
Two of our students, Neive and Jasmine have been representing HVPS in the School Sport SA, Southern Valley District Netball team. They have had games all week and we look forward to hearing about how the team performed.
Today we have Alex and Melinda, our Onkaparinga Waste & Recycle Support Officers along with Jeremy Gramp our Greening Adelaide Education Officer at school conducting a waste audit. Eco Leaders have collected our school’s waste since Wednesday and are spending the day sorting through our rubbish under the COLA. Once the sorting has been concluded, Alex and Melinda will provide the school with a report which will give us some recommendations of where to next with our school’s waste reduction.
Have a lovely weekend.
Kind regards,
Paul and Anthea
Leadership Update #19
Dear Families,
It has been a big week for staff and students with the External School Review taking place. We welcomed Katherine Holman and Rebecca Read to our school to showcase our programs and student learning. They met with varied groups of students, parents and staff to ask them questions about the effectiveness of the school’s planning and teaching processes. We are very proud of all of our community. Katherine and Rebecca commented on our student’s abilities to articulate their understanding of their own learning, the involvement of the parent community and the high level of collaboration between staff. Results will be published and shared with the community early next term.
The Department has released another update for the Transition of Year 7 to High School next year. Please find details below about a focus on your child’s learning and the benefits of a High School setting for specialist teachers and resources.
19_7tohs-parent-update-week5-term2-2021.a4
Congratulations to our two Pedal Prix teams who competed in the Australian HPV Super Series at Tailem Bend. Our teams placed 10th and 31st overall after the 6 hours of racing. What an incredible achievement!
On Wednesday our girl’s Netball team participated in the first round of School Sport SA Netball Knockout competitions. Our team was unsuccessful against Clapham PS in the first game, but won in the second against Calvary Lutheran. Congratulations to the players and thank you to the volunteers and families for their support.
On Thursday our students from Reception to Year 3 attended the Dream Big Festival at the Festival Centre. All students saw a stage version of Alison Lester’s ‘Magic Beach’. After the play the R-2 students participated in a Silent Disco and the Year 3 students visited the SA Museum. Thank you to all the volunteers who went along with our students.
Today Happy Valley Primary hosted Round 1 of the School Sport SA Girl’s Football Knockout. HVPS successfully defeated Braeview in the first game and were defeated by Flagstaff Hill in the second. Thanks to our players, Mr Carter, OSHC and parents for supporting our students.
Please remember to check in via QR codes when attending Out of School Hours Sport. Have a great weekend!
This Sunday, 20 May our school is having a Working Bee. Please come along if you are free between 12pm and 2pm for a general clean up including the Million Trees Forest.
Kind regards,
Paul and Anthea
Leadership Update #18
Dear Families,
Congratulations to our Year 3, 5 and 7 students for completing NAPLAN Online this year. Overall the online process went well with minimum technical issues. We will find out results later in Term 3 and will use the information to inform teacher planning, school direction and student goal setting.
On Monday and Tuesday of next week our school welcomes Katherine Holman and Rebecca Read who will facilitate our External School Review process. They will be speaking with staff, students and parents & Governing Council members.
On Monday we had our school photos. MSP Photographers will be coming back on Friday the 28 May at 9:00am to take any absent or missed photos.
Today Happy Valley hosted the Southern Valley District Regional Rugby Competition. Our teams were very successful with our boy’s team coming third and our girls winning their overall competition. The girls will go on to the state finals later in the term. Congratulations! It was a very long day and we know there will be some tired students tonight!
Today is the due date for families to submit their online applications for our Year 6 and 7 students for High School.
Kind regards,
Paul and Anthea
Cultural Burn, Tuthangga, Adelaide Parklands 14th May 2021
The culmination of meetings between the City of Adelaide, the Kaurna community and the Department for Environment and Water (DEW) was a bio-cultural burn in a small area of the Adelaide Park Lands. This project is to incorporate Kaurna knowledge into the management of the Park Lands.
Lilli, Della and Mum, Nikki and I joined other interested people in the Southern Parklands on Friday 14th May. The morning started with official speeches from a range of people from interested groups. As the guests organised themselves, an Elder and a younger man used a wooden dish to hold coals and green leaves to make smoke. This smoke is an important part of any Aboriginal ceremony and was present during the whole ceremony. The smoke is believed to cleanse and rid the area of bad spirits and help protect people and their well-being.
After the opening ceremony we all followed Victor Steffensen to the area of the burn. Victor is well known for using his filmmaking, writing and musician skills as a way of sharing his traditional knowledge to improve our Country both culturally and environmentally. Today it was his skill as an Indigenous Fire Practitioner.
Victor told us how a seasonal cool burn meant vegetation, insects and animals all benefited. The time of the year for the burn was very important. Victor explained that the traditional Aboriginal people lived off the land. The Country and its vegetation supplied shelter, food and medicine as well as tools. Over thousands of years the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders learnt how to look after their Country. Many of our native vegetation need to be burnt to germinate their seeds. The cool burn helps reinvigorate the vegetation and does not damage soil. Birds know to search amongst clumps of burnt grasses to find seeds.
We watched as Victor and a group of Kaurna and Aboriginals from other groups joined him with green branches to keep the fire under control. Victor checked the wind and then used coals from the smoking bowl to encourage the fire to burn in a circle. Because there was a tinge of green grass already growing, the fire did not race.
As the fire moved over the Parklands, we followed and looked with amazement at the green shoots still there after the burn.
It was an amazing experience. We learnt that the traditional burn is not something that happens singularly, it is part of looking after our whole ecosystem.
Wendy Nicolle
