Avondale Herald

Feeling left out in any circumstance is not enjoyable for anyone – young or old.  On Thursday morning we enjoyed the first of our class assemblies for the year and Year 3 focused on the Avondale core value of inclusion.  Their dramatised version of Mucky the Penguin was a simple yet powerful reminder of the value of difference and the importance of celebrating the contributions of each one,  no matter that they may seem to ‘march to the beat of a different drum’.  Thank you to Miss Collins and each and every student for a memorable lesson.

Have you wandered to the far side of the Multi-Purpose Hall yet to admire the ‘inkies’ created by the girls and boys of Avondale?  There they all are – individual, colourful, yet all ‘holding hands’ to symbolise the strength of unity and inclusiveness.  These were the first project inspired by the Treasure Keepers program so ably facilitated by the Year 5 and 6 students.

This week also saw the presentation of badges to the new SRC representatives.  We will commence meeting next week.  The SRC has a very significant role to play in the life of the school as they represent the interests and ideas of all students in engaging with social justice (charitable initiatives) and school improvement.

The playground is being brightened up with the addition of four handball courts and three sets of hopscotch squares (one each in English, French and Mandarin).  We will continue to look for other ways and means of developing the range of engaging play activities for all students.

An appropriate emergency assembly area has now been located for Avondale students and staff with the kind cooperation of Spruce Restaurant.  Accordingly prior to the end of Term One we will be holding an evacuation practice.

Congratulations to Tara Andrew and Neve Dutch who were presented their Bronze Merit Awards this week.  Holly Primmer has worked extremely hard to receive a total of ten merit certificates and as a result was presented with her Silver Merit Award.  Well done!

Please enjoy your weekend and find some time to stop and ‘smell the roses’.

Mr Andrew Coote

This term in H.S.I.E. Year 1 has been learning about Workers in the Community.  We decided to interview Mr Coote as a worker in the school community.
 Louis asked Mr Coote, “What is your job?”
 Mr Coote replied, “My job is to look after the children, teachers and parents of this school.” 

Maria asked, “Why do you do it?”
“I like children and because I enjoy it.

The children talked about ways they could make Mr Coote’s job easier. The children’s suggestions included; helping in the classroom, helping each other, keeping the school tidy, loving school, putting your hand up to answer questions, taking turns, talking to Mr Coote and listening carefully.

Year 1 are now on the look- out for another worker to interview!

Shared reading has been fun as we have read a variety of Dr Seuss books. The Cat in the Hat helped us learn about rhyming words. Did you know that words that do not look the same can still rhyme, for example, new and too. We also read Green Eggs and Ham, which inspired us to cook VERY green scrambled eggs! Delicious!?
Cooking eggs fitted very well into our Science topic, A Healthy Lunchbox. Why not ask a Year One child about Freddy Five Group and Regie Vegie. We are looking forward to learning even more about healthy food next week when we visit Bollywood Veggies.

This week Mr Juan O’Shea attended the International ICT conference held at Suntec and hosted by the Ministry of Edication. It was a wonderful opportunity for him to listen to respected speakers and to participate in some new and innovative workshops. We look forward to Mr O’Shea returning and sharing his new found skills with both staff and students.

Australian National Curriculum update

The Australian National Curriculum was launched early this week (March 1, 2010), and all Australians are invited to visit the new website and have their say.  The purpose of the new National Curriculum is to deliver a set of national education goals to better prepare young people for their participation in a changing world.

 At the moment, the existence of eight different sets of education goals makes it difficult for the 80,000 students who relocate interestate each year.
The government believes that a uniform curriculum will make it easier to improve students’ learning and to develop high quality resources, and all Australian education ministers have committed to a set of national goals.

 According to Professor Barry McGaw, author of the draft, “The overall aim is to produce a final curriculum in English, history, mathematics, and science that equips all young Australians with the essential skills, knowledge and capabilities to thrive and compete in the globalised world and information rich workplaces of the current century.”
Some of the features of the new curriculum are:

• expectations in early years of learning clarified to address complexity of teaching to diverse student population
• the explicit teaching of grammar at every level that a child studies in every grade
• reading and writing taught using phonics, recognising and sounding out letters of the alphabet
• “the three L’s” of literacy, language and literature
• the teaching of “fluent and legible” handwriting
• literature studies using texts of “enduring or artistic value”
• the teaching of history in every grade
• history of major Asian partners as well as European origins
• greater acknowledgement of Australian history, including indegenous perspectives
• concept of sustainability and climate change to be taught
• science studies to be encouraged in university/ vocational training
• mental and written mathematical strategies to be tought along with other methods
• the interpretation of data to make informed judgements

Australian parents and teachers are all invited to have a say in the draft National Curriculum.  A new website has been set up for this purpose.   There, people will find the draft National Curriculum for Maths, English, Science and History, along with an introductory video, an online survey and instructions for providing feedback.

 The consultation period for these four learning areas will extend through to 23 May, 2010 and the final curriculum will be available to be taught in Australian schools from as early as 2011.

http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Home

Kim Vernon

Curriculum Coordinator

Historic Bus Tour of Singapore on Friday 12 March
There a still a few places available (although not many). Please make sure you have booked and have a cheque to Anita Travia  by Tuesday 9 March. More Info

Next PA Meeting Date
Thursday 18 March: Next PA Meeting is our AGM.   All welcome.
Time: 7pm   Venue: Avondale Grammar School

Last week’s Coffee Morning
Thanks to Alka Chandiramani from the Careers Resource Centre for Expats (CRCE) and all the parents who came to listen and ask for advice.  There is a networking meeting for CRCE on 25^th March in the evening, Ministry of Manpower (MOM) will be there to explain new visa requirements and answer questions.  More info can be found at www.aasingapore.com.  We will be getting some brochures which will be put in the parents lounge.  Any ideas on guests for the future are welcome.

Book Club this Friday
Book Club will meet this Friday 5th March in the Meeting Room at school, after lines in the morning. Book to be discussed is The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. The book for the following month (date TBA) is The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein.   All welcome!!!

Avondale Playgroup
Next playgroup will be on Wednesday 17  March at Kathleen Baudinette’s house in Upper Serangoon Rd. Please contact her for directions. Mobile number is 9027 169. From 9.15am.

It has been another varied and busy week in the Avondale community.  ECA’s continue and there are some very passionate teachers and children involved!  I have had a ‘sneak peek’ at some very classy cheerleading and been amazed by mechanical scorpions in robotics activities.  It is great to see so many students taking advantage of the varied range of activities available after school Monday to Thursday.

Wandering around the classrooms group work seems to be a key feature and educationally what great benefit there is for your children in learning being conducted in this way.  Team work, relationship building,  working with others of similar ability, being challenged in your thinking – all these are benefits of well managed group work.

We have received 31 responses to the parent survey and it has been very helpful reading through the information provided.  The key themes and issues are being teased out and are and will continue to form a key element of current and future planning for the Phoenix Park site.  Thank you to all those mums and dads who have taken the time to complete this simple questionnaire.

Sunday 21 February marked the start of what has been a very hot week.  West Coast Park was a terrific venue for the PA Welcome Picnic for 2010.  There was a very strong turnout and families enjoyed mixing, mingling and chatting with old friends and new as well as with the many staff who turned out to support this important event.  My family were made to feel most welcome and it was a real pleasure to spend a few hours just getting to know the Avondale family a little more.

Thursday 25 heralded our sports carnival morning out at Toa Payoh.  Thanks to excellent organisation from Mr Perkowsky and the staff team,  the morning ran very smoothly.  The country and school spirit were amazing and the parent turnout just fantastic.  Everyone had a chance to be involved from preschool to Year 6.  Each one gave of their best and there were a lot of happy but tired children at the end of the morning’s adventures.

Friday morning saw a fantastic parent and friend turnout to see ribbons presented for those who placed in the various carnival events.  Many then stayed on for a very informative PA coffee morning in the multi – purpose hall.  A most informative speaker explored the topic of working and living on a dependent pass in Singapore.  Thanks to the committee for organising the morning and for engaging with such a relevant topic.

This afternoon you will have received a letter outlining the pending resignation of Miss Vernon.  We are very sad to see her go but also excited for her as she explores working within a different educational setting and curriculum framework.  Change is never easy but it is inevitable.  The critical issue is working hard to appoint and retain high quality staff (and Avondale has a team of excellent teachers and administrators)while also ensuring a smooth transition and handover for the sake of the children.  We are committed to both of these tasks in a strategic and purposeful manner.  You will continue to be updated on staff appointments as authentic information is available – the ‘talk’ and the ‘walk’ must match.

Have a great weekend everyone and try something new!

What are we working on?
• Solving a termite problem in the caterpillars classroom
• Removing the concrete buried in the grass preschool playground (the Landlord has agreed to do this)
• Exploring with the Landlord other potential playing spaces in the Phoenix Park complex (meeting held Wednesday morning this past week)
• Reducing the most unhelpful echo effect in the multi-purpose hall
• Painting up of handball squares and hopscotch games in the front play space
• Quote, purchase and install a notice board for parents in the portico area at the front of the school
• Purchasing bench seats for the front playing area for children to sit on during their eating times and for parents to use while waiting before and after school

Mr Andrew Coote

Head of Avondale Grammar School