Newsletter 2nd August 2024

Dear Duncraig Primary School Families,

Green and Gold seems to have gripped us all over the last week with our Aussie Olympic team shining both on and off the sporting field. With so much expected of our athletes, especially our younger athletes, our Aussie team have stepped up to the plate and shone in their commitment and their performances.

Getting to this world platform takes years of training, disappointments, triumphs, resilience, and goal setting- all the qualities that we focus on each day with goals for our students.  So much can be learnt from our Olympic and Paralympic role models.

It was great to see such commitment and support in our own Faction Cross Country last Friday.  Our thanks to Mr Orzel for coordinating this event, with great support from Mrs Finni who supported training over the past weeks.

Many students showed their commitment and prowess with some fast times over the course. There were also many personal bests achieved which is so important to setting personal goals and working towards achieving them.  Our place-getters are detailed below in the Newsletter.

Next Tuesday, 5th August, our Duncraig Primary School Cross country team will compete at the interschool Cross Country event held at Davallia Primary School.

Thank you to our wonderful teachers who conducted parent interviews on Thursday. It was a great opportunity for parents to meet with your child’s teacher/s and discuss academic achievement and progress over Semester 1 and to set up for Semester 2.  Positive parent partnerships are integral to every student’s journey,

Room 13 Assembly

Mrs Firman’s Room 13 Assembly was a fabulous display of how we are the same and yet different.
The students entertained us with their rendition of “Unstoppable” by Sia.  The words are a reminder of what we can do when we set goals and commit to achieving them.
“I am unstoppable,
 I am so powerful, I don’t need batteries to play.”
I am so confident, I am unstoppable today.”

Orchestra – IMMS

Congratulations to all of our instrumentalists and our Music teacher, Mrs Ruscoe who entertained us with “Chariots of Fire” at Thursday’s assembly.  Each of these students is part of the highly regarded instrumental music program which is run through Instrumental Music School Services.

Selection into this program is based on musical aptitude testing and other criteria. Our Duncraig Primary School musicians are a fabulous example of the benefits of this outstanding program.

P&C Bake Sale

A big thank you to the P&C and Room 13 for all your efforts with the Baked Treats before Room 13’s assembly on Thursday.
We also appreciate your classroom filling the canteen volunteer shifts this fortnight Lots of new faces coming to help!
Next classroom to shine and provide baked treats for the stall and fill canteen spots surrounding their assembly is Room 17!
Canteen helping fortnight for room 17 is from the 5th Aug – 16th Aug.
Thank you for your ongoing support!

Take care everyone!

Dr Melinda Harris
Principal

Faction Cross Country Carnival- Place Winners

Year 6 girls;  Marta S, Emilia J, Taylor D, Sophie K
Yr 6 Boys:  Jake P, Edie R, Jayden Mc, Elijah P

 

Year 5 Girls:  Emmie L, Kenna C, Scarlett C, Olivia M
 Year 5 Boys:  Kade P, Jacob A, Deacon T, 4th draw – Lennox N & LeBron B & Max J

Year 4  Boys: Bodhi H, Giles B, Zavier R, Mitchell G
Year 4 Girls:  Aisling O, 2nd place draw Evelyn W& Ivy B, Elsie B, Kassandra I

Year 3 Boys:  Benji J, Nate W, Hudson T, Hugo L
 Year 3 Girls: Shona O, Annabelle P, Maeva D, Brodie V

Year 2 Boys:  Jobe G, Griffin N, Jackson V, Harvey B
Yr 2 Girls:     Ava N, Zola F, Kristen H, Ella M

Yr 1 Girls:  Elysse K, Ava K, Sage W, Mila V
Yr 1 Boys:   Lucas C, Matthew O, Charlie N, Oliver H

 

PP Girls:  Caitlyn C, Amelie M, Lyla, Charlotte A
 PP Boys:  Luca K, Arlo H, Harry B, 4th draw Harry H & Charlie H

Winter Sports – Shield Winners Volleyball, Netball, Soccer

A very successful Winter Carnival for Duncraig Primary School resulted in Shield winners across Netball, Volleyball and Football.  Soccer also had a great season finishing 3rd place.  Special thanks to Mr O, teachers, staff and parents who volunteered to guarantee such a smooth carnival.

Before and After School Supervision

Whilst we are pleased to have parents and children staying after school to enjoy the grounds and their friends, please ensure you have line of sight of your child. There have been several instances recently where children have put themselves in danger by playing in non-play areas.
Before school supervision of students begins at 8.20am, so unless your child has a before school activity, they are not to arrive before 8.20am.
Thank you for your understanding.

Merit Certificate recipients:

CONGRATULATIONS to our Merit Award Super Stars from the Week 3 assembly are as follows:

Room 14 Eloise B. and Leo C. Room 16 Finlay W. and Lola C. Room 17 Samuel de. and Harvey F. Room 18 Caleb W. and Quinn P. Room 13 Liva A. and Luke M. Room 12 Henry A. and Harvey B. Room 11 Indie D, Charlie M. Room 10 Noah V, Imogen C. Room 8 Scarlett B. and Lutha C. Room 7 Samuel A. and Cameron M. Room 6 Harrison T. and Caris B. Room 5 Luka R. Room 4 Lucie H and Arianna M.  Room 3 Yasminah H. and Deacon T. Room 1 Rigby H. and Edward M. Room 2 Leo G., Nikietah K and Jobe L.

Student of the Month recipients:

CONGRATULATIONS to our Student of the Month Award Outstanding recipients from the Week 3 assembly – Room 14 Archer S. Room 16 Elsie D. Room 17 Charlie M. Room 18 Elijah R. Room 13 Issey C. Room 12 Stella M. Room 11. Room 10 Room 8 Jaeger B. Room 7 Charlee S. Room 6 Nevaeh. Room 5 Jovie J. Room 3 Ryan T. Room 1 Dane C. Room 2 Keira V.  Room 4 Callum A. Room 11 Rumi B,  Room 10 Elise C

Upcoming Events

Mon 5th August WAGSMS  Crown Perth 11.30am – 1.30pm

Tues 6th August  Interschool Cross Country (9:00am – 12:00 pm Davallia Primary School

Wed 7th August   Book week Incursion PP – Yr 6 “Maybe a Miracle”

Wed 7th August – Teachers engage with Moderation across Network schools

Wed 21st August – Book Week Parade

Community Notices

Newsletter 13th September 2024

Dear Duncraig Primary School Families,

Being the principal at Duncraig Primary School is a privilege and every day brings new challenges and rewards.  I have thoroughly enjoyed my contract at Duncraig Primary School and I have worked with a wonderful team that have ensured that this fabulous school is in great shape and continues to build on strengths. Some of our wonderful achievements include:

Positive Behaviour Policy and processes, High Impact Teaching strategies across classes including Daily Reviews, Data informed profiling, BYOD sessions and refinements, Parent interviews, Music and instrumental concerts, Winter sport, Cross country, Athletics carnivals, Morning sport, Running club, Early years extension, PEAC, Robogirls, Book Week, K-6 Writing moderations across Network schools, Year 1 Phonics Initiative, Science Week showcase.

I would like to thank the teachers, students, families and the fantastic administrative team that I work with everyday who ensure that our school continues to be “Our Best.”

I look forward to hearing of all the wonderful things that Duncraig Primary School continues to strive for and achieve.

BYOD Session

Thanks to Meg Klaver, Jo Watkinson, Elena Adams and the year 3 families who attended the BYOD information sessions last week.  Some updates to our BYOD program on the horizon include:

  • Sessions with parents who want to set up restrictions with their child’s iPad at home. Offered in Feb next year
  • Option of iPads staying at in collaboration with parents.
  • Regular cyber safety sessions for parents.  In Term 3, we have a YSafe workshop for parents to promote cyber safety at home.
  • Introduction of Beacon app for parents to use to assist in developing family rules and regulations around device use.

RUOK Day

On Thursday, 12th September, we acknowledged RUOk Day?  Staff and students all got into the swing of this important day.
We can all help by checking on each other and help others feel connected.

We can help our children learn how they can support each other and be good friends. RUOk Day is a wonderful opportunity to start conversations about feelings, who are our trusted people? and who can help?
Lots of our classes participated in RUOK/ activities below:
Room 13- The 4 steps to check in 

In Room 13, we made yellow paper chains to show the 4 steps:

Ask | Listen | Action | Check In
We added more links that said “I am a good friend” as we did another activity that described a good friend.

Room 17 – What it means to be a good friend.

As a class we identified what it means to be a good Friend and what it can look like to hurt someone’s feelings. We sorted traits of a good friend and ‘not’ a good friend and then in small groups made posters with all the traits that make a good friend!

Take care everyone!

Dr Melinda Harris
Principal

Making a Difference – Jan Ruscoe

Congratulations to Jan Ruscoe who received a commendation form the Director General for her leadership in coordinating and guiding student participation in the 2024 WA Government Schools Music Society Concert Series.

Jan works tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that Duncraig Primary School students have many opportunities to develop and showcase their talents.

Congratulations Jan!

Interschool Athletics

Our Duncraig Primary School athletes performed expertly at the jumps, throws and track event on Thursday and Friday.  The students represented Duncraig Primary School with pride.  The spring weather definitely inspired individual and fabulous team achievements with Duncraig Primary School coming in a close second place to Poynter Primary School.

We are very pleased to announce that Duncraig Primary School was awarded Most improved this year.

There was a number of notable individual and team performances on the e day listed below:

Year 3 champion Boy – Harvey Scott (tied)

Year 3 champion girl   – Ivy Bodycoat

Year 6 runner up boy  – Jake Pummer

Grand Relay   – Second Place.

Our thanks and gratitude to Ted Orzel for all of his work behind the scenes, especially helping to getting the track ready for the day. Thanks to all our teachers who support on the day and teachers and staff at school to ensure the day runs smoothly.

Congratulations to all of our athletes!

Faction Athletics Carnival

On Friday, 30th August, the skies cleared for the Faction Athletics carnival which was a combination of community, skill and sportsmanship.

Thanks to Ted Orzel, teachers and staff who have worked for many weeks coaching the students and helping to ensure the success of the day.  Thanks must also go to the many volunteers who assisted on the day including our parent helpers, starter Brad McCallum, P&C members who ran a fantastic bake stall and the many parents who helped with set up and pack up.

Congratulations to the students who competed so well individually and for their faction.

Room 1 and Room 2 Year 6 Assembly

The year 6 classes entertained us with a trip down memory lane of each year at Duncraig Primary School.  We were entertained with the highlights from Kindy through to year 6.  Transitioning to high school is exciting but is also a time for reflection and preparation.  Our thank to Mrs Mosconi and Mrs Jones for all of their work in preparing for this wonderful assembly.
Families play an important role in preparing and supporting their child to make positive transitions. You can help equip your young person for the transition to secondary school by:
  • planning and getting organised
  • visiting the school and encouraging your child to go to any secondary school orientation days/programs
  • doing a trial run with travelling to school, including taking public transport and using a travel card
  • inviting older siblings or friends to share information about the school system ie. timetable, changing classrooms
  • practising ‘what if?’ scenarios
  • establishing routines including relaxing and fun activities
  • stay connected and interested in your young person’s learning

New Netball Posts

The new Netball post have been installed and they will make such a difference to our games and activities on the netball court.  Special thanks to the P&C for their contributions to these Netball posts.

P&C News

 PJ day and pizza/sushi order information

It’s time to order for our upcoming end of term pizza/sushi day on the 20th! It’s time to celebrate an incredible Term 3. With this we will be fundraising with a pyjama day – so send your child/ren in PJ’s and a $2 coin donation for the P&C which they will give to their teacher the morning of.
? order info is below – all orders are currently made through www.quickcliq.com.au
(please note we are to transition away from quickcliq to QKR soon.)
 If anyone is available to support our canteen staff on the last week of term please head here and pop your name in a slot.

P&C Bake Sale

A big thank you to the P&C and Rooms 1 & 2 for all your efforts with the Baked Treats before the year 6 assembly on Thursday.
We also appreciate your classroom filling the canteen volunteer shifts this fortnight Lots of new faces coming to help!
We thank the P&C and all the volunteers who baked scrumptious goodies for the Athletics Carnival which was a huge success.

Term 3, Week 9 Merit Certificate Recipients

Room 16 PP Sloane M. and Sam W.
Room 14 PP Tilly M. and Jett M.
Room 17 PP/1 Dorothy H., Nico E. and Mila v.
Room 18 1 Elijah R. and Jackson L.
Room 13 1/2 Fiun C. and Tatum B.
Room 12 2 Harvey T. and Stella M.
Room 11 2 Ella M. and Griffin N.
Room 10 3 Freya K. and Hugo L.
Room 8 4 Oliver H. and Elsie B.
Room 7 3 Tobias M. and Tanner M.
Room 6 4 Isla F., Neveah P. and Phoebe J.
Room 5 3/4 Myra S. and Noah v.
Room 4 5 Ivy E. and Brianna R.
Room 3 5 Kade P. and Lottie H.
Room 1 6 Abbie D. and Ellyse J.
Room 2 6 Sophie K. and Taylor D.

Scholastic Literacy Pro Awards

Congratulations to the following students who received a Scholastic Literacy award recently:-
Blue awards – Emma V., Elsie B., Jack L. and Annabelle P.
Bronze award – Olivia S.
Red Awards – Lily L., Denby D. and Zakariah O.

FREE Vacswim lessons – December 2024/January 2025

The WA Government has announced cost-of-living measures to provide every Western Australian child with the opportunity to learn life-saving water safety skills. This includes FREE VacSwim lessons AND pool entry for the December 2024 and January 2025 school holidays. Enrolments are open now and will close on 16 October 2024. Lessons are held in more than 175 locations at pools and beaches around the state. Please click on the link for more information.

Community Notices

The AusBike program will be running at Ashdale Primary School in term 4.
Available for any child in the surrounding area who needs some help learning how to ride their bike.

Program Details

AusBike 1st Gear & 2nd Gear | Thursday sessions (4:30pm – 5:15pm)
24 October, 31 October, 7 November, 14 November, 21 November & 28 November
Ashdale Primary School Oval – all welcome!
1st Gear is perfect for kids new to riding or still on training wheels.
Places are limited to 10 children.