This week, a random

sample of school families

will be asked to complete
the annual Parent Opinion
Survey that is conducted
by the Department of
Education and Early
Childhood Development.
These surveys are helpful
to both DEECD and
schools at the local level
as they provide important
feedback. We encourage
all families to continue to
provide feedback to our
school so that we can
be sent to the company
responsible for collating
the information. Please
do not hesitate to contact
the school if you receive a
survey and have any
questions you would like
to discuss.
Parent Opinion Survey
Thursday Thoughts
L a u n c h i n g P l a c e P r i m a r y S c h o o l
Issue 23
Newsletter Date 24th July 2014
Important Dates:

July

25th
2015 Prep Transition
2.30pm - 3.15pm

25th
Curriculum Day (No
students required)

28th
Sean Choolburra
Incursion
30th
Book Club due
31st
100 days in Prep
31st
Grade 1/2 Camp

August
1st
Grade 1/2 Camp
9th
National Aerobics
Comp
Student Absent
Hot Line Number
5964 7783
continue to provide great
learning and extra-
curricular opportunities
for our students. We are
very proud of our school
but believe very strongly
that we can always
improve and do things
better.
In order to maintain
complete confidentiality
for parents, the surveys
will be collected by the
school but not opened.
The sealed envelopes will
Well done everyone on
your great efforts to
support our Aerobics
Movie Night. This is
always one of our most
enjoyable school events
and last Friday night was
Aerobics Movie Night
no exception. Thanks to
our aerobics boys and
girls and their families for
their thorough
organisation. Also a big
thank you to the teachers
who helped in some way.
for the school to be able
to contact parents,
particularly if your child
is ill or injured at school.
It is always very hard on
the child if they are
unwell and we are unable
to locate Mum or Dad or
an emergency contact for
them. We have noticed
recently that many of the
emergency contact
numbers (friends/
A reminder to please
ensure that all of your
contact details are up to
date. It is very important
Contact Details
relatives) are no longer
valid. If any of your
details have changed
simply contact the office
or send along a note
including the new
information.

Remember that although we
promote that it is not okay to be
away we also dont want unwell
children at school. They would be
better served at home in bed and
resting up.
Page 2
Thursday Thoughts
Launching Place Primary School Carter Street Launching Place 3139 Telephone 5964 7783 Fax 5964 6171 Email launching.place.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au
ABN 96 199 518 803
Health Care
of rainfall we have had, drains have
also been flushed out. Over the
coming weeks, work will continue
around the yard a working bee has
been scheduled for later in the term
when the weather starts to improve.
The Building and Grounds
committee have a growing list of
jobs to do. More information about
the working bee will be sent home
mid August.
In the last week of term 2 we
mentioned that there would be
works in the grounds over the
holidays, namely unsafe trees
removed and general maintenance.
You will notice that several trees
have been removed or pruned to
ensure that our playground remains
safe for our students. Gutters in all
buildings were also cleared of debris
and leaves. With the large amount
Grounds Update
At this time of year many of us are
experiencing the sniffles. Please
reiterate to your children the
importance of blowing their noses
and washing their hands frequently.
Sneezing or coughing into the bend
of your arm is good practice. Did
you know that when you cough you
produce a blast of wind stronger
than a hurricane?
others. They develop social skills as
they teach each other how to be
good friends. Most children want to
have friends. Children who have
friends are more likely to be self
confident than those without friends
and they perform better
academically in school. When
children have difficulty in making
friends or in keeping them, it often
Importance of childrens
friendships
At any age having friends provides
support and promotes mental health
and wellbeing. Childrens
friendships are also very important
for their social and emotional
development. Through friendships
children learn how to relate with
Being a Good Friend
leads to feeling lonely and unhappy.
Learning positive friendship skills
can help children socially so they feel
happier and more confident.
Page 3
Please Note: That other advertisements and publications published in this newsletter do not imply school or Department of Education and Early
Childhood Development endorsement.
situations, respect for a diverse
range of people and groups.
Students describe the impact of
bullying. They accept and display
empathy for the points of view and
feelings of their peers and others.
They identify and use a variety of
strategies to manage and resolve
conflict.
Working in teams
At Level 6, students work
effectively in different teams and
take on a variety of roles to
complete tasks of varying length and
complexity. They work
cooperatively to allocate tasks and
develop timelines. Students accept
responsibility for their role and
tasks. They explain the benefits of
working in a team. They provide
feedback to others and evaluate their
own and the teams performance.

Friendships develop and change
Friendships require give and take.
By sharing toys, time, games,
experiences and feelings, children
learn that they can have their social
needs met and can meet the needs of
others. Since friendships develop
through this kind of mutual
exchange, close friendships are
usually based on well matched
needs. Childrens friendship needs
and skills change as they grow.
Similarly, childrens ideas about
friendship change as they develop.
This is reflected in the different
kinds of activities that children like
to spend time doing with their
friends at different ages.


AusVels Interpersonal Development
Foundation
At Foundation, students identify the
qualities of a friend and demonstrate
care for other students. They
contribute to the development of
positive social relationships in a
range of contexts. They use
appropriate language and actions
when dealing with conflict. Students
describe basic skills required to
work cooperatively in groups.
Year 1 and 2 Students are
working towards Level 2
Building social relationships
At Level 2, students behave
appropriately in a range of social
situations. They identify the feelings
and needs of other people. Students
identify and accept that there are
consequences for their actions. They
take appropriate steps to resolve
simple conflicts.
Working in teams
At Level 2, students work in teams
in assigned roles, stay on task and
complete structured activities within
set timeframes. They share
resources fairly. With teacher
support, they describe their
contribution to the activities of the
team.
Year 3 and 4 Students are
working towards Level 4
Building social relationships
At Level 4, students demonstrate
respect for others and exhibit
appropriate behaviour for
maintaining friendships with other
people. They support each other by
sharing ideas and materials, offering
assistance, giving appropriate
feedback and acknowledging
individual differences. They work
with others to reduce, avoid and
resolve conflict.
Year 5 and 6 Students are
working towards Level 6
Building social relationships
At Level 6, students demonstrate,
through their interactions in social
What you can do to help?
Show in your own life how to be
friendly and how to nurture
friendships by having interests that
expose your children to families with
similar interests. Give children
experiences, attitudes, values and
behaviours that make them likeable.
Give your children enough social
exposure through interests, sport,
clubs etc so that kids meet lots of
other children not just those at school.
Talk to your child about forgiveness.
Sometimes friends do things that
upset us. This doesnt mean the
friendship has to end. Understanding
that everyone makes mistakes is an
important lesson to learn. Being able
to overlook and forgive mistakes and
upsets are sure ways to have good
friends. Finally talk about the fact that
friendships arent exclusive, you can
have more than one friend at the same
time.

More information can be found at the
following links:
http://www.happychild.com.au/
articles/how-to-help-your-child-make
-friends

Regards
Narelle Messerle and Debbie Hobbis
Reminder to Parents/Guardians
Special Religion Instruction Parent
consent Forms need to be returned to
School office as soon possible to
allow your child/ren to participate in
SRI.
Thank you for your prompt reply.
Student Awards
Grade Prep F Taite G

Grade Prep K Lucas G

Grade 1/2 B Angus L

Grade 1/2 S Miranda B
Fergus S

Grade 3/4 N Jackson H
Tayla C

Grade 5/6 R James C
Shannon P
Kim D

Page 4
Thursday Thoughts
Parents and Friends
Up and coming events are Family Portraits on Saturday 30th August, also
Fathers Day stall on Thursday 4th September. More information will be
sent home soon.
Next meeting is Monday 28th July in the staffroom just after assembly. So
come along have a cuppa and chat about future fundraising activities.
Canteen
If you send your child/rens lunch order on an envelope please include
10 in the order for the cost of a paper bag.
Slushies are NOT available this term.
Roster
July
31st Maryann E, Janine K,
August
7th Jodie D, Gillian S, Bianca D
14th Kylie K, Sue C, Janine K
Optional Extras (camps, excursions
etc) and Voluntary Financial
Contributions (extra equipment,
building and grounds maintenance
etc).
Risk Management Directs the
schools risk management process
through the departments Enhanced
Risk Management Framework to
fully integrate the identification and
control of risks as identified by all
members of the school community,
particularly the staff.
Significant discussion was had
around a maintenance roster,
aimed at all the little things that can
slip through the cracks. In short,
sweeping the paths, spreading
garden mulch, trimming the shrubs
etc. The proposal is effectively that
a roster of families be drawn up,
covering every week (except school
School Council met last Tuesday
night and a number of items were
discussed, and several policies were
ratified, including Smoking, Parent
Payment and Risk Management.
These policies will be able to be
viewed on the Schools websites
soon, or alternatively you can ask at
the school office.
To summarize each policy:
Smoking effectively states that
there is to be no smoking on school
grounds, or at school events off site,
and that the school actively
discourages smoking and the use of
tobacco to its students.
Parent Payment Sets the
framework for School Council to
request payment from parents under
three categories Essential
Education Items (stationary etc),
School Council Report for July
holidays) and simple tasks as outlined
above be allocated. This would mean
that, for instance, sometime during
the week family A would be
expected to sweep the lower paths
near the netball court, and family B
would do the paths around the admin.
Participation in the roster would
result in a refund of your
maintenance levy.
This is very much in the planning
stages at the moment, however we
expect to implement something later
in the term. As always, your
comments and suggestions are more
than welcome.

Cheers
Andrew
Page 5
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Thursday Thoughts
Page 7
Public Notices
Open Saturdays 10am-4pm,
Sunday by appointment call
0458 187 784
Address: 10 Sylvia Road,
Hoddles Creek 3139
First opening this Saturday 26th
July
Its new!
Its different!
Come check it out!
Bark n Wood Creations
Aboriginal Artwork by local
artists
Page 8
Thursday Thoughts
Lost Property
2 Bomber Jackets Size 12
with the word Dolheguy
sewn into jacket as well
as written. If you have
these please return to the
school office.
Local Art
Did you know you could buy
vegies in the minimarket? WHYLD
sell soup & roast bags for $10.
There are also Kids Bags for $5 and
kids & adults books to swap &
share.
The minimarket next week will be
held at the Woori Yallock
Presbyterian Church opposite the
school on Thursday 31
st
July.