MOSS Newsletter Term 3 2022
- MOSS Acknowledgement of Country
- A Message from Mike Curtis - Acting Principal
- Some Holiday Activies for Kids
- A Message from Karen Walton - Deputy Principal
- A Message from Sandra Schuptar - HOSES - ECDP
- A Message from Chrissy Hamilton (A/Deputy Principal) and Katie Bartholomaeus (A/HOD - Curriculum)
- A Message from Kerrie Reid - Education Program Officer (EPO)
- A Message from Nicky Champeaux - HPE
- A Message from Stephanie Whitbread - Small Change Adds Up - Recycling and Being Sustainable
- From G Hub
- From D/E Hub
- From A/B Hub
- From C/I Hub
- From J Hub
- 2022 School Calendar
MOSS Acknowledgement of Country
A Message from Mike Curtis - Acting Principal
Dear families, this term has presented our school community with a number of challenges that have been difficult to navigate. We started with a significant spike in Covid-19 cases across the campus that moved between Hubs and buses, causing a large amount of staff and student absences. Our class teams, led by our teachers, have shown such professionalism, flexibility and adaptability with spades of kindness and compassion thrown in. This has certainly helped when teachers were asked to merge groups, redeploy to other areas of the school, give up their non-contact time, etc. They have done everything possible to ensure all students at MOSS had as safe and engaging school days as possible. We were also able to see some new skills being nurtured and developed in our students when routines were changed, unfamiliar people were working with them, different peers were appearing in their rooms, etc. As the term progressed, some semblance of normality was able to be maintained. With some rhythm and routine back, we have seen some lovely programs and activities happening and some curriculum and personalised goals being achieved.
As most of our families have known, we have had three (one current and two past) students and one staff member pass away this term. As you can imagine, losing someone from a close school community such as ours is very difficult. The impacts of losing four have been felt significantly across the school community. We have a well-established structure of support that filters down from the leadership and admin team and into Hubs and classrooms and other areas of the school. Colleagues and teams have rallied around each other and our students who were impacted in ways that would make any school leader proud. Despite the complexity of the term, they all continued to deliver their roles in a highly professional and compassionate way that have kept your young ones, safe, supported, nurtured and engaged. For that, I thank them sincerely.
Most of you would be aware that Wayne has been on leave for most of this term and I have been Acting Principal in his absence. Wayne informed the leadership team on Thursday that he is intending to extend that leave through next term and into the early part of Term 1, 2023. Wayne has been managing some health concerns but is currently focussing on his continued fitness development and assures everyone he is doing very well. He certainly looked well when he came in to visit. I will continue to act as principal and all other members of the leadership team will stay in their current roles until then.
Our Admin Officer extraordinaire, Helen Gilmour, is focussing on developing her skillset by taking on an acting Business Manager position at Inala State School for Term 4. Helen works tirelessly to support everybody at our school with her amazing cross-section of skills and attributes. We are going to miss Helen’s kind heart and extraordinary work ethic but she assures us she will be back!
Thank you to all of our families for your continued support and partnership as we all strive together for the best possible learning and personal outcomes for your children. We will see you back in Term 4 with a renewed energy and big smiles! Kind Regards, Mike
Some Holiday Activies for Kids
A Message from Karen Walton - Deputy Principal
Masquerade Gala FUNdraiser
Last Saturday, September 10th, parents and staff from our school were warmly welcomed at a FUNdraising event, organised and supported by local businesses and individuals. We met at the Jindalee Hotel, masked up and ready for a gala evening of delicious food, live music and various activities including a silent auction, a “loud” auction and casino-type tables. MOSS was asked to speak to our project (see below) and provide some video footage of current students using communication supports at school.
On behalf of the school, I would like to again, very sincerely thank Lisa Baillie from our 4074 Community and Beyond facebook group, who approached us many months ago, offering fundraising support. The project chosen to receive this funding will be developed further from an original idea proposed by our principal, Wayne Wilkinson. Our school will be the recipient of very welcome funds to support communication development for students who are waiting for NDIS funding to be finalised and devices/apps provided. “High-tech” iPads with appropriate apps, cases etc and “low-tech” PODDS will be purchased and loaned to students and their families to trial in the meantime.
Michelle and Natasha from our P and C executive were there with some of our teachers, one of our SLPs and other parents, to also receive, on behalf of the school, an immediate donation of 3 iPads. These were provided very generously from Sharon and Keely, representing Keely’s Cause, a non-profit organisation based in Victoria. We are also extremely grateful to them.
Please read the emailed message below, received from Lisa Baillie at the end of last week:
"Hi Karen, I can now announce that the grand total raised for your iPad library is $11,300...I want to personally thank you and your team for being so enthusiastic of the event and for putting together that wonderful video. I have had feedback that it touched a lot of people’s hearts and it was a great way to demonstrate how essential those iPads can be to many of your families...I look forward to working with your school again in the future. Thank you for all you do within our community. Cheers, Lisa"
A Message from Sandra Schuptar - HOSES - ECDP
Term 3 is one of those terms where lots of decisions are being made in regard to children’s future educational placements. Families and teachers spend a lot of time discussing possible options and families are meeting with schools to discuss their child’s learning needs.
When a decision is finally made there is often a sense of relief, but then doubt sometimes prevails. Is my child ready? Am I (the parent) ready for this new change? The good news in all this is that most or our little ones go onto enjoy and have success in their schools.
This term continued to focus on developing each child's independence where ever possible; to develop language and communication skills with not only adults but with peers; to sustain focused attention in order to take on new learning; to play kindly with friends and to listen and follow their teacher's instructions. All essential skills required for a successful transition into full time education.
NAIDOC Week was celebrated during Term 3. Our little ones got to experience a range of activities such as creating beautiful painting marks on bark, creating music with special clapping sticks, listening to and watching stories that highlighted different cultures in Australia and enjoying the sensory experiences of clay and mud.
Term 3 saw our children engage in the “Book Week” celebrations. It was delightful to see our children arrive each morning in an array of different, familiar and unfamiliar book characters and super heroes. These included assorted pirates, fairies, Bluey, Spider Man and Bat Man. The staff also got involved and happily dressed in their costumes. We had Chase from Paw Patrol, the Queen of Hearts, the Green Sheep, and Wally from Where’s Wally?
There was a lot of thought and creative went into these costumes and a big thank you to our families who supported this fun week.
A Message from Chrissy Hamilton (A/Deputy Principal) and Katie Bartholomaeus (A/HOD - Curriculum)
October is AAC awareness month - Show Your Voice! The International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (ISAAC) celebrates the month by raising awareness of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) and informing the public about the many different ways in which people communicate using communication devices.
To coincide with AAC Awareness month, MOSS is introducing a new initiative. This initiative is part of our 2022 Annual Implementation Plan (AIP) and is being led by our Speech Language Pathologists, the communication committee and teaching staff.
The initiative is a MOSS Communication Profile which is a snapshot of how each student communicates, the adjustments required for access and participation and a current individual communicative competence goal. Communicative competence is the ability to, “Say what you want, to whoever you want to say it to, whenever you want to and however you choose to say it” (Gayle Porter). We assess each student’s communication annually using an online assessment tool called the Roadmap of Communicative Competence or ROCC, which informs and prioritises each student’s communicative competence goal.
We want to ensure every staff member at MOSS has the ability to communicate with every student at MOSS.
Happy holidays and AAC Awareness month 😊
From 11–17 October, get an extra trial month for free on AssistiveWare’s new AAC apps, Proloquo and Proloquo Coach, and 50% off on our one-time purchase apps, including Proloquo2Go.
A Message from Kerrie Reid - Education Program Officer (EPO)
Year 6 Shirt Presentation
A very special thank you and shout out to Ken Watson of ‘Whatsinaname’ promotional products for his ongoing and very generous support, once again donating shirts to our Year 6 students. The shirts were presented to students as part of the sports day celebrations and although Ken was unable to make the day, we acknowledged his generosity and look forward to continuing this relationship into the future.
Junior Rotary Community Award
Students participating in the Junior Rotary Community Award have been supporting the Lids 4 Kids project by washing lids and sorting them ready for collection. We are accepting donations of lids from our MOSS community, and look forward to a continued partnership with the Rotary Club of Sumner Park who will be assisting us with collection once the lids are ready. This is a great initiative providing a valuable learning experience for our students.
Rotary Fun Run
Go Team MOSS!! It was a beautiful Saturday morning as Team MOSS set off to participate in the 5km Rotary Fun Run hosted by the Rotary Club of Brisbane Centenary and the Rotary Club of Brisbane Taylor Bridge. We were very excited to hear that we once again took out the prize for the biggest school team. Team MOSS have been entering this awesome event for a number of years and we would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved for making this such a great event.
Mount Ommaney Centre Christmas Wrapping Fundraiser
It’s back!! The P&C have once again been invited to run the Christmas Wrapping Station at the Mount Ommaney Centre. The event will begin on Monday the 12th of December and continue through to Christmas Eve. Please keep an eye out for an email with further details and check out the school Facebook page for links on the event and how to sign up to be part of this FUNdraising activity.
Above and Beyond Fitness HUB Clothing Donation
Local business, Above & Beyond Fitness Hub, recently held a ‘clothes swap’ morning at their gym in Jindalee. After the success of this great initiative, all leftover clothing was generously donated to our very own MOSS Oppy Shoppy. Thanks so much to Amanda, Kara and all the crew at the gym for thinking of MOSS and we look forward to collaborating more in the future.
Woolworths/Landcare Grant
The final instalment of the Woolworths/Landcare Flora & Fauna Project is well underway with trees on campus now marked showing where the microbat, lorikeet and possum boxes will be established. This project has provided a wonderful opportunity to not only connect with the local high school, who through their Duke of Edinburgh Award program built the boxes for us but also local businesses and environmental groups who continue to support our project. Special shout out and thanks to Bettina, Jules and Ian (an Environmentalist), who visited the school to map and mark the trees and provide valuable advice and insight into native habitats and ‘feeding gardens’ for lorikeets. We can’t wait to see what these new homes will bring to our campus 😊 If you are interested in seeing what a "habitat box" looks like in situ, Ian supervised the setting up of boxes in our local Lorikeet Park. He said that they have a high occupancy rate!
MOSS Oppy Shoppy End of Term Opening
With a flurry of excitement, the MOSS Oppy Shoppy was finally opened for the last day of term. It was great to see so many people visit and take advantage of our end of term ‘fill a bag for $5’ special offer!! The coffee was great (thanks Zac 😊) and everyone who came managed to grab a bargain or two. Keep a eye on our FB page for our opening dates in Term 4.
A Message from Nicky Champeaux - HPE
On Friday our whole school got together under J block but sadly, guided by the weather forecast, we had to cancel the much loved entertainment from CSHS Performance Plus and the “Newbies”.
MOSS students led the proceedings with our own AOC, The National Anthem accompanied by video of our students raising the flags, senior student speeches, the march past and finally, some relays. Of course there was music and dancing which our students love.
I would like to congratulate the senior school team leaders, Albert and Kyden who both wrote and presented their speeches of welcome, encouragement and thanks.
Competition was on, not only for students but between parents too! But there can only be one winning team and this year Kyden, captain of the green team, accepted the trophy on behalf of all her team. WELL DONE!
A massive thank you for all the help and support from staff and families. So much goes on behind the scenes to enable our students to join in and have fun across what is a very busy but also very important week.
A Message from Stephanie Whitbread - Small Change Adds Up - Recycling and Being Sustainable
It’s been quite an eventful term…year and in moments like these inspiring and being inspired by others can be the best medicine. The actions and drive of Karen, Bettina, her daughter Jules and Ian (Jules’ work colleague) who walked around the school marking where to put our nesting boxes was very inspiring. These nesting boxes were purchased by the school and Karen in an effort to help local wildlife like microbats, lorikeets and possums have homes, especially after the fires in 2019. Some goals do takes years to achieve and the beauty of that is that the end result becomes more and more special.
The school has a local man by the name of Charlie who now routinely collects MOSS’s 10 cent recyclables. In the past, we have been able to help fund lovely educational ventures such as the drama program in the way of purchasing costumes for a filming project. The funds raised by this initiative are available to support the learning of students. But most importantly, the goal is not about the money, but more about redirecting or repurposing our waste. Please don’t neglect recycling or composting, even when it’s very near to the end of term. We’d love more cans and 10 cent recyclables to fill the blue bins in the back courtyard of admin. We still have the compost bins along the back fence close to admin. We are always looking for helpers to take the soft plastics to the nearest Redcycle collection at the front of Woollies or Coles. Helen and Juliette collect and take your used batteries to the local recycling depots. As a school we are generally very clever about repurposing and reusing in general.
Small change really does add up to big results over time. As for our 10 cent recyclables as well… it all adds up. That’s the main message from this email! Happy recycling and being sustainable, Stephanie Whitbread
From G Hub
Drawing on our teachers’ expertise in play-based, student-centred learning as well as Reggio Emilia pedagogies, G Hub has been trialling combined play sessions in the outside area. The ultimate purpose of both approaches is to facilitate students’ participation, empowerment and creativity (Edwards, 1993). This is student-led learning, which means that children are provided with significant freedom to follow their natural curiosity and learn by exploring the organised environment at their own pace (Briggs & Hansen, 2012). The teachers work in partnership with students, guiding them and extending their communication and social skills (Edwards, 1993). Current educational research has placed supportive and collaborative learning environments are the most important contributors of positive learning experiences (Bass & Walker, 2015).
For each session we have a few stations organised around themes, such as weather or country, in which students can explore a variety of materials and techniques. We use the environment as the third teacher. The children guide us in these sessions and we follow their interests, facilitating communication and self-regulation with language, actions and AAC. This is repeated a few times a week, so that students can familiarise themselves with the activities, build their confidence and start experimenting. Because all four classes come together, the children also have a greater opportunity to interact, play and learn from their peers.
References: Briggs, M., Hansen, A. (2012). Play-based Learning in the Primary School. Sage Publications Ltd. Edwards, C. P. (1993). The hundred languages of children: the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education. Norwood, N.J.: Ablex Pub. Corp. Bass, S., Walker, K. (2015). Early Childhood Play Matters. Australian Council for Educational Research.
G3 Gallery
G4 Gallery
From D/E Hub
DE Hub has been enjoying learning while celebrating lovely events such as NAIDOC week, Book Week and also Sports Carnival. Students have been immersed in picture books such as ‘Duck! Rabbit!’, ‘Whose Nose?’ and ‘Who Sank The Boat?’ that encouraged them to think about their own perspectives and those of others. The students completed daily check-ins to develop their understanding of one another’s opinions. They explored the language around time concepts using visual schedules and sequencing of familiar activities. In Science, students have engaged with daily observations of weather and seasonal changes through multi-modal texts and activities such as dress-ups, making sensory bottles and interactive powerpoint. In HPE, they have been enthusiastic when completing obstacle courses, cross country and ball skills. They practised social skills in turn taking, waiting and cooperating with others as they worked towards achieving their PBL awards. We are proud of our students’ individual achievements and progress during this busy term. We hope everyone has a relaxing holiday break!
DE Hub – Stephanie Whitbread (E1), Louise Ruzic (E2), Belinda Chadwick (D1) and Sharon Tay (D2).
D1 Gallery
D2 Gallery
E1 Gallery
E2 Gallery
From A/B Hub
Another busy term has flown by for AB Hub. We have had a term full of exciting activities. This term we have started the new curriculum with all of our students diving in and enjoying exploring the new topics in the areas of science, technology, maths and English. A large focus for many of the students in AB Hub is around communication, you should see us! We are doing our best to communicate using eye-gaze devices, iPads, Pragmatic Organisation Dynamic Display (PODD) and switches, just to name a few.
There has been many exciting activities this term. I think we can all agree that the highlight had to be Book Week. Did you see some of the amazing costumes? Hamish and Cameron’s Indiana Jones duo was fabulous. We also got to enjoy a range of activities in the multipurpose hall. We got to end the term with the excitement of Sports Day. We are proud of the involvement of each student, doing their best to run, walk, wheel and cheer. We had a great time Learning on Country as part of NAIDOC week celebrations. Other topics we explored included Father’s Day, the Commonwealth Games and the EKKA.
What a term! We hope you enjoy the two weeks of holidays and are ready for what is going to be a jam-packed Term 4.
A2 Gallery
B1 Gallery
B2 Gallery
From C/I Hub
C1 Classroom
Term 3 is always a busy term with events such as Sports Day, Book Week and NAIDOC week. Dressing up and having fun is at the heart of these special events. Weather wise, this term also presents great opportunities for outdoor learning with comfortable temperatures and big blue skies. Having had two terms to consolidate relationships, routines and classroom expectations, C1 students are exploring many different learning locations outside of their Hub.
Gross motor obstacle courses are a regular activity across the week plus the creative benefits of visual arts and music. Gross motor activities encourage physical literacy, provide an avenue for energy release, stress and frustration, along with boosting their self-confidence. Visual arts and music allow students to enter imaginative worlds, to be creative and engage in playful thinking. Both activities can assist students to become more centred and focussed which is hugely beneficial in our classroom.
With a heavy focus on the Zones of Regulation within our classroom, we continue to practise strategies around emotional regulation. Through modelling strategies to choose when dysregulated, students are becoming aware of the connection between choosing a calming down strategy to practise and feeling capable of being part of the class with their classmates. The main indicator is their recovery time between being dysregulated, to being ‘good to go’ again.
Curriculum content this semester:
English: Exploring character traits and events within stories
Maths: Connecting when and for how long events occur across the week
Science: The effects of weather on our day to day decisions
Digital Technologies: Using digital technologies
Communication focus: using a preferred ‘voice’ to convey wants and needs and answer simple questins in a socially appropriate way.
C2 Classroom
Can you believe we have reached the end of Term 3? This term, students in C2 have explored the concepts of time, including duration, sequencing, digital and analogue clocks, calendars and events. In English, students have been exploring perspective and how different people and characters may experience or feel in different texts and situations. Students have been observing the weather and changes happening in the environment. Over the term, students have used a range of digital technologies and learned how we use them. We’ve continued to enhance our social skills through student interests including Lego, dolls, doll house, board games, bike riding, music, instruments, concerts and performances as well as turn taking and general conversation skills. Students have been identifying how our body feels when experiencing different emotions and appropriate reactions to different situations and individual self-regulation strategies to develop independence. We have also celebrated NAIDOC Week, the Ekka, Book Week, had a disco and participated in Sports Week!
I1 Classroom
This term has been a busy one for I1. We had a great time discussing the book ‘Harmony Tweet’ during Book Week and ‘Learning on Country” during NADOIC Week. We have had a focus on literacy and communication this term and it has been pleasing to see the progress made by all students in their areas of interest. Developing life skills has also been part of our program this semester and the boys have enjoyed taking part in activities such as using the washing machine and dryer as well as taking turns washing their dishes after lunch. We also had a great week during Sports Week, cheering on team Yellow or Green to victory.
Have a safe and happy holiday everyone and see you next term. Michael and Margaret.
I2 Classroom
It’s hard to believe that we are already at the end of Term 3. It’s been a challenging term due to illness and staff and student absences, but once again the resilience displayed by this community has been something to be extremely proud of.
It’s been a busy term with various celebrations. We celebrated Book Week (Dreaming with Eyes Open), NAIDOC Week (Learning on Country) and had our sports carnival.
The I2 students have been learning how to work collaboratively with each other in a number of settings. A wonderful example of their ability to do this was seen when undertaking the painting of the background for the new mural in the reception area which celebrates the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
Friendships have strengthened both within the classroom, and across the CI Hub in general. As the year has progressed we have observed the students continue to develop their social skills. Bike riding and ball games provide a great vehicle for social interaction amongst the students.
Students have also focused on various aspects of the Australian Curriculum. This semester we are focusing on maths, English, science and technology. It’s great to see the level of engagement amongst the whole class.
Afrodite, Andrew and myself wish everyone a wonderful holiday break, and once again thank all the parents and care givers for supporting us so well.
From J Hub
J Block had a picnic, drum circle and Wii party together today!
On Wednesday, J Block students had the opportunity to enjoy the results of consistent learning around Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) expectations. They practised being their best by being good friends, demonstrated respect for each other by using kind words and kept everyone safe by staying together. There was pizza, music, drumming, dancing, fitness, ball games and a whole lot of joy. We are very proud of our Senior cohort. Well done everyone!
J2
Wow! What a fun term. J2 has been busy with some visits into the community, Hub celebrations and even squeezing in a little bit of curriculum! We continued our trips to Rocks Riverside Park to check on our plot in the community garden. Our class has loved exploring the environment, and bringing back some plants to try at school.
This term, we have also enjoyed building friendships, developing independence and trying new things.
J4
Lately J4 started each morning with Acknowledgement of Country, dance movements, singing and clapsticks. The class became better musicians and more engaged in these activities as each day passed.
