20 February 2025

Principal’s Report

To those parents that are joining us here at the college for the first time, welcome. If you are a returning parent, welcome back. This is the first of our newsletters for the year. It is a way for us to share upcoming events, but also to celebrate the wonderful things that are happening in our college. We encourage you to check out what is happening and engage positively with the college.

What do we value?

I have been reflecting on what it is we value in our school.

I want to begin by saying, I understand that all children are different, and all families are different, however as a school, we try our absolute best to provide everything we possibly can for all of our students.

A common misconception is that the state and federal government funding to schools should and does cover all of the costs for everything that happens at school. This is far from the case, with all of the extra things we do in schools needing to be subsidised, either through fundraising, our P&C, or through parent contributions.

Each year, the school asks for voluntary contributions of $60 per student in primary and $235 per student in secondary. This is the minimum you will see in any public schools in WA. We also keep our booklists to the absolute bare minimum as we know this impacts considerably on families. Unfortunately, our collection rates for these contributions are only about 40% of families, leaving a hole of about $50 000 we cannot spend on resources for your children.

We also ask parents to make contributions toward high quality programs such as:

• Spelling Mastery ($30) for Years 3-6
• Maths Trek ($20) for Years P-6
• Resilience Project Journal ($10) for all students

The Resilience Project Journal has been subsidised by our P&C by $10 per student as they see the considerable value of this program.

So back to my original point of what we value…

Other items such as swimming carnivals, leavers’ jackets, excursions get paid for readily, however we struggle to get parents to pay for the books that students need every day for the high-quality programs we deliver in spelling, maths and resilience. I understand if money is tight, and you need to pay these items off over time. We are happy to make this work for you; all you need to do is contact us.

So, I ask you to check whether you have provided these essential items for your children, and if you have not yet purchased these items, please do so as soon as possible so your child is not disadvantaged in their learning. If you are then able to extend yourself to provide the voluntary contributions to the school, we will be better placed to provide even more for your children.

The Resilience Project

I have been asked by a number of people, what the Resilience Project is and why we are doing it.

We often complain that the young people of today are not as resilient as the children of previous generations. We complain that young people do not care, that they want everything now and are not grateful for what they have.

The Resilience Project is a program that is making a massive difference to the mindset of people across Australia. With suicide being predicted to be the number 1 cause of death in young people in Australia by 2030, we see it as essential to work with our students in improving their mental health and wellbeing. This program, designed to help people become happier and more resilient, opens up conversations with children about their wellbeing and teaches them positive mental health strategies.

The project centres on the positive emotions of Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness, as well as Emotional Literacy, Connection and Physical Health. I know I personally have already seen a mind shift in myself being a part of this program and encourage everyone to take an interest and be involved.

We will continue to communicate with parents as the implementation of the project steps up, as there are key places for involvement of parents in the process.

The Role of Principal

As I announced via other means, I will be leaving the school at the end of this term after 9 years as principal. The Department of Education will be undertaking a selection process in the coming weeks to identify a replacement. After this, I look forward to working with the new principal in transitioning them into the position.

I am absolutely certain that the school is in the best place it has been in my time here. I am so excited the direction we are going and am so excited to see the results this group of students produces this year.

Mark Brookes
Principal

RCC College Board – What Is It?

With its relatively low profile, the College Board and its function are often queried by parents.

The Roleystone College Board is a body of people dedicated to helping the school achieve the best educational experience and outcomes for our students.

What is the function of the College Board?

The College Board establishes and reviews the College's objectives, priorities and general policies including constructing the Ethos, Vision, Mission and Values statements for the College.

What is the Role of a College Board Member?

College board members adopt shared visions and goals for the district. They create and monitor systems and processes. They ensure progress and accountability, and they advocate for students.

Board members include:

• Parent Members - bring their experience as parents at the school, and the views and context of the wider school community to College Board meetings
• Community Members - bring a particular skill to the College Board. This may include business, accounting or building skills, or some other skill that the school is looking for at that time.
• Staff Members (the Principal is automatically a member) - bring their educational expertise to meetings

All board members are obliged to act in the best interests of the school and its students. Board members are not on the board to represent the interests of any subgroups of the school community. Those wishing to raise issues that are not related to the legislated role / functions of the board should do this through the school’s complaints management process.

If you have any questions about the College Board, you may contact me via: roy.dobson@education.wa.edu.au

Mr Roy Dobson
Board Chairperson

Chaplain’s Chat

The Resilience Project

RCC is proud to be implementing TRP’s evidence-based whole school wellbeing program to support positive mental health in the classroom, staffroom and wider community.  Our fabulous P&C have subsidised payment for the student journal for our PP-Year 10 cohort, so if you have not already submitted payment ($10) for the student journal, please do so ASAP.

Amy Edmunds
Associate Principal

Free Parent Session - Learning to Separate

All parents and caregivers of Kindy - Year 3 students are invited to attend this FREE session at Roleystone Community College on Tuesday 25 February 5:00pm – 6:15pm.  The session will help give you practical strategies and ideas to help your child calmly separate from you at school, or in other situations.

Please follow this link to register for the session.
Registration: "Learning to Separate" - 25/02/2025, 5-6.15pm, Roleystone Community College

All enquiries can be directed to nicole.tiller@education.wa.edu.au

Triple P Courses

Cahoots

Camps and Adventures for All abilities and All ages.

Cahoots programs are daytime and overnight experiences for children and young adults living with a disability or facing exceptional challenges. Participants get to try a range of activities such as sports and art whilst developing their skills and independence.

Click here to learn more: Cahoots-Information-Pack.pdf

New Associate Principal at RCC

Dear Roleystone Community

I am excited to introduce myself as the new Associate Principal for Primary at Roleystone Community College in 2025.  It is a privilege to be joining such a strong and connected school community, and I look forward to working alongside our students, families, and staff to continue fostering a positive and supportive learning environment.

I bring over 15 years of experience in education, having taught across Kindergarten to Year 6, as well as specialist roles in Science and Auslan.  Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to work across Western Australia and have experience in leadership within the Southwest, South Metro, North Metro and Pilbara.  My passion lies in supporting teachers, reducing workload through whole-school approaches, data research and analysis and most importantly ensuring every student has access to high-quality and high impact learning experiences.

On a more personal note, I live in the Swan Valley with my husband, Daniel, our son Tariq (Who is currently studying to be a nurse), and our much-loved pets- three dogs (Meeko, Stitch and Wicket) and two lovebirds (Kaito and Peawee).  When I'm not diving into education research, I enjoy gardening, bike riding and taking the three dogs out on adventures and hikes.

I am looking forward to meeting and getting to know our students, families, and wider school community over the coming weeks.  If you see me around, please feel free to say hello - I'd love to hear more about what makes Roleystone such a special place.

Here's to a fantastic year ahead!

Secondary Assistance

Application forms are available from the front office.  Please ensure you provide a valid concession card when applying.

Applications must be in by Friday 11 April.

Year 7-10 2025 Immunisations - Parent Consent Information

Please see the attached documents on the CONNECT notice below, that contain the information on how you can provide your consent for your child's Year 7 or Year 10 Immunisations.

The dates so far are:
1st Visit- Yr 10s
Term 2 Week 5 - Thursday 29 May
2nd Visit- Year 7s (and Yr 10s catch up)
Term 3 Week 2 - Tuesday 29 July

Kind regards
Jaco Coetzer
Associate Principal

Exciting New Maths Program- Introducing Math Trek

Dear Parents and Caregivers

We are excited to share that Roleystone Community College is implementing a whole-school numeracy program, Math Trek, for students from Pre-primary to Year 6. This program is fully aligned with the Western Australian Curriculum and is designed to develop mathematical understanding, fluency, and problem-solving skills. 

Math Trek engage students in real-world mathematical contexts, encouraging them to think critically and apply their knowledge to unfamiliar and extended problems. 

A key feature of this program is the Math Trek Printable subscription, which provides an online printable license for each individual student. This means that instead of relying on traditional workbooks, students will have access to a broad range of learning materials that can be printed as needed. This approach allows for greater flexibility, enabling teachers to differentiate instruction by selecting targeted activities that best support each student's learning journey. It also ensures resources remain up to date and adaptable to different classroom needs. This also helps support our future goals in sustainable practices by limiting paper usage. 

This online resource allows our teaching team to tailor activities to individual needs, incorporating teacher guided lessons, independent practise, scaffolded problem-solving tasks, engaging investigations, and revision exercises. 

The subscription for this online text is listed on the booklist for students to be paid at the front office. Students and parents should not expect to receive a physical book however as the text is totally online.

We look forward to seeing the positive impact Math Trek will have on our students learning and confidence in mathematics. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out. 

Natasha Burke
Associate Principal

Transperth SmartRider Information

Students catching the bus to and from school are required to have a concession SmartRider. Students travel for free from Monday to Friday during the school year but need to tag on and off when accessing these services. This is why and how:

• Bus services / routes depend on the number of "fare paying passengers" that access the route. Should students not be paying ortagging on, the data will suggest that the service can do with downscaling in frequency. We don't want this to happen.
• Students must have a minimum of $5.00 on their SmartRider to take advantage of the free travel during the school year. The balance will remain if a service is used during the outlined times.

Should your child require a SmartRider, please pop into the front office or ask your child to pick up a form from the ladies at the front desk.

Please also see attached the information that Transperth have asked us to share with you.

WAPBS – The Roley Way

WAPBS stands for Western Australian Positive Behaviour Support. It is used in schools around Australia and is a framework for teaching students how to use positive expected behaviours. At Roleystone, we embedded PBS into our daily language by referring to the way we act at school as the ‘Roley Way’. We use our three school values of Respect, Challenge and Contribute to model and promote expected behaviours around our school. These are embedded in specific PBS lessons run by the classroom teachers throughout the year. The WAPBS team continually promote opportunities to encourage and motivate students to demonstrate expected behaviours.  Students have opportunities to collect Roley Points for showing Respect to others, Challenging themselves or Contributing to classroom and outdoor activities. Student points are collated and these work towards individual levelled certificates and house group end of term rewards.  Our school mascot ‘Roley’ is often seen at school events and classes compete to find ‘Roley’ each week! The goal of WAPBS is to encourage students to demonstrate positive expected behaviours when at school which will then transfer to their everyday life.

The RCC PBS Team

Welcome to Music!

It has been an exciting few weeks, with an enthusiastic start to Music this term at RCC and thank you to everyone who has welcomed me.  We’ve even had a baby magpie swoop into the room to check out our new space!

Our authentic Music program at RCC will centre on singing, movement, and play for children in Years 1 - 6 to actively build in-tune singing and instrumental performance skills, musical literacy and knowledge, as well as personal expression and creativity.

As your Music specialist, I have a passion for promoting the benefits of learning music from an early age for all children. Music education supports brain development and has many musical and other educational benefits including for literacy and numeracy.

In Term 1, I am very much looking forward to continuing to get to know your children and engaging them in Music learning through our joyful program; our theme is “Welcome to Music!”.

Please get in touch if you have any questions or need to share with me any information on your child’s learning needs relevant to Music.

With best wishes
Shelley Gorman
shelley.gorman@education.wa.edu.au

Physical Education Reminder

All students are required to bring the following items to every Phys Ed class:

• Hat
• Water bottle
• House shirt
• Appropriate footwear (no boots or sandals)

Students will not be able to participate in sports without their hat. It is crucial for students to have water bottles, as they can only enter and exit the oval with their PE teacher. This means they won’t be allowed to leave the oval during class to get a drink.

HPE Team

First Assembly 2025

Our first Assembly for the new school year will be for our Pre-Primary - Year 3 cohort and it will be held on Thursday 27 February in our Undercover area. It will be hosted by Ms Longyear’s Year 2 class in Room 4.3.  Everyone is welcome to attend.

Check our calendar on the Schoolzine APP for the list of Assemblies this year.

Kindy in 2025!

The students in Kindy 1 and Kindy 2 have enjoyed exploring their very first classroom! We have been learning about our school rules. We are making sure we sit on the mat with our legs crossed, eyes looking at the teacher and our ears are listening. We have been getting to know our classroom routines. We wash our hands before we eat, line up after play time and empty our trays at the end of the day.

Our favourite thing so far about Kindy is packing away the outdoor equipment. We challenge ourselves to work as a team! We make sure we leave the equipment at the shed door.

We are looking forward to a positive school year!

Mrs Ashboth and Mrs Cirillo

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Embracing the noise!

Kindy 2 went off searching for a very loud noise happening at our school.

We used our listening ears to follow the loud BANG BANG BANG BANG! 

We discovered it was a rock breaker! We sat and watched the concrete being broken.

We all had a great deal of fun! 

Mrs Ashboth

Pre-Primary

Self Portraits in Room 2.2

In room 2.2 we drew a picture of ourselves for our WOW Work Wall. We had to remember to draw all the parts of our body. 

We did such a great job!

Ms Mantell

Amazing Work in Room 2.3

The start of the year in Pre-Primary 1 has been great. The children have settled into their new class and routines with ease. We have been making friends and playing and working hard. Our activities have included talking, sharing, painting, drawing, counting and measuring. We have been singing new songs and dancing.

Here are some photos of a small selection of the amazing work that we have already done.

Tracy Cogle, Amy Rowland and Edith Norris

Room 2.1 Pre-Primary/Year 1

We have all had a fantastic to start to the year. All of the students in our room have come back to school enthusiastic about learning. Our Pre-Primary students have settled into full-time school beautifully.

We have started the year learning a poem called, “Willie ate a worm today.” We decided that if Willie could eat worms, we would eat a worm too. We all tried eating a worm, a very sour lolly worm!

We have also been telling each other about ourselves and trying to learn our new friend’s names. We have been doing paintings, playing with playdough, learning about numbers and we have been doing some mindfulness activities too. It has been a busy start to the year, and we are looking forward to continuing to learn together this year.

Year 1 is Fun!

What a fantastic start to Year One in Room 2.6! In Talk for Writing, we have been learning the poem 'Willy ate a Worm'. We even got to eat our own worms (lollies of course). We have been playing fun games and working together to practice counting in Mathematics, and learning about warm and cool colours in Art.

Ms Moon

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Lunar New Year Celebrations

Year 3 Room 4.6

We have had lots of fun learning about different ways to celebrate the Year of the Snake, for Lunar New Year. We chose to celebrate by decorating our room with these amazing creations.

While we were doing this, we also learnt to work as a team. Each team practised sharing ideas and collaborating. Each child Respected their teammates and Contributed their best work, to achieve fantastic results. Everyone should be very proud of the way they joined together!

Mrs Norman

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Year 3 Room 4.5

The Year 3 students in Room 4.5 have been learning about different celebrations and commemorations. Together we looked at how Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year, is celebrated all over the world. We then created paper lanterns to display in the classroom.

Ms Morton

Year 5 in Rooms 5.6 and 5.7

Year Five students have been exploring the rich traditions of Lunar New Year through our reading focus. Students engaged with texts to learn about the customs, legends, and significance of the celebration, with a particular focus on the Year of the Snake and the symbolism behind the animals of the zodiac. To bring their learning to life, students then put their creativity to work to create folded snakes. Using careful folds and vibrant designs, each student created a unique snake to symbolise mystery, intelligence, and transformation.

Ms Yaksich and Ms Kell

Poetry in Room 4.1

Room 4.1 has been studying Poetry in Week 1 and 2 with a focus on onomatopoeia.  Here's our class poem, and we hope you enjoy it!

Ms van Aalen

Travel Adventures in Room 5.3

In our first week back, we launched a cross-curricular exploration project, setting off on an 'overseas' trip! As we boarded our flight, we stowed our suitcases, which we had designed and constructed from geometric nets. During our journey, we read about the countries we’ll be exploring in the coming weeks and wrote questions to guide our investigations.

Upon landing, we received souvenirs that represent the cultures of our countries. We researched the materials these items are made from and their significance to each country, using resources from the school library.

Now, we're examining our locations on a world map, calculating the time differences between our classroom and the countries we're visiting, and gaining insights into the cost of living by converting our home currency to the local currency using exchange rates.

More adventures await!

Ms Fletcher

Selamat pagi semua!

Selamat pagi semua!

What a great start to the year in the Indonesian classes the last two weeks with students enjoying learning the language and cultures. 

This year, I will teach the Year 1-3 students, and Bapak Talbot will teach the Year 4-6 students. For Years 4 to 6, we are using a Department of Education program called Ketawa, which is part in class and online.

I hope this year of Ular (snake) will bring lots of joy in Indonesian class.

Sampai jumpa lagi!

Ibu Dian and Bapak Talbot

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Drama News!

It’s been an exciting start to the year in primary drama! Here’s a quick look at what each year group has been up to:

• Year 1 and Pre-Primary: It was the student’s first time at drama, and they had an exciting and fun-filled first two weeks! After getting to know each other through some get-to-know-you and team building games, they explored the different parts of the drama room. We finished off the lesson by engaging with a "Walk Like" activity, where they moved as different characters in creative ways. We’ve started looking into what Theatre is and sharing our own theatre experiences!
  
• Year 2: The Year 2s started the term with team bonding exercises and tackled the “One Prop Role” challenge. Each student had 10 seconds to pick a prop and then performed as a character using that item. Their creativity and confidence were impressive! We have started looking into the drama element of “Movement”.
• Year 3: The Year 3s had a blast with “Guess the Fairytale”, using their tableaux skills to create frozen scenes from well-known stories. The class then guessed each scene based on the characters body language and facial expressions. It was a fun and creative way to bring classic tales to life! We have started looking into the drama element of “Space”.
• Year 4: The students eased into the term with team-building exercises and interactive drama games. They explored emotions through “Emotion Walks” and worked in groups to create improvisations from scenario cards. A fantastic start to the year! We have started looking into the drama elements “Space and Character”.
• Year 5: Year 5 kicked things off with team-building exercises and explored character creation using body language, facial expressions, and voice. They transformed into various characters while moving around the room, showing great teamwork and imagination! This term we are focusing on the drama elements Role, Character, Space and Situation.
• Year 6: Focusing on body movement, Year 6 students worked collaboratively to create environments and scenes using only their bodies. The class began with an action to represent a setting, and the rest of the group added objects or elements. It was an inspiring exercise in teamwork and creative expression! This term we are focusing on the drama elements Role, Character, Space and Situation.

What a wonderful start to 2025 drama! Looking forward to watching all our students grow and shine this term!

Miss Fisher

Secondary Drama Bursts onto the Stage!

This year brings an exciting new change to the secondary students here at Roleystone Community College with the introduction of our new secondary Performing Arts program. In anticipation of our new theatre space being built, students in Years 7-10 now have the opportunity to stretch their creative wings and explore their inner performer in Drama class. Already we have practiced our acting skills by introducing ourselves on the first day in funny ways, and creating a skit based on our classroom rules. Everyone joined in and had so much fun. Look out this year for updates on our circus skills, melodrama movies, medieval plays and puppet performances! We hope to see you at one of our shows!

Amy Callaway
Secondary Drama Teacher

Amy Callaway
Secondary Drama Teacher

Roleystone Bush Ranger Cadets Sign Up

Students in Years 7–10 can take part in the Roleystone Bush Ranger Cadets program, an exciting opportunity to engage with the local environment and community. Our meetings are held every Monday afternoon from 3:00pm to 5:00pm. This program offers hands-on experiences in conservation and outdoor adventure. Cadets participate in a variety of activities, including tree planting, wildlife incursions, building possum boxes, hiking the Bibbulmun Track, mountain biking, canoeing, and other exciting camp experiences. This program fosters teamwork, environmental stewardship, and a sense of adventure while making a positive impact on our local surroundings.

If your child would like to sign up, please follow the link below, your child must sign in with their Department of Education school login.

If you would like more information about the program, please contact Ryan Poole at ryan.poole@education.wa.edu.au or Mike Burns at 9391 6222.

Ryan Poole
Bush Ranger Cadets Leader

P and C News

Community News

Sign up for Junior AFL with Roleystone Junior Football Club

2025 Every Woman Triathlon and Kids!

City of Armadale News

Curiosity Corner

For more info and to book, visit the website here

Hearing Care

For more info and to book, visit the link 
Hearing Care (Piara Waters Library)

Yoga in the Park

To find out more, visit the website here. 

30 Days for Fitness and Fun

To find out more visit the website or pop in and have a chat to the team today!