21 February 2020

Newsletter Articles

Senior Teacher’s Report

Parents/Carers

Our skill set taster sessions occurred across our entire middle school. This program facilitates both work training skills and outcomes not normally covered in classroom programs. It provides students with greater access to curriculum areas. Students were exposed to a multitude of learning experiences including retail services, hospitality, horticulture, hairdressing, woodwork, car detailing, recycling, senseational designs and tie dye art. A big thank you to all our skill set teachers who make learning fun for our students.

Last Thursday and Friday was a big step in learning the foundation skills to teach non-verbal children how to communicate. A Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) professional development hosted by Pyramid Australia was held at Henbury School over two days. During this time, staff learned the skills required to help our non-verbal students communicate their needs and wants. A big thank you to Yellow 3 classroom who catered on the day.

Transition/Education Adjustments Plan meetings will occur in weeks 6-9 this Term. Parents, carers and numerous stakeholders are involved in these very important meetings which aim to devise a series of goals that assist in meeting important lifestyle outcomes and improve students access to the curriculum. Your classroom teacher will contact you in the coming weeks to book a meeting time.

We shared the love on Valentine’s Day. Thank you Natalie, Janine and the wellbeing team for spoiling our staff with an amazing morning tea.

This week we said farewell to Tegan our Business Manager who is off on maternity leave. We wish her and her husband Mickey all the best in the upcoming weeks as they prepare for the arrival of their baby. We celebrated with a morning tea and presented her with a basket full of baby gifts.

Paul Drewitt
Senior Teacher
Curriculum & Assessment

HELLO FROM PURPLE 2

WOW first term is really flying and it’s Week 4 already.

Purple 2 are busy doing lots of different activities.

We have explored many Skill Sets including; Retail, Art, Car Detailing and Hair dressing.

Danny celebrated the first birthday of the year with a tasty cake cooked by his class mates.

This is not the only cooking we have done. We have also created some delcious recess and lunches.

On Monday’s we have Drumming. We all enjoy making up our own rhythms and playing them for each other.

There are just too many exciting things happening to show them all.

Purple 2, Mel, Dan and Phuong

NEW STAFF PROFILE – CAROL AYERS

My name is Carol Ayres and I am the new Science Teacher for Henbury School replacing Joan Ocampo, so I have big shoes to fill. I arrived in the Northern Territory back in 1990 and I was a Transition teacher for my first year at Nhulunbuy Primary School. After leaving Nhulunbuy I have taught in various schools in Darwin which included Larrakeyah, Bakewell, Nakara and now Henbury. I have also had a year on exchange in London teaching in a Primary School called Fenstanton Infant School as well as a year interstate teaching at Redlands Special School. I have taught in all year levels at Primary Schools and I have been the specialist teacher in Science, PE and Health over my career. I have also briefly been a Northern Suburbs Sport Coordinator and a PE advisor with SHAPES when it existed.

In Science at Henbury we have been learning about static electricity and conducting a variety of different experiments to see how things move.

I was a keen sport person and enjoyed playing touch, soccer and tennis. This year I will be hoping Richmond win the 2020 Premiership for AFL. Go Tigers!

NEW STAFF PROFILE – REBECCA GUNNER

I would like to introduce myself, I am one of Henbury’s new classroom Teachers. My name is Rebecca Gunner, I grew up here in Darwin and then attended university locally at CDU. I have been teaching in the NT and internationally for nearly 20 years. 2020 has seen me transfer over from Nakara Primary School where I was for the last 8 years. I’ve previously taught at Bakewell PS Palmerston, Braitling PS Alice Springs, Cypress Juniors London, Henbury Outreach at Sanderson MS and LOM Elementary Colorado.

I am thoroughly enjoying my role back at Henbury and have settled in well thanks to a great class and support from colleagues.

My husband Ryan and I have four daughters that (happily) keep me pretty busy outside of work. I am very family orientated, we spend a lot of time together as a family unit enjoying everything Darwin has to offer from markets, to swimming, basketball and lazy air-conditioned weekends! When I get some time to myself I’ll catch up with friends for coffee, go for a run with the Darwin Deadly Runners or browse the shelves of Kmart.

Thank you for welcoming me to the Henbury School community, I look forward to meeting everyone as the year goes on.

NEW STAFF PROFILE - JENNIE TAYLOR

I would like to introduce myself as the new Business Manager for Henbury School. My Name is Jennie Taylor and I have lived in Darwin for 3 years. I am originally from Brisbane where I worked for Virgin Australia whilst studying my degree in Business E-commerce and Fraud Prevention and also data analytics. I then worked for Flight Centre as a Fraud Analyst in the finance department, after a few years I moved to Officeworks where I was the QLD and NT State Loss Prevention Manager and through my data analytics knowledge I uncovered the largest refund fraud in Wes farmers history.

After this I was offered a position to manage the Officeworks Stuart Park Store in Darwin. I also completed a Diploma in Business Management then I transferred to the same position in Target.

I very much enjoy data, numbers and finance. Outside of the work place I play and manage the Bushrangers Basketball, team I sing for the True Colours Choir, I love travelling and do a large trip every year. Last year I spent 5 weeks in the USA for the 5th time, and this year will see myself and my partner in Europe for Christmas.

PECS TRAINING

The past two days we have had 10 of our staff attend PECS - Picture Exchange Communication System, professional development to support effective student communication. Thank you to our awesome relief staff who have allowed our staff to attend this valuable learning.

Henbury Photo Day

Henbury School photo day will be on Tuesday 10th March 2020.

Order envelopes have been sent home. Our staff cannot open envelopes and therefore cannot give change so please ensure that the correct money is included. Payment can be by cash, money order or online credit card payment.

Sibling order forms have also been sent home.

Please ensure that your child wears their Henbury or Outreach school shirt on the day.

CORONAVIRUS UPDATE

All people who are coming are healthy and have no symptoms of COVID19 – they have already been in quarantine on board the ship and have not contracted the virus.

NT Health and the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre (NCCTRC) are preparing the village to accommodate the people and will follow procedures similar to the previous evacuation from Wuhan. They will travel with an AUSMAT team, and will undergo multiple screenings during the evacuation process. They will be screened daily while in quarantine in Howard Springs in the same way the current evacuees are being monitored.

Their plane is expected to arrive on Wednesday 19 February into the RAAF Base Darwin side of the Darwin Airport and be met by Australian Border force, AUSMAT and the Australian Defence Force.

Anyone who is unwell upon arrival will go directly to hospital for further assessment and treatment. All staff interacting with these people will be wearing appropriate protective equipment and will avoid any direct contact. The new evacuees will be quarantined separately from those who were evacuated from Wuhan.

The new evacuees have been in quarantine for more than a week already and the Australian Government is taking a very cautious approach by quarantining these people for an additional 14 days.

There is enough space at the facility to ensure the two groups do not mix. The Manigurr-ma village is equipped to quarantine these additional people.

They will be under the care of AUSMAT while in quarantine and will not be allowed to leave the village.

For the latest national updates please visit this website:

You can also contact the National Coronavirus Health Information Line on 1800 020 080.

STUDENT IMMUNISATION

2020 School Immunisations for students.

NO Students will be vaccinated without a signed consent form stating YES or NO.

A consent form must be completed and returned before MARCH to be able to participate in the school based immunisation program. Please contact our Health Promoting School Nurse Janine for more consent forms or further immunisation information.

Below are the year levels included for 2020 Immunisations.

Yr 7 – HPV/Boostrix/Mantoux (student/parents born overseas)
Yr 9 – Meningococcal ACWY
Yr 10 – (Aboriginal only) - Pneumococcal

2020 School based Immunisation dates for students are as below:

Dripstone MS - 5th & 6th March
Nightcliff MS – 9th March
CSC – Yr 10’s only – 11th March
SMS - 16th March
Henbury 18th March

Please note these dates maybe subject to change due to any unforeseen circumstances.

Janine Kelsey
Health Promoting School Nurse

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Happy Birthday to the following students that celebrate their birthdays in January/February:

January

Roxanne – 10th
Nicresha – 17th
Willam – 18th
Ken D – 21st
Jayden – 28th
Willis – 29th
Jack – 30th

February

Jake – 4th
Micky – 7th
Narvia – 7th
Bryony – 7th
Danny – 13th
Jeremy – 16th
Nadia – 21st
Jeanie – 23rd
Jamal – 18th
Peter C – 27th
Kristine C – 5th
Fay - 20th

UPCOMING EVENTS – Term 1 & 2