Principal's MessageWhat a remarkable term we have had. Our students have made outstanding gains throughout the weeks, and this has become even more evident since reading their reports that were sent home to families yesterday. I commend each one of our students for their individual learning achievements, that have been highlighted in the general comments by the classroom teacher. Our students have excelled in team and individual sport, dance, public speaking, singing, academic and social activities during this term, which is a credit to everyone including the great partnership our staff have with the families who support them. We have had members of the public contact the school to inform us of outstanding behaviour displayed by our students during sporting events and the South Coast Dance Festival. I cannot be any prouder of the students at Unanderra Public School and I extend my appreciation to the families and staff who work together to ensure that our school maintains a high standard in all areas of teaching, learning and behaviour in partnership with the community. Our school recently participated in the External Validation process which concluded last Tuesday with a panel meeting that went for over three hours online. Most of the executive staff were a part of this meeting and it flowed well with the panel validating us on our plans, program implementation and placement in our Self-Assessment. This was a great opportunity to consider what initiatives we introduce and how we collect evidence and track data to encourage student growth and achievement across the school. I extend my thanks and appreciation to all staff, students and families who have supported us through this rigorous and important process. We have had carpet replaced in several classroom areas including the computer room this week and in addition solar panels will be installed on the roofs during the school holidays. A third flagpole has been installed at the front of the school to include the Torres Strait Islander Flag. I wish to remind families that Term 3, for students begins on Tuesday 18 July. All staff will be participating in professional learning and planning on Monday 17 July at school, focusing on Aboriginal Education, High Potential and Gifted Education and Teaching Reading to Reluctant Readers. We are fortunate to have so many teachers with expertise in these areas and look forward to transferring our learnt knowledge into the planning cycle of high-quality teaching and learning. We are very appreciative of the reading support given to the children by our parents, carers and grandparents who come into school each day. The children are certainly making progress in reading and their confidence is increasing. If any other parents, carers are interested please contact Mrs Brennan via the school office. A big thank you to Lisa and the P & C team for all that they continue to do to support our school both financially and in building our whole school community spirit. We are most fortunate to have you all and I look forward to the exciting events that next term brings us all. Following on from parent and teacher feedback the newsletter will now be posted once per month rather than fortnightly. All classes will continue to contribute to the newsletter and the items will remain the same, however each monthly addition will be a little more comprehensive. Reminders and ongoing posts via the usual communication platforms will continue as usual. Thank you! I wish everyone a wonderful school holiday break and look forward to seeing you all in term 3 ready to learn and connect with one another. Happy holidays! Kind Regards, Anissa Rajendra During Term 2, 6V are engaging in learning to develop an understanding of heritage places and sites. We have researched the Aboriginal perspectives in the Illawarra on some of these sites. 6V students are studying questions to guide an inquiry about a local heritage site which is of interest to them. They have collected relevant information from primary and secondary sources, organised and represented our findings in a range of formats, and considered different viewpoints, including Aboriginal knowledge, history and perspectives. Furthermore, we have visited the Yarning Circle in the morning to have a yarn about things that we are grateful for and different things that are happening in our life at various times of the year. All students connect to country and each other in this way. 2N has been taking advantage of the beautiful weather this term and have taken some of our learning on Country. One of our highlights earlier this term was when we took our mathematics lessons outside to explore equivalence using natural resources. We were trying to make the equal-arm balance equal, utilising various materials like sticks, rocks, leaves, and bark. Gumaraa ExperienceAt UPS, we started NAIDOC celebrations early with the amazing Gumaraa cultural incursion. Over two days, K-6 where immersed in traditional Aboriginal experiences such as boomerang throwing, discussing bush tucker, dancing, and observing artefacts. The students were genuinely engaged, respectful, and incredibly interested in learning about local Aboriginal culture, histories and knowledges. Pleasse enjoy the photos! Why is it important to look after our masked lapwing plovers? What are they? You might have seen the black and white birds and their tiny babies running around the school. These birds are masked lapwing plovers, and are protected by the biodiversity conservation act of 2016, making it illegal in all states of Australia to harass, kill or harm these birds and their babies. It has come to our attention that students of Unanderra have been throwing rocks at them, attempting to step on them and chasing them which leads to separation from their parents. Why we should look after them It has astounded us to know that so many people don’t realize that animals such as masked lapwing plovers actually have feelings, and we’re here to tell you that they DO! These birds have feelings, family and emotions just like you and me. Sadly, multiple of our baby plovers have already died and in 2022, one even got purposefully stepped on. But it’s not just for the safety of the plovers, but the student’s safety as well. Masked lapwing plovers have sharp spurs on the front of their wings and they aren’t afraid to swoop. How we can look after them Well, there are many different ways to look after our masked lapwing plovers. For one just keeping your distance can make a big impact. You can also stop chasing them, throwing rocks at them and trying to step on them or if you’re a parent and think your child is one of these people you can have a talk to them about this. Its not just the plovers that need looking after but the other animals and our environment needs some attention as well. Conclusion In conclusion it is vital to look after the plovers of UPS better and just give them some space, because anyone can make a difference. :) Written by Anastasia and Audrey from class 5D! K-6 AssemblyKB Merit: Emmy B & Jude G Student of the week: Zali S KS Merit: Jarrod-Dean R & Odie C Student of the week: Eden O KE Merit: Yager W & Claudette G Student of the week: Caleb C 1/2R Merit: Leah M & Leo L-G Student of the week: Sage C 1M Merit: Ariella G & Wren A Student of the week: Lara V 1P Merit: Bonnie A & Evie A Student of the week: Isla G 2L Merit: Evie B & Aaliyah H Student of the week: Lillian G-F 2N: Merit: Nicholas P & Archie B Student of the week: Millie B 3/4C Merit: Levi F & Avi D Student of the week: Kaimia W 3/4S Merit: Brock d-W & Abby D Student of the week: Lindzee L-B 3/4BA Merit: Ayah S & Keyara W Student of the week: Kasey R 3/4M Merit: Student of the week: Bronze: Silver: 5D Merit: Billy K & Lincoln Q Student of the week: Memphis 5L Merit: Lily C & Addison C Student of the week: Stefan J 6V Merit: Sienna M & Jarvis J Student of the week: Kylah-Rose T 6S Merit: Oscar W & Ozzy L Student of the week: Evie D Bronze and Silver AwardsBronze Awards Stage 1: Camellia G Amaleah B-S Glory P Taj T Mmuti T Leah M Harlee G Tyler L Aaliyah H Lillian G-, Annabelle C, NIcholas P Eva M Stage 2: Chris G Axel C Harper K Stage 3: Brax Z Logan W P Silver Awards Stage 1: Sage C Isla A Otis M Kairo D Brooklyn J Arlo M Brianna J Ella O Jackson C Zayden M Olivia H Chance M Stage 3: Cameron J Jaydan S Kymani J Multicultural Perspectives Public Speaking CompetitionThis term brought out the school's top public speakers. In week 4 UPS held the schools Multicultural Perspectives Public Speaking Competition for stage 2 and 3. The stage 2 finalists competing were:- 3/4M- Brodie K, Sam C, 3/4 DAB- Lexi C, Amelia H, 3/4S- Lola R-V, Allira P, 3/4C- Bronti O, Jordi W. The stage 3 finalists competing were:- 5D - Emily P, Chase C, 5L- Khatiya M, Serena R, 6V- Sophie G, Adina M, 6S- Ruby H, Charlotte W. It was a difficult decision to arrive at the winning students of each stage. They had to satisfy a long criteria including content knowledge, body language, and delivery to name but a few. After much deliberation the stage 2 winners were Lexi C & Lola R-V and stage 3 winners were Khatiya M & Serena R. These 4 young ladies represented our school in week 8 at the Mt St Thomas PS finals. They presented their prepared speeches and then had to present an impromptu speech. They spoke clearly, confidently and were all outstanding. The girls all received a participation certificate and Lexi C also received a Highly Commended certificate for her impromptu speech. Regards Mrs Brecely Di Noro Multicultural Perspectives Public Speaking Coordinator. Premier’s Spelling BeeUPS Premiere's Spelling Bee school finals was exciting. There was a lot of breath holding by the students in the audience and cheers of support. The stage 2 class finalists were:- 3/4M- Keira G, Van M, 3/4DAB - Ollie B, Amelia H, 3/4S - Millie B, Miranda J, 3/4C- Avi D, Hayley H. The stage 3 class finalists were:- 5D- Emily P ,Jaxon M, 5L- Madeline O, Khatiya M, 6V- Alex W, Lucas S, 6S- Charlotte W, Aliesha F. Each stage went through nine rounds of words per stage with increasing difficulty. The students conducted themselves with maturity, poise and determination. Our Stage 2 winner was Hayley H and runner up was Ollie B. Our stage 3 winner was Madeline O and the runner up was Emily P. Madeline and Hayley will participate in the Finals via zoom in Term 3. Regards Mrs Brecely Di Noro Premier’s Spelling Bee Coordinator Southern Stars Embrace - Tickets on Sale Now!This week Southern Stars 2023 EMBRACE was launched at the BlueScope Visitors Centre in Wollongong, where Executive Producer, Paul Roger, announced the theme, welcomed our new Presenting Partner – NSW Teachers Federation - and declared that tickets were officially on sale! There were some fantastic performances from our featured artists offering a sneak peek of some of the great items from this year’s show. Once again over 3,000 students from over 120 schools across Illawarra, Southern NSW, and around NSW will take part in a world-class two hour arena style variety show that will feature music, dance and drama that will appeal to all ages. EMBRACE includes circus troupes, audience favourites the NSW Public School Millennial Marching Band, a 500 strong choir, Yanggaa Garaba, the Rising Stars, a massive student orchestra, 2000 dancers, and amazingly talented featured artists. As in past years, school and community support of Southern Stars is vital to ensure its success, and the easiest way of showing your support is by attending one of the four blockbuster shows. It doesn’t matter if you know anyone performing in the show or not – Southern Stars is a high energy spectacle which provides great entertainment for people of all ages. The talent, energy and enthusiasm of our students, is something not to be missed. Over 12,000 people are expected to attend the four performances at the WIN Entertainment Centre in Wollongong on Friday August 25 (10am and 7pm) and Saturday August 26 (1pm and 7pm) - make sure you are one of them! Please note that tickets should be purchased only through the official ticket booking site of Ticketmaster. http://ticketmaster.com.au You can stay informed about what’s coming up in the show, by visiting our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/SouthernStarsArenaSpectacular and Instagram @southernstarsareaspectacular. Please like us and share the stories and pictures with all your friends and family. Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD)
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