Principal's MessageDear Parents and Carers, It is amazing to think that we are already in week 2 of term 2 and nearly halfway during the calendar year. On the first day staff returned to school we focused on Aboriginal Education and reviewed the UPS Reconciliation Action Plan as a whole staff. Mr Scotland led this professional learning day which was extremely productive and enjoyable. The afternoon session was filled with stage planning meetings and organisation for the term ahead. The students arrived at school last Wednesday filled with excitement and lots of chatter about their fun filled Easter holidays. It was so fabulous to hear of the camping trips and family adventures that many of them experienced. These holiday times are so precious, and I am always heartened to hear of families spending time together and taking the time to share life experiences. Already this term we have acknowledged ANZAC day with an assembly under our new cola area and we also used our new flagpole area. We look forward to the old school bell being placed near these flag poles and the area around these monuments being manicured and completed as a formal space in the school playground. Last Thursday our students enjoyed participating in the Cross Country which was so much fun. Many families and visitors attended to support the children and we thoroughly enjoyed the community vibe and encouragement. We have a lot to look forward to this term including the annual Book Fair which will be held next week in the library and Ms Prior is so excited to be preparing for the enthusiastic purchasing of books and other items that will be available. The Life Education Van will be visiting next week. Although we had originally planned not to include this event in 2023, it became a free option and we felt we should accept this generous offer. It was important that it be directly related to the topics focused on in each stage. The outline is below. Kindergarten- Harold's Friendship Year 1- Harold's Friendship Year 2- Growing Good Friends +1/2R Year 3/4- Friends and Feelings Year 5 & 6- Relate, Respect The class newsletters will be sent out next Monday and parent/teacher interviews will be held in week 4. The parent/teacher interviews will take place all in one night and parents will be invited to choose a time to meet with their child’s class teacher. The Parent Reading Project will continue from week 2. This term we welcome parent readers into kindergarten! Applications for Opportunity Class placement tests close on Monday 15 May 2023 for students in year 5 for 2024. Applications for opportunity class placement are considered on the results of the Opportunity Class Placement Test. Students who wish to be considered for placement are required to sit the Opportunity Class Placement Test on Thursday 27 July 2023.Parents/carers must apply online between Thursday 30 March and Monday 15 May 2023 at: https://education.nsw.gov.au/oc.Parents/carers must use their own email address and not one belonging to their child. Late applications are not usually accepted. If parents/carers do not have internet access, they can apply at a public library or at your child’s school. If you have a disability that prevents you from using a computer, you can contact the Unit for assistance after 30 March 2023. Parents must submit only ONE application for each student. Coming Up
Staffing - Term 2 We welcome Mr Lloyd who has returned to UPS in a permanent capacity as Assistant Principal supervising Stage 3. Mr Lloyd is teaching Year 5 and we acknowledge and thank Mrs Old for her contribution to UPS and the students in this class. Mrs Newman will be taking extended personal leave throughout term 2 and we look forward to seeing her back at school in the second part of the year. Mrs Bell will be relieving as Assistant Principal supervising K-2 with the additional support of Mrs Natalee Brennan for term 2. Mrs Vujasin will remain teaching her Year 6 class and we thank her for the work she does to ensure that the learning is exciting and the final year of school for her students is consistent and supported. Kindy Expo! We will be hosting our annual Kindy Expo on Tuesday 20 June at 4pm in the school hall. This will be an opportunity for Unanderra Public School staff and students to showcase the vast array of valuable teaching and learning, and extra-curricular experiences we have to offer for any prospective parents/carers of children looking to enrol their child in kindergarten for 2024. A short tour of our school grounds will be offered to see what fabulous things UPS has to offer. Thank you to Mrs Bell for organising this event. Please share this information with your family, friends, and neighbours. We look forward to meeting everyone! Full School Uniform We are all proud to be a part of the Unanderra Public School community and as such expect that each of our students to wear their uniform with great pride. As the weather becomes cooler, I understand that additional clothing may need to be worn. Parents/carers are reminded that only school jumpers are to be worn to school and excess jewellery, long colourful socks or colourful jumpers are not part of the school uniform. Our school is always willing to discreetly support families with school uniforms etc where necessary. Families requiring support are encouraged to contact the school for further information. A respectful reminder that public education sport representative jumpers are only to be worn on Fridays. Correct school jumpers are to be worn otherwise. Please also note that all children who are representing Unanderra Public School such as attending high school master classes etc are expected to wear their full school uniform. Communication Sharing correct and timely information to our families is extremely important to us. There are three main channels of communication we use so you can keep up to date with what is happening at UPS: SENTRAL Parent Portal- used for notes, reminders and reporting absences. All correspondence will be posted on the portal and important dates will be added to the calendar. Seesaw- used for communication between teachers and families. Teachers may choose to send reminders through this app. Facebook- used to advertise the wonderful things happening at UPS. This webpage can be seen by the greater community. Parent-Teacher Interviews Teachers are looking forward to meeting with parents/carers on Tuesday afternoon/evening in week 4 for the formal parent-teacher interviews. The interviews will take place on Tuesday 16th May, with times allocated from 3.20pm to 7.30pm. Interviews will be held in the hall for Stages 2 and 3, and Early Stage One classrooms for Kindergarten and Stage 1. Parents will be able to book a face-to-face interview through the Sentral Parent Portal from today. Bookings will close on Friday 12th May 2023 at 3:00pm. Parents/Carers who have already registered for the Sentral Parent Portal are encouraged to continue accessing the portal by logging on using the application or the URL: https://unanderraps.sentral.com.au/portal Please know that this is not the only time you can discuss your child’s progress with the teacher, and we understand that not all families will be available to t make a booking. Our teachers are available where reasonably possible and can be contacted through the Seesaw app, via email to the school or by contacting the front office to make an appointment. We encourage families to stay in touch with the teacher as best they can and are always welcome to discuss any issues that may arise. Mother’s Day Stall Thank you to our amazing P&C who have spent time preparing a variety of gifts for our Mother’s Day stall. We are always appreciative of the many hours and work they put into our school to ensure that special days can be celebrated by everyone. Thank you! Student leave during the term We understand that at times students are required to take extended leave during a school term. Families are encouraged to holiday or travel during school vacation period rather than during the school term. Holidays taken by students outside of school vacation periods are included as absences. Please be aware that the accepting or declining an application for leave is at the discretion of the principal. If the principal does not believe the absence is in the student’s best interests and does not accept the reason, the absence will be recorded as ‘A’. In this case, a Certificate of Extended Leave – Holiday will not be issued. This will always be communicated with the parent/carer. We thank you for understanding and look forward to continuing to work in partnership in your child’s learning journey at UPS. Southern Stars Our school is excited to be once again participating in Southern Stars in 2023. After the excitement and success of last year we are again offering students in Years 4-6 the opportunity to participate in Mass Dance Ensemble at this year’s Southern Stars Performance. We are pleased to advise that Unanderra Public School will also participate in the Yanggaa Garaba Aboriginal Dance Ensemble at this year’s Southern Stars Performance. We are offering students in Years 2 – 6 the opportunity to be part of this fun and exciting event. Participation in Southern Stars is a huge commitment from both students and parents as there are many rehearsals and additional costs involved and we thank you for participating. Southern Stars is a wonderful event that provides students with a passion for performing arts to engage with a professional and accomplished production. We wish all the students participating all the best as they work hard in the coming months to prepare for what will be an event they will remember for life. Dance Festival Miss Bell and Miss Ryman have been working hard with our school dance troupe in preparation for multiple performance at the Illawarra Performance Centre in Wollongong during week 8 of this term. We wish them all the very best of luck and look forward to watching this great performance. District Cross Country Many of our students have been selected to represent Unanderra Public School at the Dapto District Cross Country Carnival to be held at Integral Energy Cross Country Park (Kembla Joggers), Darkes Road, Brownsville on Monday 8th May (Week 3, Term 2). Time: The carnival starts at 9:00am (roll call with School Team Managers) and should conclude by 2:00pm. Transport: Travel to the carnival will be by private transport. Cost: The cost for competitors is $5.00, which covers the cost of the hire of the venue, and PSSA carnival levy. Wear: Sports shorts, running shoes and school shirt Bring: Water, hat, recess, and lunch (small canteen will be provided), warm clothing and something to sit on. Spectators are welcome at the venue to support their children. Please keep in mind that official judgements are final, and no video or photographic evidence will be considered in making final decisions on the day. Parents are NOT to park in the museum car parking area. The public needs to go to the very end of the driveway and use the grass area on the right. Because of safety and supervision concerns, the playground equipment is ‘OUT OF BOUNDS’ for all competitors. Disregarding this expectation will result in disqualification. The first 7 place getters in each age group will represent the South Wollongong District at the South Coast SSA Regional Cross Country Carnival at Willandra Cross Country Course, Camberwarra on Thursday 8th June 2023. Congratulations and wish all our student representatives lots of luck and enjoyment for this day! Drop Off and Pick Up Zone Our routines for drop off and pick up are continuing. It is our preference that parents ‘kiss and drop’ at the gates in the morning and pick up in the afternoon as per current routines. Morning supervision commences at 8:30am, parents are asked not to drop their children off until this time. The morning bell rings at 8:55am, students arriving after this time will collect a late note from the school office. The routine for afternoon dismissal is: • Kindergarten, Year 1, Year 2 and any siblings will depart at 2.55pm • Back gate will exit from 2:55pm • Students Years 3-6 will continue to finish at 3pm. To assist with the safe arrival and departure of students in the pick-up zone, all families have been given a laminated card with their surname on it this week. Families may also create their own sign if they wish. We encourage users of this zone to clearly display the surname of the child/ren they are picking up on their dashboard. Please display family cards on the dashboard on the passenger’s side of the car. This will allow for a quick and safe collection of students. Please email or call the office if your family requires a card or you require a replacement card. Parents must remain in their car unless they need to buckle in their child into a seat. The staff member on duty will call out the family name over the microphone for your child/ren to move to the car. Children will not be dismissed if parents have double parked. If a parking space is not available, parents will need to drive around the block until a space becomes available. We remind drivers to remain patient and never to park in the drop zone area during afternoon or morning pick up and drop off times. SAFETY TIPS FOR PARENTS: • Always drop-off or pick-up your child from the designated area, following the school's procedures. • Make sure child/ren use the footpath-side door when getting in and out of a car. • Make sure the hand brake is applied when the vehicle is stationery. • Never double park. • Never Park across a pedestrian crossing or driveway. • Never undertake a U-turn in close proximity to the school. • Never reverse when in close proximity to the pedestrian crossing. SAFETY TIPS FOR STUDENTS • Stay buckled up until the vehicle has stopped in the ‘Drop-off and Pick-up' area. • Make sure your school bag and other items are in a safe position, e.g., on the floor. • Be ready to get in or out of the car with your belongings when the car has stopped, and you have unbuckled your seatbelt. • Always get in and out of the backseat of the vehicle through the safety door – the rear footpath-side door. • Wait until your name has been called out before going to meet your parents. Have a wonderful fortnight ahead! Kind Regards, Anissa Rajendra In 2N, we are very excited to return to school for another term of learning and growing in and out of the classroom. Our Visual Arts unit has been focused on utilising constructive feedback, provided by our teacher, peers, and selves, to enhance our artistic abilities. Specifically, we have refined our skills by producing several drafts of a bird portrait. This valuable lesson on the importance of feedback will guide us in our pursuit of creating the most exceptional bird portraits imaginable! Our next challenge involves selecting an object of choice, locating a photo on the laptops, replicating it, and producing multiple drafts using the same process. We are eager to continue our journey of development and strive for excellence in all of our work. In 3/4M we have enjoyed taking our maths lessons outside to learn on country. This week's lesson on 3D shapes was embedded with Aboriginal pedagogies for teaching and learning. The students used images to represent 3D shapes and symbols to tally the number of 3D objects we found in the environment. We connected with the environment when we found a tree that grows its own cylinders (Banksia Tree) and of course we enjoyed sharing our discoveries in a yarning circle. In 3/4M we love a fun lesson, especially when we get to go outside and find real world examples of what we have been learning. K-6 AssemblyKB: Merit: Aya S & Ellira DW Student of The Week: Coby C KS Merit: Hamish & Finley Student of the week: Layla KE Merit: Evie A & Harvey H Student of the week: Kenzi M 1/2R Merit: Felicity B & Caige J Student of the week: Tyler L 1M Merit: Jax F & Emelia J. Student of the week: Abraham M 1P Merit: Otis M. & Luke W. Student of the week: Chase K. 2L Merit: Lola W & Oliver Y Student of the week: Jarli L 2N: Merit: Leo D & Olivia H Student of the week: Jemma C 3/4C Merit: Nate. W & Kaimia. W Student of the week: Alyson. A.W 3/4S Merit: Brock D & Loralee H. Student of the week: William P 3/4BA Merit: Amelia P & Cali F Student of the week: Kaleb MM 3/4M Merit: Tempe W & Keira G Student of the week: Kiara C 5D Merit: Elise W & David O Student of the week: Emily P 5L Merit: Piper B Student of the week: Arinya L 6V Merit: Mohamed M & Alana G Student of the week: Isaac F 6S Merit: Charlotte W & Levi R Student of the week: Levi R Bronze and Silver AwardsBronze Awards: Stage 1: Caige J, Lily B, Sage C, Lola W, Brianna J, Fletcher N, Chance M Stage 2: Brock DW, Lucy W Stage 3: Adina M Silver Awards: Stage 1: Evelyn W, Ava D, Hugo D, Savannah V, Daniel L, Austin W, Jarli L, Max R, Evie B, Annabelle C Stage 2: Abby D, Lani M, Millie B ANZAC Day AssemblyOn Wednesday 26th of April, we were lucky enough to spend time in class and as a school to reflect on ANZAC Day and soldiers who have fallen for our safety. We made wreaths as a class and attended our ANZAC Day assembly hosted by Miss Ryman and our school captains and vice captains, where we learned about the history of ANZAC Day and what this means for us. K-6 Cross CountryLast Thursday, all students in K-6 participated in the Cross Country Carnival. It was a wonderful afternoon and all students demonstrated sportsmanship and perseverance as they ran around the cross country course. K-1 also had the opportunity to play some fun tabloid games and activities. There was a parachute, egg and spoon race, sack races, 3-legged races, and obstacle course and an Indigenous game called Kai-Wed. It was a really fun day had by all! It was lovely to see heaps of families come along to the carnival to support their children. District Cross Country for those students ages 8 and up will be on Monday 8th of May at Kembla Joggers. Miss Scruby and Mr Lloyd will be there to cheer and supervise the students on the day. PBL Term 1 UpdateLast term students engaged in various lessons such as learning and refreshing our school values of being safe, responsible and respectful. Students were reminded about our ‘Zones of Regulation’ and classes were able to discuss the settle space and different tools to use when students were outside of their green zone. Our Kindergarten students met Buster Bee for the first time and learnt what a ‘busy bee’ is as well as how to be legendary. The school community watched students receive their bronze or silver award at our fortnightly assemblies. After a busy term working towards collecting as many busy bee’s as possible, we were able to celebrate with a rewards day. Our rewards day this term was surrounded by the theme of ‘Old Fashioned Games’. Students participated in relays, egg and spoon races, a game or two of rob the nest and games with parachutes. Classes from different stages were able to team up and all students participated within the rotations. It was a ‘bee-utafil’ day! Mrs Rebecca McCabe PBL Co-Ordinator Healthy HaroldHealthy Harold & the Life Education van will be visiting UPS next week. The program this year is fully funded which means our entire school will have the opportunity to visit Harold. For more information please chick on the link. Road SafetyEthics Scripture
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Unanderra Public School
|