Principal's MessageWelcome to our first Newsletter for Term 2. As you are aware I have returned after taking some personal leave and am really glad to be back. I extend my thanks to Mrs Brennan and the executive team for taking on board all of the additional responsibilities that go along with my absence. They did a remarkable job and I am super proud to be working alongside them and the entire staff at UPS. Thank you! Welcome Mr Troy Hosler who has joined the UPS team as Assistant Principal Curriculum and Instruction. I know that he is looking forward to getting to know the students and school community in the months ahead. We are excited to learn from Mr Hosler and share the great things that UPS has to offer with him as well. The wet weather continues to have an impact on the grassed areas of our school grounds which has made it difficult to maintain. The children are to be congratulated for their patience as they play on the hard surfaces while the grass dries out during these sunny days. Southern Stars Our school is excited to be once again participating in Southern Stars in 2022. After the disappointment of last year being cancelled, we are confident that this year will go ahead. 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 performances at the Illawarra Performance Centre in Wollongong during week 6 of this term. We wish them all the very best of luck and look forward to watching this great performance. NAPLAN NAPLAN for our Year 3 and 5 students began last week. Congratulations to all our students who have been participating. NAPLAN testing will continue throughout this week, with the final day of testing on Friday 20 May. Students will have completed four tests during this time. Well done Year 3 and 5 students. We are all very proud of your hard work and effort. Reconciliation Week Reconciliation Week is coming up in Week 6 and is always an important learning experience for all of our students. The theme for 2022 is “Be Brave. Make Change” with students being involved in a number of activities throughout the week: Student leave during the term Families are encouraged to holiday or travel during school vacations. Holidays taken by students outside of school vacation periods are included as absences. 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 should be communicated with the parent. Reminder of guidelines for close contacts Last month NSW Health announced changes to isolation rules for close contacts which mean that students and staff identified as close contacts and showing no symptoms can return to school with certain requirements. Close contacts attending school need to adhere to the following in addition to the NSW Health guidelines:
For up-to-date information please click on the link below: https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/stay-safe/advice-for-parents-students 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:
To assist with the safe arrival and departure of students in the pick-up zone, all families will be 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 of call the office if your card needs replacement or changing. Parents must remain in their car unless they need to buckle 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. 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. SAFETY TIPS FOR STUDENTS: • Stay buckled in 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. National Walk Safely to School Day This Friday 20 May is ‘National Walk Safely to School Day.’ This day is one where we encourage students and their families to ride or walk safely to school. We hope that some of our families who don’t traditionally walk take the opportunity to enjoy some exercise on their way to school. If driving to school, maybe you could drive and park a little further away so you can enjoy some walking. Parent-Teacher Interviews Teachers spent time over the last two weeks meeting with parents and carers face-to-face in classrooms and via phone. This was a great opportunity for us to meet families and for families to get to know our teachers. The parent-teacher interview is not the only time you can discuss your child with the teacher, and we understand that not all families had the opportunity to make a booking. Our teachers are always available and can be contacted through the Seesaw app, via email to the school or contacting the front office. We encourage that families stay in touch with the teacher as best they can, and when a concern arises, make contact to discuss the issue. Mother’s Day Stall Thank you to the P&C who spent time over two Thursdays selling a variety of gifts for our Mother’s Day Stall. We are always appreciative of the many hours and work you put into our school to ensure that special days are able to be celebrated by everyone. Thank you! Fundraising Thank you to our wonderful school community who together raised over $14000 during our Colour Explosion fundraiser. A special mention to Savannah in KB who raised $1300! This money will be used to develop our playground and support our students in the UPS Athletics Carnival later this term at Beaton Park. Unfortunately, the unpredictable weather and the state of the school grounds has seen the event moved to Friday 23 September, the last week of term 3. The Year 6 Fizzy Spider Fundraiser last Friday was extremely successful. Thank you to the Stage 3 families who donated cups, spoons, drinks, etc. and thank you to everyone who purchased a special drink or two. The $500 raised will go directly to supporting the Year 6 farewell at the end of the year. Dental Van The Australian Dental Health Dental Van will visit UPS on Monday 6 and Tuesday 7 June for those students who returned their consent forms on time. Communication Getting out correct and timely information to our families is extremely important to us. There are 3 main lines of communication we use so you can keep up to date with what is happening at UPS:
Kindy Expo! We will be holding our annual Kindy Expo on Tuesday 31 May at 4.30pm in the school hall. This will be an opportunity for Unanderra Public School 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 in Kindergarten for 2023. We will also provide a walk around our school to see what fabulous things UPS has to offer. Thank you to Mrs Newman for organising this event. Please share this information with your family, friends and neighbours. 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 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 long colourful socks or colourful jumpers are not permitted. UPS are always willing to discreetly support families with school uniforms, etc. where necessary. Families requiring support are encouraged to contact the school for further information. Please also note that all children who are representing UPS such as attending high school master classes, etc. are expected to wear their full school uniform. Annual English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) Survey 2022 The EAL/D Annual Survey collects information about EAL/D students’ English language needs and EAL/D education practices in schools. EAL/D teacher Data collected through the survey:
Have a great fortnight ahead! Mrs Rajendra Throughout Term 2, Stage 2 is focusing on writing imaginative texts, with an emphasis on the idea of good vs. evil. This week, 3/4S has been working hard to understand the internal features (personality) and the external features (appearance) of different good and evil characters. The students came up with some fantastic ideas, and were able to use their knowledge on adjectives to truly distinguish between good and evil characters, and their differing appearances and personalities. Yullanga! KS have been exploring family structures, who we are and what are characteristics. We have been lucky to be able to share some of our learning journey so far. So far this term we have listened in News all about our families and where they are from. We recently read a gorgeous book called ‘A is for Aunty’ by Elaine Russell. This taught KS all about family structures in Aboriginal Families and the importance of Aunties in these families. We acted out selected scenes from the book like “K is for Kangaroo”. We were lucky enough to read this book on Country in our Yarning Circle. This was an opportunity for KS to explore ‘A is for Aunty’ whilst being connected to Country. K-6 AssemblyCongratulations to the following students for receiving a merit award and student of the week award; KB Merit: Jax F & Saxxon S Student of the week: Romano O KS Merit: Loretta S & Ramon M G Student of the week: KN Merit: Ava & Kairo Student of the week: Brooklyn 1/2AB Merit: Kayla S & Lindzee L B Student of the week: Jarli 1M Merit: Archie B Student of the week: Annabelle C 1P Merit: Glory P & Millie G Student of the week: Tyler L 2L Merit: Cameron K & Cali F Student of the week: Will T 2B: Merit: Nate W & Alexander M Student of the week: Kaimina J 3/4D Merit: Lexi C & Kymani J Student of the week: Zara W 3/4S Merit: Izaiah L & Hayley C Student of the week: Avi D 3/4J Merit: Jaxon M & Anastasia W Student of the week: Asher G 3/4R Merit: Student of the week: Sedra S 5/6K Merit: Taytum Z & Layla H Student of the week: 5/6D Merit: Charlotte W Student of the week: Charlotte A 5/6M Merit: Logan WP & Amelia H Student of the week: Faith M 5/6S Merit: Nevaya T & Amy S Student of the week: Charles H Bronze & Silver AwardsCongratulations for the following students for receiving their bronze and silver awards; Bronze: Glory P Kaleb M Harlem M Millie G Hailey N Chelsey Xavier F Tahlia D Aiden M Eli C Silver; Fletcher N Orielle F Isabella F Anjali K Charlotte A Nevaeh B Adina M Daniel P Cross CountryWell done to all the students who participated in our school cross country on the first day back of Term 2. Students 8 year - 13 years participated in the event, and all did such a great job. Due to the wet conditions of the school grounds, the cross country track had to be modified to allow for this event to take place. We would like to thank all the students, teachers and parents for your flexibility and understanding during the carnival. The District Cross Country will be held on Monday 23rd May at Kembla Joggers and the top 7 runners from each event get to represent UPS on the day. Congratulations to the following students; 8 Years Girls and Boys Lola RV & Samuel H Freya S & Parker P Harper B & Paxton M Layla F & Alex M 9 Years Girls and Boys Keira G & Jordi O Aliye S & Sam C Alexi C & Chris G Kimberley T & Diesel WW Amelia H & Oliver B Aya R & Izaiah L Lexii T & Levi F 10 Years Girls and Boys Charlotte S & Lachlan C Zara W & Lucas M Madeleine W & Jayden S Madeline O & Ryan H Adina M & Stefan J Kymani J & Daniel M Emily P & Jake F 11 Years Girls and Boys Matilda C & Rhydian J Amy S & Isaac F Zahlia L & Elijah L Charlotte W & Ben A Anjali K & Yerremurra W Lexie S & Alex W Nora S & Callum L 12/13 Girls and Boys Aya S & Adam N Taneeka M & Pearce W Jenaya R & Xavaiar L Gemma C & Caleb P Charlotte A & Diesel RF Tahlia D & Daniel P Taytum Z & Jahkobi W Kindergarten 2023 InformationPeer SupportThis week our wonderful Year 4 students participated in and successfully completed Peer Support Training. The Peer Support Program provides a fun and engaging environment for students to investigate relationships, resilience, optimism, values, and anti-bullying. Modules are designed to equip students with skills to deal proactively with life experiences, promote wellbeing, build positive relationships and connectedness, and to encourage a sense of responsibility. The students had fun learning the key skills to being great peer leaders and are very excited to put their training into action with their Kindergarten group. PBL UpdateTo settle back into Term 2, our previous focus for PBL was examining our rules and expectations within the classroom, playground and overall school life. This gave our students time to settle back into school routines. Now that we are well and truly into Term 2, the PBL have come up with the new weekly focus of “Let’s Talk About It”. “Let’s Talk About It” focuses on using kind words when speaking to others and to use kind words when talking through problems. Using kind words when speaking with one another links back to our school value of being respectful. Our focus will be encouraged in all year levels across the school community, inside and outside the classroom. Well done to KB and 5/6S for earning the most bees in the infants and primary classes for the first two weeks of Term 2! The PBL Team. The Fathering ProjectFamily values and why they’re important for As a father or father figure you are a powerful influence in shaping the beliefs and values of your children, both through what you say, and what you do. Family values define what you as a family, think is important, what is good and how you want to live. Your family values may differ slightly from other families, however, there are some fundamental core values that tend to match within most societies and cultures. Some of the common core values are kindness, trust, honesty, respect, generosity, courtesy and fairness. Defining, discussing and role modelling your own family values can help your children to make good decisions and healthy choices as they move through their teen years and into adulthood. For further tips on family values click on the button below. Pie DrivePie Drive is on again this year. Thank you to our wonderful school and community for supporting this fundraiser. We appreciate you placing your orders by email and EFT or by completing the order form and returning form and money to the office. Orders are due 9am Tuesday 17th May. All orders with more than 3 items will be contacted directly to arrange a time for collection to minimise people on school grounds. Collection of yummy pies and goodies is set for Friday June 3rd 2022. Colour ExplosionAmazing effort, together, we raised $14,528.50 with our Colour Explosion School Run 4 Fun! This money will go towards playground equipment and Beaton Park athletics carnival hire and ribbons. Your prizes have been distributed to the school, so make sure you keep an eye out 👀. To our Fundraising MonSTARS, congratulations and you will be receiving a MonSTAR bag tag, well done! Thank you again for your support and generosity! 🤗 We couldn’t do it without you! #schoolrun4fun #funrun #australianfundraising #fundraising #colourexplosion Congratulations to Savannah in KS for raising the most money towards our Colour Explosion School Run 4 Fun fundraiser 🙌 Thank you for raising a whopping $1300 that has gone towards our goal🤩 Savannah has now gone the draw to win a JB Hi-fi $10,000 shopping spree from @Australian Fundraising The prize will be drawn at the end of the year. Good luck 🍀 #schoolrun4fun #funrun #australianfundraising #fundraising #colourexplosion Learning Labs
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