Principal's MessageWelcome to the new year! We have begun 2024 with students filled with energy and excitement to start their new school year. All classes have now been formed and the kindergarten children have settled well into ‘Big School’. It has been a delight to welcome all our new kindergarten students and their families to UPS. We also have been excited to meet our new students and their families who have joined us this year. Class Name KA Mrs Evelyn Arnold KN Miss Victoria Nourie KC Mrs Renae Chaseling K-2R Miss Crystal Ryman 1P Miss Alexia Photiou 1A Mrs Michelle Abel –(Mon, Tues, Wed) Mrs Erin Alewood – (Thurs, Fri ) 2L Mr Paddy Le Breton 2S Miss Alyce Speed 3/4M Mrs Rebecca McCabe 3/4D Mr Sam Donald 3/4S Miss Christine Solomon 3/4WE Mrs Chrissi Williams (Mon. Tues) Mrs Lauren Elston (Wed,Thur,Frid) 5E Mrs Kate Ellsmore 5S Mr Jarryd Scotland 6S Miss Renae Scruby 6L Mr James Lloyd Principal Mrs Anissa Rajendra Librarian Miss Rachel Prior Science Mr Jonathan Synnott Assistant Principal Curriculum & Instruction Mr Troy Hosler EAL/D Mrs Kathy Koumalatsos (Tue, Wed) Learning Support Mrs Assunta Brennan (K-2) ( Tues, Wed,Thurs) Assistant Principal (Rel) Learning Support and Wellbeing Mrs Natalee Brennan Assistant Principals Mrs Melissa Newman K-2 (Mon, Thurs, Frid) Mrs Evelyn Bell K-2 (Tues, Wed) Mrs Rebecca McCabe Stage 2 (Mon- Frid) Mr James Lloyd Stage 3 (Mon- Frid) School Psychologist Connor Healey-Green (Tues-Frid) School Administration Manager Mrs Sonja Martinoski Administration Officers Mrs Rhonda Rutherford Mrs Sheree Lyons General Assistant Mr Scott Jacobs (Mon, Tues, Frid and every 2nd Thursday. School Learning Support Officers Autism Support Class Mrs Jayne Ellis (Mon-Frid) Mrs Suzy Stroemer (Mon – Thurs) Mrs Ashley Robinson (Wed, Thurs, Frid) Mrs Mary Dilber (Mon-Frid) Mrs Natasha Gale (Mon – Frid) Mrs Nicole Talbott Aboriginal Education (Mon-Thur) Mrs Sally Brooker (Tues, Wed, Frid) Over the next few weeks parents and carers will be receiving numerous notes filled with information and requests for signed permission notes to be returned. Please check your child’s bag and contact the school if you have any questions or concerns. Thank you in advance for your prompt return of these notes in the coming weeks. As you know we have formed our 2024 classes. We now have 15 mainstream classes and one Autism Support class K-6. Student numbers have remained steady which is a positive start and allows our school to maintain continuity around school funding and resourcing. The school canteen remains untendered at this stage. We have had very little interest from our school community which has meant that we have not been pursuing it during this time. We will however reconsider this as the year progresses. The term ahead looks to be very exciting and busy. We have completed Best Start for kindergarten and they have settled in well given that there are nearly sixty of them! We are all looking forward to a wonderful year ahead! Kind Regards, Anissa Rajendra It has been a fantastic start to the year in 1A with lots of wonderful discussions and learning taking place. In English, we started the term focusing on how the context of a text affects what the author writes about. As a class, we studied Our Island by Alison Lester and created beautiful wax-resist artworks like the illustrations in the story. We also read Under the Southern Cross by Frané Lessac and explored areas around our school and local area to write our own class context. I’m sure you will be impressed by our amazing writing and artworks! In 3/4S we have been learning about Narratives through the novel ‘Fantastic Mr Fox’ By Roald Dahl. We have had fun learning about character, setting and series of events. The students have had the opportunity to create their own characters to insert within the story as a fourth farmer and create their own complications and resolutions in line with the story. Students have also had the opportunity to get creative and create a story map that aligns with the series of events within the novel Fantastic Mr Fox. In 6S, we got together as a group and talked about the importance of an Acknowledgement of Country and discussed the Aboriginal culture in our area. Students then got into groups and started to brainstorm words and ideas to begin constructing their own Acknowledgment of Country. Below is what we came up with for our class Acknowledgment. 1P visits the Yarning Circle to connect with each other and learn more about where their families come from and the traditions they celebrate!! District Swimming CarnivalOn Friday 23rd February around 30 competitors, as well as teachers, parents and spectators from the Unanderra Public School community traveled to Dapto Olympic Pool for the Dapto District Swimming Carnival. Even though it was around 35 degrees, it was a fantastic day, with everyone from Unanderra P.S trying their best and showing great sportsmanship. A big thank you to the parents who helped with the setting up and packing up of the tents. Also thank you to Mr Donald for looking after the team on the day. Congratulations to the following students who have qualified to represent our school and the Dapto District at the South Coast Regional Swimming Carnival on Tuesday 12th March at Dapto Olympic Swimming Pool: Junior Girls/Boys Freya S - breaststroke, butterfly, 10 yrs freestyle Evelyn W - 8 yrs freestyle Ariella G - 8 yrs freestyle Leo D - 9 yrs freestyle Cohen O - 9 yrs freestyle Relay Team: James P, Avi D, Leo D & Cohen O 11 years Girls/Boys Aliye S - breaststroke Jordi O - backstroke Alexis C - freestyle Senior Boys/Girls Chase C - backstroke Memphis W-W - freestyle Emily P - breaststroke, 12 yrs freestyle, butterfly Relay Team: Alexis C, Emily P, Amelia H & Addison C Relay Team: Lucas M, Diesel W-W, Memphis W-W, Jordi O Welcome back to the iLib in 2024.
In other news, I am very excited to announce Reading Club is back in the iLibrary on Tuesday mornings from 8.30am - 8.55am. I will be there along with teacher volunteers but the weekly event will be run and organised by Miss Photiou. Please remind your children to pop up to the iLib on Tuesday mornings for some toast and to read some of our latest books. In addition, individual borrowing has begun. Each class’ library day was mentioned in Class Newsletters and a SeeSaw reminder will be sent out the afternoon before their library day, each week. It would be very much appreciated if parents and caregivers could remind their children to pack their library bags each week and show some interest in what their child is reading. Research has shown that there are many benefits to reading for pleasure, including building kindness and empathy while also supporting children to do better in all other subjects, especially reading and writing. We have had a lot of students from Years 4, 5 and 6 interested in becoming Library Monitors and Tech Crew in 2024 and after filling in their application forms their scheduled days have been announced. They will be helping out in the iLibrary at least one day a week at lunch time. I look forward to working with such dedicated and kind role models, throughout the year. Students were also welcomed back to school with our first book display of the year celebrating Library Lovers Day on the 14th of February. Teachers have been sharing their favourite books when they were children. To help encourage your child's reading journey, perhaps share with them some of the books you loved to read when you were at school... and stay tuned for student recommendations. Finally, a big thank you to everyone who has purchased a book/s from our first Scholastic Book Club of the year. Every purchase earns our school library rewards and the ability to buy more books. If your child's book has not yet arrived, it will be arriving shortly and will be delivered to classrooms. All the best and I look forward to seeing you throughout the year. Ms Prior Teacher Librarian Naplan 2024Each year the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is undertaken by students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. Students will participate in tests for writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. NAPLAN 2024 will take place from Wednesday 13 March to Monday 25 March. NAPLAN is just one part of our school learning assessment program. The tests assess literacy and numeracy skills your child is already learning at school. Excessive preparation for NAPLAN is not required nor recommended. The public demonstration site (https://www.nap.edu.au/online-assessment/public-demonstration-site) is available to see the types of questions, tools and functions used in the NAPLAN tests. Further information about NAPLAN is available on the NESA website (https:// educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/k-10/understanding-the- curriculum/naplan/parent-information). If you have any questions about NAPLAN, please contact your child’s teacher. Clean Up Australia DaySunday, 3 March was Clean Up Australia Day, 2024 and the students and staff at UPS were excited to support this annual event on the Friday before. Clean Up Australia Day is a great opportunity to recognise our responsibility to care for country and appreciate the beautiful place in which we live. It is up to all of us to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle every day keeping our environment clean and rubbish free both for ourselves and the animals that we share our world with. Classes spent 15-20 minutes after playtime making sure to pick up every scrap of rubbish we could find in the playground. Classes also discussed the importance of keeping our school and local environment clean every day. Take a look at us hard at work… Keeping Our Kids Safe, Online.Parents and carers will gain valuable insights into keeping kids safe on social media during the webinar. They will receive an overview of managing different social media platforms, including chat and privacy settings. Additionally, the webinar will cover fostering positive conversations about social media use, managing content, and addressing negative online experiences. The presenter, Greg Gebhart, is one of Australia’s leading online safety presenters, providing presentations to more than 1.2 million participants at state, national and international events. He has a strong background in leadership and change and has held several senior positions, including Regional Manager for the Victorian Industry and Education Partnerships program. Brought to you by the P&C Federation NSW, use this link to register https://bit.ly/3OUmGkD or scan the QR code below.
1 Comment
lachlan
18/3/2024 06:52:06 pm
great
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Unanderra Public School
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