20 February 2019
Newsletter Articles
Important Dates
|
Wed 20th February |
Open Night |
|
Open Board Meeting |
|
|
Wed 27th February |
Assembly – Room 6 |
|
Mon 4th March |
Labour Day – Public Holiday |
|
Tues 5th March |
Year 6 Science – Hampton SHS |
Principal’s Report
Thank you everyone for their contribution to a very smooth start to the school year. This year we are concentrating on creating an orderly working environment. The classes have made massive improvements in the first two weeks, moving from room to room in a very quiet and contained manner. I thank the teachers and children for working so well together.
Room 8 have had an enjoyable start to the year also enjoying time with their buddy class cluster 3.
Open Night
A reminder that classrooms are open tonight Wednesday 20th February for a short time for parents to meet the teacher and see the classroom. If you require a longer meeting with your child’s teacher please use tonight to book an interview time. Classrooms are open between 5:30pm and 6:30pm. I am hoping to make a quick tour through them all.
Positive Work
It has been very pleasing to see the number of children visiting the office with outstanding work. We have had 46 children visit for positive work in the first two weeks. This is wonderful to see, each child’s name is recorded in a book and the children receive a different reward depending on the number of visits they have made. On the sixth visit they receive the Principal’s award presented at the next assembly.
Assemblies
As previously mentioned there is a presentation assembly every second Wednesday this year, on the even weeks of term. The next assembly is Wednesday 27th February and will be presented by the children in Room 6. All families and friends are welcome to attend. Changes have been made to the assembly format so we are expecting that they won’t be quite so long. Assemblies are 8:45am -9:15am (approximately) in the undercover area.
Sprinklers and Oval
Unfortunately, we are having an issue with someone unscrewing the sprinklers and throwing them around. This means that when the irrigation comes on at night or the early hours of the morning the water is just shooting skyward and is being completely wasted. If you notice anyone other than Mr Warren Barnard, School Groundsman, please notify the office.
Also, someone has been digging round holes in the school oval and lifting out large circles of grass, then replacing it. Unfortunately the grass is not regrowing in these areas and we currently have had over 100 holes dug in this manner all across the oval and surrounds. Again, if you see someone, please ring School Watch on 1800 177 777 or notify the front office with a description and time.
Before and After School Play
Please note the children are encouraged to sit quietly outside the classrooms before school and then enter once the doors are open. This helps the children settle into the classroom routine quicker than if they are running around playing games. Also we don’t encourage children on any playground equipment before school as this is a safety concern. 8:15am is the acceptable time for children to arrive at school. There is no Duty of Care by the school before then. Please see the article below from Helping Hands if you require before or after school care.
Last year we stopped children playing in the early childhood playground after school as there had previously been issues. At the parents request it was decided that playing for 10 – 15 minutes would be acceptable, giving the parents a chance to get to know each other and see who their child’s friends are.
Unfortunately a few people are abusing this arrangement by allowing their older children to come into the area and play. This is causing problems again as the older children are running around the buildings and damaging plants in the garden beds. If you are staying with your Kindergarten or Pre- Primary child please ensure that you are watching them and not the screen of your phone. If you wish to stay for 10 – 15 minutes with an older child in years 1 – 6 please use the playground at the end of the cluster. The early childhood playground is only for the Kindy and Pre Primary children to use. The Kindy and Pre Primary children are also welcome to use the playground at the southern end of the clusters for a short period of time. Before and after school is usually a time that the teachers are preparing future lessons and would like to do so in an orderly working environment, not one where children are yelling and screaming outside their doors. Please consider others in the choices you make.
Uniforms
Unfortunately there has been a delay in the arrival of new stock for this year. The uniform shop does not have any hats at present and most sizes of the school shirt are on back order. We are sorry for the delay and the issues it is causing. As soon as stock arrives families will be notified.
Carpark
Once again there have been issues with the short term pick up and drop off area referred to as kiss and drive. Please note that this is a 1 minute stopping space. It would be fabulous if everyone was considerate to others needs in this area. There are parking bays available on the opposite side of the school, in Hamersley Ave if you wish to use them and they are particularly helpful if your child is in the rooms in the older part of the school.
Yvonne Arnott
Principal
Open Night
The night will follow this approximate timeline:
4:30pm - School Board Open Meeting. All parents welcome to this open meeting in the staffroom. The agenda will include the School Board’s 2018 Annual Report and election of Board vacancies.
5:30 - 6:00pm Classrooms Open. All rooms will be open for students to guide parents around, introduce them to the class teacher and show their best work. As time is limited formal interviews will not occur during this time, however questions concerning class policy can be clarified.
Lost Property
At the end of 2018 there was a large amount of jumpers and drink bottles left at school. Drink bottles have been stored in the cleaners shed and you will need to see Mrs Boyce after school to see if your child’s bottle is there. All unclaimed bottles will be disposed of at the end of February.
The jumpers are in a box in the first aid room and will be there until the end of February. After that they will be washed and sold as second hand in the uniform shop. We have a large amount of property unclaimed as there are no names visible. Please mark all your children’s clothing and we will endeavour to return them.
Helping Hands Update
Out of School Care
As you will be aware, on 2 July 2018 the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) replaced the Child Care Benefit and Child Care Rebate. The Australian Government’s new child care package provides more support for more families and is targeted at those who need it most.
An important and significant change to the way families access eligibility to this subsidy has been implemented. Notably, if a child is absent from their Outside School Hours Care program for more than eight consecutive weeks, the Government ceases the child’s CCS enrolment.
This change means that if a family was previously paying reduced fees they would then be charged the full amount. Additionally, when the Government ceases their enrolment, the parent is no longer able to access their online account through the iParent Portal to make or change any bookings.
We understand we have to work differently with the Governments new CCS in order to make it easier and more convenient for parents and our focus is on evolving our technology platform over the next 6-9 months to do this. We are also aware that in the short term there may be some frustration by parents and to help this we are implementing some changes.
What are we doing to help?
- OSHClub will be sending clear communications to Parents/Guardians, alerting them to the 8-week absent rule and the steps they need to take.
- We are upskilling our Service Coordinators to enable them to quickly and easily re-activate a child’s CCS enrolment and support / instruct parents in their role
- We have stopped late booking fees for a period of time – it’s the right thing to do
- We are increasing the number of people within our Customer Service and Billing team to support the additional call volume.
We thank you for your understanding during this period of change. We strive to lead the way in Outside School Hours Care with communication and service and value your feedback.
Kind Regards
Simon Hughes | Partnership Manager
Vacation Program
School holiday program bookings are now open on the helping hands website. Enrol or book now to secure your place in our awesome vacation care program held at Sutherland Dianella Primary School.
Before and after school spaces are limited as we have had a high volume of new enrolments this term, if you think you may need us in the future you can enrol and then book easily at a later date through your iParent portal. Please remember that with limited spaces available we need preferably 24 hours notice to make and cancel bookings. Enrolments are all done online through the Helping Hands Network website below and will need to be completed before any bookings can be made and remember to leave enough time to enrol and make your booking to avoid being disappointed.
http://www.helpinghandsnetwork.com.au/
Following the children's interest from last year on Environment we will be setting up a Recycling station at the front of our room (RM 5) please check it out and see if there are any items you would like to donate.
For the duration of term 1 the children have requested pancake Fridays! so every Friday morning between 7am and 8am we will be making pancakes for breakfast for all children enrolled into our before school care service. We would love for you to join us!
Thank you
Sam and Courtney
Helping Hands Hampton Park
Community Notices
Parenting Program
