inside this issue - puckapunyal primary school...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones...

10
1 ‘Striving for Excellence’ Open since 1887 Principal - Kevin Warne Acting School Council President - Anne Trevena Telephone - (03) 57931288 Fax - (03) 57931412 Web - www.puckapunyalps.vic.edu.au/ Email - [email protected] Alamein Road Puckapunyal, Vic, 3662 Postal: Military P.O. ABN: - 74134967962 Term 1 Issue 4 February 21 st , 2018 Friday 23 rd February Division Swimming Carnival Monday 26 th February Parent/Teacher Information Sharing Session Tuesday 6 th March School Council A.G.M. Visiting Artist Science Monday 12 th March Labour Day Public Holiday Saturday 17 th March School Working Bee Monday 19 th March Family Chat Group School Photos Thursday 29 th March Last Day of Term 1 Inside this Issue: Birthdays/DSTA Message 2 Darwin Defenders Visit 2 School Canteen Lunches 3 Parent/Teacher Info Sharing 3 Student Awards of the Week 4 Teaching/Learning Focus 5 Well Done, Pucka! 6 Asthma/Parents as Helpers Course 7 Indo Lingo 8 Helping Your Child to Read 9 Everyday Counts! 10 On Friday, we had a very successful Years 3-6 House Swimming Carnival with Melba House (Red) being the winners for the day! All students performed admirably, trying their best to tally as many points for their House as possible. The students were very competitive! It was a great team atmosphere. We had students of all abilities having a go for their house! It was a great day and we congratulate all students for their performances. The final order of the House Carnival was: 1st Melba House 318 points 2nd Bradman House 295 points 3 rd Chisholm House 256 points 4th Hume House 196 points We have seen many students improve with their swimming over the last 2 weeks or so and the carnival was a great way to support the training. It didn’t matter what places students came, many were delighted to just participate and give it their best. Hannah Lucas and Finlay Koch are proud captains of Melba, as you can see below in the photo, holding the winning House Swimming Trophy. Thank you to all new House Captains who on that day performed their first lot of duties for 2018. They looked after their teams for both sessions of the day and helped to cheer on their teams. Well done captains! Thank you to all of the volunteer parents and teachers for their efforts to ensure a smooth event. Mrs. McCarthy was the organiser of the event and did a marvelous job. Thanks, Mrs. McCarthy. The House Carnival was also a good opportunity to select our Years 3-6 District Swimming Team that represented our school at yesterday’s District Swimming Carnival. Please see page 6 to see how our District swimmers went. ***Have you heard your child read today? We encourage all students to practise their reading at home about 5 nights per week. Therefore, by now, most students should have read at least between 15-20 nights. Well done if you have kept up! ***We can all work together to rid the community of any chance of Head Lice. Let’s check our heads once per week!*** Proud Melba House captains, Hannah Lucas and Finlay Koch.

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Page 1: Inside this Issue - Puckapunyal Primary School...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc. Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA. POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR REWARD UPDATE We

1

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

Principal - Kevin Warne

Acting School Council President - Anne Trevena

Telephone - (03) 57931288

Fax - (03) 57931412 Web - www.puckapunyalps.vic.edu.au/

Email - [email protected]

Alamein Road

Puckapunyal, Vic, 3662

Postal: Military P.O.

ABN: - 74134967962

Term 1 Issue 4

February 21st, 2018

Friday 23rd February

Division Swimming Carnival

Monday

26th February

Parent/Teacher

Information Sharing Session

Tuesday

6th March

School Council

A.G.M. Visiting Artist – Science

Monday

12th March

Labour Day

Public Holiday

Saturday 17th March

School Working Bee

Monday

19th March

Family Chat Group

School Photos

Thursday

29th March

Last Day

of Term 1

Inside this Issue: Birthdays/DSTA Message 2

Darwin Defenders Visit 2

School Canteen Lunches 3

Parent/Teacher Info Sharing 3

Student Awards of the Week 4

Teaching/Learning Focus 5

Well Done, Pucka! 6

Asthma/Parents as Helpers Course 7

Indo Lingo 8

Helping Your Child to Read 9

Everyday Counts! 10

On Friday, we had a very successful Years 3-6 House Swimming Carnival with

Melba House (Red) being the winners for the day!

All students performed admirably, trying their best to tally as many points for their

House as possible. The students were very competitive! It was a great team

atmosphere.

We had students of all abilities having a go for their house!

It was a great day and we congratulate all students for their performances.

The final order of the House Carnival was:

1st Melba House 318 points 2nd Bradman House 295 points

3rd Chisholm House 256 points 4th Hume House 196 points

We have seen many students improve with their swimming over the last 2 weeks or

so and the carnival was a great way to support the training. It didn’t matter what

places students came, many were delighted to just participate and give it their best.

Hannah Lucas and Finlay Koch are proud captains of Melba, as you can see below

in the photo, holding the winning House Swimming Trophy.

Thank you to all new House Captains

who on that day performed their first

lot of duties for 2018. They looked

after their teams for both sessions of

the day and helped to cheer on their

teams. Well done captains!

Thank you to all of the volunteer

parents and teachers for their efforts to

ensure a smooth event. Mrs. McCarthy

was the organiser of the event and did a

marvelous job. Thanks, Mrs.

McCarthy.

The House Carnival was also a good

opportunity to select our Years 3-6

District Swimming Team that

represented our school at yesterday’s

District Swimming Carnival. Please

see page 6 to see how our District

swimmers went.

***Have you heard your child read

today? We encourage all students to

practise their reading at home about 5

nights per week. Therefore, by now,

most students should have read at

least between 15-20 nights. Well

done if you have kept up!

***We can all work together to

rid the community of any chance

of Head Lice. Let’s check our

heads once per week!***

Proud Melba House captains,

Hannah Lucas and Finlay Koch.

Page 2: Inside this Issue - Puckapunyal Primary School...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc. Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA. POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR REWARD UPDATE We

2

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

Happy Birthday to Aiden Gibbons,

Jack Lindner, Harmony Cameron and

Oliver Crichton who are all having their

birthdays this week.

On behalf of the Puckapunyal Primary

School Community, we wish them all a

very Happy Birthday!

Sports for Schools: Keep these vouchers coming in.

Our school community is really supporting this and

we already have a lot of vouchers. Thanks so much!

Ride2School: We encourage active travel – walking

or cycling to school and we have our Ride2School

day coming up in March. While the weather is so

pleasant, perhaps consider incorporating active travel

into your morning and afternoon school routines.

Healthy lunch tip: use your loaf. Keeping lunches

healthy, interesting and providing variety can be

challenging. Here are some ideas for the humble

sandwich: Bread, fruit bread, rolls, wraps,

pita/pocket breads, focaccia, ciabatta, mountain

bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc.

Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA.

POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR

REWARD UPDATE We are seeing lots of positive behaviour;

most students are making great choices that

benefit everyone. Let’s keep this going!

CURRENT SCORES

Bradman - 280 points

Melba - 265 points

Chisholm - 260 points

Hume - 241 points

10 of our senior students represented our school at the

76th Darwin Defenders Day

Commemoration on Monday. Along with Mrs.

Ranger and Mr. Warne the students attended the

service at the Shrine of Remembrance. Our school

Captains, Abbey Kendell and Harry Fletcher laid a

wreath on behalf of our school. House Captains, Emily

Watson, Hannah Lucas and Finlay Koch read a

poem to the 200 people who attended the

commemoration.

At next week’s school assembly, the students who

attended the commemoration will present an oral

briefing of the day.

Our 10 student leaders at the shrine with navy and army

representatives.

Hannah, Finlay and Emily reading their

poem in front of the navy band.

School captains, Abbey and Harry with

the wreath. Finlay, Lachlan, Cooper and Harry

inside the Shrine.

Our 10 student leaders outside the

Shrine enjoying a rest on the steps.

Page 3: Inside this Issue - Puckapunyal Primary School...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc. Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA. POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR REWARD UPDATE We

3

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

On Monday 26th February (Monday next week!) we are

having a Parent/Teacher Information Sharing Day. The

day will be a normal school day where students arrive at 9:00

a.m. and are dismissed at 3:30 p.m. Each family will be

allotted a 10 minute time slot where mums and dads can share

any important information about their children that may help

the teacher and learning during the year. It is also a good time

for the teachers to let parents know how their children have

settled into the school year and discuss any concerns.

The interviews will begin from 2:00 p.m. and finish at

approximately 6:30 p.m. From 1:15 p.m. the students will

have a supervised lunch outside and will be participating in

sporting activities with our specialist teachers who do not

teach grades.

NB - It is too early to report on academic achievements at this

stage of the year.

Please select a preferred time slot below and return the

Parent/Teacher Information Sharing Form to school by

Wednesday 21st February (today) so we can try to

accommodate your availability as best as possible. If you

have already discussed such issues with your child’s teacher

you may not need a chat at this stage of the year.

Kevin Warne, Principal

Parent/Teacher Information

Sharing Form

FAMILY NAME: …………………………………....

Child’s Name:…………………..……Year:…...…….

Room No:.…………

Child’s Name:…………………..……Year:…...…….

Room No:.…………

Child’s Name:…………………..……Year:…...…….

Room No:.…………

Child’s Name:…………………..……Year:…...…….

Room No:.…………

Preferred Interview Times (please tick preferred time

box)

2:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. 2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

4:30p.m. - 5:30p.m. 5:30p.m. - 6:20p.m.

Canteen Helpers Still

Needed If you are a parent with some time and you can help

in the school canteen please contact the school

office. We would love to hear from you.

Tuesday March 6th is our School Council Annual

General Meeting. The meeting will take place at 5

p.m. in the school staff room. The A.G.M. is a public

meeting and all parents are welcome to attend. Our new

School Council will form for the first time after that

meeting and twice per term afterwards.

The School Canteen is open for Lunch Orders in 2

week’s time. From then, each and every Friday

students can order lunches from the school canteen.

The menu will be different each week. Please ensure

that a paper bag comes with the order. Please indicate

on the lunch bag if the money is in another sibling’s

bag.

Term 1 Menu

Friday 2nd March:

Hot Dogs - $3 each

250ml Chocolate or Strawberry milk - $2

Apple/Orange Juice Popper - $1.50

Friday 9th March:

Party Pies & Sausage Rolls $1 each or 3 for $2.50

250ml Chocolate or Strawberry milk - $2

Apple/Orange Juice Popper - $1.50

Friday 16th March:

4 Chicken Nuggets and a Serve of wedges $3

250ml Chocolate or Strawberry milk - $2

Apple/Orange Juice Popper - $1.50

Friday 23rd March: Ham & Pineapple Pizza - $2.50 each

250ml Chocolate or Strawberry milk - $2

Apple/Orange Juice Popper - $1.50

Paper Bags 20 Cents each

***Reminder – the SCHOOL BUS STOP is not a

car park or a drop off zone. Please do not park

there. Let’s keep everyone safe!***

Page 4: Inside this Issue - Puckapunyal Primary School...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc. Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA. POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR REWARD UPDATE We

4

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

Defence School Transition Aide Message Back at school: I trust that everyone has had a smooth and

satisfactory beginning to the school year. Changing schools,

beginning school for the first time and even returning for another

school year can be daunting for students and parents. It is great to see

parents eager to support their children at this time and be an integral

part of their education. If you have any concerns, or just feel like a

chat about school and your child, please find me!

SWAPP Select Program

I have information about the ADF partners career assistance program

if anyone is interested.

NEW UNIFORM

We have recently had a new shipment of uniform arrive that includes

shorts, tops, tracksuit pants and hats. Some parents have been waiting

on this to arrive.

Best wishes for the week.

Sue Ranger, Defence School Transition Aide

Defence School Transition Aide Message Back at school: I trust that everyone has had a smooth and

satisfactory beginning to the school year. Changing schools,

beginning school for the first time and even returning for another

school year can be daunting for students and parents. It is great

to see parents eager to support their children at this time and be

an integral part of their education. If you have any concerns, or

just feel like a chat about school and your child, please find me!

SWAPP Select Program

I have information about the ADF partners career assistance

program if anyone is interested.

NEW UNIFORM

We have recently had a new shipment of uniform arrive that

includes shorts, tops, tracksuit pants and hats. Some parents have

been waiting on this to arrive.

Best wishes for the week.

Sue Ranger, Defence School Transition Aide

Congratulations to the following students who were

‘Students of the Week’ for last week. Winners –

Maddy Buckley, Archer Hatfield, Emilia Pippin,

Rory Kennedy, Zara Marini, Samara Wildin, Olivia

Scotman, Aysa Crawley, James Van Der Waal,

Pallavi Allan-Agnew and Matilda Turner. These

students were selected because they were modelling

Confidence. This week teachers are also looking for

students who are modelling Excellence.

Congratulations to the following students who were

‘Authors of the Week’ for last week. Winners – Elsie

Charters, Hayden McBride, Sophie Van Der Waal,

Zoe Landel, Katara Govey-Haysom, Fiona Hill,

Amelia Duna, Kade Horton, Savanah Naunton,

Jack Lindner and Abbey Kendell. The students were

selected because they showed great skills as an author.

1/2 C in Room 4 won the Yard

Duty Competition. Izzy Greenwood

and Zoe Landel enjoyed collecting the

winning trophy for their classroom this

week!

Congratulations to Zara Marini, Fiona

Hill, Kirrah Horton and Brielle

Eldredge who won the raffle prizes for

‘Positive Behaviour’ this week!

3/4 P in Room 13 won

the Middle School

Times Tables

Trophy. Liam Cannon

and Melhoney Pambai are

both delighted to look after

the winning trophy this

week!

5/6 D in Room 2 won

the Senior School

Times Tables

Trophy. Jarrah Younger and

Aaron Bennett will look

after the winning trophy

this week!

Page 5: Inside this Issue - Puckapunyal Primary School...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc. Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA. POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR REWARD UPDATE We

5

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

Each week in the newsletter, we will give families a summary of the Teaching/Learning Focus for the week.

That can help families by: being aware of what classrooms are covering; with discussion topics at the dinner table when

discussing school (eg. ‘How are you going with addition in Numeracy this week?’); helping their children study at home,

etc. Parents have indicated that this information would be very useful. We also ask families to be aware that schools are

very busy places and events can be unpredictable at times. We therefore must remain flexible. That means, we can plan to

cover certain topics at particular times and have to change them according to arising needs.

Junior School – Preps/Foundation Rooms 6, 8 & 10 Literacy: We are learning the difference between a letter and a word and concentrating on the letters ‘O and T’

Numeracy: We are learning about the numbers three and four, making patterns and days of the week.

Junior School – Year 1s Rooms 3, 4 & 10 Literacy: .We are revising the letters ‘O and T’. We are focusing on capital letters, full stops and question marks.

Numeracy: We are working on counting in sets of 10 and looking at groups of 10. We are also estimating lengths.

Junior School – Year 2s Rooms 3, 4 & 9 Literacy: We are revising the letters ‘O and T’. We are focusing on capital letters, full stops and specifically question

marks. We are discussing the difference between fact and opinion.

Numeracy: We are sequencing numbers up to and beyond 100.We are skip counting by 2’s, 5’s and 10’s.

Middle School Years 3/4 Rooms 9, 11, 12 & 13 Literacy: Over the next two weeks we will be focusing on persuasive texts in writing and VCOP components, in

particular openers and punctuation.

Numeracy: We will also be working on the four processes in Numeracy.

Senior School Years 5/6 Rooms 1&2 Literacy: Over the next two weeks we will be focusing on note taking and VCOP components, in particular openers and

punctuation.

Numeracy: We will also be working on the four processes, estimation and units of measurement in Numeracy.

Well done to the students who attended

Early Morning Swimming.

These students went to the Area Pool

and practised their swimming before

school. They were presented with a

certificate at assembly this week.

As with other years, we will conduct Family Chat Groups

each term. On Monday 19th March, the school will have the first

Family Chat Group. The session will be held in the staffroom

straight after the Monday morning assembly (about 9:30am-

10:30am). There will be cuppas and cake as well. The idea is for

parents to chat with the Principal, Kevin Warne and the D.S.T.A.,

Sue Ranger, about the school, what we do at school, our kids, and

various issues/topics. In the past, parents have brainstormed some

ideas for sessions to cover throughout the year. Hopefully our

parents will find them useful. Please come along to the first

session even if just to say ‘hello’.

Our school intends to have an On-site

Bushfire Evacuation Practice this term.

Throughout the year we practice Lockdowns, Off-

site and On-Site Evacuations. Stay tuned.

Page 6: Inside this Issue - Puckapunyal Primary School...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc. Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA. POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR REWARD UPDATE We

6

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

Congratulations to the 31 students who participated in the District Swimming Carnival in Seymour

yesterday. Puckapunyal Primary School finished an impressive 2nd, which is a great effort.

We are very proud of our team because they all gave their best for their school.

It seems that all of the hard training that our students did either through school lessons, early morning swimming or

privately, paid off. Many of the students who competed worked really hard during the swimming programs where we

saw much improvement. Well done!

It is a good time to remind our students that Seymour Sharks is a great organisation where kids can receive

specialised swimming training. Most of the better swimmers from all of our schools were students from the Seymour

Sharks Club or other squad groups. This is something to consider if students are interested in furthering their

swimming!

There were many fantastic highlights and unfortunately we cannot mention all of them. However, we must

congratulate Clodagh McCarthy (12 years) and Tessa Thompson (10 years) who were age group

champions for the day. Well done champs!

Many students came home with many ribbons from their events. Some of them will represent the Seymour District at

the Division Swimming Championship Carnival on Friday.

We will report on those performances next week.

It was also terrific to hear many other students talk about how proud they were of their efforts. For many students

swimming 50m was a huge task. Well done, team.

Congratulations to the 21 students who performed so well at the Seymour District Swimming Carnival yesterday, that

they have been selected in the team to represent our school and the Seymour District at the Division Swimming

Carnival on Friday 23rd February (this Friday – yes, a big week!). The Division Swimming Carnival will involve 4

other divisions and will take place today at the Seymour Outdoor Pool. Good luck, champs!

2018 Division Swimming Team Abby Chetcuti, Abbey Kendell, Harry Fletcher, Tessa Thompson, Jarrah Younger, Jack Kennedy, Olivia Scotman, Ned

Kendell, Lachlan O’Connor, Aaron Becks, Finlay Koch, Aiden Gibbons, Caleb Baumann, Mia Shortt, Ella Padman,

Hannah Lucas, Paige Cooper, Emily Watson, Mackenzy Eagles, Mollie Kelly and Clodagh McCarthy.

Good luck, champs!

Page 7: Inside this Issue - Puckapunyal Primary School...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc. Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA. POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR REWARD UPDATE We

7

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

Every year there is a well-documented rise in asthma flare-ups and hospitalisations when students return to school after

the Christmas break. Asthma Australia has information for parents of students with asthma to help them prepare for

school. Asthma Australia’s website and social media provide the latest information, including a checklist of what to do to

help your child and a survey to complete to determine the impacts for parents/carers.

Asthma Australia recommends that you talk to school staff about your child’s asthma and the school’s medication policy,

provide an Asthma Plan from the doctor and supply a spare reliever puffer and spacer for your child’s use at school.

For primary aged students:

Asthma Kids

Looking for a way to help your child understand more about their asthma or about a friend with asthma? Asthma Kids is

an online, interactive tool to help primary school aged children understand what it’s like to have asthma and what they can

do to help. Watch one of the introductory videos then take Chester’s Asthma Trail. There are prizes to win too!

www.asthmakids.org.au

For secondary aged students:

Young People and Asthma Asthma Australia is working with key organisations supporting young people’s health to help improve asthma health

outcomes for 12-25 year olds. A Facebook page, Young People with Asthma – Australia, provides a range of information

for these young people and their supporters. Every two months Asthma Australia will also run a Question and Answer

session that is proving very popular. Check out the page for our posts and promotion for upcoming Q and A sessions.

Thank you to our mums who

participated in 2 sessions of

our Parent Helpers Course.

They have volunteered to help

in our classrooms, so teachers,

Jane Challis and Katie

Hartland conducted some

sessions on Numeracy and

Literacy for them.

Teachers are looking for students who are demonstrating ‘Excellence’ to be eligible for the Student of the Week award.

We encourage parents to talk to their students about our values throughout the year.

What does Excellence mean? At assembly this week, Year 6 student Hayden Clarke read out the meaning of Excellence.

‘Excellence is giving your absolute best to any task you do. When you practise excellence, you are not trying to be better

than anyone else, just the very best that you can be.’

Page 8: Inside this Issue - Puckapunyal Primary School...bread, pikelets/pancakes, savoury muffins, scones etc. Have a terrific week. Sue Ranger, DSTA. POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR REWARD UPDATE We

8

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

This week I'll bring in an Indonesian topeng (mask) for the students to use. We'll share last week's worksheet

entitled Tentang Saya (About Me) and learn/extend salam (greetings).

Selamat pagi = Good morning (sunrise till 11am)

Selamat siang = Good day (11am till 3pm)

Selamat sore = Good afternoon (3pm till sunset)

Selamat malam = Good evening/night (sunset till sunrise)

Hai = Hi

Selamat datang = Welcome

FOC & FOM Language the students will hear/use this week:

Selamat pagi = Good morning

Siapa ada? = Who's here?

Ada = Here

Siapa tidak ada? = Who's not here?

Tidak ada = Not here

Berapa murid? = How many students?

Ada __ murid. = There are __ students.

Nama saya ... = My name is ...

Nama = Name

Sampai jumpa = See you later

F/1R, 1/2C, 1/2I, 2/3M Will use above language and ...

Selamat pagi/siang = Good morning/day

Apa kabar? = How are you?

Baik-baik saja = Well Biasa saja = So so

Kurang baik = Not good

Siapa nama kamu? = What's your name?

3/4D, 3/4I & 3/4P Will use above language and ...

Siapa nama Bu? = What's your name ma'am?

Siapa nama Pak? = What's your name sir?

5/6D & 5/6H Will use above language and ...

Baik = Good Bagus = Great

Senang = Happy Sedih = Sad

Lapar = Hungry Haus = Thirsty

Panas = Hot Dingin = Cold

Sakit = Sick

Siapa namamu? = What's your name?

Siapa nama Ibu? = What's your name ma'am?

Siapa nama Bapak? = What's your name sir?

Salam (Regards)

Bu Hooper (Mrs Hooper)

Guru Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian teacher)

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9

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

Here are some tools to assist you when helping your child to read.

Praise and Encouragement

Praise for children is like nutrients for plants, it helps them thrive! So give daily doses!

“You are a good reader.”

“You are reading very well now.”

“It’s getting easier and easier.”

“I like hearing you read.”

“I like the way you read that.”

“You are doing very well.”

“Terrific!”

“Well done!”

“Fantastic!”

“Top effort. I like the way you tried here.”

“I like the way you figured that out all by yourself.”

“You went back and fixed this, well done.”

“How did you know this wasn’t ………?”

“First you said …… (error) and then you said ……. and that was right. What did you notice? Well done!”

“I like reading with you.”

“Wow! What a great reader you are!”

“I like sharing a book together.”

“That was a bit tricky wasn’t it?

“Let’s have another go.”

“How did you figure that out?”

“I’m proud of you.”

“Thank you for reading to me.”

*Make your comment at the end of a page or at the end of the book. Let them get through a page without interruptions

because they can lose the gist of the story if we interrupt too often.

*If your child is stuck on a word, don’t leave them hanging. That’s agony for both of you. Tell them the word and get

them to take a good look at it.

*Everyday, find something to praise about your child and how well they are reading. It doesn’t have to be about their

take-home books. You can use their favourite books or the library book they have borrowed that week. Notice how much

they are already doing that is correct. And remember reading is meant to be fun. Keep it lighthearted and positive in your

approach.

*Choose a regular, relaxed time of the day to read together. Before bed time might be fine so long as you and your child

are not too tired. Remember it is an ongoing process and small successes help keep the child interested and engaged.

Happy Reading!

Junior Team

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10

‘Striving for Excellence’

Open since 1887

EVERY DAY COUNTS Primary School Attendance

Going to school every day is the single most important part of your child’s education. Students learn new things at school every day – missing school puts them behind. Why it’s important We all want our students to get a great education, and the building blocks for a great education begin with students coming to school each and every day. If students miss school regularly, they miss out on learning the fundamental skills that will set them up for success in the later years of school. There is no safe number of days for missing school – each day a student misses puts them behind, and can affect their educational outcomes. Each missed day is associated with progressively lower achievement in numeracy, writing and reading.

Getting in early Attendance patterns are established early – a child regularly missing days in kindergarten or in the early years of school will often continue to miss classes in the later years, and receive lower test scores than their classmates. It’s vital that students go to school every day – even in the early years of primary school.

What we can do The main reasons for absence are: Sickness – There are always times when students need to miss school, such as when they’re ill. It’s vital that they’re only away on the days they are genuinely sick, and setting good sleep patterns, eating well and exercising regularly can make a big difference. It's vital that holidays are planned during school holidays where possible, and not during the term if it can be avoided.

“Day off” – Think twice before letting your child have a “day off” as they could fall behind their classmates – “every day counts. “ Truancy – This is when students choose not to go to school without their parent’s permission. There can be many reasons for truancy. The best way to address this is for schools and parents to work together. If for any reason your child must miss school, there are things you can do with your school to ensure they don’t fall behind:

Speak with your classroom teacher and find out what work your child needs to do to keep up.

Develop an absence learning plan with your teacher and ensure your child completes the plan.

Remember, every day counts. If your child must miss school, speak with your classroom teacher as early as possible. Openly communicating with your child's school about all absences is a good way to prevent attendance issues being escalated to a School Attendance Officer. A School Attendance Officer is a Department of Education and Early Childhood Development Regional Director who has authority to follow up attendance issues. Attendance issues that are escalated can lead to an Infringement Notice. If you’re having attendance issues with your child, please let your classroom teacher know so we can work together to get your child to school every day.

Further information For more information and resources to help address attendance issues, visit: www.education.vic.gov.au/school/parents/behaviour/Pages/studentattendance.aspx