Term 1 Week 2
Welcome back everyone to the 2023 year! Each year we have adopted a schoolwide theme to work on and use as a building block for both academic and social emotional learning. Over the past years we have continued with our focus on, “Make a Difference”. This year our added theme is: ‘Let your Light Shine’. The classroom teachers are creating a class prayer cloth and classroom expectations with this as their focus. You will also find our school leaders walking around the yard in the morning and afternoon with a prayer cloth to represent our families. We invite you to add your fingerprint and family name to the cloth. At St Augustine’s we have always endeavoured to ignite the light in each child through many offered activities such as choir, ukulele, sport activities, Maths Olympiad, robotics competitions, the school production and more. This year’s theme is a fitting focus to continue to allow or children to shine while also allowing others’ light to shine around us.
Welcome to our new families, especially our prep families and children. Our preps started on Monday with parents having the opportunity to bring their child/children (we have two sets of twins in prep this year!) into the class to see their classroom, help them settle in and take a ‘first day of school photo’. We also had The Age newspaper reporting on the morning with a reporter, photographer and videographer talking to families, photographing and interviewing children and teachers. It was a busy morning but well documented in an article in Tuesday’s Age. You can get online to view the article or follow the link here.
https://readnow.isentia.com/Temp/77253-909927450/1777718111_20240131.pdf
Our prep children have nearly completed a full week at school, finishing at 1pm this week. Next week they start full-time with Wednesdays off for the next three weeks. There is a prep information evening scheduled for 16th February for parents to attend. Parents will be informed about daily schedules, learning in prep and have the opportunity to engage with their child’s teacher. More details to come.
Welcome to our new staff members: Ms Ashleigh Thornton – Yr5/6T, Mrs Hollie Saad – Prep HC, Natalie Scott – LSO in 3/4 S and Mrs Grace Alessi – LSO in 3/4AC.
The first two days this week has allowed the teachers to meet their class in small groups while also spending time testing and assessing each individuals’ needs. This individual time spent with each child is invaluable in providing teachers with information about the children as we aim to provide a comprehensive curriculum and school experience comprising of:
- High quality Teaching
- Contemporary learning and teaching and pedagogy
- Targeted Professional Learning
- Knowing students learning styles
- Data Driven
- Providing quality feedback
- Reflecting with peers
- Team work- collaboration
- Targeted Support
- Intervention Programs
- Adjustments made where necessary
- Quest Enrichment Program
- Focus Groups
- Goal Setting
- LSO Support in every classroom
- Parent Relationships
- PSG Meetings
- Wider Strategies
- Social Emotional Learning Program ie Respectful Relationships Program
- Parent Auxiliary
- MOSA group
- Specialist Programs
- Social Skills Program
- Extra Curricular- camps, excursions, Interschool Sports
- School Events
- Sacraments
- School Theme
- Schoolwide values
Congratulations to our school captains who were announced on our last day of term in 2022. I look forward to working with them and developing their leadership capacity. The school captains are: Christian Cipriano and Jacqueline Mardijono-Ly. Vice captains are Ryan Goodison and Sachi Wenas. Our senior leadership program involves all Year 5/6 children. Each child will have a role within this program. House Captains and Leadership Responsibilities will be announced at our beginning of year liturgy.
Bell times have been adjusted this year to take into consideration the new Enterprise Bargaining Agreement that details work conditions for staff. The following are the amended bell times:
The gate will continue to open at 8.30am while the first bell now goes at 8.50am. This is when children walk to their class to start the day. Please ensure you are not dropping off your child more than 5 minutes before the gate opens as there is no one on duty until 8.30am. Big Child Care is available before and after school if you need to drop off before this time or need extended care at the end of the day. You would be surprised at the affordability of this service. It is always a good idea to register in the event you may need this service in an emergency. Please contact Big Child Care if you need this service. Call Jade on 0426 203 858.
Drop off/Pick up: The area at the front of the school is for drop off and pick up only during morning and afternoons. Please stay in/near your car.
Pink highlights indicate the designated pick up and drop of areas at the front of the school
Morning drop off
Children can be dropped off between 8.30am and 8.50am when the school gates open. Children place their bags on their class line and can then have some time to play. No big balls allowed. The bell will ring at 8.50am. Children will then walk straight to their classroom where their teacher will greet them. Please stagger your morning arrival to help with the traffic flow and arrive between 8.30pm and 8.50am. Remember to stay in your car and take up the next available spot and move down so we can fit as many cars as possible. Otherwise park in the surrounding streets and walk to school.
Afternoon pick up
This time is always a bottle neck for the first 5 minutes. Be sure to remain with your car and we will get your child to you. Starting at 3.15pm. Please stagger your afternoon arrival time to help with the traffic flow and arrive between 3.15pm and 3.30pm. Please do not leave your car as we endeavour to send children to their cars as safely as possible. A staff member will be directing traffic to ensure safety and efficiency with extra staff on duty to assist the children. I ask that you are patient!
Parent teacher conversations will be held next Tuesday 7th February. Children will be dismissed from school at 12.15pm with interviews commencing at 12.30pm. The school will still provide childcare for those children who cannot be picked up before 3.15pm. A registration form has been sent via the app but is also available on the ‘Noticeboard’ page in this newsletter. Your child will need to be booked in if you require them to stay until 3.15pm. Children will be supervised in the library where you can collect and sign them out. These Parent Teacher Conversations will be conducted online. These conversations are to begin the relationship between yourself the teacher and the child and to assist the teacher with any information you feel is needed to promote a successful and positive year.
Our first Parents Auxiliary will be held on Friday 10th February straight after drop off at 9am. We will meet in the outdoors in the sheltered area near the sand pit. We welcome new members! The first lunch order day is organised for Friday 17th February. For more details read the information in the ‘Parent’ page of this newsletter.
Our beginning of the year liturgy will be at 9.15 on 16th February. We are hoping to have this outside on the basketball crt. Families are welcome to attend. We will have some chairs available for families to use.
The building and renovation works continue after a break over the Christmas holidays. Rooms have been stripped and we will soon see building and classrooms starting to form. It is an exciting time for St Augustine’s and we all look forward to the completion. We will hopefully be back in the rooms mid tem 2. Fingers crossed!
Next week we will re commence our Monday morning prayer and awards. Children will gather in their lines on the basketball court on the fist bell at 8.50. A grade will facilitate morning praye followed by the school student leaders presenting classroom awards. All parents and families welcome to stay and gather and pray with us as a community. During inclement weather this assembly will continue over the PA system with children in their classrooms.
St Augustine’s Primary has been listed on the 2021-22 BARR, Bushfire At Risk Register. This means that we would be required to close on CODE RED days. Fire danger levels and ratings range from low-moderate, high, very high, severe, extreme to code red. Code red applies to the worst conditions for a bush or grass fire. The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) issues a Code Red Fire Danger Rating warning for the weather district in which this school is located. Where possible, three (3) days notice of a planned closure will be provided. However, a Code Red fire danger rating day may be forecast at short notice. Parents and guardians should expect that in some instances less than three days notice may be provided. Once the final decision to close is confirmed at 12 noon the day prior, this decision will not change – regardless of any changes in the weather forecast. This will help limit confusion and help families plan for how their children will be cared for when their school is closed. When a school is closed in response to bushfire risk, no one, including staff, contractors and other users, will be permitted on site. All communication will be through the school app so please ensure you have this downloaded on your phone. It should be noted that there has not been a determined Code Red day since January 2010.We work with an Emergency Management company to work through all scenarios and the whole school engages in an emergency management drill each term. Staff are all trained as emergency management wardens annually.
Cathy
