february 7th term 1, week 2
TRANSCRIPT
Important Dates
& Upcoming Events
06/02/20 – 05/03/20
Swimming Training
Belfast Aquatics
Monday 10th February
Parents & Friends AGM
& first meeting for 2020,
7pm in the School Hall.
All welcome.
Tuesday 18th February
District Tennis
Championships
(Port Fairy Tennis Club)
Friday 21st February
Whole School House
Athletics Brauerander
Wednesday 4th March
Curriculum Day - This
will be a Pupil Free Day
for all children
Friday 6th March
Division Tennis
Championships
Warrnambool
Friday 13th March
Division Swimming
Championships
Aquazone
Warrnambool
Thursday 19th March
Moyne District Athletics
Brauerander
Friday 1st May
Division Athletics
Brauerander
February 7th
Term 1, Week 2
A warm welcome back to all our students and families. I hope that
you were able to find time to relax and enjoy some quality family
time.
The students have settled in beautifully and are enjoying their 2020
classrooms friends and teachers. Even on Day one there were only
a few tears for our newest students before they settled into school
life! Some have shown great bravery and resilience.
I would especially like to welcome our new Foundation families,
starting school is one of those significant life markers and is such an
important part of your family journey. Your child’s education is
strengthened when students, parents and teachers work together
in schools. It was lovely to see so many people enjoying chatting
together on the first morning. In addition, we had a number of new
families join our school community this year and I am looking
forward to getting to know you all. Parents and Friends
This is a vibrant and active group who meet monthly to discuss
ways they can best support the school. They conduct fundraising
activities, social events, run the 2nd hand uniform shop, learn about
education initiatives, investigate ways to connect to the
community and much more. On the 10th of February they are
holding their AGM followed by a general meeting. Reporting
We are making a change to the way we report a child’s progress
to parents/guardians. In the past, parents received a written report
at the end of every semester, which showed a teacher judgement
against the Victorian curriculum as well as comments about what
they learnt. They also were rated on their behaviour and effort.
We will continue to allocate a judgement against the Victorian
Curriculum and parents will receive this twice a year. This page will
look very similar to the previous front page of your previous reports.
As well, you will receive a report approximately every 6 weeks that
will give you an indication of your child’s academic results as well
as a score for their attitude and effort. This is presented like a bar
graph which we hope will be easier to interpret and understand the
achievement level of your child as well as indicating the attitude
and effort that they put into learning. This will be a very similar
system to many other schools in the area.
We are currently developing a rubric that will explain the
behaviours that will indicate how we score the child’s attitude and
effort. We will be sharing these with the students and will be on
display in rooms. They will also be shared with parents/guardians.
We will continue to have Parent Teacher interviews twice a year.
I will be holding two parent forums on Monday 2nd March to further
explain this as well as a number of the other changes to the
curriculum. The first will be held at 9am in the Library and the 2nd
one will be at 7pm in the Library.
Curriculum In 2020 we have a strong focus on Numeracy and Writing as these were areas identi-
fied in a number of data sets that needed improving. We are also implementing a new instructional model called Explicit and Direct Instruction (EDI) for the teaching of
Literacy and Numeracy. The specialist teachers will be exploring a different model that suits their subject.
EDI is an evidence based approach that provides clear learning intentions for the stu-dents and a well organised and sequenced approach to the teaching of skills and
strategies. Teachers regularly check for understanding after a skill/strategy is taught, as the stu-dents are practising this with the teacher. When they have a correct understanding
then they have independent practice time. Staff are attending the “Big Write & VCOP” professional development day in
Warrnambool on Wednesday 4th March to learn new skills and strategies to teach writing. VCOP stands for Vocabulary, Connectives, Openers and Punctuation.
Starting next week, the F-2 students will be learning French. Each class will have a 30 minute lesson with Kelda Ind (trained teacher) and our Language Assistant, Alex
Lopez on Friday morning. Rebecca who offered French tuition last year is relocating and so won’t be offering this service in 2020.
Lynda Beekhof is running the school choral program which started this week. Interested students from Year 3-6 were invited to attend. The F-2 students sing with me on a Tuesday afternoon when I am available. We had our first session this week
which I really enjoyed! Currently we have 3 instrumental teachers in the school; Carly Rooke, Flo and Sue Hull-Brown who are able to offer piano, guitar and voice tuition.
Teacher Meetings
The relationship that you develop with your child’s teacher is a very important one! If you would like to meet with your child’s teacher to discuss any concerns you may
have, please make a time that suits both parties. Teachers need to be sitting in front of their class at 9am and are unavailable to meet with parents/guardians during
teaching times.
Teachers have meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday from 4pm to 5pm. The leader-ship team meets as well, sometimes after school, however mostly before school on
Wednesday morning from 7:45am – 8:30am. In addition, every Monday, Wednesday and Friday a ‘Staff Briefing’ is held to discuss any events that are happening, staffing
changes, OH & S issues, upcoming learning opportunities etc. These run for 15 minutes.
Developing safe and flourishing learning environments
During the Learning to Learn program, which is conducted by all classes at the start
of the year, teachers work with their students to develop unique and individual
class expectations so that safe and productive learning environments are
developed.
At the whole school level, we have developed a Behaviour Management Flow Chart
which outlines the process when students make poor choices in both the classroom
and yard. Teachers will help students understand this chart over the course of the
year. This system was in place last year.
In the event that a child makes a poor choice in the yard, they may be asked to
have reflection time in the Library. Whilst in there, they work with the teacher on
duty to complete a reflection form. This then is sent home for parents to read and
sign.
Positive Education is embedded into our social and emotional learning at PFCS.
We continue to teach students about character strengths and the way these can assist them when needed.
Anna Drylie is our Well-being staff member and she works mostly on Thursday and
Friday. We are very fortunate to have Anna working with us as she has a
psychology degree and is currently undergoing provisional training. If you would
like to speak to Anna, you can call the school to make an appointment or if you
believe that your child would benefit from speaking with Anna, speak to the
classroom teacher and they will make that referral.
Port Fairy Folk Festival
This year the Port Fairy Folk Festival School’s program is providing the school with a
circus performer who will be workshopping circus skills on Thursday 5th of March.
All students will have one 45min workshop. The year 6 students will be given the
opportunity to learn the skills first and then help the other grades for the rest of
the day, if they choose. At this stage there will be no night performance.
The students will also be given the opportunity to attend a performance on the
Friday during school hours with St Pats. We are very lucky to access such creative
workshops and I would like to thank the committee for continuing the schools
program.
Please note these awards will be presented at tomorrow’s assembly,
beginning at 2:55pm
0/1V - Hunter Nagorcka
For showing increased bravery when coming into school in the morning.
Well done, Hunter!
0/1W - Ava Brown
For showing excellent listening skills during her first week of school. Keep up
the great work Ava!
1/2A - Lauchie Griffiths
For showing great Teamwork in the classroom and always being thoughtful
and willing to help when it is needed.
1/2D - Geordie Donahoo
For showing a positive attitude in everything he does and settling so well
into the new school year.
3/4M - Ryan
Showing great social intelligence by being an awesome class member.
3/4T - Holmes Arthurs
For his use of bravery while settling into a new school, well done Holmes.
4/5H - Fergus Reaburn
For a fantastic start to Year 4 by having a fantastic attitude toward his work
and setting a great example
5/6S - Jack Perrin
Well done on a productive start to the year. Keep up the awesome atti-
tude Jack! I can’t wait to see what you achieve this year.
5/6D - Eliza Ross
For her attention to detail with her schoolwork and her willingness to make
the classroom a safe and happy place.
Foundation - 2 : We are all settling into the school routine this week.
Welcome to our new Foundations who have also settled so well! In the classroom we
have been learning about our new class routines and getting to know each other. We
are looking forward to a fantastic
year of learning in 2020.
Grade 3 - 6 : The 3-6 team welcome you to the new school year.
The weekly newsletter is a great place to stay informed and updated on the Yr. 3-6
weekly happenings. If there are any questions throughout the school year, we encour-
age all parents and guardians to contact your child’s classroom teacher through Xuno,
if the matter is urgent please contact the school office.
Cooking, volunteers welcome! :
12:00 – 1:30 pm 3-4 M Tuesday Wk 2, 4, 6, 8
3-4 T Thursday Wk 2, 4, 6, 8
4-5 H Wednesday Wk 3, 5, 7, 9
5-6 D Tuesday Wk 3, 5, 7, 9
5-6 S Thursday Wk 3, 5, 7, 9
This week we have been getting to know our classroom and one another through the
schools ‘Learn to Learn’ program. As a conclusion each class will be attending the
Sheepdog Trials this Friday.
We are all looking forward to a productive 2020,
Ms Dorney, Mrs McLaren, Mr Hoey, Mr Dwyer, Mr Twycross
S.A.K.G.P. CAFÉ Our Cafe will resume the week of Monday 17th February.
A menu and order form will be coming out shortly.
HATS & BAGS
School Hats & Bags are always available to be purchased from the office. Hats are
compulsory in Term One and Term Four.,
School bags - $45
School hats embroidered logo - $15 available in size S,M,L & XL
(There is also a few of the hats with the screen printed logo
remaining at a cost of $10)
Welcome back for 2020! Firstly it was fantastic to see so many of our school
community out and about and keeping active over the holidays. I saw students
and families participating in fun runs, nippers, cricket, basketball, cycling, walking,
tennis and at the pool to name a few! I even saw some celebrity PFCS Tennis
players on the TV at the Australian Open! What an amazing experience!
A huge thankyou to those families and individuals that supported the school at
the Surf T Surf Fun Run/walk in early January. With their support we were
successful for the 8th year in a row, winning the Primary Schools Challenge (most
race entries for a Primary School, pro rata). The school received a $1000 cheque
which we decided to forward onto Clifton Creek Primary School (just north of
Bairnsdale) which was destroyed in the recent fires. Hopefully they can put our
donation towards some new sports equipment as we would have with our
winnings. Well done team!
A very busy first term to kick off the year; House and District Athletics, Swimming
training and Division Swimming Championships and District and Division Tennis
Championships!
Swimming training commenced today at 7:00am – 8.15am and will continue
every Thursday morning until the 5th of March. We had an amazing turnout and
lots of help from parents as well, thankyou. Information and permission for those
children that are eligible, is available on Xuno.
House Athletic Sports will be held for the whole school on Friday the 21st of
February, at Brauerander Athletics Track in Warrnambool. If anyone is able to
assist on the day with set up or with an event, please see me or leave your con-
tact details with the office staff. Our wonderful Parents and Friends group will run
a BBQ and snacks for the children on the day. All information and permission for
the House Sports will be on Xuno within the week.
Those Year 4 – 6 students that are interested in trying out for the Tennis team,
there will be trainings Wednesday lunch times. The District competition is quite
strong so I encourage those that already play tennis to have a go. Students need
to be able to serve and rally on a full sized court, umpire and keep score
themselves.
All the upcoming sporting dates are listed in the newsletter.
Finally, please ensure that your child brings a hat and water bottle to P.E classes.
We will be mostly on the lower oval this term and it becomes unmanageable to
have students leaving class to get a drink from the bubble taps in the main
school area, much easier to bring a drink with them if needed.
Brooke Green
Physical Education Coordinator
ADMINISTRATION/FINANCE
A very big thank you to all those families who came in to the office prior to
the beginning of the school year and made payment of their 2020 Parent
Contributions, or made a commitment for payment.
If you have not yet spoken to Leah or myself about the 2020 Parent
Contributions and are not making automatic payments through
Centrepay, please phone, drop in, or email us.
We also greatly appreciate those families who have made the optional
and voluntary contributions to our Grounds/Maintenance and to the
Building Fund.
Another reminder will come out at the beginning of June (just prior to end
of financial year) for the tax deductible Building Fund.
A reminder also of the Cams, Sports & Excursions Fund (CSEF). This is a
Government funded program which gives each student $125 to be put
towards the cost of camps, sports or excursions. If you are a current
holder of a concession card or health care card, you will be eligible to re-
ceive this, application forms are available at the office.
If you had applied last year, this application will roll over automatically.
In addition to the CSEF, eligible Foundation families are also entitled to a
Winter Warmer package through State Schools Relief, consisting of one
rugby top or jacket, one pair of trousers and one pair of shoes.
Further information to come.
It is extremely important that the school is kept informed of any medical
or legal alerts related to your child/ren.
If your child suffers with any medical condition (asthma etc), we do require
an Action Plan to assist us provide your child with the best care. These
should be updated annually.
If there is any legal /access restrictions related to your child/ren, we
require copies of these documents to enable us to assist to protect your
child/ren.
We have put a roster out for Term One at the school office.
We need at least two helpers each Friday.
The more the merrier! The more people there is the quicker and easy it is!
We ask that parents that are volunteering to sign in at the school office and if they have
a working with children card to present it.
It is set up in the Rise Room.
Friday 14th Feb HELPER NEEDED HELPER NEEDED HELPER NEEDED
SECOND HAND UNIFORM SHOP
Open dates/times for Term 1 :
Monday 10th Feb 9-9:30am Thursday 20th Feb 3:15-3:45pm
Friday 28th Feb 3:30-4pm Monday 16th March 9-9:30am
Friday 27th March 2:30-3pm
REMINDER SCHOOL OFFICE REQUIREMENTS : Volunteers at the school need to sign in but most importantly also sign out so that we
know when you have left the school grounds. It is important as the sign in and out book is
used for any emergencies and in such an event it is vital that we now who is on the
premises.
Also remember that the school must have a copy of your working with children check
before you work in a classroom with students.
SCHOOL BUS PROGRAM
Students who live more than 4.8km from their nearest Government school are eligible to
receive free transport to school through the School bus program.
Please enquire at the office if you are eligible and have not yet registered for this free
bus transport.
If you are already registered for this program, in the event that your child/ren does not
require the bus service, we do appreciate being notified. If they need to change bus,
or an extra child requires travel, we do require written notification/permission.
Please also remember that whilst changes can be made, unless it is an emergency we
cannot accept any changes after 3pm. on the day of travel.
Website : https://dental4schools.com/
School Mobile Dental Service will be visiting our school this term.
There will be application forms prior to Dental Health Visit :
Term 1 - 2nd & 3rd March 2020, more information to come.
THE PROCESS:
- The consent forms are to be handed out to the children and
collected. We ask schools to encourage children/parents to
return the forms through reminders (newsletters/notice board) and
follow up with children who may most benefit from our visit.
- Consent forms will need to be scanned back to us via prepaid
envelope sent with consent forms package.
- Forms will then be sent for processing and checking eligibility.
TYRENDARRA SHOW 8 FEBRUARY
There is no better fun for kids (and adults) than the
Tyrendarra Show. This year the Show Feature is Poultry.
Juniors are encouraged in this section. There are lots of
sections they can enter in :
horses;
cattle (Junior Parading classes);
art (theme A. Let’s go feed Magie Chicken and Trevor Duck
and Friends and B. Free choice) plus Specialist Section
“machines (eg tractors, motorbikes, trucks, rally cars etc);
farm & garden (all children’s entries will receive a prize);
craft work (including Lego);
floral Art; cookery; photography; junior Show Kids; pet
comp; scarecrow comp.
To see the schedule, have a look at the website:
www.tyrendarraagriculturalshow.com.au
Facebook Tyrendarra Agricultural Show
Or contact Show Convenor Robyn Nunn on 0427295271
Tae Kwon Do
In Port Fairy is
held on Tuesday
and Thursday
evenings at the
yacht club.
For any enquiries
please call Damian
McConachy on
0429337051.
LOST KITTEN
This kitten turned up on the weekend,
very friendly. Found in Dura Lane.
If you think this is your kitten please
contact Chloe on 0447 723 634