Kotara South Public School

Newsletter A Great Place to Be!

www.kotarasth-p.school.nsw.edu.au

kotarasth-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

(02) 4957 5319

150 Rae Crescent Kotara South 2289

26 February 2020 | Week 5 | Term 1

From the Principal Welcome to week 5 term 1

Our focus at KSPS this year is reading. In K-2 classrooms, students are involved in different styles of literacy groups that promote phonological development. Early phonological development is around rhyming, alliteration, syllable segmentation, first/last/middle sound awareness. This moves to basic phonemic awareness with the segmentation of sounds and blending. Students use these skills to decode, comprehend and fluently read texts at a beginner level. Attached to this newsletter is a tip sheet of how to help your child read to home. Reading aloud to your child daily is a great way to spend quality one-on-one time. Last Friday, KSPS hosted our annual Badge Presentation Ceremony for the

year 6 students to receive their leadership and ministerial badges. This special ceremony was held as a whole school assembly. Mrs Ward our Stage 3 Assistant Principal and Instructional Leader has included photos later on in the newsletter. Congratulations to all our year 6 students. Our Scripture and Ethics classes started yesterday afternoon. Students remain in the groups they were in last year unless parents send a note in requesting a change. Please note that ethics lessons have a waiting list due to the class size limit. Last Tuesday afternoon, we hosted our annual Meet the Teacher BBQ. The afternoon was very vibrant and engaging for students, family members and siblings who were busily moving across our school environment, classrooms and meeting teachers. This unique informal opportunity allows parents to meet and familiarise themselves with their child’s class and teacher. A very big thank you to our P & C for their support on the sausage sizzle, approximately 600 sausages were cooked and many donations were received. Again, thank you P & C for your support.

Consistent attendance at school is one of the important contributing factors to student’s progress and achievement with their learning at school. Also, being on time every day to school assists students with morning routines, makes links with friends and to start the day connected to school. The first bell goes at 8:55am and lessons commence at 9am. Compulsory School Attendance for Parents link

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A reminder to all parent to complete the online google General Permission Note for 2020. This enables students to participate in various lessons and activities outside the school grounds eg; walking to Lugar Park. Please remember by pressing submit you are agreeing to your child being able to do this activity. See the link KSPS General Permission Notes 2020 and complete this by 1 march 2020. Next Wednesday, Mrs Cox is taking 8 students to Port Stephens to visit the Koala Sanctuary and experience first-hand how the funds raised in 2019 by KSPS students and school community have been put to use. Keep an eye on our Facebook page next week for their adventures. A fortnight ago, KSPS went gone back to using the Skoolbag app as the main notification platform for notes, and other various pieces of information. Please download this app via your device app store and search Kotara South. You will need an email address to make a profile and then tick the groups that you would like to be notified for specifically, eg year 2. Further on in the newsletter I have detailed the various ways in which school clearly communicates with parents. Please keep in mind some big events coming up this year and finically planning for them. A high cost item such Stage 2 and 3 camp in semester 2 can be part paid each week or fortnight to reduce the financial burden on families. Please call/email/drop in to the ladies in the front office if you’d like to make part payments towards these camps. Camp information will be sent home soon. A couple of P & C reminders: AGM is next month on Wednesday 11 March, all positions are declared vacant at this meeting. If you are not wanting an executive position, still come along and be part of the meeting and find out what is happening in our school. Being informed is one of the most important ways you can stay connected with school. Meeting is form 7pm in the school library. In 2020 our KSPS P & C are having a membership drive, it only costs $2 to be a member and this allows you to receive emails, be connected with the P & C and stay informed. Making P & C part of your regular school contact is important. We look forward to seeing you in school and thanks for making #KSPSagreatplacetobe

Susan Maxworthy – PRINCIPAL

Ways School Communicates with Parents At all times we provide the following lines of communication with parents.

Platform Purpose How to Connect Skoolbag This is a NOTIFCIATION BASED APP for instant

communication with parents. We use Skoolbag to notify parents of school events, stage notices, year and class level notices. We also use Skoolbag to send reminders about checking the Parent Portal and use direct links to the Parent Portal. P & C also have a section to share information on canteen, uniform shop, grounds and garden and general P & C information. Please remember this isn only a notification app for pushing information to parents.

Download the app from your providers app store to your phone/tablet. Search Kotara South Public School. Download for free.

Parent Portal This is a WEB BASED PLATFORM that will continue to be used for sending absences (via SMS), looking at student attendance, receiving Student Reports, booking Parent Teacher interviews mid-year, notes for excursions Sunday evening ‘What’s On at KSPS’ and the fortnightly Newsletter will come out via the Parent Portal. The Parent Portal can be viewed on a computer/laptop but also as a web page on your phone. This can be saved to your phone on the home page for a direct link to the Parent Portal.

Accessed through the KSPS website on the Parent Portal tab. To register you need a unique code to link the parent to the child information. See front office for this code. Parent Portal link

Facebook Will only be used for school promotion of events, student achievement and to showcase school in

Have your own personal Facebook page and like

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general. A small description with photos will be the main format. This will mostly be done after the event. We encourage this a one way communication tool. Private use of Messenger through Facebook is still enabled.

Kotara South Public School page. KSPS Facebook page

School Website

Is the static site for all KSPS information. It will continue to have relevant and up to date information over a broad area of our school The webpage also has the calendar of events over the year.

Webpage: KSPS Webpage

Phone Calls Please call the school between the hours of 8:30am and 3:30pm each day Monday to Friday. Be aware that teachers are not able to take calls whilst on class. A detailed message left with office staff will be passed directly to the teachers on the day. Urgent matters of safety etc, may be passed directly to the Principal.

Call 02 4957 5319

Email You may email the school directly. Please write to whom you would like the email attentioned to in the subject line. You can also mark an email ‘confidential’ in the subject line as well.

kotarasth-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

School News

How you can help your child read at home Be confident that your child will learn to read. Give positive messages and involve them in everyday conversations and opportunities to read. Read aloud to your child. It helps them to learn

about the language of books and will encourage them to enjoy books and reading. Read to your child in your home language if your first language is not English. Make reading enjoyable and talk about books, magazines and computer stories that you have

read together. Try not to let television intrude on reading time. Make a special time for reading with your child,

away from interruptions. Listen to your child read as often as you can, every day if possible, even if only for a short

time. Give books in print or electronic form as treats and presents.

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Hints for listening to your child read

• When reading together at home try to make the time relaxed, enjoyable and positive. Vary it. Read together, read to your child and take turns or have them read to you.

• Before reading, talk about the cover, the title and the pictures, and discuss what the book may be about.

• During reading, discuss what has been read up to that point and predict what might happen next.

• After you've finished reading with your child, talk and ask questions about the story and the pictures.

Useful reading tips: When your child is reading and encounters words that are difficult for them, use the Three Ps technique ('Pause, Prompt, Praise') to support them. Pause: When your child comes to a word they don't know, try not to jump in straight away. Wait and give your child time to work out the word. Prompt: If your child successfully works out the problem word, suggest they go back to the beginning of the sentence and re-read it (to recap meaning) before reading on. If your child has not worked out the problem word, prompt them with some quick, low-key suggestions. Say things like:

• 'Try reading on for a sentence or two, miss out the difficult word and see if that helps you to work it out.'

• 'Look at the sound the word begins with, use that clue, and think about what may make sense here? Look at the pictures.'

If prompts like these are not working, simply tell your child the correct word. Try not to spend too much time prompting, as your child will find it difficult to maintain the overall meaning of what they are reading. Praise: Praise your child's reading efforts and successes.

Things to remember about reading

• The goal of reading is always to make sense of what is read. • Try to be interested, supportive and enjoy the time together. Short, sharp and focussed. • Read with your child anywhere and at any time; don't forget that many everyday experiences

provide opportunities to put reading and writing into action. • Visit and use a library near you. Borrow books for yourself as well as for your child. • Talk to your child's classroom teacher for further help and advice.

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School News YEAR 6 BADGE INDUCTION CEREMONY Introducing our 2020 KSPS Student Leaders! Last Friday, our School Leaders, House Captains and Vice Captains and Parliament Ministers received their badges at our annual Year 6 Badge Induction Assembly. Well done Year 6 – We know you will be excellent leaders of our school.

Catherine Ward – INSTRUCTIONAL LEADER/STAGE 3 ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

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School News

COUNSELLOR CORNER We all experience difficulties from time to time, and kids are no different. But some children seem to encounter problems or feel the effects more so than others. Families are often in the best position to spot issues with a child’s emotions, thinking or behaviour. If a child close to you is having problems that stick around for more than a few weeks and interfere with school, home, friendships or daily life, it’s time to get some professional advice.

The first step is taking time to observe what’s going on.

Signs of concern • Frequent, unexplained temper tantrums • Unusual fears • Difficulty going to sleep or staying asleep • Sadness and feelings of hopelessness that don’t go away • Avoiding friends or family and wanting to be alone most of the time • Refusing to go to preschool or school on a regular basis • Inability to get along with other children • Hyperactive behaviour or constant movement beyond regular playing • Noticeable disinterest or decline in school performance • Frequent aggressive reactions (more than is reasonably expected in the situation) • Difficulties with concentration, attention and organisation • Any other changes from their usual way of acting over a short period of time

Kids experience a wide range of emotions and behaviours as part of growing up, so any of these signs in isolation is not necessarily cause for concern. This list should be used as a guide only, but the more signs your child is showing and the more distressed they seem, the more important it is to seek some advice from a professional.

[Source: Beyond Blue]

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have concerns about your child. I am at KSPS on Mondays and Thursdays and I can be contacted through the front office, phone 4957 5319.

Belinda Robinson – SCHOOL COUNSELLOR

ZONE SWIMMING CARNIVAL Well done to all our students who represented KSPS at the Zone Swimming Carnival last week. Congratulations to Toby, Sam and Zahli who have been selected to represent KSPS and Newcastle City PSSA at the Regional Swimming Carnival. Well done - outstanding achievement!!

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School News SUPPORTING OUR STUDENTS AT KSPS As the Learning and Support Teacher (LaST) this year, a few things have become very clear to me. Firstly, the best way to support children in their learning and social growth is to consistently have a united approach between home and school. I have been fortunate to be part of the review meetings for students with personalised learning plans during this week. The message I have taken away from these meetings is that from the school perspective, students and their strengths and challenges are thoroughly known, they are catered for to meet their individual learning goals and the teachers are passionate about making necessary adjustments in their classrooms. From the home perspective, the consistent and tireless efforts to ensure the best outcomes for their children is inspiring.

In previous years, the role of the LaST has been to withdraw students 1-1 for learning support, this role has evolved to coordinating teachers, home, student learning support officers, outside support and internal school services to achieve the best outcomes for students with additional learning and support needs. I think communication is essential between school, home, other professionals and the wider school community to ensure the best possible outcomes for our students. We need to have a streamlined approach to how communication occurs to ensure information reaches the relevant people. If you have information to share about the additional learning needs of your child please email the school kotarasth-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

The office staff will ensure the information is passed onto the relevant people for example; myself as the coordinator of the learning and support team, the class teacher, the relevant Assistant Principal, Counsellor or Principal. You may also want to call the office on 49575319 to organise a meeting with your child’s teacher - once again we need these phone calls and communication to come through the office and not directly to our teachers.

I look forward to developing this role throughout the year and implementing systems and processes that are going to support our students with disability and learning difficulties. Speaking of which… we take our commitment to providing adjustments very seriously..take a look at my brand new assisted hearing headphones and mic (hearing aid compatible) for all of the phone calls I’m going to have with you!

Regina Fear – LEARNING AND SUPPORT TEACHER/ STAGE 2 ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL (REL)

SRE – SPECIAL RELIGIOUS EDUCATION SRE started this week and the Scripture teachers look forward to working with the students whose parents have chosen SRE for their children. Classes provide the opportunity to question, explore and discover common Christian beliefs, values and practices, as well as enjoying traditional Bible stories together. SRE Classes are on Tuesday afternoon 2.10 - 2.40 and a teacher is still needed for the Stage 2 students. Anyone in the school community interested in teaching this group of delightful children is encouraged to contact Sally Smith 0431150583 or sallyjsmith12@gmail.com. A prospective teacher would be provided with a manual and student books, undergo training, and be authorised by their church.

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Assembly Awards

WEEK 3 & 4 K’OR Layne Alexander

Sarah Anderson Abel Carpenter Caden Densham Gretta Horscroft-

Smith Braxton Peters

1/2A Ellie McIlveen Elin Zentner Alexander Bruton Jed Alexander Blake Mitchison Madie Tasker

3/4G Marco Gasparini-Ito Zander Peters Chloe Madden-Richards Reed Hoskins Flynn Ward Sienna Keats

5/6J Lucas O’Connor Myah Konjarski Sophia Hall Oscar Tool Toby See Chelsea Drysdale

KG Ruth O’Keefe Isabel Moran Flynn McDermott Matilda Sharp Aiden Everson Blair Farrow

1/2C Rio Cristaudo Sofia Konjarski Pippa O’Brien Caius Pendlebury Amber Sharpe Boston Watters

3/4M Billy McIlveen Molly Hamence Luca Bridges Rhys Hirnth Annie Kocon

5/6M Bella Turner Ben Love Clara Hodge Will Cherry Evie Hutchson Matilda Sharkey

K1/P Alastair Falconer Cooper Mason Charlie Robinson Austin Wood Elle Crispin Braden Clarke

1/2E Edward King Gabriela Vyslysel Quinn Freeman Isabella Rice Sophie Bland Ashton Moss

3/4T

Imogen Hall Zoe Cutro Peter Jago Zahli Hac Rory Fenwick-

Mulcahy Jasmine Breen

5/6P Linkin Clenton Leila Donnelly Emma Jennison Jay Garcia D’errico Alex Watson Xavier Hammond

1/2MC Elise Borman Abigail Cousins Marcus Ottery Josephine Horvarth Alexander Postol Hayley Jago

3/4W

Xavier Peters Holly Brock Harper Edgington Lia Sheldon Ashley Googe Jai Donnelly

HSU Jack Engleman Manu Hanlon-Mullen

Marriott

MERIT AWARDS Bronze Silver Gold

Coby Sheldon

STAGE 2 - SLEEPOVER Stage 2 sleepover is coming up on the night of Thursday the 19th of March. This is an excellent opportunity to support our students in developing their skills of organisation, getting along and resilience. We strongly encourage all students to attend. If your child has after school commitments, please inform the class teacher of their expected time of arrival at the sleepover. The $10 per student can be paid to the office or online (unless providing own food). Please see the parent portal and skool bag for further information.

Naomi Martin & Gabriella Marchant – SLEEPOVER COORDINATORS

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P&C Association THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING – NOT AS SCARY AS IT SOUNDS! The KSPS P&C Annual General Meeting (AGM) is held each year in March; this year it will be on Wednesday 11 March at 6.30pm, followed by our regular meeting at 7pm. During the AGM, all positions are declared vacant and the executive team for 2020 is voted in. The President and Treasurer also present reports summarising our activities for the previous year. We’d love to encourage all members, new and old, to attend the AGM and stay for the regular meeting afterwards. Please don’t stay away because you don’t want to be voted in! The majority of positions already have nominations submitted, and no-one will be asked to do something that they don’t want to do. If no-one is nominated for a position, it will remain vacant until we can find someone who would like to step up.

If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else for a position, please fill out the attached form and hand it in to the school office. Please note that you need to be a paid-up member of the P&C to nominate someone, hold a position or vote at P&C meetings, so please complete the membership form as well if you haven’t already done so. Return completed membership forms to the office with the membership fee of $2.

WANT TO GIVE BACK TO YOUR COMMUNITY? JOIN THE P&C EXECUTIVE TEAM FOR 2020 While we already have some nominations for several of the P&C’s executive positions, we are still on the lookout for two special people to join our friendly and supportive team.

Treasurer: There’s no denying that the role of Treasurer requires a good head for numbers, a love of spreadsheets and an eye for detail. We are looking for a detail-oriented and organised person to manage the financial record-keeping for the P&C. All of our record keeping is electronic these days – we use Xero to manage all our banking records and receipts, and do all our banking online – with the occasional cheque or cash deposit. You don’t need to have a background in accounting or book-keeping: our current treasurer will work with you to ensure you are up to date with everything you need to know. Approximate time commitment is 1 hour per week during term time, plus attending P&C meetings. Events Coordinator: This position has been called Fundraising coordinator but it’s probably more accurate to describe it as an event management position. If you love organising people and events then this is the role for you! This year our major focus is the fete, but we have a separate fete sub-committee doing all the behind-the-scenes preparation for that. We already have people managing the finer details for our other events too. We just need someone to oversee the overall fundraising calendar for the year, make sure we continue to have people in place to coordinate each event, and to keep track of our overall profits to make sure we are able to hit our fundraising targets. Approximate time commitment is higher when an event is coming up but averages around 1 hour per week during term time plus attending P&C meetings.

If you are interested in either of these positions or have any questions about the roles, please get in touch via the P&C email.

CANTEEN The BEST school canteen managed by the fantastic Mrs Fiona Best is open five days a week, but this can only happen with the help of volunteers. Your support is greatly appreciated, whether it is once a year, once a month or every week.

You can find the online roster here: Online Canteen Roster. Each shift is from school drop off (around 8.30-8.50am) until approximately midday. Fiona will send you home with a delicious lunch as a thank you for your assistance. Please note that no children are allowed in the canteen while you are helping. Thank you so much for supporting the BEST canteen!

Next Meeting: 11 March

AGM at 6.30pm, followed by regular meeting at 7pm in the school library

kspspandc@gmail.com

Kotara South Public School P&C

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GARDENS AND GROUNDS WORKING BEE Our first working bee for the year will be on Sunday 15 March, from 9am to 11am. Please come along and bring the kids for a fun morning working together to maintain and beautify our school grounds.

UNIFORM SHOP Our uniform shop co-ordinator, Stephanie Dooley, opens the uniform shop on regular days during the school term:

• Wednesdays from 2.30pm to 3.00pm; and

• Fridays from 8.45am to 9.15am. The uniform shop accepts payments by cash or card. Please note that there is a small cost associated with using the card payment system, and a fee of 1.9% will be added to the total of any card purchases.

If you can’t make it at these times, you are welcome to print and fill out an order form (Uniform Shop order form link) and leave it in an envelope at the school office, with the correct cash owing. If you'd prefer to pay by card online we can issue an invoice, just leave a note on the form that you'd like to pay online via card – don’t forget your email address), or email the P&C (kspspandc@gmail.com) with all your order details, including your child's name and class. Please note there is a slightly higher card processing fee for online payments (2.2% instead of 1.9%). Your order will be filled the next time the uniform shop is open and will be returned home with your child.

SAVE THE DATE: ATHLETICS CARNIVAL – FRIDAY 27 MARCH The Athletics carnival will be on Friday, 27 March. During the athletics carnival, the P&C runs a canteen selling sausage sandwiches, snack food items and drinks. If you are able to help during the day, we need volunteers for one hour time slots during the carnival, or to help set up / pack up. We’d like to have enough helpers available that parents are able to get away to see their children participate in the carnival. If you can help, please email the P&C or fill out the online sign up form.

SAVE THE DATE: BUNNINGS BBQ – SATURDAY 11 APRIL Please save the date for our Bunnings BBQ on Saturday 11 April. We will need volunteers to help cook and serve between 8.30am and 4.00pm. If you are able to help please fill out the online sign up form.

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