17 May 2023

Newsletter Articles

Dates to Remember

Please refer to the side panel “School Calendar” section for the “live” calendar of events for information

Principal’s Introduction

It is certainly hard to believe we are almost halfway through Term Two! A massive thank you to all parents and guardians for your continued support through this term so far, especially as we have experienced a high number of staff absences in the last few weeks. (Mr Stenhouse refers to this as our ‘Injury List’. Luckily it hasn’t been as long as the West Coast Eagles injury list!)

Reporting to Parents – Semester One – Update Details

As this is a Reporting to Parents term, teachers and students are busy working hard on the curriculum ready for the mid-year reports. The reports will be sent out for all Pre-primary to Year 6 students on Monday 26th June via email. A reminder to all parents to update their email contact details if needed as soon as possible to ensure you receive the reports. While teachers will contact you if there are concerns about your child’s progress, please always feel reassured you are most welcome to contact your child’s teacher and request a meeting also. More information will come out later in the term about the mid-year reports.

Running Club

Congratulations to the 40 or more Year 3-6 students who have been regularly turning up to Running Club on Monday mornings this term. We have added more hills to the running course in preparation for the cross-country and all students have been challenging themselves with these uphill additions. A massive thank you to the regular parents who have been assisting with the running club.

Nature Playground Check - Emu Pick on Saturday 20th May

Last term we contacted the Department of Education to do a check of our nature playground to ensure there is no asbestos containing materials in there after the build and disturbance of the ground. As such, the Department has organised for an ‘emu-pick’ of the nature playground to occur on Saturday 20th May. A barrier will be placed around the nature playground and we ask that all community users comply with not using the nature playground while it is being checked. Thank you.

Lost Property

Please remember to label all of your child’s belongings. This includes bags, water bottles, jackets and other items your child brings to school. Labelling your child’s belongings helps ensure they are returned to their rightful owner in case they are misplaced or left behind. Please take a few minutes to write your child’s name on their belongings with permanent markers or use labels. It may seem like a small thing, but it can save you and your child a lot of time, expense and frustration in the long run.

Walk to School Day and P&C Day – Friday 19th May

A reminder that this Friday 19th May is both Walk to School Day and P&C Day. If students walk to school on Friday 19th May, they will be given a Goldie for ‘Challenging Themselves’ and receive a raffle ticket that will go in a draw for a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place prize, including the chance to win a voucher to JFE uniforms for a new faction t-shirt or a Boost Juice voucher. Students who have walked to school can meet the P&C parents in the quadrangle to receive the Goldie and raffle ticket.

We do realise some families reside outside of a walkable distance. If this is the case, be creative, parents! Park at the back of the school and walk from there! It really doesn’t matter if you walk a long way or a short way, have the conversation with your child about road safety, transport and environmental benefits that regular walking can provide for your long-term wellbeing.

A coffee van will also be on site from 8:15-9:15am for PARENTS ONLY to receive a free hot drink to celebrate the P&C courtesy of Force Reality. We ask that parents DO NOT order a drink for their children. Please respect this request.

All prizes have been kindly donated by JFE uniforms, Force Reality and the P&C. Thank you.

School Communication Survey

As part of the Newborough Primary School Business Plan 2021-2024, Newborough Primary School is seeking to develop a Communications Communication Strategy to outline the ways in which communications flow within the school, and between the school and its key stakeholders, students, parents, P&C, Board and the broader local community.

In the next few weeks, the School and NPS School Board will be conducting a parent/guardian survey to ask for feedback about the school’s communication channels and effectiveness to help inform us of areas we communicate well in and areas we can improve.

We ask that you look out for the survey and further information in regards to the survey.

Kind regards
Karen Tucknott
Principal

Noongar Season

Djeran (April – May)

The Noongar Season ‘Djeran' is represented by the colour green as it is the time of the year where the cooler weather begins.

Djeran season sees a break in the really hot weather. A key indicator of the change of season is the cool nights that bring a dewy presence in the early mornings.

The winds will also change, especially in their intensity, with light breezes generally swinging from southerly directions. Many flying ants can be seen cruising around in the light winds

Noongar Vocabulary Program

Noongar is the language of the Noongar nation and is spoken by many groups across the south-west corner of Western Australia. Newborough Primary School staff and students are learning Noongar words together in class. Our Term 2 focus is on Body. We have started to learn the following words:

Week 1: Kaat: head
Week 2: Koort: heart
Week 3: Maar: hand
Week 4: Djen: foot

Eurovision – VOYAGER

As many of you would know by now, Perth synth metal rock band, Voyager, finished ninth in the Eurovision competition when they competed in the final on Saturday night. A huge congratulations to Scott Kay, a stepparent of a student here at Newborough, and the other band members on such an amazing achievement.

Here is their song, Promise performed at Grand Final.

COVID

If your child has tested positive and experiencing symptoms it is strongly encouraged to stay home for 5 days until they have recovered and register their positive RAT with the WA Health Department.

Please note, COVID positive cases and close contacts cannot visit public hospitals for 7 days to protect the more vulnerable people. Anyone who is a close contact is encouraged to test daily for 5 days and only attend school following a negative RAT result.

For further information on Covid please consult the Department of Health’s Covid -19 webpage from the link below.

Please send this information through to Newborough.PS@education.wa.edu.au or to Newborough.PS.absentee@education.wa.edu.au.

Third Party App Permissions

At school students often may access online third party services to support their learning in the classroom. The aim of accessing these services is to provide our students with significant educational benefits.

As part of our commitment to keeping our students safe online, we are currently reviewing our use of third party online services at school. As part of our commitment to keep students safe online we work with the Department of Education to ensure that services that we use have completed privacy and security risk assessments, identify online third party services which hold student information and as part of this will provide notification to parents or seek consent before using an online third party service.

This week you will receive an email with a link to an online permission form notifying you of any online services that the students access and ask for your consent to use services which may store data outside of Australia. We ask that you complete the service as soon as possible. If you do not consent to any of the services listed, the school will contact you to discuss your reasons. If you do not consent, your child may receive an alternative education program that does not make use of these services.

Reconciliation Week

The theme this year is ‘Be a Voice for Generations’. For the work of generations past, and the benefit of generations future, act today for a more just, equitable and reconciled country for all.

National Reconciliation Week (NRW) – 27th May to 3rd June – is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia. These dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey – the successful 1967 referendum and the High Court Mabo decision respectively.

For Newborough Primary School, we will recognise NRW in Week 6. Through their own communication methods, classroom teachers will share with you the activities they are planning on conducting that week.

2024 Kindergarten Enrolments

Applications are now open for our 2024 Kindergarten program at Newborough Primary School.

Children born between 1 July 2019 and 30 June 2020 will be eligible to start Kindy next year and applications should be made before Friday 21st July 2023.

If you have a child or know a neighbour who has a child with a birthday between these dates, please complete an Application for Enrolment before Friday 21st July this year.

To make an application to attend Newborough Primary, a parent applying to enrol a child in a public school should complete an Application for Enrolment and submit it together with the required documents listed.

• Child’s Birth Certificate
• Immunisation History Statement, which shows your child is ‘up-to-date’ with all the scheduled immunisations
• Proof of Residence. Applications for approval need to be supported with evidence of your residential address. (Current copy of City of Stirling Council Rates Notice, Utility Bill e.g., gas/water/electricity dated within the last 3 months or signed Lease Agreement or Tenancy Agreement from Real Estate Agent)
• Any family law or other relevant court orders ( if applicable – for confirmation of custody arrangements)
• If your child has health, disability or other support needs you will need to provide copies of medical/healthcare or emergency action plan and evidence of any disability and learning and support plans.

We have many families that originate from overseas if this applies to you, can you please provide the following documents: -

• Passport
• Permanent Visa documentation
• Australian Citizenship Certificate

Application forms can be downloaded from our website, or click on this link: primary_application_for_enrolment.pdf (schoolzineplus.com) , alternately you can collect one from our front office.

Our administration office is open from 8:00am – 3:30pm Monday to Friday.

P&C News

Canteen

Despite some interest in the Canteen Manager role, we have yet to obtain a new manager for the canteen. Hence, we are readvertising the position again. Please feel free to pass this onto anyone you know who may be interested. Thank you to all parents for your support, patience and understanding.

Newborough Primary School P&C is looking for a Canteen Manager who enjoys working with children, is passionate about food, loves their work and has a great community spirit.

The successful candidate will work alongside our 2 Casual paid staff (on Fridays) and numerous volunteers. We cater for a large and diverse school population of approximately 400, including students, teaching and administration staff.

Our Canteen is a fast-paced working environment, open 3 days per week.

It is the responsibility of the Canteen Manager to:

• Prepare and cook fresh snacks and meals onsite, including bulk cooking for stocking the freezer.
• Purchase Canteen approved items from vendors.
• Promote a healthy and interesting menu that adheres to the food Traffic Light System.
• Maintain stock levels to ensure ingredients are fresh and of high quality.
• Manage the Quickcliq online ordering system.
• Encourage volunteer participation and co-ordinate attendance.
• Adhere to relevant safety and hygiene guidelines, including advice from the local Council.
• Keep up to date with WASCA guidelines and policies.
• Provide updates to the P&C.
• Financial Reporting of expenses to the P&C Treasurer.
• Uphold the core values of our school: Respect, Kindness, Teamwork, Challenge Yourself

Skills and experience required for this role:

• Previous experience in managing or assisting in a canteen or commercial kitchen is highly preferable but not essential.
• Excellent customer service.
• Ability to meet deadlines.
• Ability to lead and work within a team.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Cash handling experience.
• Willingness to complete WASCA training, seminars and/or other relevant courses.
• Working With Children Check (including Police Clearance).

If you are interested in this role or would like further information, please forward your CV or enquiries to our P&C President, Laurie McCallum, at laurie@atlaspacificgroup.com.au.

Music News

Senior Choir

On Friday the 14th of April, our senior choir performed at the opening for the 2023 AASTN and APETNA Conference at the Esplanade in Fremantle. We had 36 students entertain over 400 delegates from all over Austral Asia.

They very kindly gifted a donation to use in our music programme.

Thank you Ms Tucknott for accompanying us to this event during your holidays.

SHREK The Musical

It’s all happening in the musical department at the moment. Mums, dads and grannies sewing, cutting, gluing and painting. Mrs Edmondson creating, as always, her magic with the set design, Mrs O’Dea coaching students their vocal parts and me…slowly and quite obviously turning grey by the minute.

Our classroom ensembles are working very hard during music lessons to learn their moves and songs and rehearsing their acting parts. The main cast is almost constantly on the go to meet the deadlines, but we know it’s going to be totally worth it in the end when the stage lights turn on and we get to entertain you.

Just a quick warning, tickets are selling fast, so make sure you log on to trybooking and get your seats before they are all gone!

Direct links for tickets here:

Thursday JUNE 15th

Friday JUNE 16th

Mrs Snelson
Music Specialist Teacher

Year 2 Noongar Bushtucker and Bush Medicine Excursion

Our Year 2 students have recently had the opportunity through Kings Park Education, to participate in Koora Koora Kaarta Koomba. The program explores sustainable living, bush tucker, bush medicine and Noongar katijin (knowledge).

We commenced our day exploring the Naturescape area at Kings Park where students dammed the creek bed, crawled through tunnels, climbed tree houses and braved rope courses. During quieter moments, students observed the wetland frequented by dragonflies, frogs and thrumming insect life.

Kings Park education staff took us to an outdoor classroom where we learnt about bush tucker, medicine and women’s business. The students had the opportunity to learn about and search for bardi grubs, wattle seed, xamia seed, possum, snake and many other bush tucker delicacies. Additionally, they learnt about healing leaves, use of fire and tools, clothing and weaving of Noongar women.

Year 2 students were gifted with sunny weather and amazing parents who climbed, documented, tracked and enjoyed the energy of the day. Many thanks to our amazing parents. Newborough students were also commended for their respectful behaviour. A great day had by all, along with a great night of sleep after!

NEWBRO DADS

Night Walk

Well, the Newbro Dads inaugural night walk went off like a frog in a sock!!... and for a little someone it went off like a froglet in her Gumboot , it tickled, the froglet was released and another great memory was created at Lake Gwelup on Saturday night.

Thank you to everyone for the great turn out. We had to add more tickets, recruit another guide and then add more tickets again due to the early and last-minute demand. In the end, we had around 100 people on our night walk.

Three groups headed off in different directions around the paths, tracks and board walks of Lake Gwelup, bravely lead into the dark by Mike, Dan and Andrew. Now to be team players you need a team, yeah…so we had to have team names. Mike took the ‘The Orb Spiders’ north, Dan went east to the lakes edge with ‘The Huntsman Spiders’ and Andrew went south to the board walk with ‘The Wolf Spiders’. The kids managed to find their team mascots rather quickly. There were plenty of spiders, actually lots and lots of spiders. So many spiders there were very few moths or mosquitoes.

The small amount of rain that morning meant we had frogs everywhere, we counted 5 species of frogs in the first 100m of our walk, and we could hear the Moaning Frogs. The kids weren’t moaning, they were having too much fun blinding every insect, frog, owl and human they could find!! Even the possum was scared stiff, it never moved!!

After the full lap around the lake, we made it back to the tent for bonus marshmallows and another night play on the playground. Hopefully all the kids slept in and gave Mum a sleep in on Mother’s Day, ha-ha as if!!

Such a great night!! What a hoot!! Huge shout out to Rob Antonello for once again organising a great Newbro dads event. Rob was the dad checking you all in and encouraging all the dads to come along to our next meeting.

If you would like to sign up, please contact us via FB @NEWBRO Dads or email: Newbrodadsgroup@gmail.com

Our next meeting is on Wednesday 21st June at the Scarborough Sports Club starting at 6pm.

But wait there’s more!!!

The next Newbro Dads Event is: ‘Tie Knots Not Lots’. A fun evening with rope, tying some essential knots.

Save the date now Friday 9th June at 6pm in the school Undercover Area.

Pizza included with your gold coin donation.

TERM DATES

School Directory

Useful School Information

SIREN TIMES

ATTENDANCE AND ABSENCES

Every day at school is important for every child from Kindergarten to Year 6. Our attendance mantra is EVERY CHILD, EVERYDAY AT SCHOOL. This includes being on time and ready to start the school day.

The school and Principal does not endorse children’s absences to go on holidays, greeting or saying goodbye to fly in fly out parents, special shopping trips and the like. These are unacceptable excuses that we hear too often. Parents are responsible and legally obliged to ensure their children attend school every day possible. Poor attendance not only severely impacts on your child’s learning but also on other children in your child’s class.

If you are having any difficulty getting your child to school let us know and we will try and help. Sometimes it seems easier to give into a child and keep them home for trivial reasons. This is fraught with short term and long-term danger. We have had a lot of success in this area when parents and the school work together. Make no excuses for not attending school.

Department of Education (Western Australia) policy states that all children from Pre-Primary attend school for 5 full days as from the commencement of the school year.

Attendance details are entered electronically twice daily by classroom teachers and the information fed onto a school database. An SMS messaging service endorsed by the Department of Education operates to enable parents to inform the school by text message if their child is going to be absent. The system also automatically sends a message to parents if their child has not arrived at school and no notification has been received. This service assists parents to advise the school of absences and also ensures the safety of children by letting parents know that the child has not arrived at school.

If your child will be absent/sick or late, please contact the school directly either by:

Please include only the student’s name and classroom number, reason for absence and the date in any messages. For Example: “John Doe Room 13 absent 1/2/2021 sick with flu”.

Notes are requested from parents for:

• Any absence from school
• Permission to go on vacation during term time
• Permission to leave the school grounds at any time including lunch time
• Nonparticipation in sport and physical education lessons

ARRIVAL/DEPARTURE AT SCHOOL

Before School

Main gates open at 8:20am. Staff will be out and about before school each morning to greet and assist you in any way possible.

Earlier access for school-based activities such as Choir, Music Tuition, Running Club is through the Mulberry Tree gate.

• K-6 Classrooms open at 8:30am
• Parents/Carers welcome to walk children to their classes, enter classrooms and meet with teachers for short communications. Please make an appointment if you require extended time.
• No before school play in any areas, including Kindy and Pre-primary. Students are to be fully supervised by parents in these areas.
• First siren at 8:37am
• Second siren classes commence at 8:40am
• Gates closed and locked at 8:40am
• Students arriving from 8:40am are late and go to the Front Office for a ‘Late Pass’
• Front Office is not for general entry into the school. Students entering must be with a parent

After School

• Gates open at 2:50pm (2:20pm on Tuesday)
• Gates locked and toilets closed at 3:30pm (3:00pm on Tuesday)
• After school play is a privilege, not a right. We are happy to support after school play on school grounds with the following conditions:
• Parents must supervise play and keep students in line of sight.
• School rules apply at all times.
• There is no play on verandahs, Library and near Front Office or car parks.
• Play allowed on school playgrounds Mondays, Wednesday, Thursday, Fridays until gates are locked.
• There is NO afterschool play on a Tuesday. This is a dedicated teacher preparation and staff meeting time. Families are asked to leave school grounds straight away on a Tuesday please.
• Mulberry Tree gates remain open for after school care
• Continued supervised play encouraged at the City of Stirling’s Karrinyup Sports Centre and Jackson/Wilding reserves and the Nature playground.

LATE ARRIVAL AT SCHOOL

Parents/guardians are reminded that students should not arrive at school before 8:20am. When gates open. Teachers open classrooms at 8:30am. There is no play before school.

School commences at 8:40am Sharp. Late arrivals need to go to the front office with their parents to sign in and get a LATE PASS.

SIGNING OUT EARLY

If your child needs to be collected from school during school hours (e.g. attending an appointment or leaving early), can you please email the school at newborough.ps.absentee@education.wa.edu.au and your child’s class teacher ahead of time - at least 24 hours beforehand, where possible. Please include a reason for early pick up and the approximate time you will be here. Parents/Carers sign the child out on the iPad at the front office. They will be given a ‘Sign Out’ card to hand to the classroom or specialist teacher when they collect the student from the classroom.

EXCURSIONS AND INCURSIONS

During the year teaching staff plan a range of suitable excursions and incursions to introduce, develop or reinforce learning experiences for their class.

Incursions are an opportunity for the children to experience high standard performances covering a wide range of learning areas. The children are able to see national, and sometimes international, performers including musicians, storytellers, artists and many others at a reasonable cost. Particular attention is given to developing the social skills of the children, as well as their confidence and independence.

Formal written permission is required before any child can be taken on an excursion. Every endeavour is made to space excursions/incursions during the year to avoid costs being too great at any one time. If payment is not received by the due date and a payment plan has not been entered into, students will not participate in that particular excursion/incursion and will join a buddy class on that day.

MONEY COLLECTION

When paying for incursions, excursions, or other school activities, please pay via direct deposit into the school bank account.

Newborough Primary School does not accept cash payments.

Money can be paid by online banking (please include your child’s surname and incursion/excursion name as reference). e.g., K Smith Edu-dance.

Our school bank details are:
BSB: 016 350
Account No: 3408 71304

MOBILE PHONES POLICY

A reminder that the Western Australian Department of Education has a strict ban on students using mobile phones at school. Students who bring any mobile communication device, including phones, to school must hand it in to the classroom teacher or front office where it will be stored until the end of the day. The exception to this is the Years 4-6 students participating in the bring your own devices program, which allows the student to bring laptops to school, but still no mobile phones. Students who may require contacting parents during the school day can do this on the school landline phones with permission of the Admin team if the reason is for an emergency only.

Birthday Cakes/Gifts for Students

A reminder that we do not allow the sharing of birthday cakes, presents etc. for birthdays or other celebrations.

No Animals (Including Dogs) on School Grounds

DoE Security

Keep an eagle eye on our school!

School Watch encourages the school community to report any suspicious activity in and around school grounds, after hours and on weekends, as well as during school holidays.

Telephone 1800 177 777 (free call) or 13 14 44 (WA Police).

Please do not approach any individuals, just contact security and they will investigate the situation or contact the Police. Working together will help protect our school.

Uniform Shop News

Netball News

NETBALL FOR PP & YEAR ONE

If your child is in Pre Primary or Year One we'd love them to join us for netball skills training, Friday afternoon in term two. Registrations are now open to boys and girls. All the details and the link to register is available here:

YEAR 4S

ALSO - we are still looking for a couple more netballers to join our gorgeous Year Four teams with coaches Bec and Chris. Training on Wednesday, games on Friday. Contact Sonia Johansen on newboroughnetball@gmail.com or call 041 77 333 57 if you're interested.

First time players are very welcome!

Community News

Barnes Karate

SoccerPlay