Jamberoo Public School Newsletter

Dear Jamberoo Public School Community,

Swimming Carnival

A fantastic day was had by all at last week’s school swimming carnival. Beautiful weather, enthusiastic students, helpful parents and great organisation contributed to a day of fun for everyone involved. Thank you to the parents who volunteered on the day and gave up their time. Thank you to the students who participated in events, cheered on their fellow house mates and demonstrated outstanding behaviour. Finally, thank you to the staff and in particular Mrs Behl-Shanks for running such a well organised and inclusive swimming carnival. A wonderful day was had by everyone involved!

Kindergarten Students

Congratulations to our Kindergarten students who have completed their first week of ‘big school’. It is always a daunting prospect for children to start school and I have been very impressed with how well the Kindergarten students have adapted to school life and how smoothly the transition has been. Keep up the great work Kindies!

P&C Meeting

Last night the P&C held its AGM and I would like to congratulate Pippa Rendel, Natasha Deen, Colin O’Neill and Sarah Thatcher who fill the roles of President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary in 2023.  It was great to see such a large turn-out of very enthusiastic and motivated parents. The next meeting will be held at the Jamberoo Club on Wednesday 15th March.

Minnamurra Lions Club

The P&C has been donated $1000 by the amazing crew at Minnamurra Lions Club for 2023. These funds have very generously been given to support Jamberoo students access all aspects of the curriculum. This may include, supporting families financially to assist students being able to attend excursions or camps and backing students to access educational resources to support their learning.

The school and the P&C very much appreciate the kind donation of the Minnamurra Lions Club. Please don’t hesitate to contact the school or the P&C this year if you believe your child/children will benefit from the funds.

Out of School Hours Care (OSHC)

The NSW Department of Education is continuing to finalise the tender process as quickly as possible, however the service will not be commencing in Term 1 2023.

The Department is aware of the importance of access to an OSHC service for our community and is working to complete the tender as soon as possible.  

Please be assured the school will provide Jamberoo parents/carers with an update once more information becomes available.

Should you have any questions about this, you may wish to contact the Department at BASCreform@det.nsw.edu.au 

Assembly

The first whole school assembly for the year will be tomorrow kicking off at the new time of 11:55am. The earlier time slot is to allow for the implementation of the new whole school music program, which commences at 1pm on a Friday afternoon.

Dragons Visit

On Tuesday 7th February, students in Years 3-6 participated in a variety of activities conducted by members of the St George Illawarra Dragons organisation. Key topics covered in the presentation included, health and wellbeing.

A fantastic time was had by all students involved!

Dance2Bfit

The Dance2Bfit program successfully commenced yesterday. We encourage all students to participate, as the dance program is an integral part of our school curriculum in creative and performing arts.

Lunch Sports Coaching Program Term One 2023

The school’s P&C has kindly donated funds to support the skill and confidence development of our students for the sports of rugby league/league tag and cricket in Term One. Coaches from the local community commenced training with the 3-6 students this week which will continue for the next four weeks. All the students involved had lots of fun and learnt some new skills. Thank you to the Jamberoo P&C for your generosity.

Regards,

Mr Chris Speirs

Principal

Wollongong High School of the Performing Arts (WHSPA) is a comprehensive, co-educational high school with a specialist performing arts focus. The school has the twin goals of “academic excellence” and “excellence in the performing arts”.   

WHSPA provides opportunities for gifted and talented Dance, Drama, Music and Visual Arts students to pursue a high quality performing and creative arts programs, whilst studying curriculum developed by the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA). All courses lead to the award of the ROSA and Higher School Certificate. 

The school also offers extensive co-curricular company, ensemble, and studio art programs.

Year 7 Audition Applications OPEN now

• Term 1 2023 - Week 7 (Wednesday 8 March):       Expo Evening at WHSPA - all invited
• Term 1 2023 - Week 9 (Friday 24 March):              Year 7 Audition Applications CLOSE
• Term 2 2023 - Weeks 1-3:                                              Year 7 Auditions held

Link to audition information: Wollongong High School of the Performing Arts Audition Information (office.com)  (link to the electronic application is within).

In 2024, Kiama High School will be introducing an Extension class. This class will implement evidence-based procedures, programs and practices to develop skills and knowledge required for high performance in academic education. 

It will offer students the opportunity to work together on challenging learning or skills development that may not be offered in a mainstream school setting.

The KHS Extension class will focus on evidence-based development programs to extend students, including:

• Differentiation to meet the specific learning needs of high potential and gifted students

• Cluster grouping to help concentrate differentiation efforts and provide students with opportunities to interact with others of like-mind, interest and ability

• Enrichment and extra-curricular programs to increase the breadth and challenge of learning, as well as offer excellent opportunities for advanced learning.

• Advanced learning pathways, including acceleration, offering students learning experiences beyond their age-based competency.

• Curriculum compacting, in which some elements of the mainstream curriculum are ‘compacted’ so that they are covered in less time. The time saved can then be used for extension or enrichment activities.

Students’ achievement in the KHS Extension Class will be evaluated at the conclusion of each year to determine the suitability of their placement in this class for the following academic year.

Students can qualify for the Kiama High School Extension Class by completing an application, by sitting the AGAT (a general reasoning test, assessing students’ higher order thinking skills) and by submitting academic certificates. 

Note that the questions in the test do not require any prior knowledge from any particular content area. Students are assessed on their ability to reason, make logical deductions, identify connections and spot patterns. 

This test will be facilitated by Kiama High School in Term 1 for Year 6 students applying for entry to the 2024 Year 7 cohort and in Term 4 for Year 5 students applying for the 2025 Year 7 cohort.

Official registration for this test will open early Term 1, 2023. Information will be provided in your primary school newsletter early next year.

For any enquiries, please contact Catherine Glover, Principal,  kiama-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au