The Link

A Publication of Rydalmere Public School

A Message from the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

Creating Futures

Today is the first day of Education Week 2022 - 'Creating Futures'.  This theme reminds us of the critical role our public schools play in creating bright and fulfilling  futures for all our students. It is a great privilege to be involved in educating this current generation of students who will each play their part in shaping the future of this country. 

Open Day

Our open day will be held on Thursday, and I hope many of you will be able to join us to celebrate.  I will be hosting a morning tea for parents and carers from 9:00 - 9:30, where I hope to meet many of you.  Classrooms will open for visitors from 9:30 - 10:00am. This will be followed by a special outdoor concert in our COLA area at 10:00am. Our band will perform first, followed by dance items from each of our classes. This will be the first public performance for many of our students.

Seetha, our Hub leader  will also be attending the Open Day. Please take the opportunity to say 'hello' to her, and to find out about the many programs that are on offer.

New Teaching Staff

Over the next few weeks you will start to see some new regular faces around Rydalmere Public School.

Ms Melanie Robson has joined our casual relief team and will be working for us 2-3 days per week this term as a 'floating' member of staff. Due to the winter flu season, and the pandemic, I am anticipating a higher than usual number of unplanned absences. Ms Robson has been employed to cover these absences, and to provide additional  planning time and other release for teachers as needed. 

Ms Belinda La Faber Ms La Faber will be taking 3/4 R each Tuesday, commencing August 2. Ms La Faber is a very experienced and accomplished teacher who will be a great asset to our team. 

Ms Kerry Hampton

Ms Hampton will commence working at RPS on Monday August 8. She also comes to us with a wealth of experience and expertise, particularly in the Early Childhood and K-2 area. She will be taking the Pre-school class for the first half of the day, and 1/2 T in the afternoon.

Assistant Principal Curriculum and Instruction (APCI)

This is a new full-time  position that the  Department of Education has created for every primary school in NSW. The APCI  is a leadership role dedicated to improving and enhancing teaching practices in numeracy and literacy instruction to bring about improvement in literacy and numeracy outcomes for our students. 

The position will be filled by open merit selection, which will take place this term. A panel, consisting of a teacher representative, P&C representative, a Director of Educational Leadership representative and myself will be formed in the coming days to review applicants and conduct interviews. 

Further information will be provided to principals in the coming days about this position. I will keep the community updated as I learn more. 

Term 3 COVID Settings

There have been some updates  to our COVID Settings for Term 3.  Detailed information is provided in an article below. Please ensure that if your child has even minor respiratory symptoms, they should not attend school. If they are a household contact under 12 years old, and are symptom free, they may attend school, but are encouraged to wear a mask.  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me through our school office.

I hope to see many of you at our Open Day this Thursday.

Have a lovely week. 

Sincerely,

Corinne Campbell

Principal, Rydalmere Public School.

Events for your Diary

Please mark the following dates in your calendar:

Open Day: Thursday August 4

Book Fair: August 19 - 24

Book Week Performance and Parade: August 23

3-6 Bathurst Camp:  Tuesday 29 November - Friday 2 December

COVID-smart settings in Term 3

Our COVID-smart settings in Term 3  have been developed in consultation with NSW Health and are aligned to the NSW Government’s general community settings.

Many of our existing COVID-smart measures continue into Term 3, including:

  • staying home if unwell, even if you have a negative RAT, until you are free of symptoms

  • rapid antigen testing for symptomatic students and household contacts able to return to school

  • strongly encouraging mask wearing, particularly for the first 4 weeks of term

  • strongly encouraging all eligible students and their families to get vaccinated for COVID-19 and the flu

  • maximising natural ventilation

  • good hygiene practices

  • strict requirements for household contacts attending school

  • responding to local COVID-19 conditions

Some things are changing this term, including:

  • COVID-19 vaccination policy update – the mandate requiring COVID-19 vaccination will be lifted for staff in our school setting from 1 August 2022. We will continue to encourage all staff, students and our school community to keep up to date with their vaccinations, including getting a booster shot when eligible.

  • Boosted day cleaning – our cleaning model has shifted slightly and will now be more concentrated during school hours.

Thank you again for your ongoing support.

Athletics Carnival Cancelled

Sadly, due to weeks of rain, our school oval will not be in a condition to run our athletics carnival in time to select representatives for the  Zone Carnival later this term. The ground needs  time to dry out enough to mow the grass. Due to damage, we also need to hire a roller to flatten the surface, which is currently very uneven and not safe for running. This all has to be completed before we can mark lines and run the event. Unfortunately, it won't be possible to complete this work in time to run the carnival. 

Ms Andrews and I have begun exploring options that might allow us to run field events in the lead up to the Zone carnival. We will keep you advised as we move forward. 

I know that many of our students will be disappointed to miss the carnival, so I am also exploring options for running a fun athletics day later this year. 

Naidoc Week

Rydalmere Public School Celebrated Naidoc Week during our first week of Term 3.

The students extended their learning about First Nations People through a number of NAIDOC week lessons within our classrooms and utilising our Yarning circle when the weather allowed. 

We also enjoyed some fun in class rotations from P-6. K-2 learned a Torres trait Islander song Taba Naba with actions, they also enjoyed hearing a dreaming time story How the Birds got their feathers and they made a craft to match. The children also participated in a range of Yulunga Traditional Indigenous games.

Students in 3-6 Enjoyed The Rainbow Serpent dream time story and an x ray art lesson creating unique patterns on an Eel. They also learned a Traditional Torres strait Islander lullaby with movement and tapping sticks Innanay. 


Preschool continued to incorporate a range of Indigenous activities into their program including traditional stories and arts and crafts.

Please have a look at the gallery below to view some of their creations. 

Amanda Green and Felicity Jennings

NAIDOC Week Coordinators

NAIDOC Week Gallery

Open Day - Thursday August 4

Book Fair

Book Fair will be from Friday 19th August – Wednesday 24th August 

All students will have the opportunity to preview the books for sale and complete a wish list on Thursday 18th August. Parents and students are invited to visit the school Scholastic Book Fair to purchase books on the following dates and times: 

Friday 19th August 

8.30am – 9.00am 

2.50pm – 3.10pm 

Monday 22nd August 

8.30am – 9.00am 

2.50pm – 3.10pm 

Tuesday 23rd August 

8.30am – 9.00am 

2.50pm – 3.10pm 

Wednesday 24th August 

8.30am – 9.00am 

2.50pm – 3.10pm 

PBL and Award Winners - Term 3 Week 2

PBL Special Awards for Term 3 Week 2

Hub News

Welcome Back to Term 3! Hub programs have resumed. 

Dance Fitness Program

Our free Dance Fitness Program commenced on July 29 and will run every Friday from 9:00 a.m.. 

All are welcome. The program starts at 9:00am sharp, so please come early to sign in at the office before the session.

*No child care is provided for this program.

Creators Program

Hub is excited to be partnering with Rydalmere P&C for a new program called "Creators". This will commence on the 23rd of August.

Any community member interesting in creating a product that can be sold by the P&C for fundraising is welcome. No experience is needed. All training and materials are provided.

It will be a great place to nteract with other families and develop friendships along with practical skills while helping Rydalmere Public School. 

Sit and Chat on Tuesdays

Hub is looking at holding Sit and Chat sessions every Tuesday and is keen to invite guest speaker. Do you need any information regarding Centrelink or Parramatta Council? Are you looking for a job? 

Please share your thoughts and ideas with me and Hub will try to arrange sessions accordingly.

For more updates, please follow our Facebook page. 

For those who haven't met me, I'm Seetha, Community Hub leader at Rydalmere Public School. I am a good listener and eager to meet you. Feel free to join any of our programs or to just have a chat with me. 

Cheers,

Seetha.

Phone: 0448 331 558 

Email: seetha.srinivasan@det.nsw.edu.au