Dear parents/carers,

The COVID situation has really ramped up once again. Everyone must be feeling like they have COVID fatigue, we think we have gotten over the worst and there is a new surprise around the corner. Despite the circumstances we are doing a great job of maintaining attendance and learning at school.

We have had an increase in student cases and are averaging about three cases a day. We are also seeing impact on staff both from COVID infection or isolation rules. I am monitoring  the spread of cases across classes. Other schools are also being impacted and there is a severe shortage of casual staff to replace absent teachers. We are lucky to have a number of support staff and staff we use for special programs which we are using where we can to fill staff absences. At times we do need to split classes and this can be right across the school. When classes are split, we provide children some grade appropriate work and consider the needs of individual students as to where they might be placed. We try to reduce the impact on students and essentially try to have the same teacher on the class where possible. Where possible teachers provide work for classes to maintain continuity. When students are isolating we will provide work for students to complete if they are not sick.

The department has advised we can order additional RA tests and we hope to be able to make another delivery of theses to students. Surveillance testing is no longer necessary, the advice is to test if your child has symptoms.

There are some steps schools can take if the number of cases increase substantially in one class or grade but hopefully we will be able to avoid doing this. You can assist us manage the situation by:

·         Not sending children to school if they have symptoms, even if they have a negative RA test, the RA tests are not 100% reliable and we don’t want other viruses circulating in addition to COVID. At the moment we particularly don’t want teachers catching other viruses and missing work.

·         Advising us as soon as you can if your child tests positive to COVID or is required to isolate.

·         Considering vaccination for your child if they are not already vaccinated.

·         Observing physical distancing at drop off and pick up times.

We thank everyone for your assistance.

regards,

Gabrielle Buczynski

Term 1 

31.3.22  Selective High School Placement Test

7.4.22     Easter Egg Hunt & Guessing Competition

8.4.22  End Term 1

Harmony Day

Harmony Day is a time to celebrate Australian multiculturalism. This week we celebrated Harmony Day by creating our Harmony Tree. It was filled with inspiring messages and wonderful images of what harmony means to Pendle Hill. Thank you for celebrating with us!

Here are some fascinating statistics about Australia's diversity:

• nearly half (49 percent) of Australians were born overseas or have at least one parent who was
• we identify with over 300 ancestries
• since 1945, more than 7.5 million people have migrated to Australia
• apart from English, the most common languages spoken in Australia are Mandarin, Arabic, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Italian, Greek, Tagalog/Filipino, Hindi, Spanish and Punjabi
• more than 70 Indigenous languages are spoken in Australia.

Pendle Hill recently participated in the Wenty/Seven Hills Zone swimming carnival held at Blacktown pools.

We were represented by 3 very enthusiastic students who were great role models on the day. Thank you to Zoey, Yash and Gemma. All tried very hard.

Thank you to the parents who came on the day and supported us.

Special mention to Zoe who finished third in the 50m backstroke , seventh in 50m free style and breaststroke events. Zoey finished sixth overall in the 11 years girls age championship which was amazing.

Playgroup

PHPS playgroup is a school-run playgroup for parents and carers of our school community. It is on every Wednesday morning. Please contact Debbie on 0437 780 080 for more information. 

Why join our playgroup?

Playgroups provide safe and nurturing environments where children can play and learn. It enhances healthy early brain development through play and provides opportunities for children to create, invent, reason and problem solve. It is also a great place to meet new people and make new friends. 

Regards, 

Arline Concha

Assistant PrincipalLearning Support Teacher

Community Liaison Teacher

Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday 

Issue 2 out now

Closing Date Friday 25th March 2022

ONLINE ORDERS ONLY

The Uniform Shop is now OPEN on Wednesdays between 8.30-9.30am. Parents are allowed to visit and purchase uniforms at this time only.

Uniform Shop Details

Parents can now use the following methods to purchase uniforms:

1. Online Order at www.exceluniforms.com.au: parents need to use their own email address and password to create an account before  purchasing the first time.   The delivery options will be provided at the checkout stage: Send to class/pick up from the office  which is cost free.  Another delivery option is home delivery and the current cost is $15.00.

2.    Uniform Order Form (as attached): parents can filled in the form and then submit it by email (php@exceluniforms.com.au) or text msg (0405 506 383).

Due to COVID restrictions parents cannot visit the uniform shop in person at the moment. The uniform is also waiting for deliveries of some items due to disruption in services.

Students who need a School Opal card or travel pass for 2022 can apply now.

Details are in file below.

Have you changed your Phone Numbers or Address? If so please complete the slip below and return to the office. Only changed details need to be included. (One slip per family is fine.)

Are you having trouble with Skoolbag or you would like to download it another device? Check out these easy, step by step instructions.

https://www.moqproducts.com.au/skoolbag/installation-instructions/

Our preferred method of payment is online. 

Please see document below containing instructions on how to make a payment online via our school website.

Once you have read the instructions here is the payment link.

http://www.pendlehill-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/