Henley Beach Primary School Newsletter

It has been great to see all classes settle back into their learning from the beginning of this term. I have really appreciated the warm welcome provided by students and staff and look forward to continuing to make connections with families here at the school. At a short welcome back assembly last week I outlined to students some expectations that I have, including the importance of actively demonstrating our school values through showing care and respect to others, being persistent and trying their best in their learning. From visiting classes and speaking to students in the yard I have already seen many examples of them putting these values into action. Well done kids!

An early priority for me is to build my understanding and awareness of the culture and needs of the school. To help me with this, during the first staff meeting of the term, I asked staff to reflect on the following questions:

·        What are the 1-2 core factors that gives vitality and life to the school? The things that we need to hold the line on, to retain, to bring with us as we move into the future.

·        What 2 wishes do you have for this school, things that would enable it to become even more vibrant and truly the place where great teaching and learning happens?

The information gained from staff responses was very insightful and valuable. It is quite apparent that all staff acknowledge that our students and community, along with the presence of positive relationships are the areas that give vitality to the school. There were also some common themes around their wishes including continuing to strengthen the school environment through collaboration and building teacher practice to support student learning. I understand that past parent forums have been very helpful in setting future priorities for the school however I would really appreciate families taking the time to provide their own responses to the above questions. You can do this by completing the survey set up on Skoolbag.

Over the coming weeks I will be looking to spend as much time as possible in classes to get to know students and also talk with them about their thoughts on how we can strengthen our school environment.

I am really looking forward to working in collaboration with the school community, please contact me at any time if you wish to discuss your child’s progress at school or any other matters.

COVID-19 Update

The school continues to manage the COVID-19 situation as effectively as possible through implementing the expectations outlined by SA Health and the Department for Education. We appreciate the school community’s support with this. A summary of the current arrangements are outlined below:

·        Student drop off and pick up: Families are requested to use the Metcalfe lawn area or court areas at drop off and pick up times. Please be mindful of physical distancing requirements.

·        Volunteer activities: Will re-commence this term, please speak to the front office or your child’s class teacher for further information.

·        Assemblies: Will re-commence this term however due to physical spacing requirements, families will not be able to attend.

·        Camps: The Yr 6 camp is planned for the first week of term 4 (more details to follow). Unfortunately the intended venue for the Yr 4 camp, Arbury Park, was not able to be re-booked. Staff are currently exploring some other options and will contact families in the coming weeks with this information.

·        Family contact information: If you have not already done so, please provide your contact details to the front office.

·        School sport: Football commences this week, good luck to our teams!

 Term 3 Staffing news.

This week we welcomed back Brooke Jones from maternity leave. Brooke will be working Tue-Fri in Rm T12 and Mary Stevens will be teaching this class on Mondays. Ms Stevens will also be teaching in the year 2/3 class on Thursdays (team teaching with Sharee Duff). Elena Sourbis will be teaching Performing Arts this semester (Judy Isaac is taking long service leave during this time).

 2021 Planning

Enrolment planning is a very important factor that helps inform the school’s class and staffing arrangements. In order to support our planning for next year, for families of Reception students (starting in 2021), if you have not already contacted the school regarding your child’s enrolment could you please do so as soon as possible. Also, we request families to inform us if their child will be leaving Henley Beach at the end of 2020. This information helps us plan our class structures for next year. If you know of families who live within the school zone who are considering enrolling their children here, please encourage them to contact the school.

Another priority for our planning for next year is the arrangements for the year 6 and 7 students. 2021 will be a very unique and exciting year for this cohort as they will transitioning to high school together. Staff are committed to ensuring their final year in primary school is a successful one. Over the coming term plans will be made regarding approaches to learning, class structures and other aspects of school life here at Henley Beach in readiness for next year.

 Tree Planting

An outcome of the Parent Forum meetings was to increase the number of trees around the grounds at school. Simon Hutchinson, one of our school parents, will be coming to school on Friday to help put this into action. Small groups of students will work with Simon to plant the trees around the perimeter of the school which will be a great addition to our environment.

Grub Club

During the holiday break Nancy coordinated a garden tidy up, thank you to all families and children who were able to assist. Nancy is aiming to open the garden again to students at Friday recess and lunch recess (with volunteer assistance) and is in the process of developing a timetable for Grub Club sessions.

Facilities Update

During the recent holiday break a wall divider extension was added to one of our JP classes which will help address the issue of noise carry over from within this space. Anti-slip painting of walkways outside of transportable classrooms also occurred.

Reminder if your child is sick please please keep them at home.

This year Nikki, Amelia WI(yr5), Alex, Charlotte G (yr6), Maisie and Ziah (yr7) got into the Festival of Music Troupe. Troupe is a group of students singing, acting and dancing to the Festival Choirs songs. This is about their experience. We all had to go through one audition at the start of the year. In the audition we learnt 2 dances, one jazz dance and the other a lyrical. Once we found out we were all accepted, the hard work began. This year because of Covid-19 Troupe was a little different. We were split up into 4 groups and we all learnt different dances. Each crew only got 2-3 rehearsals and they lasted a few hours. The first rehearsal was learning the dances, and the second rehearsal was adding costumes and making the final edits.

Then we got our filming days. Some of us only had one day, while others had two. The venues that we filmed at were: Victoria Square, Adelaide Show Grounds and a Theatre in the City. When we got to the filming venues, we got changed into our costumes and taken out to the set. On set, there was a massive camera that we filmed 16 and more takes with. It was a really long day and we were super tired after but some of us still had to stay longer.

It was a really great experience, we made lots of friends and had a bunch of fun. We are all super excited to see the film!

 -Nikki, Amelia WI, Alex, Charlotte G, Maisie & Ziah.

Our newly formed Chess Club has grown from a small group of four key Year 6 students into a thriving concern.  Our school chess competition is in progress, with the first round of 40 competitors playing off this week.  Round 2 begins in Week 3.  Stay tuned for news about our finalist AND about our student designed trophies.

All Book Club ordering will be done online. Children were sent home a catalogue and will have their orders delivered to school.

Parents have the convenience of ordering online via the internet or through the iPad/ iPhone app.

The process is simple. You can track the progress of your order all from the comfort of your home. The process eliminates children losing order forms, misplacing the money and double handling at the school level.

No orders will be processed at School.

No money to the office.

ISSUE 5 CLOSING DATE: Tuesday 4 August

Sadly, Playgroup is suspended until further notice due to COVID-19

We’ll keep you posted when we’re back!!

Bookings on 0401 121 087 or tammyhbpsoshc@yahoo.com.au

LUNCH SPECIAL

Brekky for Lunch  10 - 14 August

bacon, egg, cheese, muffin, hash brown and juice $6.50

egg, cheese, muffin, hash brown and juice $6.50

available on QKR.