The Facta

Can I please begin by thanking each and every one of you, our Concord Public School community, for your support in following the school’s guidelines during drop-off and pick-up times. Everyone has been prompt in leaving the school grounds and waiting outside the school gates where possible. This has ensured that our school environment is kept as safe as possible.

Semester 1 Reports

In line with advice from the NSW Department of Education, our school reports for Term 1 and 2, 2020 have been adjusted to cater for students’ learning from school and at home. This report will not grade student achievement using the A-E scale for all outcomes. The teachers’ comments will focus on English and Mathematics, along with a general comment. This report will also provide information about student attendance, their commitment to learning, students' self-reflection and the next steps in learning. Our teachers are currently very busy assessing the students and preparing reports, ready for distribution to parents and carers on Wednesday 1st July, 2020. As we usually do each semester, reports will be given to each student in an envelope and they will be required to hand the envelope to their parent/carer at pick-up time. If you would like the reports sent home to you directly, please let the office know at least one week in advance.

If parents/carers wish to discuss any aspect of the report with their child's teacher, they are more than welcome to contact the school to arrange a phone or virtual interview. Face-to-face interviews will not be conducted this semester, as per the Department of Education’s guidelines.

Re-introducing our Captains and Vice Captains

During the week, I had the great honour of meeting our 2020 Captains and Vice Captains – Thomas W. (Captain), Saskia H. (Captain), Nate E. (Vice Captain) and Charlotte C. (Vice Captain). We had the opportunity to discuss each leader’s vision and the direction they would like the school to take in 2020. After the extended period of absence, it is our priority as a school to lift the profile of each leader so that every student in the school is aware of who their leaders are. They will be MCing our virtual assemblies, which we are currently trialling and they will be reintroducing the concept of our Buddy Seat. Our leaders mentioned to me that they believe this special seat needs a fresh coat of paint. They also believe that it has been underutilised over the past few years because students do not know how it works and how it can help them in the playground. So as Captains and Vice Captains, they will be visiting every classroom in the coming weeks to explain the concept and how children in need in the playground can reach out for a friend. These ideas were not mine – they all came from these 4 remarkable young people. How lucky are we to have them representing our student cohort! I am so excited and I am looking forward to working closely with them throughout the year!

Staffing News

Congratulations to Miss Zhang who recently became engaged. On behalf of the Concord Public School community, we wish Miss Zhang and her fiancé a bright and happy future together.

Mrs Coco recently became the proud grandparent to a baby boy – Marcus Joseph. Baby Marcus, mum, dad and grandparents are all doing very well! Congratulations to Mrs Coco and her family.

Ms A. Vountoulas

Principal

Concord Public School

The Opportunity Class Placement Test has been rescheduled to Wednesday 16 September 2020. Due to the postponed test, changes have been made to the placement process for this year only to ensure students are placed in Year 5 opportunity classes as early in 2021 as possible.

Applications will open on Tuesday 9 June 2020 and close on Friday 26 June 2020.

Parents are advised to ensure an application is submitted by the closing date for their child to be eligible to sit the placement test. Late applications cannot be accepted. Please continue to monitor the department's website via https://education.nsw.gov.au/public-schools/selective-high-schools-and-opportunity-classes/year-5 to remain up to date with information relating to opportunity classes.

Applications are now being accepted for Kindergarten 2021. If your child turns 5 before July 31, 2021 they are eligible to start school next year. Telephone the school on 9744 8427 to make an appointment with Mrs Coco. 

Entering onto the School Grounds During School Hours

Please ensure that you come into the office, if you need to give something to your child, or if they have forgotten to bring something to school. The office staff are more than happy to pass the item on.

If you need to see your child or pass on a message to them, the office staff can help with that too. We encourage parents to allow us to pass on messages during break times, so that your child's learning is not interrupted. All visitors must sign-in at the office and wear a visitor's sticker. This is to ensure the wellbeing and safety of all.

Payment 

When making a payment online you can only pay up to 3 DAYS before the due date of the payment. This is due to online transactions taking 48 hours to process. 

Other payment methods such as cash or cheque can also be sent to the front office and placed in the blue box labelled “School Post”.

Please note that we do not accept online payment for uniform or canteen orders. Please see the uniform or canteen order  form for payment details.

Permission Notes 

If you have more than one child we need to have a note for each child, not all on one note please.

Change of Contact/Address details  

Please inform the office immediately if you have changed your contact or address details, so we can contact you in case of an emergency. 

Bicycle and Scooter Guidelines

If you give permission for your child to ride a bicycle or scooter to and/or from school, and store it on the school grounds, please carefully read and sign the ‘Bicycle and Scooter Guidelines’ document (obtained from the Front Office). These signed forms are to be returned to the office. Once we have received the signed documentation, the school will record that your child has permission from you to ride to school. Please see Mrs Vermiglio or the office for details.

Book Club is due 19 June 2020 at 3pm.

Issue 4 is now available. Please note that all purchases can be made through the Book Club LOOP. Cash/cheque payments can also be made to the school office in the Blue Box. 

It is easy to order. The Book Club LOOP platform for parents allows you to pay by credit card. Your child’s order is submitted directly to school safe and sound and the books will be delivered to class. You can place your child’s order at https://scholastic.com.au/LOOP or using the LOOP app, which can be downloaded from the App Store or Google Play.