CONNECTED

What a super start we have had to the term. It is hard to believe we are about to head into Week 3 – Where is the time going? Before we know it, we will have our new Kinders starting with us and our Year 6 students commencing high school! It is shaping up to be a fun and exciting term with lots happening! I encourage you to continue to access the SkoolBag APP for important information regarding Term 4 events. Our Facebook Page is also a great source of information and celebration! Thank you for your ongoing support and care, making Wattle Grove what it is – a school of opportunity which shows great care for the children.

Kindergarten Orientation – Welcoming our newest students to WGPS!
What a pleasure it has been welcoming our 2023 Kindergarten students to Wattle Grove. Over the fortnight we have had two orientation sessions, where parents/carers were engaged in information sessions and the children were involved in mini lessons, with the aim of providing them with a taste of Kindergarten life. I have thoroughly enjoyed connecting with our new and existing families! The children were just a delight, engaging in listening to stories, social activities, drawing, visiting the library and even a sport lesson! Thank you to Mrs Foreshew for her organisation of the sessions and all staff involved. I would also like to give a big shout out to Mrs Whiting and Mrs Hankin for their work in the background to ensure the sessions and enrolments all ran smoothly. Thank you to Nina Gordan for presenting the P&C at the second information session, and Rebecca for her work in the uniform shop. What a super effort from all! We are ready for 2023!

Remaining Orientation Date: Session #3 – Tuesday 25 October

Kindergarten Enrolments 2023 (Repeated Item)
If you have a child starting Kindergarten in 2023, could you please ensure your online enrolment application has been completed and submitted to the school and that all supporting documents have been received. This supports our school planning for 2023.

Tell Them From Me – Parent Survey (Repeated Item)
Tell Them From Me is an anonymous survey designed for parents/carers, staff and students (Years 4-6). Responses across a range of measures including wellbeing, engagement and reflection on teaching and learning practices, provide authentic data for the school to plan and make decisions, ensuring positive outcomes for students across their school lives. We are aiming for 150 parent/carer responses – we can do this! Please follow the link below to access and complete the survey. Thank you in advance for taking the time to complete this important survey.  

http://nsw.tellthemfromme.com/wgps

Intention to apply for Year 7 placement in a selective high school in 2024
Selective high schools cater for academically gifted students with high potential who may otherwise be without sufficient classmates at their own academic standard. Selective high schools help these students to learn by grouping them with students of similar ability, and by using specialised teaching methods.

If you would like to have your Year 5 child considered for Year 7 selective high school entry in 2024, you need to apply on the internet using a valid email address (not the student’s email address).

The Selective High School Placement Test will be held on 4 May 2023.

Applications open on 18 October 2022 and close on 16 November 2022. You must apply before the closing date.

You must submit only ONE application for each student.

More information has been posted on the SkoolBag App. If you have any questions, please contact the school office.

2023 Planning
It is that time of year again where the school must start planning for next year. It is extremely important we have accurate information about enrolment numbers for 2023, as these impact on staffing levels and the general organisation of the classes we will have. Can I please ask that anyone who knows that their children won’t be at Wattle Grove next year or families, who have a child to start kindergarten in 2023, please contact the school office with your details. If new people move into your street, please encourage them to contact us here at school if they have primary school aged children.

The school structure and the formation of classes at Wattle Grove Public School is governed by the Department of Education staffing formula. A school structure that best meets the needs of students and teachers will be designed by staff and ratified by the Principal. Students will be allocated to classes by the teaching and executive staff, with the assistance of the Learning Support Team. If you feel there is information of educational reasoning that should be considered when planning for 2023 classes, you are welcome to put this in writing to Miss Cameron by Friday 18 November. Requests for particular teachers will not be considered and is highly discouraged. The classroom teachers who have in-depth knowledge of your children’s abilities and school behaviours are experienced professionals in making these decisions. We appreciate that you trust our professional judgement considering the multitude of factors that influence the placement of over 560 students.

Important Dates
This week you should have received a note with important dates for the Term. These have been included later in this newsletter. I am looking forward to making many memories with you all.

Have a great two weeks and take care, 

Miss Cameron 

Principal 

This week I zoomed into 2 Lime who have been learning about division and its relationship with multiplication. The children displayed an excellent understanding of this concept, working in groups to divide objects and record the corresponding number sentence. I thoroughly enjoyed working with the students who showed great determination and perseverance. Well done 2 Lime!

Welcome to the start of Term 4 and as we wrap up the first couple of weeks, the countdown is now on to the end of the year. This week, Miss Cameron sent out a calendar of key events for Term 4. Don’t forget to place this somewhere so the whole family can refer to as it starts to get really busy from the middle of the term.

Loud Shirt Day 

Last Thursday week, staff and students wore ‘Loud Shirts’ to help give the gift of sound and speech to deaf children. This event was organised by the school’s Student Representative Council. We raised $519.75 which will be donated to the Shepherd Centre so they can continue their excellent work. What an awesome effort! I would also like to recognise the Pickford family who work with the SRC to ensure this day remains on our school calendar and that we raise awareness and promote acceptance for all people with an impairment in hearing. Days like this show the generous and caring spirit of our community. 

Check In Assessments

This week we had Years 3, 4 and 5 students complete the Check in Assessments for Reading and Numeracy. These assessments are online and are mapped to the NSW Syllabuses and National Literacy and Numeracy Learning Progressions.

As a school we use the assessment feedback to look at how this assessment can supplement existing school practices to identify how students are performing in literacy and numeracy and to help teachers tailor their teaching more specifically to student needs.

Number Talks – 5 Lilac

I had the pleasure of being invited into 5 Lilac’s classroom this week to watch a Number Talk. Number Talks are a powerful tool for both teaching and learning where students engage in rich, meaningful classroom discussion centred around a number concept. The students impressed me with their ‘Talk Moves’ and multiplicative strategies. I would also like to thank Miss Cascio and Mrs Boyes who have invested the time to deepen their knowledge and skills around Number Talks and how this can look as a whole school practice.

Professional Learning

Last week, Mrs Cook presented Part 2 of Reading Comprehension to the staff. Mrs Cook deepened our knowledge around the teaching of reading comprehension to ensure it leads to better outcomes and rich learning experiences. Thank you to Mrs Cook who always engages in the readings and professional learning so that she can share her knowledge on current evidence based practices.

ICAS – Science and Spelling Bee Results

More ICAS results have landed on my desk and below is a recognition of those students who did exceptionally well by achieving a Merit, Credit or Distinction.

Congratulations to the following students who will receive their certificates at the Week 3 Primary (Grandparents Day) and Week 4 Infants assemblies respectively.

Science Assessment

Talia from 2 Mint: Credit

Archer from 3/4 Coral: Credit

Aralia from 5/6 Rose: Credit

Bria from 5 Lilac: Credit

Evaan from 5/6 Rose: Distinction

Bobby from 5/6 Rose: Distinction

Spelling Bee Assessment

Layla from 3/4 Coral: Merit

Hayley from 5/6 Rose: Merit

Poppy from 5/6 Fuchsia: Merit

Talia from 2 Mint: Credit

Amelia from 3 Gold: Credit

Mikayla from 4 Scarlet: Credit

Santiago from 5/6 Rose: Credit

Student Wellbeing

October – Mental Health Month

October is Mental Health Month in Australia and it is a time for everyone to tune in and make time each day to focus on our mental health and wellbeing. Emerging Minds https://emergingminds.com.au/resources/communicating-with-your-primary-school-age-child-during-adversity-or-tough-times/ has some great parent resources to help parents have important conversations with their child during tough times. I have attached a resource from the website to guide parents through these conversations.

Below I have also listed free and confidential services which operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and are available to support, listen and help you out when needed.

Kids Helpline

Kids Helpline gives young people aged 5 to 25 free phone and online counselling support.

Phone: 1800 55 1800 (24 hours a day)

Chat online at www.kidshelpline.com.au  (24 hours a day)

Beyond Blue

Beyond Blue can give you information and mental health support. All chats and calls are one-on-one with a trained mental health professional.

Phone: 1300 22 4636 (24 hours a day)  

Chat online at www.BeyondBlue.org.au  (3pm - 12am)

Email and receive a response within 24 hours: www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support/talk-to-a-counsellor 

Have a great fortnight everyone.

Mrs Valensise

Deputy Principal

Congratulations to Hazel from 1 Sky.

Welcome back to term 4! I hope you had a nice school holiday break, I certainly enjoyed it. My family welcomed our new puppy, Dante.

Please don’t forget to collect your ‘We Remember Them’ template from the front office or myself. These are due back to the office by the 27th October. These will be displayed in the hall after the Remembrance Day Service on the 11 of November for our visitors to view.

The students have been working on making poppy decorations out of the recycled egg cartons. They are being painted red and we will use them as decorations for Remembrance Day.