Rozelle Public School Newsletter

Rozelle is a place where Aboriginal children learned, played and celebrated their culture for thousands of years on this beautiful, natural land. As we learn, play and celebrate together on this land, we honour the Wangal people of the Eora nation and pay our respects to elders both past, present and emerging.

The first fortnight of Term Two has certainly been a busy time for the school. It began with our Years Two and Three students enjoying a performance of the Sydney Theatre Company’s Fantastic Mr Fox. Students and teachers thoroughly enjoyed the high quality, entertaining production. Thank you to Ms Ronsen who began organising this excursion last year.  

Our cross country carnival was also held last week and we were fortunate to have incredible weather (finally!). It was great to see so many parents come down to the oval to enjoy the day. Of course, the carnival was expertly organised by Mrs Singleton and Ms Gubb. There were some great individual performances, sportsmanship and encouragement from students. Well done everyone!

ANZAC DAY ASSEMBLY

The first week concluded with our annual ANZAC Day ceremony. It is always a very special assembly and our students clearly understand the significance of the day. Members of the armed services joined us for the ceremony, followed by time spent with our student leaders and visiting classrooms. On the day, we were fortunate to have the Last Post played by Lucas B in Year Six. It was played to perfection as Lucas had spent many hours practicing for the event. Congratulations Lucas. Thank you to those parents who attended and to Ms Bryant and Mrs Horton for coordinating this special ceremony. 

I would also like to extend a sincere thank you to our student Deputy Prime Ministers and Prime Ministers - Ciara, Saxon, Ethan and Yoris who joined me in representing RPS as the Balmain dawn service. They were great ambassadors for our school. 

EASTER HAT PARADE

Last term ended with our Easter Hat parade which returned to Darling Street. It was such a wonderful community event - something that had been missing over the past 3 years. Children's hats were very creative and the street was full of family, friends and stallholders clapping and cheering. The parade and performances were set to continue back at school but unfortunately the weather was not so kind. Importantly, the rain held off for the street parade. Thank you Miss Wells for your expert organisation of this year’s event. 

TERM TWO STAFFING

At the end of last term, Ms Emma Milne was successful in obtaining a temporary role with the National Education Standards Authority. Emma’s new role is well deserved and she will use her skills to support teachers as they achieve their accreditation. Emma coordinated the school’s extension program which included some withdrawal groups. The Maths Olympiad program, which includes the Maths Games and Explorer components, will continue with Mr Mike Bancks, with the first competition taking place this week. 

On Tuesday evening, the ySafe parent information session was held in the school hall. For those parents who were able to attend, the presentation provided practical advice and information to parents as they navigate parenting in the digital age. As part of the education package, ySafe provides the community with access to their Parent Cyber Safety Hub. https://rozelleps.cybersafetyhub.com.au

There you will find access to a range of App reviews, how-to guides, device safety steps and conversation tips. Once again I would like to thank the P&C for their supporting this important program. 

School photos (class, individual and family photos) are scheduled for Tuesday 23 and Thursday 25 May 2023. This week your child/ren will bring a school photo ordering form home, it is only for class or individual photos.

Ordering forms for family photos can be collected from the front office by you or one of your children. Family photos are taken only for students that attend Rozelle Public School or preschool and only if the completed order form has been returned by Wednesday 17 May 2023.

This term, our school is taking part in the Tell Them From Me student survey. The survey will provide us with valuable feedback on what our students think about school life, how engaged they are with school and the different ways that teachers interact with them.

The survey is run by an independent research company, The Learning Bar, which specialises in school-based surveys.

As well as providing our school with feedback from our students, the survey has a broader purpose. It provides the Department of Education, through the Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation, with insights into student wellbeing, engagement, and effective teaching practices for ongoing school improvement. This is done by using non-identifying student data from across NSW.

This survey is confidential. Participating in the survey are students in years 4, 5 and 6 and the survey is entirely voluntary.

The survey is online, takes 15 to 30 minutes, and will take place at school during school hours. We will receive a report on our school’s survey results shortly after our students complete the survey.

If you do not want your child /children to take part in the survey, please complete the form that has been emailed to you and return it to the school by Friday 12 May, 2023. Information about the survey is available at: education.nsw.gov.au/ttfm.

Nude Food Tuesdays are back! On these days, students are encouraged to bring lunch and recess that are not wrapped in foil, plastic or commercial packaging.Please be mindful of packaging that is put into lunch boxes each day to minimise any rubbish that needs throwing away. Instead, opt for reusable containers for packaging food. Each Tuesday, class nude food lunchboxes will be tallied so please help the Green Team with this great initiative to reduce the waste/rubbish in our school.

We’re excited to announce that our school communication platform, Skoolbag, has upgraded, and will now be known as Audiri!

We understand that change can be challenging, but we want to reassure you that Audiri will still provide you with all the important information and updates you're used to receiving. The only difference is that the platform will have a new name and will be easier to use! Your user name and password will stay the same – the only thing you need to do is update the app on your phone when prompted by the app store. 

See the flyer download below for more information. 

We were lucky to have great weather for our school cross country which was held last Thursday 27 April. Well done to Mansfield who won the carnival. Students who finished in the top 6 of each race have progressed through to the Zone cross country carnival which will be held on Wednesday 24 May at Bicentennial Park, Glebe. Congratulations to Chantelle D (6 Hart), Mason O (6 Mombassa), Hamish M (2 Beasley) and Lucas S (4 Pwerle)  who received awards for sportsmanship, perseverance and team spirit. 

House Points 

1st – Mansfield (179 points) 

2nd – Elliot (174 points) 

3rd – Evans (147 points) 

4th – Mullins (137 points) 

This Easter hat parade was sadly interrupted by the rain but we started off with some EGG - CELENT hats. Even though we couldn’t continue for our annual chicken dance and HOP around the asphalt we still got through the most important part of our parade, our walk up and down Darling street.

All the school leaders would like to say a big thank you to Mr Hartnett, Miss Doyle and the choir for an EGGS - TRAORDINARY performance. That really CRACKED our day. Also another big thank you to Miss Devitt for helping the school leaders and teachers prepare an EGG - STREME hat parade.

We would like to mention that this year, we raised a CRACKING $1,235.50 for Red Cross Australia. The class senators carried buckets around the classroom so the students could give them their donations. Thank you to everyone who donated. 
Written by Saxon J, Ethan L, Ciara, B, Molly M, Jack H and Yoris B (Y6 Leaders)

From March 27-29, Year 5 participated in an excursion to Stanwell Tops, a sport and recreation camp just south of the Royal National Park. Students enjoyed a number of activities designed to develop teamwork, resilience, persistence and self-confidence. Staff in attendance, Andrew Braiding, Ella Gubb, Jen Christie and Kate Mork, were incredibly proud to see this group of students challenge themselves, support one another and have a go. 
"I really liked the archery because it was the equipment that archers would use in competitions. Releasing the arrow from the bow was a bit scary. It was fun and satisfying hitting the target." - Cleo 

"The giant swing was very fun because it was a thrill. But it was also very scary. It is hard to convince yourself to pull the cord and actually do it. I was very relieved that it was over but I was happy I did it." - Billie 

Opportunity classes cater for highly achieving academically gifted students. These classes help gifted and talented students to learn by grouping them with other gifted and talented students, teaching them in specialised ways and providing educational materials at the appropriate level.

Applications for opportunity class placement are considered mainly on the combined results of the Opportunity Class Placement Test and school assessments. Please note the following dates. All applications must be done on line.

Parents and carers must apply online from now up until Monday 15 May.

Please visit the website for further information about the application process and dates: LINK

RPS is now using the upgraded School Bytes finance system for online payment and permission form consent. If you have not done so already, parents should access the School Bytes portal and register using https://portal.schoolbytes.education.

When logged online, go to the "Activities Section" to give parent consent and payment.  Consent must be given before a payment can be made. 

You can access your portal at anytime, using the portal link https://portal.schoolbytes.education.

You an also access your portal via the Rozelle Public School website - by clicking on the button "Make a Payment" located at the bottom of the home page screen.

If you should have any questions, or have difficulty logging in, please get in touch with the School Office. 

Helping out at school is a great way to get involved in your child’s education as well as get to know the staff and other parents and carers.

You can help by:

• listening to children read in the classroom
• volunteering on sports days
• helping supervise excursions
• getting involved in fundraising activities
• joining school committees.

Parent volunteers are not required to have a Working With Children's Number, however they are required to fill in a 'Declaration for Child-Related Workers' Form, as well as provide 100 points of ID to be photocopied at the school office (including either a passport OR birth certificate, along with drivers license OR Medicare / bank card.  

The School Canteen operates as an order-only service five days per week. All orders are made online through Spriggy Schools app and delivered to the school in time for students to enjoy at lunchtime and recess. Orders need to be placed by 7:30am on the day or can be placed weekly in advance. Families will need to download the Spriggy Schools app and create a profile for their child. If you need assistance visit spriggyschools.com.au.

A number of students at Rozelle have been diagnosed with a life-threatening allergy to nuts. While it is not advised for the school to declare itself “nut-free” we are definitely a “nut-aware” school. This means that we ask parents/carers to carefully consider the food they provide for their child and avoid foods that contain nuts. Before sending in food for special occasions for your child’s class, please check with the teacher. The school appreciates everyone’s effort in keeping all our students safe and supporting their families to manage this difficult situation.

Families are reminded that students should not be arriving at school before 8.30am unless they are attending OSH Club or a before school activity such as band rehearsal. There may be occasions where you need to drop your child off 10 minutes earlier. In these instances, students must go to the middle playground, where they sit and wait for teacher supervision to begin. 

When parents are up at the school they may have seen the lost property trolley which is located inside the building entry from the Darling Street playground. Should your child misplace a hat, jumper, water bottle or lunchbox…you may find it in the trolley.

Rozelle Public School is currently taking enrolments for Kindergarten 2024 from families living within our school catchment area. Detailed information about enrolment procedures and a map of the school catchment area can be found on the school website at LINK or by phoning the school office on (02) 9810 2347. 

A comprehensive Transition to School Program will be outlined in future newsletters. In the meantime, the school has six tours planned for new families who are considering enrolment at Rozelle. The tours will be held on the following Wednesday mornings from 9:30am:

• Wednesday 10 May 9:30am

• Wednesday 31 May 9:30am

• Wednesday 21 June 9:30am

• Wednesday 2 August 9:30am

• Wednesday 23 August 9:30am

• Wednesday 13 September 9:30am

Applications for enrolment into the preschool program have now opened. All the necessary information and application forms are available on the school website at LINK or from the school office. Children are eligible for enrolment in preschool classes from the beginning of the school year if they turn four years of age before July 31 of that year. Applications close at 3pm on Friday 30 June 2023.

There is no priority for the order in which enrolments are received by the office. The Preschool Placement panel, consisting of the Principal, the President of the P&C and one of our preschool teachers, considers all applications in accordance with the priorities of the Department of Education and Communities' Preschool Enrolment Policy and the Rozelle Public School Preschool Enrolment and Fee Policy.

The next P&C meeting is Wednesday 10th May 7.30-9pm in the school staff room. Everyone is welcome! Come along with a bottle of your favorite vino to accompany our discussions.

Term 1 ended with the parent’s social trivia evening - congratulations to Cindy Kennedy’s table who took home the prize for 1st place!

Thank you to Cindy Kennedy @ McGrath who Proudly sponsored the Trivia Night.

Thank you also to the following people and businesses who donated prizes for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place teams on the evening:

Simone Ryan
Kate Fuller
Kylie Elbourne
Kristin Kelly Photography
Frank Provost
Dresden Rozelle
The Cheese Celebration
Rocky Musolino owner of Crust Rozelle
Made by Lou
IGA
Christian & Nick at Lombardo

Thank you to everyone who helped out with providing items, volunteering or bought items from the cake stall at the Cross Country Carnival! The stall was a big success and a total of $1,013.20 was raised which will go towards the year 6 farewell.

Main event 2023 – start getting your costumes ready as the theme this year is: Dead Famous

Returning for the first time since 2019 - this fun parents dress up night out is returning to the RPS school hall for a night of dancing, socialising and all kinds of fun on Saturday 17th June!!!
Tickets are $50 per person and it’s a BYO food and drinks event.

We reserve tables for the kindy parents to help you get to know one another.

Tickets on sale soon!

Thank you in advance for volunteering!

NEW UNIFORM ORDERS

The new school bag style is now available online! Please order new items online from LW Reid Made for Schools with deliveries direct to your home. New orders can be made using this link madeforschool

All uniform orders are delivered direct to your home address by Australia Post.  Uniform order are no longer available for collection from the Office.