Dernancourt School R-7 Newsletter

30th July, 2020

From the Leadership Team

Welcome back to Term 3

Dear families,

Welcome back. We hope that you have been able to relax and recharge over the holidays and that you are ready for Term 3.

We started 2020 planning a wide range of events to engage and excite our learners and their families, but have unfortunately had our plans interrupted.  We anticipated providing an array of whole school incursions, excursions, assemblies and celebrations, complimented by class events. We did not anticipate our learning would be interrupted and replaced by the learning we have done around COVID -19. Our updated Term 3 and 4 calendars have been included below. As you will see, we have had to re-shuffle, re-schedule and reconsider our 2020 plans. Our revised calendars won’t include some of our favourite events as we begin planning events well in advance, and given the current SA Health and State Government directions, some events have needed to be changed and adapted or sadly, cancelled for 2020.  We appreciate your understanding and support of these changes, and share some disappointment. The health, safety and wellbeing of our students, staff and community are integral in this decision making and planning of events and we look forward to celebrating and sharing these with our community.

Assemblies

We are excited to be holding an assembly in Week 3. At the end of Term 2 the Department for Education announced that school assemblies can resume providing government health advice and physical distancing requirements are strictly followed.

 As a result our staff and students will have a whole school assembly in week 3, unfortunately we are unable to meet distancing requirements if we invite others to attend. We are using our creative thinking to come up with a way to hold assemblies later this term with a bigger audience.

Skateboarders and Scooter Riders

We have had a number of calls from concerned members of the community about the behaviour of our students on their way to and from school.  Some students are  riding on the road or weaving in and out of traffic and not wearing helmets. All of these behaviours are extremely unsafe and putting students and drivers at risk of an accident.

We ask that if your child rides a scooter or skate board to / from school that you ensure that you have purchased a helmet and are ensuring that your child is wearing it while riding. Please speak to your child about the safest place for them to ride - which is the footpath for under 12's.

It's not just a tool...

To effectively integrate technology into all aspects of our learning, we have introduced a bank of laptops to complement our desktop computers and iPads. This approach ensures students are equipped with the skills required to advance through their schooling and beyond. This enables teachers and students to connect to and transform learning experiences and deepen skills such as:

·       Collaborating

·       Planning and connecting with others in real-time

·       Creating shared responsibility and accountability for making decisions 

·       Inviting, receiving and acting upon feedback for the purpose of challenging themselves throughout the entire learning process

·       Real world problem solving and innovation

We Need Your Help - even just for an hour

ICAS Tests



ICAS testing will be taking place in August this year. All tests will be $15.95 each. Payment can be made via the Qkr app or at the front office.  The closing dates for applying for the tests are as follows:-



Science - 10th August, 2020

Digital Technology - 17th August, 2020

English - 17th August, 2020

Maths - 24th August, 2020

Spelling - 24th August, 2020

The sitting dates are one week after closure.

Premier's Reading Challenge

Congratulations to the following students who have completed the Premier's Reading Challenge:

P5   Mahayla and Emma

P10 Ivy

P11 Prunelle, Kelsey, Kimi, Jayden.

P14 Domenic

PRINCIPAL TOURS ARE BACK!

We are excited to inform the community that we are once again conducting Principal Tours.  Tours are strictly for families who have children commencing school in 2021.  Please click on the link to book into a tour https://www.schoolinterviews.com.au/code?code=26gtj  

Canteen News

All orders must be placed via the Qkr app before 9:15 am. We are unable to accept cash or late orders. Please DO NOT text or phone orders in. If you have problems placing your order via the Qkr app please phone the front office on 8261 2677.

Don't forget the Marvellous Milo special available on Mondays during August.  Order via the Qkr app.

Your support is appreciated.

Crossing Monitors

Thanks in advance to our Crossing Monitors for their service to our community. We appreciate you keeping us safe.

WEEK 3  - Clever P14, Marcus P8, Mitchell P8

WEEK 4 - Chloe P5, Rutva P8, Sky P12

Uniform Shop News

Uniform Shop News - Term 2

Dear Parents,

With the weather becoming cooler, many of you may need to purchase winter uniforms for your children.  Our first recommendation is that you place your order online at https://www.jssportsonline.com.au/collections/dernancourt-r-7-school    You can now have your uniform delivered to your door for a fee of $10.  If you would prefer to collect your uniform, Michelle will contact you with the collections details.

If you need to come in to check your children's sizes, please book a time on schoolinterviews and use the code ebnam.  Upon arrival for your 15 minute appointment you will need to phone Michelle on 0409957815 and she will take you to the Uniform Shop. Access to the uniform shop will be by appointment only.   If you have your child/ren with you for sizing we ask that you remain mindful of social distancing recommendations.

Payment is via card only.

 

Can we contact you?

We are cautious given the current situation in the eastern states, and we remain mindful that we  need the most up-to-date contact details (including phone number) for all parents/carers so you can be quickly contacted in the event of a temporary closure or regional closure.

Please ensure that your contact details are up to date. This can be done via our Skoolbag app.

Term 3 and Term 4 Calendars

COMMUNITY NEWS