Welcome back to term 4. We look forward to another busy and fun filled term.
On review of our attendance data it is evident that we have had a decrease in our attendance rates over all grades this year. School attendance plays an important role in enhancing the lives of students in schools. Every day of attendance adds to a student’s achievement and success at school. Schools in partnerships with families are responsible for promoting the regular attendance of students.
Regular attendance at school is critical to ensuring that every student has the kind of opportunities in life that he or she deserves. When students are not at school, they are missing out on so much. Without the knowledge, the skills or the support that schools are so good at providing, young people can get left behind and find themselves underprepared for a fast-paced and often very challenging world.
There are many ways in which families can support their children to be prepared for learning at school. For example, by making school attendance a high priority in your family; by ensuring children get enough sleep, a good diet and regular exercise. If a student misses as little as eight days each term, by the end of primary school they will have missed over a year of learning.
Partial absences also play a part in a child missing significant learning. We have many students that are habitually late each day this often means that they have missed the discussion and introduction to the rest of the day and can also mean that they are not there for the initial instructions to the first lesson. This can be distressing to some children and can often put them off for the rest of the day, alternatively to those leaving early regularly they often miss out on the set up for the following day. If your child is late to school it is a requirement for you to walk the children into the office area and sign them in. We ask that you are diligent in ensuring your children are at school by the morning bell at 8:50 and remain at school until the final bell at 3:20.
We realise some absences are unavoidable due to health problems or other circumstances. However we also know that when students miss too much school, no matter the reason, it can cause them to fall behind academically. The more absences your child has, the harder it is for them to catch up on missed work and stay connected to their school community. Absences add up quickly.
We ask that we work together in providing the best possible schooling experience for each of our children. Should you be having trouble with your child’s attendance please feel free to set up an appointment with me to discuss how we can work together to help your child.
Sharon Mizzi
Assistant Principal
