NEWSLETTER

Issue 1 Thursday 2 February 2023

We learn on the lands of the Ngadjuri Nation

TERM DATES 2023


TERM 1Monday 30 January  -  Friday 14 April
TERM 2

Monday 1 May  -  Friday 7 July  

TERM 3Monday 24 July  -  Friday 29 September
TERM 4Monday 16 October  -  Friday 15 December


Some Important Dates for Term 1

Acquaintance NightTuesday 7 February
Governing Council MeetingTuesday 21 February
School PhotosTuesday 7 March
Adelaide Cup Public HolidayMonday 13 March
Pupil Free DayTuesday 14 March
Naplan15, 20 & 27 March
Governing Council MeetingTuesday 21 March
Parent InterviewsMonday 3  -  Wednesday 5 April
Good Friday Public HolidayFriday 7 April
Easter Monday Public HolidayMonday 10 April
Last Day of Term / Early Dismissal time of 2:10pmFriday 14 April


From The Principal

Welcome to the 2023 school year!

We have had a great start to the year. On our first day back, we were able to invite parents to our assembly and our Friends of Greenock (FOG) group hosted a Morning Tea afterwards. It was a great way for parents who are new to the school to get to know one another. We are looking forward to being able to re-connect with parents this year. Our first ‘event’ where we are hoping to be able to do this is Acquaintance Night, next Tuesday (see below for details).

The students have settled into their classes and have begun their learning. For the first few weeks, we have a focus on school values and what they mean and on developing and building social skills. The teachers are using a program called “Highway Heroes” to support social skill development.  

Highway Heroes aims to help children:

-          know how to be a friend, make and keep friends, resolve friendship issues

-          understand their feelings and the impact on their thinking and behaviour, how to calm down and                                                                                                                  de-catastrophise

                                                                                                     -          plan and organise their time and resources, persist with tricky work and stay motivated.

You may hear your children using some of the terminology at home. They will be learning about ‘bumps’ and ‘hazards’ and the difference between them. A ‘bump’ is a small negative occurrence, while a ‘hazard’ is a larger negative life event. The children will be learning how to develop their own ‘tool kit’ to overcome these bumps and hazards and become a ‘highway hero’. One of the first tools that students will learn about is ‘super thinking’: the internal voice that says positive helpful things.

Cameron Gliese will continue the ‘friendship’ aspects of the program during his first units of work in the Health curriculum with all the classes. The classroom teachers will continue with all other aspects of the program throughout the year.

Acquaintance Night - Tuesday 7th February (3.30pm-5.30pm)

 All parents are invited to come along and meet the teachers and support staff. You will hear about the teachers’ plans for the year and how we can support one another to ensure your children are flourishing in their learning environment.   

Please use the ‘form’ on the Skoolbag app to let us know if you will be attending, to help us with our catering.

AGM – Tuesday 21st February (6pm)

The Annual General Meeting of our Governing Council will be held on Tuesday night of Week 4. All parents are invited to attend and hear about the progress and improvements made last year. The AGM will include the election of parent reps for the Governing Council. All positions are for two-years: this year, there are three positions requiring nominations. Nomination forms will be available in the coming days.

I am looking forward to a positive and productive school year. My personal motto is ‘work hard, be kind’. I have shared this with students and it is heart-warming to see this being echoed in many of their conversations about their classroom rules and expectations.

Gail Holland

Principal

 

School Routines and Procedures – Term 1

Welcome Back

Front Office Hours:

The school reception area is staffed between 8:30am & 4:00pm (open term time only)

Contacting the School:

You can contact the school by phone or email (details at the bottom of this newsletter). 

*On a day where there is only one staff member working in the office or if you call outside of school hours, the answering machine may be on.  Please leave your name, number and a short message with the reason for your call.  If you ask for a call back, we will respond as soon as we are available to do so. All messages are passed on to the relevant staff member.

Staff in the Front Office:

·         Monday         -      Gail  *

·         Tuesday         -      Liz (am) & Gail

·         Wednesday   -      Mari & Gail

·         Thursday       -      Mari  *

·         Friday            -       Mari  *

Uniform Purchasing:

Uniforms can be purchased on Monday – Wednesday preferably by appointment.  Call the school office for an appointment time or you can also order over the phone and quote your EFT payment reference number.  Please see Gail A.

Uniforms cannot be purchased outside of these times.

Preferred payment method is by EFT or Credit Card and uniforms will not be issued until payment is received.

Drop Off and Pick Up Times  -  Drive with caution:

Remain in your car and move off after your child has left or entered the car.

These are very busy times of the day and we ask for your cooperation so that our students and the school community can come and go safely each day.

Remember to drive slowly .

PLEASE DO NOT U-TURN OR REVERSE IN FRONT OF THE SCHOOL

School Supervision  -  Yard Duty:

Yard Duty begins at 8:30am each morning.  Please ensure children arrive after this time.  Staff will be on duty until 3:30pm each afternoon and children will be supervised within the JP playground area until they are picked up by their adult.

Please arrange to collect your children at 3:10pm each afternoon and contact the school if you are going to be late.

If you are having difficulty with these times,  the Before/After School Care service, Happy Haven, operating from Nuriootpa Primary School, is available for you to use.  Phone 81555 444 to book or for more information.

Late Arrival and Early Departures:

If your child is late to school (ie arrives after 8:50am), they will need to see staff in the Front Office who will issue them with a yellow ‘Late Arrival’ card to take to their class teacher.  Parents picking up children early for an appointment, will need to tell Front Office staff before taking a pink ‘Early Departure’ card to the classroom teacher. Signing a slip is no longer necessary with EMS, whereby your child’s late arrival or early departure is entered straight into the system by staff on the Reception Desk.

Illness & Injuries at School – Collecting Your Child:

Students who are sent to the Front Office/First Aid room by their teacher due to illness and also for injuries that are considered more serious eg a hard knock to the head, will be sent home. 

Unwell students should not attend school until they have fully recovered and will not pass on illness to others.

Parents will always be contacted first and you will need to collect your child promptly.

If you are unable to collect your child, please organise your emergency contact and let the school know who this will be.

Primary caregivers eg parents are NOT emergency contacts but people other than yourselves eg relatives or friends who can be contacted if parents are unavailable.

Please list at least 2 local emergency contacts for your children.

 Start of 2023 Tasks to Complete:

*  Consent & Permissions Form 2023

Complete for each child on the Skoolbag App

*  Consent Form For Chief Executive Approved Early Dismissals

Complete on the Skoolbag App

Only complete if you child is a new enrolment in 2023 (or you forgot to do it in 2022).

This is a once only form and is compliant for the time your child attends Greenock Primary School.

*  Update Student/Family Information:   

The school will no longer be sending home student information forms to be updated at the beginning of each year.  Therefore, so that we can best support your child at school, we ask parents & caregivers to keep the school informed throughout the year when there are changes to your family circumstances including:

*  home address (residential and/or postal)

*  contact phone number

* employment &/or place of employment

* email address

* emergency contacts

* student's medical condition

* custody information

You can let the school know by completing the 'Change of Details' eform on the Skoolbag App or contact the Front Office by phone or email. 

Students' Belongings:

Please label your child's school uniforms and all belongings that are brought to school eg food & drink containers     

Healthcare Plans for 2023

Parents/caregivers please update your child's Healthcare Plan and medication at the beginning of the 2023 school  year so that it remains current and your child will be covered for all activities throughout the year, including swimming lessons and camp.

Healthcare plans must be completed by your doctor/healthcare professional and all medication must be in the original packaging with the label attached.

Please note:  If your child no longer suffers from a medical condition a signed letter from your doctor is required.

School Card 2023

PCW News

Hello,

            My name is Jo Herrmann. For those of you who are new to our school, I am the Pastoral Care Worker here at Greenock  Primary School. This will be my first year at Greenock so I am looking forward to the coming year and supporting our school community. I have been a PCW for 8 years and I love my job. It is always a pleasure to help build relationships between others and it is an honour to be able to walk alongside people as they experience life’s highs and lows.

 

Pastoral care is modeled by offering help and care to others; this can be done by listening, supporting, encouraging and befriending people.

Here at Greenock my role includes:

·         supporting the students and staff in our school, emotionally and spiritually in their highs and lows.

·         supporting the wellbeing of students, staff and families.

·         being a link for families to community resources and services.

I would like say a big hearty "welcome" to our new families who are new to our school. I hope that you enjoy being part of this community like I do. There is always something to do or help with, so I look forward to meeting you all and getting to know you and your children.

 

I have begun the year by reconnecting with the teachers and students. I have spent some one-on-one time with students and I have also spent time in the classrooms. I certainly enjoyed my first week helping our youngest students settle in to their school routines. It certainly makes my day to hear the stories that the children share with me and their happy faces as they go along in their learning journey.

 

All the best to you for the coming weeks,

Cheers Jo

Scholastic Book Club - Issue 1 Orders due 20 February

Please order online.

There is a free book giveaway with this issue.  Spend $30 and receive 1 free book, spend $50 and receive 2 free books, spend $70 and receive 3 free books.

scholastic.com.au/LOOP

Greenock Primary School Calendar

Parent Noticeboard

Greenock PS Governing Council

Contact details: