ANGASTON PRIMARY SCHOOL NEWSLETTER

Dear Families,

We’ve had a really busy start to the term. COVID continues to pose problems at the moment with continued restrictions, and increases in student COVID cases. We will continue to keep families updated on COVID cases via the skoolbag app.

COVID update:

As of Monday 23rd May we will resume the following activities:

• Access to the library, computer room and hall in the morning/lunchtime.
• Student Leadership Council meetings
• Buddy Class
•  ‘Grouping’ across classes within units
•  Indoor assemblies with parents of host classes invited to attend.
•  Continue to minimize visitors on school grounds.

All of these activities will be conducted in a COVID safe manner as per DfE And SA Health protocols:

• Face masks continue to be required when indoors for all adults.
•  Face masks are encouraged for students Yr. 3-6.
• Testing, isolating and quarantine requirements.
• All visitors must wear a mask when indoors, practice physical distancing, and not attend the site if unwell.
• Continue to minimize visitors on school grounds.

In the first three weeks of term we have had over 30 students and 4 staff with COVID.  The junior primary unit has been the hardest hit. I urge families to keep your children home if they have any cold/flu, gastro like symptoms, even if they have tested negative with a PCR or Rapid Antigen test.

NAPLAN

Last week our Year 3 & 5 students completed NAPLAN. We had a few technical issues over the two weeks including a state-wide outage with the NAPLAN platform but we still managed to carry on. We also managed to ‘catch up ‘many of the students who were away by Friday afternoon. Now we just wait for the results which we can expect by the end of term 3.

AUSTRALIAN CURRICULUM

The Australian Curriculum has been reviewed with version 9.0 being a ‘more stripped back and teachable curriculum that identifies the essential content our children should learn’. Some of the key changes include:

• the removal and reduction of content is the curriculum can be taught with depth and rigour, including a 21% reduction in the number of content description’s, which describe what is to be taught and what students are expected to learn.
•  a stronger focus on phonics in English.
• a stronger focus on students mastering the essential mathematical facts, skills, concepts and processes, and being introduced to them at the right time.
• a revision of the sequencing of mathematics; in particularly, telling time, introduction of fractions, recall of multiplication facts and solving equations.
• lifting standards for Mathematics in Year 1 in relation to addition and subtraction, with additional content setting expectations about recall and proficiency with multiplication facts, beginning in Year 2.
•  deepening students understanding of First Nations Australian Histories and cultures.
• strengthening explicit teaching of consent and respectful relationships in age appropriate ways.

ACARA (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority) is also undertaking work in the important area of mental health. This will be reflected in later updates to the Health and PE curriculum. Schools are expected to implement the changes to the curriculum next year.

 SITE IMPROVEMENT

Our Site Improvement Priorities this term continue to focus on Writing using the Teaching and Learning Cycle to improve student outcomes and teacher practice regarding effective feedback. Feedback should address three questions:

•  Where am I going?/What are the goals?
• How am I doing?/What progress is being made toward the goal?
• Where to next?/What activities need to be undertaken to make better progress?

The purpose of feedback should always be to improve the learner in some capacity, and these questions should help take steps towards whatever goal the teacher has in mind.

 PUPIL FREE DAY 

Our first Pupil Free Day for the year is on Tuesday 14th June in line with other schools in our partnership. On the day we will continue our focus on Teacher Clarity in relation to Writing and Numeracy.

MOTHER'S DAY 

Thank you to Kylie Wilshire and Kate Thorn for their work with the Mother’s Day gifts. We appreciated the time and effort it took to make sure our students had something nice for mum.

 GOUNDS PERSON 

We said goodbye to Kelvin Jean last Friday as he finished his time as grounds person while Richard Geyer was on leave. Kelvin did an amazing job in the short time he was with us and we certainly notice the difference he has made to our grounds and facilities. Kelvin will continue as an SSO two afternoons a week working with students on the many gardening projects we have at the moment. 

ASSEMBLY

On Friday we had our first indoor assembly for the year let alone the term. We did our usual Encouragement Certificates but also presented the new Student Leadership Council (SLC) to the whole school, and the parents of the SLC members. The students did a great job explaining their roles and we look forward to seeing them work with their peers to make changes/improvements at Angaston Primary School.

There were many students presented with Encouragement Certificates at the last assembly as some were held over from the last cancelled assembly.  Congratulations to the following students for all their hard work in relation to our school motto of Be Safe, Be Kind, Work Hard:

Alex La Nause                                        Annie Killey

Walter Feist                                           Mollie Harris

Maggie Gransbury                               Darcie Spooner

Acacia Spooner                                     Greta Blythman

Arya McGrath                                        Tyson Betts

Drake Cannon                                       Alannah Giersch

Judd Linke                                              Toby Foreshaw

Asha Gabel                                            Sophia Giersch

Tanner Mullins                                      Harvey Wales

Koby Young                                           Fynnan Kohlhagen

Petra Zanker                                          Miki Mullins-White

Hugh Wheeler                                       Hannah Schultz

Ruby Hughes                                         Kyle Schmidt

Niamh Ennis                                          Odie Logan

Fin Webster-Payne

If you see someone without a smile give them one of yours! Dolly Parton

Lynda Fitzpatrick-Brown

Each year the Department for Education coordinates a state-wide process to assist primary school students’ transition into secondary school. A new online registration of interest form is now available for parents of students starting secondary school in 2023 to complete , these were emailed on 2nd May 2022 and contain a unique code for your child. The form can be accessed from a computer, tablet or mobile phone, as long as you can connect to the internet, and replaces the old paper format used by schools, sometimes referred to as an ED176 form. It is recommended that you use Chrome as your internet browser to complete this form.

The online form will allow you to tell the department if:

• you would like your child to attend their local/zoned secondary school (find which secondary school is your local/zoned one at find a school)
• you are interested in your child attending another SA government secondary school/s
• your child does not require a place as they will not be attending a SA government secondary school in 2023.

You must complete and submit the form by 27 May 2022. (the portal will close on this date)  It is important that parents/guardians reach an agreement regarding which secondary school(s) you want to nominate for your child before you complete the form, as only one form can be submitted for each child. If you need to make changes after the form has been submitted, you will need to contact our office at Angaston Primary School. All families will be advised of their child’s secondary school allocation on or by 12 August 2022.You can find more information as to how the transition process works on the department’s website or in the provided parent brochure for students starting secondary school in 2023. If you need guidance on how to complete the online form, please find guidance videos here .

• Guidance videos - https://www.education.sa.gov.au/parents-and-families/enrol-school-or-preschool/school-enrolment/register-your-childs-interest-starting-high-school

If you are not able to access the online form, or if you need help or have questions about how to complete it, please contact our office at Angaston Primary School for assistance.

Dear Mr Jean,

Thank you for cutting the trees and bushes and putting the new bark chips and letting the kids help, they loved it so much. Thank you for tidying the oval up, growing the grass back, mowing it to keep it tidy and making an area for veggies so we can do more cooking. We really appreciate it. Have a good time when you leave, thank you.

From Flynn (on behalf of the school)

I think Peer Leading is going well. Kyle, Blake and I have been doing Lego Masters at lunch times. Our challenges this week was to build, a hover craft, plane or drone and a flying car or house. We judge all the people who build the challenge in 25 minutes. (Zoe)

Thank you to those families that have paid the Materials & Services charge of $303 for 2022. The Materials and Services charges are now overdue and need to be paid to avoid debt recovery action by Department for Education. Applications for School Card assistance are still able to be made so please apply online at www.sa.gov.au under the heading Education, Skills and Learning. Please contact the Front Office if you require any assistance.

Payment can be made:

·          via the school bank account BSB 105-021 Account number 104147940 - using your family code or invoice number as the reference.

·          via Cash, Cheque, Eftpos or Credit Card at the Front Office between 8.30 – 9.30am and 2.30- 3.30pm.

·          via Credit Card over the phone between 8.30-9.30 and 2.30-3.30pm.

Any current Direct Debit Payment Plans will continue.

Please contact Kim Oag on 85642215 if you require any further assistance.

 School Card applications for the 2022 school year are now open.

School Card A This is the most commonly used school card application. Use this form if you are liable for your child’s school fees and you're not:

• self-employed
• a migrant who arrived in Australia after 1 July 2019
• receiving Veteran’s Affairs benefits
• applying for a foster child in your care.
  

School Card A – apply online

The Department for Education administers the School Card scheme.

School card assistance is available to:

• dependent students from 4 years of age receiving full-time schooling at a government school
• independent full-time students in years 10, 11 or 12 at a government school
• adult re-entry students undertaking subjects to complete their SACE.

To be eligible to apply for school card assistance, the applicant:

• must be liable for their child(s) or their material and services charge
• must have a combined family gross income within the school card income limits (in the table below).

Eligibility is not dependent on any family member receiving any Centrelink benefits or Family Tax Benefits.

Number of dependent children

Combined gross family income limit for the 2020/21 financial year

Gross weekly school card income limit

Combined gross family income for both partners, if partnered on 30 June 2021, includes all the following:

• gross salaries, wages and allowances from their employers
• taxable Centrelink pensions, benefits, allowances
• non-taxable or tax-exempt pensions, benefits, allowances (eg Disability Support Pension, Carers Pension)
• gross interest and dividends
• benefits from the Department of Veteran’s Affairs
• supplementary income as identified in the supplementary tax return
• fringe benefits (eg provision of a car, entertainment expenses)
• foreign income including pensions and employment
• business or partnership income from self-employment (includes depreciation).

Combined gross family income does not include any amounts received for:

• Family Tax Benefits Parts A and B
• child maintenance payments
• the TPI component of Veterans Affairs benefits
• carer allowance.

Parents, caregivers or independent students who are approved for School Card assistance are not required to pay the materials and services charge.

Eligibility for School Card does not automatically roll over each year. Persons seeking approval for school card assistance must apply each school year.