Mount Ousley Public School News

I would like to thank all of the students, families and staff of Mount Ousley PS for the very warm and friendly welcome that I have received. It has been an absolute pleasure to join the MOPS school community and I am really looking forward to getting to know you all and working to achieve ongoing learning and innovation. 

To begin that journey we have transitioned to our new eNewsletter. All newsletters will now be published electronically and circulated on the school Facebook page, website, Skoolbag and linked through SeeSaw. This new newsletter format will reduce the impact on the environment and allow all families access to the information they need in a convenient format that can be opened on any device and translated in to 100+ languages. I encourage everyone to make sure they have the Skoolbag App downloaded on their device and that you are connected to our Facebook page. 

In these times of Covid-19, things are still continuing to operate differently. We are unable to have parents onsite and all camps and excursions continue to be on hold. One thing that has not changed is the commitment of the wonderful staff to providing our students with an outstanding education. Students are engaged with their learning and are producing amazing work that they are very proud of. I would like to congratulate both the teachers and students for their resilience and ongoing commitment to learning.  

To help us continue the teaching and learning of all our students, we are asking for your support with student attendance. It is vital for all students to be at school, on time, each day, to enable them to effectively connect with their learning. Of course, students who are unwell must be kept at home, but if your child is well, they need to be at school. We are carrying out an audit of student attendance which will include a process of sending letters home to families where there are a large number of absences, particularly those that are unexplained. We are also working with students on the importance of being at school before 9am each day and remaining at school until pickup time in the afternoon. Every minute counts for your child's education. Did you know? A child that misses only 10 minutes a day over the course of a year would miss approximately 8 full days of learning! When we look at it like that, it really does add up. I am looking forward to working with you as a team to ensure a high level of attendance at our school for the remainder of the year. 

Last week we recognised all the wonderful support staff across our school as part of SAS Recognition Week. Our school needs the vital expertise of our learning and support officers, administration staff, general assistant and cleaner in order to provide the highest quality education in a quality learning environment. We celebrated the contributions of our SAS staff with the teaching staff putting on a lunch to show our appreciation. A huge thank you goes out to Penny, Stork, Ben, Leanne, Liz, Vanessa, Julie, Jane, Wafaa, Sharon, Monique and Connie. 

Have you ever considered the power that books give us? Not only can they teach us new information, they also allow us to expand our imaginations. Every Monday and Tuesday, the students are given the opportunity to borrow from our library collection, so we decided to measure the borrowing power of the classes. We count the number of students who borrow each week and set an initial challenge of 100. K/1 Harmony is currently in the lead with 32, with 3/4 Unique right behind them on 31. Who will increase their borrowing power the fastest? The                                                                                                       challenge is on!