Doolooboorah

Over the holidays I hope that you were able to spend some quality time with family and friends, that you and your extended family were safe in the face of the fires and also that our students are well rested and energised for the year ahead.

I was delighted to welcome back both returning and new students to school last week and our newest students in Kindergarten started their 'big school' adventure. Thank you to Mrs Iacovitti and the Kindergarten teachers who ensured a smooth and positive start for them. I would also like to welcome our 14 new families across years 1 – 6 to Harbord.

I would like to acknowledge and thank our wonderful team of teaching and administrative staff for the thorough planning and preparation that facilitated a smooth start to the new school year.  I was very proud of all students who, in their first week, took on the challenges of the new school year with a positive and growth mindset.

We welcome our two new Deputy Principals, who after a statewide merit selection process, were successful in gaining the positions.  Mrs Lisa Miller who was the Relieving Deputy Principal at Lumea PS and Miss Danielle Farrow who was the Relieving Deputy Principal at Killarney Heights PS. Harbord is so lucky to have two Deputy Principals with such high calibre. I know that you will welcome them into our community.

Our annual Meet the Teacher nights will be held next week and these are an important event for all parents at the start of the year. This is a tremendous opportunity to meet your child’s teacher for the year and to hear about the routines and expectations of the class and year group. Each stage is scheduled as follows –

Monday 10th February

Yr 4  -  5.30 - 6.15pm

Yr 5  -  5.30 - 6.15pm

Yr 2  -  6.15 - 7.00pm

Tuesday 11th February

Yr 1 -  5.30 - 6.15pm

K -  6.00 - 7.00pm

Wednesday 12th February

Yr 3 - 5.30 - 6.15pm

Yr 6 - 6.00 - 7.00pm

Please be aware that these evenings are a general information and greeting session and not a personal interview to discuss your child’s progress or needs. A formal Parent-Teacher Interview evening will occur at the end of this term for one-on-one discussions with your child’s teacher.

As the beginning and end of the school day is always very busy, if you feel you need to discuss particular concerns or issues during the year, please make an appointment with your child’s teacher for a mutually convenient time.

Please be aware that any issues or concerns you may have about your child should, in the first instance, be directed to their teacher. More complex concerns should be directed to the Assistant Principal supervising the grade so they can support you, the teacher and student. 

If you haven’t already, please download our "Skoolbag" app to ensure you receive important alerts and reminders from the school eg; bus or sport cancellation.

https://skoolbag.com.au/forparents.php

Ensure, through the school office, that your contact details are up to date so our emails can reach you.

As you may be aware, a new policy governing student use of digital devices and online services has been released for implementation in NSW public schools from the start of Term 1 2020. The policy is available at https://education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library

The new policy includes primary schools restricting the use of digital devices, including mobile phones during school hours. This represents little change for us as our process for managing the small number of student mobile phones continues to be:

- a phone remains in the student’s bag on silent or switched off;

- a phone is not to be used during school hours 

The P&C has organised a Kindergarten welcome back BBQ on Sunday 16 February from 3 – 5.30pm. This is a fantastic opportunity to join your children for a get-together with other families and meet new friends in our Harbord school community. Thank you to the P&C for putting on this special event.

Should your child suffer from any medical condition or allergy, it is extremely important that all documentation is updated for the 2020 school year including this year’s health plans from your doctor. These must be lodged with the school office. Please also ensure that any medications are current.

More than ever in our world today, our partnership with parents and students in education is paramount to our children’s success and  the staff at Harbord look forward to working together as a community to achieve this.

Susan Tickle

Principal

I am very excited to be one of the new Deputy Principals at HPS. I have already met so many lovely students, parents and teachers. This year I will be supporting K-2 and working closely with the Assistant Principals to support teaching and learning across their grades.

I have visited all K-2 classrooms over the last week and it has been wonderful to see how settled students are in their new classes. Both students and teachers should be congratulated on their efforts to begin the year in such a positive way. 

Last Thursday all of our kindergarten students started school. They arrived at school and went to their classrooms ready to begin their school journey. I was amazed to see how happy and settled the students were. When it came time for parents to leave, the students showed such maturity in saying goodbye and were all eager to begin their learning in their room. 

The very hardworking P&C and parents of Year 1 students are in the process of organising the welcome BBQ for kindergarten students and parents. This event will be held at HPS on Sunday 16th of February. More information will be sent out to parents in the coming days. Please keep a look out for this information which will be sent via the Skoolbag app.    

Lisa Miller

Deputy Principal

It has been a delight to walk into Harbord Public School.  I have been so warmly welcomed, the smiles on faces tell me that Harbord PS is a great place to be at.

In my first days I have been working with teachers and visiting classes to learn about all the great things that occur here.

Last Friday was an extra special day for me as I was able to be a part of the House Leaders voting.  Congratulations to all our leaders and to your peers for supporting you.

I am looking forward to a great year!

An induction ceremony for our 2020 Captains and Seniors and our House Captains and Vice Captains will be held on Wednesday 26th February at 10.30am in the school assembly hall. The ceremony will conclude by 11.10am. This is a special day in our school year and we look forward to seeing our proud parents witness the induction ceremony.

Band rehearsals will begin in Week 3.  All information will be sent to band families through the band parent communication channels.

Summer PSSA Sport commences on Friday 21st February. PSSA sports for Term 1 are AFL (mixed teams), Cricket, Eagle Tag (boys and girls teams), Softball, Tee Ball, Volleyball and Newcombeball. Students from Years 3-6 are eligible to try out for teams. Harbord fields teams in junior and senior divisions. Students who turn 11 or 12 in 2020 are seniors and students who turn 8, 9 or 10 in 2020 are juniors. Successful trialists will receive notes giving details and costs associated with Summer PSSA sport will be included on the Term 1 invoice.

Our school swimming carnival will be held on Monday 24th February at Manly Andrew "Boy" Charlton Swim Centre.

Next level swimming carnivals:

Scripture classes commence on Tuesday 18th February. Students from K-6 attend 30 minute scripture sessions each Tuesday run by scripture teachers from local church groups. These sessions follow a set program focussing on Christian values. They are child-centred and encourage kindness, caring and tolerance. Students not attending scripture classes are looked after by class teachers at this time and complete class activities. Scripture denominations for 2020 are Catholic and Protestant Scripture.

Ethics classes are offered to Year 2-6 students during Scripture time.   At present, we do not have enough volunteer ethics teachers to offer ethics classes to students in K-Year 1.   If you are interested in finding out more about training as an volunteer ethics teacher, please contact harbordethics@gmail.com.  Year 2-6 Ethics classes will commence on February 18th. Parents interested in enquiring about the Ethics Program for 2020 can direct their questions to harbordethics@gmail.com.  

Danielle Farrow

Deputy Principal

Congratulations to Jackie (Year 4) and Jack (Year 6) who have successfully auditioned for the Arts Alive Combined Schools Choir. This prestigious choir encourages, nurtures and inspires talented vocalists by providing high quality training and performance opportunities - including concerts at Sydney Town Hall and the Schools Spectacular.  Well done students on this wonderful achievement - I know you will have a fantastic year and do Harbord PS proud.

Miss Dalgleish

STUDENTS!

If any student in years 1-6 would like to join the program for terms 1 & 2, please complete an 'Expression of Interest" (attached). The office will send out an invitation to students who are successful. The program starts week 4 on Monday 17th Feb at 7.45am- 8.45am and every Monday thereafter.

PARENTS!

We are also looking for a new artist to lead the program which has been run by Fiona Chandler for the last 6 years. There are currently 3 parent helpers and the support of the P&C. Mentoring is also available if required, by Fiona. If you would like to work with the talented student artists of Harbord Public school, in a once a week program from 7.30 - 9am Monday mornings for 16-20 students from grade 1-6, that engages, teaches and delights, please contact the office for further information.

Thank you to the amazing Fiona Chandler for her time and effort in getting this program up and running and for making it such an enjoyable, creative experience for students who have attended over the past years.

A huge welcome to Term 1 2020 from your P&C! Our next meeting is on Wednesday 26th February at 7.30pm in the school staff room and we would love to see some new members of our school community coming along. It’s a great opportunity to find out what is planned for the school over the next year and to meet our Principal and new Deputies. Fun times ahead!

Our 2020 Kindy BBQ is on Sunday February 16th at 3 – 5.30pm in the Kindy playground and is open to all Kindy families (siblings welcome too!)

Book you free tickets through flexischool.com.au – if you don’t already have an account, this is a perfect time to set one up as you will use it throughout your time at HPS.

Wear your class colours. BYO drink bottle. We will provide a sausage sizzle and games and you will meet our Principal and Deputy Principals.

This is an ALCOHOL FREE EVENT.

Code 5 Fitness is supporting our school P&C by offering all new members who use this special link a half price 28 day fitness challenge program (usually $199) – with the entire $99 you pay for program being donated back to the P&C!

http://bit.ly/harbordschool28day

Code 5 is breaking the mould when it comes to fitness. This is a gym for anyone who wants to get fit without taking themselves too seriously. You don’t need to be fit to join – you just need to join in.

Code 5 specialises in body transformations for the everyday busy person. In the 28 days you'll get: 

·         Unlimited classes

·         Inbody scans

·         A myzone trial (hear rate monitor)

·         Goal setting session

·         Accountability coach

Click the link to support our school and make a start on a fitter version of you!

http://bit.ly/harbordschool28day

Our school Ethics program is in desperate need of helpers. This is a volunteer run program and is hugely popular across our school community. However, we lost a few volunteers at the end of last year as their children left the school and we now need to fill their roles.

If you would like to get involved and can spare a couple of hours a week during term time , please contact Jane Ravenscroft at gdayjane@hotmail.com.

No experience needed. Full training is offered. This is a highly rewarding program and can currently only be offered to years 2-6 due to the volunteer shortage. With more community help, the whole school can access Ethics.

The uniform shop has lots of new items for sale including hair accessories, stickers, house t-shirts and more!

Shop online and have your items delivered straight to your child's classroom or collect during shop hours.

Tuesday 2:30 - 4pm

Thursday 8:30 - 10:30am

www.harborduniforms.com.au 

Code5 Fitness half price 28 day challenge with all proceeds going directly back to Harbord Public School. 

Code 5 Fitness are on a mission to change 30,000 lives through education and training, guiding them to lose body fat and feel amazing. 

We want to break the mould of what gyms are thought of being a place for ‘fit’ people only. We welcome anyone who is willing to get involved and doesn’t take themselves too seriously.  

We specialise in body transformations for the every day busy person. In the 28 days you'll get: 

·         Unlimited classes

·         Inbody scans

·         A myzone trial (hear rate monitor)

·         Goal setting session

·         Accountability coach

Please click the link below to save your spot in our next challenge. 

http://bit.ly/harbordschool28day