Term 1 - Week 8 (27 March 2024)

Perth Primary School Calendar

From the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

It was lovely to celebrate our 2024 leaders at assembly last week. The pride in both our students and their families demonstrated a real connection to our school and the importance of aspiring to be your best. Assemblies are a wonderful way to not only share the work we are doing with the school community but also for our students to see what other classes are focusing on.

Sickness
We are seeing lots of sickness going around school at the moment. As a school, we have measures in place to help limit the spread of illness including ensuring good ventilation in our classrooms and regular hand washing and cleaning. However, our best defence against the spread of colds and bugs is to keep symptomatic children at home. We understand that this can be challenging for families however we appreciate your support in keeping our school community healthy.

New DECYP Strategic Plan and Values

The Department for Education Children and Young People Strategic Plan 2024-2030 is the result of wide-ranging consultation across the Department and with children and young people since the inception of the new Department at the end of 2022.

The Strategic Plan 2024-2030 outlines a shared vision for children and young people in Tasmania and strategic direction for the Department.

The Strategic Plan connects the work of everyone in the Department to ‘Our Why’ and ‘Our How’ and describes a shared belief, values and foundations.

The Strategic Plan also acknowledges the Tasmanian Aboriginal Community as the traditional and continuing custodians of Lutruwita, where Palawa people have cared for their children and prepared them for life since the beginning of time.

You may also notice that the values have changed, in line with the new direction for the Department. As a staff, we have looked at how these values align with our previous values and ways that we can demonstrate these in our everyday lives.

In Term 2, you will notice that our assembly certificates will be based around the new values, we are also looking at updating our school values signage.

Keeping our Students Safe
As a result of the recommendations from the Commission of Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in Tasmania, DECYP have made some significant changes to the way schools manage risks within their school.

Our school has an appointed ‘safeguarding leader’ (Miss Doran) who is responsible for ensuring that our school in proactive in meeting DECYP’s expectations around safeguarding students.

As a school we have completed an extensive risk assessment and management plan for our school. This has included physical environment changes (installation of windows in solid doors) as well as a number of recording systems along with significant staff training.

One of the biggest changes affecting our school community is the need for parents/carers who wish to be ‘on site’ at school requiring the DECYP Safeguarding training. Although not an onerous task, it does require some administrative work from our end, storing all the certificates and ensuring compliance.

We are still working with DECYP to see how these changes will affect events like sport carnivals and other school events. We are hoping to get more clarity around this in the coming weeks. In the meantime, we would encourage all our parents to ensure that they have a current Working With Vulnerable People (WWVP) card along with completing the DECYP safeguarding training. We are unable to have any adults on site or helping in classrooms or on excursions without both of these safeguarding measures.

Information about WWVP card can be found at Apply for registration to work with vulnerable people | Service Tasmania

To complete the Volunteer Safeguarding training, please visit Sign up with your work email (mygo1.com).

Lions Club – Eye Health Program
This week you would have received a notice about a free eye health screening funded by Lions Club. The vision screening consists of four short assessments which don’t require any physical contact with students. Parents will be provided with a copy of results which they can then use to get further examination or diagnosis if required.

The screening will take place on Monday 6May in our school hall. If you want your child to be included in this free program, please ensure the signed consent is returned by 12 April. 

Tuesday Fruit Day
We are very grateful for the monetary support we receive from the Lions Club of Perth that enables Nurse Bec to work with students to prepare our fortnightly ‘Tuesday Fruit Snack’. Each class has a turn to provide the helpers to prepare the fruit. This is a valuable learning experience for our students with a focus on nutrition, food preparation and basic food preparation. Last week, we had some Lions Club members visit to see how their kind donation is benefiting our school.

School times
Just a reminder that for our students in Prep – Grade 6, the school day doesn’t finish until 2:50pm. We ask that parents don’t enter the school grounds prior to 2:45pm as our students are still in classes learning and sometimes it can be distracting to see parents and siblings outside classrooms. In the mornings, our duty of care doesn’t start until 8:30am so we do ask that students are not on site before this time.

Uniform
Just some reminders as the weather starts to get a little cooler that we do expect students to be wearing school uniforms including school hats (or beanies as it gets chillier)! We are starting to notice a number of students wearing short bike shorts, we ask that if students are wearing shorts, they are the school style as shown in the photo below. We do have a number of second hand items in our uniform shop along with plenty of new supplies if you need to purchase new ones.

Bikes and scooters
We love to see our school community out and about on their bikes and scooters, it is a great way to stay fit and healthy. Last Friday was a great example of our healthy school community with so many students riding to school for National Ride 2 School Day!

We have unfortunately had some reports from our community about students not wearing helmets and crossing roads without looking. Helmets should be the approved style and not similar to a motorbike helmet as vision can be impaired. We ask that as parents at all times we model appropriate behaviours and one of these is ensuring that if you are crossing Fairtlough Street you use the crossing. We see many parents walk out in front of buses and cars with the children instead of walking the extra 40 metres to get to the school crossing. Thank you for helping us show our children the safe way to do things!

We have noticed a lot of younger siblings riding bikes to school at the end of the day, we do ask that children do not ride their bikes through the school grounds at the beginning and end of the day as we have a lot of children in the space and want to ensure it is a safe area.

Reading at Perth Primary
Reading is a school priority because it is foundational to all other learning, and there is certainly a buzz about Perth Primary in 2024. Teachers have spent many professional learning hours learning about the science of how children learn to read. To find out more follow this link Literacy - Department for Education, Children and Young People (decyp.tas.gov.au).

Keep your eye out on Seesaw for dates Mel Biffin will be in classrooms before school demonstrating how to best use decodable texts at home. A recording will be posted on Seesaw later in the term for parents who are unable to make it to the before school demonstration.

Reading Rewards
Recently we asked the students what rewards they felt would encourage all children to read every night at home as a result we have made some changes to our 100 night of Reading program.

100 nights of Reading
Our Reading Ambassadors have been very excited to launch the 2024 Reading Rewards! We hope to see all student reach the 100 nights of reading milestone to participate in an excursion to Riverbend Park (Prep-6) or The Train Park for kinder students. Congratulations to all the students who have already achieved 25 nights of reading!

Last week we celebrated students who had reached the first 25 night reading milestone, there were lots of excited readers!!

Brixhibition
Category winners

K/P - Theodore D

1/2 - Lola W 

3/4 - Fletcher Y 

5/6 - Jack W 

Overall winner

Fletcher Y

School Information

Scholastic Book Club
Issue 2 for the Scholastic Book Club has been handed out to students.  If you would like to purchase items from this issue please do so before 12.00 midday Friday 27 March 2024.

2024 School Levies
Just a reminder that levies are now overdue. Please pay as soon as possible or call the office to organise a payment plan.

Invoices can be sent home with students if you require another copy.

On Monday, 8 April (5:00-5:30pm), Kings Meadows High School will be conducting a school tour / walkthrough for Year 6 families of students who will be attending Year 7 in 2025.

This will involve a tour through our buildings to share our facilities. Children must be accompanied at all times. 

For planning purposes, please register your attendance.

https://bit.ly/SCHOOLTOUR2024

We have on display in our office a book by local author and parent Kerryn Cullen called "Wish Baby".  Order by above QR code and pick up your copy from the school office.

Value Certificates

Term 1 - Week 7

Launching into Learning

Term Dates 2024

Term 1
Schools & Colleges 8 February – 12 April
Easter break 29 March – 2 April

Term 1 Holiday
13 April – 28 April

Term 2
Schools & Colleges  29 April – 5 July

Term 2 Holiday
6 July – 21 July

Term 3
Schools & Colleges 22 July – 27 September

Term 3 Holiday
28 September – 13 October

Term 4
Schools 14 October – 19 December

Canteen News

Happy Birthday

Lola W, Logan H, Reuben D, Angus F, Aria P, Beau S, Eva D, Brayden F, Indi L, Sophia P, Tilly S, Roman D, Harrison B, Charli H, Chloe H, Wilson C, Elsie M, Martha B, Dustin M, Jack N, Atarangi J, Isaiah N, Oxley G, Mabel H, Will B, Theo D, Theo W, Evie B, Albie Mc, Charlotte B, Archie M, Yasmyn C, Julien J, Zachary H, Sophie B, Evelyn C, Kieran D, Ella D, Freya H, Matilda W, Isabella E, Mrs Demeijer, Miss Zolyniak, Mrs JL, Mrs Duncan.

Community News

Click on link below for What's On at Libraries (Includes Ravenswood, Lilydale, Deloraine, Westbury and Campbell Town).

Perth Primary School Support Staff