23 October 2019

Newsletter Articles

Calendar of Key Events

From the Principal…..

Welcome to Term 4 for our final busy term of the year, with so many exciting learning opportunities planned for students. It’s great to be back and see everyone so focused on their work. This term promises to be a very busy time for learning. Keep your eye on the calendar of events and talk with your child’s teacher for further information about matters which relate to your child’s class.

Conversations for 2020

Last week a panel of three staff members talked with almost every member of our staff to hear about what is working well at PPS and what could be changed to improve student learning. I will also be talking with several focus groups of students about the same questions. This week I’m planning to meet with small groups and pairs of parents for the same purpose - to hear about what’s working well and what might change at PPS. Please contact the office if you’d like to be involved. This information will be used to guide the development of the priorities in our School Improvement Plan for the future as well as some of our decisions moving forward.

Camp and Class Excursions

Excursions and learning experiences away from our school site are rich opportunities for students because they add another way for children to understand ideas and the ways of the world. First hand experiences always add to a rich and deep understanding because they help to deepen knowledge and develop empathy for others involved. There are also opportunities to develop social skills and friendships during these times, although this is not usually the main purpose. As always, there are high expectations to meet in terms of standards of appropriate behaviour and learning effort. Our Strive for Five expectations apply at all times, at school and away from PPS.

Swimming and Water Safety Program

The DoE’s annual swimming and water safety program will start in week 6. This will involve all grades 3 – 5 students and is an expectation for every child in Tasmania. As we live in an island state and also have access to many inland waterways, swimming is considered an essential skill. We know that students also gain many social skills during this time, as these experiences help to build their network of friends and like-minded peers.

Dance Baby Dance

We’ve been dancing this week with Andrew Palmer and it’s been great fun! The wide smiles have been a very clear indication that students are certainly enjoying their time in every session. Parents are warmly invited to a very brief ‘presentation’ of the dance sessions on Thursday 24th October.

NAPLAN Awards

This afternoon two students, their families and a number of staff will be attending the awards to celebrate outstanding results in the recent NAPLAN tests. Congratulations to Georgie Purse and Logan Richardson who will receive awards this afternoon. Further details about their individual awards will be published next newsletter.

As reported earlier, our school results in this year’s NAPLAN tests are also excellent. Results for our grades 3 and 5 cohorts, confirmed recently, show we are above Australian average scores in both reading and writing. Results are as follows:

These are outstanding results for our students which represent both the excellent teaching provided at PPS as well as the focussed learning and hard work of students to achieve their goals as committed and aspirational thinkers. Congratulations everyone on an outstanding effort.

Planning for 2020

Our process for planning for next year is now underway. It is very important that our information is as accurate as possible so that we can plan for a settled and productive start for every child. Class placements are an important part of this process and we spend many hours on this task, trying our very best to ensure every single student is placed in the best class possible to assist with their learning. Please contact me in writing if you have information of which we may be unaware, which may impact on our class

Optimism - Guest Speaker in Assembly

This week George Gatenby spoke in our assembly about OPTIMISM. Mr Gatenby talked with us about the meaning of Optimism, linking it to a positive mindset about achieving things. He helped children to understand with the examples he gave about life on the farm. Mr Gatenby also talked with the student leadership group about re-use and recycling and presented certificates in assembly.

Welcomes and Farewells

This week we welcome Zayne who joined Kinder A and Jye who joins 1-2 HW. Best wishes for a happy and successful time at PPS and welcome their families to our Perth Primary School community.

Lee Craw
Principal

Assembly Awards

Dance Baby Dance Program

Tasmanian Science Talent Search

Results

Grade 3-4 Challenge: Balloon-powered paper rocket in vertical take off

1st – Zaria and Scarlett P
2nd - Charlie P and Nixon
Merit – Harlee and Caitlin M

Grade 5-6 Challenge: Balloon-powered retro rocket for a soft landing

3rd – Tobey and Levi
Merit – Stephanie and Skylar, Caitlin G, Krystal and Max

TSTS Presentation Day

The Presentation Day will be held at the Sir Raymond Ferrall Centre, University of Tasmania, Newnham Campus, Launceston on Sunday 24th November. Two separate ceremonies will occur: the themed section awards will be presented at 12:00pm whereas the Research Investigation, Engineering and STEM Challenge sections will be presented at 2:00pm.

Please note: the Presentation Day is only for those students who received a Merit Award or higher. Invitations will follow but please advise all students to save the date to maximise their opportunity to attend.

Karen Dick

Hats

Students are required to wear hats in Term 4. School hats are $5.00 and may be purchased from the Office.

Kinder 2020 Enrolments

Please return Kinder enrolment forms to the office as spaces are filling fast.

Accurate information is critical for school planning for 2020. We are now accepting enrolments in all grades for next year. Please pass this information to friends and neighbours who live in our school zone. Please contact the office if your enrolment status will change next year.

Before School Care Hours

A reminder to parents BSC opens at 7.45am.

Please be patient with staff as they prepare to welcome your child.

Assembly Dates

Happy Birthday

Celebrating birthdays this newsletter and including the holiday break are:

George, Phoenix, Sophie, Edward, Jake, Ellah-June, Reuben, Evan, Nixon and Mrs Fleming.

Canteen News…..

Apple and Raspberry Muffin (Week 2)

Banana Bread (Week 3 and 4)

School Banking

School Banking Day is every Thursday.

Uniform Shop Hours

Outside School Care Hours (OSHC)

Early Birds and After School Care

Early Birds 7:45am - 8:30am Monday - Friday
please contact the school office 6398 2302 ($3 per child)

Please Note: Payments and bookings can be made via cash or the Qkr app

(our preferred payment method).

Please Note: Parents are required to personally drop off children to BSC.

After School Care – Midlands Kids Club (Northern Midlands Council)
please contact Kate Lee – 0438 911 303

Community News……

Term Dates

2019 PPS Support Staff

Choose how to add this event to your calendar:

Apple Calendar iPhone, iPad, Mac - Download .ics file

Outlook Desktop Outlook - Download .ics file

Android Calendar Android devices - Download .ics file

Other Calendar Google Calendar, Yahoo, etc. - Download .ics file

Download Event