5 August 2021

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Well another week of home schooling has passed, and it seems that everyone is getting into the swing of things. Congratulations to all the parents who are home schooling and our students of course, for the amazing work they are handing in. It is certainly a juggle for everyone but what we must do to keep the community safe.

Supervision at school is the same as home learning with students on computers being supervised by a rostered-on teacher for the day. Teachers have an enormous workload now like many parents, trying to home school their own children, prepare online lessons and videos for their class, mark work and give feedback, and make phone contact with parents. The Stage 2 and 3 teachers are also zooming lessons each day or every second day to try and assist students work in the digital environment.

Zoom meetings are very difficult to manage with adults, let alone with our younger students, which is why as a school we have chosen not to use zoom with our K-2 students. The curriculum demands for younger students really require face to face teaching, so all activities have been modified to provide a more simple and achievable way to participate in literacy and numeracy in the home environment.

Olympic Day - Friday 30 July

It was wonderful to see all our students from home and at school celebrate our Olympic champions by wearing green and gold for the day. Stage 2 also made Olympic torches and shared their creations over zoom with their classmates and teachers. As a school community it was certainly wonderful to have a happy celebration at the end of last week.

Farewell Mrs Madi Young

This week Mrs Madi Young (Class 1Y) will go off on maternity leave. It is disappointing that she has been unable to attend school to farewell staff and her students and parents but assures us she will be back to visit in Term 4 once restrictions lift. Goodluck Mrs Young with the birth of your first child.

Band Rehearsal - Zoom

Last Monday we had our first senior band rehearsal on zoom. Thanks Ben for taking the group through some breathing activities to start off our rehearsals for the term. Junior band will also begin rehearsals through zoom this week so please keep a look out for communication from Carlos, Ben and the parent liaison this week. The zoom rehearsals work better with headphones so please try and have them ready for next week. The conductors will email the links to parents:

Monday – Senior Band – 1.00pm-1.45pm
Tuesday - Junior Band - time to be confirmed.

Band Secretary - Position Vacant

Mrs Helena Edgerton has been an outstanding Band Secretary of our band for the past few years. Helena takes minutes of meetings and sends out communication to all the Band Liaisons along with producing our Band Information books. With the increase in her work commitments she is unable to continue in this role and is looking to train someone in this position for the remainder of the year. If you are interested in replacing Helen or finding out more about the role please email her helenaedgerton@gmail.com or our president John Logan johnny.logan@gmail.com with your interest.

Thank you, Helena for all you do in organising our band communication. We are grateful that you will remain on the band committee and hope that we find a replacement for next year.

Learning from Home - additional activities

Please see the links below for additional activities you can do at home. There are some great webinars that children can participate in and watch with minimal supervision from parents.

Learning packages for parents and carers (nsw.gov.au)

1. Everyday maths hub
2. Tokyo Olympic Package
3. ABC Television programs- guide
4. Parenting assistance- apps, podcasts, websites Parent and carers toolkit (nsw.gov.au)

Stage 3 Camp - Canberra

Unfortunately, due to the restrictions we have had to cancel our Stage 3 camp to Canberra which was organised for 30 August. Refunds will be given over the next few weeks. Other excursions that have also been cancelled are Kaleidoscope Science incursion (K-6), Field of Mars (Stage 1) and the Coastal Environment Centre (Stage 2). Most of the excursions haven’t been charged in school fees so refunds will not be necessary. The Kaleidoscope science incursion was $5 so that charge will be moved to outstanding fees and not refunded.

Refunds for excursions are time consuming and a long process. We only have one Office staff member at school so please be patient for your refunds.

2022 Kindergarten Open Day - Monday 23 August- postponed

An email was sent out to all 2022 Kindergarten families yesterday explaining that our Open Day scheduled for Monday 23 August has been postponed until further notice. We will wait to see if we have a lift in the restrictions and an ease of lockdown and communicate to you later this term regarding an alternative date.

2022 Kindergarten Backpacks

Unfortunately, a container of our Kindergarten backpacks for our new students has been lost at sea because of the typhoon. Wendie from our Uniform Shop will be ordering more but there will be a delay in delivery.

P & C Meeting - postponed

We were going to have a P & C meeting next Tuesday 10 August but have decided to leave it for another month until the restrictions ease. If you have any information that you wish to raise at a meeting or are interested in taking on a role on the P & C for 2022 please using the email address below:

manlyvaleprimaryschoolpc@gmail.com

Thank you Kerry, Robyn and Becky - Canteen

Thank you to our canteen staff for volunteering to come in and clean out the canteen last Monday. Fridges and food needed to be sorted out and organised and we are very thankful for you volunteering your time to do this. We look forward to our canteen reopening soon.

Support for Families

Some helpful links below:

Provides free, reliable, up-to-date and independent information to help families grow and thrive together. Contains information on COVID-19 and how to help your family cope.

Information on how to stay safe online during the COVID –19 pandemic

Provides telephone counselling, information and referral service for parents and carers of children ages 0 to 18 who live in New South Wales. Ph: 1300 130 052

Brings together families, support services and community resources so that our children and young people are safe and well. Ph: 1800 066 757

Information, advice and strategies to help you manage your wellbeing and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ph: 1800 512 358

Resources for parents and carers to best support their children and reduce worry and distress during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tina Lee – Principal

Dates for your Diary

Year 5 DanceSport Zoom Lessons

Although we are apart at this difficult time, DanceSport, like the Olympics has brought us together!

176 students, including our very own Grade 5 have been dancing in Zoom lessons every Wednesday. The children danced in living rooms, in kitchens and even in walk-in wardrobes!

The DanceSport Olympic Park even has been rescheduled for November, so we hope to compete in this fabulous event, shown in the attached photo.

Mrs Kilbane (DanceSport Coordinator)

Kindergarten Home Learning

Community Notices

Vinnies

Vinnies is here to help. If any family needs help with food, bills and/or housing during this difficult time, please direct them to our Helpline on 13 18 12 or call their local Vinnies Support Centre

School Information