Dear mums, dads, carers and colleagues

Welcome back to our Year 6 campers today.  They certainly had a lovely time and did not sleep very much at all.  Thank you sincerely to our fantastic staff who took everyone away, looked after them and returned them safely after all the fun was done.  You are sensational.  Look out for a full report in Issue 4 of the school newsletter.

School's Kokoda Challenge 2023

From Monday, we will be taking expressions of interest in the Kokoda Challenge for 2023.  This year, students in Years 5&6 are eligible to compete for selection in one of our teams.  The Challenge is true to its name.  Teams will be required to trail run an 18km course on Saturday 3 June (Brisbane venue) as well as attend Saturday morning training sessions each fortnight and complete some personal fitness work at home.  The final teams will be selected from the group and staff and some parent leaders will lead the teams at training and on the course on competition day.

School costs: 

• The school will pay the nomination fees

Participants costs and requirements:

• Team members will need to purchase the team 'Challenge' shirt and other uniform attire. 
• Consider trail running footwear instead of regular joggers.  Invest in good socks as well.
• Consider a light trail backpack with a built in water bladder.
• Travel to & from training sessions and the event.

What will be important this year?

Our aspiration for every student is to be

Good at learning - Good at life

To achieve this in 2023, we will be focused on:

Reading

• We are focused on all students developing a deep love of reading and being successful in learning to read and comprehend texts. 
• We need families to read at home - a lot!

Deep learning

• We will be further developing character, citizenship and collaboration skills for all learners.  
• We need all students to attend school as a strong routine.  Our target is 95% attendance.  We need families to create strong school routines across each week and each day.

NAPLAN date change

From 2023, NAPLAN will be moving from May to March. NAPLAN assesses literacy and numeracy skills that students are already learning at school.  NAPLAN is not a test that can be studied for, and students are not expected to do so.  This year’s test will take place from 15 to 27 March for children in Years 3 and 5. The school calendar above shows our NAPLAN test window dates.  The change of date means that school systems will have access to results earlier.  

We have started to set up for the testing program and will complete a practice test in class in the next few weeks.  

Parent information afternoons (Monday Week 5) 

On Monday 20 February, our teachers will be providing our families the opportunity to attend an information session in your child’s class.  The presentation will cover topics such as:

• About our school
• Positive behaviour rewards
• Attendance
• Learning expectations for 2023
• Student achievement marking
• Reporting scales and clarification
• Evidence of Learning
• Our specialist teachers and
• Supporting your child’s learning

If you would like to attend and have the opportunity to ask questions about any of the above topics please RSVP directly to your classroom teacher with the number of adults attending. 

Children at the sessions:  We understand that younger children may need to attend with you but we ask that you are mindful that everyone will be trying to get the most from the information session.    

We also understand that your school-aged children may need to stay with you. Children will need to be supervised by their parents but we are investigating some options to assist.   

Presentation selections:  All classroom teachers will be presenting at the one time - 2:45pm - 3:45pm.  For some families, this will mean that they will need to select the one session that they would like to attend most, and catch up on the other sessions on-line.  Please RSVP to the session that you wish to attend.

Before we start:  Classroom doors will open at around the 2:45pm start time so please wait outside the room while teachers dismiss their class from the day and set up for the information session.  Your assistance at this time will be greatly appreciated.

Catch-up opportunities:  If you cannot make it, the presentation will be made available for all families to access at your own convenience.  Remember that you are able to request a meeting with your child's teacher at any point to discuss their progress.  In most instances, a limit of two meetings per year is considered by the department as appropriate.

And following the sessions

will be a reading workshop that shows families the most effective ways to help their children learn to read and comprehend texts.  This workshop is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.  3:45pm - 4:15pm.  Your teachers will provide you more information about this.

Kind regards

Vic