Issue 9, 28 June 2024, Week 9 Term 2
Dear Families,
Wow, I cannot believe it is almost the end of Term 2 already and we are at the halfway mark of 2024! Reflecting on both the term and the year to date, there has been plenty to celebrate. Students have been engaged in their learning and staff have been focussing on our school priority areas. Just to name a few, highlights this term include:
- Our various sporting events;
- Observing the learning amongst the students around reading and refocused teaching and learning;
- Bush Adventures;
- The huge turnout we had the last two weeks to our Parent Teacher Discussions and Open Classroom afternoons; and
- Our highly successful Quiz Night.
With lots of exciting events already booked in for Term 3, I know next term is going to be just as exciting.
On a personal level I have reflected on the Term and I feel very humbled and privileged to lead such an amazing and supportive School Community. As I look out at our brilliant teaching teams and student body I am incredibly proud of the contributions each and every one of the students and staff have made to our school and towards my time as Principal. This Term has been incredibly rewarding for me and I sincerely thank you all for your support and look forward to learning with you all in Term 3.
As always I relish the opportunity to improve, therefore please provide any feedback you may have in how we can improve the leadership in the school and community either directly to the school office or via email; angela.crane@decyp.tas.gov.au.
Attendance
Being at school is the best place for our children. It is where they learn and grow alongside their friends and where they benefit the most.
At Kingston Primary we have processes in place to record student attendance and plan for regular engagement in school when attendance is challenging. Putting provisions and plans in place at Kingston Primary School to support all students to attend regularly are discussed often in our Support Meetings. It is at these meetings additional supports are arranged. These supports can include anything from Breakfast Club to assisting students with bus travel.
We do understand that there is ongoing illness, particularly at this time of the year that can prevent students from attending regularly. In this instance it is vitally important that the school is contacted so that attendance can be marked accordingly. However we encourage families to ensure that students are attending school as regularly as possible to gain the rewards of being at school every day. Every day counts in the ongoing success of student learning.
NAPLAN
This week we received our National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) results which is a valuable data source we use to track improvement against our school priorities. It is worth noting that NAPLAN data only makes up one small component of student achievement data we use; however it still provides our school incredibly useful information. It was so pleasing to see we gained strong results in both Year 3 and Year 5. Our students were ranked as strong in both Reading and Writing for both cohorts which is significant and worth celebrating. Over the last four years we have spent time within our professional learning structures ensuring our teaching practices are evidence-based and consistent in all classrooms.
Pre Kinder Sessions
In the second half of this year we will be commencing Pre-Kinder sessions for those children who are enrolled in Kindergarten in 2025. These sessions are a fantastic opportunity to become part of our School Community, to build familiarity with the school environment, to lay the foundation of strong friendships and partnerships before next year, and where Parents/Carers will have the opportunity to spend time with their children engaging in learning through play.
For those who are yet to enrol your child in Kindergarten, we only have a small number of places left! If you have a Kinder-aged child for 2025 (a child turning five in 2025) it is vital that you collect an Enrolment Pack from the School Office and return it to the office as soon as possible so we can secure your enrolment. We start allocating Kindergarten children into classes next term and want to make sure we have included all of our current families who have siblings in older grades. If you have any questions around this process or your child’s enrolment for 2025 do not hesitate in contacting Ms Crane at school directly or via email – angela.crane@decyp.tas.gov.au.
Based on parent and community feedback we have made a slight change to our Parent/Carer Expo and Information Session. Instead of holding a separate Expo, we have invited all our services including our Speech Pathologist, Social Worker, School Psychologist, Out of School Hours Care and our Uniform Shop representative to attend each Pre Kinder Session. Mrs Anita Grey and Mrs Jess Suffolk will be on hand at each of these sessions to ensure our Pre-Kindergarten students are engaged and entertained with the aim to allow parents to ask any burning questions they may still have of our service providers. In the meantime if you have any questions feel free to contact Anita Grey, Jess Suffolk or the School Office. We look forward to seeing you soon!
Please stay connected through our fortnightly newsletter, Social Media posts, Schoolzine, Seesaw or drop in and have a chat with one of our fabulous team.
That’s all from me this week. Stay warm!
Ange Crane
Principal
Our Prep to Grade 2 students will be taking part in a Water Orientation Program at the Kingston Pool next week from Monday 1 July to Friday 5 July. This program will focus on familiarising students with the aquatic environment and there will be an emphasis on fun and consolidating basic water skills such as face wetting, bubble blowing, submersion, floating, gliding and propulsion activities. Parents are welcome to attend.
Classes will be at Kingston Pool at the following times:
11.30am - 12.00pm Prep Doyle
12.00pm - 12.30pm Prep Barker
12.30pm - 1.00pm 1/2 Holmstrom
1.00pm - 1.30pm 1/2 Wood
1.30pm - 2.00pm 1/2 Mackintosh
Your child will travel to and from the pool by bus and will need to bring the following items each day:
- Swimming gear – including bathers and swimming cap;
- A towel and plastic bag to put wet clothes in;
- Any medication (eg asthma medication) that may be needed at the poolside.
| Date | Event |
| 14 November | Year 6 Waratah Band Rehearsal, 3.30pm-4.30pm, Kingston High School |
| 15 November | Pre-Kinder Session in Anita Grey's Kindergarten Room, 9.30am - 10.30am |
| 19 - 21 November | Year 5/6 Camp at The Lea |
| 22 November | Combined Schools Band and Choir Annual Concert, MyState Bank Arena |
| 22 November | Pre-Kinder Session in Anita Grey's Kindergarten Room, 9.30am - 10.30am |
| 27 November | Kingston High School Orientation Day for Grade 6 students |
| 28 November | Whole School Assembly, GP Room, 1.45pm |
| 29 November | Tasmanian Schools Triathlon Challenge, Bellerive Beach |
| 29 November | Prep Barker and Prep Doyle excursion to Playhouse Theatre and Kingston Park |
| 29 November | Year 1/2 Excursion to Botanical Gardens for Alice in Wonderland performance |
| 29 November | GMC Advisors Family Picnic, 4.30pm - 6.30pm |
| 3 December | Volunteers Morning Tea and Christmas Raffle Draw |
| 4 - 6 December | School Captains Book Drive for Saltbush |
| 9 December | Student Achievement Assembly 2.00pm - 2.40pm |
| 11 December | 5/6 Munday Fundraising Christmas Market |
| 13 December | Year 3/4 excursion to Botanical Gardens for Alice in Wonderland performance |
| 18 December | Year 6 Leavers Assembly, GP Room, 1.30pm |
| 19 December | Year 6 Big Day Out |
| 19 December | Term 4 ends |
Prep Barker have been learning about the external features of animals. We have classified animals based on body parts such as tails, number of legs, feathers, fur, beaks and gills. We focussed on humans, kangaroos, ants and weedy sea dragons. We wrote information reports and created dioramas, choosing one of these four animals.
We also had the pleasure of making clay kangaroos with Waldie’s School of Ceramic Arts. This was so much fun!
Our excursion to the Marine Discovery Centre was an amazing opportunity to consolidate our learning. We explored different tanks, observing animals and their external features. We even made our own mini aquariums!
