South Newman PS 11th March | Issue 2
Upcoming Events
Wednesday 23rd March - Easter Bonnet Parade K-PP 8:30am
Thursday 24th March - Room 10 Assembly
Friday 25th March - Tuesday 29th March - Easter Weekend/Public Holidays
Principal's Report
Dear parents and carers,
Today our Year 3-6 students participated in our Faction Swimming Carnival. It was a fantastic day that not only allowed for competitive swimmers to demonstrate their skills, but also gave all students the chance to compete in a variety of different events, in order for them to represent their faction. It was also wonderful to see all students displaying our values of The Newman Way and hear them cheering on their faction. Congratulation to Ashburton and a big thanks to Mr Prescott for his organisation of the carnival, and to the parents and staff that helped to make the carnival the successful event it was.
Attendance at school for all children in WA from Pre-primary to Year 12 is compulsory and any absence must be with a reasonable reason. Please inform the class teacher, either verbally, a note or by email if your child is absent from school for any reason. All research clearly indicates that students in all years with attendance below 90% are in danger of falling behind at school. There is also a strong link between attendance patterns in the early years of school and in the older year levels. We should treat school as going to work and aim to not miss any unnecessary days.
The issue of bullying is in the media regularly. At school we do teach children how to react in various social situations and take action to resolve any reported incidents that may be or lead to bullying. A lot of these incidents are simply a matter of conflict. Unfortunately more and more we are finding that many incidents at school start through social media. Students have been known to send insulting or nasty comments to each other via Facebook, Instagram or similar programs. Facebook itself requests users be at least 13 years old which is Year 8 age. Parents should insist on knowing passwords and should regularly check student accounts. This should be seen as education, not spying. As a parent, it is your role to teach your child/ren how to correctly use the internet and social media. Please click on the button below this column to read our school policy on Social Media.
On Monday, April 4th from 5-7pm, South Newman Primary School will be holding its annual Learning Journey. This is a fantastic opportunity for your children to show off everything they have achieved in Term 1. Parents will be lead around the classes by their children, where different school programs and activities will be explained, samples of work will be on display and, in some classes, parents can experience the activities their children engage in on a daily basis. Learning Journey night is not a night for parent/teacher meetings. If you require a meeting with your child’s teacher, I encourage you to make a meeting for another day. The teacher’s role on the night is to facilitate the Learning Journey for their classroom and answer incidental questions. This night will also be the first fundraising event for our Yr 6 camp. Several parents and students will be selling food and drinks on the night. More information will be sent out closer to the date.
As always please contact your child’s teacher if you have any concerns or questions regarding their education or development at our school.
Myrissa Dix
Principal
Staff Spotlight
Mrs Katie Wallace - Deputy Principal
Mrs Jen Dickinson - Deputy Principal
Miss Myrissa Dix - Principal
Merit Awards
Week 4 Merits
Week 6 Merits
Student Councillors
Faction Captains
Farewell
After more than 10 years as our School Registrar, Mrs Thomas is leaving us at Easter to join Mr Thomas in Jurien Bay. We wish her all the best and hope she enjoys her sea change.
Art News
This term has been a busy term already with preparations under way for our Learning Journey in week 10.
It is “all systems go” with planning, painting, designing some amazing artwork by the children. Famous artists Monet, Picasso and Matisse were the inspiration behind a lot of our artwork, with our focus being on Art history.
Also coming up this term is our very emotional ANZAC Day Service. Our art focus is on this event and we have been integrating some wonderfully rich Australian history.
Wanted: (Desperately!!)
• Ice cream containers - small and large.
• Meat trays - both foam and plastic.
• Yoghurt containers - small and large.
Thank you to all my amazing little artists!
ART ROCKS!
Miss Marie
Art Specialist
Room 1 Writing Visuals
The Year Four’s in Room 1 have been learning about Narrative writing. This week we have begun looking at how to write a Sizzling Start. A sizzling start captures the reader’s attention and doesn’t allow any ‘boring’ bits… As a whole class the students were given a picture stimulus and from that picture, students were asked to write an orientation using their senses to help create a picture in the reader’s head. They’ve done a marvellous job and we definitely have some talented writers in Room 1.
Attendance
At South Newman Primary School, we want to make sure your child is happy, safe and learning. Regular attendance at school is really important for the student to achieve academic goals, make friends and build confidence. As a parent or legal guardian of an enrolled child, you are responsible under the School Education Act 1999 to ensure the attendance of your child at school every day. The Department of Education’s Student Attendance policy requires parents/guardians to provide an acceptable explanation when your child is not in school.
To ensure your child’s attendance records are kept up-to-date, you can contact the school office, notify the class teacher, reply to the school SMS communication or simply complete the Absentee Form under our Skoolbag App.
Consistent attendance is essential in achieving social and academic learning outcomes.
Kelly Madson
School Attendance Officer
Swimming Carnival
Thank you to Doug Harvey and Lisa Parker from the Swimming Club for timing the events at our swimming carnival. Your help is muchly appreciated.