Dear Parents and Guardians,

I hope everyone had a refreshing and happy holiday and are now ready to start term two.  Last term we held our parent teacher meetings and the feedback received from both teachers and parents was very positive, especially the timing of the conversations. Parents and teachers both agreed that giving and receiving feedback about how children are progressing at the end of term 1 is very useful.  I would like to thank teachers for the work they did to prepare for the meetings and our parent community for taking the time to come to these meeting. Your partnership is always greatly appreciated!

I would sincerely like to thank parents, students and teachers forattending the ANZAC Day march on behalf of our school.  ANZAC Day falls during the school holidays and as such, it is hard to get a big representation of school children.   I was delighted to see a large group of Punchbowl students represent our school along with Mrs Dean, Miss Walkinshaw, Miss Waldron, Mrs Dunn and myself. A big thank you to Jaeger T, Oliver W, Oliver F, Tiarna K and Ally W members of our student Leadership Board who stayed on for the ceremony and laid a wreath at the Cenotaph.

I would like to welcome two new staff members to our school, we welcome Kathryn Allen who will be working in the office Wednesday, Thursday & Friday and Luke Scott who will be working as a Teacher Assistant across the school. One of our longest serving Teacher Assistants, Mrs Hodgson has taken a reduction in hours but will still be working in the library three afternoons a week.

School Association AGM – 8^th May

Just a quick reminder we will be holding our AGM on Wednesday, 8^th May in the staffroom.  Thank you to the people who have already nominated to be on the association.  All parents of our school are members of our School Association and as such, anyone can come along to any of our meetings.  These meetings are held in the staffroom from 7pm – 8pm on Wednesday approximately once a month.  School Association Committee Members are formally elected at the AGM for a two-year cycle with half retiring each year and is made up of both teachers and parents.  The committee members are the only people with voting rights; however, anyone can attend the meetings. We always welcome new people to our meetings.

State Athletic Carnival

Congratulations to Tahlia B, Charlie D, Aya C, Sophie D and Flynn M who have been chosen to represent the LSSSA to compete at the State Athletic Carnival on Friday, 10^th May at the St Leonards Athletics Track.  We wish them the best of luck.

Duty of Care and starting and finishing times of school

A number of children are entering the school grounds without their parents before 8.30am.  Please be aware there is no duty of care for your children prior to this time.  Children should not arrive at school before 8.30am.  Teachers have their doors shut and are preparing for the school day.  At 3.15pm the classroom and school doors will also be locked as teachers are in meetings from this time.  Children are only to be in the playground if supervised by their parents or a carer.

Parking

Please be aware that the parking area in the Kindergarten is only for staff members.  Parents are not to drive into this area to drop off or pick up children in the mornings or afternoon.  The disabled parking is only for families with a disability parking permit.

NAPLAN Testing

In 2019, the majority of NAPLAN testing will be completed online. The Grade 3 Writing test will be the only paper based test undertaken by our students this year. Teachers have been preparing students by giving them the opportunity to practise online examples so they are familiar with the use of the technology. Some examples of the online tests can be found at https://www.nap.edu.au/online-assessment/public-demonstration-site. If you would like further information about NAPLAN, please see Mrs Dean.

Cross Country Carnivals

Our annual Grade 3 to 6 Cross Country carnival will be held again on Wednesday, 8^th May at Waverley Primary School. All children in these grades will have an early lunch at our school and then head to Waverley Primary school by bus ready to compete in races.  Our daily P.E roster has now incorporated practice runs around school to build children’s stamina before the event.  Once again, this is an exciting and well supported carnival for all children Grades 3-6 and as always children are expected to participate at their own ability. We have lots of willing support from teachers and our sport leaders for those students who would like someone to walk/jog with. We also have a special reward for those classes who have 100% participation rate!

The K-2 Cross Country carnival will be held on Thursday, 23rd May 2019 at Punchbowl Primary School.

Hot Food Days

Our very popular Hot Food days are once again up and running for Term 2.  A big thank you to Michelle Birtwistle and Melissa Neil who has once again volunteered to coordinate this initiative.  Remember to get your orders in by the due date as we are unable to fill late orders. A reminder that there will be no reimbursements if students are sick or away on Hot Food days.

 

Liz O'Donahue - Principal

Educational Adjustments - Disability Funding - Parent and Family Forums - Term 2

Parents and families are invited to attend a forum to provide information about and discuss Educational Adjustments.

 

From 2020, there will be a new approach in Department of Education schools to assisting students with disability to access, participate and engage in quality educational programs. 

Forums are scheduled for Term 2. Light refreshments will be provided.

 

See details of locations and timing and how to register at: REGISTER HERE

 

For paper based newsletters please use the full web address to register is: https://edu.formstack.com/forms/parent_forums

Premiers Reading Challenge 2019

Starts 29^th of April 2019 (first day of term 2) and will runs for 10 weeks!

 Students from Prep to Year 6 are challenged to read 10 books in 10 week to win prizes.

They can negotiate with their class teacher to have a large chapter book counted as being more than one book.

 To monitor progress all students will all get a pencil, bookmark and reading log to record how they are going.

Every student at Punchbowl will have an opportunity to participate and is registered.

Students  can also write a book review on the Premier’s Reading Challenge website for a chance to win a gift voucher.

https://premiersreadingchallenge.tas.gov.au/Pages/about-the-challenge.aspx

 Class Teachers will be sharing student’s progress with Miss Rainbow who have some special prizes for people who are doing a really great job with their reading and these will be handing these out over the ten weeks of Term 2.

 Students who complete the challenge will receive a certificate from the Premier of Tasmania and a pack of prizes for participating.

 The Premier of Tasmanian has stated

‘Reading is just like sport - the more you practice the better you get.

I encourage students to take up the challenge of reading at least 10 books in 10 weeks.

Reading and literacy skills are the basic building blocks of life, no matter what you aspire to do or be’. 

Any questions can be directed to class teachers or Miss Rainbow regarding this event.

Congratulations

We are seeking some parent/ family volunteers who may be able to give up some time in the afternoon to support our Early Childhood students in their reading.

Please contact the office to give your details or speak with Miss Rainbow about being involved in our upcoming reading program.

Volunteers will need to have a Working with Vulnerable Children's card. Thank you for your support. 

Punchbowl Primary School is raising funds. Here's how you can help...

The 2019/2020 Entertainment Book was sent home last term with students. If you do not wish to purchase the hard copy of the book, can you please return book to the school office as soon as possible.  Should you wish to order another book 

Click here to order your book online

Annual General Meeting/General Meeting

A reminder, the Punchbowl Primary School Association AGM will be held on Wednesday, 8th May, commencing at 7:00pm in the school staffroom, followed by a General Meeting. All welcome to attend!

Mother's Day Stall

On Thursday, 9th May the Fundraising Committee will be holding a Mother's Day Stall.  Each class will have the opportunity to visit the stall throughout the day.