Dear Families

As I write this newsletter report it is hard to believe that we are already in week 4 of the term. It has been extremely pleasing to see the way students have settled into classroom and school routines and the focus they are bringing to their learning.

Open Classrooms Afternoon and Meet the Teacher BBQ

On Wednesday 20 March we are holding an Open Classrooms Afternoon and Meet the Teacher BBQ.  We are very pleased to be able to invite parents and family members to join us for the afternoon where they will have the opportunity to visit your child’s classroom and meet and chat with our teachers while enjoying a BBQ.  We encourage you to take this opportunity to come along and see our wonderful learning environments and meet our amazing teaching staff.

Parents and/or family members will need to RSVP to attend this event and further details will be provided later, through our Schoolzine App and on the St Marys District School Facebook page.

Details for the event are as follows:

2.00pm – 3.00pm Open Classrooms

Parents will need to RSVP and will have the opportunity to visit their child/ren’s classrooms and/or join a tour of classrooms/learning areas.

3.20pm – 4.30pm Meet the Teacher BBQ and Chat

Parents will need to RSVP for catering purposes. A BBQ and refreshments will be served on the Green and Teachers and Parents will have the opportunity to meet, chat and share information about how your child/ren have settled into the school year.  Teachers are keen to share some of your child/ren’s positive learning stories with you!

Please RSVP to the Administration Office on 0363723900, or via our Schoolzine Calendar:  St Marys District School (schoolzineplus.com)

If you were unable to make it on the afternoon, please know that we are always very welcoming of families and extend an invitation to keep the communication channels open with all our families through whatever means works best for you. We know that to educate children requires a positive partnership between home and school and the opportunity to meet with or talk with parents is always welcomed. We also know that not everyone can attend these events, so if you are unable to make it please call and make an appointment to speak with a teacher.

St Marys District School External School Review

Executive Summary 2023

The purpose of an External School Review is to support schools to raise student achievement and sustain high performance. All Tasmanian schools participate in a review once every four years and in November 2023, our External School Review was held. The overarching review question is “how well does the school ensure students are known, safe, well and learning?” Attached below is the summary document outlining the findings of the review held last year. The summary outlines aspects of the school’s performance verified through the review process and provides recommendations for key improvement strategies. These recommendations must be integrated into the SMDS Improvement Plan and will inform the work we do over the next four year cycle.

St Marys District School - External School Review Executive Summary - 2023.pdf

Department for Education, Children and Young

People (DECYP) Values

In 2023, Department for Education, Children and Young People (DECYP) staff, children and young people were asked ‘who do we need to be’ to ensure our children and young people have bright lives and positive futures, and what are the values that we need to be guided by. Through this, the values of Connection, Respect, Growth, Courage and Responsibility were identified and adopted by DECYP. These values provide the foundation of the culture in every DECYP school and workplace and all DECYP schools will adopt these values during 2024.

We are excited to spend some time during Term 1 and 2 engaging with these values to build a strong, shared understanding of and commitment to these values for students, staff and families.

Attendance: Setting Your Child Up For Success

Make every school day count. Check out this new video.

There are lots of things you can do to set your child up for success:

Make sure your child goes to school, every day

Going to school every day gives your child every chance to learn and  grow, and connect with their mates and teachers. It’s where bright futures start and where they’ll benefit the most.

Get them excited for school

If you show a positive attitude and excitement towards school, your child will pick up on that.

The most common thing we hear from students, of all ages, is that school is where they can:

• spend time with their friends and teachers
• create new and fun experiences
• find their interests
• learn new things
• open up their options – for whatever future they want (whether that’s their dream job or to travel around the world).

Share these positives with your child.

Talk to your child about school

Open up a conversation with your child about what’s happening at school. It will help you to better support their interests and confidence in learning. If you show an interest in school, they’ll know that getting an education is important and valued.

Celebrate the milestones

Big and small! Celebrate milestones such as making it through the first day or week of school. And remember: all milestones look different. If it’s a big achievement for your child, it’s important to recognise it.

Set up a time to talk to your child’s teacher

If you’re struggling to get your child to school, help is available. Please talk to us at school about your situation. We’ll support you, in whatever way we can.

Know when to seek help

There is no weakness in admitting you need help. If your child has completely disengaged with school, and not attending at all, there is support to help you. In the first instance, talk to us at school.

For more helpful tips, please check out the Anything can happen website.

Safeguarding Our School – updated guidance for parents

To help us manage the school site we would like to share updated guidance for parents.

To reduce the number of entry points to the school, parents who wish to drop off or collect their children from their classrooms, are asked to come into the school grounds and access classrooms by walking up the driveway and entering through the Administration Foyer or via the yellow boom gate. 

Please only use this access method when accompanying your children to and from the classroom.  If you are visiting the school at other times during the day please come though the Administration Office and sign in.

To help us control the access to the school and prevent unauthorised visitors from entering the school grounds, please do not access the classrooms or make your way to the administration office via the gym stairs and between blocks 2, 3 or 4. 

We are in the process of obtaining signage to support these changes.  

We appreciate your co-operation and support in following these safety measures. 

Lifting Literacy: Reading

This year all Tasmanian Government schools are taking steps to introduce a new way of teaching literacy. This follows the latest national and international research about how our brains learn to read.  It’s important that every teacher in Tasmania has a common understanding of best practice when it comes to teaching literacy.

From 2024 all our teachers will be undertaking training in how to teach reading based on the latest evidence. Work has already begun this year to ensure our evidence-based approaches cater for the specific needs of students across our school.

Read more about how Tasmania’s school system is introducing a new way of teaching reading on the DECYP website.

Vaping – resources available for families and students

Vaping continues to be a trend amongst children and young people.

Electronic cigarettes, or vapes, are similar to smoking cigarettes, but don’t use tobacco.

Instead, vapes are a battery-operated device which heats a liquid. This liquid turns into an aerosol and is inhaled.  Like smoking cigarettes, vaping is highly addictive.

Research shows that young people are three times as likely to start smoking if they vape.

While Tasmanian law says that a person under 18 can’t use, possess or buy vapes, we know that some young people are doing it because they believe it’s a safer option than smoking cigarettes.

It’s important to work together to educate them about the health impacts of vaping and the harm it can cause on their short- and long-term physical health.

The Department for Education, Children and Young People has a dedicated webpage with information and resources for teachers, parents/carers and young people.  This includes tips for talking to your children about vaping and how you can support them in quitting.  The attached fact sheet also has some useful information to help support you in with these conversations.

At a school level, we are approaching vaping as a health issue. We use a range of educational resources to help students make healthy choices and informed decisions.

It’s important that we all work together to nurture the wellbeing of students so they can continue to grow, thrive and succeed.

If you have any questions or concerns, please get in touch with either your child’s teacher, sector AST or myself.

Warm regards,

Carolyn Watson

Principal

Friday afternoon painting in Prep/1 A. Students were busy creating 'Summertime' paintings called ‘Footprints in the Sand’.  Stayed tuned for the end results.

What an amazing start to learning our Kindergarten children have had. The staggered start with individual groups and then both groups together for half days has been a great transition into the classroom environment, allowing children to settle confidently,  showing a sense of belonging and to feel safe and secure in learning environments.

During the first couple of weeks, our focus was to ensure a positive transition, getting to know one another and routines, citizenship, looking after our belongings and recognising our names. Other experiences that we have been engaging in include construction (block building), socio-dramatic play – camp site, tap tap boards (creating pictures), painting, “All About Me” class book, self portraits, threading, making dinosaur bones, water and sand play, collage, number puzzles and sorting. We are currently focusing on supporting children to further develop and extend their fine motor skills which in turn will support children to hold their pencil correctly and pre-literacy skills of mark making pre-writing experiences and writing their own name.

Our classroom is an array of colour with children proudly displaying their art work. We encourage families to come into the classroom to see what your child has been doing.  They will be very excited to show you their art on the wall.

The new literacy/quiet space has been working well and children are using this to self regulate or have some alone time. We have been talking with children about their emotions and using this space if they need some time out.

 Kate, Robyn and Emma

Students from Prep to Grade 2 have been learning about emotions and feelings.  They are understanding that emotions are ways to express feelings, and that feelings are how our body and mind reacts to different circumstances around us.  They are investigating how to become self-aware, how to confidently seek help and how to communicate their feelings clearly.  Through audio books, sock puppets, drawings, peer interviews and charades, our students are experiencing many opportunities to develop these skills. 

Grade 3 and 4 students are embarking on “Making Connections”.  This term will focus on how our students can apply skills and strategies to interact respectfully with others.  They will also be developing their “inner emotional detective” so that they can recognise whether they can use their own coping skills to deal with their emotions or do they need others to support them.  Our Grade 3 and 4 students are also experiencing changes in height, shoe size, appetite, different interests and developing different relationships with peers in their 2024 class.  All these changes and transitions can make for confusing emotions.  Our Health lessons will equip them to understand the importance of self-care and empathy for others. 

Please enjoy these photos of ‘emotional and social’ learning in Health Education. 

This term our Kindergarten to Grade 2 students will be developing a host of gross motor movement skills and fine motor abilities.  Learning to coordinate big muscles and small muscles, with and without equipment, how to use space safely, how to move our bodies in different ways and enjoy the feeling of this movement is a focus this term.    

Our Grade 3 – 6 students are engaging in Athletics Development.  They are learning, refining and developing improved proficiency in a range of track and field events in preparation for the athletic sporting pathway.  Good running, jumping and throwing techniques, responsible and purposeful use of athletic equipment and safety at all times, are they key focus areas in PE at the moment. 

Please enjoy these pictures from PE classes so far this term. 

We have had a busy few weeks settling back into the 2024 school year!

We commenced the year with some team building and goal setting days for our students where they had the chance to spend time with their new classes and meet their teachers. This has helped to set students up for success as they moved into regular classes setting up new routines and expectations and getting on with learning. As I walk into classes I can see students hard at work in all subjects. It is great to hear students articulate what they are learning and why they are learning it.  

Year 7 Camp

Last week our Year 7s headed off to Coles Bay for their camp. The camp began with kayaking at Coles Bay – thank you to Freycinet Adventures for supporting this activity. During the evening students put on talent shows with great enthusiasm and energy! It was wonderful to see the collaboration and teamwork displayed by our students.

Our planned hikes in Freycinet National Park were interrupted by the extreme weather warnings so on Day 2 we went into Bicheno and spent time at Natureworld before a swim at Waubs Bay Beach. Day 3 saw us return to Bicheno where we spent time exploring at the Blowhole before completing the foreshore walk. It was wonderful to see the curiosity that students had for the creatures they were finding on the beach and using their HaSS vocabulary when discussing the environment!

It was wonderful to receive positive feedback from students and parents calling it “brilliant” and “lots of fun!”  

Thank you to the students for their flexibility with our changing plans and the support of our staff on this camp – Miss Cook, Mrs Waters, Mrs Barratt and Miss Catherine Bean.

Short Courses

Our students have thrown themselves into a range of activities in short courses so far this year – from Lawn Bowls, Creating Music Videos, Sewing and Design, Zine Making, and Pool Games! These are wonderful opportunities for students to immerse themselves in an activity over five weeks to learn and develop a skill. We have many more exciting activities planned for students and thank our community partners for their support with these activities.

House Events

Our House captains hosted a “Meet your Captains” event allowing students to see who was leading their Houses for 2024 and help to create House banners. It was wonderful to see the enthusiasm from students participating in this event and we will no doubt see this continue into our upcoming Secondary Swimming Carnival!

Students received a number of forms on book and uniform days and at the beginning of the term.  These include:

• Information Validation Forms
• Aquatics Form
  
• Medical Management Plans
• Administration of Medication (for those students requiring medication at school)
• ICT User agreement forms

Thank you to those parents who have returned their forms.   Students who have not returned their forms will be issued with a new ones over the coming week.  Please keep an eye out for them and complete, sign and return as soon as possible.  Students will not be able to participate in excursions, swimming activities or access computers until these forms are returned. 

These notices have been sent home to parents in the last fortnight.  If you did not receive one and would like to receive a copy of the notice, please contact the school office on 63 723 900.

PRIMARY

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