Respect, Responsibility, Personal Best Branxton Public School Newsletter to Parents

BRANXTON PUBLIC SCHOOL

Find us at: 12 King St, Branxton NSW 2335 Email: branxton-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au Phone: (02) 4938 1214 Fax: (02) 4938 1905 Website: www.branxton-p.schools.nsw.gov.au

Week 6 Term 1 WEDNESDAY 6TH MARCH, 2019

Dates to Remember

8.3.19 PBL Celebration Day

18.3.19 P&C AGM - 6PM Library

19.3.19 Author Visit - Tim Harris

21.3.19 Infants Cross Country

22.3.19 Primary Cross Country

2.4.19 Zone Cross Country

6.4.19 P&C Trivia Night

10.4.19 Whole School Photos

11.4.19 Easter Hat Parade

Our students are certainly benefitting from the

dedication of our teachers and the professional

learning we are implementing. Evidence of this is

presented in the graphs below which is part of an

in-depth analysis conducted by Marcus Garrett

our Choose Maths consultant.

I would like to thank the teachers of our school

for their continued hard work and dedication they

display to our students. I would also like to thank

our students who are working

hard, demonstrating persistence

and making their brains sweat.

PRINCIPAL’S NEWS BPS has been a hive of activity over the last few weeks with our students being offered a range of academic and sporting activities. The gardening group is building momentum and I look forward to seeing all the gardens flourishing over the next few months. Fingers crossed we will soon get some rain to assist with this. Band started up again on Friday. In a few weeks we will have a whole school assembly where some of our music groups will have an opportunity to perform for the school. Our teachers have participated in lesson

observations and data meetings throughout the

last week. This is a valuable learning opportunity

for our staff, where they get to watch each other

teach and discuss the strategies demonstrated.

Our data meetings help to build consistency of

teacher judgement and enable Mrs Wicks and

Mrs Noble to determine the students they will be

supporting next.

Respect, Responsibility, Personal Best Branxton Public School

Parent Teacher Interviews Our parent teacher interviews are scheduled for week 10 this term from the 1

st- 4

th April. This is a

valuable opportunity to touch base with your child’s teacher and set some goals to work towards, Please return the forms to your child’s teacher ASAP so meetings can be scheduled. Free Access to Microsoft 365 Office 365 online tools are available to all students through their student portal. Students need to search for DET student

portal on their device at home and then log in using their user name and password like they do at school.

Students access Office 365 by following the link under ‘Learning’ in their student portal.

Students can download the latest full desktop version of Microsoft Office from the Office 365 environment and install on up to 15 personal devices, including desktop computers and mobile devices. Look for the ‘Install Office’ button on the Office 365 page.

NAPLAN Online The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual assessment for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. It has been an everyday part of the school calendar since 2008. NAPLAN tests the sorts of skills that are essential for every child to progress through school and life, such as reading, writing, spelling and numeracy. The assessments are undertaken nationwide, every year, from 14-24 May (We have 2 weeks as we complete the assessment online). NAPLAN Online features ‘tailored testing’ which gives students questions that are more suited to their ability – resulting in better assessment and more precise results. Further information is available at https://www.nap.edu.au/naplan/parent-carer-support

We are in the planning phase of this. If you have

any questions or concerns about this can you

please see Mrs Ballenden or Mr Foster who are

our NAPLAN Coordinators.

Absences Last week we had our roles monitored by the Home School Liaison Officer. The tables below show the impact that missing school can have. In the case of illness, it is important that students

are kept at home to recover. Please ensure all

absences are followed up with a note or a phone

call to school explaining why your child was

away.

If your child arrives late or needs to depart early

parents are required to come to the front office

to obtain a printed slip to hand to the class

teacher.

Mrs Ballenden - Relieving Principal

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EARLY STAGE 1 (KINDERGARTEN) NEWS

We have been busy learning our sounds and words in Kindergarten and are looking forward to showing off our reading skills to parent helpers soon. If you can help with reading, please see your child’s teacher. We have also been working on our numbers – reading, writing and making them. Maths was our focus for the Early Stage 1 lesson observations this week and it is great to see all our students making progress. We hope you have been enjoying your child’s Seesaw journal. The children have been learning how to take and upload photos independently. So clever!

Mrs Quilty

Early Stage

1 Supervisor

STAGE 1 NEWS Observation lessons took place in Stage 1 this

week. Modelled reading was the focus with clas-

ses engaged in sharing a book. Teachers were

able to visit the other Stage 1 classrooms and

share ideas and strategies. This will lead to

great outcomes for everyone.

Mrs Noble

Stage 1 Supervisor

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STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

Lachlan S.

On the weekend of 9th and

10th February I went to

Glendale for Regionals for

Branxton Greta Little Athletics.

On the way down to Glendale I was feeling

nervous and scared. At the start of my 400m

race I was very nervous and when I finished my

race I was really puffed out but as their was 2

timed finals I had to wait and see what I came

overall out of 16 people. I ended up coming 1st

in my 400m race and took 6 seconds off my PB

from competition nights at little athletics and the

time I raced was 1 minute and 12 seconds. After

that I got a gold medal that means I go to state.

Also that weekend I competed in the 800m which

I came 5th out of 16 which was a PB of 2:53. I

also raced in the 200m which I came 1st in my

heat and then had to wait around for the final in

which I came 3rd and got a bronze medal for. I

now go to state at Homebush for my 400m race

which will be on the 16th March.

Written by Lachlan

STAGE 2 NEWS Week 6 already and can't you feel Autumn kicking in!

PBL Celebration day is on this Friday 8th March, Infant's Assembly at 9:20 with Primary following at 9:50. Activities for PBL Celebration will go all day with classes attending in pairs.

Stage 2 have a visit from local Historian Melita Watson tomorrow, Thursday 7th March. I'm sure that her talk will give heaps of information about the local area in preparation for the town walk on Wednesday 20th March. Check details on class newsletters.

We have our School Cross Country carnival coming up on Friday 22nd at Miller Park. Preparation is the key to any endeavour so if your child is keen, send them to the back yard for a run. Might give you some peace and quiet for a little while.

Zone Cross Country is at Tocal on Tuesday 2nd April.

We have an Awareness day coming up for Down Syndrome. It is a condition that I have some intimate knowledge about and it will be great to see everyone support this day by wearing Crazy Socks/Stockings on this day. It is linked with Harmony Day which teaches us about how to get on with others no matter who they are or where they come from.

In Science Stage 2 are now looking at flowers and how they guarantee future plants and fruit. We are studying our 'Pollinators' and how the life cycle of plants can be effected in different ways. Mr Johanson Stage 2 Supervisor

STAGE 3 NEWS The Year 6 shirts designs have been narrowed down, with voting taking place to determine the final choice. Once this is completed a note will be sent home for orders. Rutherford Technology High School held an information evening recently. At this meeting packs were distributed to enable students to apply for the GATS class. Please ensure you have submitted all necessary paperwork by the due date. Congratulations to Hannah M who will be joining

Danika as a Hawks House Captain. This position

became vacant as we had a child move on to a

new school.

Mrs Ballenden

Stage 3 Supervisor

Respect, Responsibility, Personal Best Branxton Public School

PBL Our first PBL Assemblies for the year will be held this Friday. The Infants Assembly will start at 9.20am followed by the Primary Assembly at 9.50am. Parents are most welcome to attend. At this Assembly students will receive their Bronze and perhaps Silver Merit Certificates. Parents are notified of this through See Saw or with a slip of paper if you are not connected to See Saw. Zero Hero notifications are also sent out this week. Zero Heroes acknowledge those students who continually uphold our PBL expectations. Zero Heroes show that students take pride in themselves and our school. Teachers really value the students who receive this award. Throughout Friday classes are scheduled to participate in the Challenge b Fit Inflatable Obstacle course. 2 classes will be attending this at a time, starting with our first group at 10am. Ticket Draw Winners

ES1 - Diamond (Personal Best)

- Dominic (Personal Best)

Stage 1 - Amelia (Responsibility)

- Dominic (Respect)

Stage 2 - Josh (Respect)

- Lilly (Personal Best)

Stage 3 - Tristan (Personal Best)

- Markia (Responsibility)

The seven super powers for problem solving

have been our focus in our PBL lessons. Captain

Disposition displays these superpowers. At the

moment, we are learning about being open mind-

ed. When we are open minded we consider new

ideas and we can learn from others. There are

times when we just need to have a go at doing

something different and we can learn if we make

a mistake.

STAFF TRAINING Connecting to Country - Mrs Noble & Mr Johanson. Lesson Observations - All Staff

Mr J and Mrs Noble in front of Baiame Caves

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P&C NEWS

Wow – we’re already half way through Term 1! The Central Hunter Business Chamber held their community movie night last Saturday and we were invited to run a stall. Thank you to Marianne for organising everything and to Sharna, Mel N and Mel F for helping out on the night. It was lovely to see so many Branxton Public students there supporting their community and our wonderful school. We raised nearly $500 from the sale of the glow products. Greta Public School benefited from the ticket sales on the night but in the coming years our school will also benefit from this wonderful community initiative. Don’t forget that

the NRL footy

tipping

competition is

starting in the

next 2 weeks so

be quick and

follow the

instructions to

register and pay.

Our first ever P&C Trivia Night is fast approaching and we only have 4 tables left! If you’d like to book a table during the early bird registration period message us via our Facebook page before 9

th March before the

price goes up!

The Primary Cross Country is being held on Friday 22

nd March. If anyone is able to assist

on the day with handing out ice blocks to all of the children, please let us know. We will also require some assistance for the Infants Cross Country on Wednesday 21

st March.

On Thursday 11

th April we will be holding our

annual Easter Hamper raffle. This will coincide with the Easter Hat Parade at school. Raffle

tickets for each family and a request for donations will be going out in the next few weeks. Easter eggs, Easter bunnies, Easter stationery or craft are all wonderful ideas to donate for the raffle.

In 2019 we are pleased to again offer you the Newcastle, Central Coast and Hunter Entertainment Book 2019/2020. If you are interested in purchasing this fantastic book/App full of discounts for local restaurants and services, please go to www.entertainmentbook.com.au to order or contact Sharna. Memberships cost $65 with a percentage of the profits coming back to our school. Key dates coming up: Footy tipping registration closes – 14

th

March. BPS P&C AGM and General Meeting –

Monday 18th March.

Infants Cross Country – Thursday 21st

March. Primary Cross Country – Friday 22

nd

March. Branxton Public School P&C’s trivia night

– Saturday 6th April at the Branxton Golf

Club. Easter Raffle/Easter Hat Parade –

Thursday 11th April.

To get in touch or keep up to date with the P&C like our Facebook page, read the school newsletter, talk to P&C members, email the address below, help at an event or come along to the next meeting. Thank you for your support Branxton Public School families. Melissa, P&C Secretary

branxtonpublicschool@pandcaffiliate.org.au www.facebook.com/BranxtonPublicPandC

Respect, Responsibility, Personal Best Branxton Public School

Respect, Responsibility, Personal Best Branxton Public School