18 September 2024

Update from Principal

Dear Families,

It has been a very busy but great term at our wonderful school.  I continue to be amazed by the behaviour of our students and the dedication of our staff. It truly is a pleasure to come to work every day.  Thank you to families who have joined the Facebook Group and for the positive feedback about feeling more connected to the school. If you want to join, please see the link below.  Please stay safe over the holidays and please remember that Monday 7 October is a School Development Day and students DO NOT attend on this day.  We will see everyone back on Tuesday 8 October for Term 4!

Facebook

In collaboration with the School Board, we’ve been exploring new methods for the school to communicate with families and share regular updates and positive news. We’re excited to trial a private, closed Facebook Group exclusively for current staff, parents, and carers of current students. This group will not be open to extended family members (unless they are legal guardians) or former staff and students. Participation in the group is voluntary. Please click on the link below which will take you to the group and click on “join group”.

Voluntary Contributions 2024

Thank you to the families who have paid their voluntary contributions for 2024 – while contributions are voluntary, the quality of our teaching and learning programs are directly enhanced by your contribution, which is used to supplement consumables and resources in all curriculum areas. Your contributions help the school replace old classroom resources and provide better learning experiences for your children.

Reporting to Parents Update as directed by Department of Education WA

I am writing to inform families that as part of the DOE WA initiative to reduce red tape and workload pressures for teachers and school leaders, they have identified that schools can reduce their end-of-semester reporting workload. Firstly, I think it is important that families understand that this is coming from a department level and not something that has been initiated by the school. We are committed to ensuring families feel informed about their child’s progress but also committed to recognising the impact the current reporting system has on the workload for staff. I have discussed this with the School Board and wanted to assure families that this is something we have considered carefully. As a staff, we will implement the new changes, as per the new DOE WA requirements below, in Semester Two this year.   

Understand the requirements: - 

For end of semester reports there is: 

• a requirement to provide an overall teacher comment, the content of which is determined at the school. As a staff, we will determine a common format and content across all year levels.  
• no requirement to provide learning area comments - We will no longer write individual comments for any learning area.
• no requirement to provide grades at the strand or sub-strand level - We will continue to provide sub-strand grades.
• no requirement to provide a learning area comment or attachments, such as photos, for students with special educational needs. Reporting for these students aligns with the individual education plan that was developed with parents.

For your interest, I have recently surveyed our staff about how much of an impact this change will make, and their general feedback is: -

• On average a student report takes about 3 hours per student to write.
• Editing of reports takes about 3-4 hours per classroom plus one hour per classroom meeting with the staff member to give feedback and advice.
• Spending less time on writing reports will mean more time can be spent on teaching and learning.

Interschool

Well done to our students for their performance at the interschool on Friday.  They did so well to come from behind to third overall.  Well done, to Ms Tench for her hard work in bringing the carnival together and for ensuring it ran so smoothly.  Congratulations to Deanmore Primary School for being the winning school.

School Board Update

We will be holding our annual Open Board Meeting on Wednesday 30 October.  We welcome parents and carers to come along to see what the board does and possibly consider joining the board in the future as we may have some parent positions opening in 2025.  We meet on school grounds in Room14 from 6pm till 7.30pm.  We hope to see you there! Please email denise.jeffs@education.wa.edu.au if you are wanting to come along or want any information.

Disco

Thank you to the P&C and all the volunteers who helped the disco be so successful.  Reports from the community and the DJ was that overall, our students’ behaviour was great. Check out the photos on Facebook!  I look forward to working with the P&C to plan the 2025 Disco!

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Enterprise Fete

The Enterprise Fete was a huge success with a total profit of $3179.80! This a record amount and will certainly help families with the cost for this year and next year’s graduation events.  I am very excited to start planning the 2026 Enterprise Fete to see if we can raise even more money and see what ideas students in Year 5 & 6 in 2026 come up with for their stalls.  Thank you to the staff, families and students that helped make the fete such a great afternoon and so successful.

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Guidelines for the Class Placement of Students 2025

Newborough Primary School staff are committed to meeting the educational needs of all students.  A great deal of thought, planning and time goes into placing children into classes each year. Every effort is made to place each child in a learning environment that will be happy, productive, and successful.  Please note that we do not stream classes, but we aim to create equitable and functioning class groups.  The school plans classes so that as far as possible they do not exceed the recommended class sizes outlined in the relevant industrial agreements, but at the same time do not exceed the resource allocation made to the school.  

When placing students, we consider factors during the process of allocating students to classes. These include: 

• The balance of male and female students in each class.
• The number of students at each year level when composite classes are formed.
• The need for support for students with special needs or learning difficulties.
• The social dynamics of the cohort of students.
• The creation of equitable class sizes.

Parents may inform the school of any special circumstances that they believe needs to be considered when placing their child in a class. Communication regarding matters requiring special circumstances should be submitted in writing to the Principal or via email denise.jeffs@education.wa.edu.au before the end of the school day on Friday 8 November 2024. 

Please be aware, correspondence that will be considered but not guaranteed includes:- 

• Issues relating to learning disabilities or difficulties.
• Issues relating to medical need or physical impairment will be considered.
• Emotional issues which dramatically impact the learning environment.
• Placement of multiples (twins, triplets, etc.) or defacto/step siblings in the same year level.

Correspondence that will not be considered includes: -

• Requesting or not requesting a teacher by name.
• Requesting a teacher of a particular gender.
• Requesting that two students be placed in the same class unless there is a documented, valid educational need for special consideration.

Class placements are made available to parents on the business day immediately preceding the first day of the academic year for students via SMS or email. In 2025, this will be Tuesday 4 February.  

Parents may request a review of their child’s class placement by arranging a meeting with the principal. However, changes to placements are rare due to the fact they often cause a chain reaction and impact on the class balance, which in turn is unfair to many students within the group. Additionally, a child cannot be moved if the alternative class is already at capacity. While we strive to consider the individual child during the placement process, parents must realise their child is part of a complex equation in school placements. In any case, our experience with this process has shown that parent and student anxieties about a particular class placement usually resolve within the first week of school.

Split Classes 

Each year all Public Schools make decisions about classroom structures, according to the number of students enrolled. The number of students enrolled in each year level often results in some or many classes being formed as composite or ‘split’ classrooms, with students from two-year levels being placed in the same class. When this happens, it can lead parents to wonder about why their child was placed in a composite class. Below is some information about split classes to help you understand this class structure a little more. 

1. There is no empirical evidence for any assumption that student learning is hindered in composite classes.
2. There is evidence that students’ social and emotional well-being benefit from a composite class. Research suggests composites enhance self-esteem, decrease behavioural problems, reduce the impact of labelling, encourage the formation of positive communities and lead to social growth.
3. Students requiring extra learning support, for challenges faced with their learning or a need for acceleration will be catered for equally well in a composite class.
4. At Newborough Primary School we DO NOT stream our classes based on academic performance. Classes are based on the school’s knowledge of the student. 
5. We want to assure you that this is a commonplace classroom structure and will not be detrimental.

AV System

Thanks to the amazing fundraising efforts of the P&C and family support of these events, the P&C have made a generous donation to the school which we will use to have a new AV System installed in our undercover area.  This system will have state-of-the-art sound system, extra speakers, a new projector system and wireless microphones.  Thank you so much!  I will keep you posted as to when it will be installed.

School Development Days for 2025 – Please add these to your calendar for 2025 and note students DO NOT attend on these days:

Term 1 – Mon 3 Feb & Tues 4 Feb 
Term 2 Monday 28 April 
Term 3 Monday 21 July 
Term 4 Monday 13 October  

Ms Denise Jeffs

Chaplaincy News

New cyberbullying resources available from the eSafety.

eSafety is Australia's independent regulator for online safety. They educate Australians about online safety risks and help to remove harmful content such as cyberbullying of children, adult cyber abuse and intimate images or videos shared without consent. Please check out the new resources through eSafety to support students to use the internet safely at school and at home. For more information visit:  

Join The Yellow Lady Bugs Exclusive Online Consultation Session: Help Shape the Future of Early Childhood Intervention

Yellow Ladybugs, in partnership with the ACD, is offering you the chance to make your voice heard in a ground-breaking online consultation session. If you're a parent or carer of an autistic child aged 0-12 who has experience with early childhood intervention, Yellow Ladybugs (YLB) want to hear from you!

This is your opportunity to contribute to the development of a new, neuro-affirming framework for early childhood intervention. Your experiences, insights, and ideas could help shape how practitioners and families approach early support for autistic children across Australia.

What's in it for you?

•  $50 voucher as a thank you for your time.
•  A unique chance to influence the future of early childhood practices.
  
•  Connect with other parents and carers who share your journey.
  

Session Details:

What: YLB Online Consultation Session
Who: Parents/carers of children aged 0-12 who have participated in early childhood intervention
When: Wednesday, 18 September, 7.00pm – 8.30pm (AEST)
Where: Online, via Zoom – Participate from the comfort of your home!

Your input will contribute to a government-funded review led by the University of Melbourne, with the aim of creating a new best-practice framework for early childhood intervention. This is your chance to make a real impact on the support systems that help children with developmental concerns, delays, or disabilities thrive from the very beginning.

Ready to participate? Email YLB at natasha@yellowladybugs.com.au to secure your spot and help build a brighter future for our children.

Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to have your voice heard, connect with others in the community, and influence real change.

P&C News

Please find below the instructions for how to create an account through Flexischools. 

You will be able to order from Flexischool every Tuesday and Thursday. Orders will close by 8am each canteen morning. 

Uniform Shop News

This is the offsite uniform shop

The second-hand uniform shop will be open on the following dates between 8am – 8.30am.

15^th October
12^th November

School Directory

No Animals (Including Dogs) on School Grounds

DoE Security

Keep an eagle eye on our school!

School Watch encourages the school community to report any suspicious activity in and around school grounds, after hours and on weekends, as well as during school holidays.

Telephone 1800 177 777 (free call) or 13 14 44 (WA Police).

Please do not approach any individuals, just contact security and they will investigate the situation or contact the Police. Working together will help protect our school.

Community News

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