Dear Parents,
We have a very busy fortnight coming up! We have many planned activities for the children, continued professional learning for the teachers and preparation for Management Planning at the end of Week 5 (21st/22nd November).
Parents may/may not be aware that the NSW Dept. of Education and Training announced an additional two school development days at the end of the year, i.e. 17th & 18th December. During this time teachers are expected to plan for 2010 and/or continue their professional development.
In exchange for the very last day our teachers will be working on the weekend as previously mentioned. We are keen to complete as much of the planning for 2010 prior to the end of term so that there is time to complete details and organise classes/programs. A skeletal staff only will be available for enrolments etc. on the last day of term.
Record Breaking OC Results!
Five of our outstanding Year 4 students have managed to achieve at the highest level in the state. The following children have either won direct entry or are high on the reserve lists for Opportunity Class placements in 2010:
• Sadin Afsar
• MD Anik
• Yassinn Haque
• Iramul Hoque
• Beau Wakely
We congratulate the boys on their talent and hard work, their wonderfully supportive families and their quality teachers. We will be sad to lose them!
Public Speaking Competition
We wish our representatives, Rima Butler and Iramul Hoque, the best of luck when they perform in the Regional Competition at Wattle Grove P.S. on Tuesday, 3rd November. They will be accompanied by Erin Sinnott.
Stage 2 Camp
Years 3 & 4 will enjoy a wonderful learning experience at Lane Cove National Park on Wednesday/Thursday this week as they complete their study of National Parks and their environments. They will be accompanied by Chad Harris, Julietta Guyatt, Garry Bland, Anne Whittard and Katie Galloway. Some experts from Discovery Leaders will provide additional learning for the children. We wish them a happy and productive time.
‘Smart Data’
On Wednesday afternoon the school executive will meet with School Development Officer, John Warren, to examine key areas of the NAPLAN results. We will identify all the statistically important areas of strength and those requiring development. This will aid programming for the future.
Director General Visit
NSW Dept. of Education and Training, Director General, Michael Coutts-Trotter, will visit our school on Thursday, 5th November. He will speak with teachers and principals and visit some classrooms. We will be specifically discussing the resourcing of special needs children.
Music Workshop
Jenny Suttie and Nicole Ede will accompany 15 talented young choristers to a music workshop on Tuesday, 10th November. The excursion is provided free of charge by the Song Room program. The children will travel by bus to Pier 4 at Millers Point. This is a unique and wonderful opportunity for the children.
Kindy Orientation
We enjoyed our first orientation last Tuesday. The children were very happy and settled – thank you, parents! We look forward to welcoming them again on Tuesday, 3rd November at 2.00pm.
Aboriginal Awards
Jordan Bentley Roberts is the deserving recipient of one of the esteemed Regional Aboriginal awards. Jordan is not only a great swimmer and good school school citizen, he also achieved a perfect score in the spelling section of the NAPLAN tests. We look forward to joining Jordan and his family on Wednesday night, 11th November at the Liverpool Catholic Club where he will receive his award.
Community of Schools Program
On Thursday, 12th November teachers from schools in the country and the Minto Community of Schools will gather to discuss the Financial Literacy program piloted during 2009. I look forward to joining Sarah Rudling and the team as they complete their summative evaluation.
The pilot has been so impressive it has been nominated for one of the 2009 Australian College of Educators’ Awards. Fingers crossed!
Preschool Play Days
In order to facilitate the transition process our young preschoolers for 2010 will enjoy some play days with their parents on Thursday and Friday, 12th & 13th November. We welcome the new youngsters and their families to our school.
Priority Action Schools (PAS) Visit
Our last interaction with the PAS program will be completed at the end of this year. We are greatly appreciative of the funding (approx. $1m over five years) that has enabled us to hire additional personnel to meet the needs of our children. One of our last commitments is to present some of our evaluations to School Education Director, Ray Palmer, on Friday, 13th November. We will focus on the Kindergarten Language Program, the Aboriginal programs and the teachers’ mentoring.
Minto’s Got Talent
Last Friday we hosted the Minto talent competition and were very proud of our school dancing entries from:
• Ashika Jagdish & Kate Blackall
• Tegan Collins
• Malae & Tia Tuimavave, Helen Vaotuua & Alafou Fatu
We congratulate and thank Teagan, who won third prize - $200 worth of sports equipment for our school and a Toys’R’Us voucher for herself.
Forgive an Old Principal
At the end of last term I was ‘singing the praises’ of some outstanding achievements by our students in the NAPLAN tests. I confused our most excellent achiever with her namesake.
In fact, Ashika Jagdish not Ashika Raj (previous student who left in 2007) scored top bands in all areas of Literacy and Numeracy. (What a talent!) We congratulate Ashika and her supportive family.
Have a great fortnight.
Cheryl McBride OAM