The Punchbowl Press

2021 Term 3 Week 5

Important Dates

Friday 13 August 9:00am to 10:00am -  FREE Parent Workshop - Developing Resilience in Children (Online via Zoom - more details in the newsletter)  

Acting Principal's Message

We are living through some of the most challenging times I have faced as an educator, as well as a mother, sister and daughter.  I am so grateful to all our families who have been doing extraordinary learning with their children, while juggling work and the demands of family.  From all the staff, our deepest thanks for all that you do.  We are safer in our homes, with minimal movement in the community.   

I have seen amazing levels of engagement from Preschool to Year 6 with the huge variety of activities our teachers are planning for our students; science experiments, artworks, singing, reading, writing, dancing, exercising, cooking, gardening, games, bike riding, scooter riding, mathematics, mapping, Olympic flames and so much more. 

To the phenomenal staff of our school, you are continuing to manage Learning at home with a high level of professionalism, agility and teamwork which exemplifies the values of our school culture.  The level of engagement of our families and individualised support being provided is second to none. 

As teachers, we thrive on seeing our students engaged and doing well.  We are so excited to see our students faces and the incredible efforts they are making with their learning.  This week, we have started having Wellbeing Check – in Zoom meetings with some classes in years 1-6. Thank you for making this happen for your child.   Participation is entirely by choice.  You will be contacted by your classroom teacher directly if this applies to you child. 

Refer to the Department of Education Advice to families for the most up to date information.  You can always contact class teachers directly through Class Dojo and Seesaw.  All our teachers are working from home.  You can also arrange a time for teachers to call you through these two platforms. 

Please reach out to us if there is anything we can do to support you and your families as we navigate through the next three weeks of learning at home. 

Stay home, Stay safe. 

Mrs McGeary - Acting Principal 

This page provides the latest advice for parents and carers on the department’s response to the pandemic. This guide is updated regularly based on advice from NSW Health. Please check this regularly. 

Aussie of the Month

Our school is participating in an exciting initiative to recognise students from Preschool to Year 6 called 'Aussie of the Month'. The program recognises personal endeavour, achievement and contribution to the community and reflects some of the values we share as Australians. 

Each month one student from Preschool to Year 2 and one student from Year 3 to 6 will be nominated by the relevant team to receive the Aussie of the Month Award. This Award acknowledges outstanding performance in such areas as:  

  • Mateship - Displaying a spirit of generosity and compassion 

  • Respect - Showing respect to self, others or the environment at school and/or in the community 

  • Inclusion -  Including others and celebrating the differences and uniqueness in all of us 

  • Work Ethic - Dedicated to trying their best and always putting in a great effort 

    Congratulations to Mercy and Kevin who are our Aussie's of the Month for August. 

Mercy is the August Aussie of the Month (Preschool to Year 2)

Mercy from K Purple is a highly motivated student who always strives to give her best. She approaches school life with a cheerful zest and demonstrates an eagerness and dedication to learning. Mercy sets an example for others with her outstanding behaviour. She consistently follows our school values and is a co-operative class member, both in the classroom and playground. Mercy has developed good social skills and has formed positive relationships with others. She displays empathy and is compassionate towards members of her class. Mercy is a diligent and dedicated student who readily contributes to all class activities and has a positive attitude to all aspects of school life. 

Congratulations on this outstanding achievement Mercy. 

Kevin is the August Aussie of the Month (Year 3 to Year 6)

Kevin from 5 Fireball is a kind hearted student who always follows school rules and values. He has a calm demeanor and is an excellent role model. Kevin strives to achieve the best he can in all his learning areas. He has continued to show his dedication to his work by producing quality work while learning from home and showing perseverance during this challenging time. 

Congratulations on this outstanding achievement Kevin. 

FREE Parent Workshop - Developing Resilience in Children

Date and Time

From Friday, August. 13th, 9:00 am to Friday, August. 13th, 10:00 am

Information

This workshop helps parents gain knowledge about resilience, looks at how it is developed and what external factors can affect resilience. It also looks at how to promote your child’s resilience and examines what resources are available to parents.

This workshop is being offered FREE to all Punchbowl Public School parents. Please follow the link to register.  

https://events.learninglinks.org.au/6FElJp6/4aI56FThgI

The 1-hour session covers topics such as:

• What is resilience?

• Why is it important?

• What are the factors associated with it?

• 7 learnable skills of resilience

• The overall model of resilience

• The protective factors associated with resilience

Developing Resilience in Children - Free Parent Workshop

Download the flyer for more information. 
Download

Parent Webinar Technical Zoom Technical Information

Download the information attached to help you with the Zoom platform - Developing Resilience in Children
Download

Enrolments for Kindergarten 2022 are now open.

 -All children must be in compulsory schooling by their 6th birthday.

-Children can start kindergarten at the beginning of 2022 if they turn 5 on or before 31 July 2022.

-Students should start school at the beginning of the school year.You can enrol using the online application form (follow the link) or contact the office on 97505055 if you would prefer a paper form.

Enrolment forms are also available in other languages.

Schools as Community Centre (SaCC)

Our SaCC playgroups have continued online this term and it has been wonderful to see our littlest learners engaging and sending in photos and videos on the Punchbowl Public School School as Community Centre Facebook page

Here are some of the images from National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day. Thank you to the parents for your ongoing support. 


Community Support Organisations - August

If families require additional support throughout this time please remember that the SaCC are available to assist with linking you in to local community support services throughout this time. Please contact Asenati Mareko directly on 0439487865 or email asenati.mareko@det.nsw.edu.au

Download

Please answer our call

While we are Learning from home our teachers are also working from home. Please remember that teachers will be calling to check in and offer support and will be calling from a 'Private or Unknown Number'. Please take the call.If you miss a call please call the school on 9750 5055 and the teacher will call you back.

Preschool & Early Intervention

The preschool students have been learning from home through the Seesaw app. Children keep connected with their preschool educators through morning greetings, following the preschool routine by saying the “Acknowledgement of Country” and singing the “Care for Country” song. 

The children have been sharing their healthy eating, by sharing pictures of the fruit and vegetables they eat “Funny fruit faces” and participating in activities just like at preschool, such as the “Recyclable material construction” and “Experiments.” The preschool educators provide activities based on children’s interests and current events, such as the “Olympics” and “Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day.” 

Our preschoolers have been participating in lots of dancing and singing to the same songs they would in the classroom. They have also been listening to the educators reading a wide variety of books as if we were in the room together. To not forget our classmates, they have been matching photos of each other and remembering their names. 

As we continue learning from home, we would like to send a big shout-out to our PPS PRESCHOOL families and educators. Thank you to all for all your hard work and for sharing your learning with us. 

Preschool 2022 Enrolments - Now OPEN

Children are eligible to enrol in NSW public preschools if they turn four on or before 31 July of that year.

Applications for 2022 are now open. 

More information regarding preschool enrolment as well at the application form are available on the website. You can also contact the office on 9750 5055 for a copy on the enrolment form. 

Early Stage 1

During Term 3, students have been engaging in a wide range of learning from their homes. Students have been practising to read and write their tricky words with automaticity. They have also been using these words to create and write amazing sentences. Thank you to all the supportive parents who are adapting and doing their best at this tricky time! It has been lovely to see all your beautiful faces and you should all be so proud of the hard work and commitment you have put into your learning! 

K/6O & K/6K

As we embrace learning from home for Term 3, Students in Kookaburra’s and Owl’s have been engaged in some fantastic learning. We have been practising creative, mathematical and literacy skills. It is great to see the students enjoying their home learning.  We would like to thank all families for the ongoing support in your child’s learning from home and the impressive level of learning that is taking place.  

Stage 1

Have a look at the amazing learning at home that has been happing this term in Stage 1. A massive thank you to all our students, families and teachers for your wonderful work and support. 

Stage 2

Stage 2 have been working so hard on their learning at home. Have a look at some of our photos showing our craft skills, number work and STEM challenges. The teachers are very proud of the hard work students are doing and thank families for their support. 

Stage 3

Stage 3 have been very busy working from home. We have put together collages from the classes showcasing some of the amazing work they have been doing. These include designing their own Olympic torch, word art, squiggle drawings and work on 2D shapes. The teachers are proud of the amazing work that they have been doing. Way to go Stage 3. 

Community Language

This term has had a roller coaster start. However, we have many success stories and a lot of resilience from our students and parents. We would like to thank all students and parents for their efforts and commitment. These are snapshots of our students’ wonderful work from Year 1 to Year 6. 

نود أن نشكر كل الطلبة والآباء على مجهودهم الرائع وتشجيعهم لأولادهم لعمل الفرض الدراسي والاندماج في تعليمهم ليس فقط في القراءة والكتابة لكن أيضا في توفير ما يحتاجونه للتقدم أماما. 

Library

Student engagement with myON reading tasks has seen a consistent increase in usage with more students reading regularly. Our Year 2, Year 3 and Year 4 students are taking the lead with time spent reading daily and the amount of pages read. As always, there is room to build on this foundation by further increasing the time each student spends reading daily. This reading routine will help them considerably as they continue their learning journey. 

Search for new titles from Australian publishers which have been added to our myON e-Library. To find the book titles by Australian publishers use the search filter, click on Publisher and type in Redback or Allen Unwin. There are 100 new titles which includes fiction and non-fiction. 

Premiers Reading Challenge (PRC)

The date for completion of the PRC has been extended to September. Our team are working to ensure that all our students will be able to complete the challenge. Links to PRC books will be made available through Class Dojo. 

Library- STEM

Students have tested their creativity and thinking skills by eagerly approaching the STEM challenges. Their perseverance with tasks is impressive as is evidenced by their final products. The manner in which our students have taken ownership of their learning, explaining procedures, attempting to give explanations and uploading videos of their work on to Class Dojo has been a remarkable effort.  

Thank you to all our parents for your dedication and commitment to your child’s learning.  

Education and Science Week

Lockdown could not prevent us from celebrating lifelong learning. Students enjoyed a daily story read to them by our wonderful teachers. These stories were made available through our online learning platforms. 

An easy STEM activity, which excites young and old alike, was enjoyed by our students. Folding paper planes and making variations to it continues to extend the learning and thinking of the students. Many of them are working on their skills in preparation for the young scientist paper plane competition later this month. To be eligible for entry students must meet qualification distance or airtime for their grade category. More information will be made available in the coming week. 

Gardening

Whilst in lockdown we can't watch our school garden grow but we can think of other ways to watch nature grow.

Take a local walk and notice all the beautiful plants and flowers along the way. There are many spots to choose, just start walking and spotting little beauties on the way, it will change your day!

Check out my local discoveries!

Time Expectations - Learning from home

The NSW Department of Education has put together the following information to support families with time expectations while Learning from home.Remember, that Learning from home won't look the same as Learning at school and that is okay. During this period, it is important to enjoy time together as a family, make sure you have plenty of breaks and remember to get some fresh air. Thank you for your continued support.

'Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.' - (Helen Keller)

Mrs Kontakos - Deputy Principal Student and Community Engagement

Did you know that the newsletter can be translated to many different languages?

- Scroll all the way to the bottom until you see the ‘Select Language’ option. Select your preferences language

You can now read the news in your chosen language.

Please make sure you are checking the NSW Health website regularly for the latest COVID-19 case locations and alerts in NSW.