The Randwick Buzz

Term 2, Week 3 2021

From the Principal

We’ve been pleased to see so many people back in the school again. Home learning may have helped parents understand a teacher’s role better but having parent/carers back in the classroom has definitely emphasized how much we’ve missed your help and involvement.  As they say “It takes a village to raise a child”, so it’s so good to have our Randwick Village back together again. 

At this stage we had planned on opening the school up a little more, but we will need to keep on top of the emerging situation particularly in the Eastern Suburbs.  Please be rigorous in your checking into the NSW Service app wherever you go, maintain social distance and emphasize hand washing. 

Commencing Monday we will take another step in opening up the playground. Parents are invited into the main playground for pick up with Year 1 and 2 being picked up near the main building and on the silver seats.  Gates on Frances Street, The Avenue and Cowper Street will only be opened at 3 pm and will continue to be closed at 3.15 pm for student security.  The gate between the School Hall and Council Chambers will no longer be in use.  If you need to touch base with teachers at this time please maintain physical distance. Continue to organise an interview if you need an extended conversation as this will require NSW Service checking for contact tracing or confine longer conversations to a phone call.  We appreciate you maintaining the gate drop off in the mornings, it means that children can use the playground for active play without fear of running into adults or toddlers. It also means we are able to have a smooth and prompt start to the day’s lessons.  If for any reason you remain in the playground you will need to check in via the Service NSW app .

It was marvellous to attend a solemn ANZAC service with both our band playing and children singing.  While indoor numbers are still limited there was some semblance of former years. 

We were very sad to hear that Bright Stars who have provided our instrumental programs for the past 3 years and string program for 6 years will finish operating in NSW from the end of Term 2.  The Director of these programs Dean Kennedy who has so capably run the program has made this decision to dedicate time to his family, now residing in Queensland.  We thank Dean for his work for our school over this time and wish him well.  The school together with the P&C are looking at alternate providers with the goal of maintaining continuity of the programs from Term 3.   We are happy to hear of any suggestions from parents going forward. 

I am pleased to inform you that Trent Gardiner will join our school as Deputy Principal on Monday,  replacing Lauren Sten who takes up her position as Principal at Double Bay.  We are fortunate in gaining Trent,  currently relieving as  Deputy Principal at Lindfield PS . Trent has a great deal of experience in leading student wellbeing and engagement, learning support, teacher professional development and classroom innovations in his previous schools.  We know you will welcome Trent to our school and community.

Our first P&C meeting for the term will be Monday 17th May.  At this ZOOM meeting you will have the opportunity to meet our new Stage 3 Assistant Principal, Peter Lavender as well as Trent.  There will also be a brief outline of the Accelerated Reader program which has been introduced this year to encourage students to remain engaged in reading. DID YOU KNOW our Library is open every morning and break time Monday to Thursday?  Children can borrow books, do some quiet reading or complete homework from 8.30 each morning.

Finally we will all be keeping our fingers crossed  that our our wonderful performances for which students are excitedly preparing can go ahead. We have been conservative in our approach and limited audience numbers to each performance and increased the number of these so that everyone has a chance to enjoy.  Please see the poster for the dates for the year.

Susan Allen

Principal

Randwick Public School

"If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams" Roald Dahl

Parent Language Representatives

As part of the school’s ongoing commitment to parent and community engagement, Randwick Public School will be introducing a new parent volunteer role in 2021:  Parent Language Representatives (PLRs).  

What is the role of a PLR?

There are two responsibilities of a Parent Language Representative (PLR):

  • You will periodically receive emails from the school and/or the P&C about upcoming community events and parent volunteer opportunities.  As PLR, we kindly request that you translate these messages into your home language and then email this translation to the parents in your Language Group email list.
  • We also encourage each PLR to hold a meeting - online or in person,  with the parents in your Language Group to provide the school with a list of key dates and celebrations from the countries and cultures of that language/dialect.  These events can be added to a centralised school calendar and as the event approaches the school will be able to contact the PLR to see if parents from that Language Group would like to come into the school to help commemorate the day. The school is happy to assist PLRs in running these meetings in the form of technology assistance (if online) or using rooms as meeting places (if in person).   
  • How can I express interest in becoming a PLR?

    If you would like to express interest in becoming a PLR, please complete the following Google Form: Expression of interest 

    • Vietnamese
    • Cantonese
    • Japanese
    • German and Swiss German
    • Greek
    • Indonesian
    • Portuguese
    • French
    • Italian
    • Polish
    • Thai
    • Arabic
    • Mongolian
    • Korean
    • Hebrew
    • Norwegian
    • Farsi
    • Languages and dialects of India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan
    • Languages and dialects of the Philippines


    Patrick Madden- EAL/D Teacher

    Why Attendance Matters

    Lunchtime Activities

    School Performances

    Staff Spotlight - Zora Lombardo

    How long have you been teaching?  Where and for how long?   I've been teaching for over 20 plus years with the Department. Exact years will truly show my age. I've worked in various schools around in Sydney my longest was in the Fairfield Network for 19 years.  Within my years of teaching I have had many roles and that being learning and support. I have had been wonderful memories working in the Fairfield Network one being my travels with a group of students to China and learning their culture and heritage. I've managed to work in other schools in the Cowpasture Network, Auburn Network and now the Bondi Network.  I'm new at Randwick and learning so much from the wonderful children and staff.

    What do you like about Randwick Public School?  The students and staff have been very welcoming and it has been wonderful to hear my name being heard in the distance as I am becoming a know figure at Randwick.

    • I love the school surroundings especially the out door play area with the outdoor kitchen and seeing children being creative and venturing off in their imaginative world.
    • I love learning about the staff and their many talents. 

    • Overall, I feel very blessed to be at Randwick and embracing all the wonderful things that school has to offer. 

    What is your favourite thing to do?  Love going bush walking and being out in nature. I do enjoy bike riding. Travelling is my thing. I'm always planning on my next adventure. I do need to explore more of Australia.

    What have you read recently?  Love reading about successful and encouraging people and their thinking processes.  I recently read a book by Jay Shetty Think Like a Monk. A great read about  the simplicity of life. some great take always that I am beginning to apply in my daily life...gratitude.

    What is your favourite sports team?  I don't follow any sport teams however I do find myself attending many sport events and just cheering any team that seem like fun.   Love to watch basketball, ice hockey and when travelling overseas I'll make sure I watch a sporting event to be amongst the locals.  Love the surroundings during a sporting event, love the spirit and dedication.

    What is your favourite food?  I love anything that is sweet however I have lots of favourite foods from Indian, Italian, Lebanese and Thai. 

    From the Vice Captains

    Hi everyone ad welcome back to Term 2!  Along with the rest of the leadership team we are really excited to be keeping you up to date with what’s going on at school as we head into an exciting and busy Term 2.

    My name is Olive M and I’m so happy to share the role of school Vice-Captain with Henry.  I have a little sister in Year 3, along with cousins past and present.  I walk to school almost every day and love greeting kids at the gates and putting up the flags in the mornings.  I’m passionate about animal welfare, netball, tennis and baking!

    My name is Henry B and I’m very excited to be Vice-Captain this year.  I love sport and English at school.  I’m the youngest of three children, my brothers are in Year 9 and 10 in high school.  At break times I love playing handball and I also love playing PSSA Rugby.

    Last Tuesday was our annual Cross Country Carnival, having missed it due to COVID last year we were grateful to be back in beautiful Centennial Park.  The sun was out and the cheering was loud as we ran, jogged, walked and skipped our hearts out for our house teams.  It was a perfect example of seeing how encouragement from your peers makes everyone try harder!  Thank you to our parent volunteers and teachers for making it such an awesome experience for all of us.  We wished all the kids that made it through to the Zone Cross Country the best of luck for the carnival on Wednesday.

    Walk Safely to School Day is something RPS participates in every year. Walk to school Safely Day is on 14th of May and we are encouraging all children to walk to school more often.  You don’t only have the option to walk, you could also bike or scooter.  We are trying to promote road safety in our community.

    Year 6 is excited to get to attend an inflatable planetarium next week! This term we are learning about Earth and space in Science and this should be a fun way to learn even more.

    We also wish the best of luck to Year 3 and 5 students who will be doing their NAPLAN tests next week!

    Olive & Henry

    What's on?

    NAPLAN

    Date and Time

    From Tuesday, May. 11th to Friday, May. 14th

    Information

    Tuesday 11th - Writing

    Wednesday 12th - Reading

    Thursday 13th - Language Conventions 

    Friday 14th - Numeracy

    Kindergarten Excursion - La Perouse

    Date and Time

    From Monday, May. 10th to Tuesday, May. 11th

    Information

    Excursions taking place over 2 days

    Year 2 Excursion - Centennial Park

    Date and Time

    From Tuesday, May. 11th to Tuesday, May. 11th

    Parent's Night in the Library

    Date and Time

    From Tuesday, May. 11th, 5:00 pm to Tuesday, May. 11th, 8:00 pm

    Year 6 Planetarium Incursion

    Date and Time

    From Wednesday, May. 12th to Wednesday, May. 12th

    P&C Meeting - 7.30pm

    Date and Time

    From Monday, May. 17th to Monday, May. 17th

    Please provide your feedback by clicking on the link. We will direct the feedback to the appropriate people and/or share it in the newsletter!

    Thank you!

    Previous feedback

     Having an older child in a different (high) school now, made me appreciate how truly welcoming, caring, innovative and efficient RPS is! Thank you for all your hard work and thought that goes into running RPS.

    From the P&C

    News From the P&C

    Cross Country - Thank you to all the amazing volunteers that helped out on the day. Extra big thanks to Eleanor and Martin for managing and organising.  Martin did so many laps around the course he did 52000 steps!

    P&C Position Available - Vice President

    If you are interested or would like to know more please email us at randwick.pc.secretary@gmail.com 

    " I really encourage everyone to think about whether they might like to join the executive. It's such a supportive group, I have really enjoyed being part of the committee for the last 2 years and have learnt so much about how the school operates. It's been wonderful being able to help out. There is no set number of hours for this role, but you have to attend the monthly P&C meetings and Executive meetings (all currently on zoom)". Isabel

    LAST CHANCE - Gift Hampers for Mum - order deadline this Friday

    Your Food Collective are offering both small ($30) and large ($50) Mother's day gift packs, which include locally grown fruit and handpicked treats with $5 from every purchase going towards RPS fundraising.

    Take the stress out of mother's day and order online now and spend more time doing what you love.  Click on the link; Hampers

    Save the Date

    Term 2 Working Bee 30th May, keep your eye out for more information in Skoolbag

    COMEDY NIGHT August the 21st

    This is such a great event for parents & guardians and we need your help to make it a success. Can you help us organise the event or on the night? Do you have something you can donate that we can auction off on the night? Please let us know randwick.pc.secretary@gmail.com 

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