Term 2 Week 8 Newsletter
From the Principal
Dear Calwell Community,
Over the past week it has been exciting to see the students actively engaged in their learning and enjoying the crisp outdoor air during break times and PE lessons. A small group of students have been busy planting out the garden beds to ensure they are ready to burst into colour in spring.
Kindergarten to year 6 children have been enjoying their hockey lessons over the past 2 weeks. It is a great opportunity for them to try a different sport and learn some rules and skills.
Over the coming weeks some new fencing will be installed at the edge of the kindergarten building and at the end of the hall. This fencing will provide an additional safety measure for students during the day and allow us to open the front entry and exit gates during the day. Last week the installation of the roof encapsulation commenced of the kindergarten unit roof, to stop the roof leaking. In coming weeks the 5 /6 unit will also undertake the same process.
Teachers have been busy preparing end of semester academic reports which will be distributed in week 10. Information will be provided in the coming weeks about parent teacher interviews which will be held early next term.
This week families will receive notification about nominating for the school board as we have a vacant parent representative position. Meetings are held once or twice a term for about an hour at a time that suits the members. I strongly encourage parents to consider nominating for this position. It is a fantastic way to be an active member of the school.
We have a large amount of lost property that is waiting to be returned. Families are encouraged to check the box outside of the front office for lost items. Please ensure you name your child’s belongings to ensure they can be returned.
We continue to have a large amount of sickness in the school among both staff and students. Families are asked to keep your child/ren home if they are unwell and ensure you test for covid if they have any symptoms. We will communicate with you when your child’s teacher is absent for multiple days and they are accessing different learning programs.
Have you thought about the upcoming school holidays? Camp Australia offer an onsite vacation care program that you can access if you need care for your child/ren. Sarah has developed an engaging program with a mix of days onsite and some excursions. School finishes for the term on Friday 30 June.
I hope you enjoyed your long weekend and managed to stay warm.
Katie Brown
Acting Principal
Princpal's Afternoon Tea
Calwell CARES
Gold Awards
Pyjama Day
The school parliament is running a pantry drive! Please bring in your non-perishable items for Lanyon pantry. Donations can be left at the front office. Donated items will be delivered to the pantry in the first week of the holidays. Suitable items include toiletries, nappies, tinned food, breakfast cereals, hygiene products and non-perishable food items. The Lanyon pantry is a great resource for local families who need a helping hand with grocery items (see flyer below).
Notes Home/Due & Dates to Remember
A reminder for parent's to please download the SZapp to view our Newsletters and upcoming events. If you access the calendar and click on the date on an excursion/incursion permission notes are attached to re-print if needed.
- Book Club due date Thursday 15th June
- Rosellas & Magpies Dog Safety Education Monday 19th June
- Cockatoos & Kindergarten Dog Safety Education Thursday 22nd June
- Hockey Clinic 30th May - 23rd June
Donations for Breakfast Club can be left at the front office. Examples include margarine/butter, vegemite, honey and jam.
Voluntary Contribution forms will be going home with the eldest child in each family today.
Managing Staff Absences
As the colder weather sets in, we expect to see a higher number of staff away at times due to seasonal illness and COVID-19.
To ensure that we continue to provide all students with quality learning with minimal disruption, we may be implementing temporary changes to our learning programs.
If required, some classes may be combined for short periods of time. We may also deliver student self-directed learning onsite using either online modules such as Google classroom or hard copy resources.
The school may also take the opportunity to temporarily modify timetables or work with external providers to deliver some programs. There may also be a need to postpone excursions and other extra-curricular activities until there is enough staff to support them.
Every school will implement these measures differently and has the flexibility to make choices that best meet the needs of their school community.
If changes are required at our school at any time, we will write to you to let you know. We will also ensure we keep you up to date on how long we expect any changes to be in place.
As always, we remain committed to providing our students with high quality learning experiences in a safe and welcoming school environment.
Thank you for your understanding.
Preschool
Preschool have been looking at Indigenous art as a form of communication and how stories are told and knowledge is passed down through imagery. We acknowledged Reconciliation Day through celebrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander authors and illustrators, exploring tradition art techniques and by creating our own collaborative artwork to be installed in our playground for our art gallery opening. Keep an eye out in your letter box for you special invitation. The Rosellas, Magpies and Cockatoos have each created their own special family invitation, drawing on their learning about communication, messages and symbols.
Our new play couches have become a new favourite for many preschoolers. The play couches have supported physical play, problem solving and early geometry skills while fostering imagination and social play. So far our couches have become pirate ships, cubbies, crocodiles, diggers and dinosaurs – the possibilities are endless!
Scrivener
Kindergarten students have been very focused on developing their reading skills. When they come across hard words in a book, they look at the starting sound and use the picture to read the word. The children are all very excited about becoming great readers one day. This fortnight the children have also started learning how to play hockey during the hockey clinics. They are learning how to dribble the ball and keep each other safe.
Corin
This week we are focusing on being collaborators and communicators! We were collaborators while building with Lego and blocks, and when doing craft, as we practised sharing and turn taking with the materials and equipment. We were communicators by politely asking others for help if we needed it.
Googong
3/4 students have focused on the power of positive self-talk. Each student researched and designed their own positive affirmation card by experimenting with blends of water colours.
These will be displayed as a mural to spread these insightful messages with others across the school. It has been a delight to hear the students using this language to inspire and develop their growth mindset.
Bendora
In 5/6E students created individualised Acknowledgements of Country. They looked at a number of examples highlighting key words, language and ideas to inspire their own writing and reflections of country. Then they made their own artworks to show how they can acknowledge country after spending some time on country. We also enjoyed our Googabinj incursion where we learned about traditions, culture and language from Googabinj (Craig Kemp).
Staying Covid Smart at School
To help minimise the spread of COVID-19 and other illnesses in our school please remember the following:
- Students who are COVID-19 positive or displaying symptoms (including a runny nose, sore throat, cough, fever) should test and must not attend school while unwell.
- If your student is COVID-positive let us know.
- Practise good hand and respiratory hygiene.
- Keep up to date with vaccinations.
You can access free rapid antigen tests from the front office. Nasal and saliva tests are available.
For the latest COVID-19 advice please visit the ACT’s COVID-19 website.
Game On Calwell
The Game On events are local community based, free physical activity “pop up” sessions, which will see us visit eight suburbs each year and conduct four free, family friendly events in each suburb, utilising local parks, ovals, sports courts/fields. The aim of the events is to promote physical activity/60mins a day target for children through providing fun, accessible sessions and ideas for children and their families.
Game On Calwell events will be held at the Tuggeranong Netball Courts;
- Sunday 23 July, 10am-12midday - Walk + Fitness Sunday morning – Local school leaders (Community walk), Niche Power Performance Group fitness session, Coffee cart, Fresh fruit
- Thursday 27 July 7.30am-8.30am - Biking Skills, Education & Ride to School Event – Trek Bikes, Coffee cart, Fresh fruit
- Wednesday 2 August, 3.30pm-4.30pm - Orienteering/Freestyle ACT BMX/Cardio fitness, Fresh fruit