North Perth Primary School Albert Street North Perth WA 6006 Phone: (08) 9328 7104 Facsimile: (08) 9328 8166 Email: northperth.ps@education.wa.edu.au www.northperthprimary.edu.au
Parent Newsletter Issue 4
Inspiring young minds, creating possibilities SCHOOL COUNCIL UPDATE—INDEPENDENT PUBLIC SCHOOLS (IPS) INITIATIVE Last month the Honourable Peter Collier, Minister for Education, announced that up to 50 schools would be granted Independent Public School status for 2017. In December 2015 School Council surveyed the NPPS community on whether our school should apply for IPS should the opportunity arise, and 80.3% said yes. The school has therefore registered for the IPS Development Process and the Principal, the Chair of School Council and a staff member attended a Briefing Day on 29 February. The Principal and Chair will attend two Development Days in Term 2 and give a presentation on the school’s readiness for IPS to a panel in Term 3. 135 schools have registered for the Development Process so competition will be tough, but after the visioning process the school undertook in 2014 School Council is confident that we will be able to present a strong case. Keep an eye out for more news on the website and in newsletters. Enquiries regarding IPS can be forwarded to nppsschoolcouncil@gmail.com. NATIONAL RIDE2SCHOOL DAY It was exciting to see so many students and parents enjoying a healthy breakfast at school recently. A very big thank you goes to the staff members who came in early to prepare and serve the breakfast and the City of Vincent who purchased the delicious fruit for the fruit salad. We are also very grateful for the continued support of the school canteen who once again funded all the other breakfast requirements such as bowls, spoons, yoghurt, juice boxes, Weet-bix, honey and rolls. SCHOOL CLOSED The school will be closed on Friday 25 (Good Friday), Monday 28 (Easter Monday) and Tuesday 29 March (Easter Tuesday). It will re-open at 8.30am on Wednesday 30 March.
REMINDER — INTERM SWIMMING Pre-primary to Year 6 30 March—8 April $42.00 Payment due by 18 March
CONGRATULATIONS Funky Hair Day raised
KEY DATES Friday 18 March Saturday 19 March Monday 21 March Tuesday 22 March Wednesday 23 March Friday 25 March Monday 28 March Tuesday 29 March Wednesday 30 March Thursday 31 March
Interm Swimming (PP—Year 6) closes today Reading Eggs—last day for payment National Day of Action Against Bullying Earth Hour 8.30pm Positive Parenting Program (Triple P) #3 P & C Meeting 7.30pm Assembly Year 4 & 5 Room 13 Prospective Parent Tour #2 9.30am T20 Blast Cricket Competition Good Friday - School Closed Easter Monday—School Closed Easter Tuesday – School Closed Interm Swimming (PP – Year 6) commences The Fathering Project 7.00pm
$570
for the Leukaemia Foundation
School Banking Wednesdays 8.15am in the school library
At our school we aim to create a safe and supportive school community for everyone. Sometimes, it can be difficult for parents or carers to know what to do when their child talks to them about bullying. You are an important part of our work to prevent bullying and to respond effectively if it happens. Stopping bullying involves everyone.
Harmony Day is held annually to celebrate Australia's diversity – a day of cultural respect for everyone who calls Australia home. The key message of Harmony Day is - everyone belongs.
If your child talks to you about bullying: Listen calmly and get the full story. Your calm response is important to allow your child to tell you all about the situation. After they’ve told you their story, ask questions to get more details if you need to: who, what, where, when. Although you may feel some strong emotions about your child’s experience, try to keep calm to avoid more distress to your child.
Australians come from all over the world. Indigenous Australians have been here for tens of thousands of years. In the last two centuries people have come from every continent to make Australia their home. Today there are more than 24 million people living in Australia who all contribute different ideas, religions, languages and customs to our country. The diversity of people who live in Australia makes it an interesting place to live.
Reassure your child they are not to blame. Many children blame themselves and this may make them feel even worse. You could say things like, ‘That sounds really hard to deal with. No one should have to put up with that.’ or ‘I’m so glad you told me. You should be able to feel safe at school; that’s not fair at all’. Ask your child what they want to do and what they want you to do. A critical part of your response is to avoid jumping in to solve the problem. While it is natural to want to protect your child, helping them to find their own solution is a better option. It helps them feel they have some power in the situation. Visit www.bullyingnoway.gov.au to find some strategies. The website has tips and ideas for different bullying situations. One idea is to practise strategies at home to help your child feel more confident. Contact the school. Your child may be reluctant for you to do this, so discuss the idea and reassure them that the school would want to know and is able to help. Make an appointment to meet with your child’s teacher and, if you need to, ask to talk with the principal. Contact the school immediately if you have a concern about your child’s safety. Check in regularly with your child. Keep the conversation going. It can take time to resolve issues, so check in regularly with your child about their experiences and their feelings. Your ongoing support is important.
If you are looking for support for yourself to deal with a bullying situation, you will find ideas on the Bullying. No Way! website for parents. As well, please contact the school if you would like to discuss any aspect of our approach to preventing bullying. Thanks for your support to make our school a great school for everyone.
Did you know: Around 45% of Australians were born overseas or have at least one parent who was People from more than 200 countries make up the Australian community. The top ten countries of birth in Australia are Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand, China, India, Italy, Vietnam, Philippines, South Africa and Malaysia. 85% of Australians agree multiculturalism has been good for Australia More than 60 Indigenous languages are spoken in Australia Apart from English the most common languages spoken in Australia are Mandarin, Italian, Arabic, Cantonese, Greek, Vietnamese, Tagalog/Filipino, Spanish and Hindi 92% of Australians feel a great sense of belonging to our country? Australians practise more than 100 religions.
Matilda D, Oscar D, Samuel B, Bethany G, Gabriel S, Amelie W, Ava N, Charlie R, Joanna W, Billy F, Jordy N, Izabel T, Amy M, Zoe H, Seb D, Rosie B, Ella H, Woody B, Isabelle W, Phoenix G, and Sam D.
UNI-ACTIVE UPDATE Parent and Child Week This Friday, 18 March, is Parent & Child Week at the North Perth Uni-Active Program before school. Parents are invited to participate in the Uni-Active session with their child enrolled in the program and learn the key points to look out for when helping them to develop the skills of Balancing and Throwing. Wear your running shoes! If you can’t make it this is not a problem your child can still participate as usual.
Sport Award—Year 3 Room 1 Music Award—Year 3/4 Room 22 Art Award—Year 3/4 Room 22
The last session for Term 1 will be on the final day of the school term—Friday 8 April. Children encouraged to participate in a range of sports Uni-Active is part of the Paediatric Exercise Programs at UWA and one of the main messages they are trying to promote is to encourage children under the age of 12 years to participate in a range of sports, activities and play. There is a lot of research to demonstrate that specialising in a sport before the age of 12 or playing a sport year round is detrimental to long term participation and performance. If you are interested in further information on this topic here is a link to an article that explains this idea in more detail, it is American but is just as applicable to Australian children: http://changingthegameproject.com/is-it-wiseto-specialize/
READING EGGS SUBSCRIPTION The final date for those who would like to access this program has been extended to Friday 18 March 2016. Please return the payment envelope by this Friday. More information regarding this online reading program is available from your child’s teacher and www.readingeggs.com.au.
Come along and enjoy a drink and chat with other dads from North Perth as we consolidate the group to plan the activities for the year. DATE: Thursday 31 March 2016 TIME: 7.00pm VENUE: North Perth Bowling Club Don’t miss out on the chance to be part of this exciting new dad’s group.
Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon The Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon is the biggest kids triathlon in the world and it’s returning to Perth on Sunday 10 April. We here at North Perth Primary School are proud to be a part of it. Now in it’s 18 year, the Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon events are designed to inspire children aged 7 -15 years to get moving in a friendly and supportive environment. Kids of all abilities cross the finish line a champion and everyone who participates takes home a medal. The distances for the event are approximately:
7 – 10years: 75 m Swim / 3km Cycle / 500m Run
11 – 15years: 150 m Swim / 6km Cycle / 1km Run
Join our group and save Parents at North Perth Primary School have created a ‘Group’ which, if you join enables you to save $5 off each individual entry fee. The Group Name is: North Perth Primary If we have at least 15 of our students join this Group, we will give our school a chance to WIN a $5,000 cash prize to go towards a healthy initiative. For more information and to enter: Go onto http://try.weetbix.com.au/ Find the Perth event Click on register now Select Category - Groups of 5+ - Child participating in group entry Complete participant details Towards bottom of form where it says Team Information chose team North Perth Primary (Diaz) Continue on with completing and paying for registration Note: Parents are responsible for transporting and supervising their own child for this event. Participation of students in this event is not being coordinated and supervised by the school. For more information contact Haleesha Diaz on 0411 772 254 or email etsdiaz@bigpond.net.au.