Welcome back, everyone. I hope you had a wonderful break. We have had an outstanding start to the school year. Children are settled in their classes and have started work on the planned units. We are currently finalising classes and hope to have all official classes in place for the commencement of next week. If any parents have any queries regarding class structures, please contact the school.

We welcome to our school Mrs Melissa Abbott. Mrs Abbott is a very experienced teacher who was previously at Bletchington PS in Orange. We welcome Mrs Abbott to our team and know she will enjoy teaching Stage 2 at Bathurst PS.

The Induction Ceremony for our 2021 Leadership Team occurred on Wednesday 3rd February. It was a lovely assembly where all our children witnessed our new Captains and Vice Captains making their pledges. Due to COVID restrictions, parents were unable to attend the ceremony in McMullen Hall. Our parents did attend a short ceremony on the front lawn of the school in leadership groups and were able to pin their badges on their child. Thank you to all the parents for coming along and making this occasion special.

Our 2021 Leadership Team consists of:

School Captains – Indi Robinson and Blake Fulthorpe

School Vice Captains – Ruby Rose Kelly and Buster Goninan

Evans House Captains – Olivia Jackson and Will Clements

Evans House Vice Captains – Grace Simpson and Alex Morris

Chifley House Captains – Mia Johns and Lachlan Simeonidis

Chifley House Vice Captains– Maisie McCook and Samuel Kay

Macquarie House Captains – Kiarna Prudham and Aiden O'Brien

Macquarie House Vice Captains – Miley Reeks and Hudson Reynolds

Hargraves House Captains – Lara North and Lachlan McClements

Hargraves House Vice Captains – Eliza Dowton and Connor Hobby

Leadership Team

House Captains

COVID Restrictions - The NSW Department of Education, have released the following COVID restrictions regarding Parents/carers entering the school grounds. NSW Government schools will require parents/carers entering school grounds to use the Service NSW QR code which will be displayed at each entry point of the school and the front office. All parents/carers still need to attend the front office and sign the visitor's book and the COVID declaration form. For the first few days of school, parents and carers of Kinder, Year 1 and Year 2 children are permitted to briefly enter the school grounds (once signed in) to drop children off. Please ensure time spent on school grounds is kept to a minimum and social distancing of 1.5m is observed.

Afternoon Pick up - we ask parents to ensure they park their car when arriving to pick up children after school from the Lambert Street and George Street sides of the school. All school staff have been instructed to not let children leave the grounds until the car is parked and it is safe to do so. We are trying to ensure that all children leave the school safely and this can only be done if everyone follows the safety advice given to us by Bathurst Council, the RMS, and NSW Police.

Classroom Stores - all children will be supplied with books, pens, rulers, scissors, glue sticks, and other classroom needs to use at school. Children will need to have pens, pencils and glue sticks to complete their homework at home.

On Friday 5th February our Annual School Swimming Carnival will be held at the Bathurst Aquatic Centre. Children in Years 3-6 as well as those children in Year 2 who are turning 8 this year and can swim 50m unaided are eligible to attend. Notes have been sent home for this event. Parents can attend the school swimming carnival and should adhere to the COVID safety plan at the Aquatic Centre. We ask parents to spectate from the grandstand side of the school. Children will be seated under the shade shelters on the grassed areas.

Our School Photos will be taken on Tuesday 23rd February. We will be using Advanced School Photography. Envelopes for school photos will be sent home soon.

As a staff, we continue to modify our Assessment and Reporting practices so we can ensure parents obtain feedback each term on their child’s progress from their child’s classroom teacher. At any time, if parents have any concerns or issues about your child’s learning, you are encouraged to contact the school to make an appointment to speak with your child’s classroom teacher. The Assessment and Reporting schedule for 2021 is:

Term 1 Week 5 – Friday 26th February – Support Unit Parent/Teacher Interviews
Term 1 Week 6 - Monday 1st March- Friday 5th March – Parent/Teacher Interviews
Term 2 – Semester 1 Reports home
Term 3 – Parent/Teacher Interviews
Term 4 - Semester 2 Reports home

Parent/Teacher Interviews have been organised for Friday 26th February for the Support Unit classes and Monday 1st March - Monday 5th March for all other classes. These meetings will allow parents to: meet teachers, talk about what is to be taught this year and how your child has settled into the 2021 school year, plans for the school year, class expectations, and parent expectations. Notes for these meetings will be sent home next week. Parents will be able to book an interview through the parent portal or return these notes indicating a time preference to your child’s classroom teacher. Teachers will contact parents regarding your allocated time for an interview.

The timetable for Parent/Teacher Interviews in Weeks 5 and 6 is as follows:

Friday 26th February – K-1J, 2-3N, 3-5R, 5-6F and 2-5L

Monday 1st March – KG, KP and KI

Tuesday 2nd March – 1H, 1M, 1C, 1W, 2M, 2Mc and 2T

Thursday 4th March – 3/4G, 3/4L, 3/4A and 3/4S

Friday 5th March - 4/5W, 5/6D, 5/6B, 5/6G and 5/6C

Food Allergies - We do have several children at our school who have peanut and nut allergies and have severe reactions if exposed to this food. Parents are asked to be mindful of this when packing recess and lunch and are encouraged not to send products that contain nuts in them to school.

A general reminder:-

All items of clothing and personal belongings should be clearly marked with your child’s name.
All children require a broad-brimmed hat each day as our school has a “No Hat, No Play” policy.
When parents and friends come to the school during the day, they should present to the front office on arrival. This is a Legal and Workplace Safety requirement and is followed for the safety and security of all children and teachers.
We continue to encourage parents to make appointments to come and talk about your child’s progress, problems that may arise, ideas etc. It is reminded that the education of your child is a team effort with teachers and parents being the main stakeholders. With this in mind, it is an important reminder that the parent/teacher relationship always needs to be cohesive and supportive and one of mutual respect. I am sure we will continue to work with one another in a positive manner.
All money coming to the school should be placed in a sealed envelope with your child’s name, the correct amount of money, class, and what the money is for clearly written on the front. All money and notes should be sent directly to the front office at the school for processing.

If any parent has any concerns regarding any aspect of school life, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Kate White

Principal

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