Line Marking Around The School

You may have noticed a brightly painted carpark as you drove past SPS this week, as we have had line-marking done around the school last week. The carpark has been remarked, and so have the down-ball courts, volleyball courts and a few hopscotch templates.

It has re-ignited the game of down-ball in the yard at recess and lunch. Remember to bring your down-ball to school so you can join in the fun!

School Fees

It’s the time of the year when we sit down and review our school budgets and organise books and equipment for the following year. The financial pressure most people are facing at the moment is certainly very real, and it does apply to schools and education as well.

Currently, we are sitting at only 51% of SPS families who have paid their school fees for the 2023 school year. We have provided all students with equipment (writing books, maths books, pencils, glue sticks, paper and photocopying) throughout the year, regardless of school fee payment status as per Department of Education policies, and also because we certainly don’t want any child being left out. We are making up the shortfall of fees from our own funds.

We have already placed orders for next year’s classroom supplies and personal items so they can be ready for the beginning of 2024. We would greatly appreciate any contribution towards outstanding 2023 school fees. At this stage of the year, every little bit helps.

Please see Tina or the school leaders if you wish to discuss any issues regarding school fees.

Shark Tank Expo

What a wonderful day we had celebrating the creativity of our Year 5/6 students and their Shark Tank inventions. There were so many clever ideas and well thought-out concepts. It certainly brought many aspects of learning into one activity - public speaking, movie making, advertising, model making - as well as the financial side of each project. Congratulations also go to the teachers for instigating the event. The kids were highly engaged!

Photos At School

This is a reminder to all parents to please be mindful when you are taking photos of your child at school, whether it’s in the classroom or at an event (a concert, excursion or assembly). The Department of Education policy is to seek permission/consent from anyone if they are to be included in your photo. We ask all members of our school community to adhere to this policy.

Working Bee – Sunday 12th November

Our Term 4 SPS Working Bee will be held on Sunday 12th November from 10.00am. We are looking to improve our school frontage, create a driveway near our kitchen garden and general weeding and pruning. We will also be holding a sausage sizzle at the end as a thank you for all the hard work. If you are able to attend, please fill in the google form below.

SPS Dads Group Games Afternoon - Friday 17th November

All Scoresby Primary School students and their dad/father figures are invited to come together for an afternoon of games. The afternoon will run from 4.00-5.30pm in the 1/2 Learning Space on Friday 17th November. Please fill in the google form (link below) to register for this event.

Colour Run - Friday 1st December

Our SPS Colour Run is fast approaching. Don’t forget to be on the lookout for a white t-shirt to wear on the day.

This year we are adding an extra element to our colour run - the opportunity to slime a teacher, or even Mrs Hartley! If you raise $150 or more, you go into the draw for the opportunity to slime a teacher. If the whole school raises $7000 or more, Mrs Hartley will also be slimed!

We have currently raised $745, with two students already in the running for the opportunity to slime a teacher.

Time to get cracking and raise some money for SPS!

Foundation - Level 2 Write To Read Program

We are now 5 weeks into our Write to Read reading and writing program. Our F-2 students have been working hard building their automatic file of the 70+ ‘codes’ that make up the English language. As they continue to work on this, we are beginning our spelling bootcamps where we focus on learning a spelling rule over a two-week cycle. Both the teachers and students are learning a lot in this new program, and it has been fantastic to see the knowledge growth.

Support Your Child's Education With 12 Months Free Internet At Home

The Australian Government has established the School Student Broadband Initiative to provide free home internet for one year for up to 30,000 eligible families with school-aged students. The initiative aims to boost education opportunities. NBN Co is leading the rollout of this initiative across the country.

How the School Student Broadband Initiative can help your child

Children who can access online learning at home as part of their education are more likely to engage in classroom activities.

Access to fast internet at home can also support children to build their digital skills, learn how to safely use the internet and take part in a world that is more reliant on digital technology.

Eligibility

To be eligible, families must:

have a child living at home enrolled in an Australian school in 2023
not have an active National Broadband Network internet service at their home* (having a mobile internet service does not affect eligibility)
live in a premises that can access the National Broadband Network through a standard connection. NBN Co will check this for you after you apply
register interest with your school and complete a consent form to be assessed for eligibility.

*If an address has been disconnected within 14 days prior to an eligibility check, the address will be classified as ineligible. There may be cases where exceptions can be made, please contact the School Student Broadband Initiative team at SSBI@education.vic.gov.au to discuss further.

How the School Student Broadband Initiative works

If you are eligible, your home internet service will be provided at no cost for one year with a participating internet provider over the National Broadband Network. Each internet provider has its own step-by-step process to get you connected, which may involve you providing identification.

Once you sign up, the internet provider will help you set up your connection. The initiative does not include devices such as a computer or tablet. Other members of your household can use the internet service provided through this initiative.

The one-year period will start from the day your service is activated with your chosen provider. At the end of the one-year period, you will not be placed onto a paid service by your internet provider without your consent. The Australian Government is considering options beyond the one-year free period.

How to apply

· Ask your school for a copy of the School Student Broadband Initiative consent form.

· Complete the consent form and return to the school.

· NBN Co will use student address details on the consent form to confirm eligibility.

· If you are eligible, NBN Co will issue a voucher for your family to use to sign up with a participating internet provider. This will be provided to you by your school.

Please note: NBN Co will review the home address for eligibility. No personal information other than your main home address will be shared with NBN Co. Please see the consent form for details about how personal information will be used.

Find out more

For more information about the School Student Broadband Initiative, visit

https://www.infrastructure.gov.au

Planning For 2024

We are beginning to think about our 2024 classes, which might sound early but we take time and effort to make sure these are as balanced as can be in many different ways.

We do accept parent requests, as long as they are on educational grounds; we don’t accept requests for teachers. These requests are overseen by the Principal team rather than classroom teachers as this allows us to ensure all requests are received and treated fairly and equitably. All requests must be in writing or email. Please forward all requests to Sue Hartley susan.hartley@education.vic.gov.au either directly or via the office. Email or written requests are accepted with the cut-off time for submission being 4.00pm on Friday 10th November 2023.

This year our staff will take the following into account when forming classes:

Student learning needs
Current teacher recommendations
Class balance (number of boys and girls, similar cross-section of achievement levels, etc.)
Parent requests (if able to be fulfilled)
Student sociogram requests (ie. ‘Who I work well with’)

Parents will be informed of their child’s class and teacher when the end of year reports come home.

SUE HARTLEY AND NICOLE RHEUMER

Scoresby Primary School Leaders

SPS Playgroup News