Principal's Update

Happy Mothers Day

This morning Dundas Public School held a Mother’s Day breakfast. We had well over 100 families in attendance which was very exciting.

I would like to thank Mrs Luu for organising the event. Mrs Luu certainly has the perfect mix of event planning, organisational ability and creative flair to make all events she organises such a success! I would also like to thank all the staff who baked scones, made yogurt cups, heated up food and decorated the hall. A special mention to Mrs Haddock who baked 100 scones for the event! Events such as this happen because the staff want to celebrate them with our community and this morning was evidence of the amazing culture of partnership that exists at DPS. 

Wishing all mothers and carers a wonderful Mother’s Day this Sunday. 

External Validation

Once, during a four-year cycle, schools undergo an external validation of the evidence of their school self-assessment. Each year approximately 25% of schools are selected as a representative sample across School Performance Directorates. Schools engage in discussions with an external panel and have their self-assessments validated using the School Excellence Framework (SEF).

The panel, comprising of a Principal School Leadership (PSL) and a peer principal, meet with the school external validation team and determine whether the school's evidence supports their self-assessment using each element of the SEF. An external validation panel report, which includes the school-determined next steps in the self-assessment process, and school-determined future directions to support school improvement, is provided to the school following the external validation.

Yesterday our school went through the final process of External Validation. A panel that included, Mr David Leydon (Educational Leadership Director), Ms Daliya Phipps (Principal School Leadership) and Mr Darren White (Peer Principal), visited our school to validate our evidence of our achievement against the department’s School Excellence Framework. 

The seven evidence sets are a testament to the dedication and outstanding work of staff, community, and students. Thank you to the staff at DPS who have led the strategic direction focus groups, authored our rich and detailed sets of supporting evidence and collected authentic artefacts for our External Validation submission. 

Before the panel began the process of meeting with the team to examine the evidence sets, we took the visitors on a short tour of the school. Student representatives Joshua and Hazel, lead the panel around our school allowing our visitors the opportunity to 'take in' the culture of the school. Our student leaders spoke about what it is like to be a student at Dundas Public School. We visited KW during crunch’n’sip and the panel were charmed with KW students while being amazed at the size of the K Warin classroom. The panel then visited the 6G classroom and they were most impressed with how the room was arranged and decorated. They commented that the 6G room felt very relaxed and serene. 

Finally, the validation delegation settled in the staff annexe where staff representatives answered questions and elaborated on each of the areas of the school excellence framework. The DPS staff representatives included Mr Yee, Mrs Zalaf, Ms Edwards, Mrs Luu, Mrs Green, Mr Dean and Mr Jones. Thank you to all the staff who did such an amazing job representing our school. 

Before leaving the school, the panel shared the exit report with the school External Validation team. Dundas Public School was confirmed as operating at the Excelling stage for six areas of the School Excellence Framework which is the best validation stage possible. The remaining 8 elements were validated at Sustaining and Growing but the panel did report to staff that Dundas PS is extremely close to being validated at the Excelling stage for these areas as well. We were not validated at the lower stages of Working Towards or Delivering for any element! 

We are extremely proud of ALL of the hard work that we have invested in our students and school over the last 3 years. Yesterday’s External Validation certainly validated the improvements we have implemented, making a special mention of the outstanding learning culture we have since developed at DPS. 

The process affirmed our journey towards school excellence and has given us clear direction as we shape our 2025- 2028 Strategic Improvement Plan. Thank you to our staff, students and community for embracing the External Validation process and for supporting our pursuit of excellence.

Below are some snapshots of the evidence from our External Validation submission. 

Opportunity Class for Year 5 2025

OC Year 5 entry in 2025: Applications are open from 4 April to 20 May 2024 

What are opportunity classes?Opportunity classes are one of the ways the NSW Department of Education supports high potential and gifted students. The classes help students learn by:

• grouping them with other gifted students

• using specialised teaching methods so students can learn concepts in more detail and more quickly

• supporting their wellbeing needs.

Most students in opportunity classes enjoy learning with peers who have similar abilities and interests. Opportunity classes are not zoned.

Where are they located?

There are 86 primary schools with Year 5 opportunity classes in NSW each year.

• 54 schools are located in metropolitan Sydney

• 31 schools are located in rural or regional centres

• a virtual class, Aurora College, for rural and remote students is available in over 600 authorised host schools. 

Students successfully placed attend the opportunity class full time in Years 5 and 6 at the relevant public school. In most cases, students who have accepted a place in an opportunity class will leave their current school to attend the school with the opportunity class.

Should you apply?

If your child learns with greater ease and speed than their classmates, they may benefit from placement in an opportunity class. High potential and gifted children need to be challenged so they remain engaged with their education. Discuss the opportunity with your child and look through theinformation together on Opportunity classes (Year 5 – 6).

If you would like to discuss whether you think you should apply, please contact your child’s teacher.

Ready to apply?

Apply online at: education.nsw.gov.au/oc

School Assemblies

Please note there has been a change in times for both the K-2 and 3-6 assemblies in week 4. Moving the assemblies to a 1pm start has given us an extra 10 minutes for the assemblies as they will finish at 1:40pm (start of afternoon tea). 

Week 4:

• 3-6 assembly Wednesday 22 May from 1pm – 1:40pm
• K-2 assembly Friday 24 May from 1pm – 1:40pm.

We received feedback from the community asking if a whole school assembly could be returned each term. We have listened to this feedback and now our assemblies in week 9 will be a whole school assembly. This assembly will be held on Friday afternoons and include our token draw. 

Week 9:

• K-6 assembly Friday 28 June from 2:10pm-3pm

NO pedestrian gate access next week (week 3)

We have some construction happening at Dundas Public School next week which requires us to close the Kissing Point Road pedestrian gate. It will be closed from Monday May 13 - Friday May 17.

If you use Kissing Point Road pedestrian gate to access the school or Camp Australia, you will need to use an alternative gate. We suggest walking up to the lane way to access Kenworthy Street gate. A map is available on relevant post on the Audiri app.

We appreciate your co-operation and apologise for any inconvenience.

Wellbeing Day (week 5) KIDZ SQUAD

At Dundas Public School, we value the wellbeing of all students each and every day. By participating in activities organised by Kidz Squad and classroom teachers, students will focus on improving their physical, emotional, social, intellectual and spiritual wellbeing. 

On Wednesday 29th May we will be having Wellbeing Day. Students will participate in activities run by Kidz Squad and their class teacher. There will be a mixture of dry and wet activities and inflatables. 

Students can wear mufti (enclosed shoes only) and should bring a spare change of clothes "just in case". 

No payment is required for this day, just permission to participate.

Please complete the permission by Friday 24th May via School Bytes. 

3-6 Cross Country

We were concerned that the weather would not be kind to us for our 3-6 Cross Country carnival. However, even though we did have to postpone it once during the day due to rain, we did manage to complete the races. Congratulations to the students who ran on the day. Thank you to Ms Chan and Mr Dean for organising the event. 

Mr Dean and Mr McSeveny will be supervising DPS students at the Zone Cross Country event next on Wednesday 22nd May at Greystanes Sports Ground. More information will be coming home shortly for the students representing our school at the carnival. On behalf of the school, congratulations, and good luck!

School Events on the school website

A reminder that the Events page on our school website is up to date with planned events for 2024. If an event needs to change dates, the information will be updated on the website. 

P&C Corner

Thank you to the DPS P&C for organising the Mother’s Day stall this week. Thank you to the volunteers that helped manage the stall so effectively on Monday. 

P&C Disco

P&C have organised a disco for DPS students in week 5 (Wellbeing week). Information on this event has already been shared with the school community via Audiri.

Tickets are purchased via the Flexischools app.

P&C Canteen Price List

The canteen has a revised price list taking effect from next Wednesday 15th May. The price list is below.