From Daniel 

 Welcome to a New School Year!!

We are thrilled to be back and it has been wonderful to see everyone's smiling faces settling into some new routines and great learning happening across the school.

Newsletters in 2025

We will be publishing a newsletter every month this year.  This one is technically not really a newsletter, it is just a letter telling you some important news and explaining the way newsletters will work (I think that makes sense ;) ).

Each month our newsletter will include something:

From Daniel

I will be including a Principal's report each issue, celebrating the great things that are happening and bringing important information to you. 

From Our Students

We will have guest reporters each month who will bring you highlights from school life from a student's perspective.  A small group of "Guest Reporters" will interview other students and bring some wonderful insights to the goings on at KPS.  This is always a highlight for me, and I am sure you will enjoy reading it too.

From Olivia

Our School Wellbeing Officer, Olivia Liddicoat will be providing resources, tips and ideas and support you and your family at school and at home.  She will also be outlining opportunities for parents to get involved in school life.

From the Office

Always an important page to check out, the office team will provide reminders about all the important things.  You will be able to find links to payments, tips on ordering school uniforms, lunch order information and much more.

From the Community

This page will contain fliers and information about the things going on in our community.  Whilst we don't charge for advertising, and don't have any specific relationships with the people advertising, we do like to share the things that happen in our local community.  If you or anyone you know are involved in local clubs etc that would like to promote activities for students, we are happy to include their flier here.  We don't advertise businesses, just community groups.

We always include lots of photos in our newsletters.  I encourage you to check it out every month.  There is a link to the current newsletter and previous editions on the Sentral parent app.

We will also be providing plenty of info to you through our Sentral notifications, please make sure you have notifications on your phone.  Also, check out our Facebook and Instagram pages for great photos of school days in action!

New Year, New Approaches

We have started the new year with a bang here at Kilsyth PS.  We have brought in some significant changes to our Literacy approach and we would love to share these with you. We have planned two information nights this term to go over the great new practices we have in place and the research and evidence behind them.

Session One - Wednesday 5th March, 7pm

The Science of Reading

Understand the research and evidence behind effective ways to learn to read. From decoding in Foundation to deep comprehension in Year 6.

Synthetic Phonics

Explore the connections between the letters of written text and the sounds of spoken language and how, together, these form words.

A Systematic Approach

See how a comprehensive program is put together to provide the best possible pathway for your child’s learning from Foundation to Year 6.

Session Two - Thursday 12th March, 7pm

Supporting Your Child at School

See the Multi-Tiered Systems of Support and Explicit Instruction approach that we use to support your child’s literacy at school.

Supporting Your Child at Home

Experience the resources you can use at home to strengthen your child’s literacy through homework and other easy strategies.

Routines Across the Curriculum

Understand the importance of having predictable, consistent routines in place across every classroom in the school.

  I hope to see you there.

Click here to RSVP:www.kilsythps.vic.edu.au/literacynight 

School Council Elections

We have a great School Council here at Kilsyth Primary School.  A group of commited parents, staff and community members who take on the responsibility of governing the school.

At the beginning of each year we call for nominations and hold an election for new School Council Members.  The term for membership is 2 years.  This year we have 2 parent positions open for nomination.

Parents on School Councils provide important viewpoints and have valuable skills that can help shape the direction of the school.

Those parents who become active on a School Council find their involvement satisfying in itself and may also find that their children feel a greater sense of belonging.

The most obvious way to become involved is to vote in the elections. However, a ballot will only be held if more people nominate as candidates than there are positions vacant.

I encourage you to seriously consider standing for election as a member of the School Council or encouraging another person to stand for election.  You can read more about the process on the DET Website.

A notice board will be put up outside the General Office next week and will provide an overview of the process and nomination forms available for parents.  The nomination forms will also be emailed out next week.

School Council Election Timeline

• Wednesday 19/2/2024 -Notice of election and call for nominations
• Wednesday 26/2/2024 - Closing date for nominations
• Thursday 27/2/2024- List of candidates and nominators will be posted and Ballot papers distributed (if election required)
• Wednesday 5/3/2024 - Ballot closes (if required)
• Friday 7/3/2024 - Outcome announced
• Thursday 20/3/2024 - First meeting of new School Council 

New Out of School Hours Care provider

We are excited to announce that we have now partnered with an independent Outside of School Hours Care (OSHC) provider called TheirCare. 

TheirCare provides a stimulating and safe environment for all children. During sessions, children develop life-skills, friendships, confidence, and creativity through play-based programs.

We look forward to welcoming TheirCare to the Kilsyth Primary School community in Term 2, 2025. 

For further information, visit www.theircare.com.au or call our support office on 1300 072 410

Look out for our first official newsletter next week!

All the best

Daniel