Dear Parents,

Today we have had our School Photos. Thank you to all our parents on the beautiful and proud way in which the children were presented. The children looked amazing.

We have submitted our actual numbers this week and have 428 children enrolled K-6. The structure we have had in a tentative capacity will be the structure and organisation we will keep moving forward.

The classes and whole school staffing for 2024 are:

KD - Mrs Danielle McClements

KM - Mrs Mikayla McPhee

K/1K - Mrs Kathy Murphy

1G – Mrs Jodie Goninan

1C - Mra Naomi Carr

2I - Mrs Judy Issa

2S – Ms Tammy Simmons

2/3F - Mrs Kylee Francis

3/4S – Miss Stephanie Solinas

3/4B – Miss Rheannah Bogle

3/4W - Mrs Natahsa Woolfe

4/5D - Mr Jay Datt

5/6L - Ms Sarita Lloyd

5/6A - Mrs Mel Abbott

5/6B – Miss Leah Barber

5/6T – Mr Jeremy Thackray

K-3H – Ms Samantha Hall

3-6B - Mrs Kate Burns

3-6J – Mr Scott Jablonskis

3-6R - Ms Nicola Reedy

3-6M – Ms Heather McLean

Deputy Principal - Mrs Sharon Cafe

Assistant Principal Curriculum and Instruction - Mrs Angie Lee

Library – Ms Giovanna Morris

Learning and Support Teacher – Ms Fernanda Puebla, Mrs Carly Guihot, Mrs Helen Rutherford and Amanda Ivory

English as a Second Language Teacher (EALD) - Ms Lisa Roberts

Release from Face to Face – Ms Amanda Nelson, Mr Robert Moffitt, Mrs Amanda Ivory, Mrs Joanne Curran, Ms Lisa Roberts

K-6 Support - Mrs Julie George and Mr Robert Moffitt

School Counsellor – Ms Anthea Bourne (Wednesday and Thursday)

Speech Pathologist – Ms Ali Barrett (Wednesday)

Hearing Team – Mrs Susannah Lane, Mrs Belinda Crook, Mrs Michelle Hanrahan and Mr Craig Nelson,

Home School Liaison Officer – Mr Mathew Cambey

Assistant Principal Learning – Mrs Yvonne Theiss

Assistant Principal Complex Support – Mrs Michelle Whiley

School Admin Manager – Ms Denise Noble

School Admin - Mrs Kathy Bogart

School Admin/Library – Mrs Cathy Glasson

School Admin - Mrs Alana Datt

School Admin/Library – Mrs Deb Wilkin

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Karen Mitchell

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Jackie Fowler

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Rebecca Dive

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Dianna Mooney

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Sarah White

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Shelley Chaffey

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Samantha Culham

School Learning Support Officer – Ms Sophie Tulburg

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Lyn Holt

School Learning Support Officer – Mr Brody Taylor

School Learning Support Officer – Mr Connor Hart

School Learning Support Officer – Ms Abby Palay

School Learning Support Officer – Ms Tamia Martin

School Learning Support Officer – Mrs Jane Mewburn

School Learning Support Officer/Wellbeing - Mr Graeme Summerson

School Canteen Manager - Mrs Shelley Chaffey

School Chaplain - Mr Graeme Summerson

General Assistant – Mr Jim Milne

Last Thursday, we started the sporting year with a BANG! Our school carnival was one of the loudest, most enthusiastic and encouraging carnivals in a long time at BPS. The races were exciting and we had many fantastic swims, including a new record broken by Addison Jones in the Junior Girls Individual Medley with a time of 3:45:00; a record held by Mia McClements. Amazing effort, Addison! But the races were not the only exciting thing at the carnival. The house captains and their houses battled it out for points with their cheering, war cries and even silent cheering competitions! There were some very red faces alongside the pool!

Well done to all our competitors, supporters and house captains. Our Champion House was Hargraves. Congratulations to all the Hargraves swimmers. Our Swimming Champions for 2024 were;

Junior Girl - Addison Jones
Junior Boy - Ethan Jones
11 years Girl - Isla Barnes
11 years Boy - Max Naylor
Senior Girl - Elena Noonan
Senior Boy - Cooper Jones

Competitors who qualified for District will compete in our school swimming team next Friday, 23rd March. Our 31 strong team consists of Ashwin Buttsworth, Cooper Jones, James Hollier, Ethan Jones, Elena Noonan, Charlotte Falconer, Addison Jones, Adelaide Fulthorpe, Will Simeonidis, Max Naylor, Harvey Glasgow, Lawson Glasgow, Will Skein, Aurora Davis, Mia Barnett, Isla Barnes, Amelia Simeonidis, Hannah Skein, Frankie Shoemark, Ewan Long, Archer Kolkman, Sidney Shoemark, Sophie McPhee, Jasmyn Ferrier, Ellie Surawski, Lilian Klootwijk, Beau Francis, Theo Lyle, Jack Hair, Aria Hegvold and Ava Bartholomew. Good luck to all of our swimmers.

Band - Band lessons will commence on Tuesday 20th February and Wednesday 21st February. Band lessons will be taught by teachers from the Mitchell Conservatorium, will be 30 minutes in duration and occur each week. The schedule is as follows;

Tuesday - Guitar lessons at 1.30pm and Drum lessons at 2.00pm

Wednesday - Keyboard lessons at 11.30am, Violin lessons at 11.50am and Trumpet lessons at 12.30pm.

If any parent is still interested in having their child taught an instrument in band lessons, please contact Mrs Ivory at school.

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 2024 is:

Term 1 Week 5 – Thursday 29th February – Support Unit Parent/Teacher Interviews
Term 1 Week 6 - Tuesday 5th March- Friday 8th 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 Thursday 29th February for the Support Unit classes and Tuesday 5th March - Monday 8th 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 2024 school year, plans for the school year, class expectations, and parent expectations. The parent portal will be set up soon to allow parents to book their meeting time. Teachers will contact parents regarding your allocated time prior to the interviews.

Interview Dates for the calendar;

Thursday 29th February- Support Class Parent Teacher Interviews
Tuesday 5th March - Stage 2 Parent Teacher Interviews
Wednesday 6th March - Stage 1 Parent Teacher Interviews
Thursday 7th March - Stage 3 Parent Teacher Interviews
Friday 8th March - Kindergarten Parent Teacher Interviews

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.

General Reminders:-

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, friends and visitors come to the school during the day, they should QR code before entering the premises. This is a Legal and Health and Safety requirement and is followed for the safety and security of all children and staff. There are no longer pen and paper sign in sheets; the QR coding is now an electronic visitor register for each school.
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 for the betterment of every child at our school.
All permissions and payments for activities can now be made on the Sentral Parent Portal.

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

Kate White

Principal

Bathurst Public School

Issue 3 · 15 Feb 2024

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