Dear Parents,

Welcome back to Term 4. I hope everyone had an enjoyable break. Term 4 is shaping up to be extremely busy. We will continue to publish events on Facebook, through the Sentral Parent Portal and in the Newsletter. Please contact the office at school at any time if you need to seek clarification on any aspect of what is occurring at school.

Welcome to our new families who have joined us at Bathurst Public School at the commencement of Term 4. We know you will enjoy your time at our wonderful school and will make many lifelong memories.

Our Grandparents Day celebrations will occur on Thursday 24th October. The outline of the morning is;

10.30am - Open Classrooms

11.00am - Morning Tea (supplied by Kinder, Stage 1 and School Spectacular children) available in the quad

11.45am - Stage 1, 2 and 3 Dance Troupes performing under the COLA

12.00noon - Children return to class

On Friday 22nd November, we will be having a school 'Colour Run'. Children have received their information booklets to take home. This explains how children can register and raise money. This is bound to be an exciting and wonderful event for our children. All money raised will go towards School Spectacular and purchasing school resources. There is more information in this newsletter, on Facebook and further information will be sent home in the coming weeks. 

A reminder that our annual Swimming Program note has been published through the Sentral Parent Portal. The dates of the Term 4 10-day Swimming Program for 2024 at the Bathurst Aquatic Centre are Monday 25th November - Friday 29th November and Monday 2nd December to Friday 6th December. The cost of the annual program is $130.00. Parents can give permission and make regular payments through the Sentral Parent Portal. Final payments and notes will be due by Friday 1st November, 2024.

The staff are commencing conversations about class structures for 2025 and will commence working on staffing and designing classes throughout the later part of the school term. Many hours of work go into creating structures, staffing and designing every class. The school recognises the importance of fostering and maintaining friendship groups. We also understand that it is equally important for students to mix and learn with peers with different interests. Some details to assist parents with the process we are going through and how they can be involved in preparation for 2025 are outlined below;

• Children are asked by their teacher around week 5 to nominate 3 children they would like to be in a class with; a minimum of 1 of the nominations is to be a child who is currently in another class. The school endeavours to ensure each child receives at least 1 of their nominated friends.
• Parents are invited to make requests based on the academic and emotional needs of their child. Requests for class placements must be in writing, outlining who you are requesting your child to be placed with and why. Requests must be addressed to the Principal, Mrs White. All requests need to be received by Friday, 8th November 2024. As you can understand, we are not always able to accommodate class placement requests but will endeavour to take wishes into consideration where possible.
• All teachers at Bathurst Public School are caring and committed educators. Bathurst Public strives to ensure that all children are provided with a high-quality education so they can 'Believe, Belong and Succeed'. Whilst we appreciate that you may wish that your child would benefit from being placed in a class with a particular teacher, we are unable to accommodate teacher requests. Our school's Leadership Team (Principal, Deputy Principal, Assistant Principals and Learning and Support Team) have an in-depth understanding of each teacher's strengths and will always endeavour to place our students with teachers who are best placed to suit their needs.
• If you know you will be moving in 2025 and your child/children will not be attending Bathurst Public School, would you please contact the office at school and let us know by Friday 8th November 2024 please. 

We believe student learning, wellbeing and success are best when working together. Please do not hesitate to contact the school to discuss any concerns you may have.

Kate White

Principal