Alphington Primary School Newsletter

School News

Colour Run - TOMORROW-Thursday 24th October

Tomorrow is the day!! Here are a few final things to note:

  1. The best way to get as colourful as possible is to wear all white. The paint will stain clothing so ensure that students are not wearing new or special clothing. Students may also opt to wear sunglasses or face masks for extra protection. If your child does not wish to be paint bombed, please let their teacher know. 
  2. It is important to remain SUNSMART, so please ensure your child has a suitable hat. 
  3. Students will not be able to re-enter school buildings after the Colour Run to avoid paint inside the buildings. 
  4. We suggest that students bring a towel to school if they are travelling home by car to avoid that paint getting on the seats.
  5. If your child is attending TheirCare after school on Thursday, please send them with a change of clothes to change into after school. 
  6. The event will start at 1:30 p.m. at Alphington Park. We’d love to have a big crowd of family members to cheer the students (and teachers) on so please do come on down. 😊

Finally, amazing work on the fundraising! We have now raised $17,289. One more day of fundraising to go so keep up the great work. It would be FABULOUS if we reached our $20,000 target!

The SRC has selected even more teachers to be colour bombed. 

Many thanks for your support in making this event a memorable day for our school community. Any questions or concerns, please do email me at martha.mackenzie@education.vic.gov.au

We will see you at Alphington Park at 1:30p.m. on Thursday. Bring on the colour!

APS Comedy Night - Tickets onsale now!

A reminder to purchase your Comedy Night tickets. Promises to be a fun filled night!

 

⭐️APS Comedy Night 

⭐️ Sat 9 November 2024 Alphington’s resident comedy genius Sammy J is bringing the crew back to Alphington for the wildly fun & hilarious APS comedy night! 

⏰Doors Open: 7.00pm 🤣 Comedy: 8.00pm 

🗺️Where: APS Gym 

🍷Drinks: Available for purchase – at bar prices 

💃🏻Line-up: GERALDINE HICKEY, IVAN ARISTEGUIETA, NICOLETTE MINSTER and ANNIE LOUEY with MC SAMMY J 

🤩 Note only flat shoes to be worn - it's no laughing matter! 

💵Tickets: $35 per person

https://www.trybooking.com/CWFQM

SPS Speech Box 

Supporting Vocabulary - practical ways to grow vocabulary

 

What is vocabulary?

Vocabulary is all the words we know, understand, and use. We learn new words in two main ways: by hearing them and by reading them. Children can learn new words through talking and interacting with family, friends and at school and by reading storybooks together (Beck, McKeown, Kucan, 2013).

 

The importance of vocabulary

Research shows that a strong vocabulary is important for school success (McKeown, 2019). As children progress in school, they need to understand and use more complex words, including specific words for different subjects (e.g., science words like "organism" and "synthesis") and words that help explain what they need to do for assignments (e.g., "discuss," "explain," "define").

 

Practical ways to help your child grow their vocabulary:

  1. Talk about word meanings
    Talk about new words your child hears. For example, if they hear the word "curious," explain that being curious means wanting to learn new things. You can write the word down, keep it on the fridge, and discuss it at the dinner table. 
  2. Use new words in sentences
    Encourage your child to make sentences with new words. For example, if the new word is "adventure," they can say, "We had an exciting adventure in the forest."
  3. Explore word groups
    Help your child see how words are related by grouping similar words. For example, if you're talking about "animals," discuss different types, like mammals, birds, and reptiles. 
  4. Learn similar words (synonyms)
    Expand their vocabulary by learning words with similar meanings. For example, for "happy," you can introduce synonyms like "joyful," "content," or "excited." 
  5. Learn opposite words (antonyms)
    Teach them opposites to deepen their understanding of words. For example, if the word is "hot," you can discuss its opposite, "cold." 

Remember, building vocabulary is an ongoing process! Daily conversations, reading together, and playing word games are great ways to help your child develop their vocabulary.

No canteen tomorrow for Colour Run

Canteen will be back next week and will then run every Thursday this term until stock runs out.

Green Team - bottle and can collection - LAST DAY NEXT FRIDAY

Next Friday is the last day for our can and bottle drop off ready for recycling. Please drop to the office. NO GLASS Thank you

OHMP - Music Concert - Sunday 17th November

Smile Squad Survey - Message from Smile Squad

Dear Parents/Carers,

As you might be aware, we have had the School Dental Program - ‘Smile Squad’ – attend our school to give the students information on good dental health, undertake dental examinations and, where required, organise follow-up treatment. While the program is voluntary, many of you consented for your child/children to participate in the Smile Squad program. 

To better understand the delivery of the Smile Squad program including benefits and challenges, an independent firm (Abt Global) has been engaged to evaluate the program. This is your opportunity to provide feedback on your experience of the program. If you didn’t consent for your child/children to participate in Smile Squad they are also keen to hear from you. The evaluation team want to understand why you chose not to participate. So, whether you participated or not, this is an opportunity to provide feedback so that improvements can be made to the Smile Squad program.

To participate in the evaluation, you can complete a confidential 5–10-minute survey. The survey does not require you to provide any information to the evaluation team that identifies you, however the survey does ask what school your child/children attend. Here is the link to the survey.

https://abtassoc.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bf6YJUMs3NkfHWm 

We encourage you to participate in this short survey and provide valuable feedback on Smile Squad. If you would like to provide more detailed feedback to the evaluation team, please contact Eleanor at smilesquad_eval@abtglobal.com.