Hi!

Welcome back to DCC for 2023. It has been a very settled beginning to the year. As I wander through the classrooms, the students are listening and engaging with their teacher and peers. I have loved chatting to the students and hearing about their holiday adventures. 

You would have seen that we have a number of new staff this year and our community continues to grow and as such, continues to change a little each year. Some of our processes have to change to cater for our numbers within our facilities and others change as we listen to feedback from our staff and parents. 

We are looking forward to an amazing year.

Compass

It is very important that all families are connected to Compass and reading the information that the school delivers. Everything is communicated through this app. If you are not connected, please come into the school and we will work with you to make sure that you have a log in and can use the app. We are happy to help you get connected. It is important to be informed.

Transition Tips

For those who have their children starting Prep here are some tips to help with the transition process:

• Find out about what your child is learning at school. By doing this, you can support your child’s learning and find out how your child is adjusting to school.
• If your child is having difficulty at school, talk to their teacher. Your child can also say what they think might help them.
• Keep talking to your child about school. Ask them about their new experiences, what they like and what they find hard.
• If your child goes to care before or after school, find a way of sharing your child’s school progress with the staff.
• Share feedback about your child’s experience of starting school with the school and early childhood service.
• Organise time for your child and their new friends to play together outside of school.

Help with School Costs

There are options if you're having difficulties with the cost of school.

You can:

• talk to the school about your situation. We may be able to arrange a payment plan or look at other options.
• ask about support from State Schools' Relief and the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund
• use the payment and service finder to see if you can get support from the Commonwealth government.
• use the Crisis Referral Information System to find support near you.
• ask your school about support services in your area.

Mobile phone policy

Please take the time to read our mobile phone policy on the website as it is important that everyone is aware that mobile phones are not permitted at school an if they are at school they have to be turned off and stored. In the primary school, this means handing their phones into the office and in the secondary school, phones must be turned off and kept in their lockers. Any apple watches or similar devices must be disabled or on flight model whilst at school.

School uniform

We also have a uniform policy. It too can be found on our website. We know our families work very hard to encourage our students to follow the uniform policy and to wear their uniform with pride. We would like everyone to pay particular mind to jewellery and make up. Make up is not permitted and one pair of studs or sleepers in ears is permitted. There are OHS issues around jewellery being worn at school. 

Attendance

We hope to have our students here at school every day. We love having them here and every day they are away they miss valuable learning and have to catch up in some way. We understand that there will be days that they are unwell. When this occurs, please let us know by either ringing the office or logging onto Compass. 

Just 5 days away a year means that when they finish school here at DCC they would have missed a term of school. A day away a fortnight means a term’s absence in just 2 years. Extended holidays can catch up on children also. We want our children to be here at school so we can support them to reach their full potential academically, socially and emotionally. 

If a student is struggling in any way at school, we ask that you contact us and we will work with you to improve engagement and support them here at school.

Traffic

We have had a new crossing placed in the middle of the block in Elmhurst Road. The previous one closest to Wirrigirri is to be decommissioned in the coming weeks which is why it isn’t being used. We also have another crossing in Tylden Way. It is important that the adults in our community utilise these crossings and model the correct behaviour for our children. We continue to have complaints made daily about parents double parking, parking across driveways and performing illegal turns. We cannot stress enough the importance of the adults in our community behaving safely and modelling the correct behaviour for everyone. This means that you may need to leave earlier in the morning or make pre-arranged pick up points. DO NOT leave you car if you are using the drop off and pick up points. In the two minute parking areas, the expectation is that you do not park your car but do a drop off or pick up – this allows the traffic to keep moving. I thank those who are following the rules and setting a good example. 

Hand sanitiser/ Hats/ Sunscreen

All students are expected to be wearing a hat during the lunch and recess breaks. Please make sure that all children have a hat in their bag. For those who would like their children to apply sunscreen, please provide a roll on sunscreen which has your child’s name on it. The children can apply this themselves before break times.

If you would like your child to be using hand sanitiser, please place a small named container in your child’s bag.

School Picnic and Information Night

On Tuesday 21st February, it is our School Picnic and Information Night. Please see the flyer in our newsletter to find out the times for your child’s information session. Bring a rug and your dinner to share a meal on the oval with our community. Dessert trucks will be set up in the carpark for you to purchase trets throughout the afternoon. We look forward to seeing you then. 

Parent Information Nights- how to help and support your child

We will be running to parent nights towards the end of term around social skills and communication for those in P-4  and similar for those in Years 5-8 but in an online setting. The P-4 session will be Monday 20th of March from 6-7pm and the Years 5-8 session will be on Tuesday 28th of March from 6-7pm and both sessions will be held in the gym. Please note them in your diaries. When we all work together, we get maximum benefit for the children-it takes a village to raise a child- so we hope to see you all there.

Pride March

On Sunday the 5th of February, a group of staff from DCC marched in the midsumma Pride March. This group was our Rainbow Alliance, those who identify as LGBQTA+ and allies on staff. It was an opportunity for those staff to feel seen and acknowledged. They know that DCC is inclusive and that all our community are kept safe and valued.

Assembly

This year assemblies will run a little differently as our school grows. 

We will hold whole school assemblies where we send a whole school message. In week 2, this message was, “How do we hang in the yard at DCC?” At this assembly, the students are given time to chat and we share together what their thoughts are and we reinforce a school wide message and expectation. 

The sub-schools (P-2, 3-5, 6-8) then run a follow up assembly in the weeks following examining the behaviours that are needed at a specific age and year level. This assembly is organised using yarning circles so that all the children have an opportunity to speak and share their ideas. Expectations as a sub school are then developed and anchor charts made to support the students in the classroom. 

Year level assemblies will be organised as well. This will be a celebration assembly with Gotchas, Student of the Week certificates, PATHS students etc shared and parents will be invited to this assembly at different times. 

Grounds and Facilities

We have had an enormous amount of work occur over the holidays. We have our new buildings in Marram (kangaroo). Our Year 3 students are housed in the double story building and there are two Year 4 classes in a new relocatable facing the nature play area. Another relocatable has arrived and will be ready for two more Year 4 classes at the beginning of Term 2. A lot of maintenance has happened over the holidays in our buildings and throughout the grounds. We now have a path from our Tylden Way gate to the Balam Balam building and would appreciate people using it instead of walking across the oval. This allows the grass on the oval to grow but also is a safe option particularly when the ground is wet.

Parent Morning Teas

We would like to hear from the community. Keep an eye out for a compass post inviting you to morning tea to chat with the PCO team. We would love to hear what is working well and what is a challenge.

Thank you for all of your work with the students this year; it is a combined effort between school and home to support and educate the students. We would not have had such a settled beginning without your support. We’ll see you on the 21st of February- don’t forget your rug!