And now a word from 

Mrs Richards...

Parent - Teacher Communication

Wednesday 21st June is Parent Teacher Conferences Day (instructions for how to book were in our last newsletter). If you have not yet had a chance to speak with your child’s teacher, please take the opportunity to discuss their progress on this day.   Communication between home and school is extremely important and something that we take very seriously as we are keenly aware of the benefits to children of a team approach.  Children benefit most when parents and teachers work in partnership.  To this end, it is important that communication is ongoing and not just something that only occurs after reports go home or when a problem arises. 

We are very lucky at Parkdale Primary School (and I know I am biased!) to have a staff of teachers who are extremely professional in their approach and who are passionate about providing the best possible education for all children in their class.  They are more than willing to make themselves available to parents on a regular basis.  To facilitate this process it is important to remember to:

• Address problems or issues as soon as they arise.  Don’t dwell on a problem or spend lots of time discussing it with other parents in the yard as this can compound the problem.
• Contact the teacher by phone or email to organise a time to meet.  The beginning of the day can be very busy and teachers would prefer to be able to sit and have a proper discussion with you.
• Ensure that discussions are respectful and calm.  It is always important to ask questions before making an assumption that is based on what a child has reported has happened.  The child is only able to see the issue from their own perspective and there may be a different context that needs to be discussed. 
• Give the teacher the opportunity to discuss the issue with you first.  If a resolution cannot be reached, area level co-ordinators or school leadership could then become involved in order to help facilitate a solution.

SRC Update

The SRC continue to be an active presence throughout the school. 

At our most recent meetings we have discussed the use of class sports equipment and the next icy pole day.  They have also requested the establishment of a ‘library box’ within the school grounds similar to those that you see set up in local neighbourhoods.    This week they also facilitated World Environment Day on Monday. They presented information to their classes to explain the importance of this day, asked their teachers to run an environmentally theme activity and promoted Crazy Sock Day – with the proceeds of the gold coin donation going to Bush Heritage Australia.