Welcome to the 2023 school year! We hope you have had a fun-filled summer with your family. Our school year started on Tuesday with 411 students from Year 1-6 and on Thursday morning we welcomed our 74 Foundation students.

Our newsletter is published forntightly on a Friday afternoon and I encourage you to read the information and keep up to date with what is happening around our schools. We look forward to another school year full of learning and adventure!

Some important reminders for the beginning of the school year:

If your child is late, they MUST be brought to the office and signed in.

We understand that mornings can be chaotic with busy families but we cannot emphasise enough, how important it is for your child to be here ready to start learning at 9.00 am. Learning success is greatly impacted when children learn the important explanations at the start of a lesson and the opportunity to connect with their class mates.

Hats

All students are required to wear our school hats during the months of high UV. This means Term 1 and Term 4. Peak caps/basketball caps are not suitable. Children without hats will be required to play under covered areas.

2023 Permissions

At the beginning of each school year, all parents must consent or decline a number of permissions for each of their children. These permissions include:

Photography, Filming and Recording Students - (please note: your child's photo can not be included in our newsletter until this is completed)
Responsible Use of ICT - (please note: your child can not use ipads or computers including YEAR 5/6 BYOD at school until this is completed)
Seesaw Permission
Conducting Headlice Inspections
Local Excursions

These permissions must be completed by a parent on Compass, you will find them under "Events". You will also find detailed information about each of these permissions. Parents can decide to consent or decline these permissions individually. If you have tried to complete these on the Compass app and still require assistance, please bring your device into the school office so we can assist you.

Introducing our New Staff

Hi, my name is Nikki Camamile and I am the new Year 4 teacher in 4A. I am very excited to be joining the school community at Clyde Primary School. I have spent the last couple of years teaching in England and I love getting to know people with different life experiences. I am an avid basketball fan/player and love anything Disney. I can’t wait to get to know everyone here at Clyde.

Hi, my name is Lianne Ilejay, and I will be teaching Foundation this year! This is my second year of teaching, and I am new to Clyde Primary School this year. I love teaching and I am so excited to be teaching Foundation at CPS and getting to know my students and the school community. A few things about me: I currently live with my family, with whom I will often go out every Sunday to eat somewhere new. We absolutely love finding new places to visit, and delicious food to eat. My favourite food is fried chicken! Aside from that, some of my favourite hobbies are reading a good book or lying in bed and watching a movie. Don’t hesitate to say hi if you see me around, and be sure to introduce yourself, because I would love to meet you! I am looking forward to the fun activities, challenges, and adventures this school year will bring!

Hi, my name is Sarah Hancock, and I am really excited to be teaching at Clyde PS this year in Year 2! I am really enjoying getting to know each student so far. A little bit about myself- I live with my husband Justin and my two children Ashton and Lyla and our pet budgie twitchy!

I have come from Leongatha Primary School where I had been teaching for four years and I have been teaching for over 5 years now as well as being a trained nurse.

A few other things about me-

My favourite colour is purple.

My footy team is the Geelong cats.

My hobbies are running, reading and eating chocolate.

I am really excited to be apart of the Clyde community and I look forward to an amazing year at Clyde PS!

My name is Raja Manikanndan, I am excited to be teaching Year 3 this year, and am also pleased to be a new teacher at Clyde Primary School. I migrated to Australia from India in 2010, and I completed my teaching degree from Monash University in 2018. My family consists of my husband Mani, my son Abeshek and myself. I love spending time with family and friends. I also love travelling, watching movies, listening to music and cooking. I used to be the sports captain in my secondary school days and loved playing volleyball. I am looking forward to working with the Clyde Primary School community and am wishing all my fellow teachers and students a wonderful year ahead. Can’t wait to meet you all.

Hey, my name is Christopher Legge. I am new to Clyde Primary School and will be teaching Year 6 this year! While new to Clyde, I am not new to teaching and will be

entering my tenth year as an educator. I am very much looking forward to getting to know the community and students at this school. I am an avid video gamer and sports fan, and will aways be found doing one of those two things. I live with my partner, Alicia, and our Schnoodle puppy Bean in Clyde, and we have been locals for several years. Alicia and I are huge foodies and love going to the best and fanciest restaurants around Australia. Come say hello if you see me around, and feel free to ask me anything about sports or video games.

Hello, my name is Swati Budhiraja and I will be teaching Year 1 at Clyde Primary School this year. I have an overall teaching experience of about 5 years in various schools

including the schools of India.

A few things about myself, I have been married to Chetan for more than 19 years now and have two amazing kids Kashika & Jay. My favourite hobbies are cooking and listening to music.

I am so excited to be a part of the Clyde Primary School family and looking forward to working with an incredible and helpful team.

Hi, my name is Linda Presswell and I am thrilled to be joining the team at Clyde Primary School as a Grade 1 teacher in 2023!

I love cooking and traveling, during the holidays I went on a cruise with my daughter to Queensland and we visited Brisbane. I am passionate for the environment, and I love being outdoors. If I have any free time I will be sitting on my deck or taking my dog, Abby, for long walks in my local nature reserve. My favourite football team is Hawthorn, GO HAWKS! I am very excited and looking forward to meeting you all and being a part of the Clyde community.

Staffing Announcements

We are sad to announce that Mrs Stecky, our Art teacher, will finish at Clyde PS in the next few weeks. Mrs Steckyj has recently accepted another art teaching position at a secondary college.

We are also saying goodbye to Ms Forrester, who was our previous STEM teacher (prior to her going on Family Leave). Ms Forrester has picked up another teaching position at a school closer to her home.

We thank both Mrs Steckyj and Ms Forrester for the wonderful contributions they have made to Clyde PS for a number of years and wish them all the very best of luck for their futures.

Reading Expectations at home

From Monday the 6th of February, students across the school will begin taking home books to read each night. Teachers will complete regular assessments with students to ensure that the levelled book they are bringing home is a good fit for them. Your child will receive a good fit book in their blue reader bag or plastic folder, this means it is a book that is at or just below your child’s instructional level of reading. This book should not be too challenging for them to read independently. Students in Year 5 and 6 also have the option of reading a different good fit book or a book from home. Home reading is an excellent way to encourage good reading habits in your children and provide opportunities for them to continue working towards their reading goals.

Each student will have a reading diary to record the book they read and record how many nights they are up to. The first reading night for the whole school will be Monday the 6th of February. Students may record reading nights over the weekend and over the holidays. Reading nights awards will be given out regularly at PLT assemblies, so make sure you get started straight away!

Students will need to bring their blue reading satchel to school each day where they will be given time from their teacher to swap their books over. If a student forgets their reading satchel, they cannot take home a new book that day. Please support your child in looking after our school books and making sure they are returned to their classrooms in good condition.

When reading with your child:

We would encourage you to make a routine out of home reading, whether it be just before bed, in the morning or before dinner – whatever works for you and your family. Encourage your children to use the strategies they learn at school when they are stuck on words; strategies such as sounding out, using the picture or finding smaller word chunks. It would also be beneficial to have a conversation with your child about the book or chapter they have read, asking questions to ensure that they are understanding what they are reading. Above all, remember to try and have fun with home reading and enjoy this time with your child.

If you are looking for some guidance on what to work on when reading with your child at home, please speak to their classroom teacher. For some general information and tips, please refer to the video link below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4Sl87VPX_4

School Council

In upcoming weeks our School Council will be calling for nominations for 2 parent members. From next Friday 10th February nomination forms will be available at the school office. Nominations must be lodged by 4:00pm on Friday 17th February. Further information regarding our School Council Elections is contained in the document below.