As we approach the end of Term 2 it gives us the opportunity to celebrate the improvement and development of our learners so far this year. As a school we can be rightfully proud of the social, emotional and academic growth of our learners collectively across our school community.

In the last newsletter I talked about the upcoming Parent Teacher interviews and modified reporting process. Last week we sent out a detailed outline of the new process and timeline, as well as the new booking system for interviews. If you did not receive this information please contact the office and we will organise a copy for you. A quick guide for booking appointments is also included in this newsletter. We are again handing out reports at parent teacher and we highly encourage children from grade 1 to 6 to be involved in the interview process.

Our teachers have been working diligently behind the scenes to improve our teaching of writing. Our professional learning over the course of the year is supporting and strengthening our understanding of the writing process and how best to teach it from Kinder to grade 6. Ultimately we aim to produce better writers, who have better reading comprehension and who are better thinkers. Across Australia the ability of students to write well has declined and was an area that we identified as one that our results had also slipped. Through teacher professional learning and our systematic implementation of our developing writing process we are already observing fantastic improvement. We are also introducing a home writing program as part of our home reading program for our Early Childhood classes. We did a trial with some students earlier this term that has further strengthened those students' writing ability, as well as their passion for writing. Stay tuned for more information and free resources, as we  roll out the home writing program!

Finally, I would like take the opportunity to acknowledge the work of our non-teaching staff. They are the unsung heroes within our school and I personally have been in awe of their work of late- much of which would go unnoticed by many. They are the glue that binds our learning community together, and if they weren’t there we would fall apart. Thank you for all that you do!

An update on face masks

Public Health has advised that from Monday 27 June 2022, face masks are no longer mandatory in schools and Child and Family Learning Centres. This is because of reduced COVID-19 cases in our community.

It’s important to continue to:

• stay at home if unwell, and get tested
• practise COVID-safe behaviours such as frequent handwashing and sanitising
• be up to date with your COVID-19 vaccinations.

Students, staff, and visitors are supported to continue to wear face masks if they choose to. Face masks are still available at our school if you need them.

When face masks are required                                  

If you’re a close contact, you are still required to wear a face mask indoors as per current Public Health advice.

From time-to-time our school might identify activities or situations where masks are required to be worn. We ask for your support when this happens and know that it is in the best interests of our students, staff, and our school.

Our staff will continue to wear masks when working closely with students who are vulnerable to COVID-19.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us directly to discuss.

We will soon be starting this intiative at our pre-kinder sessions. The Passport to learning initiative aims to get Tasmanian families excited and involved in Department of Education early years learning programs. It is is a rewards card for you and your child to use every time you attend one of our birth to four years sessions or services.

Passport to Learning is a rewards card that can be used at:

• Launching into Learning sessions 
• Child and Family Learning Centres 
• Early Childhood Intervention Services
• Library Rock and Rhyme sessions, or 
• Library Storytime sessions.

Families receive a sticker each time they attend a session or service. Once they’ve collected 10 stickers, children get a free picture book and their parent/carer receives a free Banjo’s coffee! 

Research shows the experiences of a child in their early years significantly impact their future life outcomes, with quality education – of both children and their families – being the passport to a better life.

Passport to Learning empowers Tasmanian families to support their young children to grow and thrive.

Grade 5/6 students recently had an exciting opportunity to learn about kelp sculpting with Auntie Vicki, Aboriginal Education Worker, Susan and our art teacher, Ms Hardinge. It was great to learn about the properties of Kelp and how we can mold it to create different shapes. Later in the year students will use this medium again to plan and create their own kelp sculpture.

Here are the instructions on how to book a time for the parent teacher interviews.

The link will be shown on the letter that was given to each family, if you have misplaced the letter or not recived one please call the office.

On Tuesday 21^st  June, a small number of athletes that had performed very well at the recent TPSSA Cross Country Carnival got the chance to compete in the Tasmanian Primary All Schools Cross Country Carnival which is held every year at Symmons Plains. This is a huge step up for these students as it involves all the best runners in their age group from all the schools in Tasmania. Most races had around 230 – 250 people competing, and these students should be commended for leaving their comfort zones and taking on this challenge. 

Issac had a fantastic race in the 9 years old boys finishing 93^rd.

Rhianna also managed to finish in the top 100 crossing the line in 99^th position.

Well done to these South George Town Primary students for running so well and representing the school in an outstanding manner.

Girls’ Day June 2022

After our last session, in Term One, we asked the girls for feedback about that particular day, as well as any ideas for future days. Some girls were keen to be more active as a way to assist with their worries and health generally. We tried to incorporate a physical focus for the Term Two Girls’ Day.

Dr Caroline Mooney visited the grade 5/6 girls today to discuss worries and answer any questions. She spoke about categorising our worries into things that have happened and those that might happen. From there we can assess whether the problem is something we can solve or if it is a worry we just keep thinking about. She provided some techniques we could use to cope with our worries, including breathing, the ‘worry time’ app, and animal alphabet. We learnt that it is important to see our bodies as vehicles, not objects. They require fuel (food and water) to run, come in various shapes and sizes, and need to be looked after.

We appreciate the time she put in to answering our questions and allowing us to air any worries or concerns we had in a safe environment.

The middle session involved a visit to the Bee Bop Dance Studio, where the girls were divided into two small groups. Everyone experienced one hour of yoga and one hour of dance. The yoga teacher, Ruth, took a wonderful workshop where the group participated in movement through yoga, controlled breathing, relaxing our minds, being conscious of our bodies, taming our thoughts and even chanting.  The girls expressed feeling calm, relaxed and even sleepy. Meanwhile the dance class involved Mel leading everyone to learn a complicated set of groovy moves in hip-hop style. The culmination was both groups coming together to dance successfully and with enjoyment. The level of participation for both activities was 100% even though some students may have felt out of their comfort zone.

In the afternoon, Jodie Clifford and Channy Clarke ran some team building games, which started with the largest tower built of shoes. Who knew that shoes could be so much fun? All games and activities had a team focus:

Talk

Encourage

Appreciate

Mindful

Again, great participation, sportsmanship, communication and a positive vibe was seen. Channy and Jodie had hoped to incorporate some football, but the weather put a stop to that.

Quotes from the girls demonstrate the positivity felt for this day:

“I enjoyed yoga because I haven’t done it before. It made me happy.”

(Many reported yoga made them feel calm)

“I used the animal alphabet strategy and it really helped me calm down.”

“I think the worry time app will help.”

“I think everything was great and I can’t wait for the next girl’s day.”

“I give it a 10/10 because I’m really energetic and we did active stuff.”

“I got to learn new things and have fun”

“Dr Mooney, especially, helped because she talked about our mental health.”

“It was good to be myself without the boys being there.”

“Yoga helped me feel relieved.”

“10/10. Loved it. Amazing.”

“I definitely think that it worked because it really cleared out my mind and I had heaps of fun.”

If you have any ideas or thoughts or would like to be involved in our Term Three’s Girls’ Day, just let us know.

A big thank you to Dr Caroline Mooney, Ruth, Mel, Jodie and Chantelle for helping to make this day so successful.

Asked to rate the day out of 10, the average score was 9.6!

Here is the link to this fortnight's Merit Certificate announcement by Mr Hay.

https://youtu.be/vLiYtFUy8Bs

Here are our latest 'Reach for the Stars' recipients. These students have demonstrated our school values over several years. Congratulations on this very special award!

https://youtu.be/3MqCmmAHb3k