2024 Information Session

Dear Families,

Welcome back to a new school year!

We hope you find these information slides about your child's classroom helppful for navigating the year ahead. Each classroom teacher has included information they feel is important for you to know to make the transition into the new school year a smooth one, with topics such as classroom expectations and developing independence, as well as other topics relevant to your child's year level. Also included is some information about Structured Literacy, which we began last year and will continue as a focus for Literacy in the future.

Once again, after reading your child's class page, you will have an opportunity to ask questions through the Seesaw app. As you read, please take the time to think about any questions or queries that you might have. If you haven’t yet signed up to Seesaw, this would be a great time to do it! Teachers will answer all questions over the next week and you will be able to view the responses. Just a reminder that the Seesaw App is to be used for simple classroom related messages only - any serious issues should be discussed with your child's teacher in person, over the phone or via the teacher's email. There will also be a chance for you to speak in person with your child's teacher at the Parent/Teacher interviews on February 19th and 20th. Interviews are also a great opportunity to meet the teacher (if you haven't already) and to share any information regarding your child and how they learn best. Bookings will open soon on the PAM portal - look out for this information in the newsletter and on Seesaw.

Last year, we restructured our approach to Home Learning in each year level. While we do not wish learning at home to be difficult or a chore, simple tasks such as reading each night and learning spelling words are essential for your child to consolidate the work they do at school. The old saying of "Practise makes perfect" is very true, particularly in the case of reading - if children are not continually practising, especially in the early years of their education, they may struggle to gain the skills they need to tackle other learning tasks, most of which require reading. Reading with, or to, your child is a great opportunity for you to spend some quiet time with them after the busy school day and it's always good for children to see their parents enjoying reading as well!

Later in the term, on March 21st, we will once again be holding a Family Night where you can come along to enjoy a BBQ, take a look in your child's classroom and view a performance by students as part of the STOMP program. This was a grat night last year and provided families with an opportunity to see how things are going for your child at school in a more relaxed atmosphere. We will send out more information about this in the coming weeks but hope that all families will be able to join us!

Yours sincerely,

Narelle Gallagher