Parent Information

Our school is proud to facilitate a caring learning environment, which enables students to continually grow academically, spiritually, physically, emotionally and socially.

 We look forward to working with you and your child as partners to create a successful educational experience.


Arrival

On the first day of school, students can be dropped off at our classroom between 8.30 and 8.40am. Please ensure that morning goodbyes are kept short and sweet to enable your child to transition into a successful day. If they are upset for any reason, we will ensure your child is fully supported as they become comfortable with their new peers and surroundings. The following 'Arrival' information applies from the second day onwards.

Teacher supervision of the students (in the undercover area) begins at 8:15am. Your child should only arrive at school after this time so that they are not unsupervised. If your child needs to be dropped off early, please make a booking with the Outside School Hours Care team.

An assembly bell rings at 8.35am each morning and your child should line up with our class in the undercover area when this bell rings. They should not stay with a parent during this time. If you would like to walk your child up to the undercover area, please ensure you have said your goodbyes before they line up.

PARENTS/GUARDIANS ARE NOT PERMITTED TO WALK THEIR CHILD TO THE CLASSROOM UNLESS THEY SIGN IN AT THE OFFICE FIRST.

If your child is experiencing difficulties saying goodbye, either myself or an administration representative will walk them to the classroom and settle them. This is an important transitional strategy so that your child does not expect you to walk them to the room each day. Additionally, we believe that it is important for children to carry their own bags/belongings to the classroom so that they learn the valuable skill of independence.

It is very important that your child arrives at school on-time so that they can hear any messages for the day and participate in our whole-school prayer time. Additionally, we believe that arriving at school around 8.15-8.20am will give your child more opportunities to establish social links with their classmates before the bell rings. When a child is late it can affect their whole day. Every minute in our day counts. Please have your child at school on time each and every day.

On wet days the children will be collected from the undercover area at 8.30am as part of our wet weather program.

Late Arrival

If your child arrives at school after 8.40am, please do not drop them off in the drop-off area. Students arriving after 8.40am should be signed in at the office by their parent/guardian. Please do not bring them directly to the classroom as our attendance rolls are marked electronically and you will be redirected to the office so that adjustments to the roll can be made and your child will be issued with a late slip to give to me.

It is also a legal requirement that any parent or helper must sign in at the office if they are on the school grounds between 8.40am and 2.55pm each day. This is to ensure that requirements relating to both fire safety and student safety are met.


Home Reader Folder



Your child's Home Reader folder will be sent home daily. It is your child’s home-school communication folder. It should be brought to school in your child’s bag every day, and it returns home each afternoon. It is also used to carry important notes from the school. This folder is checked each morning so that we are aware of any important information or messages from parents.



School Newsletters/Notes:



Newsletters are available each fortnight via ‘Enews’.  You will need to register with the school office so the newsletter will be emailed to you.  If you require a paper copy of the newsletter you will also need to let the office staff know.  As mentioned above, other notes will be placed in your child's Home Reader folder.

Attendance 

Attendance is vital in your child’s education. Each day provides valuable learning experiences that can’t be missed! We understand that your child will occasionally be sick as well as have scheduled doctor’s appointments. After an absence of any kind, please email us (or send a note) explaining the reason for the absence. Please include your child’s name and date of absence on the note.

Library Bags

Students MUST bring a library bag to protect borrowed books. We use a ‘No Bag, No Borrow’ policy. If you do not have a Library bag you could use an old pillow case or a heavy duty plastic bag.


HELPFUL HINT: It's a really good idea for you and your child to brainstorm a special 'forget me not' place to help them remember their library bag. Children in the past have suggested to keep their library book and bag on their bookshelf at home or straight back in their school bags. 


Birthdays

Birthdays are a special time of the year for each child! If your child would like to share a small birthday treat with the class, please let me know. Our school prefers that individual cupcakes or ice blocks are distributed on birthdays, rather than large cakes (as knives are not kept in the classroom). These treats will be shared just before our afternoon tea break.

Parent/Teacher Interviews

We will have timetabled Parent/Teacher Interview at the completion of Term Two. If you would like to request a meeting with us other than the timetabled conference, please don’t hesitate to make an appointment with me via email or a note in your child’s Kit Folder. Open communication is essential in the successful education of your child!


Homework

Homework will be issued weekly during the year. More information will be provided.


Brain Break

Each day every student is required to bring a piece of cut up fruit or vegetable, in a separate labelled container, zip lock bag or paper bag, to eat during “Brain Break”. It gives the students an opportunity to put some nutrition into their bodies and increase their energy to learn at optimum levels. 



We encourage children to eat healthy food. Some examples of foods to bring include: fresh fruit such as apples; mandarins; cut up oranges; seasonal fruit (stone fruit in the summer months); cut up watermelon; bananas; pears; cut up kiwi fruit; grapes; cherry tomatoes – the list is endless. Vegetables such as carrot and celery sticks; snow peas; cooked pumpkin and sweet potato squares; fresh broccoli florets are just some possibilities. It is an opportunity to be inventive with food. 



We ask that students not bring any packaged or processed food as we  am promoting healthy, natural foods. The “Brain Break” should take about 10 minutes to eat in the morning around 9.40 (timetable permitting). 


Lunch

Food choices impact heavily at school. What children eat will affect how they behave, how they perform at school and how they interact with others. Diet is important not only for physical health, but also for optimal mental development and functioning.

Please avoid sending foods that contain food additives. Remember that if it comes out of a box, it will have additives - don't believe the packaging! Additives can negatively impact behaviour and general well-being. We encourage all children to eat a selection of fresh fruit (not pre-packaged pretend ‘fruit') during the day. We also recommend a sandwich and fruit yoghurt. In most cases, children won’t need any more than the above items. The use of containers to store fruit, yoghurt and sandwiches is an excellent (and cheap) way to role-model environmentally friendly eating habits, rather than plastic wrapping.

Children need food that they can manage.  Please teach and encourage your child to open their own containers, packets and juice poppers.

Additionally, please ensure that your child brings a drink bottle of water (NEVER cordial) to school every day. We have scheduled drink breaks during the day and access to a water bottle inside the room is a lot more time-efficient than using water fountains. 

Tuckshop

Our school tuckshop is open each day of the week. They operate through a brown bag system or on-line ordering.

Please carefully consider the food that you order for your child from the school tuckshop as we aim to educate the children in making healthy choices in their lives.

Uniform

All children are required to wear the correct school uniform.  All children will wear:
·                     A school sports shirt (on PE lesson days) or formal shirt;
·                     Shorts or culottes;
·                     Light blue ankle socks;
·                     Black leather or leather-look shoes;
·                     A school hat everyday;
·                     Neat and tidy hair, tied back if long as per the parent handbook information;
·                     Jewellery in accordance with the parent handbook.



NOTE: PLEASE REMEMBER TO NAME YOUR CHILD'S BELONGINGS CLEARLY TO PREVENT DISTRESS. 



Medicine

For the safety of all students, there are rules and regulations regarding medicines. If your child requires medication, he/she will go to the office to have it administered. Parents must personally bring all medication to the office and fill out the appropriate medication form. Medications of any nature will not be accepted or administered in the classroom.

After School

We ask that you collect your child from the Undercover Area each day.

Unless you have signed yourself in at the office (and are wearing a volunteer tag), please remain in the 'Parents Area' until 2:55pm, when the bell rings. If you see other parents entering the school grounds without a volunteer tag, please redirect them to the office.

Please ensure you have informed your child as to where you will be picking them up from in the afternoon (it may be the undercover area, the pick up zone - "white post" - or after school care). If your routine changes, please let the class teacher know via email or a note in your child’s Home Reading folder so that we can remind them.

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