GLENDAL PRIMARY SCHOOL January 2015 NEWS SHEET Welcome back to school Welcome back to a new school year and welcome to all our new students and their families. I would like to introduce our new teachers for 2015: Mr Paul Carron (year 6); Miss Katherine Bell (Prep); Mrs Karen Butler (Year 3, returning from family leave); Mrs Hong Davies (Mandarin); Miss Sarah Eilenberg (Year 5); Miss Kate Ryan (Year 1) and Miss Hayley Clark (Year 3). Mrs Julia O’Callaghan in joining the Principal Class team with Mr Paul Whitehead and myself. Welcome to Glendal. Mrs O’Callaghan will be replacing Mrs Karen Brunskill as Assistant Principal, and is taking on responsibilities for student wellbeing. Communication – our e-newsletter Our school newsletter is produced each Tuesday and emailed home to families. This year we are not producing a printed copy as it can be viewed on our website at http://www.glendalps.vic.edu.au/index.php?page=newsletters and is available on our school APP. We encourage families, if you have not done so already, to advise the school office of your (one) email address so that we can email the newsletter on Tuesdays, so saving paper. Our school ‘APP’, Glendal Primary School, is available free on iphone and other smart phones for improved communication. A term calendar of school events is available from our school website on our parents’ page. We hold parent teacher information sessions in Term 1 for each year level; this year the sessions are scheduled for the evening of Wednesday 18 February. Importantly, parents are welcome to make an appointment with their child’s teacher where needed to discuss any areas of concern throughout the year. Please be mindful that teachers attend team meetings, professional development workshops and planning and preparation work before and after school therefore, in order to get the full benefit of a discussion with a teacher, it is best to make an appointment a couple of days in advance. Hot Weather I trust our families had a lovely break and managed to keep cool and dry over the past few weeks. We have a comprehensive set of procedures in place for when the weather is very hot or extreme. Students are brought inside to the classrooms and the library at recess and lunch times during periods of ‘wild’, wet or very hot weather as we have air conditioning throughout our school. We also encourage all students to drink water and to have a plastic, not glass, water bottle with them in class. Please remember that school broad brimmed hats need to be worn when students are playing outside and the use of sun screen is encouraged. It is important to pack foods in lunchboxes that will not ‘go off’ in hot weather. Our school nurse has recommended that children do not bring cold meats and cheese on very hot days – even food in a lunch box that includes an ice pack can deteriorate quickly and become unsafe to eat. Fresh fruit is always a good choice as students are allowed to snack on fruit and vegetables during class times or at 10.00am short ‘brain food’ breaks. Parking and safe driving Please remember that speed restrictions in school zones will be back in place from Thursday 29 January 2015 and please observe the parking and no-standing restrictions around the school. These regulations are being monitored by the City of Monash. Learning Community Every year we commence with our annual Learning Community program. This is our program of creating a happy, safe and engaging learning environment. We work on building relationships within each class, getting to know one another and learning social skills whilst enjoying special activities. A separate notice is being sent home to families with details of the Learning Community Program 2015. After School Programs Our extra-curricular school programs commence next week. Enrolment and payment for these classes needs to be organised through the program providers. Please remember that our student Beginner Chinese class starts again on Monday 3 February in our Mi Café, from 3.30 – 5.00pm. Our other after school programs also commence next week and we regularly place a term calendar of extra-curricular activities and other school events on our website. Mi Café (community room) Our Mi Café is open initially every Monday morning from 9.00 – 11.00am and everyone is welcome. Mrs Elise Kimpton, one of our parents, is managing the Mi Café and will be placing more information in our newsletter. Second hand uniform is also available for purchase at advertised times. IMPORTANT REMINDER RE CHILD SAFETY With the 2015 school year formally commencing on 30 January 2015, for our students it is an opportune time to remember the importance of road safety and the speed limit around our school. Melbourne and greater Victoria often experience extremely high temperatures for the back to school period. Parents and/or guardians are reminded that on hot days it is important never to leave children alone in a car. Temperatures inside a parked car during summer can be around 20 to 30 degrees hotter than the outside temperature. Leaving children in hot cars, even for a moment, can result in serious injury or death. Young children’s smaller body size and underdeveloped nervous system places them at a much greater risk of life-threatening heatstroke, dehydration and other serious health risks. If a parent or guardian is travelling with a child, never leave them alone in a parked car, not even for one moment. Deborah Grossek Principal