Horsley Herald Term 1 Week 8 2021

Dear HPPS Families,

We hope you are all staying dry and safe during this wet weather and rain.

Please download the NSW Department of Education School Updates app (if you haven’t already done so) as this will give you up-to-date information on any school that is temporarily ceasing operations due to adverse weather, bushfires, emergencies or other incidents. The instructions for download can be found by following this link. 

It has been lovely welcoming our school community back on site the past week. It has also been pleasing to see many of our students continuing their independence at drop off time in the mornings. We really appreciate parents and carers maintaining the quick drop off in the mornings so that children continue to meet up with their friends and settle quickly into the learning day. When you come on site in the afternoons could you please remember to maintain a 1.5m distance from other adults and leave the school grounds promptly. We look forward to our community being part of activities and events over the next few weeks and throughout the year.

Student Leaders

Last Tuesday 16th March, our newly inducted SLT leaders participated in a leadership hald day training session at school as part of their induction into these important and fulfilling leadership roles. This included our Student Leadership Team (SLT) and our School Captain's Team. Students were involved in activities to support their understanding of their role, what makes a good leader, and how they utilise communication within their role. Thank you to Mrs Benyameen and Mrs White for co-ordinating our student leader groups and leadership session.

Being on Time and Ready to Learn Everyday Counts

Thank you to all our students who are arriving at school on time, ready to learn and making the most of the learning opportunities at Horsley Park Public School every day. The school day begins at 9:15am. It is important students arrive at school and class on time as this ensures:

• students do not miss out on important learning activities scheduled early in the day
• students learn the importance of punctuality and routine
• students are provided time to greet and connect with their friends before class
• classroom teaching and morning routines are not interrupted

Attendance matters and every day counts towards your child/ren's learning success. Just one day missed per fortnight equals 20 days per year, which is 4 weeks per year and therefore, from Kindergarten to Year 12, that is nearly one and a half years of school. Whilst we encourage daily attendance, on occasion, your child may need to absent from school. Justified reasons for student absences may include:

• being sick, or having an infectious disease
• having an unavoidable medical appointment
• being required to attend a recognised religious holiday
• exceptional or urgent family circumstance (e.g. attending a funeral)

Following an absence from school you must ensure that within 7 days you provide the school with a verbal or written explanation for the absence. However, if the school has not received an explanation from you within 2 days, the school may contact you to discuss the absence.

Morning Supervision

A gentle reminder to our community in regards to morning drop off. Students are not to enter the school grounds before 8.45am, with some exception to extra curricular activites, e.g excursions. There is no supervision provided for our students until this time. Gates A and Gate B are open from 8:45am. 

NAPLAN Online Assessment

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a point in time assessment of literacy and numeracy skills that are essential for every child to progress through school and life. Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 participate in the annual NAPLAN tests in writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy.

Our school will be participating in NAPLAN Online between 11 May and 21 May 2021.

In preparation for NAPLAN Online, our school will also be participating in practice test on Monday 29th March. The practice test is a trial-run and key preparation activity for NAPLAN Online in May. It is not an assessment of student ability and the tests will not be marked.

Excessive preparation for NAPLAN Online is not recommended. Students can use the the public demonstration site to familiarise themselves with the types of questions and tools available in the NAPLAN Online tests.

https://www.nap.edu.au/online-assessment/public-demonstration-site

Tell Them From Me Survey

Students in Years 4-6 will participate in the Tell Them from Me student feedback survey before the end of this term. The survey measures factors that are known to affect academic achievement and other student outcomes. The focus of the NSW-wide survey is on student wellbeing, engagement and effective teaching practices.

More information about the survey is available at:

Tell Them from Me Parent Information

Tell Them From Me is a great opportunity for our students to provide us with valuable feedback on what they think about school life, how engaged they are with school and the different ways that teachers interact with them. Capturing the voices of our students will help improve how we do things at our school.

The survey is strictly confidential which means teachers won't know how students have answered. It is conducted online and takes about 30 minutes to complete. The survey will be administered during school hours and participating in the survey is entirely voluntary.

A consent form for parents/carers about the survey has been sent home. If you do not wish for your child/children to participate, please return the form to school.

Harmony Day

Horsley Park Public School acknowledged Harmony Day on Thursday, 25th March. The message of Harmony Day is 'Everyone Belongs'. On this day we acknowledge, celebrate our community, promote inclusiveness, celebrate diversity, respect and belonging. Students participated in class activities to promote harmony, co-operation and respect in our school. Students came to school wearing either orange or school uniform to celebrate Harmony Day. Traditionally orange signifies social communication, freedom of ideas and encouragement of mutual respect. Thank you Mrs Borg, Mrs Stevens and staff for coordinating this day.

School Vision - SIP 2021-24

The Week Ahead..

Upcoming School Events

PBL Celebration Day-Colour Run - Tuesday 30th March

Easter Hat Parade, P&C Raffle & special lunch orders - Thursday 1st April

Last Day of Term 1 - Thursday 1st April

Good Friday - Friday 2nd April

Pupil Free Day ( Teachers only) - Monday 19th April

Students Return to school for Term 2 - Tuesday 20th April

Have a wonderful week.

Anica Tanevski

Principal

Horsley Park Public School

School Photography Date: 25/03/2021

Dear Parents,

School photography day is coming up soon. Group and portrait photographs can be purchased by following the link below or by returning the order envelope with your payment to our photographer on school photo day.

NEW
advancedlife now offers Latitude Pay! To take advantage of LatitudePay and split the cost of your order into 10 small easy payments, simply order your school photos online as usual, set up a Latitude Pay account in just a few clicks and pay no interest or fees when you pay according to your payment schedule; it’s that easy.

3 easy ways to purchase:

1. LatitudePay – Click on the link below, set up an account during the online order process and split your payments across 10 weeks with no interest or fees, if you pay on time
2. Visa, MasterCard or PayPal
3. Cash – complete the envelope supplied and return it to our photographer on photo day
4. PHOTO DAY HORSLEY PARK PS

Or visit: www.advancedlife.com.au
And enter online order code: ZC4 Q7X EC4

School photography information:

• Online orders - do not require an envelope returned to your school
• Sibling Photos - Don’t forget to pre-order your sibling photos online up to 24 hours before photo day. We provide your school with a list of sibling orders right up to the day of photography, so no one misses out. If you miss the online order deadline, you can submit a completed sibling order envelope first thing in the morning of the day of photography, so your school is aware you want the photo taken and can bring your children together in time for it. Sibling photographs only apply to children enrolled at your school. Please note not all schools offer sibling photos
• Late fees - a late fee will be applied to each package purchased after photo day due to the additional cost of producing these packages separately
• Package delivery - photographic packages will be returned to your school for distribution approximately six weeks after photos are taken
• Previous Years’ photos - Past years’ photographs including sports, co-curricular and representative groups are also available to order under the 'previous years or group photo' tabs at your school’s advancedorder site when you click on the 'Order School Photos Here' button above. You can also order past packages, portrait images and gifts from your child’s unique, individual and secure advancedyou image archive site using the unique 9 digit image code found on packages you have ordered in the past

advancedlife would like to express our appreciation to Horsley Park Public School for placing your trust in us. Please remember we offer a 100% money back guarantee on our products to ensure your peace of mind. We would also love to receive your feedback or resolve any issues you may experience as fast as possible, to ensure your satisfaction. If you have any questions, comments or feedback relating to your advancedlife experience please contact us at: www.advancedlife.com.au/contact

With children heavily engaged in technology use nowadays, it is important that we teach students to be creators of technology rather than just consumers. Below is a list of some fantastic apps that students can use to build their skills in game creation. 

Game_creating_apps.pdf

Parent_s_Guide_to_a_Growth_Mindset_Big_Life_Journal.pdf