William Street, East Maitland 2323 Phone: 4933 7524 Fax: 4934 5012 Email: maitlande-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Respect, Responsibility, Learning, Co-operation and Participation

7 March 2018 No. 2 (Week 6 Term 1)

Educating Communities

MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL Reading with your Child at Home

Reading is Important!

Reading has always been an important skill. In our modern world it is more important than ever.

Children learn about the importance of reading as they watch family members use reading and writing for everyday purposes.

Reading with your child at home will help your child in all learning areas of school.

Children see you reading and writing in everyday life – reading for pleasure, sharing a story with your child, using a recipe, making a shopping list, writing a birthday card or reading street signs. This teaches them that reading and writing are useful skills.

Parents are asked by the school to listen to their child read at home. It is a good way of supporting your child’s reading. Books may be borrowed from the school or local library.

What you can do at Home to Help Be yourself. Involve children in everyday

conversations. Read aloud to children. It helps them to learn the

language of books and will encourage them to enjoy books and reading.

Talk about books, read together and make reading an enjoyable and shared activity.

Make sure there is a wide range of reading material for your child at home, both fiction and non-fiction.

Try not to let television intrude on reading time. Make a special time for reading with your child, away from interruption.

Listen to your child every day, even for a short time. Give books as treats and presents.

Parent/Teacher Interviews Thank you to everyone who visited us last Wednesday afternoon/evening for parent/teacher interviews. The teachers enjoyed the opportunity to meet you, some of you for the first time, and to get to know you and your children better. It really is a valuable experience and your attendance is appreciated.

Seven New School Zone Offences Further to my notice ‘Afternoon Traffic’ which you will again find following this notice, you may or may not be aware that as of 1 February 2018 to help schools keep the school zone safer for all pedestrians and drivers there are seven new traffic offences with new fines. None of the seven offences attract demerit points when committed elsewhere on the road but now in a school zone they each come with two points.

The changes are: 1. Stopping in intersection - Under the changes if a

driver commits this offence in a school zone they will receive a penalty of $439 and 2 demerit points.

2. Stop within 20m of intersection (traffic lights) - Under the changes if a driver commits this offence in a school zone they will receive a penalty of $439 and 2 demerit points. 3. Stop within 10m of intersection (no traffic lights) - Under the changes if a driver commits this offence in a school zone they will receive a penalty of $439 and 2 demerit points. 4. Stop near bicycle crossing lights - Under the changes if a driver commits this offence in a school zone they will receive a penalty of $439 and 2 demerit points. 5. Obstruct access to ramp/path/passageway - Under the changes if a driver commits this offence in a school zone they will receive a penalty of $330 and 2 demerit points. 6. Not parallel park in the direction of travel - Under the changes if a driver commits this offence in a school zone they will receive a $330 fine and 2 demerit points. 7. Parallel park close to dividing line - Under the changes if a driver commits this offence in a school zone they will receive a $330 fine and 2 demerit points.

Afternoon Traffic Thank you to all who have taken this notice on board since its publication in Week 4. As you are likely aware, pick up in the afternoon by car can be time consuming and a logistical nightmare. Please remember, however, that student safety must be every-one’s priority! As discussed at last week’s P&C meeting, traffic and parking conditions outside of the school, whilst they are of an ongoing concern to the school, are something that we are powerless to make changes regards. The difficul-ties encountered with afternoon traffic and parking due to our site location and layout are something that the school has taken up repeatedly with Maitland City Council, Roads and Maritime Services as well as Maitland Police. I encourage you to do the same. You may have noticed or heard that parking/traffic rang-ers were at school last Wednesday. This was as a direct result of parent concerns being raised directly to local councillors and elected representatives. Whilst we have no desire for anyone to be booked, please expect that they will continue to visit the school as a result of repeated requests. Disobeying traffic and parking rules may save you some time, however, it puts the safety of every student who exits our school, particularly from Walkers’ Gate, at risk. Please be patient, cooperative and mindful of the safety of all EMPS students, and obey traffic and parking rules outside our school. Perhaps walking home from school is an option for your family!?! Visit from Jenny Aitchison MP Students and teachers in Years 3 – 6 were honoured by a visit to their assembly last week by our State Member of Parliament, Jenny Aitchison. Jenny was at school to pre-sent certificates to our school leaders, most of whom had the opportunity to meet and chat with her before the as-sembly. During my conversation with Jenny, she stressed the importance of opportunities such as this to connect with the people she represents and to play a role in her local community. She also noted how much she enjoys them. Thank you very much to Jenny for taking the time to make this presentation to our leaders so special.

Changed your details???

Just a reminder that if you have had a change in personal details such as address or contact numbers; work, mobile or home, please ensure that you notify our office ASAP.

Please note that any change of address details will re-quire proof of address. (Documents such as a rates no-tice or home-related bills, such as telephone, gas or elec-tricity, including name and address).

Kim Dudgeon

Banner Winner

Congratulations Conor Neil.

School Disco

WHEN - Wednesday, 14 March 2018 INFANTS - 5:00-6:00pm PRIMARY - 6:15-7:30pm COST - $4 entry

Chocolates, lollies and drinks will be sold from the

canteen during the disco.

No theme at this stage.

Events / Reminders

29/3 Book Fair

9/4 - 12/4 Year 6 Canberra Excursion

13/4 Last day of Term 1

Canteen Roster

Week commencing Monday, 12 March 2018

12/3 Jenni Blais Phillipa Smythe

13/3 Megan Gosley Sandra Baxter

14/3 Jordan Croker Carlie Livingstone

15/3 Leighsa Cox Sally Priestley

16/3 Connie Lerougetel

Lee Chadban Alarna Chapman

Week commencing Monday, 19 March 2018

19/3 Lauren Mears Kathryn Coote

20/3 Julie Wood Gail Leckie

21/3 Sandra Baxter Gris Milford-Chilvers

22/3 Leanne York Rhianna Ebrill

23/3 Karen Dodd Jannee Binnie Kim Wakeman Denise Potts

If you are unable to come on your day please phone or msg Jacki -

school 4933 7524 or mobile 0419143528

Helpers Needed The canteen is needing more volunteers, if you are able to spare 3 hours one day a week or a month please contact Jacki in the canteen.

PARENT ONLINE PAYMENTS (POP)

This is a great way to ensure all excursions and fees are paid on time.

Positive Behaviour for Learning

The Positive Behaviour for Learning focus this

fortnight has been the Aussie 5. At East Mait-

land Public School, we are respectful,

responsible learners.

Our Aussie 5 are:

I can listen

I can follow instructions

I can control what I do and say

I can raise my hand and wait

I can work quietly

Billy Moore (KV), Joshua Fields (4S), Billy Good-

win (2L) and Logan Geering (MC Yellow) were

the winners of the gotcha ticket raffle. They re-

ceived a $2 canteen voucher. Congratula-

tions and well done!

3D

Aidan Griffin

Rachael Compton

Emmerson Parker

Jacob Lane

Lucian Bell

Zac Hamilton

3R

Darcy Chapman

Alivia Watson

Logan Benson

Tyler O’Brien

Anaia Moore

Archie Jaunalksnis

Emma Carlton

Chase Koop-Folkes

Kaden Adams

3/4S

Heidi Stimson

Ayden Eckford

Mia Gunter

Cooper Ebrill

Riley Bodman

Ella Williams

4N

Kayne Talevski

Chase Bouquet

Harry Farley

Ashton Jones

Taylah Wakeman

Dekota Scott-Drosd

4S

Tahlia Martinez

Paxton Malone

Toni-Rae Benham

Sienna Price

Noah Hawke

Daniel Fletcher

4/5C

Harry Brown

Loren Thomson

Talulah Elbourn

Lily Collis

Xavier Radke

Lewis Collins

5C

Mackenzie Kirk

Keisha Atkins

Amillia Lee

Faith Shephard

Sophie Davis

Luke Collins

5E

Llewella Brooks

Rameez Hassen

Charlie Chapeyama

Jasmine Locock

Samuel Pratt

Blake Delamere

5/6P

Connor Clague

Hayden Blais

Harrison Smythe

Lauren Kime

Alex O’Brien

Alexander Fean

Mackenzie Mears

Chelsea Pugh

Travis Dumbrell

6R

Javyne Byers

Bailey Catt

Darcey Robson

Katie Slater

Hayley Anderson

Layla Douglas

6S

Ella Cox

Ella Brewer

Taylor Atkins

MCR

MCB

Jack Murphy

Brayden Douglas MCY

Xena Young

Stephen Goode

KD

Max Johnson

Oscar Horn

KF

Kevin Gosley

Charlotte Gibson

Molly Watts

Tristian Price

KV

Anna Marekova

Ryan Cavallaro

Jack Johnson

Adelaide Gurr

K/1P

Thomas Holwell

Pippa Benson

Lockie Conlin

Joel Hickling

IM

Beau Gardiner

Chloe Angelkovic

Laila Kone

Eden Daniels

1S

Addison Peterson

William Mennie

1/2N

Jackson Maynard

Faith Clarke

Ben Johansen

Connie O’Neill

Lucas Sweeney

2G

Chloe Wheatland

Ely Abraham

Destiny Shephard

Hamish Leckie

2L

Sienna Bramley

Kaden Selder 2O

Auron Baldwin

Lilly Jefferson

Eamon Browne

Baylee Reynolds

P&C NEWS

The Annual General Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, 22 March at 6pm. After the AGM a normal meet-ing occurs, however at the moment we are waiting on formal documents for the AGM to occur. If there is a delay with the documents the AGM will be rescheduled, but the normal meeting will go ahead. At the AGM all positions are handed back in and the committee elects all positions for the next 2018/2019 year. There are executive roles (Treasurer, Secretary, President and Vice President) and non executive posi-tions (Fundraiser committee, Uniform shop team) that will be needed to filled. We have new positions as well that will involve IT work and dealing with our new online work with the uniform shop. General members not wanting to hold a position are also encouraged to attend and if you would like to vote on positions please ensure your membership for 2018 is up to date ($1). Forms are available at the office if you wish to join. Generally the P&C meets once per month and we try to have day and night meeting times in order to accom-modate working parents and carers.

Uniform Shop - WE NEED YOUR HELP!!

Did you know that the Uniform Shop is solely run by

volunteers? All funds made go straight back to P&C

which benefits our school. No one is paid, everyone

donates their time to help our school. We are ALWAYS

on the lookout for more volunteers to help. A shift only

takes approx. 40 minutes and you are rostered on with

an experienced person. We open every Tuesday from

2:15 -2:45pm and Thursday from 8:30 - 9:00am.

Please keep in mind that without our wonderful

volunteers we are unable to keep the uniform shop

open.

If you are free and could donate some valuable time to

help please contact us at eastmaitlandpublicschool-

pandc@gmail.com or leave your contact details at the

office and we will contact you. You can volunteer as

many or as few times as you like.

Term 1 Uniform Shop Roster

Not a member of our P&C Facebook page? Simply type

“East Maitland Public School P&C” into the search bar

and apply to join. We use it as an informal way of

reaching families and sending out reminders! It is only

for P&C information and not run by the school. You do

not need to be a member to join.

Hot Cross Buns Fundraiser – By now you would have noticed some Hot Cross Buns order forms on Skoolbag App and our P&C FB site. If you would like to purchase some hot cross buns and several varieties available, simply print out the form enter your order preferences and return with correct money to the school office. Feel free to ask family and friends if they would like to support our school by mak-ing a purchase. Bakers Delight have always supported our school by providing donations of bread for our fundraising barbecues so we are more than happy to team up with them for this fundraiser.

UNIFORM SHOP OPENING

HOURS

Tues 2:15-2:45pm

Thurs 8:30-9:00am

Cash only – NO EFTPOS

Week Tues Thurs

6 6/3 Kim & Davina 8/3 Carol & Deslie

7 13/3 Renae & Suze 15/3 Jodi & Bron

8 20/3 Renae & Davina

22/3 Carol & Deslie

9 27/3 Kim & Suze 5/4 Jodi & Bron

10 3/4 Renae & Davina

5/4 Carol & Deslie

11 10/4 Suze & Kim 12/4 Jodi & Bron

ONLINE SHOP IS HERE!

Please log in using Flexischools.

Use your same login used for Canteen ordering.

Orders will be packed and

distributed during the Tuesday pm and

Thursday am Uniform Shop volunteer

shifts.

Please be patient as this is a new

system and there are bound to be teething

problems.

By Michael Grose Working closely with your child’s teacher this year In my work as a presenter and educator I’ve visited hundreds of schools, spoken with hundreds of school leaders and worked with many educational innovators and researchers at the forefront of modern education. These people and ex-periences have given me valuable insights into what makes great schools tick. Strong parent–teacher relationships are one of the hallmarks of all great schools. They're a major contributor to stu-dent success. The research into schooling across the Western world reveals that positive parent–teacher partnerships are a more significant factor in student success than parent income levels or social status. However, parent–teacher relationships require effort and energy from both parties if they are going to really benefit children and young people. Here are five elements to guide you as a parent in forming strong bonds with your child's teachers this year: 1. Knowing (building affinity) Know – the first element – requires you to be both proactive and patient. Proactive because you need to be willing to meet and work at maintaining relationships. Patient because it may take some time to build a working relationship. For your partnership to be meaningful and successful you need to meet with your children’s teacher(s) with the goal of forming a respectful professional relationship. Share your aspirations for your child and be willing to build the teach-er’s knowledge about your family. Get to know your child’s teachers’ aspirations and gain an understanding of their approach and the focus they have for this particular year group. Also commit to continuing to know what’s going on in the life of your child’s classrooms as well as the life of the school on an ongoing basis. 2. Supporting (building trust) Children need to know that you are fully behind what their teachers are trying to achieve if they are going to commit fully to learning. The best way to support your child’s teacher is to trust their knowledge, professionalism and experi-ence. Avoid the temptation to question the expertise of teachers in front of students, particularly when the teachers use methods that you are unfamiliar with. Initiate conversations with teachers around methodology to give them the chance to explain the approach they are taking. 3. Participating (building links to student learning) Participation – the third element – takes into account the level of parent engagement in student learning. There’s a huge body of research that points to the correlation between parent engagement in student learning and their educa-tional success. If you want your child to improve his learning, take an interest in what he is doing. Follow school and teacher guidelines about helping at home and attend as many conferences, meetings and events involving your child as possible. This simple strategy has a significant, long-term impact. 4. Communicating (building relationships) Life’s not always smooth sailing for kids of any age. Family circumstances change. Friends move away. Illness happens. Mental health challenges can hit anyone at any time. These changes affect learning. Keep teachers up to date with sig-nificant changes or difficulties that your child or young person experiences so they can accommodate your child's emotional and learning needs at school. 5. Advocating (building loyalty) Advocacy – the last element – means that you talk teachers and your school up rather than tear them down among chil-dren and the wider community. Teachers hold very public positions and generally work hard to build good reputations both within their school and their wider education community. Consider a teacher’s reputation among the community and also with children when you discuss educational matters with others. Building parent–teacher relationships doesn’t just happen. They take good will from both sides, a commitment to set-ting aside the time necessary to support the home-based learning tasks that are expected, and a willingness to com-municate both concerns and commendations through the correct channels. Parent–teacher relationships – long may they prosper!