Yates Avenue Public School eNewsletter

Yates Matters - Term 1, Week 1

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Yates Matters - Term 1, Week 1

From The Principal

Welcome Back

Welcome back to a new school year at Yates Avenue PS. I hope that your family had an enjoyable Christmas break. A special welcome to the new families who have enrolled at our school this year.

The teachers have been busy over the holidays and in the first week, working hard to plan creative, engaging and rewarding learning experiences which meet the students’ learning needs, challenge their thinking and support their wellbeing. It promises to be another great year of learning at Yates!

Staffing News

A warm welcome to the new staff members who have started this year.

Mrs Garima Trivedi – K-6GT - Thursday and Friday
Ms Nadean Zraika - Monday-Thursday

Mrs Trivedi and Ms Zraika taught on a casual basis at Yates last year and are familiar faces with the children. They both bring experience and expertise to our school and community.

In others news, Mrs Lawson will soon take up a temporary position for Term 1 at Department of Education head office. She will be coordinating support for preschools across Western Sydney. We wish her well in her new role! The process to replace Mrs Lawson is currently underway. I will keep you updated with more news once the process has been completed.

New Kindergarten

New Kindergarten students enjoyed a great start to school yesterday and their teachers were very pleased with how settled and ready they were to begin their learning journey. After drop off, many parents stayed for the Tears and Tissues morning tea. Thank you to the P and C mums who organised the catering and stayed to ensure the new parents felt welcome to the Yates community.

2020 Classes

Currently, the situation with student numbers is quite uncertain. Students will continue in 2019 classes (Years 1-6) until numbers have been finalised. We are hoping to commence 2020 classes next Tuesday, 4th February. I apologise for this inconvenience and will keep you updated through the newsletter and Skoolbag with any changes to student numbers and classes.

Swimming Carnival - Friday, 7th February

Our annual swimming carnival is next Friday for all students in Years 3-6, including those Year 2 students turning 8 this year. Please return permission notes and money by next Wednesday, 5th February.

Swimming_Carnival_permission_note.pdf

Term 1 Calendar

The Term 1 school calendar will be sent home today on Skoolbag and as a link in this newsletter (see below). Please check the newsletter and Skoolbag for updates and confirmation of school events, in case there are changes. A hard copy of the calendar is available on request from the front office.

Term_1_calendar.pdf

School Development Day - Learning for Teachers

At Yates, we believe that learning is for everyone. Learning for teachers ensures that we are responsive to the needs of students and maintain a connection with current educational research. On Tuesday, the staff engaged in professional learning aligned with our focus areas for 2020 which will help us to deliver initiatives from the school plan. We learned about:

Cognitive load theory - how students learn, process and retain information
Explicit and Direct Instruction (EDI) - our teaching focus for 2020
Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) - to continue our stong support of student wellbeing
Seesaw - an app to enhance teacher-parent communication

Novel Coronavirus

The Department of Education is currently working with the Ministry of Health to monitor and respond to the unfolding international Novel Coronavirus situation. Advice has been distributed to NSW Public Schools in accordance with advice received from the Ministry of Health.

The Department has requested that children, students and staff who have visited China in the last two weeks, not attend school, childcare services or work until 14 days have lapsed from their date of departure from China.

Students or community members who have been in close contact with a confirmed case of Novel Coronavirus are also asked to avoid school for 14 days since last contact with the confirmed case.

Close contact is defined as living in the same household, 15 minutes face-to-face contact with a person with confirmed Coronavirus in any setting, or sharing a closed space with a person with confirmed Coronavirus for more than two hours.

The Ministry of Health has processes in place to identify any close contacts of cases confirmed in Australia. Advice about not attending school would be provided to these close contacts by the Ministry of Health.

Consistent with current guidelines, staff and students who are unwell with respiratory illness should remain at home until symptoms resolve. In accordance with our current practice if any child becomes unwell we will implement our infection control guidelines and follow the advice provided by the Ministry of Health as appropriate.

Further information and updates are available via NSW Health website;

Factsheet: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/alerts/Pages/coronavirus.aspx

FAQs: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/alerts/Pages/coronavirus-faqs.aspx

Parent Information Evening - Thursday, 13th February

This year we are trialling a new format for parent information sessions. All sessions will take place on Thursday, 13^th February in classrooms, following a free parent BBQ. This is a great opportunity for parents and teachers to socialise in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. See times below:

Free parent BBQ under the COLA: 5.00-5.30pm
K-2 and Support Unit information sessions: 5.30-6.00pm
3-6 information sessions: 6.10-6.40pm

At these sessions, teachers will provide details of class routines, homework, student expectations and general curriculum information.

Please indicate on the note whether you can attend the BBQ and return it to your child’s teacher by Friday, 7th February.

Parent_information_evening.pdf

School Uniform - Wearing a School Hat

Walking around the school this week, I have been delighted to see the high standard of school uniform worn by students. However, there are still a number of children wearing hats which are not part of the school uniform.

Being learners who are safe at Yates means that we wear the school hat at all times. Wearing full school uniform is a sign of respect for our school and the values we uphold.

Our school hat is on sale in the uniform shop on Friday mornings from 8.45am. The hat has an embroidered school logo and an adjustable cord at the top.

Skoolbag App

Thank you to the many parents who have downloaded our Skoolbag app. This has helped to strengthen communication between home and school. Skoolbag allows us to update you on school events by sending reminder alerts straight to your phone. The newsletter and all permission notes can also be accessed via Skoolbag. To download, simply go to the ‘App Store’ or ‘Play Store’, type in the school name and install. Click on ‘Push Notifications’ to receive updates immediately.

Follow up on Twitter and Facebook

Please join us on Twitter @yatesavenuePS and Facebook to keep updated on school events and student achievements. Our social media feeds are yet another way for parents to stay connected with everything that is happening at our great school.