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Father’s Day
This Sunday is Father’s Day where we acknowledge the significant male role models in our lives. During this difficult time it is important to keep in touch with these people, especially if they live a long way from you. I wish all significant male role models a ‘Happy Father’s Day’. I hope you are able to make it a memorable experience.
External Validation (EV)
Last week a panel of educational experts externally validated our school. The panel consisted of a peer Principal and Principal School Leadership person. Their role was to validate the school’s achievement against the School Excellence Framework (SEF). The SEF is a document which outlines 14 elements that excelling schools, do very well. There are four levels; Working Towards, Delivering, Sustaining and Growing and Excelling. Our school is Sustaining and Growing in 11 elements and Delivering in the other three elements. This process has highlighted the improvement in the school in many areas over the last three years. There is always areas of improvement and this process has highlighted (reinforced) known areas of required improvement. These areas will be further analysed and included in the next iteration of the school plan, which is now called the School Improvement Plan (SIP). I must thank Mrs Wasson and all the staff for the incredible amount of work that has gone into this process. The benefits of this process have been outstanding and highlights the school’s strengths and areas for improvement.
School Improvement Plan (SIP)
The External Validation process forms a large part of a Situational Analysis that all schools are required to do to plan for the SIP. The SIP is a four-year plan, which will begin next year. During our Situational Analysis, we will be analysing feedback from the community from surveys that have already been sent out this year, plus there will be the annual Partners in Learning survey for parents, Teacher and Student survey from the suite of surveys from Tell Them From Me, coming out in the next few weeks. Once all the data and evidence has been analysed we will begin to compile a plan and advise and seek feedback from the community on the school’s future goals. This process is about ensuring that each school continues to look for ways to improve the outcomes for all students.
Opportunity Class (OC) Testing
Due to the many changes this year due to Covid-19, this year’s OC testing will now take place at Pennant Hills Public School for our students. The date has been set for Wednesday 18 November. At this stage that is all the information I have. When more becomes known, I will be sure to inform the Year 4 families that have already applied. Applications have already closed and the High Performance Unit that runs the process is not accepting any late applications.
Buses
Please ensure that if there is a decision during the day for your child to catch a bus home that you call the school directly. Please do not email the school or teachers, as staff are not checking emails regularly to ensure your message is actioned in time. Calling the school and speaking with the ladies in the office will ensure that your message will get to the right people in the required time.
Cyber Safety
Over the last two weeks, Constables Luca and Schubert from Ryde Local Area Command have come to our school to talk with the students about Cyber Safety. Now, more than ever it is paramount that we are vigilant when it comes to supervising what our children are doing when online. Most apps the children at primary school wish to engage with are for children over 13 years of age. A great website to assist families is the eSafety Commissioner website at https://www.esafety.gov.au/ . I encourage all parents to chat with their children about the perils of the internet and provide them with strategies that encourage them to talk with you about what they are doing.
Cyber Safety Talk By Students : Ayaana, Margareth and Hannah - 5N
"On Tuesday 25 August, Constable Luca from Gladesville LAC came to our school to talk about Cyber Safety and how to be safe online. He told us stories about other kids who have been careless and made unsafe choices on the internet. He showed us how if we were in the same situation, we could be smarter and safer online. He talked about not using apps such as Instagram, Tik Tok, Snapchat etc as they have an age restriction on them. If your parents allow you to use those apps, however, he told us how to be careful when posting things online, like not showing any personal information like your school uniform. Constable Luca told us that if we were using a device, always let your parents know what you're doing and don’t use your electronics in your bedroom, use it in an open room like the living room where your parents can supervise you and make sure you’re doing the right thing on the internet. If you were in your bedroom you could make some silly choices, you can never know how old the person you’re talking to is. Did you know the average age of a person online is 34!? Now after his talk, all of Stage 3 knows how to behave safely and responsibly while using the internet".
Thank You
Kind Regards
Mr Matt Pinchbeck
Principal
Principal Awards
3-6 =Alex B, Sabrina W, Ethan S, Elizabeth M
STEM Challenge
Congratulations to all the classes who participated in the STEM challenge I set for Science week. There were some very creative entries! The winning class receive a STEM pack with a variety of goodies to assist in STEM lessons such as; oil, vinegar, lemon juice, bi-carb, cornflour, pop sticks, food colouring, cotton tips, jelly beans, balloons to name a few. They also receive a special STEM challenge certificate. I announced the K-2 winner at assembly last week – congratulations 2M! Very well-deserved as the students in 2M had not only tested out their vessels, made them sturdy enough to hold both Emma the Explorer and Sammy the Seal but also thought about how to move their vessel from one end of the ‘river’ to the other – they flapped a book behind the sail, forcing the vessel forward. Well done 2M! Enjoy your STEM kit.
The 3-6 winner will be announced at this week’s assembly.
Stage One Excursion to Muogamarra
Muogamarra is a nature reserve located approximately 3km north of Cowan which is rich in Aboriginal significance and famous for it’s Australian wildflowers during Spring. Stage One were lucky enough to attend Muogamarra as part of their focus on special local places last week. Muogamarra is currently closed to the public due to Covid restrictions but as Gibberagong Environmental Education Centre is part of the Department of Education and they are able to operate out of Muogamarra, we were lucky enough to still attend! The educators led us on a bushwalk where we discovered local bush tucker and used magnifying glasses to enhance our sensory understanding of the leaves, bark and flowers of the area. We explored the remains of Mr Tipper’s cottage, looked out onto some amazing scenery, collected ochre to mix with water and paint our journey on our faces. We walked to an Aboriginal engraving of a whale and had many discussions around this significant site. It was a very special experience. We took some time out to be still, relax and listen to the world around us, then it was time for lunch. After lunch we bush-bashed back up to the meeting point and students then built mini versions of Aboriginal shelters called lean-to’s, some very sturdy creations! Well done Stage One on your fantastic behaviour and thank you teachers for providing such an amazing experience for the students.
A portion of Kaye’s recount of the excursion.
A portion of Lachlan’s recount of the excursion.
Around the school
The weather was perfect for some outdoor learning on Monday morning and Ms Stevens made the most of it with her year 6 classes. It was so nice to be serenaded by ukuleles as I walked down the path in front of the music room. Thank you 6M and Ms Stevens!
Staff profile
This week our staff profile is for Ms Meg Campbell, a passionate educator who currently teaches 1/2H from Monday-Wednesday, sharing with Mrs Tracey Haselden. Meg is a very reflective practitioner who adapts her pedagogy to suit the needs of her students. She whole-heartedly has embraced in-class mathematics and since the Covid-19 pandemic, has implemented the SeeSaw platform in her class. Thank you for sharing Ms Campbell!
Thank You
Kind Regards
Mrs Kate Wasson
Deputy Principal
School Photographs 2020
21 September – Sibling Photos
22 September - Class Photos
25 September – Group Photos
All sibling and class photographs will be ordered online through The School Photographer, please see the flyer below for the website and code for our school.
The Group Photo code will be in the newsletter closer to the day.
As per previous communications, we have requested that students who are absent from school with any flu like symptoms must have a Covid-19 test. The student can only return to school when symptoms have resolved and a negative test has been provided to the school. We ask that you send a paper copy of the result as well as the doctor's certificate or email a SMS screen shot of the result. Please refer to the instructions below to create and share a screen shot using both Apple and Android phones.
How to take a screenshot on iPhone models with Touch ID and Side button
Press the Side button and the Home button at the same time.
Quickly release both buttons.
After you take a screenshot, a thumbnail temporarily appears in the lower-left corner of your screen. Tap the thumbnail to open it.
Share & edit your screenshot from iPhone
- Press and hold on the screenshot thumbnail(s).
- In the drop down menu choose Share icon on the top right of the screen then choose the Mail option. Forward the screenshot to: pennanthil-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au
- If you wish to delete the screenshot(s) after sending, tap on the thumbnail.
- Press Done.
Taking a screenshot on your Android device
You can take a picture of your phone's screen. The image is called a screenshot. After you capture your screen you can view, edit, and share the image.
Important: Some of these steps work only on Android 9 and up.
Take a screenshot
- Open the screen that you want to capture.
- Depending on your phone: Quickly Press the Power + Volume buttons at the same time.
- If that doesn’t work, press and hold the Power button for a few seconds. Then tap Screenshot.
- If neither of these work, go to your phone manufacturer’s support site for help.
- At the top of the screen, you'll find Screenshot capture .
Tip: If there isn't a Screenshot capture icon, return to a Home screen to find it.
Tip: If you don't have the Photos app, you're likely running an older Android version. Open your phone's Gallery app, Album view, Screenshots folder.
- Open your phone's Photos app.
- Tap Menu.
- Tap Device, Folders, Screenshots.
- To share a screenshot, tap Share and choose the email option. Forward screenshot to: pennanthil-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au
We are grateful for your support.
Kind Regards,
Joanne Klimoski
School Administrative Manager
3B – Logan S, Reuben T, Monica L, Thenuk T, Daniel C, Sahanya F
3D – Nathan Y, Sabrina W, Lithushan L, Eeshan S
3R – Kiara D, Giselle H, Lewis W, Onadi P, Ryan P, Lewis D
4G – Josiah M, John Y, Lauren G, Emma C, Christian P, Sophie W
4M – Chrissie C, Katie Z, Amelia M, Lachlan C, Aadya G, Sofia E, Marni H
4T – Anie A, Nessa M, Nekiah T, Allan Z, Nathan C, Anaiah B, Poppy B
5F – Akhash K, Sara C, Rhia D
5N – Abi N, Georgie D, Liam P
5P – Owen Q, Jimmy W, Shwe M, Alma G, Manna L, Nate A, Myrah C
6B – Mesa H, Maya K, Cooper L, Sienna N, Bronson M, Queenie B
6M – Morris W, Kirrily S, Avandika L, Stella H, Joel N
6P – Will A, Harrison W, Michaela P, Gabby K, Sreevalli P, Charlotte E
COMPUTERS
Parmis N - 3B, Lithushan L - 3D, Sofia E - 4M, Alie J - 4T, Willow P - 5N, Luke M - 5P, Riley F - 6M, Chloe K - 6P, Kiric C - 3D, Kenzie W - 3B, Annabelle R - 4T, Lucas M - 4M, Isabelle K - 5N, Clementine I - 5F, Rebecca W - 6P, Sienna N - 6B
LIBRARY
Oscar L - 5F, Ayana D - 6M, Samantha R - 6M, William V - 6P, Leo W-L - 3B, Margareth M - 5N, Aidan L - 5P, Claire M - 4M, Declan W - 5N
Our P&C Fundraising Readathon is coming - GET EXCITED!
It is open only to PHPS students. Read as many books as you can between 7 September and 11 October, get your friends and family to sponsor you and raise valuable funds for our School.
Fantastic prizes for most $$ raised.
Your class teacher will tell you more soon!
Green Team UPDATE - Return and Earn success
Did you know that our school community has earned a whopping $900.70 from our Return and Earn bins since we started early last year!
How did we do it? The orange Return and Earn bins are at both sites - K-2 under the COLA and 3-6 near the canteen. Our kids have been awesome in returning their drink containers like juice boxes and milk cartons when they have them at recess or lunch. They have also been fantastic in remembering NOT TO CRUSH the containers (the machines read the barcodes) and to take out the straws and put them in the general waste bin. We’ve also collected containers at school and P&C events (these have been a bit light this year). Your child is welcome to bring in containers from home to add to our bins.
Remember any drink container with the 10c refund printed on the bottle can go in the Return and Earn bin. Don’t forget to take out straws, do not crush them or remove their labels.
Before NSW introduced the Return and Earn scheme, individual drink container litter made up 44 per cent of the volume of litter in NSW and cost more than $162 million each year to manage.
Now the Return and Earn program reports that they have had 4,105,184,650 drink containers returned so far! That’s over 4 billion containers since the scheme launched in December 2017.
Thank you to our wonderful students, teachers and our school community for making a difference to both the environment and our P&C funds. A little change adds up to a big difference!
Contact us at: phpsgreenteam@gmail.com
Our next P&C Meeting is TONIGHT Tuesday 1 September at 7.30 pm by Zoom.
Link details:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81367742593?pwd=aGtueUd0UkFoRUNwWkdKV2ptZHAvZz09
OR
Meeting ID: 813 6774 2593
Passcode: 579345
If you would like to subscribe to our P&C meeting emails (minutes and agendas), please subscribe at the following link: http://eepurl.com/dlK3PD
Andrew Passé-de Silva
President, PHPS P&C
0410 653 878
The feedback from the students and their parents on the drumming rehearsals has been fantastic! Check out this short clip of the ICB at their first drumming rehearsal last week.
Week 7 sees the bands continuing with their drumming, students do not need to bring their normal instruments to rehearsal but they are to continue practicing the band pieces at home and with their tutors. All band parts and audio tracks will be available on Google Classroom and/or via email if required.
If you are concerned about rehearsals returning on-site in this manner, feel free to keep your child at home. Their rehearsal time can be used to practice on their band music pieces.
Rehearsals for this week:
Monday afternoon: SCB Group 2
Wednesday morning: ICB Everyone
Thursday Morning: JB/SCB Group 1
Friday Morning: TB Group 1
Benefits of Music - part 3
Learning a musical instrument can boost your child’s health! When a musician learns to read, play and perform music they gain mental, cognitive and emotional health benefits which will last throughout their lifetime.
Read the whole article here: https://www.musicnotes.com/now/tips/17-surprising-health-benefits-of-playing-an-instrument/
Registration
Thinking about joining a band in 2021? Entry to the PHPS Band Program is open to all children from Year 3 to Year 6. We are also keen to hear from talented piano players who may be interested in playing in the Jazz band next year. Just drop us an email and we will be happy to talk to you about it.
Parent Helpers
A big thank you to all our parent helpers so far this term. As per the changes above, those parents who have put their name down for being a parent helper later this term are back on duty. If there are any free spots in the doodle polls please file them in accordingly.
Worksheets
Please continue to work through the band worksheets and send any completed sheets through to phpsband+worksheets@gmail.com
Many thanks
Band Committee
phpsband@gmail.com
Pennant Hills Public School Band Committee
String Soiree
Congratulations and thank you to all our Soiree performers for a wonderful afternoon of music on Saturday. 12 solos, a fabulous quintet, performances by our Senior and Full ensemble and all streamed over Zoom to family and friends.
Thank you to everyone who listened online. Special thanks to Kim, Jen and James for their support in preparing the event and throughout the afternoon, also to our surprise visitor, Mrs Griffith, for her enthusiastic cheering at our presentation.
Rehearsals
The upcoming rehearsals are:
- Tuesday 3:30pm - 5:15pm September 1, parent helper Jade.
- Tuesday 3:30pm - 5:15pm September 8, parent helper Kate.
Note that the full ensemble will finish rehearsals at 4:25pm, and senior ensemble finish at 5:15pm.
Parent Helpers
Thank you to all the volunteers - our Term 3 roster is now full.
Term 4 spots are now open if you want to book early:
https://doodle.com/poll/cy68d5dkuw3bvufm
The parent helper responsibilities are detailed here:
http://www.phpspandc.org.au/string-ensemble/parent-helpers/
Registrations
Thinking about joining strings?
We welcome students who have completed a full term of lessons.
Registrations are open all year round.
You can register online here: https://forms.gle/L2nrW66LkJTgEAsE6
PHPS String Ensemble
Website: http://www.phpspandc.org.au/string-ensemble/
Feedback: http://www.phpspandc.org.au/string-ensemble/contact-us/
Scholastic Book Club – Issue 6
A reminder that the closing date for Issue 6 online orders is tomorrow - Wednesday 2 September. To order from the Book Club catalogue you will need to go to the Scholastic Book Club LOOP website page, register your details if you haven’t already done so and pay by credit card.
The catalogue can also be viewed online at https://www.scholastic.com.au/book-club/book-club-parents/.
Thank You
Kind Regards
Ms Davis
Teacher Librarian
We are hoping to have a FROZEN TREAT DAY soon, probably in the last week of term.
Stay tuned!
Order through Fexischools.com.au or the App.
This week’s roster:
While there are no over the counter sales, we do not need any help for the K-2 site.
3-6 Site:
Wednesday 2 September - HELP NEEDED PLEASE!!
Thursday 3 September - Jenni.
Friday 4 September - Narelle and Jacqueline.
If you have any questions or would like to be involved with the canteen, please contact me.
Thank You
Kind Regards
Heather Tyler
0425 274 681
New Operating Protocols
At this stage the Uniform Shop will remain closed for over the counter sales during Term 3. Uniform orders can be placed online through Flexischools or alternatively download an order form from the school website.
Please note that all orders will be delivered to the students’ classroom.
If you have an item that you need to exchange for another size please contact the Uniform Shop on the email address below.
Please note that all items to be exchanged must be unworn, in original condition with packaging and tags intact. There is no exchange on socks, tights or briefs.
Second Hand Uniforms
If you require second hand uniforms, please contact me on the email address below so that I can check what stock is on hand in the second hand clothing pool.
Kindergarten T-Towels
Orders for the commemorative t-towels are being finalised this week and it is anticipated that the t-towels will be delivered by middle of Term 4 to those students who have placed an order.
Year 6 Shirts 2021
Year 5 parents please note: orders for the 2021 Year 6 shirts are due Monday 14 September 2020.
Sports Uniform
A bulk order of sport uniforms have arrived and all sizes are now in stock and available for sale.
Uniform Shop Storage
The introduction of multiple new stock lines in the last couple of years has seen the uniform shop reach storage capacity, as such it has become necessary to pack away winter clothing in the offseason.
Summer stock will be arriving throughout the next couple of weeks and girls’ winter tunics and tights, boys’ trousers and the sport track pants will be put into storage and will NOT be available for sale from next week and throughout the summer months.
Dr Shoe
Dr Shoe will not be attending the Uniform Shop in the foreseeable future however Max can be contacted direct on 0414 912 838 to arrange a home fitting.
Ordering Uniforms
Uniform shop opening hours have been suspended. Uniforms can be ordered by completing an order form and together with payment of cash, cheque or card details handed in at either office. Orders will be filled and delivered to the students’ classrooms. A combined pricelist and order form can be downloaded from the school website by following the links to ‘Our School’ and ‘What We Offer.’ Uniforms can also be ordered online through Flexischools, however prices will include a Flexischools surcharge.
Please note that uniform orders cannot be paid via the school online payment service
Order forms are available on the school website by following the link:
Alison Parker
Uniform Shop Manager
