Every school day matters – Welcome back for another school year – we’re excited for what’s ahead!

I hope everyone has had a great holiday… taking time to relax and spend quality time with family and friends. It was great to see, feel and hear a real ‘buzz of excitement and expectation’ when the school doors opened for everyone last Wednesday (or Thursday for some of our Kinders).  Students and staff both displayed genuine excitement and pleasure to be back at school – children were also very excited to see our bright and engaging new playground markings!

A huge welcome to our new Kinders, new Prep to 6 enrolments and all families joining our school this year. I look forward to watching all our students achieve their “Personal Best’ (PBs) in all areas of their learning during 2023 and wish families a successful school year in partnership with us at TCPS. 

How can I be connected and informed about our School?

1. All new students/families will now have been given their ClassDojo unique connection code to ensure you are able to engage directly with your child’s learning day, class stories and school stories. Our key use of Dojo is celebrating learning from the class and school activities, programs and events.

2. A reminder that contacting our Admin office (email or by phone) is the key daily school contact point for all attendance/absences or letting us know a change in plan for your child’s end of school day and/or way home. Any alternative adult picking up your child/ren must be listed by the key parents/carers on a child’s emergency contact list. 

3. Two other key communications of our school are school Facebook and our fortnightly eNewsletter using the Schoolzine App.

I sincerely thank all Staff (teaching and non-teaching) for their highly valued preparations for the children returning and know that these efforts will significantly contribute to ensuring a positive start for new and familiar students and families.

Our continued focus in the beginning weeks of the term is on ensuring a smooth start to the school year for all children. So very early this year I would like to reinforce the key message that, “It’s not okay to be away ... nor to be late to school.”

Start the year right by making every school day count.

There are lots of things you can do to set your child up for success:

• Make sure your child goes to school, every day

Going to school every day gives your child every chance to learn and grow and connect with their mates and teachers. Its where bright futures start and where they’ll benefit the most.

• Get them excited for school

If you show a positive attitude and excitement towards school, your child will pick up on that.

The most common thing we hear from students, of all ages, is that school is where they can:

» spend time with their friends and teachers

» create new and fun experiences

» find their interests

» learn new things

» open up their options – for whatever future they want (whether that’s their dream job or to travel around the world).

Share these positives with your child.

• Talk to your child about school

Open up a conversation with your child about what’s happening at school. It will help you to better support their interests and confidence in learning. If you show an interest in school, they’ll know that getting an education is important and valued.

• Celebrate the milestones

Big and small! Celebrate milestones such as making it through the first day or week of school. And remember: all milestones look different. If it’s a big achievement for your child, it’s important to recognise it.

• Set up a time to talk to your child’s teacher or principal

If you’re struggling to get your child to school, help is available. Please talk to us at school about your situation. We’ll support you, in whatever way we can. Know when to seek help. There is no weakness in admitting you need help. If your child has completely disengaged with school, and not attending at all, there is support to help you. In the first instance, talk to us at school.

At Table Cape Primary all staff are committed to work in strong partnerships with families to ensure regular daily student attendance.  Please discuss with your child’s teacher or a member of our Leadership Team if you require further support with your child’s coming to school.

“One of the most important things you can do to ensure your child has a bright future is to make sure he or she goes to school every day—and gets here on time.  It sounds simple, but it’s true.

The correlation between school attendance and children’s achievement levels is well-established. The more time kids spend at school, the more likely they are to experience school success.

As parents we need to make a commitment that our kids make the most of their precious time at school. That means that we send them to school every day, on time and ready to make the most of the school day. Of course, there will be times, such as illness or genuinely extenuating family circumstances, when kids should be away. But these need to be a rarity rather than the norm.” (Parenting Educator, Michael Grose)

Thank you to the efforts of families in also getting ready for school and particularly with the strong support of wearing our school uniform (especially ensuring hats on from day one); the children look great as we start an exciting year together at Table Cape Primary School! 

Summary of our ‘Back-to-School’ Practices for our Safety & Wellbeing:

1. Classroom external doors are the main entry and exit points for all children and parents/carers for drop-off and pick-up times at school. No internal use of corridors before and after school remains in place for all people except Staff.

2. Classroom doors open from 8:30am and the learning day starts at 9am. The end of our student's school day is 2:45pm.

3. Physical distancing (1.5m) of adults on school sites (both inside and outside) is still a COVID safe practice.

4. ALL children and/or adults who are unwell are NOT to come to school.

5. HATS on for Terms 1 & 4 - please ensure you have labelled your child's hat.

6. We are really encouraged to see so many students choosing to walk, scoot and ride to school (where possible and age appropriate) – all healthy lifestyle choices. With each of these ways of travelling to school there are also safety considerations to discuss and follow to ensure your child’s safety and to minimise risks. We ask that all students using scooters, skateboards (and board variations) and bikes wear a helmet to and from school.  Once students enter our school grounds, we ask that they get off their mode of transport and walk into school to avoid collisions on our pathways.  Bikes should then be secured in the bike rack and other devices can be carried to classroom storage areas – these are not used again during the school day. 

A reminder also to students that whilst waiting to enter the school buildings or when leaving at the end of the day we ask that they do not share their bikes or boards with friends on our school grounds to avoid any accidents or issues.  This also helps keep everyone safe when they are walking to and from school.

2023 Staffing Update

All staff look forward to fostering and developing strong and positive relationships with our families. This year we also welcome the following new staff joining our school community:

• Mrs Mandy Barlow – teaching 1/2B
• Mrs Leanne Bugg – teaching 1/2C
• Ms Jacinta Craighead – teaching Kinder B
• Miss Teegan Townsend – teaching 4A
• Mr Glenn Stitz – part-time Educational Facility Attendant
• Ms Shantal Giddins – Teacher Assistant
• Mrs Gay West – Teacher Assistant
• Mrs Danielle Barker – Canteen Operator
• Liza Galea – School Health Nurse

And a warm welcome back to…

• Mrs ‘Tor Cochrane – teaching Thursdays & Fridays in Prep A
• Mrs Monique Moore – teaching Thursdays & Fridays in 5/6D
• Mrs Jan Radford - Thursdays & Fridays in 3A 

NAPLAN 2023 – Grades 3 & 5

Students will be sitting NAPLAN between 15 and 27 March 2023.

The National Assessment Program-Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) assesses literacy and numeracy skills that students are already learning at school. On its own, NAPLAN is not a test that can be studied for, and students are not expected to do so.

NAPLAN is just one aspect of a school’s assessment and reporting process – it does not replace ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance; however, students and parents may use individual results to discuss progress with teachers.

This is the first year NAPLAN will be held in March, having previously taken place in May. This change was made so school systems would have access to results earlier in the school year, so they can be used to inform teaching and learning plans for the remainder of the year.

Why NAPLAN is conducted online

NAPLAN online provides a better assessment and more precise results. One of the main benefits of NAPLAN online is that it uses tailored (or adaptive) testing. This means that students receive questions better suited to their abilities, so they can show what they know and can do.

Online testing also allows us to provide a wide range of accessibility options to support students with disability to access NAPLAN.

Feedback from students is that they find the online test more engaging. Please note that students in Year 3 complete the Writing Test on paper.

Parent information brochures and other resources

Your questions answered on NAPLAN and what it means for your child via this link:

NAPLAN information brochure for parents and carers

The link will take you to the official National Assessment Program (NAP) website.

Please contact the school if you have any further queries.

Celebrating Student Success...

It is particularly pleasing for me to hear of the many outside achievements of our students – so please either encourage your child to let me know about their achievements or parents, please send me a brief note about their successes so they can be shared with our whole school community in our newsletter.

Finally today, a couple of reminders to all families...

• Breakfast Club operates daily from 8:30am to 8:55am every school morning in the Large Multi Area
• Our School’s Staff and Accessible parking is not for any drive-through ‘drop-off’,’ pick-up’ or for family parking. Please use the allocated parking spaces on either side of Gibbons Street and ensure everyone uses the School Crossing
• Please remember that the school staff assume duty of care of your children from 8:30am each school morning. If you are transporting your child/ren to school, we ask that you please arrive between 8:30am and 9:00am.
• Grades 3 to 6 Swimming and Water Safety Program – 10 days commencing from Monday 27 February to Friday 10 March
• Our 2023 School Photo Day is next TUESDAY, 21 February!
  All students will have an individual photo taken on our Photo Day regardless of if they are ordering or not. Individual student ordering will stay open after Photo Day.

Parents who want to order Family Photos can the use same Access Key PV57S8FB.
Family Photo orders must be placed by 4:30pm on the night before Photo Day so the photographers can organise a list of Family Photos that need to be taken.
NB : Family discount is available when ordering, if you have 3 or more students that attend Table Cape PS.

Once again welcome to our 2023 school year …. are we are really looking forward to a positive and rewarding year for all students!

Lynette Grundy

Principal