Nar Nar Goon Primary School 27 Spencer St, Nar Nar Goon 3812 Phone: 5942 5311

TERM 1 2020

IMPORTANT DATES TO

REMEMBER

March 9th

LABOUR DAY

HOLIDAY

March 10th CURRICULUM DAY

Issue No: 1 January 30th 2020

From the Principal ’s Desk: Welcome back to school everyone! It has been wonderful to welcome all the children back to school for 2020, especially our newest Foundation students and their families. They certainly looked very grown up in their shiny new uniforms! 2020 NEWSLETTERS: This year our school newsletter will be sent out fortnightly rather than weekly as in past years. With the introduction of See Saw, SENTRAL and the PAFA Facebook page, most of our communication is being distributed in a much more timely and efficient manner, making our newsletter largely superfluous for day to day communication. SEE-SAW App: See Saw will again be a feature of regular communication with the classroom and your child’s learning throughout the week. Please make sure that you have uploaded the App to your phone so that you can receive alerts and find out the exciting activities the children are engaged in during the day (including photos and video clips). New families will be provided with details and instructions shortly on how to do this. Please note: it is important to keep the communication through See Saw confined to the day to day learning of the children, this is not the avenue to raise concerns in regards to friendship issues between children or similar problems. If you have a concern please phone the school and speak to the teacher directly. See Saw is also not meant for absence notification for your child – instead please continue to use the SENTRAL portal (not the App as this has proven to be unreliable – access SENTRAL through your web browser) or alternatively phone the office ladies, log an absence through the website or email the school at nar.nar.goon.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au We would really appreciate all absences to be explained to the office prior to 9:00am to avoid a phone call or SMS message home to you.

2020 BELL TIMES: Our bell times have changed this year, to allow for consistent one hour specialist sessions. The main difference being that lunchtime breaks will commence at 1:40 with eating time in the classroom between 1:30-1:40. As always, I will be on yard duty from 8:45 in the morning, allowing you to speak to the classroom teacher before school if required. Please do not ask the teachers to conference with you at 9:00am as their classroom duties commence at 9:00 and they need to be with the children. Last year we had a number of parents monopolising teacher time when the bell went which meant the whole class was held up at the start of the day. If you need to speak to the teacher and cannot make it between 8:45-8:55 please call the school and arrange an appointment at a mutually convenient time. PARENT TEACHER MEET AND GREET: Parent Teacher MEET And Greet interviews will be taking place in Week Three on Thursday 13th February (2:00-7:30pm). This is an opportune time for you to introduce yourself to your child’s teacher and discuss any concerns or goals for the year. It is a wonderful opportunity for our staff to get a better picture of the students in their class, in order to meet individual needs. Appointments will be scheduled for 10 minutes each. If you need to speak to your child’s teacher for a longer time slot, please feel free to schedule a longer meeting for another day. Please note: As this is very early in the school year and teachers are still testing and assessing, they will not be able to provide you with a great deal of information apart from how well your child has settled in. The purpose of this interview is for you to share your concerns and/or to provide confidential information pertinent to your child’s wellbeing or academic progress this year. CURRICULUM DAY: This year we have scheduled an early curriculum day to coincide with the Labour Day long weekend Tuesday 10th March – children will not be required on this day. TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT PLAN: Please refer to the traffic management plan attached to this newsletter which explains parking arrangements and traffic flow during drop off and pick up times. It is vital that ALL parents and carers adhere to this plan because as you know Spencer Street can become a bit of a traffic jam when people do not follow the correct procedure and ultimately it is about ensuring the safety of all our children during these busy times.

All staff are looking forward to another wonderful year of fun and

learning!

FOR A FULL CALENDAR OF EVENTS SEE THIS NEWSLETTER

OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE

www.narnargoonps.vic.edu.au

Fran Van Lambaart Principal

PLEASE NOTE

NO ASSEMBLY

TOMORROW DUE TO THE HEAT

PREP 2020

A reminder that Preps do not

attend school on Wednesdays

throughout February

FEBRUARY

Friday 7th Y5/6 Interschool Sport @ aw ay

Monday 10th 3-6 House Swimming Carnival

Thursday 13th Parent Teacher Meet And

Greet Interviews from 2pm

Friday 14th 5/6 Sport @ aw ay

Monday 17th PAFA AGM 9am

Wednesday 19th Distr ict Sw im m ing

info to follow

Friday 21st 5/6 Sport @ hom e

Monday 24th School Council AGM 4.45pm

Friday 28th 5/6 Sport Bye

MARCH

Friday 6th 5/6 Sport @ hom e

Monday 9th LABOUR DAY HOLIDAY

Tuesday 10th CURRICULUM DAY

Wednesday 11th School Photos info to follow

Division Swimming

Friday 13th 5/6 lightning prem iership

info to follow

SUNSMART POLICY

Our School’s Sunsmart Policy for wearing hats was amended to be in line with the

Cancer Council’s regulations.

Navy blue broad brimmed hats must now be worn from

September 1st until May 1st.

Sunscreen is also available for children who request it.

Hats must be either wide brimmed or the ‘bucket’ type

for proper protection.

Hats must be dark or navy blue in line with our uniform policy

Baseball caps are not permitted.

X Payments Due

3-6 Swimming Carnival Wednesday 5th February

Caitlin S

Sloane H

Ashton M

Lilah W

Jake P

Jesse H

Sadie S

Ash M

Ebony H

Oscar N

Valentino S

Millie T

Olivia K

James M

Harper B

Arahia W

Tyler B

REPORTING ABSENCES

It is a requirement of the Department of Education and Training that an explanation for a child’s absence must be provided to the school on the day. This can be done by one of the following methods

Sentral Parent Portal https://sentral.narnargoonps.vic.edu.au/portal2/ Preferred via an internet Browser

Nar Nar Goon Primary School Website https://www.narnargoonps.vic.edu.au/

Phone the school – 59425311

All unexplained student absences will be followed up on the same day

***New families to school will be receiving their Sentral Parent Portal details shortly. Any queries, please see your child’s teacher***

School Uniform

It is our School’s policy that all students wear school

uniform.

Our school uniform is:

Summer Girls: Blue check dress, navy blue shorts,

pale blue or navy blue polo shirt.

Boys: Navy blue shorts, pale blue or navy blue

polo shirt

ALL STUDENTS MUST wear a wide brimmed

bucket hat in a dark navy blue colour

(school logo optional) from October—April

Winter Girls: Navy blue track suits, navy blue

windcheater

with pale blue or navy blue polo shirt or skivvy

Boys: Navy blue track suits, navy blue

windcheater with pale blue or navy blue polo shirt or

skivvy.

Our uniform is available from Beleza, Bald Hill Road,

Pakenham 5941 4989.

As a cheaper alternative we have iron on school logos in

blue or white available for purchase

($1.00 each) from the office, if required.

MONEY AND NOTES TO THE OFFICE

When returning money to the office please include correct money

and ensure that it is

securely enclosed in an envelope

that is clearly marked with name, grade and what it is for.

LOST PROPERTY

The Lost Property stand is located outside the Canteen each day for

you and the children to check.

Please make sure ALL belongings (including lunch boxes

and drink bottles) are clearly named and W E W ILL

RETURN them to your children.

Please note that we only keep lost property for one month.

Unclaimed items will be sent to charity

Lunch Orders

When filling in your lunch orders please remember to clearly

mark the envelope with the child’s name and their class.

Also, please make sure orders are sealed securely, with the

correct money.

Thank you from the Shop

MEDICATIONS AT SCHOOL

Our Medications Policy states that for any child requiring medication at school, a Medication Form

needs to be filled in. This form is for when your child requires ‘incidental’ and short term medication at

school—eg antibiotics, pain relief etc.

PERSONAL GOODS BROUGHT TO SCHOOL

AT OWNER’S RISK

Personal property is often brought to school by Students and

visitors. This can include mobile phones, calculators, toys,

sporting equipment and cars parked on school premises. The

Department of Education does not hold insurance for personal

property brought to schools and it has no capacity to pay for

any loss or damage to such property.

Students should be discouraged from bringing any

unnecessary or particularly valuable items to school

Please read the below details to ensure you are fully aware of the

department’s policy:

Parents/guardians of students, who do not have student accident

insurance, are responsible for paying the cost of medical treatment

for injured students, including the cost of ambulance attendance/

transport and any other transport costs.

PLEPLEASE NOTE THAT PAYMENTS FOR

BOOK CLUB CANNOT BE ACCEPTED AT

THE SCHOOL.

ALL ORDERS AND PAYMENTS MUST

BE DONE ONLINENO

TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT PLAN – PARENTS/CARERS, PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT PLAN OUTLINED BELOW. IF EVERY DRIVER ADHERES TO THIS PLAN, THE TRAFFIC WILL FLOW COHERENTLY. PLEASE BE PATIENT AS IT CAN BECOME VERY BUSY DURING DROP OFF AND PICK UP TIME. THE LIVES OF OUR CHILDREN ARE FAR TOO PRECIOUS.

Please Note: The bowl of the court is not be used for pick up and drop off – please enter and exit via the recreation reserve carpark

Outstanding Attendance Awards 2019

WORKING WITH CHILDREN’S CHECKS—A

GOVERNMENT REGULATION

A reminder that EVERY HELPER in our school must wear their

Working With Children Card on one of our visitor lanyards, or a

visitors badge when helping in our school. This could be for

reading helpers, sport helpers, classroom helpers, PAFA friends

etc. This is policy in our school and we will be monitoring this

diligently. Remember, it is not only for the safety of our children,

but protection for yourself. Our students have also been instructed

to look for these.

Also when signing in please sign in your toddlers too,

just in case of emergency.

STUDENT SUPERVISION

Please be aware that staff are on yard duty in the playground from

8:45 am before school and until 3:45 pm after school. Students

travelling on late buses are supervised in the Multi Purpose Room

after school until the final bus leaves. For your own child’s safety

it is recommended that children do not arrive at school before

8:45 am.

STUDENT INSURANCE

Please be aware that the Education Department does not cover

students for accidents in the school grounds, nor does it cover for

Ambulance costs should the need to call an ambulance be

necessary. I would therefore encourage all families, to please

consider making personal insurance and ambulance cover

arrangements for all their children.

CHILD SAFE STANDARDS

Nar Nar Goon Primary School is committed to child safety.

We want children to be safe, happy and empowered. We

support and respect all children, as well as our staff and

volunteers. We are committed to the safety, participation

and empowerment of all children. We have zero tolerance

of child abuse, and all allegations and safety concerns will be

treated very seriously and consistently with our robust

policies and procedures. If you would like more information

please go to the ‘Wellbeing’ or ‘Policies’ tab on our website

where you will find our Child Safe Policy and/or further

information and resources go to: www.education.vic.gov.au/

protect

FEEDBACK

Your feedback is important to us. If you have a concern or

would like to raise a complaint as a parent, please speak to

the classroom teacher in the first instance, Team leader in

the second instance (ie: Foundation: Jodie Watt, Years 1-2:

Kimberly Feher, Years 3-4 Ryan Marsland, Years 5/6:

Jackie Hope).

Otherwise, please contact the Principal Mrs Fran Van

Lambaart or Assistant Principal Jacqui Cutler, by calling

the office to arrange an appointment.

VISITING THE SCHOOL

We would respectfully ask that every person who comes onto the

school grounds between the hours of 9:15am and 3:15pm does so

through the main office to ensure that we know who is on the

school grounds at all times. We would ask for your cooperation

as parents to ensure that if you have a message for your child or

an item that needs to be delivered to the classroom that you ask

the office staff to pass it on rather than interrupt the class and/or

the teacher durin instruction time. Anyone without a WWCC

lanyard or Visitors badge will be redirected to the front office.

MEDICATION AT SCHOOL

Often we are asked to administer medication for students at school and if provided with the correct written information and parent signatures, we are more than happy to do so. Students know (and parents need to be aware) that any medication brought to school must be kept in the Sick Bay, not in classrooms or student school bags. In order to administer medication correctly we are seeking parent support to ensure the medication provided to staff does not fall beyond the expiry date provided on medication packets/bottles. The office ladies are very busy and it is quite frustrating for them to have to repeatedly request new medication for students when the medication provided is no longer safe due to expiry dates. They often need to make contact with parents multiple times before parents take action and in the case of serious conditions, this can put student’s health at risk. Please support us in our endeavours to keep your children safe and healthy.

ABSENCE MANAGEMENT AT NAR NAR GOON

PRIMARY SCHOOL

When submitting online absence forms please ensure you

provide us with details to enable us to determine whether

or not they will be school approved absences or not.

Parent Choice

School approved – illness/medical. Religious/cultural

observance. Bereavement. Family holiday (with principal

approval). Special circumstances, unavoidable cause,

unforeseen circumstances, and family member ill.

School unapproved- No explanation provided by

parent. Student absent due to participating in leisure or

social activities such as shopping, a child’s birthday,

visiting relatives or friends. A day off for no valid reason.

No approval given by principal to attend family holiday

(requires an absence learning plan with Principal’s

signature).

PLEASE REFER TO THE NAR NAR GOON PRIMARY

SCHOOL ATTENDANCE POLICY LOCATED ON

THE ‘ABOUT US/POLICIES’ TAB ON OUR WEBSITE

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

PARENTS AND FRIENDS ASSOCIATION

**FACEBOOK PAGE**

Join the Nar Nar Goon Primary School – Parents & Friends Group as another way to stay informed and up to date with the activities and events

happening within the School. (*this is a closed group only available to parents/carers) with current students at the school*)

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: