Dear families

There are lots of things you can do to set your child up for success and one of the most important things is to make sure your child goes to school every day unless they are unwell. 

Going to school every day gives your child every chance to learn and grow, and connect with their friends and teachers. It’s where bright futures start and where they’ll benefit the most. Start the year right by making every school day count.

If you’re struggling to get your child to school, help is available. Please talk to us about your situation. We’ll support you, in whatever way we can.

Sharon

We are so pleased to invite parents and carers to come into school for a Parent Teacher Meeting.  This opportunity is extended to all families with children from Kindergarten to Year 6.

Parent Teacher Meetings are a great opportunity to connect, work together, celebrate learning and to set goals. Parent Teacher Meetings are also a time when you are most welcome to share information about your child and ask any questions. Communication is a two way process where information is shared and involves listening to and learning from each other.  

Prep - Year 6 teachers will provide families with a Progress Report, indicating an assessment of your child's learning behaviours and social skills.

A letter was sent home last week with the details you need to know. Please read the information carefully and return the form with your preferences for times and dates for your meeting as soon as possible. Meeting times have already been scheduled for EAL families requiring an interpreter. We invite you to record in the 2024 Parent Teacher Agenda section, specific information that you would like to discuss about your child.

Parent Teacher Meetings are a very important part of our Reporting to Parents schedule and we encourage all families to attend. Childcare is available for school age children in the PAC.

Kindergarten - Year 6 Parent Teacher Meetings are held over two weeks, beginning Tuesday 12 March. 

I look forward to welcoming you.

Congratulations to the following students who received awards at our last assembly.

On Friday 1 March, our 5-6 students welcomed 3 players from the Hawthorn Football Club. Sam Frost, Henry Hustwaite and Massimo D’Ambrosio visited classrooms and talked about overall health and wellbeing, as well as the importance of teamwork.

Student were also given the opportunity to ask questions and also enjoy some kick-to-kick during our recess break!

A huge thank you to AFL Tasmania for providing us with this opportunity and we look forward to Tassie having our own team in the future.

Every Kindergarten child at Mowbray Heights Primary School can have a Kinder Health Check (KHC) with the School Health Nurse. The health check includes vision and hearing screening, height and weight measurements, and an oral health check.

The KHC form has been sent home with your child.

If you would like your child to have the KHC, please complete the form and return it to the Admin team or your child’s teacher as soon as possible. If you do not want your child to have the KHC, tick the box on page 2, add your child’s details and return the form.

Pia Armstrong - Primary School Health Nurse pia.armstrong@decyp.tas.gov.au

World Hearing Day was on Sunday 3 March. Many of the causes of hearing loss are preventable. To prevent damage to your hearing:

• Keep your music, TV and radio down — you should be able to easily talk to someone one metre away
• If you use headphones or earphones, limit use to an hour at a time then take a break
• If you can, use headphones or earphones that block outside noise
• wear earplugs or ear protection equipment, such as earmuffs, in noisy workplaces
• At live music and other loud events, wear earplugs, take frequent breaks and stand away from speakers.

From: https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/hearing-loss#prevented

If you have any concerns about your child’s ability to hear, you can request a free hearing assessment at school with your School Health Nurse Pia. Please talk to your child’s teacher or call the school office for more information.

Launching into Learning groups have started!

We would love to re-connect with our families and welcome new ones with children from birth to 4 years.

Why come to Launching into Learning?

• Play and learn alongside your child
• Meet other families
• Get to know the school staff
• Get ready for school

Programs include Kindy Gym, Pre-kinder, Playgroup (0-4) and Baby Playgroup. See the information attached for times and details.

Please talk to a member of the LiL team or the school office if you would like some more information about our programs.

Lisa Probert, Danielle Evans and Kelsey Campbell

Last week 87 students from Kinder to Year 6 put their creativity to the test, entering our first ever Brixhibition Design Competition, where students were challenged to design a real or imaginary item that could be created from Lego.

It was an incredibly tough decision for our panel of judges, however we are excited to announce the following winners for their age group.

Max’s design was selected as our overall school winner and will now be sent through to the Tasmanian Brick Enthusiasts, and a Lego replica will be created and entered into the “Grand Competition” where Max has the chance to win his Lego model!

Judging for the “Grand Competition” will take place at the 2024 Brixhibition event held on Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 April, at the Door of Hope, from 9:30 am - 4:30 pm.

Congratulations again to our school winners and a big thank you to all who participated!

Stay tuned for our next Brixhibition event, the Lego Build Competition!

The National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is held in March. NAPLAN assesses literacy and numeracy skills that are essential for every child to progress through school and life. Students in Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 participate in the annual NAPLAN tests in reading, writing, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy.

The assessment provides parents and schools with an understanding of how individual students are performing at the time of the tests.  NAPLAN is just one aspect of a school's assessment and reporting process, and it does not replace ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance.

NAPLAN also provides schools, education authorities and governments with information about how education programs are working and whether young Australians are achieving important educational outcomes in literacy and numeracy.

NAPLAN is an online assessment (except for Year 3 writing which is a paper based assessment). NAPLAN Online provides a better and more precise assessment. The assessments feature a tailored test design where the questions a student receives will depend on their answers to previous questions. 

2024 NAPLAN testing will be held from Wednesday 13 March to Monday 25 March.

Individual student performance in NAPLAN is shown on a national achievement scale for each test. The performance of individual students can be compared to the average performance of all students in Australia. Parents will receive their child's individual report.

Thank you for supporting your child’s participation in this important national initiative.  All we ask is they simply do their best.

The School Association is made up of the parents, staff and community members of a school. The School Association is an important part of the school, working with the Principal to achieve shared outcomes for learners and for the whole school community. 

The School Association Committee is an elected group of members that work together for the benefit of the school. The Committee manages and conducts the affairs of the School Association and performs administrative and decision-making tasks on behalf of the School Association. The Committee is made up of parents, staff and community members. 

Parent participation on our Committee is highly valued. We currently have two vacant parent member positions. The term of office is two years. Nomination Forms are available at the school office. Nomination Forms are to be returned to Tina Todman (School Business Manager) by 3:00 pm on Wednesday 20 March, 2024. If there are multiple nominations, an election will be held on Wednesday 27 March.

Our Annual General Meeting will be held on Thursday 4 April at 7:00 pm in the Boardroom.

Priscilla Chilcott
Chairperson

Invoices will be sent home to families who have not been approved for STAS in the next couple of weeks.  This composite levy covers almost everything, including learning materials, resources, equipment, excursions and performances.  It does not cover specialised activities such as the Leavers’ Dinner, cost of school photo or any other optional activity.

Families are able to choose between a single payment of the levy or they may take advantage of a range of payment options. You are most welcome to discuss your needs with Ms Tina Todman our School Business Manager (6326 1892).

The Student Assistance Scheme provides assistance for low income families towards the cost of levies. STAS is provided to the school rather than paid directly to families. STAS 2024 application forms are available for new enrolments, or for families who have not applied for, or been in receipt of STAS in 2023. Please note, being the holder of a Centrelink Health Care Card does not automatically mean that a family will be approved for STAS. Families who were approved and received STAS in 2023 have been sent correspondence regarding STAS 2024 directly from the Department for Education, Children and Young People. STAS application forms can be downloaded from the Department's website at www.decyp.tas.gov.au or collected from our school office.