From The Principal's Desk - Rocky River Public School
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Tuesday 2nd February 2021
Term 1, Week 2
From The Principal’s Desk
Welcome!
This is our first newsletter for 2021 and we hope that our newsletters are informative and provide you with as much
information as possible about events and upcoming programs. These are published every fortnight and are placed on the
Skoolbag app and a hard copy is issued to each family (the eldest child with bring home a paper copy each time). We have
a community section where we are happy to publish community events, so if you are aware of anything happening, please
email the details to the school and we will include this for you.
Year 5 Sports Captains and Year 6 School Leaders
Each year, our school provides leadership opportunities for our students in a range of areas. All students in Year 6 are
given a School Leader role and students in Year 5 are given a Sports Captain role. I would like to congratulate our students
on accepting these positions and wish them all the best in their new roles. Our Year 5 students will receive their Sports
Captains badges at our first assembly in Week 4.
NAPLAN Online in 2021 & Typing Tournament
Our school will complete the NAPLAN assessments online for the first time this year. This involves students in Years 3 and
5. As the assessments are online (except for the Year 3 writing task which will still be handwritten), students will need to
type their responses. We have subscribed to an online program called Typing Tournament to assist our students in
learning to type. Students will have access to this during the school week, however we also encourage them to log on and
continue their practice at home as well. NAPLAN will be held early in Term 2.
Best Start Assessments for Kindergarten
All students in Kindergarten are currently completing the Best Start assessment with Miss Brien. Every student who enrolls
in Kindergarten in NSW completes the assessment to assist us in planning. Results from the assessments will be finalised
soon and Miss Brien will contact each family to make a time to discuss them with you.
Athletics Carnival—Claiming the Date!
Due to some recent changes in our small school cluster arrangements, Rocky River will be hosting the 2021 Athletics
Carnival. Details are still to be finalised, but we have decided to hold the event on Friday 28th May. We will provide more
details closer to the time.
Brad Hunt
Principal
Principal : Brad Hunt
Teachers: Jess Brien, Emma Schaeffer &
Leah Miller
School Administration: Anne Miller
General Assistant: Chris Schaeffer
Look what’s happening in Lower Division I would like to welcome our new Kindergarten students and welcome back Year 1 &2! There is never a dull moment in Lower Division and we are going to be very busy learning lots of new things this term! Here is what we are up to in each topic: English Kindergarten will start of the term learning sounds using the 'Jolly Phonics' program while Year 1 & 2 will by busy learning new spelling rules and completing activities. We love to do Literacy rotations that involve small groups of reading, writing, word work, games, discovery and technology. We are focusing on the text ‘The Paper Bag Princess” by Stephanie Lee- Smith. We will produce some beautiful creative writing and illustrations. Mathematics Maths will be taught everyday explicitly and with a variety of independent and group activities that involve hands on mate- rials. PDHPE We will be learning some fundamental movement skills and do a little bit of dance on the warmer days. Road safety will be our focus this term in PDH. Art We are so lucky to have Mrs Schaeffer again this year to learn all about Art! She will also have us on Thursday mornings for Literacy, Maths and PE. Music Lower Division are looking forward to weekly music lessons with NECOM every Tuesday. Science In Science we are learning about Earth and Space. Students will identify Earth's resources, including water, soil and miner- als and describe how they are used in a variety of ways. We will learn why and how we should care for the environment and our natural resources. Students will plan and implement strategies considering conservation of resources to address sustainability and to meet needs. History In history we will be comparing 'then and now' by investigating how the present is different from or similar to the past. Technology We will use the iPads and student laptops for Word Processing and our online programs such as Reading Eggs, Kids A-Z, Mathletics, Ozmos, Dash Bots & much more this term! ClassDojo Keep up to date with photos and all things Lower Division on our ClassDojo app. Looking forward to a great year! Jess Brien
Look what’s happening in Upper Division We are delighted to be back in the classroom for 2021 and are impressed with all the happy faces that greeted us on Friday! We welcome Dominic, Ethan and Edith who have joined us in Year 5. This year we will have a strong focus on individual learning and will differentiate and adjust teaching programs to target student learning styles, strengths and areas for improvement. High impact professional learning will also be of importance this year as we strive to improve our practice and student outcomes. English and Mathematics will continue to be taught in stages whilst all other key learning areas will see the stages combined as collective and collaborative learning. English Students will experience texts which are widely regarded as quality literature, with a focus on imaginative material this term. ‘Seven Steps to Writing Success’ is a program that will be embedded into our learning to enhance and improve our knowledge and understanding when composing texts. Grammar and punctuation will be a specific area that will be explicitly taught in conjunction with all English units. Mathematics The central component of our Mathematics teaching and learning this term is building on our knowledge and understanding and skills around the strand Number, with a key focus on applying our skills to real-life contexts. PDHPE The strand Health, Wellbeing and Relationships will be the centre of our learning for PDH. This unit will develop the knowledge, understanding and skills important for building respectful relationships, enhancing personal strengths and exploring personal identity to promote personal health, safety and wellbeing. Creative Arts Mrs Schaeffer will provide wonderful lessons in visual arts again this year each Thursday afternoon. We also have secured a teacher from the New England Conservatorium of Music (NECOM) to provide our class with weekly music programs. Miss Jess Suann from NECOM will be providing these lessons for both class each Tuesday afternoon. Science The Physical World of science will be investigated this term, focusing on the difference between contact and non-contact forces and how energy is transformed from one form to another.
History
Beginning with the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, students will examine European
exploration and the colonisation of Australia and throughout the world up to the early 1800s. Students will
inspect the impact of exploration on other societies, how these societies interacted with newcomers, and how
these experiences contributed to their cultural diversity.
Other Learning Programs
NAPLAN will launch online for the first time at Rocky River in 2021. All students have been signed up to an online
platform to build their typing skills, which is also giving their fine motor skills a workout as well.
ClassDojo will continue to showcase updates and learning during our day-to-day lessons and activities.
Please feel free to contact us at any time if you have questions about your child’s learning. We are looking
forward to an exciting and productive year ahead!
Brad Hunt, Emma Schaeffer & Leah Miller
Community News
School News
School Calendar - TERM 1
3rd February: Small Schools Swimming Carnival
8th February: PSSA Swimming Carnival
19th February: School Assembly 2 pm (TBC)
8th—14th March: P&C Street Stall
19th March: School Assembly 2 pm (TBC)
Harmony Day
1st April: School Assembly 12.30 pm
Easter Hat Parade
CANTEEN
Price List:
Macaroni & Cheese $3
Pizza Singles $3
Chicken Nuggets (4) $2
Beef Lasagne $3
Potato Bake $3
Fried Rice $3
Sausage Roll $3
Pie $3
Ice Cream $1.50
Popper $1.50
Milk (with flavoured straw) $1.50
Fruit Icy Pole $1
Our canteen operators are aware of the
COVID 19 regulations for food handling and
will adhere to them at all times.
Please send lunch orders in a clearly
marked bag with the correct money if
possible as change is not given out.
Our canteen is run by
parent volunteers. If you
are able to help with
canteen on any
Wednesday and would like to be included
on the roster please contact
Leanne 0432 779 291 or
Erica 0422 054475
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