Dear Parents & Carers

Welcome to Term 3, and I hope everyone has read the myriad of information that has come out via the App and Facebook regarding:

• COVID19 Restrictions
• Parent Teacher Interviews
• School Photos
• Sick Children
• Year 6 Confirmation

It's all happening! We have had to be extremely flexible and adapt to the constant change. Once again, I appreciate your ongoing support.

PARENT-TEACHER INTERVIEWS

You are your child’s first and most important teacher and we want to work with you to make sure your child learns and does well at school. That is why we hold regular meetings so you and your child’s teacher can share information throughout the school year.

What can you expect?

• A two-way conversation. Just as you want to learn about your child’s progress at school, we want to hear from you about how you think your child is doing. When teachers know about children’s talents, interests, needs, and dreams, they are better able to help their learning.
• Emphasis on learning. The focus of the interview is your child’s learning. We want to discuss how well your child is doing and what we can do to support even better learning. Come prepared with any questions you would like to ask the teacher.
• Opportunities and challenges. Teachers will always try to give you positive feedback about your child and areas for improvement. You will know your child’s strengths and areas of difficulty. Together, you and the teacher can explore ways to help your child with challenges.

What will be talked about?

• How is your child going? What are your child’s strengths? Where are the areas for improvement?
• Work samples - Ask to see examples of your child’s work. If you do not understand any assessments, ask the teacher to explain them to you.
• Your thoughts. Let the teacher know how you feel about your child’s progress and abilities. Tell the teacher about anything you think needs extra attention.
• Learning at home. Ask what you can do at home to help your child learn.
• Learning at school. Find out what services or extra help are available at school if your child needs more support.

Follow-up

• Make a note of any actions you agree on with the teacher. You can use these notes for future meetings with the teacher.
• Find out the best ways to communicate with the teacher and make a plan that works for both of you.
• Talk with your child about the conference. Share with your child what you have learned. Show how you will be helping with learning at home. Pass on praise. Ask for your child’s views on how learning can be improved.

BE HEARD

Best intentions assumed.

Emphasis on learning. 

Home-school collaboration.

Examples and evidence.

Active listening.

Respect for all.

Dedication to follow-up.

Acknowledgement: Harvard Family Research Project.

CROSSING DUTY

For the safety of students and families, and to ease traffic congestion, we have now stationed a teacher on duty at the crossing at the entrance to the bottom carpark. Families will be asked to wait, group together, allow traffic to flow, and then will be asked to walk across as a group. Families are asked to only cross into the carpark at this point and follow the teacher's instructions. Thank you.

UNIFORM

Thank you to all those families who have sent their children back to school wearing the correct school uniform with pride. We are still in winter uniform for this term. One benefit of having a uniform is that it removes one avenue for peer pressure and competition. The expectation is for all students and I ask you to support the school by ensuring your child/ren are wearing the correct school items. Incorrect shoes and school bags, and the wearing of non-uniform jewellery and hair items seem to be problem areas.

HATS ON

As we are a Sun Smart School, we would like to remind you that from the 1^st of August students will be required to wear their school hat for all outdoor activities. Of course, in the meantime, while the weather is cold, students are permitted to wear a navy beanie.

ANNUAL SATISFACTION SURVEY

An annual satisfaction survey of parents, students and staff will be conducted this term by Catholic Education. The surveys are designed to gather feedback from parents, staff and students about our school and will be used to inform school improvement. The surveys will be launched in a few weeks using the email addresses supplied to the school. Thank you in advance for your honest and constructive feedback.

Have a great week

Brad Gaynor

Principal

brad.gaynor@cg.catholic.edu.au

You will have received a note informing you that Parent Teacher Interviews for students in Kinder to Year 6 will be held in Week 3.

This year, only parents will meet with the teacher, not the students.

Please make a booking by going to: https://www.schoolinterviews.com.au and using the code: pt7xp

Bookings close on Friday the 31 of July at 5pm.

After this time, you will need to book through the front office (6241 8640) if you miss the opportunity through the site.

We look forward to seeing you and discussing your child/children’s progress.

Dear Parents and Carers,

This is a reminder that Holy Spirit Primary School will be participating in ICAS Assessments in Term 3, 2020. Online Parent Payment has been extended and will close on Sunday, 2 August, 2020. Please read the information below. 

ICAS is designed to target students’ higher-order thinking and problem-solving skills in English, Mathematics, Science, Writing*, Spelling and Digital Technologies. Each assessment celebrates students’ accomplishments by providing opportunities for recognition. Every student will receive a printed certificate and an online result report. Top performers will be eligible for medals and are invited to attend special award ceremonies to have their academic excellence publicly recognised.

We encourage you to consider entering your child into ICAS this year. The assessments are suitable for students wishing to extend themselves academically and take up the personal challenge of competing in an international assessment. Your child will be presented with high-quality, expert-developed questions, allowing them to apply their learning without the need for prior study or revision.

ICAS Assessments are now online, a move that reflects a sector-wide transition to online assessments. This allows greater accessibility for students and faster delivery of results. Learn more about ICAS here: unsw.global/ICAS.

In 2020 students have the opportunity to participate in the following subjects:

(*Writing not available in 2020.) 

** Please note: These are the dates Holy Spirit Primary school are sitting the ICAS tests. If something happens that prevents students being at school, we will negotiate with ICAS and move the test sitting dates. 

Cost per test: $15.95 including GST.

If you would like your child to participate in any of the subjects listed above, please visit the new online Parent Payment System to make a direct payment to UNSW Global. The Parent Payment System is a simple and secure online payment service specifically for parents to purchase ICAS Assessments.

  The web link is: https://shop.unswglobal.com.au/pages/pps

Our school’s unique access code is: YJB044

Online Parent Payment closes Sunday, 2 August 2020.

IMPORTANT:  Please enter your child’s name accurately into the System as it will appear on their ICAS certificate.

Privacy Collection Statement 

To analyse your child’s progress effectively, our school conducts an ongoing assessment program. The assessment we are using is a product of our partner, UNSW Global Pty Limited (UNSW Global). In order to deliver the assessment, Holy Spirit Primary School and UNSW Global (through our school) collect your child’s personal information (e.g. name, year level and school results) when you enrol your child to sit an assessment in the program. UNSW Global also stores, uses and modifies the personal Information in order to generate reports, conduct research and analysis, and improve its products and services. UNSW Global may share your child’s personal information with its subsidiary companies and subcontractors located overseas so it can provide the assessment products and services to our school. Most of these overseas recipients are located in the Asia-Pacific region. As the parent or guardian of a student who intends to sit an assessment, by enrolling your child into the assessment, you consent to our school and UNSW Global collecting and using your child’s personal information for the purposes outlined above. This includes the disclosure of your child’s personal information outside Australia consistent with the UNSW Global Privacy Policy at https://www.unswglobal.unsw.edu.au/our-company/policies/. By consenting, you acknowledge that UNSW Global is not required to ensure that overseas recipients handle your child’s personal information in accordance with Australian privacy laws. However, where practical in the circumstances, UNSW will take reasonable steps to ensure overseas recipients use and disclose personal information in accordance with the UNSW Global Privacy Policy. If you do not provide your child’s personal information to us or UNSW Global, we may not be able to deliver the assessment to your child. We and UNSW Global will deal with your child’s personal information in accordance with privacy laws. If you wish to access or correct your child’s personal information please contact the school on 02 6241 8640 or UNSW Global Privacy Officer at legalandcompliance@unswglobal.unsw.edu.au or by writing to Legal and Compliance Team, UNSW Global Pty Ltd, 12-22 Rothschild Avenue ROSEBERY NSW 2018. 

We are proud to partner with UNSW Global in offering the ICAS Assessments, and look forward to some fantastic results later in the year.

Please do not hesitate to contact me via email if you have any questions:  jessica.blacker@cg.catholic.edu.au. 

Kind regards,

Jessica Blacker                                                 

Learning Support Teacher

Hi Parents,

Your child would have brought home the next issue of Scholastic Book Club this week. You can also view this latest issue at https://www.scholastic.com.au/book-club/book-club-parents/. 

Please remember that no orders are to be sent to school, all orders are done through ‘Loop’ by following the instructions below.

Orders will close on Friday the 7th of August (Week 3)

If you are making an order which is to be a gift, please contact Library staff and your child’s teacher to inform us about pick up arrangements.