I would like to welcome our school community back to KPS after the Easter holiday break. I hope that you all had an opportunity to rest, relax and are now prepared for a long second term. It has been an incredibly smooth start with all students settling into their routines beautifully. It has been a bit of a funny week with our teacher stop work today, ANZAC Day on Thursday and a Pupil Free Day Friday. Despite these interruptions, it has been business as usual for us with all classes resuming today as normal.
New Staff
As our school continues to grow, so does our wonderful staff. I am pleased to announce the recruitment of two new Education Assistants to our community. We have Ms Janice Oakes, who is a mainstream EA working with our kindy and PP students. We also have Paula Dodd, who is a special needs EA working with a range of students across our school. We are incredibly fortunate to have recruited two EA’s of the calibre and experience of Paula and Janice. Please join me in making them feel welcome to the KPS community.
KPS accepted in Centre of Excellence in the Explicit Teaching of Literacy Program
We're delighted to announce that KPS has been chosen to join the Department of Education's Centre of Excellence in the Explicit Teaching of Literacy Program. This fantastic opportunity will see our school benefit from expert tuition and observations, allowing us to refine and enhance our explicit teaching model throughout the entire school. Our selection followed a rigorous process, including interviews, where we showcased the effectiveness of our literacy program at KPS.
Swimming
Swimming lessons begins in Week 4 for all students from PP-Year 6. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to learn the essential water safety skills to be confident around any bodies of water. Communication has been sent home with all the necessary information regarding this important educational activity.
Year 6 Camp
Our Year 6 students are busily preparing for camp in Week 8. There was a meeting last Friday to explain the essential information. This is usually the highlight of the year for these students who will be attending the Woodman’s Point Camp School.
ANZAC Ceremony
Tomorrow at 10:30am we will hold our ANZAC service at the Cenotaph over at Rushton Park to pay our respects to those who have served our nation. We welcome our community to attend.
Assembly Changes
We will run assemblies at 2pm on Wednesday afternoons (starting tomorrow). The reason we have decided to trial this is to ensure that our core learning time in the mornings is not compromised. We have discussed this at our School Board meeting and received unanimous support to trial it. We will welcome your feedback at the end of Semester 1.
Reporting Changes
Another change that we want to trial is regarding report comments. Instead of having a maths and English comment that can often seem generic or difficult to understand, we are going to trial omitting the comments in lieu of an information session to be held at the school on Thursday 20 June from 1:30pm-7pm. During these sessions you will book a time to discuss your child’s grades 1 on 1 with the classroom teacher and gain more insight into how they are achieving and what the next steps are. This was discussed with the School Board and received endorsement to trial this year.
Pre Kindy Now Open
Our new Pre-Kindy service is now operating with a great turnout of families joining us for some fun and the opportunity to get to know some new friends. We are excited to offer this exciting opportunity for our community. It is our aim to provide our next generation of students with a taste of school life. Please email Samantha.higgins3@education.wa.edu.au for more information.
KPS School Board
The KPS School Board is our governing body that is made up of parents, staff and community members. The Board meets 1-2 times a term to discuss various aspects of the school including academic data, school approaches and our Business Plan. The Board Chair is Mr Daniel Attewell who often liaises with the parents on the Board. We will have some vacancies that arise this year that you may be interested in. If you would like any further information please email me at Jason.bushe-jones@education.wa.edu.au.
Playgroup at KPS
Our playgroup service is operating in the OSH building. This initiative aims to bring our youngest community members into our school to make some new friends and enjoy playing together. It is also an opportunity for parents/carers to meet some new families in a casual and friendly environment. Children aged 0-5 are welcome to attend. Please email Samantha.higgins3@education.wa.edu.au for more information.
OHSC – Their Care
Our out of hours school care provider has started operating onsite at KPS. It is a great opportunity for your children to have a structured day care experience without having to leave the school grounds. Please contact them directly with them for more information on1300 072 410 or infor@theircare.com.au