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Term 1 has flown by and now we are heading towards a well-deserved term break.
Term 2 will be a busy term including
- ANZAC service,
- NAPLAN testing for students in Years 3 and 5,
- Camp for our Year 6 students,
- Swimming lessons for students in years Pre Primary – Year 4,
- Winter Carnival for students in Years 5 and 6,
- Student reports.
I wish everyone a safe break and look forward to seeing you all back and ready to go.
I would ask anyone that sees suspicious behaviour within or around the school grounds over the holiday period to contact Education Security on 9264 4771.
I am pleased to confirm that assemblies will return to pre COVID arrangements for Term 2, with classes putting on an item and parents welcome to attend. We would ask, however, that parents observe the public health guidelines for social distancing and that parents not attend if they are unwell.
Attendance
It is very important for students to attend school every day. Whilst we would like every student to be here every day we do understand that children get sick and we do thank parents for keeping sick children at home.
The following table outlines the long-term reduction in learning frequent absences create.
Period of Absence (Years 1-10) |
Rate of Attendance |
Equivalent School Missed |
Level of Educational Risk |
Average of 5 days per term |
90% |
1 Year |
Classified as regular attendance (but not ideal) |
1 day per week |
80% |
2 Years |
Indicated At-Risk |
1.5 days per week |
70% |
3 Years |
Moderate Risk |
2 days per week |
60% |
4 Years |
Moderate Risk |
3 days per week |
40% |
6 Years |
Severe Risk |
5 weeks per term |
50% |
5 Years |
Severe Risk |
FAST
In Term 2 the school will be running the Families and Schools Together (FAST) program in partnership with Clan Midland. FAST® is an internationally acclaimed parent engagement program that helps children thrive by building strong relationships at home. Any families interested in participating in the program should contact Mrs Newman at the school.
Clubs
Congratulations to all students that participated in the various clubs on offer. The teachers have told me that student behaviour and participation during the after school clubs has been very good. I would like to thank the staff that have run clubs, giving up their own time to provide these highly appreciated opportunities for students. Keep an eye out during Term 2 for news on Clubs.
Parents are reminded that prompt collection of students after each club session is essential and that students that are collected late may not be allowed to continue in the club.
EISA Carnival
Congratulations to all the Year 5 and 6 students who participated in the Interschool Summer Carnival this week. The students demonstrated their ARBOR Values and tried their best. I would like to thank Mr Williams for organising the day and the teachers for coaching and supporting the various student teams.
Lost Property
As we are starting to head into the cooler months and swimming lessons, it is timely to remind parents to ensure that all student clothing has their child’s name clearly marked so we can return it if/when it gets lost or mislaid.
Glen Purdy
ANZAC Ceremony
The school will be commemorating ANZAC day on Wednesday 28 April at 9.00am in the undercover area. Parents are welcome to attend and will be seated near the library to be able to view the laying of the wreaths. Parents are invited to lay their own wreaths, if they wish to do so.
Bike Helmets
I’ve noticed many loose helmets over the past few weeks. These helmets will not function to protect your child’s head. The holidays provide a good opportunity to check and adjust helmets or even upgrade, if they have any damage.
“Selecting a bicycle helmet, A bicycle helmet must:
- meet the Australian Standards. If the safety standards have been met the bicycle helmet will carry the Australian Standards AS 2063 or AS/NZ 2063 label.
- fit and fasten securely to provide the level of protection that is has been designed to offer the wearer in the event of a crash.
- not move backwards, sideways and/or forwards on the user’s head.
- not be too tight, just comfortable.”
https://www.sdera.wa.edu.au/media/1257/safety-on-wheels-yr-5.pdf
Bernadette Irvine
Room 1
Beautiful Bugs
In Room 1 we have had a wonderful time learning about bugs as part of our Schoolyard Safari unit in Science. We were very lucky to have butterflies in our classroom and we were able to observe the lifecycle of the monarch butterfly. From an adult laying its eggs, to the very interesting stripy caterpillars who ate everything in sight. We waited with baited breath as the chrysalis was formed and then turned black. We would arrive each morning with much anticipation to see if another beautiful monarch butterfly had emerged from its slumber. We were so excited when it was time to release them outside into our fabulous playground.
We integrated our Science unit with our English. We read many Eric Carle books such as; The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The Bad tempered Ladybird, The Very Busy Spider, The Very Lonely Firefly and The Very Clumsy Click Beetle to name a few.
We had lots of fun dressing up as Butterflies and Ladybugs with our dress ups. We really enjoyed playing with the bugs in our small world area.
Students have enjoyed sharing their bugs that they have discovered in the playground and at home.
Room 1 have had a wonderful journey in Term 1 and we are eager to share our discoveries with classmates, teachers, parents and community.
Room 5
Visual Arts
This term in visual arts we have been focusing on line, shape and colour. We have experimented with a variety of lines and patterns as a way of decorating abstract artwork.
We were able to use our artistic skills to draw a fire engine which linked to our health unit, Emergency Services, and what we can do to get help.
Pre Primary |
Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
Year 4 |
Year 5 |
Year 6 |
Sidak | Achieu | Jax | Simon | Agam | Charlotte | Zhandyah |
Luke | Sophie | Arianna | Lily | Tyler | Noah | |
Muan Lian | Taj | Amaya | Mia | Hunter | ||
Malak | Emily | Rylan | Eli | Zainaba | ||
Lailah | Marli | Arthur | ||||
Gracie | Jasmine | |||||
Brax | Samar | |||||
Devon | Arou | |||||
Mia |
National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence
On Friday 19 March, the whole school supported and participated in the National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence. We spent the week discussing bullying, cyberbullying and bystanders and understanding the definition of bullying. Students then worked with their peers to brainstorm ideas for anti-bullying posters to display around our school. The posters were displayed in each alcove (eating area) and were kept up for the next week. They generated lots of discussion amongst the students, not only about the great designs and colours used but most importantly the message they conveyed. The staff were very proud of the effort the students went to in brainstorming and discussing ideas and opinions and the resulting posters speak for themselves.
If you would like more information about this initiative, please visit the bullying no way website as they have lots of ideas and resources for families.
Jo Prentice
Our AGM is just around the corner and we are always on the lookout for new faces to come and join our great team of volunteers.
Canteen
We would like to thank all our volunteers that have helped in Term 1. We couldn’t do it without you.
Term 2 will see a new menu so keep an eye on our Facebook pages as we will post the new menu as soon as we have it finalised. And yes there is some old favourites coming back.
Like all schools we are not able to open our canteen without volunteers. If you are able to help out, even if it is only for a couple of hours please email Jenni at
Would you like to have a say about what is on the menu? Why not join the P&C and join the Canteen Committee. We are always looking for new people to come on board and bring new ideas with them.
Fundraising
Crazy Hat Day
Wow! What an amazing assortment of hats we had today for Crazy Hat Day. The judges sure had their work cut out for them and had such a hard time deciding on the most impressive designs.
Congratulations to those who were voted ‘Most Impressive’. They received a canteen voucher to use in Term 2.
The P&C would like to thank all students who participated and to all the families that now have strings of hot glue trails across their dining table. We hope you had a wonderful time creating your masterpieces.
Easter Raffle
An outstanding 20 prizes were up for grabs in this year’s Easter Raffle all thanks to the generous donations from YOU our school families, Big W Ellenbrook, Mr’s P Pantry and Kajac Creations Home Bakery.
We are so fortunate to have such great support, so much so that OVER $1200 has been raised!!
Thank you to everyone that purchased tickets.
And the winning tickets were purchased through the following students. Winners have been contacted by the P&C.
1st | Micah | 8th | Levi | 15th | Kaiden |
2nd | Ellie | 9th | Jessica | 16th | Melyah |
3rd | Dakoda | 10th | Melyah | 17th | Elizabeth |
4th | Melyah | 11th | Kayla | 18th | Mia |
5th | Farah | 12th | Jay | 19th | Diamond |
6th | Teya | 13th | Noah | 20th | Irene |
7th | Niah | 14th | Ellie |
Thank you to Mrs McCabe for drawing the numbers for our Easter Raffle. This was done via a random number generator.
Hair Accessories
We’re really excited to announce our affiliation with @PonytailsAndFairytales and School Ponytails.
Our school uniform hair accessories are available!
Shop through their website at https://www.ponytailsandfairytales.com.au/.../arbor-grove... and our school community earns 20% from your purchase.
Shop for bows and sports products online, where there's PayPal, AfterPay, Cards, and Bank Deposit payments available.
When you put our fundraising code (ARBOR GROVE PS) in the checkout, our school community benefits!
Wine and Gin Fundraiser
We are continuing with our Wine and Gin fundraiser for 2021. Visit the below link to order your goodies today.
Wise Winery are a Halliday 5 Star rated, Margaret River winery supplying sweet, dry, red, white, sparkling plus a great range of Gin’s to choose from.
FREE DELIVERY (AUS WIDE) straight to your door plus 20% of sales comes back to our fundraising.
Visit https://wisewine.com.au/arbor-grove-primary-school/
While you are visiting the site, you will also be able to see how much we have raised.
Feel free to spread the word to your family and friends.
If 12 bottles are too much (which is never really the case) get together and share a case. You can pick any combination of wines and gin to make up the 12 bottles!
Entertainment Memberships
Our school uses the Flexischools online ordering system for our Canteen as well as P&C Events and Fundraising.
Flexischools allows you to place all these orders online in a matter of seconds, at any time of the day.
Download the Flexischools App
Note: for iPhone and iPad please select ‘Allow’ notifications.
Add your School and Group.
Click on the search icon, enter Arbor Grove Primary School, and select your school and year group.
Login/Register
Click the ‘Order now’ button located in the bottom right-hand corner of the app, this will open a login screen.
Already a Flexischools user - Enter your details and login. To save your login details select ‘remember me’.
New Flexischools user - Click ‘Register’, enter your email address, and follow the instructions in the email to set up your account.
Once your account is set up, add new student; search for our school, enter student details and select their class.
Once registered, you can start placing orders immediately. If you have any questions, please see Jenni in the canteen for more information or you can contact the Flexischools Customer Service Team via their website.
The Flexischools system is now available and ready to use, so we look forward to seeing your next order online.
School Banking
Can you volunteer? We need your help with the School Banking program!
Our students really enjoy participating in the Commonwealth Bank School Banking program and to keep this program running we need your help.
The program requires volunteers and we are looking for a couple of volunteers to help or a school coordinator to facilitate the banking and distribution of School Banking rewards. The School Banking is processed at the same time each week and will only take a small amount of your time .The Commonwealth Bank will provide support in how to run the program. Your help with the program will greatly benefit students as they practice saving skills and also help our school with fundraising.
As part of volunteering you are eligible to receive a Certificate of Attainment that details the activities that you are involved in. For example: cash handling, program facilitation, account reconciliation and more.
Currently, School Banking day is Tuesday mornings between 8.30am and 9.30am.
If you are interested in volunteering for this great program, please contact Hayley at agpsp-cpresident@outlook.com.au
P&C Contact Details
Hayley Hennessy – President – agpsp-cpresident@outlook.com.au
Rachael Jones – Secretary – agpsp-csecretary@outlook.com.au
Amy Holmes – Fundraising Coordinator – agpsp-cfundraising@outlook.com.au
Jenni – Canteen Supervisor – arborgrovep-c@hotmail.com
Canteen – (08) 6497 4831
Thursday 1 April | Last Day Term 1 |
Monday 19 April | First Day Term 2 |
Monday 26 April |
ANZAC Day Public Holiday STUDENTS DO NOT ATTEND |
Wednesday 28 April | ANZAC Day Ceremony |
NOTICEBOARD