Week 5 – Friday 28 February 2020 Swimming Carnival / Zone Swimming Carnival Our annual school swimming carnival was held on Wednesday 19 February at North Sydney Pool. The day was filled with impressive individual performances, high levels of encouragement and lots of fun. It was a highly successful day and all students who attended can be very proud of their participation and conduct. The swimming carnival is a fantastic way to start the sporting year and we would like to thank and acknowledge the wonderful parent helpers who assisted as timekeepers. Their time and contribution allowed for smooth running races. Thank you to the organising and supervising staff members, particularly Mrs Holly Kendall, whose efforts ensured the day was seamless and enjoyable for all. Congratulations to all our swimmers who will progress to the Zone Swimming Carnival on Friday 13 March at Ryde Aquatic Centre. A permission note will be sent home with the participating students next week. The DEM will hold a Sports Ribbon Ceremony in Term 2 (date to be advised). The ceremony covers both the swimming carnivals and the cross country carnival which is scheduled for Friday 3 April. All ribbon recipients will be notified accordingly. P&C Thank you to Laura Waddilove and her fabulous team of parent helpers for making the P&C K-2 Trivia Night a successful event, last Friday evening. The hall looked amazing and it was a wonderful opportunity for parents to make new friendships and connections. The P&C Annual General Meeting will be held on Wednesday 11 March. Please read more on the P&C News pages for details about: • Office Bearer Roles of the P&C, • Working Bee (save the date – Sunday 8 March) The Dem Newsletter What’s On In 2020? Monday 2 March * Premier’s Reading Challenge opens * Student Executive excursion – Halogen Young Leaders Tuesday 3 March * PSSA Teeball training Wednesday 4 March * Intermediate Band Thursday 5 March * Senior Band Friday 6 March * Junior Band * PSSA Oztag training Sunday 8 March * P&C Working Bee from 9am – All welcome Monday 9 March * Year 5 Science Incursion (5ZN & 5CB) Tuesday 10 March * PSSA Teeball training * Year 5 Science Incursion (5NW & 5RR) * Year 6 Girls4Tech Workshop Wednesday 11 March * Intermediate Band *Year 2 Walking Excursion (2KS, 2BJ and half 2SB) * P&C AGM Meeting from 6:30pm – Library Thursday 12 March * Senior Band *Year 2 Walking Excursion (2JD, 2KS and half 2SB) * Selective High School Test date for registered students
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Week 5 – Friday 28 February 2020 Swimming Carnival / Zone Swimming Carnival Our annual school swimming carnival was held on Wednesday 19 February at North Sydney Pool. The day was filled with impressive individual performances, high levels of encouragement and lots of fun. It was a highly successful day and all students who attended can be very proud of their participation and conduct. The swimming carnival is a fantastic way to start the sporting year and we would like to thank and acknowledge the wonderful parent helpers who assisted as timekeepers. Their time and contribution allowed for smooth running races. Thank you to the organising and supervising staff members, particularly Mrs Holly Kendall, whose efforts ensured the day was seamless and enjoyable for all. Congratulations to all our swimmers who will progress to the Zone Swimming Carnival on Friday 13 March at Ryde Aquatic Centre. A permission note will be sent home with the participating students next week. The DEM will hold a Sports Ribbon Ceremony in Term 2 (date to be advised). The ceremony covers both the swimming carnivals and the cross country carnival which is scheduled for Friday 3 April. All ribbon recipients will be notified accordingly.
P&C Thank you to Laura Waddilove and her fabulous team of parent helpers for making the P&C K-2 Trivia Night a successful event, last Friday evening. The hall looked amazing and it was a wonderful opportunity for parents to make new friendships and connections. The P&C Annual General Meeting will be held on Wednesday 11 March. Please read more on the P&C News pages for details about:
• Office Bearer Roles of the P&C, • Working Bee (save the date – Sunday 8 March)
The Dem Newsletter
What’s On In 2020? Monday 2 March * Premier’s Reading Challenge opens * Student Executive excursion – Halogen Young Leaders Tuesday 3 March * PSSA Teeball training Wednesday 4 March * Intermediate Band Thursday 5 March * Senior Band Friday 6 March * Junior Band * PSSA Oztag training Sunday 8 March * P&C Working Bee from 9am – All welcome Monday 9 March * Year 5 Science Incursion (5ZN & 5CB) Tuesday 10 March * PSSA Teeball training * Year 5 Science Incursion (5NW & 5RR) * Year 6 Girls4Tech Workshop Wednesday 11 March * Intermediate Band *Year 2 Walking Excursion (2KS, 2BJ and half 2SB) * P&C AGM Meeting from 6:30pm – Library Thursday 12 March * Senior Band *Year 2 Walking Excursion (2JD, 2KS and half 2SB) * Selective High School Test date for registered students
2020 Class parents Thank you to the parents who have volunteered to be a 2020 class parent. This role is a very important connection between the school, P&C and the other parents in your class. Class parents are still needed for: 1MM, 4JO, 5NW, 5RR. If you are interested in volunteering for this role, please contact your child’s class teacher and the P&C: [email protected] There will be an introductory meeting of our new Class Parents on Friday 13 March at 8:40am in the Spirals Classroom in the McHatton Building. At this meeting the P&C executive will outline the nature of this role and it will be an opportunity to share examples of class social events so that families can meet early in the term. Student Leadership Induction Congratulation to all our Student Leaders who were presented with badges at Monday’s Semester One Leadership Induction Ceremony. We hope that all our Eco Ambassadors, Student Council Representatives, Library Monitors, House Captains, Flag Monitors and Year Six Student Executive 2020 (pictured) will wear their badges with pride. Thank you to our parent community who were also present to share in the students’ excitement. Special Education in Religion (SRE) / Special Education in Ethics (SEE) SRE and SEE classes began this week on Wednesday. The SRE classes include Roman Catholic, Protestant, Bahai and Islamic scripture. All other students registered as non-scripture will be supervised by a teacher or attend Ethics classes. SRE/SEE classes are held in the morning. All classes are taught by volunteers who follow a program developed for schools. The classroom teacher is also present during these lessons. Harmony Week 2020 Harmony Week is celebrated from 15 – 21 March with Harmony Day officially celebrated on Saturday 21 March. It is a day of cultural respect for everyone who calls Australia home – from the traditional owners of this land to those who have come from many countries around the world. Harmony Day celebrates the vibrant cultures, races and religions that make up Australian society and helps to teach about respect, understanding and diversity. For more information about Harmony Week, visit https://www.harmony.gov.au/ At the Dem we will be celebrating and taking part in classroom activities and events on the following days:
• Wednesday 18 March: Harmony Day in-classroom activities; and • Friday 20 March: Harmony Fair from 4:30pm.
On Harmony Day parents & carers are invited to participate in their child’s classroom by helping for 20mins with a teacher organised activity; giving a short talk to the class about your traditions or country of origin; or sharing an activity that relates to your culture e.g. a dance, a song, demonstrate a special craft, etc. If you are interested in participating, please speak with your child’s classroom teacher. On the day students are also encouraged to wear traditional dress or the colour orange to show support for cultural diversity. Each year the P&C host the Harmony Fair where the community can get together and embrace our diversity with multicultural food stalls and activities for the children. It is a great fundraising event for the school, but does rely on donations and volunteer involvement. The P&C would particularly like to hear from parents who may be able to showcase some cultural aspect, such as a game or activity or can set up a food stall. If you are able to help with the event in any way, please register your interest at www.thedempc.com.au Anti-racism Education The Department of Education is committed to the elimination of racial discrimination in NSW Government schools. No student, employee, parent, caregiver or community member should experience racism within the learning or working environment. The three dimensions of anti-racism education in schools are to:
1. promote respect for Australia's cultural, linguistic and religious diversity 2. challenge prejudiced attitudes and 3. address racist and discriminatory behaviours with sanctions.
Please contact the school if you have any concerns about racism. The DEM has two Anti-racism Contact Officers (ARCOs), who are available to assist students, parents and carers:
Safety Reminders • Scooters, Skateboards & Bikes - Students riding scooters, skateboards or bike to and from school must: -
wear a helmet - walk beside their scooter or bike, or carry their skateboard whilst on the school grounds - park their scooter, bike or skateboard at the bike racks for the day.
• Before school – the playground is supervised from 8:25am. During this time, students are not permitted to use big balls (basketballs/soccer balls etc) and are not permitted to play cricket games.
• Sun Safety – At the Dem, we have a ‘NO Hat Play in the Shade’ policy - ALL students require a school hat to play in the playground.
• Parking – It has been noted that some parents are driving and parking in an unsafe manner around our school at both drop off and pick up. The police and council rangers have been advised of this illegal and unsafe practice and will be increasing their patrols.
We appreciate your support regarding the above to ensure the safety of all our students. ICAS 2020 In 2020 students in Years 2-6 will once again have the opportunity to participate in ICAS testing. ICAS is an independent, skills-based assessment program. It is not compulsory, and the results are not part of the North Sydney Demonstration School assessment program. ICAS is run by the University of NSW. You can find out more about ICAS via this link: https://www.eaa.unsw.edu.au/icas/about In 2020 NSDS is proposing to only participate in ICAS Maths, English and Science assessments. The school will conduct each of these ICAS tests before school hours in Term 3. Each subject will be sat on a pre-nominated date set by the school. All subjects tested will take place sometime between Monday 17 August and Friday 4 September. Students will begin testing at 8:00am on the specified dates and finish in time for the beginning of the school day. NSDS teachers will supervise children during this time in the classrooms. More information about ICAS testing and payments will be sent home in the coming weeks. Selective High School Placement Test As a reminder for parents who have children sitting the Selective High School Placement Test, the test date is Thursday 12 March 2020 as advised in your confirmation letter from the Selective Schools Unit. High School Expressions of Interest High School Expression of Interest forms are due by Friday 13 March 2020. Parents please note that even if your child is enrolled into a Private School, it is a Department requirement that this form be completed and returned. SchoolStream App Please ensure you have downloaded the Schoolstream app and connected to the North Sydney Dem feed – as notes, newsletters and important information and reminders will be sent via this communication app. If you are already using School Stream but are not receiving notifications for your child's grade, you many need to update your notification options, using the following steps.
1. Login into SchoolStream 2. Go to Setup Groups 3. Turn on/off the groups you wish to see 4. Save and Exit
Principals’ Conference Evidence around the world shows that investing in leadership at all phases of a school leader’s career will make a substantial difference to the quality of teaching and therefore the quality of student learning in our school. From the 19-21 February I had the pleasure of attending the 2020 Principal Induction Conference in Sydney delivered by the Department of Education School Leadership Institute. This conference provided engaging, relevant and significant professional learning. This included leading high-quality teaching and learning across the school, enhancing student wellbeing strategies, and ensuring that in our school community every child is known, valued and cared for. I was reminded of the importance of modelling lifelong learning to my staff and students. Conferences of this nature enable me to focus on quality teaching and leadership practices that have the greatest impact on teacher learning and therefore the outcomes of our students. Ms Fiona Davis Principal
Band News Band rehearsals are now up and running for all bands. Congratulations to all of your children for having such a great start to rehearsals. It has been terrific to see so many of our Year 3 students join the school band program this year! As we welcome our Junior band members and students new to the band program there is an opportunity to purchase Band T-Shirts.
Band T-Shirts are available for a cost of $25. If you are interested in ordering a Band T-Shirt please fill out your child's details on the Google Form below: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSexRu3nBauJ8RBJIT-gMSwx5o3Bd71GHwOTJ4ttG2eTLhaalw/viewform?usp=sf_link
Rehearsal or Tutorial enquiries: Contact Directions in Music on 9662 2211 General band enquiries: Any general enquiries regarding band should be directed to Miss Kerri-Lynn Timmins: [email protected].
School Travel Students should be using their Student Opal Cards for school travel only and must tap on at the start and tap off at the end of each trip as a condition of use of their card. You can update student details (and apply for a new card) online at https://apps.transport.nsw.gov.au/ssts/ or see https://www.opal.com.au/en/about- opal/opal-for- school-students
Uniform Shop Opening Hours in 2020 Regular opening hours during School Term: • Monday to Wednesday 8.30am – 9.30am; and • Friday 8.30am - 9.30am and 2.30pm – 4.00pm. Email uniform orders to [email protected] See: http://www.thedempc.com.au/uniform-shop/ for more information.
Tuckshop Hot food can only be ordered through Munch Monitor. Steps to set-up your Munch Monitor account:
1. Go to: www.munchmonitor.com/Account/Login 2. New users need to register (school ID is “nsds”; school password
Our up to date and well stocked library is a centre point in our school.
A lot of the enjoying books and reading happens at home. Establishing a reading routine from a young age helps children develop strong lifelong reading habits. A child’s love of books begins with loved adults taking the time out from a busy schedule to read with them. Making reading part of the daily routine helps to ensure that it happens because it becomes automatic, like brushing your teeth or turning on the dishwasher. (Raising Readers by Megan Daley)
Congratulations to our new library monitors for 2020. Well done to all of them and I know they will show leadership and responsibility as well as being helpful and kind.
Introducing our 2020 library monitors:
Farah Mustafa Sandra Eisenmann
Arisa Lucas Maddie Cox
Malak AbdelRahman Siena Anderson Steele
Chhaymean Chea Amelia Deldio
Sandra Eisenmann Arisa Lucas
Samuel Chilvers Alia Chandna
Violet Buchanan Georgie Bennett
Thank you to all the parents who have volunteered to help in the mornings – or with covering books. What a fabulous parent community we have here at the Dem
Library Opening times The library is open every day before school and after school each day for borrowing. Please pop in if you would like to change books for your child. Students are also able to change books during their scheduled lessons or at lunch times on the appropriate day. K-2 Power break – Monday, Wednesday and Friday 3-6 Power break – Tuesday and Thursday Library Contacts Elizabeth Williams ([email protected]) Kylie Milostic ([email protected])
The 2020 Premier’s Reading Challenge opens Monday 2 March and closes Friday 28 August 2020 North Sydney Demonstration Public School has participated in the Premier’s Reading Challenge for many years. During this time students have been able to read a selection of quality literature. It is not a competition, as the challenge aims to encourage a love of reading and to read for pleasure while being exposed to a wide variety of books. We inspire all students K-6 to participate in the challenge. During library lessons students will be encouraged to borrow PRC books. K-2 students will need to read or have a parent read to them a total of 30 books. 3-6 students will need to independently read 20 books. These books will need to be recorded on their 'Personal Reading Log' online. More information will follow in the coming weeks. If you have any queries regarding the PRC please contact Mrs Kylie Milostic ([email protected])
P&C News Working Bee – Sunday 8 March 2020 – anytime between 9am and 3pm Please come along to our Term 1 Working Bee. It’s a whole family event with the kids digging a little and playing a lot with each other, while the parents take on the task of tidying up of the school grounds in preparation for the upcoming Harmony Fair. There is an activity for everyone. The P&C also hosts a delicious lunch with refreshments for all the busy workers. Please see the flyer in this newsletter, the P&C Website and Facebook for further information. No need to register, just drop in! Harmony Fair – 20 March 2020 The Harmony Fair this year is on 20 March 2020, between 4:30pm and 7:30pm. It’s an annual Event held to welcome new families to the DEM and celebrate the School’s wonderful diversity of cultures. There will be cultural food to enjoy (including the big Aussie BBQ), and lots of fun activities for the kids, including Slot Car Racing; Animal Petting Farm; Face Painting; Crazy Hair; Henna Art, Gelato, Toys and Cake Stall. BRING lots of gold coins for smaller activities. There will be EFTPOS machines available at some of the larger food stalls, otherwise it’s a ‘cash only’ event. Our Events can only be a success with the help of volunteer parents. If you are able to volunteer at the Fair please visit our P&C website http://www.thedempc.com.au/p-and-c-events/ and press on the “Volunteer” button for the Harmony Fair. If you would like to host a ‘cultural themed’ stall, art or a game, please contact the P&C at [email protected]. We’d love to have wide variety of cultures represented and would be thrilled to hear from you! We have interest from the Japanese; Indian; and French communities – so keep them coming in. The P&C is happy to pay for the cost of goods to host a stall. **All monies raised this year at the Fair will go towards air-conditioning in classrooms** DONATIONS NEEDED FOR HARMONY FAIR PLEASE!! This year we need the following to be donated to the school for the Fair: • Quality lollies for the Coin Toss game – please take donations to the office before
Tuesday 17 March. • Cans of Coloured Hair Spray for the Crazy Hair Stall – please take donations to the office
before 18 March. • Raffle prizes – if you or your company would like to donate a prize please email
[email protected] early next week. • Cake donations – please let your child know if you are interested in providing a
cake/bake for the Fair. Boxes will be handed out to students in the classroom on Monday 16th March. Extra boxes will be also available at the office. (Donations need to be delivered morning of the Fair to McHutton Building)
Quiz/Trivia Night – 21 February 2020 Thank you to all who attended the Quiz Night on Friday Night. There was healthy competition, lots of laughing and a great sense of community in the air!
We managed to raise a grand total of $2,924.19 to go towards much needed Air conditioning in the classrooms.
A very special thank you to one of our Year 1 parents, Laura Waddilove who had the inspirational idea and energy to hold an event early in the year to welcome new parents to the DEM, and provide an opportunity to meet other parents. Fantastic effort in co-ordinating and running this successful community event!
Special thanks also to the wonderful Quiz master, Michael McTiernan (Kathleen and Conor’s dad) who we’d all agree, did an exceptional job! To Maire, Sameera, Ben, James, Carol, Nicole, Sue, Lucy and Kristen who made sure the night ran smoothly, Thank you, a huge effort! To all the teams of people who set up and packed down the evening and to our bakers, the event could not have been able to go ahead without you all……A huge thank you!!
Class Parent Representatives Thank you to the parents who have volunteered to be a 2020 class parent. This role is a very important connection between the school, P&C and the other parents in your class. Class parents are still needed for: 1MM, 4JO, 5NW, 5RR. If you are interested in volunteering for this role, please contact your child’s class teacher and the P&C ([email protected]) There will be an introductory meeting of our new Class Parents on Friday 13 March at 8.40am in the Spirals room in the McHatton Building. At this meeting the P&C executive will outline the nature of this role and it will be an opportunity to share examples of class social events so that families can meet early in the term. P&C Website: http://www.thedempc.com.au Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NorthSydneyDem Annual General Meeting – 11 March 2020 Next month’s meeting will be the Annual General Meeting where all the Office Bearer Roles will be declared vacant and open for election. The meeting is on Wednesday, 11 March 2020 at 6:30pm. Membership is $1 and entitles you to cast votes for various positions (please bring a gold coin with you).
Here is a brief description of each Office Bearer Roles to be elected at the Annual General Meeting: 1 x President: The President is responsible for the successful functioning of the P&C, chairing meetings,
overseeing P&C activities and acting as the P&C’s spokesperson at public events and at the school.
2 x Vice Presidents: The Vice President role is ideally shared between two people and supports the President. The Vice Presidents also support other Committee Members with Fundraisers and Events, taking on independent projects as required, attending the P&C and Executive meetings and taking minutes in the absence of the Secretary.
1 x Treasurer: The Treasurer receives and deposits monies, manages investments; maintains records, pays expenses and presents accounts. The Treasurer also ensures that all funds held and handled by the P&C are properly and openly accounted for as the Treasurer is responsible for all funds held in the name of the P&C. The Treasurer also ensures that all monies spent by Volunteers have been preapproved by the P&C, and expenses are in line with budgets minuted. The Treasurer is also responsible for ensuring its Insurance Policies have been managed and renewed.
1x Secretary: The Secretary prepares, in consultation with the President, all meeting Agendas, attends P&C meetings, manages correspondence, writes & distributes the Minutes of Meetings and maintains the official records of the P&C.
The P&C also has a number of sub-committees, as follows:
Tuck Shop: Provides oversight of the Tuck Shop business, and assistance as requested by Tuck Shop Managers. Ideally two people.
Uniform Shop: Provides oversight of the Uniform Shop business, and assistance as requested by Uniform Shop Managers. Ideally two people.
Compliance: Ensures that the P&C is operating within the required legal and compliance framework.
Communication: Ensures that the P&C is communicating effectively with the school community.
Environment: Organises working bees to improve the school environment. This role also looks for opportunities to improve the school environment by working with teachers on new environmental initiatives.
Events/ Fundraising: Responsible for organising Fundraising and social events at the school including but not limited to the Harmony Fair, End of Year Festival (EOYF); Trivia Night; Comedy Night; Spell-a-thon, and K-2 Disco. Each Event should ideally have its own organising group for optimal outcomes, and going forward its proposed that aside from Harmony Fair and EOYF, that a Year (with support) presides over a Fundraising or Social Event each year, eg K-2 Disco is managed by Year 2 parents; Spell-a-thon is Year 4; Comedy night is Year 5.
Grants/Sponsorship: Identifying Grants appropriate for the school and managing applications. Will require working with different sub-committees and/or school executive/staff. Also identifying suitable businesses to approach for raffle prizes and other fundraising endeavours.
Inclusive Education: Promotes education that includes everyone, with non-disabled and disabled children, including those children with special educational needs learning together.
If you would like to further discuss any of the above Roles or Sub-committees, please contact the P&C at ‘[email protected]’.
