Newsletter 18th October 2024

Dear families,

What a busy two weeks it has been at DPS, and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every moment of getting to know students, staff and families. While it’s hard to decide on what the highlight has been, I must say I really enjoyed experiencing my first DPS school assembly. It was so wonderful to see so many families attend the assembly to acknowledge their children’s successes. With such a busy term ahead, I look forward to getting to meet you all at one of our many events. This week I have been afforded the opportunity to meet with staff and learn a bit more about their roles in the school. It has given me a real insight into the commitment our staff place on ensuring our students get the best possible opportunities at DPS.

This week I attended both my first School Board and P & C meetings. During our School Board meeting we were able look at the school’s financial position, endorse the 2025 contributions and charges and discuss our reporting to parents’ cycle. Some news I was able to share with the Board is that the school has been notified of an upcoming Public School Review. This will occur in Term 2 next year and give the school the opportunity to reflect on our processes. It has certainly been a busy week with a P & C general meeting also scheduled. I was so impressed with the number of parents involved with this association and the commitment they have to supporting the school. In 2025, the P & C have set themselves a significant goal to replace the water fountains across the school. I look forward to working closely with the School Board and P & C to support their dedication in this space.

Reporting to Parents: Recently the Education Department has provided communication to all Principals to explain the requirements for end-of-semester reports for all public schools. The Department has worked with the School Curriculum and Standards Authority to clarify the specific requirements which are:

  • There is a requirement to provide an overall teacher comment, the content of which is determined by the school.
  • There is no requirement to provide learning area comments.
  • There is no requirement to provide grades at the strand or sub-strand level.

After seeking feedback from staff and the School Board it has been decided that end-of-semester reports will not include learning area comments. However, the staff feel that it is still important to include sub-strand grades within learning areas i.e. within English there will be grades allocated to reading, writing and speaking and listening. During our next staff meeting, we will develop expectations for general comments to ensure that families are still given accurate feedback about their child’s progress and achievement.

Room 16 Pre-primary Assembly

The Pre-primary students of Room 16 should be so proud of their assembly performance this week. Considering it was their first ever assembly their performance was fantastic with all students displaying our PBS values and they all spoke so clearly and with confidence. It was such a relevant theme with our Pre-primary – Year 4 students commencing swimming lessons at Craigie Leisure Centre next week. Well done to Mrs Cowton and Mrs McConkey for supporting the students with presenting such an impressive assembly.

Students of the Month

Room 16 PP Jacqueline
Room 14 PP Jordy
Room 17 PP/1 Samuel
Room 18 1 Elysse
Room 13 ½ Anabelle
Room 12 2 Ava
Room 11 2 Vedi
Room 10 3 Oscar
Room 8 4 Oliver
Room 7 3 Miguel
Room 6 4 Bodhi
Room 5 3/4 Quinn
Room 4 5 Emma
Room 3 5 Olivia
Room 1 6 Kyla
Room 2 6 Sophie

Merit Certificate winners:

Room 16 PP Cailean and Noah
Room 14 PP Louie and Ryan
Room 17 PP/1 Charlie and Ayah
Room 18 1 Harper and Hudson
Room 13 1/2 Mariella and Fiun
Room 12 2 Bodhi and Sophia
Room 11 2 Anna and Phoebe
Room 10 3 Rachel
Room 8 4 Fletcher and Matilda
Room 7 3 Ethan and Indi-Rose
Room 6 4 Alisi and Eliska
Room 5 3/4 Charlotte
Room 4 5 Bethany and George
Room 3 5 Quinn and Lennox
Room 1 6 Maddie, Scarlett and Franki
Room 2 6 Sonny, Elijah and Emily

Australian Maths Competition Results 2024

Congratulations to all of our students for participating in the AMC’s annual problem-solving competition. We had some great results with 2 students achieving Distinctions. A special mention goes to Nicholas P from Year 3 for receiving our ‘Best In School’ prize.

LitPro

Blue- Abbie D and Hugo L

Red- Jake P, Mitchelle D, George F, Emma V & Jack L

Bronze- Matthew L, Ollie M, Emma V, Zakariah O, Arcadia J, Miguel F

1 Million Word Club- Pippa C, Rigby H, Harry L, Emma V, Emmie L

2 Million Word Club- Evelyn W

3 Million Word Club- Scarlett F (first for the year!)

50th Anniversary

As you all know, DPS has now been open for 50 years. The celebration of this anniversary will occur in Term 1 next year. On Monday, 21st October we will be holding a meeting to support acknowledging this milestone occasion. The meeting will occur in the library at 3:00pm and all are welcome to attend.

Swimming Carnival

Unfortunately, we have had to make the decision to postpone our swimming carnival to Term 1, 2025. With so many events occurring this term it is logistically impossible to execute. This carnival will now occur on the 27th of March at Claremont Aquatic Centre.

Have a wonderful fortnight

Rebekah Brand

Principal