2023 Term 1 Week 6 Newsletter

Principal's Message

Dear Families,

I would like to thank our families who attended the Meet and Greet sessions that were held at the school last week. The opportunity to have a one on one conversation with your child’s teacher at the beginning of the year is imperative to nurture the connection between school and home. It was amazing to hear that families feel as though they have greater input into their child’s goals and learning progressions, and celebrate successes from the beginning of the school year. It is a commitment of the school to ensure that we provide opportunities for families to play an active role in the schooling, and more opportunities to share in your child’s learning journey will follow throughout the school year.

This week students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 engaged in practice online NAPLAN tests in preparation for the official NAPLAN testing period that commences next week. This year our students will be using our new school iPads to access NAPLAN. The new iPads provide simpler connectivity to the NAP browser and provides students with greater confidence to utilise the NAPLAN tools within the app, in comparison to the use of laptops. NAPLAN tests will be held in the Multi-Purpose Room and will run as per the timetable below. Students who are absent on a particular test day will have the opportunity to catch up on the missed test before the testing period closes. A NAPLAN fact-sheet for parents has been included in the ‘Insights’ of this week’s newsletter. If you have any questions please contact your child’s teacher or Ms Jess.

This week we have also welcomed David Cubis back to AAS. Dave Cubis is the VET Maritime instructor from Charles Darwin University and has been working with our Senior students for a number of years teaching water and marine safety. This year Dave will be running two courses at Alyangula, one will be continuing to work with our students who are due to complete their Coxswain Grade I certificate, and the second is a new intake of middle school students who will be working towards gaining their Shipboard Safety Certificates. We are also fortunate for finally secure a vessel to support the on-water training that accompanies these certifications.

The Chief Minister's Reading Challenge kicks off today. The Chief Minister's Reading Challenge encourages students to read more books for pleasure. Every student from Transition to Year 6 in the Northern Territory is challenged to read 12 books in 24 weeks. Eligible books include printed books, digital books and audiobooks. For younger children, a  book that is read aloud by an adult counts towards their total. Please have a chat with your child/ren an encourage them to sign up. Classroom teachers can sign students through our school CMRC portal.

Congratulations to the Choir who sang at their first assembly perfomance for 2023. The Choir will be attending the BEAT Festival in Dawin in September again this year, which means that fundraising efforts will be underway. The first fundraiser is a Bake Sale and Sausage Sizzle at the Arcade on Saturday 18th March. It would be greately appreciated if you could donate good to the Bake Sale to Ms Bartley at 9:30am at the Arcade. Plus, who doesn't love a snag on a Saturday morning? Get on down to support our Choir!

At Alyangula Area School we respect and celebrate the diverse cultures from which our families originate. In week 8 we will be shining a light on the many cultures that make up our school community by celebrating Harmony Week. Harmony Week is held from Monday 20th March – Sunday 26th Match and is the celebration that recognises our diversity and brings together Australians from all different backgrounds. It is about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. In addition to the Harmony Week programs and learning that will take place in the classroom, the Student Representative Council will be running lunch time activities that originate from countries all over the world. There will be a special lunch day that students can pre-order for the Friday (24th March) and ‘Wear-a-Splash-of-Orange’ Day, also (Friday 24th March) for a Gold Coin Donation. Students will vote to determine where we will donate the proceeds. 

Due to our School Council AGM and meeting being postponed, the rescheduled time is Tuesday 14th March at 7pm in the Muilti-Purpose Room. This is an invitation to families and community stake holders to be part of the decision making of the school The agenda for the meeting includes the receiving of reports and the election of a School Council. All school and local community members are welcome to attend.

Unfortunately, an increasing number of students have been sighted and reported using the school grounds inappropriately after school hours. A reminder to families that only the oval and basketball courts are accessible afterhours. Please chat to your children about the appropriate use of the school grounds and monitor the time that they are spending on the school premises throughout the evenings and during the weekends.

Thank you

Mel Dougherty

Principal

Award Winners

In the classroom - Year 2 J

This term in Year 2 we have been going over the routines and expectations of the classroom. When we are seen doing the right thing we can move up the behavioral chart and earn dojo points which we then can spend on fun activities.

In writing we have been learning about writing recounts and are up to writing the good copies of our recounts.  Mrs Jones has organized Pen Pals for us. They are students from her old school in Victoria. So this week we have been busy writing letters to them, telling them about ourselves and asking them questions. We cannot wait for their reply letters.

In reading we have been learning about the different connections we can make with a text we are reading, there is Text to Text, Text to Self, Text to World and Text to Media; and how to summarise the main points of a text in a few sentences.

In SEL we have been focusing on kindness, particularly what kindness means to us and celebrating different acts of kindness throughout the day.

We have had a great start to the term and we look forward to see what we can learn for the remainder of the semester, year.

2023 School Fees

Please find information below that outlines the annual Fee Structure for 2023.

Individual Student Contributions

Individual Student Contributions is a voluntary, yet necessary payment that contributes to the annual costs of providing our students with contemporary and engaging school-based programs, infrastructure, localised and well-maintained equipment. This can include, but is not limited to:

• Excursions / Incursions
• Sporting Programs
• ICT equipment (student iPads, student laptops)
• Digital subscriptions
• Outdoor play spaces
• School furniture

The Individual Student Contribution can be made in person at the Administration Office or online through our new portal (available in 2023). Payment is calculated as $2.50 per student, per school week. Payment can be made via the following options:

• Annually – one off payment of $100 per student
• Semesterly – two payments (term 1 and term 3) of $50 per student
• Termly – four payments (one payment per term) of $25 per student.

Student Book Pack and Student Curriculum Resources

Student Book Pack and Student Curriculum Resources is a compulsory payment for every student. At the beginning of the school year students will be provided with book packs and stationery that will be replenished throughout the year as needed. Book packs and stationery have been specifically designed to suit the needs of each year level from Preschool through to Distance Education, to ensure that students have the appropriate materials to support them in their learning.

Student Curriculum Resources provide materials and resources to ensure opportunities are provided to our students to engage in hands on learning experiences. This can include, but is not limited to:  

• Cooking
• Technologies
• STEM
• Electives
• Art and craft
• Performing Art
• Sports equipment
• Science

Both the Student Book Packs and Student Curriculum Resource payments can be covered through the Northern Territory Back to School Payment Scheme. More information about the Back to School Payment Scheme can be found overleaf.

2023 Back to School Payment Scheme

What is the Back to School Payment Scheme?

Every student who is enrolled in a Northern Territory School is eligible for the Back to School Payment Scheme. The Back to School Payment Scheme provides financial assistance to the parents and guardians of children from Preschool through Year 12, to receive educational items in term one of each school year.

What is covered in the Back to School Payment Scheme?
You are entitled to receive $150 of educational goods and services for each child enrolled in a NT school or preschool.

• If your child is in transition to year 12, you will receive the entitlement in term one each year. The entitlement must be used by the end of term one.
• If your child is in preschool, the entitlement is available throughout the year, but is only valid to the end of the first term in which they first enrol.

How do you claim?

For 2023, you can claim your entitlement from the Admin Office at the school. The Back to School Payment Scheme can be applied to cover the costs of Student Book Packs and Student Curriculum Resources. Parents/Guardians must attend the Admin Office to sign a document to receive the Back to School Payment. Please see the office open hours to organise your visit. Families who have not claimed the Back to School Payment by Friday 31 March, 2023 will be invoiced for the student book pack and student curriculum resources ($150 per student).

FREE WEBINAR: INTEROCEPTION

Positive Partnerships will be delivering a two-part webinar series on interoception, and its practical application.

To register for these webinars and find upcoming ones, visit Positive Partnerships | Homepage

School News

School Calendar

Stay up to date with events on the AAS Calendar.

Absentee Form

We encourage families to use the absentee form instead of the school phone number when advising the school that your child will be absent from school. 

Arrival at School

No child should be at school before 7.45am. Children arriving before 7.45am will remain seated in the covered area until that time. A teacher commences playground duty at 7.45am each morning.  

Appointments and Signing in/Out

It is preferred that all student’s appointments be made outside of school hours so as not to disturb their learning. However, if this is not possible then carers are asked to report to the office and sign out their child. The office will call the student to the office for collection.

At no time should a carer go directly to the class during school hours. Upon return the carer must return to the office to sign the student back in.

Emergency Contact Details

If your child/rens emergency contact has left the Eylandt. It is essential that the School Office maintains up-to-date records of your address, telephone numbers, email addresses and emergency contacts in case of illness or injury to you child. Please ensure you complete this form the below form and return it at your earliest convenience. 

Whole School Assembly

Every second Friday we hold a whole school assembly and invite parents, families and school community members to join in the occasion. Our assemblies commence at 8:10am and always focus on celebrating student success. Classroom teachers nominate two students to receive a Merit Award at each assembly. Parents will be notified when their child is receiving an award to ensure that they can be present for the moment. In addition to this, our classes take turns in presenting a class performance at each assembly. Once again parents are notified of the class performance by their child’s teacher.

Position Available

Upcoming Event

Canteen

Alyangula Area School's canteen is managed by Fairway 19, they are committed to providing fresh, healthy foods at the canteen and are constantly assessing the quality and variety of food that we can provide. The menu may vary during the year to reflect these changes. Online orders can be placed at QuickCliq, orders close at 8am for that day.

Cash & EFTPOS sales over the counter are available - pre-packaged snack items

Insight

This week we have included insight on NAPLAN. Please keep an eye out each week for the Insights that are linked through our school newsletter. Insights can also be found on our website. 

Community News!!