1st April

Welcome to our Newsletter

Principal's Report

Welcome to Week 9 of Term 1. I don’t know about you, but I have found that this term has absolutely flown by. It has been quite a busy term with NAPLAN, Early Childhood Play Day, Athletics Carnivals, Harmony Day and the everyday work that occurs in schools. It’s certainly a credit to our students that they continue to do their best every day.

PLAY DAY

In Week 7 we had beautiful weather which was fantastic for the Early Childhood Play Day organised wonderfully by Bec Wade. Outdoor play is incredibly important for students as is offers a range of benefits that contribute to their overall development. It provides such great opportunities for their physical health which is essential for children when also working out their capabilities in a safe environment. The benefits of being outside and playing also support students with their mental wellbeing, working with others, being in the sunshine and having opportunities to explore in a creative and uninhibited manner. They become problem solvers, investigators, collaborators and team players. It involves safe risk taking which helps them build confidence, and resilience and supports them in learning from mistakes. Being outside encourages a stronger connection and appreciation of respect for our natural environment and connection with nature. At Margate Primary, we aim for students to have a sense of belonging to our school and to our community. Holding this day during Harmony Week promoted the value that we have in building connections with each other and how we all contribute to our wonderful school community.

NAPLAN

In weeks 6 and 7, students in Years 3 and 5 worked through the NAPLAN assessments of Writing, Reading, Language Conventions and Numeracy. The students approached this with a willingness to participate and with a positive attitude. It can be daunting for our Year 3 students, as this is new to them, however, it seemed as though it was an experience that they embraced. NAPLAN helps our school track progress over time and offers us insights into how we are working and developing in the key curriculum domains of Literacy and Numeracy. It helps us identify areas where students are excelling and where they need more support, enabling us to target teaching strategies to needs. The results that we receive help inform our School Improvement Plan which help define our targets for positive student outcomes.

TABLE TENNIS TABLES

Have you been into our courtyard recently and had a game of table tennis? It seems that one of the most popular activities before school, recess and lunch is to have a game. It is fabulous! The benefits of having this new table are that it provides a great avenue for social interactions, builds teamwork, and works different parts of the brain that improve memory and cognitive function. What more could you ask for in a simple game? Due to the popularity of the table installed in the courtyard, we will be adding an additional two more tables – one in Area 1 so our younger students can join in with games and another in our courtyard. If you are around on the weekend – please feel free to utilise this wonderful resource!

STUDENT BIRTHDAYS

Many families like to celebrate birthdays by sending along a treat to share with the class. If you do choose to do this, please be aware of the following:

• For safety reasons, we kindly ask that lollipops are not brought to school. The sticks pose a potential risk of injury, particularly during active play or in close interactions in the classroom.
• Sweet treats will be given to the class at the end of the school day, as excess sugar can have an adverse effect on students’ concentration and learning. If you would prefer that your child waits to have the treat after school, please let the class teacher know.
• Please be mindful that there are students in classes who do have allergies. If unsure, please ask. It is preferred that cakes are pre purchased, rather than homemade as all ingredients need to be included when sending food along.

• Please reach out to your child’s class teacher at least a week in advance to ensure that the day is appropriate to bring something in for each student.

  This will also provide time if an alternative is required for a student with an allergy.

The door is always open if you would like to pop in and have a chat.

Suzanne Oates 

Acting Principal

Term 1 Beginning of year Reports

Term 1 school reports will be sent home with students on Friday 4^th April. Families who receive more than one report (i.e. across 2 households) will have their reports collated at the office and can be picked up from 3pm Friday 4^th April. Reports that are not collected will then be posted on Monday 7^th April. If your family has had a change in circumstance and requires more than one report, could you please contact the school office.

DECYP Volunteers - Safeguarding

Safeguarding Children and Young People

All DECYP employees and volunteers must complete Safeguarding training every year, before working with any children or young people. This is compulsory under new laws determined to better safeguard children in Tasmania from sexual abuse.

The volunteer training is a 14-minute video, you do need to register and will receive a certificate on completion. Please download certificate and provide a copy to the school (in person or via email).

Compulsory Safeguarding Training for Workers - Department for Education, Children and Young People

Certificates are valid for 12 months from the date of completion.

Golden Tickets

Day of Play Prep - 2

On Friday, 21^st March, the ECE classes celebrated Harmony Day, by engaging in our traditional termly ‘Day of Play’ in Area 1. The day provided an opportunity to nurture our collective sense of belonging and wellbeing across ECE classes through a diverse range of play opportunities to engage and excite the curiosity and creativity of all students. The students enjoyed the addition of musical items included in the range of provocations. We thank the people who were able to provide us with resources and materials to include into our play experiences. We look forward to planning our next day of play with the students.

Art With Mrs Munro

I have loved teaching art to ten different classes from Prep to Year 4 for my final term at Margate Primary.

Our art space is an oasis of calmness and creativity with students focusing on observational drawing to begin each lesson. The sketching provocation changes each week and features taxidermy animals from the Tasmanian Museum, plants, natural object such as flowers and shells, 3D shapes and other objects. The progress made by all students is evident in their attention to detail.

The engagement and enthusiasm of the students has been heartwarming to witness.

Students have also become acquainted with the work of Michael McWilliams, one of Tasmania’s premier artists. Viewing Michael’s art they have discussed themes such as extinction, humour and environment. Students have explored media such as water colour and acrylic paint, pastels, and collage to create their own art.

Basketball Tournament

Over the weekend, Margate’s basketball team competed in an exciting tournament in Moonah. We played four tough games, showing great teamwork, determination, and skill along the way.

Day One – A Strong Start

Our first game was against Risdon Vale Primary School. We played with energy and enthusiasm, giving it our best effort. Even though we didn’t come away with the win, it was a great learning experience, and we were ready to improve for our next game.

In our second game against Holy Rosary Primary School, we stepped up and played even better. We were more aggressive in going for rebounds, passed the ball well, and used our voices more on the court. Our dribbling also improved, and we moved the ball around with confidence. This helped us secure a 30-20 victory, with Eli and Jake leading the scoring.

Day Two – Pushing Ourselves

On the second day, we took on Dominic College in another close game. We worked hard, stayed strong, and managed to come out on top with a 20-16 win. Freddie and Eli were our highest scorers, helping us take control of the game and secure the win.

Our final game was against St Brigid’s, and it was the toughest match yet. It was an extremely close battle from start to finish. In the last minute, we scored three baskets in a row, showing just how determined we were to fight until the very end. Even though we lost 31-26, we were incredibly proud of how well we played.

Throughout the tournament, we showed resilience, teamwork, and a hunger to improve. We want to say a huge thank you to our families for supporting us, getting us to the games, and cheering us on, your encouragement made a big difference, and we appreciate everything you did to help us have this amazing experience, also a big thank you to Bianca for coaching and supporting us.

In the end, Margate finished 11th out of 19 teams, which is a result we are proud of. Everyone gave their best effort, and it was a great experience for all of us. We can’t wait for our next tournament! -Freddie W

Gumnuts Early Learning

Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program

We’ve been having a busy and bountiful harvest down here at the Kitchen Garden Program.  Students have been gathering up our bumper harvests of tomatoes, apples squash, pumpkins and salad crops.

In the kitchen we’ve been harvesting for ‘garden sushi’, practising our knife skills and are now embarking our tomato odyssey, taste testing, making sauces and salsa and tomato jam.

We were very fortunate to have Sharon Soo join us for our Harmony Week celebrations, preparing Inari sushi and Chinese fried noodles to help us think about food from other cultures.

This term we are trialling a different format in the program. Each class is split into three groups, kitchen, garden and Inquiry (which strengthens and links our kitchen garden learning to the rest of the curriculum). So, over a three week cycle the children get to participate in each group

Following last year’s feedback, we learnt that everyone did better working in a smaller group. This has allowed us to start an Inquiry group for the teachers to explore other related topics and maximise the curriculum connections of the program.

Autumn will see us planting our Brassicas, remembering our beanies and cooking soups, crumbles and pickles.

As ever, any volunteer help is always appreciated.

MPSA News

Kiss and Drop off Zone Mornings Only - Top Carpark

Please remember this is a drop-off zone only in the mornings and is not to be utilised in the afternoons due to many buses entering and exiting this space and to ensure safety.  Please be mindful that the carpark is for staff members only.  There are alternate parks at the bottom of Area 4, the hall and the cricket club.  

Duty of Care

We have had a number of students at school well prior to 8.25am.

We would like to remind families that the school does not have duty of care for children before 8.25am and encourages families to drop student/s off from then onwards.

The school office is open during each term from 8.25am - 3.45pm Monday to Friday.  

Safety of Van Morey Road

Van Morey Road is very busy around school times with buses and cars going everywhere.  This is why we had a school crossing installed.  For the safety of yourself and your children please only use the school crossing to cross Van Morey Road.

Booking of the Gym

Just a friendly reminder if you wish to use the gym after hours for training, please make sure you ring and speak to the office first to check that there are no other bookings.  Thank you.

Collecting your child from school within the school day

If you are collecting your child from school within the school day for an appointment or other early departure reason, please come by the office first.  The office will then assist in calling your child up to the office and you can sign your child out.

Attendance Notifications

Please contact the Office with attendance notifications no later than 9.30am to avoid receiving a phone call from our office staff.

Phone 62 672 238

Text Attendance's Only: 0437 294 856

Email: margate.primary@decyp.tas.gov.au 

Facebook

Please follow us on our School Facebook page for infomation about upcoming school events and celebrations.

Lost Property

Please help us by coming along and looking through the lost property items. Named lost items will be returned to the student (where possible) and all un-named items will be passed on to the uniform shop at the end of term.

Community Notices