Port Augusta West Primary School Term 1 week 6

Principal's Report

It is hard to believe that we have reached the end of week 6 already. Our students and staff have been working hard, and we are proud of the achievements and growth we see every day. Over the next few weeks, we have several important events and initiatives taking place.  

Staff will be undertaking professional learning next Tuesday the 11th of March. The focus for the day will be on Pragmatic Organisation Dynamic Display (PODD). PODD is a comprehensive communication system for people with a communication disability who cannot meet all their communication needs with speech. We will also be focusing on our Site Learning Plan which has a strong focus on the areas of impact ‘Wellbeing’ and ‘Learner Agency’. We are looking forward to sharing this plan with the community over the coming weeks.  

NAPLAN will begin for our Yr 3’s and 5’s, next Wednesday, the 12th of March and will continue through until Monday, the 24th of March. I have attached the 2025 NAPLAN information for parents and carers below for your convenience. 

A reminder that today is the last day to register for the Children’s University. We have had a remarkable response to the Children’s University this year, with 48 students currently registered. Please remember to pay your $5 to the front office. More details will be provided next week regarding distribution of passports and online portal details. We are excited to welcome Miss Aird to the CU team. She will be of great assistance with the growing number of members for 2025. 

In South Australia, schools have established dedicated Aboriginal Education teams to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. Nat Keeler is our Aboriginal Education Teacher this year and she will be working alongside Kaylah Prior and Kiesha Cullen as our Aboriginal Community Education Officers. Together I am confident that the team will work collaboratively to create culturally responsive learning environments, promote student well-being and enhance educational outcomes. I know that they have been busy planning activities and initiatives, and we are looking forward to seeing these come to light throughout the year.  

Parent/Carer/Teacher interviews are scheduled in for Monday 24th – Wednesday the 26th of March. The interview booking portal will be shared with you over the next week or so. Please keep an eye out for the details on schoolzine and via our school Facebook page. Interviews provide a direct line of communication between parents and teachers about a child’s academic progress, strengths and areas for improvement. We look forward to meeting with parents/carers on week 9. 

 We will be welcoming the Chief Executive Officer of the Department for Education, Professor Martin Westwell to our site on Tuesday the 18th of March. Martin will be spending some time in classrooms and meeting with myself in the afternoon. This is an exciting opportunity, and we are looking forward to sharing our learning and site improvement plan with him.

Sarah Bury  

Every Child ~ Every Classroom ~ Every Day  

Deputy Principal

Hello all, 

I'm excited to share how our recent Clean Up Australia Schools Day went! It was a fantastic day where our upper primary students rolled up their sleeves to rake the garden beds and tidy up fallen leaves and sticks around the school, filling up over 3 green wheelie bins. Our 4/5 students made sure our recycling from the classrooms found their way to the correct bin. They also collected and rinsed our collection of cans and bottles, ready to cash in. 

The remainder of our students were tasked with cleaning the school grounds, doing a terrific job. The students showed amazing energy and teamwork, making our school grounds look great. It was wonderful to see them learning about the importance of keeping our environment clean while having fun and working together. Clean Up Australia Schools Day is a great reminder of how we can all pitch in to care for our environment. I'm proud of our students for their hard work and can't wait to see how they continue to grow these values.

Jack Menzies

Positive Behaviour for Learning

Hello All,

2025 marks year two of our Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) journey at PAWPS. We are thrilled to announce and share one of our significant initiatives that is being introduced this year as a part of PBL. The school has now set up a positive reinforcement system where students will receive a token counter for when they model positive behaviours that have been explicitly taught by the class teacher. There are 3 different coloured counters that represent the three different school values we have being Respect, Resilience and Relationships.

What the students can do with the counter once received is vote for one of 3 whole school rewards. The rewards right now are having a milkshake day, a movie afternoon or having a wheels day. Once enough counters have filled out the plastic tube, the whole school will receive the reward. It is working great so far as students are being acknowledged for displaying positive behaviours and the whole school benefits from the fun activities students vote for.

Kind Regards,
Paul Kalfas

Assembly Awards

Our assembly times allow us to acknowledge our students based on the three values of our Positive Behaviour for Learning Program. These values include Respect, Resilience and Relationships. 

Congratulations to the students who were awarded certificates for their efforts during the week 3 & week 6 assembly.

Sports Day Captains were announced and are proudly displaying their team certificates. 

SRC representatives from each class were presented their SRC badges at assembly.

Classroom Chatter from 3A

 A Great Start to the School Year!                                                                                                                                                                As we settle into the new term, it's been wonderful to watch the students grow and develop their skills. We've spent the first part of the term focusing on routines and expectations, which has set the foundation for a successful learning journey. Now, we're in full swing with a lot of exciting learning happening across the board! 

Literacy 
Students are diving into the basics of literacy, focusing on the sounds of letters and the correct formation of each letter. It's great to see their confidence grow as they begin to connect sounds to symbols and practise writing. 

Maths 
In Maths, we are working on number recognition, writing numbers, and learning to count. Our focus is also on making quantities, helping students build a strong understanding of numbers and their relationships. 

PE 
In Physical Education, teamwork and collaboration are the focus. The students are participating in a variety of games that emphasise fair play, communication, and working together as a team. 

Science 
In Science, we’ve been exploring the five senses and the external features of plants and animals. Soon, students will have the chance to get creative by designing their very own unique animal, incorporating everything they've learned about animal features and adaptations. 

Fine Motor Skills 
Students are also working on developing their fine motor skills through engaging in various station activities. These stations include tasks like cutting, threading, drawing, and building with small objects to improve hand-eye coordination and strengthen their finger muscles for future writing tasks. 

We're looking forward to continuing the learning and watching the students thrive in all areas. It's shaping up to be a fantastic term! 

Reminder: Seesaw is our main form of communication. Please make sure to check for updates, photos, and important information regularly. If you have any questions or need assistance, please feel free to contact me.  Stay tuned for more updates as the term progresses! 

 Miss Tomney

Classroom Chatter from 3D

Mrs. Keeler teaches us from Monday to Wednesday and Miss Rigden teaches us on Thursday and Friday. So far, we have put together our learning goals for Term 1 and we will review them in week 11. Our class also voted for our SRC's and our proxy SRC's who are pictured below.

The year 3’s have been practicing for their NAPLAN test by using our chrome books, but the year 2’s have also been learning how to use Google classroom and other computer skills. The real NAPLAN test is next Wednesday, 12th March – Friday, 14th March, 2025.

The Smith Family

THE SMITH FAMILY FINANCIAL SCHOLARSHIPS 

The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program is an innovative, evidence-based program that is successful in achieving long-term outcomes for young people experiencing disadvantage. 
 
Through targeted support that begins early in a child’s life and continues throughout their first two decades, Learning for Life keeps students engaged at every stage of their education by providing: 
 
To be eligible for the Learning for Life Scholarship families must: 

• Hold a current Health Care or Pension Card (with the children listed on it) 

• Have primary aged child/ren that attend one of TSF Partner Schools Support the child/ren to attend school regularly (preferably over 80%) 

• If you meet the eligibility and are interested in participating in TSF Learning for Life Scholarship, please speak with your Guidance Office at your local partnered school for a referral. 

Please see Sarah Bury if you would like more information or a referral form for the Smith Family Learning for Life Scholarships.  

Please see the document below with more information about the Learning for Life Program. 

 The Smith Family also offer a student2student reading program.  

Our student2student program works by matching students who need to improve their reading with peer Buddies who help and encourage them with their reading. Peer support is central to the program’s success. Evidence indicates that one of the best ways to support students who have reading difficulties is for the help to come from others near their own age.3 

student2student involves these two groups of participants: 

• Students in Years 3 to 8 assessed as being up to two years behind in their reading development and want additional support to improve their reading. 

• Reading Buddies with good literacy skills who are at least two years older than the student. The Buddies are trained by The Smith Family to help their students develop reading confidence and skills, using the ‘Pause, Prompt, Praise’ reading support method. 

Each student and Buddy read two to three times a week for at least 20 minutes, over an 18-week period. 

Please see the expression of interest form attached below. Contact Sarah Bury if you are interested. Register your interest by no later than 11/4/2025. 

Parents & Friends

Miscellaneous Items