On Monday 21^st March we will celebrate Harmony Day and encourage students to come to school wearing their traditional cultural dress or the colour orange. Classes will work together on a variety of activities to develop respect, understanding and empathy for each other’s cultural backgrounds through the Harmony Week theme of Everyone Belongs.

We will begin the day with an assembly on Monday morning, commencing with a Welcome to Country by local Aboriginal Elder, Aunty Elaine Magias. Aunty Elaine will also speak to the children about Country and what it means. During the day, students will contribute to the creation of a whole school diversity tree which we look forward to sharing with you.

We thank our English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EALD) teachers Laura and Lauren for organising resources and activities for Harmony Day.

It has been a different start to the school year, but in spite of this our students have settled in well and are enjoying being with their friends and teachers.

I am another trusted adult for students to talk to at school. In my role, I provide support for members of the school community – students, staff and families. Some of this involves checking in with students who might be finding things difficult at school or at home or referring families to support networks. If you would like to find out more about my role, I can be contacted through the front office or by email julie.ascherellis43@schools.sa.edu.au. I am at school all day Monday to Thursday and from 12:30 pm on Friday.

Some of the services I provide are help with social skills, making friends and other friendship issues. I help students understand their emotions, such as feeling worried, sad, angry or scared and teach them strategies to self-regulate. These services are in addition to the classroom curriculum provided by teachers.

At present I’m introducing Kimochis (toys with feelings) to the Reception classes.  There are eight Kimochi characters each with their own characteristics, feelings and their own story.  For example Bug is shy and is afraid of change. He learns to put his “Brave feeling” in front of his “Scared feeling” so he can grow his wings and learn to be a beautiful butterfly.  The students think of times when they have been scared and who helped them. We then brainstorm ideas about how we can encourage Bug to be brave. The aim of this program is to help students understand and recognise their feelings and learn strategies to regulate when big hard to have feelings occur. In addition, they learn strategies to help build friendships, use kind words and recognise how others are feeling by looking at their faces and body language.

I use a range of other social skills programs to deliver age appropriate lessons where required. I work with students, individually, in small groups or as a whole class and work alongside staff to offer support in the classroom.  I model inclusivity and getting along with others as well as taking turns and using friendly body language.

If you have concerns about your child/children please contact their classroom teacher in the first instance.

It does take a village to bring up a child, in this period of uncertainty these outside supports are even more important. We are here to help.

Julie 

Parent-Teacher interviews will be held face to face in Week 9 & 10 – beginning Monday 28^th March. This year we are again using the School Interviews, online booking system.

Parent-Teacher interviews provide families with an opportunity to meet with class teachers to discuss important aspects of your child/ren’s learning. Teachers will discuss learning goals, class routines and skills students have demonstrated in the classroom.

Notes will be sent home early next week with further information and the online booking code.

We look forward to meeting with you to discuss your child/ren’s progress so far this year.

This year our School Photos will be taken by Crackerjack Studios on the 22nd and 23rd March 2022. If there are any unexpected changes due to COVID the dates will be postponed in accordance with regulations. Please note the sibling pack is separate and must be ordered for your children to be on the photographer's list.

Photos will be delivered to the school when completed and sent home with your child. If you order ONLINE you DO NOT need an envelope. You will need to fill out 1 form for your child/children and another for your sibling photos. Please click on the link to the Photographer's page to order your photos. http://crackerjackstudios.com.au/mitcham-primary-school-photos-2022

We are back into another school year. Welcome to our new families and we hope you and your children have settled into the Mitcham PS way of life! I would like to give you a little information about the canteen.

We offer a wide variety of menu options, including specific dietary requirements, such as gluten free and vegetarian, which follow the recommended Right Bite guidelines. Ordering recess/lunch is done through the Qkr app with orders closing for the day at 9.15am.  A reminder that you will need to put the correct classroom number in for each student to ensure that lunches are sent to the correct classroom. We are open Monday to Friday from 8.30 to 2pm. We welcome volunteers! If you would like to help, come and see myself, Ann or Kerry and we will steer you in the right direction. Please don’t hesitate to contact us!
We look forward to feeding your children!
Anita Viskic
Canteen manager

Help wanted in the library. Would you like to join our friendly volunteers? 

 We have an awesome team of volunteers who help with our book covering but are looking for some more helpers please. 

After school sport will be available to students in years 2 - 6 for terms 2 and 3. The sports available are: Basketball, Netball, Soccer, AFL Football and Chess. 

After School Sport Registration forms will be distributed to classrooms and are also available from the front office, or can be emailed by request. They need to be returned to the front office by Wednesday 16th March 2022.

Please note that the Chess class is capped at 20 students only and will be determined in order of receipt of registration forms.

Payment is not required at time of submitting your sport registration form as invoices will be issued to students, once teams have been decided.

Coaches and team managers are required (a valid Working with Children check - WWCC and Responding to Risks of Harm, Abuse and Neglect - RRHAN training is required). If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me via email at michelle.gabrisch115@schools.sa.edu.au or on 8271 2227 during office hours. 

Michelle Gabrisch - SPORTS CO-ORDINATOR

Now that the Festival Of Music choir's first session has been held, it is time for our Year 6 students to decide whether they would like to continue with their involvement. Once fees have been paid via Qkr, students will be given access to their own copy of the songbook and app with all the song recordings.

If students prefer not to sing, but would still like to be a part of this amazing experience, there are dance troupe auditions happening at the following locations:

Stomping Ground Studios, 9 Stepney Street, Stepney 5069

Dance Gallery, 210 Henley Beach Road, Torrensville 5031

Book your audition time here. 

Josh Fielder

Peforming Arts Teacher, Years 2-6

This year we are once again preparing to undertake the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) as an online, computer-based assessment. All assessments will be completed on laptops apart from the Year 3 writing component, which will be handwritten by those students.

On Thursday 24^th March, we will be conducting a NAPLAN Online National Practice Test with selected classes from Year 3 to 6. Students will participate in a 45 minute writing assessment or answer a set of numeracy, language convention and reading questions. The purpose of the practice test is to confirm our school's ICT capacity and the logistics of administering NAPLAN Online during Term 2. It will not be used as an assessment of children's literacy and numeracy skills.

The official NAPLAN Online assessments for all students in Years 3 and 5 will be held between 10th and 20th May, 2022.

Further information about NAPLAN online and the public demonstration site can be found at www.nap.edu.au . Participating classes will have an opportunity to become familiar with the public demonstration site prior to the practice test.

For more information about the NAPLAN online, visit nap.edu.au/online-assessment 

Other handy links:

• Frequently asked questions and answers about NAPLAN Online: https://nap.edu.au/online-assessment/FAQs
• Public demonstration site for students to become familiar with the format of the online tests: https://nap.edu.au/online-assessment/public-demonstration-site 

During the first 2-3 weeks of every year, classes focus on developing a collaborative, positive class culture as part of the Mitcham Primary School “Off to a Great Start” program. Students work together to build positive relationships for the development of safe, encouraging and productive classrooms. They participate in activities that promote the uniqueness of each individual and take time to reflect on strengths and set future goals.

Off to a Great Start helps students to develop positive dispositions for a new year of learning and promotes high achievement in all areas.

During this time, students consider ways to demonstrate leadership qualities and the school values in everyday actions and choices. We aim for our students to;

• Demonstrate positive relationships
• Embrace mistakes and pursue solutions
• Be resilient in work and social situations
• Show gratitude and optimism
• Accept responsibility for their own actions
• Communicate effectively and work collaboratively
• Show persistence and understand the value of working towards a goal
• Use a range of strategies to problem solve

Cooperative team building activities are a crucial way for children to develop and practice these skills. This week, children have enjoyed participating in tasks such as team challenges and games, group brainstorming, voting on class names, role plays, developing agreements for learning, beginning a gratitude journal and learning about a growth mindset to name just a few!