I wanted to congratulate all students who participated in our annual school cross country. We were so proud of the courage, growth, sportsmanship and encouragement that students were displaying. Well done to our house team ‘Derwent’ who narrowly defeated Bowen to take out the title. A big thanks to Mrs Bushby, GPS staff and students of Montrose Bay High who came along to help support. A big shout out to all families who came along to cheer on our kids on this chilly morning! With such a great participation rate, Mr Luttmer and Miss Crow are taking a large group of students to represent our school at the Inter-School Cross Country this Thursday at Bayview High School in Rokeby. Best of luck to all participants.

School Association Update

Thank you to those family members who put themselves forward to be nominated for our School Association Committee. I would like to congratulate: Andy Vagg (Chairperson), Tara Clark (Vice-Chairperson), Laura Stokell (Secretary) and Cheryl Siberas (Treasurer) along with staff members Hugo Luttmer and Ros Ackerley. We appreciate you giving your time to support our school.

LIFT (Learning in Families Together)

Today our Prep/1 class had an open afternoon in the classroom. This term’s focus is on ‘Decodable texts’ to support our beginning readers and having fun playing with letters and sounds. Thanks to Mrs Mcguire for organising and to all of our family members who came along. Kids always love it when they can play games and learn alongside their special family members.

Just a reminder that this Friday is a Student Free Day and Monday is the King's Birthday Public Holiday so have a safe and relaxing long weekend.

Kind Regards,

Jaime Allen

Principal

Grades 4/5 and 5/6 had their first lesson on reading and writing one (of 3) Japanese alphabets, known as Hiragana. In the Hiragana alphabet the letters are referred to as 'characters'. In the first week we studied the 5 vowel sounds. We practiced sight recognition and character formation. Each week we will learn 5 new characters. We will focus on blending characters through games and activities. Our aim is to master the entire Haragana alphabet by the end of the year!

Sensei Stephens

At Goodwood Primary we have a very old, large tree called Leaf.

Leaf is believed to have been here well before the school, and we have photos of it being quite mature before both the school and Brooker Highway were build in the 1950's.

In Garden class last week, our 1/2 students learnt a bit about Leaf, and were very eager to help tidy up the sticks, leaves and broken bark around the base. At the end of the activity, I asked the students to tell me what they observed about Leaf that day.  Her are some of their answers:-

Harper - "He's been there for a long time"

Kailey - "He has heaps of sap around him"

Millie - "He's very old"

Ronan - "He's very tall"

Chase - "The leaves change colours"

Jaxon - "Leaf has holes in him"

Mr Luttmer - "We saw that Leaf has some holes we think birds might come and build nests in"

Blayze - "The birds go in the nest"

Aubree - "He's really careful, we have to be careful not to pull anything off the tree. We need to be kind to him"

Charlotte - "He has lots of leaves"

Stella - "Be careful of him"

Kyden - "He's got a nest"

Chris - "There is heaps of bark peeling"

Luca - "He's had a lot of injuries"

Charlie - "He's over 1000 years old"

Addison - "The leaves are falling"

Hudson - "How much respect that she is"

Lily - "Leaf is bleeding because he's dying"

Emma - "He's very wrinkly"

We hope to get Leaf professionally aged in the future so we can find out how old he really is. If you have any information, stories or pictures of Leaf please email them to - laura.stops@decyp.tas.gov.au

Laura

Garden Specialist

This year school photo ordering will be the same as last year in that it will be done online.  

To order your school photos:

• Go to www.leadingimage.com.au
• Click on Order Your School Photos
• Select your State
• Enter your Access Key which is - M3PCGSWX

Do you qualify for FREE home internet?

Do you:

• Have a child living at home that is enrolled in school
• Have no active broadband service over the NBN
• Live in a home that can be connected to the NBN
• Not have had an active NBN service during the previous 14 days.

Ring the National Referral Centre on 1800 954 610 to find out if you qualify for FREE home internet.

More info: anglicarevic.org.au/student-internet/

Levies 2024

A reminder that school levies are now overdue and payable at the school office. Flexible payment arrangements for families may be organised with the School Business Manager if required.

There will be no increase in Levies for 2024.

Families who are supported through the Student Assistance Scheme (STAS) do not need to pay levies. Applications for the Student Assistance Scheme may be made online, or paper forms can be provided at the school office. 

A reminder that if your child is absent from school for any reason that you notify the school office by 9:30 am of that day.  You can either contact the school office on 6272 9100 or email goodwood.primary@decyp.tas.gov.au

Did you know if your child has 10 days off school per year, that by Grade 4 they are 1 year behind?

The best thing for your child's future is to come to school every day.

Student Medication

Please advise office staff and your child’s class teacher if your child needs to take medication during school hours so arrangements can be made for the medication to be administered.

It is a Department of Education requirement that the following forms must be completed and signed before the commencement of dispensing medication to students: ‘Administration of Routine Medication Authorisation Form for Parent/ Guardian’; and ‘Administration of Prescribed Medication Authorisation Form for Doctors’. The administration of medication to students is undertaken by Admin staff who will ensure it is taken correctly, details (e.g. date, time, dose etc) entered on the student’s personal medication sheet, and signed by a staff member and witness.

Medication is kept locked in the school safe or safe room. Students should not have any types of medication in their school bags.

REMINDER

Our carpark has become quite congested due to increased staff at both Goodwood Primary School and Tas eSchool. We are again asking parents/carers to not enter the staff carpark when dropping off and collecting students. The carpark is for school staff of Goodwood Primary School and Tas eSchool and can be dangerous for students. The exception is for those parents whose child/children have a disabled parking permit.

To ensure the safety of our students and staff please follow the information below:

Students are to be dropped off and collected via the Elmsleigh Road carpark.

We thank you in advance for keeping our students safe!

Please find below the Launching into Learning Schedule for Term 2:-

Do you have a Health Care Card?

You may be eligible for a school levy exemption

STAS provides financial assistance to families. Families who are eligible do not need to pay school levies. Levies contribute towards costs of your child's education program and includes items such as learning materials and school excursions.

Parents who have a current concession card as listed below can apply for dependent students for assistance under STAS.

Services Australia - Centrelink Health Care Card

Services Australia - Centrelink Low Income Health Care Card

Services Australia - Pensioner Concession Card

Department of Veteran Affairs - Pensioner Concession Card

Please note that if you received student assistance in 2023 you do not need to reapply.

A new online form is available to assist with processing applications for new applicants. The online form can be completed here:

Student Assistance Scheme (STAS) (decyp.tas.gov.au)

Once a validated form is completed the Department of Education, Children & Young People will confirm the outcome of your application in writing, this process takes approximately 14 days. 

We understand that the online option may not be possible for all families, so if you require a hard copy form please contact the school office or the Financial Assistance Unit on stas@decyp.tas.gov.au or phone 1800 827 077.

If you would like to follow our progress in the garden, please scan the QR code below to check out our photos on Goodwood Primary Kitchen Garden Instagram page.

Make each day count

Welcome back to Term 2, we hope you enjoyed your break!

By showing up to school every day, your child will have the best opportunity at a bright future. It gives them every chance to be around friends, learn new things, and find interests.

We have lots in store for this term, including The Swimming & Water Safety Program, Grade 5/6 Camp, GPS Cross Country, School photos etc.

Good attendance habits can sometimes be hard to stick. Keep trying to create a solid routine, to set your child up for success for the rest of the year.

If you’re looking for tips on how to create better attendance habits, visit the Anything can happen website.

Please always talk to us if you’re having trouble getting your child to school. We’re here to help.

REMINDER for parents to return the Fissure Sealant Program Consent Forms that were recently sent home to students from Kinder, Prep, Grade 1, Grade 2 and Grade 6.

We wish to inform our school and broader community that we are having quite significant damage caused by the rabbit's infestation throughout our school grounds. 

Can all visitors to our school site to be advised to watch for uneven surfaces and holes.

We are working with DECYP Facilities for advice to find a solution.

Enrolments are now being accepted for students commencing in Kindergarten in 2025. If you have a child that was born in 2020 who will be commencing at  Goodwood Primary next year, please collect an enrolment form from the office.

Support your child’s online learning at home

Digital skills are critical to every child’s success, but supporting online learning can be overwhelming.

The Digital skills for families team are delivering a program to help Tasmanian families support online learning at home. Spending time online at home gives children an opportunity to practice what they are learning at school. Positive home environments help children develop the skills and independence they need to succeed in a digital future.

Learn about communicating online with schools, digital education at school and how to support online learning at home.

Digital skills for families is offering free:

· information sessions

· workshops

· one-to-one help

In libraries, schools and community locations statewide. Email the team at digitalskillsforfamilies@libraries.tas.gov.auto find out more and book a free session.