30 March 2023

Newsletter Articles

Dates to Remember

2023

From the Principal

Can you believe this will be our last newsletter for Term 1? The weeks this term have gone by very quickly and we are delighted to have had such a successful, calm and positive term at Hillcrest Primary School.

Next week on Wednesday 5 April at 2pm at our end of term assembly we celebrate student achievement with presentation of certificates and class learning from Prep/1B and 3/4P. We invite all families and school community members to come along and join us in the audience for this assembly.

Congratulations to our 16 Year 3 and 4 students who represented Hillcrest at the Northwest Primary Schools Athletics Carnival held in Penguin yesterday. It was fantastic to hear from Mr Parker on their return to school that students represented our school with pride and gave their best effort in their events.

Our Term 1 focus value of Respect can be seen across all aspects of our school environment. It has been pleasing to see all members of our school community communicating respectfully with each other and demonstrating respectful behaviour towards each other. Our most recent Hilly Kid focus was shared courageous by students of 3/4W at our mini-assembly last Friday. They have created some great posters about what they think respect looks like, sounds like and feels like, I encourage you to stop by and have a read on the windows outside ¾.

School Association

A reminder that our School Association meeting is being held tonight at 7pm, in the meeting room. We invite and welcome all parents and cares to attend our meetings

School Improvement Plan

Last Friday our 2023 School Improvement Plan was submitted. School improvement plans are developed in schools together and assist in:

• planning and focusing work for the coming year/s
• ensuring targeted use of resources in priority areas
• celebrating progress and success.

As shared previously in our newsletter we have two priorities for the majority of our work this year. For each of our priorities we have targets that support us to focus our improvement.

Priority 1 focuses on reading, ensuring every student reads everyday and improves their ability to comprehend (understand) what they are reading.

Priority 2 focuses on student engagement, wellbeing and attendance,

Throughout the year I will be communicating areas of focus and how you can support your child/children to improve their learning outcomes and assist with us to meet our targets. We look forward to working with families together to ensure our students have the best possible opportunities in their future.

Term 1 Reporting

Tomorrow, students in Prp to Year 6 (who are not assessed on their individual learning goals) will receive their first report of the year. This is a short summary report that is provided to inform families about how children have settled into the new school year and provides information about any early areas of concern.

Reporting student achievement and learning progress to our families is a key feature in building effective partnerships between students, teachers and families at Hillcrest Primary School. This is through both informal (phone calls, conversations in the classrooms, emails, Seesaw etc) and formal reporting formats (PPR, mid-year and end of year reports).

Enclosed with reports tomorrow is a more detailed letter outlining the areas in the report. Please don’t hesitate to make contact with staff at school if you have any queries.

As we prepare for the end of term for students next Wednesday 5th April, we will be saying farewell to staff members Jeff and Jess.

Jeff Triffitt who will be stepping back form his lead role of recovery working with us for two days during this term. Jeff has been an excellent support for Hillcrest PS this year and for the transition of our new staff. Despite Jeff moving away from his role with us I’m sure he won’t be too far away and won’t fully be stepping into his full time retirement just yet!

I would also like to thank Jess Cook who has been working in our office part time in an administration assistant role. Jess has adapted quickly to our school routines at Hillcrest and has supported the day to day operational needs of our school. We wish Jess all the best for the future, Jess may even be back to support us in a relief capacity if required.

In conclusion, I would like to thank our whole school community, students, families, staff and volunteers for valuable contributions to our school. I wish you all an enjoyable Easter and relaxing holiday break, I look forward to seeing you for the start of Term 2 on Wednesday 26th May.

In partnership,

Georgia
Principal

Hilly Kids Are Friendly Kids

Last fortnight our Hilly Kids focus was Respecting People.

It was so wonderful to come together as a whole school to celebrate Harmony Week and our Hilly Kids focus of Respecting People. We celebrated with classroom activities where teachers shared picture books based on the theme of acceptance and harmony and then each student created a unique portrait of themselves. If you get a chance pop into our GP Hall and look at the wonderful display of our student’s representation of what makes them unique and what ‘harmony’ means to them.

Our current Hilly Kids focus topic is Rights:

We quite often hear the word ‘rights. So, what are rights? People talk about the right to an education or the right to vote. Basically, it means that people are entitled to something and that those around them, or those in authority, should make sure they get what they are entitled to.

In our school children have a number of rights:

• The right to learn.
• The right to be safe.
• The right to be respected.

It is everyone’s responsibility to make sure that these rights are respected. How can you do that?

• Make sure you help those around you learn by being a good learner yourself. Concentrate on your work and spend your time productively in class.
• In the playground play safely and look after those around you. Be friendly and this will help others feel safe.
• Respect all the people in our school. Think about how you behave with them.
• Look after the rights of others and your rights will be looked after as well.

3-4 Parker Living Things

In term 1, 3/4P have focused on learning about living things. We have learned how to identify specimens as living or non-living based off their features. Then we extended our learning of living things by using a branching key to classify animals into different classifications. To 'show off' what we have learned about classifying animals, students in small groups created posters.

We are looking forward to our excursion with 3/4W on Thursday. Thanks to all the staff and parents who have volunteered their time

Mother’s Day Stall

Our Mother’s Day stall will be on, Tuesday, 9 May. The purpose of the stall is to give each child an opportunity to buy a small gift for their mother or a special person for Mother’s Day. It is also a School Association fundraising event.

Parents are asked to buy or make a small gift to the value of $3 and send it to school by Monday, 8 May. Your child will place the present in the box in the classroom and tick their name on the list on the box. Every child who donates to the stall will go into the draw to win a gift for mum. PLEASE DO NOT WRAP GIFTS.

On the day of the stall, please send your child to school with $3 to purchase a gift for Mum. If you do not want your child to participate, please tell him/her beforehand and mention it to the class teacher. Donations of wrapping paper are also appreciated as the children are given paper to wrap their gifts.

Please leave your name at the school office if you can help on the stall between 9 – 10.30am on the day.

HPS Fundraising Committee

Soccer Information

Don’t forget Soccer starts this Saturday, 1 April.

Please follow the link:

This website will be your one stop shop for everything you need to know for the 2023 School Soccer season.

Soccer tops will go home with children this Friday (Thursday for Kinder). Please ensure you have paid your deposit for your top.

Launching into Learning

On Friday, our LIL children had a wonderful and messy time engaging in a range of sensory play. There was gooey spaghetti and jelly, scented play dough and lots of other sensory experiences. The curly apples were a popular choice too! Come along this Friday to our ‘Stay, Play and Explore’ session for some Easter fun at the Devonport Community Garden.

Why is sensory play important?

Sensory play allows children the opportunity to explore their world using all of their senses. They are able to develop their problem solving and prediction skills and to engage in imaginative play. Sensory play helps to regulate emotions and can be a calming experience for children.

Some ideas for sensory play:

• Bubbles
• Slime/goop
• Coloured or natural rice/pasta/corn
• Herbs and spices (include rocks or mortar and pestle for children to crush, mix and make potions)
• Ice/water
• Shaving cream
• Sand/flour/mud
• Ribbons/feathers/cotton balls
• Shredded paper
• Fairy lights/torches
• Flowers/vegetables
• Musical instruments/sound makers/sound shakers/pots and pans with wooden spoons
• Parachutes/lycra
• The outdoors is a sensory rich environment of sights, sounds, smells, textures and tastes.
• Essential oils can be used in diffusers or included in materials such as playdough.

Term 1 Hillcrest LIL Timetable

Hillcrest Tuckerbox

Packing a School Lunchbox

When children eat well, they behave better, are able to listen well and concentrate longer. Packing a healthy school lunchbox will help children to learn and play well and be happy at school.

Steps to Planning a Healthy Lunchbox

• Make time to prepare. Have fresh fruit and vegetables, milk and yoghurt, bread and crackers all bought in advance.
• Shop wisely and save money. Buy fresh fruit and vegetables in season to ensure good quality and value for money.
• Make your own snack packs, eg snack packs from fresh ingredients which you can buy in bulk.
• Look after the environment. Put sandwiches and other items in reusable containers. This uses less packaging and creates less rubbish.
• Choose a variety of foods from the 5 food groups.
• Include a bottle of water – no need for sweetened drinks such as juice, cordial or soft drink as these contain too much sugar, which is not good for teeth. Non-water drinkers usually start drinking water with the example of other children. Freeze a small quantity each night and top up with cold water in the morning for a cool summer drink.
• Keep food cool. In warm weather place a small ice pack in the lunchbox.

Remember to involve your children in preparing and packing their own lunchbox.

Lyn Aherne – Canteen Supervisor

Move Well Eat Well

Healthy Lunchbox – Get your kids involved!

In the kitchen:

• Select easy lunchbox recipes to cook up on weekends
• Share simple tasks such as cracking eggs, stirring and measuring ingredients
• Set healthy lunchbox rules that include choosing a food from each food group
• Encourage children to fill their drink bottles with water.

At the Shops

• Allow children to choose their own fruit and vegetables
• Avoid the junk food aisle and set limits on highly processed foods
• Ask children to help look for products with the most stars

In the Garden

• Set up a vegetable patch or pot with some easy to grow vegetables and fruit, eg cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberries
• Let children plant and pick their own vegetables for snacks
• Set gardening tasks such as weeding and watering

MWEW Team

Easter Eggstravaganza

Millions Paws Walk

School Holiday Yoga Workshop

Wanted! School Crossing Guards

Lego Challenge

Spreyton Twilight Fair