Last Friday morning we had student speeches and voting for Student Leadership Positions.  It was so impressive to hear and read the genuine words of our nominees and their earnest thoughts and ideas as they showed their resilience in being brave.

The outcome for the majority of student positions were shared with classes this afternoon but there are still some positions to be filled. Once these have been decided, we will communicate this news with our community through our newsletter and Schoolbag App.  On Friday 26 February we will be hosting a whole school assembly to present our Student Leaders with their badges. To maintain COVID safe numbers, parents and caregivers will be invited to attend this event, which will start at 10am.

If you missed the post on our Facebook page or are yet to see it on our web page, we have uploaded a new video of a virtual School Tour. This was created by our 2020 SRC Executives with support and guidance from Barb West (Office Manager) and Lei Wang (ICT Support).  If you are yet to view this, please follow the link and feel free to share it with your friends and family:   

Kind Regards

Penny Wilde                  Belinda Finlay-Smith              Richard Kemp

Principal                       Deputy Principal                     Wellbeing Leader

We would like to remind families that students are not allowed to play on the playgrounds, or sandpit before school.

Students have the opportunity of doing so during the school day and after school, providing they are not being used by POSHC.  Of course POSHC have first option to use any of the playgrounds.

Thank you for your co-operation.

The Leadership Team, Penny Wilde, Belinda Finlay-Smith, Richard Kemp and the 2020 Governing Council would like to invite you to attend the Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Wednesday, 17 February at 6:45pm.  Come along to hear about the year that was and to nominate to be on Governing Council for this year.  If you would like more information please talk to one of our members.  Rick Mart, our current Chairperson is more than happy to make himself available to answer any questions you may have.  He can be contacted at Rick.Mart978@schools.sa.edu.au.

This is a great opportunity to play a significant role for the school and your children, and we encourage anyone thinking of nominating to make contact with Rick or one of the Leadership Team.  

If you would like to nominate but can't attend the Annual General Meeting (AGM), please let the Administration Office know. If you are not sure, and want more time to think about it, you are able to nominate at the meeting.  

Every layer of the school community really appreciates all of the hard work, dedication and tireless efforts that our Governing Council members undertake every year so if you would like to join this dedicated group of parents, please nominate.     

The next Principal Tour is scheduled for Monday, 22nd February, 2021 at 4:30pm.  Please book in with the Administration Staff if you would like to participate.

In the instance of no bookings being made - this session will not be conducted.

We are very excited that we have been able to schedule Sports Day for Friday, 5 March,2021 (Week 6). 

It's not long now to Sports Day.  Which team will you be cheering for on Sports Day?  Anderson (Blue), Bain (Green), Morphett (Red) or O’Sullivan (Yellow)

We have planned some great events for all classes to participate in with students required to be in class at 8.50am, and then assembling under the COLA at 8:55am ready for all the events to begin.

The activities are programmed to continue until the end of the school day at 3:10pm.

We would love if you can come along and support your child/ren on this fun day, we have missed you all.

If you are able to attend you will need to ensure you meet all current COVID-19 guidelines. At this stage you will need to check in using the School's QR code, practice safe hand hygiene and socially distance from other adults. Unfortunatley you will not be able to go into classrooms on Sport's Day.

There will be a sausage sizzle, drinks stall, and a coffee van. Students will be able to pre-order sausages and a recess treat. We will be sending out an order form this week.

We look forward to seeing you in Week 6!

Please note:  All school events are subject to change/cancellation subject to COVID-19 restrictions.

We will be holding the School Colour Fun Run as a major fundraising event to raise money to expand our Nature Play area, on Thursday, 1st April, 2021. 

We encourge families to come along at 1:45pm on the day to join in or watch as the students participate in the Colour Fun Run and get doused with water and sprayed with masses of colour!

We will send information about how to help us raise money for our Nature Play soon. Keep a look out on the SkoolZine App and our Facebook page.

Please note:  All school events are subject to change/cancellation subject to COVID-19 restrictions.

This year classes will be using Seesaw.  Seesaw allows your child and teachers to share learning and points of interest about class and school events.  It is also an easy way to communicate between home and school.

It will be helpful if all families can please download the Seesaw App onto a device at home.  You can download Seesaw Family App AND Seesaw Class App for iOS, Android, or use the web to view your student’s items that they submit to Seesaw.  When your child adds new items, you will receive a notification to see/ hear and respond to your child’s item. You only have access to your own child’s work and all of the content is stored securely. Parents/Carers of children in multi-house living arrangements can sign up individually to view their child’s items.

Please contact the class teacher with any questions about Seesaw. You will receive a handout with directions about how to download and sign up for your child’s Seesaw. 

Thank you to everyone who had completed and returned the three permission forms which were sent out at the beginning of the term.

If you haven't already done so, can you please fill them out and return them as soon as possible.

If you haven't given permission for your child's image to be used but would still like to get photos through Seesaw, you need to note that on the permission form.  You are able to advise what you do give permission for.  Although it appears as an all or nothing form, you are able to break it down and stipulate what you would give permission for.

Please just write a note when you return the form.  We understand that some families guard their privacy, however, there is still ways for you to glimpse views of what your child and their class are doing without anything being available for public viewing, providing you give us permission.

The school fees for 2021 are $246 per student, for four terms of schooling.

Camps, excursions, incursions and swimming/aquatics instruction fees are invoiced throughout the year and must be paid before students can attend.  Additional costs are also incurred by students wishing to be involved with sports or extra-curricular activities (such as Choir or School Sport SA).

 This year, we have a number of ways to pay…

• Pay in person - The Finance Window is open in the Courtyard each morning from 8:30am - 9:15am. We accept EFTPOS / Visa / MasterCard with Pay Pass / Pay Wave, or cash.

• Pay over the phone - We also accept credit card payments over the phone between 8:00am and 3:00pm on school days. The only exception is on the last day of every month.

• Pay via the Qkr! App – Download the Qkr! App and create a profile for each child by selecting their classroom level and teacher. Note payments for School will finalise at 5pm each night for processing the next day. Canteen payments on Qkr! need to be finalised by 9 am on Canteen open days. Payments on any other day will be collated on the day of the Canteen Lunch Order.

School Card –

If you are in possession of a current Concession Card from Centrelink, you may be eligible for School Card assistance to pay your Materials & Services Charges.

All types of School Card applications are now online. You can access the online forms from any device that gets internet, including mobile devices, such as tablets and smart phones, as well as laptops and computers.

Payment by Instalment (Direct Debit Request) - If you would rather pay your school fees by weekly/fortnightly / monthly instalments, please fill in a Direct Debit Request Form and return it to the Finance Office by Friday 9th^th April.  Please note that if you are paying by instalment, the final payment must be made by the end of Term 2 (Friday, 2^nd July).

If you have any further enquiries about Materials and Services Charges (including overdue payments from last year), payment methods, or School Card, please contact Helen in the Finance Office.

School fees must be paid in full by no later than Friday, 9^th April 2019 (last day of Term 1).

The Department for Education Child protection in schools, early childhood education and care services policy states that ‘all children and young people in the department’s preschools and schools will access the approved child protection curriculum’.

Each of our classes will be teaching the KS:CPC. Each term will have a different focus area.

The KS:CPC teaches children and young people to recognise abuse, tell a trusted adult, understand what is appropriate and inappropriate touching and ways of keeping themselves safe. 

Themes

The curriculum is based on two main themes which are presented through topics and activities.

• Theme 1: We all have the right to be safe
• Theme 2: We can help ourselves to be safe by talking to people we trust.

Focus Areas

The two themes are explored through four Focus Areas, which are examined in growing complexity in accordance with the age of the learners.

1. The right to be safe
2. Relationships
3. Recognising and reporting abuse
4. Protective strategies.

More information can be found on the KS:CPC website: http://tiny.cc/KSCPC-ParentCarerInfo.

Please contact your child's classroom teacher if you wish to discuss the Child Protection Curriculum.

Welcome back to the 2021 school year and a special welcome to all the new families to Pimpala Primary School.  Our library is open from 8:30am until 3:30pm for students only (while COVID retrictions are in place). 

Karen Campbell manages the Library, as she has done for the last couple of years, and looks forward to supporting children with the skills of research and the love of books and reading. Karen is happy to assist with Library book selections.

It has been fantastic to see so many students coming to the library to borrow and we would like to remind all Junior Primary parents that library bags are required. Library bags help to protect our books so that they can be borrowed again and again. If your library book is lost or damaged in some way, please speak with Karen so that a replacement can be arranged as soon as possible. 

While you are in the library, look out for our requests box and let us know what books you would like to have in the library.   

The last day to pay for Scholastic Book Club Orders is Thursday, 18 February, 2021. Please note: no late orders will be accepted.