Hughes NEWS. Hughes Primary School acknowledges the Ngunnawal People, the traditional owners and custodians of this land.

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1 Hughes NEWS T E R M 1 I S S U E t h F e b r u a r y DATES TO REMEMBER Please see page 3 Principal: Kate Smith Deputy Principal: Rohan Evans Executive Teacher: Helen Cox Executive Teacher: Maryanne Hayes Executive Teacher: Kristina Collins Preschool Teacher: Susan Jones Business Manager: Gaye Broad School Secretary: Karen Stone-Tolcher IEC Office: Pansy Sung P&C President: Andrew Reichstein School Board Chair Ellen Pope Hughes Primary School acknowledges the Ngunnawal People, the traditional owners and custodians of this land. Principal s Message We apologise for the delay in our first newsletter for 2016, unexpected glitches however a great feeling when we can overcome it! So... welcome to 2016, we are in for a wonderful year, with new initiatives, energetic staff, and fabulous students, we are into keeping a FOCUS on all sorts of new learnings. Thank you to all the families who have children so beautifully equipped with everything they need to start their school year. Welcome to our new families from our own suburb, neighbouring suburbs, interstate and also from many countries around the world. Our wish is for you to experience a robust education, a strong sense of belonging and an inclusive community. We have new positions coming up for both our School Board and P and C, so please keep an eye out for information so that you can consider nominating and adding value to our beautiful school. Both the School Board and P & C work very hard to improve programs and resources around the school and building a sense of community. I am thrilled to have two strong parental bodies. We are on the push for voluntary contributions to come rolling in too, so we can buy amazing new books for the library, so please make any payments to Karen in the front office as soon as possible. We are hoping to double the amount that came in last year so we can add significant new resources for all children from preschool to Yr 6 to enjoy borrowing them. Speaking of Library, we welcome a new Executive Teacher, Ms Kristina Collins - our Leader of Cultural Curriculum - Teacher Librarian, Japanese teacher and kitchen garden leader as well as leading the specialist team. We warmly welcome new staff: Brett Hobbins, Karen Stowell, Aimee Hunter, Vicki Hunt, Aaron Partridge and Laura Poultney. Settling in well, each teacher has already become a valuable asset to our wider team. We are proud to promote our school now as a STEAMM school. With a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Maths, Media - students will be presented with a variety of learning activities inside their class curriculum, during lunchtime clubs and "Full Steamm Ahead" program for Yr 2-6 students every alternate Friday afternoon during terms 1,2 and 3. If you are involved in any of the STEAMM areas, please let us know if you can support to build this program. We have a new Student Voice Leadership program for our Yr 6 students. The major change is that every Yr 6 student will have a leadership portfolio, and all leaders have equity in their roles. The new portfolios are: School leaders, House leaders, Global leaders, Sustainability leaders, Citizenship leaders,library leaders, Fundraising leaders and Service leaders. We will announce all leaders and their portfolio in the next newsletter. Our CARE values have been revamped, for the next few years we will be focussing on Courage, Achievement, Resilience and Engagement. Many classes already have brainstormed what this means to them, we are excited to expand the thinking behind our CARE values and growing the breadth of what they can mean. This year we celebrate our performing arts by announcing The Lion King is being produced in Term 3. The leading team have been working on gearing up for this amazing musical, and I can't wait to see all the rehearsals in full swing. So, with swimming carnival nearing, Kulturebreak beginning, Every Chance to Dance in every classroom, and STEAMM, we have a lot of rich opportunities for our students to grow and thrive. With FOCUS as our key word for the year, there will be a lot to experience! Until next time, focus on what makes you happy! Kate Smith Groom Street HUGHES ACT 2605 Phone: Fax: info_hughesps@ed.act.edu.au

2 P A G E 2 T E R M 1 I S S U E 1 NEWSLETTER ITEM HELEN COX, EXECUTIVE TEACHER OF ACHIEVEMENT & POTENTIAL WEEK 2, TERM 1, 2016 SCHOOL ASSESSMENT At the beginning of every school year, and continuing throughout the year, assessment of each student occurs in a variety of ways. The use of multiple criteria the collection of snapshots in order to develop a comprehensive photo album for each child, over time provide information which assists teachers in the decision-making needed to guide students through their learning journey. When viewed as a whole, the album presents a more accurate and revealing portrait of an individual than does any single snapshot within. [Tomlinson, C.A., & McTighe, J. (2006). Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design. Heatherton,Vic:HBA. p.60.] NAPLAN 2016 The National Assessment Program Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual assessment for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. It has been an everyday part of the school calendar since This year, NAPLAN assessments will occur from the May. NAPLAN is not a test of content. Instead, it tests skills in literacy and numeracy that are developed over time through the school curriculum. Excessive test preparation using previous tests is not useful. NAPLAN tests identify whether all students have the literacy and numeracy skills that provide the critical foundation for their learning, and for their productive and rewarding participation in the community. Students are assessed using common national tests in Reading, Writing, Language Conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and Numeracy. Information for Parents/Carers about NAPLAN can be found at: A NAPLAN Information Session will be held for interested parents with students in Years 3 and 5 in the near future. A note will be sent home beforehand. I will look forward to seeing you there.

3 T E R M 1 I S S U E 1 P A G E 3 ICAS (The International Competitions and Assessments for Schools) 2016 ICAS assessments are independent skills-based assessments with a competition element. Commonly referred to as the UNSW tests, ICAS is unique, being the most comprehensive generally available suite of academic assessments and school tests for primary and secondary school students. When children participate in ICAS, some of the school benefits include: Identify potentially gifted students for further enrichment Identify students that may require immediate attention Identify areas of weakness in a student or group of students Inform school planning and resource allocation Experience in large scale examinations. We actively encourage children to participate in ICAS. Important ICAS Dates ICAS Subject ICAS Sitting Date Closing Date ICAS Fee Digital Technologies Tue 17 May Tues 5 April $8.80 Science Tue 31 May Tues 3 May $8.80 Writing June Mon 16 May $18.70 Spelling Wed 15 June Wed 18 May $12.10 English Tue 2 Aug Tue 21 June $8.80 Mathematics Tue 16 August Tue 21 June $8.80 A Registration form is available at the School s front office. Helen Cox Leader of Achievement and Potential DATES TO REMEMBER February 2016 Tue 23/2 Swimming Carnival Fri 26/2 Preschool Welcome Picnic pm Mon 29/2 P&C AGM 7.30 pm March 2016 Tue 1/3 K-2 Lit/Num/ICT Parent Session pm 3-6 Lit/Num/ICT Parent Session pm Wed-Fri 9/3-11/3 3/4 Birrigai Camp Mon 14/3 Public Holiday - Canberra Day Fri 18/3 Harmony Day Fri 25/3 Good Friday Mon 28/3 Easter Monday

4 P A G E 4 T E R M 1 I S S U E 1 Hughes Primary School is fortunate enough to be supported by a fantastic, committed parent community. The Parents and Citizens Committee (P&C) warmly invites you to show your support by attending the Annual General Meeting on 29th February, 7.30pm in the school library. If you are unable to attend the P&C AGM but would like to be notified about subsequent meetings or events where we need your help (such as cake stalls, special lunches or working bees), please hughespandc@gmail.com. Thank you! SCHOOL BOARD Can you help? We need parent volunteers to help with: Shelving Covering Repairing We d love you to join our Library Working Bees! Please see Ms Collins for more details or Kristina.collins@ed.act.edu.au Nominations will be open for two P&C positions on the school board at 11.00am on Monday 22nd February. Nominations close at 11.00am on Monday 7th March. Nominations forms are available from the front office.

5 T E R M 1 I S S U E 1 P A G E Host Families Needed In 2016 Hughes Primary School will host a volunteer Japanese Language Teacher s Assistant (JTA) from Kagoshima University in southern Japan. During her stay Miss Ayumi Miyashita will be assisting in Japanese language classes while also hoping to also improve her English skills. JTAs are home stayed within the school community and pay a contribution towards food and board of $170 a week to their host families. Assistants need their own bedrooms but can share the family bathroom. This program has been widely used in ACT schools since 2004 and is of great benefit to both the Japanese program and to the families who become involved. We find that families really enjoy this experience as it allows them to expand their knowledge and understanding of Japan and its people as well as contribute to the corporate life of the school. This is an ideal way to encourage your children to engage with Japanese language and culture and make lifelong friends. We are therefore seeking expressions of interest from families who would be willing to host our JTA for a period of 6-10 weeks (eight weeks in ideal) in Terms 2 4. As JTAs primary goal is to improve their English Language skills they generally hope to stay with families where English is spoken at home. If you are unable to host for a longer term but are interested in offering weekend stays, emergency back up or the occasional social activity please also return the form below. If you are able to assist us or would like more information please return the slip below to the front office as soon as possible and we ll get in touch. This program relies heavily on the support and hospitality of the school community and your generosity is much appreciated. Collins Sensei Executive Teacher Cultural Curriculum To Ms Collins Name Phone Children at school Class We would be interested in hosting Ayumi (Please circle as appropriate) For a period of weeks in Term We cannot host but could offer support by Please contact us to give us more information.

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9 T E R M 1 I S S U E 1 P A G E 9 Welcome to 2016 from the P&C Welcome back to another fun and busy year at the Hughes Primary School. The P&C is an associate that provides an advocate role for Public Education matters within the school, it also works very closely with the school to support the teachers needs and add the extra polish to what is already a fantastic school and community. The success of the P&C each year is reliant upon your volunteer support, any contribution that you can make is very much welcome. The P&C is always looking for support to run activities, BBQs, working bees, in classroom support, baking etc. There is also a Hughes Dads group that meets socially that provides an opportunity to catch up with a great bunch witty blokes outside of the school grounds. If you would be interested in being involved, please use the contact details below: Hughes P&C hughespandc@gmail.com Hughes Dads group and click either sign-up or contact the group owner Facebook

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