Prestons Post

Dear Parents, Carers, and Students,

As we reach the fourth week of Term 1, I would like to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to our dedicated teaching staff for their incredible commitment to quality teaching and learning. The start of the year has been nothing short of inspiring, and I am thrilled to share that last Friday, our Director of Educational Leadership visited our classrooms and was truly impressed by the engaging learning experiences taking place.

The Importance of Attendance

I would also like to remind all families of the critical importance of ensuring that your child is at school every day and on time. Our dedicated English and Mathematics teaching blocks run from 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM, and it's essential that our students are present to fully participate in these vital learning sessions. By working together, we can improve the learning outcomes for all our students.

P&C Meeting and AGM

A special thank you to the parents who joined us for the P&C meeting today. Your involvement is invaluable to our school community. I encourage everyone to mark your calendars for our Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Week 6, which will be held after our Monday morning assembly. Your participation is important, and we would love to see you there as we work together to make our school even better.

Swimming Carnival Excitement

This week, we are excited to host our Swimming Carnival, and I want to remind all families that all children in Years 3-6 are expected to attend. We are looking forward to a fantastic day of fun and competition! If you have not yet paid and submitted permission for your child to participate, please do so through the Sentral app.

Stay Connected via Sentral

Lastly, I would like to remind everyone to download the Sentral app, as it is our primary means of communication. All important notes, newsletters, reminders, and information regarding excursions and events will be sent out through this platform. If you require any assistance with the app, please don’t hesitate to contact the office.

Thank you for your continued support as we embark on another exciting term. Together, we can ensure that our students thrive!

Have a wonderful week and don’t forget to ask your child what they are learning at school.

Liz Van Der Meulen
Principal

Wednesday 19th February - ( Swimming Carnival Year 3 to 6)

Friday 21st February - Selective & Opportunity Classes Applications Close

Tuesday 25th February - Meet the Teacher Breakfast

Friday 28th February - Passion Groups

Monday 3rd March - P&C AGM

Wednesday 12th March - Monday 24th March - Years 3 & 5 NAPLAN Testing

Friday 14th March - First Gala Day (Selected Students)

Friday 21st March - Passion Groups

Friday 28th March - Second Gala Day (Selected Students)

Wednesday 13th March -Monday 25th March - NAPLAN Testing (Years 3 & 5)

Thursday 10th April - Anzac Day Assembly

Friday 11th April - Last day of Term

Monday 28th April - Staff Development Day

Tuesday 29th April - Staff Development Day

Wednesday 30th April - Students return for term 2

Friday 2nd May - Gala Day 3

Friday 16th May - Gala Day Season Finals

Tuesday 20th May - Zone Cross Country

Thursday 29th May - School Photo Day

Tuesday 3rd June - Extra Curricular Photo Day & Catch up Day

Monday 9th June - Public Holiday

Friday 13th June - Season 2 Gala Day 1 (selected students)

Friday 27th June -Season 2 Gala Day 2 (selected students)

Friday 4th July - Last Day Term 2

Monday 21st July - Staff Development Day

Friday 25th July - Season 2 Gala Day 3 (selected students)

Friday 8th August - Gala Day Season Finals

Tuesday 19th August - Zone Athletics Carnival

Wednesday 20th August Monday 25th August -Book Fair

Thursday 21st August - Book Parade

Friday 5th September - Season 3 Gala Day 1 (selected students)

Friday 19th September - Season 3 Gala Day 2 (selected students)

Friday 26th September - Last Day of Term 3

Monday 13th October - Staff Development Day

Tuesday 14th October - Student return for term 4

Friday 17th October - Season 3 Gala Day 3 (selected students)

Friday 31st October - Season 3 Gala Day Final (selected Students)

19th December - Last Day of Term 4

K to 2 assemblies will on following dates on Friday in the hall from 2.00pm to 3.00 pm.

Week 6 - Friday 7th March

Week 11 - Friday 11th April

3 to 6 Assemblies will be held on following dates on Friday in the hall from 2.00pm to 3.00pm.

Week 4 - Friday 21st February

Week 10 - Friday 4th April

Congratulation to the following students:

Oussama - 1 Determined

Mariam - 5/6 Problem Solvers

Congratulation 1/2 Brave and 2 Collaborative @ 100%

Whole school attendance was 93,26%

The swimming carnival is an annual sporting event at Micheal Wenden Leisure Center. Yeas 3 to 6 will participate in wellbeing and water safety activities aimed at meeting the outcomes of PDHPE syllabus.

TIME: 9:00am to 3:00pm

VENUE: Michael Wendon Leisure Centre

TRANSPORT: Bus

WEAR: Swimming clothes must be worn under school uniform (boys must wear a rash shirt), bring a change of clothes and towel. Please ensure all items of clothing are labelled.

WHAT TO PACK: Packed lunch. NO CANTEEN

COST: $13

Please provide permission vis Sentral by Tuesday 18th February. Due to the organisation involved with excursions NO LATE payments will be accepted.

Please read the attached letter for the Department of Education in relation to Sport and Physical Activity. This letter has also been sent to you via Central Parent Console.

To celebrate the final year of primary school, Year 6 students are offered the opportunity to purchase a specially designed polo shirt that can be worn as part of their daily school uniform.

The 2025 shirt will include the names of all Year 6 students listed on the back.

Orders and full payment, which is non-refundable, are due by Friday 7th March, 2025.

No late orders will be accepted.

The cost of the shirt will be $24.00.

Students can order more than one shirt.

No refunds are available due to change of mind or if the wrong size is ordered. Payments and size choices are to be made through the Sentral Parent App.

You may wish to consider sizing up when ordering so as to allow for student growth throughout the year.

Parents with students commencing Year 5 in 2025, are reminded that the uniform for our senior students changes from the maroon polo to the white school emblemed polo shirt.

Uniforms can be purchased from the Liverpool or Moorebank Uniforms & Embroidery stores or online.

Information, pricing and store opening hours can be found by visiting their website:

Moorebank Uniforms & Embroidery – Schoolwear and Workwear

Applications will be open each year from November to February (the following year) for both selective high school and opportunity class placement. Parents and carers will still apply online using the Selective high school and opportunity class placement application website.

Applications for selective high school and opportunity class entry in 2026 will be open from 7 November 2024 to 21 February 2025.

For selective high school placement, parents and carers will continue to apply when their child is in Year 5 and can now apply when their child is in year 6 until the end of Week 4, Term 1.

Please go to shsoc.education.nsw.gov.au/

See booklets below for further information:

Our school Newsletter, Prestons Post, is updated each week. This contains important information about upcoming events and activities at Prestons PS. Information and past newsletters can be found on our school website – www.prestons-p.schools.nsw.edu.au.

You can also access our school facebook page for important updates, photographs and information about upcoming or past events at our school - https://www.facebook.com/PrestonsPublicSchoolDecPages/. Various other notes are given out during the school term detailing specific activities happening at school. Please check your child’s bag every day as young children often forget messages.

Sentral

Our school is using the Sentral App to communicate with parents about everything that is happening at school. Sentral allows families to update their details, view academic reports, explain past absences, request future absences, view calendar events, book parent/teacher interviews, receive sick bay notifications, view school newsletters, as well as receive real time notifications and messages from the school.

Have you moved home or changed your phone contact details during the holidays?

It is important that you notify the school of any changes to your contact details. At times the school may need to contact you regarding your child. This includes address, telephone numbers and contact details for those you have nominated as emergency contacts.

Please phone or email the office with your updated details.

Phone - 9602 7435

Email - prestons-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Crunch & Sip is a set break during the school day where students eat salad vegetables and fruit and drink water in the classroom. Students bring vegetables or fruit to school each day for the Crunch & Sip break.

Crunch & Sip gives student the chance to re-fuel with fruit or vegetables to improve physical and mental performance and concentration in the classroom, as well as promoting long term health.

Please ensure that all items of clothing and school equipment are clearly labelled with the student's name and class. This will assist us in returning items back to students quickly.

To assist in the event of toileting accidents and spills, it would be appreciated if parents could keep a change of clothing, including socks and underwear, in their child's bag. This will help to ensure your child is changed quickly as spare clothing is not always available from the office.

The canteen operates five days a week to provide lunches to the children at reasonable prices. Lunch orders are to be written on a lunch bag at home, with the child’s full name and class. If you wish to order your child’s lunch, their lunch order is to be given to the canteen before school starts in the morning.

Lunch Orders can also be made using the online ordering system www.myschoolconnect.com.au. All orders must be made before 8am.

Class baskets are collected from the canteen at lunchtime, and your child will then receive their lunch order at the appropriate time during the school day.

Our School offers Before and After School care provided by Village OSHC. Please find further information below

Our School community supports the wearing of school uniform to encourage pride in our school. Our school uniforms are sold from Moorebank Uniforms & Embroidery located in Liverpool and Moorebank.

Orders can also be made online. Simply visit www.moorebankuniformsandembroidery.com.au

Enter the Password PRESPMUE2019 to shop online.

We are excited to announce the launch of our new online shop platform called Made For School!

This upgrade to the MUE online shop is designed to enhance convenience for parents/students while ensuring a seamless shopping experience. The MUE website address is still the same - www.moorebankuniformsandembroidery.com.au/shop, however, once customers click on the Prestons Public School logo they will be redirected to the new Made For School online platform which you can see here