THE UPSIDE
4th May 2022 - ISSUE 6

News and updates from

Welcome back to school for Term 2!

Unfortunately I have yet to greet all of our students and families face-to-face as COVID has infiltrated my household. I will however be back on deck tomorrow and looking forward to being back at school so that I can attend the P&C's Mothers Day event tomorrow morning in the COLA.

On the last day of Term 1 we were lucky to hold the annual Easter Hat Parade! It was our first whole school event that we have held in such a long time and the smiles on the faces of our students, staff and families was a reflection of the joy that community celebrations bring.

The P&C organised a very successful hot cross bun, second hand uniform and Monopoly stall. I would like to encourage all parents and community members to get involved in P&C events. Many hands make light work and its a wonderful way to connect with other local families.

Yesterday we were fortunate enough to hold our cross country carnival on the sporting fields of Wentworth Park. It was an incredible day of sun, fun and lots and lots of running and I am sure there were many tired little children sitting around dinner tables last night. 

Thank you to all of the families who were able to attend the cross country. Our students love seeing their parents at school events. I would like to express my gratitude and thanks to Miss Pentney, Mr Lavender and the staff who made the day possible. 

Last week, Miss Vrkic shared with her class that she is moving back to Canberra. She is moving to be closer to her family and is excited to move into her newly purchased property. Miss Vrkic has worked at Ultimo Public School for a number of years and she will be missed by the students, staff and wider school community. Miss Vrkic's last day will be Friday May 20 2022. 

We are very fortunate to have found Ms Paiman who will be taking over 1 Vaquita for the remainder of the year. She has been working at our school on casual basis and will work alongside Ms Vrkic in Week 4, completing a handover so that she is ready to take over the class in Week 5.

I would also like to congratulate Ms Jankovic on her appointment as permanent classroom teacher to our school. Ms Jankovic is currently teaching 3 Jellyfish and has been a temporary teacher at our school for many years. We are thrilled that she is now a permanent member of staff - welcome Ms Jankovic.

The Term 2 Staff Development Day was led by Uncle Jimmy Smith who is an Aboriginal educator and cultural practitioner. Uncle Jimmy comes from Erambie mission outside the town of Cowra, New South Wales and he currently works at the Australian Museum and EORA TAFE Redfern.

Uncle Jimmy spent the day with our staff and lead them on a walking tour of the local area, sharing his knowledge of Aboriginal history and culture. Our staff were highly engaged and were grateful for the opportunity to spend the day learning from him. 

This term, Uncle Jimmy will be working with Kindergarten and students in Stage 2 and we are looking forward to  sharing this wonderful learning experience with them.

Our school photo day has been rescheduled to Friday May 27th due to the clash with the industrial action taking place today.

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual assessment for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9.  

NAPLAN is a nationwide measure through which parents, teachers, schools, education authorities, governments and the broader community can determine whether or not young Australians are developing the literacy and numeracy skills that provide the critical foundation for other learning and for their productive and rewarding participation in the community.

NAPLAN results allow parents/carers and educators to see how students are progressing in literacy and numeracy over time – individually, as part of their school community, and against national standards.

This year the tests will be administered from Tuesday 10th - Friday 13th May.

If your child is unwell and misses any of the assessments, make-up sessions will take place in Week 4.

Roads NSW will be recruiting for the position of School Crossing Supervisor at Ultimo Public School. It would be wonderful if someone from the Ultimo school community is successful in gaining this position. 

The position at our school will be vacant in 4 weeks and the recruitment process and advert will be going live shortly.

If you are interested in applying please read the information below.

Applications for Year 5 entry to an opportunity class in 2023 open on Tuesday 26 April 2022 and close at 11.59 pm on Friday 13 May 2022. To apply, go to the online application for opportunity class placement and follow the instructions. Parents and carers must apply by the due date as late applications cannot be accepted.

Parents should read Applying for Year 5 entry an opportunity class in 2023 before applying. An accessible version is also available.

Opportunity Class Placement Test

The Opportunity Class Placement Test will be conducted on Thursday 28 July 2022.

Applications are now open for Sydney Southeast Symphonic Winds (formerly the Sydney Region Band) for 2022. We are a representative Department of Education concert band with a yearly intake of around 100 students from Public Schools in NSW - years 5-8. 2022 will be the 28^th year of this exciting initiative, and is sure to be the best yet!

Entry is by audition, which will be held on 14^th & 15^th May. Successful students will participate in a 3-day residential camp, a number of after school rehearsals and major performances, including at the Sydney Opera House.

If you are interested in the audition process please visit the website.

I strongly encourage all parents whose children use technology to participate in the Term 2 eSafety webinar on parental controls. This webinar helps parents and carers learn about software tools and other strategies for taming technology at home.

The webinar explores the benefits and limitations of parental controls and covers how to safely set up devices and popular games and apps like Roblox and Youtube.

May:

Thu 5 - P&C Mothers Day Event - See information below

Fri 6 - 1 Humpback Whales Assembly

Tue 10 - 14- NAPLAN - Years 3 and 5

Fri 20 - 1 Vaquita Assembly

Fri 27 - School Photo Day

           - 5/6 Lobster Assembly

We were lucky enough to be invited to the annual Anzac Day ceremony on the 25th April in Pyrmont this year and it was an honour representing our school.

The ANZAC Day service was beautiful and reflected the kind, thoughtful and giving nature of the Ultimo and Pyrmont communities.

Isabella, Evan, Patrick and Kathleen.

Anzac Day Assembly

Anzac Day is commemorated on April 25th which was during the school holidays, the SRC and school leaders organised our Anzac Day assembly during Term 1 so everyone at Ultimo Public School could remember all the men and women who have served Australia in all conflicts and missions. We prepared and practised our short scripts and we helped prepare the hall for the assembly.  

By Alice, Ezra and Tom

SRC Playground Consultation

The SRC have been consulting with teachers to discuss how we can improve our playgrounds and make them safer places to play. We looked at photos of the playground areas with students from different grades. Our job was to write down anything extra we could think of. I liked listening to the ideas from other people. We had to come up with rules and ideas for the playground areas. We were talking about safety and more ways to make things fun and enjoyable. We also went to our class and asked them if they had any ideas, when we had our next meeting we were able to share the ideas of our class. 

Zoe C, Edrea, Destin, Alex F with Ivy and Billy 1H