Brixhibition

Congratulations to everyone for creating some wonderful lego designs. Thankyou, to the SRC for organising a wonderful event and to the Circular Head Council’s General Manager for judging this competition for us!

Congratulations to the following for your winning entries;

External review

Our school has engaged in an external review process over the past couple of weeks.  This process has now provided our school with some feedback to inform our next steps as a school.  I appreciate and thankyou for your involvement throughout this process and appreciate you willingness to engage with the panel and provide honest feedback.

Improvement Professional Learning

Last Friday 14^th of June, Ms Pop and I attended a professional learning in Penguin to strengthen our processes.

Moderation Day

On Friday the 7^th of June, we met with schools within our Cluster to moderate students English and Maths common assessment tasks.  This was a valuable day for our staff and we enjoy the collegiality and collaboration these days offer us as we work together across our schools.

Symmons Plains Cross country

On Tuesday, Ari and Sienna Korpershoek represented our school at the State Cross Country carnival at Symmons Plains.  Ari ran 9^th out of 248 children and Sienna ran 77^th out of 221 children.  What a great effort from the both of you.  Forest Primary is very proud of your efforts!

Primary Netball Championships

This Friday 21^st of June Ms Pop, Dnaielle and Lynne will accompany our Grade 5/6 netball team to Devonport where they will compete in a  North West Netball carnival.  We wish you all the best and thank Ms Pop, Danielle and Lynne for giving up your time to train, coach and umpire our team.

Bake and take

Students and our families from Launching into Learning have been able to cook with Fran on a weekly rostered basis and have had the opportunity to take home their cooking.  This has been an amazing opportunity for our families to work together and strengthen our relationships from within our school community.

Premiers Reading Challenge

Premier’s Reading challenge has begun.  Please remember to keep a record of the books that your child in reading at home and record in the booklet.

JAAM Assembly

Just a reminder that we are celebrating our specialists at Forest Primary on Monday the 1^st of July at 1:15pm in our Multipurpose Room.  We will see and hear from;

Music – Annette Dawes

Agriculture – Jessie Ollington

The ARTS – Fran Joyce

Japanese -Mina Howe

It would be fantastic to see as many families come along to witness our showcase of specialist lessons here at Forest Primary School.

Spice Kids on Tour

On Thursday the 27^th of June, Annette and Ms Pop will be taking our Spice Kids on Tour to various locations in Smithton.  Thank you so much to Annette for providing this opportunity for our students and giving up your time to rehearse and coordinate this event.

SRC Dress up Day Thursday 4^th of July

Just a reminder to come along dressed up as, who you would want to be when you grow up!  Cannot wait to see who wants to be a Principal!!

Upcoming events;

Bright Sparks Incursion Friday 28^th of June

Fire Safety 1^st – 5^th of July.

Communicating with Families - Evidence of Learning

It has been wonderful to see so many families engage with 2- or 3-way parent conversations this week. Evidences of learning for Maths and English are being shared at Parent/Teacher/Student meetings this week.  These samples are intended to capture what is happening as part of normal teaching and learning.  These samples provide opportunities for feedback to both students and families. If you would like to organise a time to meet with your child’s teacher, please contact the school office.  The evidence of learning will be posted to families in week 10, who were unable to attend a meeting.

Mrs Jill Barnard

Dearly loved part of our Forest Primary School and community who will be missed immensely from each and everyone of us who have had the privilege to have known Mrs Jill Barnard. Mrs Barnard will always be in our hearts and the Forest Primary School family.  Our sincere condolences to Mr Barnard and the family.

• “Always wear the boots.”

In HASS 3/4W have been learning about the First Fleet; what it was, who was involved and why they were involved. We know that there were 11 ships in the First Fleet and that prisoners were sent to Australia. We have learned that this was known as 'transportation'.  We have read stories about Prison Hulks, the vast range of crimes that were committed and how convicts were sent to Australia and in most cases served their time and never returned home to their families. Some of the crimes were very minor, like stealing a loaf of bread or pick pocketing, some were more severe like murder, but did you know that some people were charged with the crime of simply disagreeing with the King?

With our investigation and research, we have created a convict profile (as ourselves as the convict) and had pictures taken of us 'behind bars!'

Exploring Information Reports!

This term in English, 1/2 Hills/Poke have been learning about information reports!

Our Year 5 class has taken on the responsibility of caring for our orphan lambs, Sissy Girl and Rambo. The students change their bedding, feed them around the clock, mix their milk, and shower them with love and attention. To add a creative twist to their learning, we broke up our persuasive writing sessions with an engaging task: writing from the perspective of Sissy Girl and Rambo, capturing what life is like through their eyes.

Umm... Where am i? I am in a mysterious green place and I am being taken away in a brown thing... Next, I am suddenly in a huge mansion filled with figures. I think they said they were humans... Suddenly life becomes amazing, I am being fed some yummy stuff, its white and smooth, ‘maybe lemonade ‘my brain tells me. These ‘humans’ take me into a fenced off thing and a few days later another creature, just like me, joins me and we snuggled up together and kept each other warm, life is so good. From my house, I can see figures like those that were in the paddock when I was born, I am very scared of them. The humans, just like me, feed me all the time, love me and keep me safe locked away from the scary figures they call sheep. I am so glad I am not one of them.. -Charlie Payne

As soon as I was born and had my first warm drink, I was left lost, with no home, in the middle of a huge opened space they refer to as a paddock. I was so cold and scared , until suddenly this huge moving monster came up and wrapped me in something warm and snuggly. They brought me into a cozy cottage, where I was filmed. The next day, I was put into a stuffy thing, and when I came out, I was at my new home. My new mummy was there waiting to take me in. All these creatures, just like me, entered the room squealing. I got fed a gourmet soup from a China bottle. My new home is a mansion. They gave me pants and named me Rambo! I go home with my Mummy every night and come back to the mansion every day. My friends are always happy to see me. We even have a pet dog, called sissy girl, and 3 mysterious beasts around me they call sheep. They scare me. Lucky I am always safe. -Ruby Medwin

Hi my name is Rambo, and this is my story... When I was born, I was in a little paddock on a lovely farm. My mother cared for me at first, but then suddenly she was no where to be seen and I was all alone. This is when a strange species came and took me in to this beautiful mansion. Soon after there were 3 more things they call ‘sheep’ WEIRD.... Then, there was ANOTHER weird thing... they called this thing a ‘lamb’... From the day they took me in I was treated like a king. They feed me a silky white drink every time my tummy feels hungry and then, believe it or not, they bend down and massage my head. I’ve formed a great bond with these weird species, and I am pretty sure I am one of them. -Liv Ralston

These colder months are  upon us and are a time we’re more likely to catch viral infections (colds, influenza or COVID).  Did you know that children can get between 5 and 10 colds a year, while adults can get 2 to 4 colds each year L This is such an important time to take extra care of ourselves and our families. Keeping our immune systems strong can help prevent catching colds and the flu. So, what can we do to help our immune system?  Here are some suggestions:

Healthy Diet: Eating a varied, nutritious diet is a great way to help our bodies stay well. Remember to include 5 serves of vegetables and 2 serves of fruit. Broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower are great winter vegetables, and oranges, mandarins, and kiwi fruit are in season over winter. These are all great natural sources of vitamin C!

Exercise: this can be harder during the winter months but it is good to maintain our activity as best as we can! Get outside whenever you can (rug up well if it’s cold!) Be creative with indoor exercise – borrow exercise DVDs from your local library and try something new. Dance-offs are fun – get a little bit silly, get your heart rate up, and prepare to laugh a lot!  See if the kids have any new, original ideas for indoor exercise!

Managing stress: Find time to do activities you love and that helps you to relax. Try mindfulness meditations – Smiling Mind is a great app that has lots of meditations/mindfulness ideas to help reduce stress and worries, relax your mind, and improve your resilience.

Sleep: make sure you’re getting enough sleep, as lack of sleep can affect our immune systems.  Sticking to a regular sleep routine—even on weekends—maintains the timing of the body's internal clock and can help you fall asleep and wake up more easily.

Keep warm: Wear layers of clothing. (We all know how easy it is to get caught out in Tasmania!)  Keep curtains drawn and doors closed to block draughts. Have regular hot drinks and at least one hot meal a day. This is especially important for people with heart or respiratory problems such as asthma.

Hand washing: This is something that is so important to do, and to continue to teach our children to do. Hand washing is one of the BEST and EASIEST ways to avoid becoming sick.

Keep well, and stay warm!

Nurse Lisa

Purchase any Single City Membership before Thursday 27th June and receive a bonus upgrade to Multi City, unlocking over 15,000 offers in 20 cities across Australia and New Zealand.

The best part? 20% of every Membership purchased is donated to supporting our fundraising efforts.

Join today and help us make a difference.

• A firefighter from the Tasmania Fire Service (TFS) is visiting our school in week 10 from July 1st to present a Home Fire Safety Program to our Prep to Grade 6 students.
• Kindergarten students, whilst not receiving a structured lesson, can expect a visit from the firefighter who will leave some free fun activities for the students to complete.
• The age appropriate program is designed to raise fire awareness in children and includes fun in class activities, videos, activity books, giveaways and a new kids website tfskids.com.au.
• Parents and other family members are also encouraged to participate by reading the information and assisting your child with the after school activities.
• The TFS aims to deliver appropriate fire safety education to every primary school child in Tasmania and is part of the TFS’s ongoing commitment to create a fire safe Tasmania.
• Key Fire Safety Messages include,
• Wake up - Install a smoke alarm in every bedroom
• Plan and practice a home fire escape plan with the whole family
• In a fire crawl low and go, go, go to the nearest exit
• In an emergency call triple zero
• Keep flammable material at least two metres from the heater
• If your clothes catch fire, stop, drop, rock and roll
• Keep matches and lighters away from children
• Cooking - Turn it off before you turn away
• Cool a burn under cold water for at least 20 minutes
• Most house fires can be avoided. Make your home fire safe
• More information for parents, carers and teachers tfseducation.com.au
• Exciting new website just for kids tfskids.com.au
• SUBSCRIBE to our free bi-monthly newsletter

EARLY CHILDHOOD

TFS receives regular requests from preschools and child care centres asking for firefighters to visit and teach children about home fire safety.

TFS does not deliver structured fire safety programs to children below primary school age. This decision was made based on research carried out by the Mental Health Services of the Royal Children’s Hospital and the Metropolitan Fire Brigade in Melbourne. This research indicated that:

• Children under the age of five had low retention of the information they had learned; and
• In some children, the information had actually stimulated their curiosity about fire and they had begun to play with fire.

TFS believes that parents and caregivers are the best people to make sure that very young children are safe from fire. To help with this, TFS has a fire safety website for parents, carers and teachers.

TFS has also developed free giveaways for young children that introduce them to the friendly firefighter characters that they will meet when they receive the School Fire Education Program including a colouring book, a money box shaped like a fire truck, and stickers with home fire safety messages for the whole family. Click here for free giveaways for your preschool or child care centre.

Support your child’s online learning at home   

Digital skills are critical to every child’s success, but supporting online learning can be overwhelming.

The Digital skills for families team are delivering a program to help Tasmanian families support online learning at home. Spending time online at home gives children an opportunity to practice what they are learning at school. Positive home environments help children develop the skills and independence they need to succeed in a digital future.  

Learn about communicating online with schools, digital education at school and how to support online learning at home.

Digital skills for families is offering free:

• information sessions
• workshops
• one-to-one help

In libraries, schools and community locations statewide.

Email the team at digitalskillsforfamilies@libraries.tas.gov.auto find out more and book a free session.

Share your thoughts on school attendance

Help us better understand any barriers that may be in the way, and what supports are needed to help with getting to school.

The Department for Education, Children and Young People is doing statewide consultation on school attendance. 3P Advisory is independently running the consultation. Your answers are confidential, and you won’t be identified.

We want to hear from you. You can take part in an online survey, share or vote for suggestions, or join an online drop-in session via the 3P website. The survey takes approximately 10 minutes to complete.

You can also share your thoughts about what you like or don’t like about our Every school day matters campaign.

As a parent or carer, please have your say. Please encourage your child/ren, too.

Every piece of feedback counts. Thanks for helping shape future DECYP initiatives, school-based engagement strategies and public awareness campaigns.