TERM 3 WEEK 9/10 NEWSLETTER 2024

FROM THE PRINCIPAL

AND THAT'S A WRAP!

After 6 long years, we have finally got back to putting on a whole school production! I hope the Orange East community had as much fun watching the show as we had delivering it! 

Orange East Presents… was designed as a variety performance showcasing the many and varied skills of students across the school as well as the staff who worked to direct, produce and/or choreograph each item.

Proud is an understatement for the emotions I felt as students got their moment of fame to shine on the big stage. Congratulations boys and girls, you delivered an amazing performance – a production fitting for a 6 year break!

I would also like to acknowledge the incredible efforts of staff across the school. I choose the word ‘incredible’ very deliberately as the Production was the culmination of so much effort, enthusiasm and teamwork over the past term but particularly these last couple of weeks. There are just so many stories of the lengths that you went to ensure that the production was organised, all the items were great but also the efforts with individual students to support them through various challenges. What a team I get to work with.

I would like to circle out Mrs Sweeting in particular as our Director/Producer. There is no pressure like this role and she did an amazing job – thank you!

Finally, to the Orange East community – thank you for supporting us and the students to deliver Orange East Presents… You were a great audience and there has been such a buzz these past weeks with children today telling us about comments from various family members. There is no crowd like an Orange East crowd and that’s exactly the way I like it!

CONGRATULATIONS FREYA!

Congratulations is extended to Freya Scott who represented our school and the Western Region at the Girl's State PSSA Softball Carnival down at Cronulla in Week 7.

Western played 12 games over three days, winning four and going down narrowly in two games by two runs. The girls finished in equal 9th out of 13 teams, a great achievement considering the challenges of bringing together and training a team from such a large country area.

Freya played in most games across the week, mostly at shortstop and centre-field, batting 5th. She managed some great hits, contributing to her team's run total.

A highlight was a three-out bottom innings at the end of the last game to beat Riverina, then meeting Australian softballer Stacey McManus after the presentations. 

We are so proud of you Freya and wish you well this weekend at the Under 14's State Championship.

CONGRATULATIONS OLIVIA

This one happened a few weeks back and got lost with all the various things happening around the school!

Well done to Olivia Kable who completed a poem recital at the Orange Cenotaph as part of a special service commemorating Victory in the Pacific Day on the 15th August. Olivia was invited down as a primary school representative by Mr Chris Colvin (Orange Sub-Branch of the RSL President). Mr Colvin had watched Olivia present at our school Anzac Service earlier this year and was greatly impressed by her public speaking skills. Olvia did a great job and represented our school with pride.

PBL AWARD ASSEMBLIES - WEDNESDAY 25TH SEPTEMBER

Our Term 3 PBL Award Assemblies will be held in Week 10, Wednesday, 25th September in the school hall. All parents and caregivers are welcome to attend. This term we will hold four presentations to distribute the audience so that as many people as possible can fit into the hall for each presentation. Please see below for specific times and classes:

Please note that the cut-off date for 'Yetis/Dojos' to be recorded this term was Monday, 16th September - to allow us time to collate results, organise awards and the distribution of invitations to parents. Parents/carer invitations were sent out via email today notifying you if your child/ren will be receiving a new level.

A reminder: it is possible that students may be presented with two levels during a term. It is also possible for a student to have an assembly where they do not receive an award as during the term they did not quite progress another level since the previous term’s award assembly . This is not necessarily a reflection of a poor effort across the term and in all likelihood they may have been just a few ‘Yetis’ short.

Further information can be found at the link below.

OFFICE VISITORS

SCHOOL NEWS

SCHOOL OPEN DAY & BOOK CHARACTER PARADE 

Excitement is building for our School Open Day (open classrooms) and Book Character Parade which is set for tomorrow, Thursday, 19th September.

Schedule for the Day

As per previous years, students are invited to come dressed as their favourite book character. The Book Week theme this year is ‘Reading is Magic’.  

The format for the day will be Open Classrooms from 11:40am - 12:25pm (see classroom map attached), Book Character Parade at 12:30pm followed by the P&C Nacho lunch at 1:10pm. All parents/caregivers and wider family are welcome to attend.

Food

The P&C have jumped in again to provide lunch for this special event. In an effort to try something new, lunch for this event will be Nachos!

Thank you to everyone who has placed an order for the special Nachos lunch - orders closed yesterday. Cash/EFTPOS purchases will still be available tomorrow for those yet to order.

Please note that yesterday a School Bytes app notification went out stating the canteen will also be open on Thursday. Our apologies, this was a typo! The canteen will be running Book Week specials today and on Friday only. However, P&C will also be selling light snacks/lollies during the lunch time after the parade. See attached poster for details.

Book Fair

During the Open Day between 11am to 2:30pm we will also have our Book Fair operating out of the library. Parents/carers are welcome to take students down to the library during these hours to select and purchase a book/s. Payments can be made either by cash or we will also have EFTPOS facilities.

Online ordering: Students have also been through the Book Fair and have been able to take home a ‘Wish List’ of an item/s that parents may be interested in purchasing. This can be done online by going to: https://scholastic.com.au/book-fairs/payments/ and following the payment instructions. Scholastic Book Fair Pre-Payment sheets have already been sent home or see attached. If ordering online it is important to provide the school with the pre-purchase sheet or the details below:

• Book Title/s
• Price/s
• Receipt Number
• Total Amount Paid
• Child’s First Name/Last Name

Please note: There are limited copies of each book at the Book Fair. We will retain one copy of each title for browsing purposes. Once all copies of a particular item have been sold, we will place additional orders with Scholastic which may take 1-2 weeks to get back to the school for distribution.

Looking forward to a great community event!

ANIMAL KIN ART EXHIBITION

Over the next 11 weeks, Orange Regional Gallery will host the Animal Kin Exhibition. Featuring work by local public primary school students, the ‘herd’ includes more than 2500 collage animals that were made as part of an in-school creative and environmental education project carried out in Term 2, 2024.

Animal Kin is a collaborative project developed by Orange Regional Museum, Orange Regional Gallery and the SPARKE network of local public primary schools. Kinder Kangaroo, Kinder Bilby, 1 Quokka and 1/2 Panda took part in this initiative with all students' artworks displayed as part of the exhibition. Make sure you make time to see the exhibition which opens tonight and runs to the 20th of October.

KINDERGARTEN 2025 UPDATE

Last week the Kindergarten Enrolment Panel met to discuss and process our Kindergarten Enrolment Applications for 2025. This is always an exciting time as we prepare for and transition our newest members into the school. Enrolment acceptance emails have been sent and all families have been contacted and notified of their child’s enrolment status.

Supported Transition Playgroup

This is an optional activity for parents/carers to bring pre-school age children to Orange East. During supported playgroup they will meet other children and staff and take part in simple activities to build familiarity with the school. It is also a great opportunity for parents to meet each other and various members of the school community.

The supported playgroup is free to attend and will be guided by an Orange East teacher and support staff. Sessions will run on Tuesdays from 9:30 to 11 am in the second half of Term 3 and you can attend as many/little as you wish. Younger siblings are also welcome to attend. Children attending must be accompanied by a parent/carer for these sessions. The Playgroup will be held in the demountable classroom with entry via the lower March St gate (shown on the map below). Dates for these sessions are listed below:

• Tues, 24th Sept (final session)

Independent Transition Sessions Information

Our independent transition sessions commence in Term 4. The sessions are designed for children to experience various aspects of the school day. They will meet a variety of staff, build familiarity with the school environment and take part in activities similar to those at school.

The sessions are a valuable opportunity for children and parents to build readiness for school and for our teachers to get to know and build an understanding of our newest students.

We ask that students attend as many of the transition sessions as possible. For the transition program, students are divided into two groups – Possums and Koalas. Each transition session runs for 2 hours with the Possums group running between 9:00 – 11:00am and the Koalas group running between 12:00 – 2:00pm. The OEPS Kindergarten Transition Update email sent out this week will explain which group your child/children have been placed in. Children are to attend sessions unaccompanied. There are five transition sessions in total. The Independent Transition Sessions will be held in the demountable classroom with students first being dropped-off at the school hall. The transition program dates are listed below:

• Tues, 22nd Oct
• Tues, 29th Oct
• Tues, 5th Nov
• Tues, 12th Nov
• Tues, 19th Nov

Further details will be communicated about drop-off, pick-up, location, requirements etc at the information evening and via our app as the transition sessions draw closer.

Some parents may find these session times difficult due to various other commitments. If this is the case, please contact the school office as soon as possible and we will endeavour to change your child’s session time.

Required Documents

• Enrolment Forms: To assist the office with gathering and completing enrolment information please ensure you have completed an Enrolment Form by Friday, 6^th September. The form can be completed online or alternatively hard copy forms are available from the school office (entry via Spring St). If you have already submitted an enrolment form in hard copy or online, you do not need to submit another one. We also ask that you supply a copy of your child’s Immunisation Record and Birth Certificate.
• Learning Support or Health Needs: Please let the school know as soon as possible if your child has complex health care or learning support requirements so we can commence planning any required adjustments.

Before and After School/Vacation Care

Orange East is fortunate to have an Outside of School Hours (OOSH) and Vacation Care service. Our service provider, Gowrie NSW, operates OOSH services across NSW with several in the Orange area. If you are interested in this service, we suggest making contact as soon as possible as it is heavily utilised, particularly for the afternoon sessions. The service can be contacted by phone on 02 8571 9700 or by email at oshc.orangeeast@gowriensw.com.au.

Useful Resources

As part of the school webpage, we have worked hard to develop a very detailed Kindergarten Transition tab that contains highly useful information about Orange East transition processes, preparing for Kindergarten as well as more general school information. The Kindergarten Transition landing page can be found at:  https://orangeeast-p.schools.nsw.gov.au/kindergarten-transition.html

Another useful resource developed by the Department of education is the Getting Ready for Primary School booklet accessible at: https://education.nsw.gov.au/schooling/parents-and-carers/going-to-school/getting-ready-for-school/starting-primary-school/getting-ready-for-primary-school-guide

We look forward to you coming along to the Kindergarten Information Evening to find out about some of the wonderful things your child will be learning about in 2025! 

CLOTHING POOL

The Clothing Pool is open every Wednesday and Friday morning from 8:40 - 9:10am. Afternoons are by appointment only. A reminder that the Clothing Pool has moved to what was formerly the General Assistant/Cleaner's Shed - next to the disabled toilet.

The Clothing Pool also welcomes donations of any clothing. Please drop items off at the office or clothing pool on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

CURRENT FORMS/PERMISSION NOTES

UPCOMING EVENTS

FRIDAY ASSEMBLY

ASSEMBLY INFORMATION

In 2024 we will continue with our regular alternating Friday Assembly with parents and carers invited to attend. The assembly commences at 2pm on Friday in the School Hall. Each week the assembly will alternate between Primary (Yr 3-6) and Infants (K-2).

On Friday mornings from 8:40am, either Infants or Primary students (corresponding with the assembly weeks listed below) are invited to bring their lots of 10 Blue Merit Awards to the office for stamping. During the day, we will also process Principal Awards and Homereading Awards. These awards and the Safe Respectful Learner Awards will be presented at the assembly after lunch.

Parents will receive a notification early in the week via the School Bytes app if your child is receiving a Principal’s Award.

Photos of the award recipients will continue be included in the newsletter the following week.

Please note the roster below:

Term 3

• Week 9 - Friday, 20th September (Infants, K-2)
• Week 10 - WEDNESDAY, 25th September PBL

Term 4

• Week 1 - Friday, 18th October (Primary, 3-6)
• Week 2 - Friday, 25th October (Infants, K-2)
• Week 3 - Friday, 1st November (Primary, 3-6)
• Week 4 - Friday, 8th November (Infants, K-2)
• Week 5 - Friday, 15th November (Primary, 3-6)
• Week 6 - Friday, 22nd November (FINAL Infants, K-2)
• Week 7 - Friday, 29th November (FINAL Primary, 3-6)
• Week 8 - Friday, 6th December (PBL Awards Assemblies)
• Week 9 - Presentation Day (TBC)
• Week 10 - Yr 6 Farewell/Graduation Assembly (TBC)
  

WEEK 7 INFANTS ASSEMBLY AWARDS

WEEK 8 PRIMARY ASSEMBLY AWARDS

GOT IT! PROGRAM UPDATE

GOT IT! CARE2KIDS – WEEK 7

In Week 7 in the Got It! program, the children learnt about understanding worry and parents continued to learn about emotion coaching with this week looking at step 5.

GOT IT! CARE2KIDS – WEEK 8

In Week 8 in the Got It! program, we continued to look at managing big uncomfortable feelings. The children read the book Moody Cow Mediates and made Mind Jars. We have also included suggestions about the best times to use Emotion Coaching. 

GOT IT! CARE2KIDS – WEEK 9

This will be our last week for Got It! so the focus is on saying goodbye well. In this 'Hey did you know' we will talk about Good enough parenting, Rupture and Repair, and the importance of self-care.  Thank you for having Got It! in your school. We have really enjoyed our time with you all.

P&C NEWS

P&C HELPERS NEEDED

The P&C are serving up nachos at the book week parade and they'd love your help! 

If you can spare some time, click on the link and let us know when you can help out. The times indicated are an approximation. If you can spare 30 minutes that is great. 

1. Click this link to go to the invitation page on SignUp:

https://signup.com/go/MrDpnUu

2. Enter your email address: (You will NOT need to register an account on SignUp)

3. Sign up! Choose your spots - SignUp will send you an automated confirmation and reminders. Easy!

Note: SignUp does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact the P&C at orangeeastpandc@gmail.com and they can sign you up manually.

P&C MEETINGS 2024

Term 4 Meetings

• Week 3 - Tuesday, 29th October @ 6:30pm
  
• Week 8 - Tuesday, 3rd December @ 6:30pm

Meetings are held between 6:30 - 7:30pm in the Staffroom with access from the Spring Street entrance (see map below). Meeting length is strictly limited to one hour or less if possible! New members are warmly welcomed. Do not hesitate to contact the school office if you would like further information.

Parents and carers can also opt to join via Zoom. Zoom participants will need to create a registered account and use the details below:

https://nsweducation.zoom.us/j/68062125227?pwd=ur9M6o1EamW7B6aBhA5BgQAoZb3Icx.1

Meeting ID: 680 6212 5227

Passcode: 643932

JOINING THE P&C OR VOLUNTEERING

We love parent involvement at Orange East. You can volunteer in the classroom, working bees, help cook at BBQ's, share your professional or special interest skills, join a committee and more. Please complete this online form to register your interest and the P&C will email you details of upcoming events and P&C meetings for your calendar.

Expressions of Interest - OEPS P&C (google.com)

COMMUNITY NOTICES

ORANGE AQUATIC CENTRE

Dear Parents,

We are running some staff training sessions in October. We would like to invite current level 1 – level 4 students to the training to assist staff in going through the stages of stroke progression.

Please see the dates and times below and let us know if your child would like to attend any of the sessions. There are no associated costs as the sessions will be for staff development purposes. The training vacancies will be limited to 20 students per day. You can nominate multiple days.

All components of the program will be covered in the sessions. Students will benefit from stroke correction and our aim will be to progress the students’ skills.

LOCATION: This session will be run in the program pool so stroke correction and engagement can be maximised.

HOW TO BOOK: Email aquatic@orange.nsw.gov.au with your child’s name & preferred dates as below. If you are successful in obtaining a spot, we will email you with confirmation.

*Please only request a booking if you can guarantee your child will attend. 

CUTOFF DATE: 23rd September 2024.

STAFF TRAINING DATES:

• Thursday 10th October:

level 1 – 1:30pm to 2pm

level 2 – 2pm to 2:30pm

level 3 – 2:30pm to 3pm

level 4 – 3pm – 3:30pm

• Friday 11th  October:

level 1 – 1:30pm to 2pm

level 2 – 2pm to 2:30pm

level 3 – 2:30pm to 3pm

level 4 – 3pm – 3:30pm

If you have any questions or wish to book, please reply to this email and attention the undersigned.

Kindest regards,

Leanne Wiggins | Carissa Garside
Learn to Swim Program Coordinators.