162b The Boulevarde Miranda NSW 2229 Ph: (02)95246842 mirandanth-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Miranda North Public School Newsletter

Week 7

Coronavirus (COVID -19) Information for parents and carers to support children and young people

How you can support your child

It is perfectly normal for children to have questions about events that are covered in the media, such as the information currently being distributed about COVID-19. Children look to the significant adults in their lives for guidance on how to manage their reactions and you can help your child by remaining calm and reassuring them.

There is a common misunderstanding that talking with your child about a topic such as COVID-19 may increase their anxiety. This is not the case. It is important to listen to your child and answer their questions as honestly as possible and correct any misunderstandings. This will help them feel informed and understand what is happening.

Keeping up to date with the facts from reliable sources will help keep conversations calm, con-sidered, and constructive. Provide information in words that are appropriate to the age of your child.

Children can be distressed by hearing repeated stories so monitor how much your child is being

exposed to television and social media and encourage them to talk to you about what they are

seeing and hearing.

Some practical advice

Some practical advice for your child includes reminding them to cover their nose and mouth when they cough or sneeze (coughing into their elbow is a useful strategy), keep their hands clean by washing them regularly with soap and water, and avoid touching their eyes, nose, and mouth before washing their hands. These are easy habits for children to adopt, and should help them feel as though they're able to exert some control over their circumstances.

If your child must stay at home, it is important for your child to maintain a healthy lifestyle including proper diet, sleep, and social contact at home and by email and phone with family and friends

Communication is important

read the department’s response to COVID-19 for current information

read any information sent home by the school.

contact the school if your child becomes unwell.

Where to get help

Contact the school if you are concerned about your child’s wellbeing to discuss the most appropriate support. Support is also available through a number of agencies and community organisations. Parents and carers can:

call the National Coronavirus Health Information line (1800 020 080)

review the NSW Health COVID-19 website for the latest information and advice

obtain help and information from the local General Practitioner or Community Health Centre If you would like additional support, the following services are available

The school counselling service

Kids Helpline – 1800 55 1800 – kidshelpline.com.au

Headspace – 1800 650 890 – eheadspace.org.au

Parent Helpline – 1300 1300 52

Beyond Blue – 1300 22 4636

Lifeline – 13 11 14

Coronavirus (COVID-19) update continued...

How to book your Parent/teacher/student

interview with your child’t class teacher

We are looking forward to our parent/student/teacher interviews which are held in

the last couple of weeks of the term. The booking for interviews is made online by

selecting the following link www.schoolinterviews.com.au and entering the event

code xu5pv

Interviews are 15 minutes in length. Students are encouraged to attend the learning discussions with their

parent/carer.

If you do not have internet access and would like to book an appointment, please ring the office on

9524 6842.

P and C AGM—17 March

Our supportive and friendly P and C meet each month in the staffroom. Our P and C support the school by

fundraising, running special food days, Friday canteen and supporting the staff at school events. We value

our P and C and the wonderful assistance they provide each year. This month’s meeting is the annual

general meeting where positions are elected for the year.

Parents and carers are welcome to attend the next meeting and a warm invitation is extended to our new

parents and carers in kindergarten and other grades across the school. Current financial members of the

P and C are able to vote at the meeting.

P and C Executive roles:- President, Vice President. Secretary and Treasurer

Sub committee positions include:- Canteen sub committee, Uniform shop sub committee, Fundraising

sub-committee and Grants applications.

It is Department of Education Policy that students

are not permitted to use mobile phones whilst at

school. It is preferable for students not to bring the

devices to school. If students are required to bring

the device to school, the phone must remain

turned off during school hours and not be taken

out of the schoolbag. No responsibility is taken for

mobile phones that are brought to school. If your

child is required to have a mobile phone, please

notify your child’s teacher. Inappropriate use of a

student’s mobile phone at school will be ad-

dressed in accordance with the NSW DoE policy

and school discipline procedures.

Mobile Phones:

Easter Raffle is coming our way!

It won’t be long before the Easter bunny hops

down Miranda North way! Our P and C are hold-

ing the annual Easter Raffle on the last day of

term one (Thursday 9 April at 2:00pm). Donations

are welcome over the next few weeks, with the

last day for donations being Friday 27 March.

Chocolates, eggs, bunnies can be provided to

the school office. Please do not send chocolates

that contain nuts. Thanks P and C for hosting the

raffle. Hippity Hop! Could we expect a special,

fluffy visitor?

Cross country carnival and P and C BBQ

Our cross country carnival will be held on Friday 3

April (week 10) from 10am. Our P and C will also

be holding a BBQ on the day, so it is shaping up to

be a fabulous day for our students and wider

community. Details about the cross country will go

home closer to the date.

ANZAC Day service at school and at Miranda

Our annual ANZAC service will be held on

Wednesday 1 April at 10:45am. Our student lead-

ers will be leading the ceremony and all students

will be in attendance. We hold the ceremony at

under the COLA at the flagpole garden. It is a

beautiful ceremony and parents/carers are wel-

come to join us. We are fortunate to be afforded

the attendance of serving members of the armed

forces and representatives from the RSL.

During the holidays, on 25 April, students are invit-

ed to attend the ANZAC dawn service, which is

organised by Miranda RSL, sub branch. Students

who are of an age where they are able to stand

and focus for the duration of the service are en-

couraged to attend. Attending students meet the

supervising teachers and Ms Orlovich on the cor-

ner or Central Rd and The Kingsway at 5.10am

and will march behind the school flag to the Mi-

randa Cenotaph. Parents may meet the children

at the end of the service. Our student leaders will

lead the Miranda North students.

Lest we forget.

Tell Them From Me Survey

I am delighted that this term, our school, like many

other public schools in the state, will participate in

a Department of Education initiative: the Tell Them

From Me student feedback survey. The survey

measures factors that are known to affect aca-

demic achievement and other student outcomes.

The focus of the NSW-wide survey is on student

wellbeing, engagement and effective teaching

practices.

More information about the survey is available at:

http://surveys.cese.nsw.gov.au

The survey is a great opportunity for our students

to provide us with valuable and quick feedback

on what they think about school life, how en-

gaged they are with school and the different

ways that teachers interact with them. More than

6,300 schools in Australia and around the world

have used Tell Them From Me to survey 5.4 million

students. Capturing the voices of our students will

help improve how we do things at our school.

I want to assure you that the survey is confidential.

The survey is conducted online and will typically

take less than 30 minutes to complete. It will be

administered during school hours between

16 March and 8 May. Participating in the survey is

entirely voluntary.

A consent form and FAQs for parents/carers about

the survey is being sent home with students. If you

do not want your child or children to participate,

please return the form to school by 13 March,

2020. Copies of the form and FAQs are available

from: http://surveys.cese.nsw.gov.au/information-

for-parents.

Payments for School Resources and Coding

Photo Day—Thursday 2 April 2020

12/3 Selective High School placement test

17/3 P and C AGM

24/3 Endeavour Sports High Extension Class

Test—Year 7 2021

1/4 ANZAC Ceremony10.45am

2/4 School Photos

3/4 Cross Country Carnival & P & C BBQ

9/4 Easter Hat Parade 2pm

Last day of Term 1

10/4 Good Friday

28/4 First day of Term 2

Upcoming events

Thank you to parents who have already paid for

school textbooks, resources and coding. Should

you require an extended payment plan, please

see the office so that a plan can be developed. If

families would prefer to pay for coding in term

instalments, ie: $66.00 per student per term, that

option is also available.

Envelopes for school photo day will be distributed

shortly. Please return the envelope with payment

on photo day. Students are to wear full summer

uniform with black shoes. Please ensure that hair

accessories are only school colours or hair colour.

Wonderful scenes from around our school

lately…..

Here's to strong women- may we know them, may

we be them, may we raise them. Happy

International Women's Day for Sunday!

Celebrating the achievements of girls and women

across the world...and at Miranda North!

What a rich end-of-summer harvest for our garden

club!

A delicious array of vegetables was collected at

the end of summer harvest last week. Great work,

garden club! Can't wait to see what you are going

to next plant in the garden beds you have

prepared.

Which of the learning dispositions on the wheel

has IH been exploring?... 1H recently explored the

learning disposition “grit”- being determined and

resilient. They talked about having a growth

mindset and the importance of trying and not

giving up. Each student had a go at a VERY tricky

maze (Miss Henry couldn’t even finish it!) and they

cheered for people when they learnt from their

mistakes. Great resilience 1H!

Clean Up Australia Day success-Our eco-warriors

from every class were on a mission to clean our

environment and make it plastic and litter free last

Friday. They did a magnificent job in making our

playground sparkle and removing all the litter

from the environment. Our challenge is to keep

our play space litter free!

Our stage two students decided to give our native

wildlife a little bit of fun after a challenging

summer season...they gave them party gear, dress

up clothes and a few cheeky toys! Stage two

thinks they would have enjoyed a bit of fun! The

gorgeous artworks are on display in the office.

Come and take a look! Love your creativity and

playfulness, stage 2 and Mrs J!

Congratulations to our fabulous zone swimming

team who were magnificent at the recent

carnival. Each competitor tried hard,

encouraged the rest of the team and showed

grit & enthusiasm. Thanks to the many parents

who came along to support the team on the

day. We valued your support! Our new school

shade shelter had its debut...thanks P&C!