RSS Newsletter Issue 1 2023
From the Principal
Welcome to the 2023 school year, I have been thrilled to welcome all of our staff and students back to school for another productive year. Our students have settled into learning quickly and have set themselves a range of learning goals to achieve. As a staff, we are all looking forward to supporting the students in reaching their individual goals.
Our 2023 Student Leaders
Congratulations to our student leaders for the expectional work you have already begun. I am very excited to have the opportunity to work with these students as they develop as the leaders of tomorrow. I can only imagine how proud you, as families members, are of your children.
Our Improvement Agenda - Literate Learners
Our focus for improvement in 2023 is: Creating Literate Learners from Prep to Year 10. We will be enacting this by ensuring that we are delivering high quality teaching of reading each and every day.
Our work began on the Student Free Days when teachers set goals for our school, in conjunction with our first professional development for the year. We were joined by Kathryn Whitworth from the Reading and Writing Centre and Yadanar Tutu our Speech Language Pathologist. Together, they presented the "Simple View of Reading" professional development to our whole staff.
I will be sharing more information in upcoming newsletters about our improvement agenda and welcome your input and feedback.
Head of Department - Curriculum
Welcome to the 2023 school year! I am so excited to be back full-time this year working with the staff and students for another great year of learning, with our Explicit Improvement Agenda focus being on high quality teaching of reading from Prep to Year 10.
New Year – New Faces!
This year we have a number of new staff members joining our team with a wealth of experience and skills that will be a wonderful addition to our school and community. The main new faces that you may have met late last year were Miss Aleisha Grundy, who will be teaching one of our Year 3/4 classes and Miss Caroline Smith who will be joining the team as a specialist teacher teaching a variety of subjects across the school including The Arts, Health and some of our senior secondary elective subjects. Aleisha has been a teacher aide and private tutor prior to joining our team and Caroline is an experienced teacher joining our school from Victoria where she has taught everything from Kindergarten to high school! What great assets to our school! Welcome ladies. We will also see a number of new faces in our external support staff (such as Guidance Officer, School-Based Health Nurse etc), we will introduce you to them in a later newsletter.
NAPLAN
NAPLAN is occurring earlier this year than previous years. In 2023, students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 will be sitting the NAPLAN from Wednesday 15 March to Monday 27. The Education Ministers reason for this date change was: “Bringing the test forward puts information in teachers’ hands sooner, allowing for more targeted support for students to ensure they are gaining important literacy and numeracy skills.”
Students will be completing the Writing, Reading, Conventions of Language and Numeracy NAPLAN assessments online again in 2023, except the Year 3 Writing assessment, which will remain paper-based.
It is important to remember that NAPLAN is nothing to be anxious about. It is simply one of the data collection tools that schools utilise throughout the year to collect a snapshot of your child’s knowledge and understanding. We use this data, as well as other formal (such as our end of unit assessment tasks) and information (such as reading tests) to help us plan and support your child’s progress throughout the year.
For further information regarding NAPLAN please visit https://www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/p-10/naplan/general-information
If you have any questions or concerns regarding your child's participation in NAPLAN, please contact our NAPLAN Administrator, Cheryl Phillips to discuss.
Communicating with RSS
At the open classroom afternoon, you would have received a welcome pamphlet for your child’s class with information regarding your child’s teachers for the year with their contact details, some information about PBL and bell times etc. If you weren’t able to make the open afternoon, a copy would have been sent home with your child on their first day. The open-classroom and pamphlet are just one of the ways that we begin welcoming parents/carers into our school and begin an open line of communication. Some of the other forms of communication throughout the year include:
- Newsletters (3x a term)
- Schoolzine (please make sure you download the app!)
- Letters and notes home (paper-based and via schoolzine)
- Termly calendar
- Postcards home
- Parent and Teacher Interviews (Term 1 and 3)
- Report Cards (Term 2 and 4)
- Parent Curriculum Overviews (termly)
- And of course, you are always welcome to pop into your child’s classrooms for them to show you their learning before school.
If you would like to discuss your child with their teacher or a member of the leadership team, please use the contact details within the welcome pamphlet or contact the office to make a formal time to meet.
Parent Curriculum Overviews are a way that we communicate to you what your child is learning for the term in each of their learning areas. They will be sent home in the first couple of weeks of each term, so be on the lookout for them. If you have any feedback regarding the Parent Curriculum Overviews we would love to hear it! Please either come and see me or send me an email at tfull82@eq.edu.au with your feedback for consideration.
Student Achievements
Congratulations to all award recipients. You have been recognised for your hard work and dedication to learning.
Term 1 Week 2
Term 1 Week 3
Our First Week
Prep
Classrooms
Science with Mr Theodore
Library News
Welcome to 2023. Firstly I would like to say a big thankyou to last years library leader Alyssa, your input and assistance was very much appreciated.
2023 we have Miss Baylie taking the role as library leader, I look forward to working with Baylie. She already has some great ideas for ways to make our library an enjoyable place to be and encourage other to read for joy. Students can have a chat with Baylie in regards to any ideas for the library.
If you have suggestions on titles you would like to see your children borrow, please let staff know.
Student Absence Process
In the event of your child being absent from school please ensure you communicate via:-
- School phone 47 686 333
- Option 1 for absence line to leave a message
- Email: admin@richmondss.eq.edu.au
- Send a note with your child before the day of absence, if it is a planned absence
- For planned long term absence, please speak with admin staff
Children who do not present at school without explanation are recorded as ‘unexplained absence’. Mandatory same day notification is a legal requirement. If you have not informed the school of your child’s absence you will receive a phone call informing you of their absence and seeking an explanation as to the reason.
Students who are going to be on a planned absence of greater than ten school days are required to apply for an exemption from schooling. Should this situation apply to your child at any time please contact the school office for an appointment with the principal to discuss the required process.
