CREEKSIDE NEWS Term 1, Week 2

February 3, 2020

Welcome Back to Another School Year– Our 150th!

It’s great to return to what promises to be another tremendous year at Dora Creek PS, which, as you may or may not be

aware, is the school’s 150th year of operation! After a Summer Holidays that sadly brought tragedy, hardship, grief and loss

to so many across our wide, brown land, the Australian spirit lives on. The response of communities, sportspeople, other

celebrities across the country and the world, along with the everyday Australian, to the bushfire disaster that has impacted

so many, exemplifies what it means to value our identity. At Dora Creek Public School, our identity as a welcoming and

caring school community is something that we value, and our hearts go out to those who have been affected, either

directly or indirectly, by the tragedy that was, and continues to be, the devastation that these terrible fires have caused.

On a far brighter note, to our existing families, welcome back to Dora Creek Public School for another year of your

child(ren)’s educational journey, which we hope will be one that is meaningful and fulfilling for all involved; and I would

also like to extend a warm welcome to the new families who are new to the area, or who are joining (or re-joining) us for

2020 and beyond– especially our new Kindergarten students. Welcome! We are sure that you will enjoy your time at our

tremendous little school and we look forward to watching you become informed, safe, respectful and engaged learners as

the years pass during your time at Dora Creek.

As we begin to knuckle down into the year ahead, we hope you all had a lovely Christmas with family and friends; a restful

holiday; and are all now refreshed and ready for a huge 2020. As you may all appreciate, the beginning of the school year is

always very busy, and quite unpredictable, and sometimes a minor re-shuffling will need to occur throughout the school

during early Term One. Thankfully, the beginning of this year has thus far been fairly smooth and our 5 classes are almost

settled. Ms Bretreger will continue in the Relieving Assistant Principal role until, at this stage, the end of term 3, 2020 and,

as part of her role, she will also undertake Release from Face to Face teaching, and fulfil Learning and Support allocations.

While on the subject of staff roles, we would also like to take this opportunity to welcome Mr Koby Dunlap to our school,

along with Mrs Briony Michalak and Miss Anna Tod. Mr Dunlap will teach Stage One, while Mrs Michalak and Miss Tod

will be sharing Stage Three. Each of these three additions to our school has so much to offer and we look forward to work-

ing with them for this year and hopefully far beyond. The five classes, and their teachers, are as follows:

KG– Mrs Green

K/1D– Mrs Dilley

1/2D– Mr Dunlap

3/4H– Mrs Harris

5/6TM– Mrs Michalak (Mon, Tue), Miss Tod (Wed—Fri)

RFF/ Learning and Support– Ms Bretreger

As you can see, we are fortunate this year in that we have mostly been able to form classes for our 118 students that are

comprised of children who are all part of the one “Stage”, which helps make organisation of learning, and other activities

associated with school, a little smoother. Whilst we have had to create a combined Kindergarten and Year 1, parents of

those students can be assured that all Kindergarten students will be working at a stage appropriate level, as will the Year

One students in that class. The set-up and proximity to each other of the K and K/1 classrooms ensures that opportunities

for learning and social interactions between students in the same grade are well-catered for. Because of this class

structure, we also have some room for further enrolments, whether local or non-local, so please encourage any families

you know, who may be moving their child across from private, independent, or other forms of education, to consider Dora

Creek Public School for their child’s learning needs. Finally, and once again, welcome to 2020 at Dora Creek Public School;

we look forward to working closely with you all to ensure that we build and maintain effective and meaningful learning

partnerships with you, your child, and your families.

Dora Creek Public School

150 Years of Quality Education

UPCOMING EVENTS

12/ 02 Swimming Carnival

18/ 02 Zone Swimming Carnival

19/ 02 Parent Information Session (TBC)

03/ 03 Soccer Gala Day (TBA)

05/ 03 Soccer Gala Day (TBA)

20/ 03 Responsible Pet Visit (K-2)

01/ 04 School Photos

09/ 04 Final Day of Term One

10/ 04 Good Friday

27/ 04 Term 2 Staff Development Day

28/ 04 Students Return for Term 2

Next Meeting– 6.30pm, Monday 10th February, followed by

150 years meeting.

Canteen

A reminder that the canteen will re-open for

Term 1 on Wednesdays and Fridays, beginning this

Wednesday 5th February and Friday 7th February. If you are

interested in volunteering, please advise either Kiri in the

canteen, via the P and C Facebook page; or the school office.

NOTES HOME

Swimming Carnival

Media Release– Novel

Coronavirus

5/6TM- Parent

Information

School Swimming Carnival

Next Wednesday, February 12, our school’s swimming carnival will be held at Morisset Pool. A note for this event has gone home with students who are already 8 or older; or who will be 8 or older in 2020. Students at Dora Creek Public School are always very supportive of each other’s efforts and it is very important that students attend and participate to the best of their ability. Students receive participation points just for entering events and there are always a series of novelty activities and participation races to cater for all levels of ability. Regardless of individual skills that students may or may not have, it’s always a great sight to witness our students cheering heartily for their peers, and encouraging one another to push themselves to do their best. Students will depart the school at 8.50am and the carnival will begin at approximately 9.15am.