Welcome,

Welcome back to another exciting school year.  It has been pleasing to see so many returning students and to welcome new families into our school.  The children have settled quickly into their classrooms and have reconnected with staff and friends seamlessly after what can only be described as an unusual and unpredictable summer. We are very mindful that for some families the impact of the extreme weather conditions has been significant.  Please contact the school if you feel you or your child may require any additional support.

Thank you to the parents who attended the Kindergarten and Year 5 and 6 parent information sessions last week. We are looking forward to seeing our Year 1- 4 Parents at their information sessions tomorrow.

Staffing

This year we have an amazing Educational team!

School Improvement Plan 2020-2024

Each school undertakes a school review as an integral component of its five-year improvement planning cycle. The reviews are an important part of how the Directorate supports and monitors school improvement. Reviews provide schools with quality and independent feedback, tailored to the school’s context. Each school is reviewed at least every five years, providing valuable opportunities for self-reflection, planning and improvement. Our school improvement planning is grounded in evidence from research and practice and expressed in terms of improvements in measurable student outcomes. Below is an excerpt from our 2020-2024 School improvement plan which will be available through the website shortly. Staff at Campbell Primary School are currently working collaboratively to refine our annual strategies and actions towards our priorities over the next five-year cycle.  Updates on our progress towards our priorities and our targets will be provided regularly through the newsletter.  

Our school’s improvement agenda positioned within the Directorate’s Strategic Plan

Vision

Directorate’s vision:
We will be a leading learning organisation where people know they matter.

School’s vision:
It is our vision that Campbell Primary School:

• Is a safe and respectful learning community, which recognises and celebrates diversity.
• Offers innovative, engaging and varied curriculum and programs.
• Meets the needs of all students with relevant and personalised learning and support.
• Ensures everyone feels supported and respected with a strong sense of belonging.
• Demonstrates positive and productive relationships among all: students, staff and parents.

Mission

Directorate’s mission:
We develop and deliver educational services to empower each child and young person in the ACT to learn for life.

School’s mission:
The purpose of Campbell Primary School is learning. We develop socially, emotionally and academically capable individuals who contribute actively to their community.

Values

Directorate’s values:
Respect, Integrity, Collaboration, Innovation.

School’s values:
At Campbell Primary School we embed learning in our school SCARFFF values.

• Support – help and encourage each other to learn.
• Cooperation – Work together and share learning, skills and knowledge.
• Acceptance – Be tolerant and understanding of each other’s learning styles and abilities.
• Respect – Show respect for yourself, each other, property and the environment by allowing all to learn without interruptions.
• Friendship – Be kind and caring to each other as we learn together.
• Forgiveness – Know how to be generous of spirit.
• Fun – Share in the joy of learning.

Our improvement priorities

Priority 1:
Increase growth in student performance in numeracy across all year levels.

Priority 2:
Increase growth in student performance in writing across all year levels.

School pick up

Please make sure you provide the front office with the name of all people who have consent to pick up your children.

Welcome, and welcome back! We have been privileged this year to welcome many new families from lots of different places. It’s always a delight to see the amazing new energy that these students bring, and how quickly they make Campbell Primary their own. I would like to extend a welcome to all of our new families. We are very proud of our Campbell Primary community and hope you will be to.

I am particularly proud of two groups of students so far this year; our new friends who have demonstrated exceptional courage and resilience as they find their way in their new school, and those returning students who have made a special effort to make the first group welcome. At Campbell Primary we try to live by our SCARFFF values – support, cooperation, acceptance, respect, FRIENDSHIP, fun and forgiveness. It takes courage for students to extend the hand of friendship to someone new, as much as it does for those that are new to accept it. I’ve seen hundreds of examples of this sort of courage over the last week and it has a wonderful flow on effect to other students, staff, and families to see. Keep up the great work!

For those who may be new and unfamiliar with my role, I am the Defence Transition Mentor for Campbell Primary School. I am employed by CPS and funded by Defence to support students from active service Australian Defence Force (ADF) families through the challenges of frequent relocation and parental absence, as well as connecting families to local community and defence support and opportunities. As such my role is primarily for social and emotional support – most alike a chaplaincy type role that counselling or learning support. It’s a role I have filled for nearly 5 years across 3 different schools and one I am passionate about. I am at CPS on Monday, Wednesday and Friday each week from 9am until 4pm and can usually be found either in the playground or supporting within classrooms. I am always happy to meet with parents to answer any questions you may have; please check in with the front office and they will locate me for you. I am also available via email at any time on Karyn.heitmann@ed.act.edu.au . I encourage families to communicate often as a collaborative approach is always the most successful.

For those ADF families that have come to us on posting from interstate please also be aware of the ability to access education support via DCO’s Education Assistance Scheme. Additional information is available via the link here. The application form AD301 is available via webforms for the serving member, or via the DCO helpline on 1800 624 608 at any time. Recent changes mean you will require a supporting letter from CPS which I am happy to arrange, as well as a report card from your previous school. Kindergarten students are ineligible unless posting occurred in the middle of the year. Please let me know if you have any questions.

We encourage parents to be involved in whatever capacity they can, whether it’s one off excursions, volunteering in the canteen, regularly changing readers or providing reading support to junior classrooms or becoming a member of our P&C committee. There’s lots of opportunities to be involved, with the added bonus of being a great way to meet new people.

I look forward to a fantastic 2020, including getting to know all of our families better.

Koori Preschool Program

The Koori Preschool Program consists of five Koori Preschools located at the following ACT schools:

• Kingsford Smith School
• Narrabundah Early Childhood School
• Ngunnawal Primary School
• Wanniassa School
• Richardson Primary School.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged 3-5 years can participate in a culturally safe play-based program for 15 hours per week to enhance and strengthen cultural connections, identity, and transitions.

Applications to enrol are made online through the ACT Education website www.education.act.gov.au

For further information phone ACT Education on 6207 1106.

The Education Directorate does not provide any insurance cover for injury, disease or illness to students resulting from school activities or school-organised excursions. Claims for compensation are met where there is a legal liability to do so. Liability is not automatic and depends on the circumstances in which any injury, disease or illness was sustained.

As there is no automatic insurance cover for personal injury if your child is injured at school or during a school organised activity/excursion you should therefore consider whether taking out personal insurance cover for your child is warranted.

This insurance might cover contingencies including medical/hospital expenses, ambulance transport outside the ACT, and cancellation of transport/accommodation or loss of/damage to luggage.

The ACT Ambulance Service provides free ambulance transport for students who are injured or suddenly become ill at school or during an approved school organised activity within the ACT.