Filter Content
- Principal's Report
- Deputy Principal's Report
- The Parent Portal, Payments and Receipts
- Permission Notes
- August is Hats Back On!
- 100 Days of Kindergarten
- Campbell High School - Matilda Matinee
- Club News
- Reading is Magic!
- STEM Night - Tuesday 13 August (4:00pm-6:00pm)
- Olympics special lunch menu - Friday 16 August
- School bus etiquette
- Winter Walk to School Week (5-9 August)
- Get ready for MyWay+
- Adjustments-based resourcing model – School community feedback
- Online Safety – New Parent and Carer webinars and on-demand videos
Welcome back families,
Term 3 is one of my favourite terms. The weather is slowly becoming warmer and the days are getting longer. It has been lovely seeing the students return all rested and excited for another jam-packed term.
Student-Centred Improvement Visit (SCIV)
The external school review report that was completed after the Student-Centred Improvement Visit has been published on the school’s website:
There are several highlights from the report. The SCIV team commented on the ‘.... strong ethos of connection and belonging across the school. Staff collaborate in planning, teaching and assessment focused on improving students' learning.’ , ‘The review team observed a positive learning culture across the school with students engaged in learning. Families expressed there was a culture of high expectations to support a belief that all students can learn and achieve.’, ‘Families and staff described to the review team how a sense of belonging is fostered by the visibility and approachability of the senior leadership and the responsiveness to feedback.’
This report shares ‘Findings’ and suggests some ‘Recommended next steps’ which will be utilised to create a school’s next Strategic Plan.
The draft plan has been created in consultation with staff and the Directorate School Improvement Team. The Plan will be shared with the School Board on Monday and once approved it will be shared with the community.
Celebrating our Students
Jessica W (Year 6)
Jessie did an incredible job representing Campbell Primary School at the Rostrum Public Speaking Competition Quarter Final hosted by Forrest Primary School. Jessie’s speech highlighted the importance of gender equality and used the metaphor of a “Choir”, and the importance of everyone singing from the same page. Thank you Jessie for all your hard work!
Spencer E (Year 1)
Our little author Spencer has spent the last couple of weeks working on a Planting Calendar. He is an avid gardener in our Gardening Club and identified a need for the school to have a calendar that assists with seasonal planting. He researched and then mapped out a comprehensive list of the fruits and vegetables we plant. We love it when our students find purpose and expand upon the extracurricular opportunities, such as the Gardening Club. Well done Spencer!
Story Dog- New Member of our Community
It is my pleasure to introduce Aunty Sue and Maddie. Maddie and Aunty Sue have recently completed their Story Dog Training (https://www.storydogs.org.au/), an initiative that supports students’ engagement and provides opportunities to read. Maddie and Aunty Sue will visit once a week and read with a selection of our Year 3-4 students. We are very excited (as are the students) for this work to begin!
Take care,
Erin Minehan
Preschool Outdoor Environment Project
Preschool families will have noticed there is a lot of activity in the preschool outdoor environment, as the old sandpit area has now been dug up. Below is an anticipated timeline of works:
Week 3 - concrete pour for the new sandpit and surrounding area
Week 4 - sandpit filled and planting begins
Week 5 - sandpit and surrounding area ready for use
Following Week 6, work will begin on the new dry creek bed and other features designed to inspire creative nature play. The shade cloth over the sandpit will be replaced during Term 4.
As I’m sure families will understand, the above timeline is an estimate, though we are remaining optimistic the projects will be completed within a reasonable period of time. We are very much looking forward to seeing our preschoolers enjoy their fabulous new spaces.
ILP/PLP Mid-Year Reviews
During Week 4, families of children on ILP/PLPs will receive updated copies of plans, based on adjustments teachers are currently working on. These reviews are an important part of the ILP/PLP process, as they provide a structure to ensure that students are working towards appropriate goals and making progress in their learning. Families who have been requested to attend a meeting will have received their invitation this week. Meetings are not required for all families during the review period. Families who do not require a meeting will receive a copy of their child’s plan during Week 4. Those families are welcome to request a meeting if preferred.
CPS Centurion Running Challenge
You may have heard about the school’s new Centurion running club! All students are encouraged to participate in setting themselves a goal of running 100 laps around the school oval. There is no time limit to completing the challenge and students are welcome to complete the challenge at their own pace. It has been fabulous to see the enthusiasm and commitment of our runners already. If your child is interested, they can collect a booklet from me and start recording their progress!
The Parent Portal remains the Education Directorate and Campbell Primary School's preferred method of communication and payments.
A few things to note:
Receipts are created against the names of the household. We can not split a household for receipting purposes. If you require an individualised receipt, please advise the school at the time of payment.
Families' usage of the Parent Portal is steadily increasing and we appreciate your support while we navigate the most effective procedures to suit our community's needs.
While we are endeavouring to keep all platforms of communication as up to date as possible with school advice, excursion information and payment requests we appreciate your patience during periods of staff shortages and time constraints. Please remember, additional copies of notes sent home can still be found on the CPS website in the CPS Dropbox tab within the 'Notes sent home' folder. They can also be found on the Parent Portal in your news feed.
With regard to payment options, we have heard from many families, for them, the Portal is the easiest method of payment. We do, however, have some restrictions in the way we can create payment requests for whole school or cohort activities.
Going forward, for payment requests with a variable payment amount, the school will generate an invoice run with a nominal amount and advise to "AMEND PAYMENT TO MATCH YOUR ORDER". Payments can be adjusted to any amount lower than the invoice request, however for amounts above the invoice request, you will need to make an additional/separate payment on one of the other payment methods (Quickweb, EFTPOS over the phone/at the front office or cash at the front office).
If you have any questions about this, please don't hesitate to contact the school on 6142 3580.
| Upcoming events | Date of Excursion | Permission note due |
| K-2 Footsteps Dance program | weekly sessions in Term 3 | asap |
| 3-6 ADFA Pirates of Penzance | Friday 9 August | Friday 2 August |
Additional copies of all permission notes, can be found in:
- in the CPS Dropbox tab on the school website (campbellps.act.edu.au); and
- in the Documents tab in the Parent Portal.
On Wednesday, 25 July, our Shark and Stinger classes had the most amazing celebration for their 100th day in Kindergarten.
A tradition that started in America in 1979, became popular in Australia because of the wonderful opportunity it gives our children to celebrate their achievements. It's also a chance for the teachers to explore mathematical concepts with all of our curious students.
The Kindergarten students connected over some fabulously fun activities, including karaoke, a dance party and a photo booth.
There was dressing up and the most amazing feast as the grand finale.
Nicola and Esther would love to thank parents for their contributions for the day.
We are already so excited for what the next half of the year will bring!
On Wednesday, 31 July, we were invited to Campbell High School to watch their 2024 school musical, Matilda. The musical was an adaptation of the book written by Roald Dahl.
Matilda, who has a love of books and learning, lives with her evil family. She goes to a new school that she loves but has to deal with the horrid principal, Mrs Trunchbull.
In the end, love conquers everything, and she gets to live with her favourite teacher, Miss Honey. There was amazing singing and dancing from the students at Campbell High School. They should be so proud of the production they put on - it was so impressive!
We are also pleased to report that all of the students from Kindy to Year 2 made our school very proud. Everyone was caring and curious, with amazing focus and polite manners. It’s a great way to connect to the high school and introduce the students to our sister school.
We would also like to thank the Principal of Campbell High School, John Manders, for generously funding the excursion. He greeted us with so much excitement and kindness that we felt very welcomed.
Well done, Campbell High!
At Campbell Primary School, we appreciate the importance of being connected.
This year, we are giving the students an opportunity to create their own clubs. They are 100% run and organised by the students, and so far we have well over 10 clubs that students take a huge amount of pride in.
Harry and his vice president, Samuel, have started the Beyblade Club. It’s held every lunchtime and recess and has many members who enjoy battling it out each day for the title of champion.
We interviewed Harry and Samuel to find out more about the club and what makes it so popular.
Why did you start the Beyblade Club?
Harry: “Well, I am thinking of running for school captain next year, and I thought this would be a good opportunity to show off my leadership skills and enthusiasm.”
And what is the best part of the Beyblade Club?
Harry: “It’s a great place to make friendships, and it’s very entertaining and intriguing.”
We are so proud of all the students that are going to the effort of creating there own club!
Well done Everyone!
It's an exciting term for readers!
In Week 5, Campbell Primary School will be holding our annual Book Fair.
What a wonderful opportunity to upgrade your home libraries!
This year the fair will be comfortably housed in our own school library. You are welcome to visit the fair and purchase books before and after school on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. We are looking forward to seeing you there!
The literary fun continues in Week 6 with Book Week!
This year’s theme is ‘Reading is Magic’.
Tuesday will be the day for students to come dressed as their favourite book character. (The teachers are already well on their way with planning their costumes!) There will also be a parade and buddy class reading activities.
The Children’s Book Council of Australia has nominated some fantastic books for Book of the Year. You can see the whole short list here: https://cbca.org.au/shortlist-2024/ . Last year’s winner, ‘Runt’, has been enjoyed by several CPS classes as a read aloud and we can’t wait to see which book takes the prize in 2024!
The canteen is running a special lunch day on Friday, 16 August. The menu is themed to Olympic competitors with 6 different country food options available.
All options include a hot main, a snack and a drink.
All orders must be placed through Flexischools, between now and Tuesday 13 August before 9:15am that morning.
Please see the flyer below and Flexischools for further detail on meal deals for the day.
The canteen will only be providing special lunch orders on the day. It will not be open to normal orders on the day.
School bus etiquette - Every trip is important, and so is the way we travel
It’s important for students to be kind and safe while riding on Transport Canberra buses. Here are some key rules for bus travel:
- Be polite and listen to the bus driver
- Give up your seat to someone who needs it more, like an elderly person, someone who is pregnant, or someone with a disability
- Look after the bus, don’t leave any rubbish, and hand in any lost items to the driver
- Avoid eating, drinking, and making loud noises on the bus.
Safety is our top priority. Talk through these tips to help your children know how to keep and stay safe:
- Signal the bus driver from the pavement and wait for the bus to drive away before crossing the road.
- Don’t walk in front of the bus, it’s dangerous.
- Bus stops are for waiting quietly and not for playing.
- When using phones or listening to music, be aware of your surroundings.
- Always use pedestrian crossings and to know that our drivers are there to help if needed.
Thank you for helping us make the journey safe and pleasant for everyone using the Transport Canberra buses.
For more information, visit the Transport Canberra City Services website and read Travel safely to school and Bus passenger information.
Are you prepared for the upcoming Winter Walk to School Week?
Winter Walk to School Week is from 5 to 9 August 2024. It is an opportunity for the Canberra school community to encourage walking, riding, scooting or skating to school even in the colder months of winter.
Make sure they’ve got their winter puffer jacket, gloves and a beanie before they pound the pavement.
Whether their walking, riding, or scooting to school let’s continue to venture outside in the cooler months.
To read more and get involved, visit Winter Walk to School Week 5-9 August - Transport Canberra.
MyWay+ is Transport Canberra’s next generation ticketing system that puts all public transport services in one place, MyWay+ will offer more ways to pay for public transport and introduce new digital platforms for journey planning and accessing real-time information.
With more ways to pay, you can choose what works best for you and your family!
The switchover to MyWay+ is expected later this year. Until then, students should continue to use their current MyWay card or a paper ticket from a ticket vending machine to pay for travel on Transport Canberra bus and light rail services.
You can also:
- Ensure your child’s MyWay card is registered to protect the balance. Transport Canberra can only process refunds and transfer credits for registered MyWay cards.
- Sign up to Transport Canberra’s weekly e-news for regular updates.
- Connect with Transport Canberra on social media.
For more information on MyWay+ visit Transport Canberra – MyWay+.
Through the Inclusive Education: A Disability Inclusion Strategy for ACT Public Schools 2024-2034, the Education Directorate aims to strengthen inclusive education in our schools. One way we’re doing this is by developing a new resourcing model focussed on adjustments students with disability may need at school.
You can read about the proposed changes on our Education website and attend an online information session to find out more.
Sessions will be held:
You only need to attend one information session as the information will be the same at both.
Once you’ve read up on the proposed changes or attended an online information session, we want to know what you think. Complete the survey or email us at EDU.SystemReform@act.gov.au by Tuesday 10 September to share your thoughts.
Your feedback is valued and will be used to support schools prepare for a new adjustments-based resourcing model.
In Term 3, the Online Safety Education team will be delivering a new live webinar for parents and carers – From AI to Age Verification: Essential Online Safety Updates. This webinar is designed to help families be aware of the latest trends and issues in online safety and how they can take positive steps to keep their children and young people safe. In addition to the live webinars, the team has recorded and made available the webinars from semester 1, including a series of short videos about important and emerging online safety issues and resources.
Please advertise the upcoming live webinar and on-demand videos to families using these links, or the attached advertising resources. If you have any questions or feedback on the online safety resources and supports for families, don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team via EDUeSafety@act.gov.au.