Dear Families, Students and Friends,  

Wearing school uniforms is the easiest way to feel part of the Burnie Primary School community. Here at BPS we are committed to ensuring we are all in uniform every day. Wearing school uniform is just not about how we look – it is our first experience in developing an understanding of belonging to our school community and understanding social expectations. 

This year the Burnie Primary School Association in consultation with the school community will review our dress code and uniform policy. This infomation will be shared in the newsletter. 

The Burnie Primary School Association, in consultation with the school community, will review the uniform list from time to time and add and take out items as necessary. 

Welcome & Farewell to Students
This fortnight we welcome Isla, Natasha, Emily and their families to Burnie Primary School. We farewell Sama & Haya.

Communicating with Families Information  
Yesterday, our Term 1 ‘Application to Learning Reports’ were sent home (Prep – 6). This report provides families with a summary of each child’s learning habits and engagement in their class so far this year.   

If you have any questions, or would like to discuss this report, please make contact with your child's classroom teacher via seesaw. We value regular, meaningful conversations about learning achievement, progress and student wellbeing because we know this is key to supporting and growing our partnerships with all families. 

Teacher Shortage   
You may have heard about a shortage of teachers in Tasmania and across Australia in the news media. In the future, if we are unable to secure relief to cover teacher absences we may need to collapse a class and distribute students across the school (year 3 –6 classes). I am aware that this also happens in many other schools. We do our very best to cover all teacher absences with high-quality relief teachers and often members of our leadership team also help out.  Thank you for your support as we work our way through this national shortage of experienced teachers. 

I wish all families a safe and relaxing Easter break and look forward to seeing you on Wednesday.

In Partnership
Susan Barnard

School Association Committee  
We held our first School Association meeting for 2024 on Wednesday 20th of March.   

Our School Association is an active, supportive group that consists of representatives of parents/carers, staff and community members. It is the legally constituted body that administers and manages the vast range of operations and activities that may be undertaken by our school community. Being a Committee member is a commitment that is highly valued and recognised by the school. Being on the committee is a rewarding role, where staff, parents, community members’ skills and knowledge support our school. This contributes to helping learners succeed and provides an opportunity to be actively involved and engaged in the school. The committee meet once or twice per term.   

If you would like to provide input into our meetings, you can do so by talking with one of our committee members and/or coming along to one of our meetings. The date for our next meeting is Wednesday 5th of June.  

Introducing our 2024 School Association Committee  
 
Staff members: Susan Barnard, Cheryl King (secretary), Patti Page 
Parent members: Katherine McCrae (treasurer), Claire Jensen (Chair), Matthew Smart, Sarah Lewis and Kristy Yaxley 

Community member: Amina Kegan (Deputy Chair)

Dear Parents & Friends!

The Parents & Friends Association were overwhelmed with the support of cake stall and Easter raffle donations last week and we can not thank you all enough. The cake stall held at Hellyer College polling site on Saturday 23^rd March was a big hit with voters.

These fund raisers could not be possible without the help of our volunteers, and we thank you!

Volunteering for these fundraisers is a lot of fun, so if you like to have fun, please keep an eye out for our future fundraising efforts, and need for volunteers by following our P&F Facebook page, you can scan the QR code to join.

On Thursday we drew our Easter raffle and together we raised $1991. Funds will be distributed to projects around the school in 2024. These projects will be decided on later this year and will be announced in the newsletter.

We look forward to welcoming you soon!

Your P&F

Thank you for your support! 

In 2A we have been learning the value of three-digits numbers. We made place value donuts to show our understanding.

In 2B we have been looking at pictures books and learning to make personal connections with the text.  We have read ‘The Koala who Could’ and wrote about a time when we have tried something new, or a time we found something challenging.

On Wednesday, our Grade 1 students shared what 'caring for each other' looks like as part of our EC Morning Meeting on Respect. All students participated in a brainstorming session and individually illustrated what respect means and how it is demonstrated. 

Congratulations to the EC and Primary students who received respect values tokens this week. 

Road Safety - School Safety  
Road and school safety awareness and compliance are everyone’s responsibility. Several parents have recently contacted me about their concerns of unsafe driver behaviour in our car park and surrounding areas.   Please ensure that you are moving safely within the school zone. Please also ensure if you are adhering to our reverse parking only whilst parking in our car park. 

Harmony Week is the celebration that recognises our diversity and brings together Australians from all different backgrounds. It’s about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone.  

What is Harmony Week? 

• Australia is one of the world's most successful multicultural countries and our cultural diversity is at the heart of who we are.  
• Over half of Australians were born overseas or have at least one parent who was born overseas.  
• That's why it's so important that we celebrate our country's diversity through Harmony Week.  
• Harmony Week is also about inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, from the Traditional Owners of the land to our most recent arrivals.  
• And celebrating that no matter where you come from, we're united by the Australian values of freedom, respect, fairness, democracy and equal opportunity.  

Ramadan

In Grade 3-4 C and D we have been learning about Ramadan. Jude’s family came in and explained about the meaning and traditions of Ramadan.

During Ramadan people won’t swear or tell lies. They would show empathy when they fast. When they fast, they don’t fast for 30 days. They break their fast at sunset and sunrise. They don’t have unhealthy food. They share their meal with family and friends and eat home cooked food.
By Atharv

During Ramadan people fast. It means they are not eating during daylight hours. They usually wake up at 5 o’clock and eat before the sun rises and then start fasting. They eat again at sundown. When the moon is up they can eat. If they eat when the moon is down that means they broke their fast too early. I would feel very hungry at first, but I think I would get used to it.
By Amy

Ramadan’s calendar is different. Australia’s calendar follows the sun but the Ramadan calendar follows the moon.
By Lachlan

Ramadan goes for about a month. Some people don’t fast if they are sick and need to eat or drink something. You can also break your fast if you're very dehydrated. Ramadan starts at a crescent moon and ends when you see the crescent moon again. Ramadan is also about self-control and learning to have empathy for people that don’t have much food.  
By Maya and Isaiah

On Friday we had a sea of green and heard loud cheering for the Tasmanian Jack Jumpers. Good Luck to the Jack Jumpers with their Championship Series.

Our students enjoyed hot cross buns at breakfast club today. We wish our families a happy Easter break.

Are you a student in Years 3 to 6 and interested in improving your reading confidence in a stress-free fun way?

Join us in the student2student reading program!

student2student (s2s) is a confidence building reading practice program run by The Smith Family for students who are interested in getting some practice with reading so that they can be more confident when they are at school. It is reading with young people, and it is for young people.

Students read with a buddy using our secure online platform.  The program is delivered at home after school or on weekends, with students reading 2-3 times per week for 20 minutes, over an 18-week period.

If you are interested, see the attached flyer for contact details, more information, and a link to register.

Are you a student in Years 4 to 6 and interested in improving your reading, spelling, and writing in a fun space?

Join us at the Burnie Library Learning Club!

Learning Clubs provide a safe and supportive out-of-school learning environment where primary students can participate in activities that develop their literacy and social skills.

The Burnie Library Learning Club is operating on Thursdays from 3.30 – 4.30 pm until the end of Term 2.  Our trained tutors are ready to help your child work on the specific skills they’d like to improve, with lots of individual attention provided. 

View this video for a great summary of the program - https://bit.ly/TSFLearningClub.

If you are interested, see the attached flyer for contact details for more information and a link to register.