28 February 2024

From the Principal

Athletics Carnival

Today's Athletics Carnival was an absolute success, filled with energy, enthusiasm, and students exhibiting an array of the Cambridge Capabilities.  The EAGLES framework and domain of Grow Grit was definitely on show where students demonstrated courage, persistence and resilience. The spirit of sportsmanship Engage Others was evident as cheers echoed across the oval, fostering a sense of unity and pride. Special thanks to our incredible team of teachers and support staff who made this happen for the students - with an early 6am setup – Thank you Mr Thomas, Mr. Mac, Liam, Holly and Mr Woulleman.  Thank you to our parents and friends who joined us for today’s carnival. The Athletics Carnival is one of the most enjoyable dates on our school calendar and what a wonderful day it was.

Assembly

Join us in our upcoming Assembly on Friday, March 1st, where I will be revealing the elected SRC students for 2024. The dedication and enthusiasm displayed by our Year 6 leaders during the selection process has been truly commendable. I eagerly anticipate the opportunity to collaborate with these outstanding individuals throughout the term ahead.

This term we will be aligning class achievement awards to the EAGLES Cambridge Capabilities framework and look forward to beginning this new chapter with you – the spinners are back!

Kristy

School Association AGM –Thursday 21 March 2024 5:30pm

We hereby give notice that the Annual General Meeting of the Cambridge Primary School, School Association will be held on Thursday 21 March 2024 at 5:30pm.

Nominations for parent members must be received by the Returning Officer, Shelley Spong, in the office, by close of business on Friday 15 March 2024.

NAPLAN 2024

Students will be sitting NAPLAN between 13 and 25 March 2024.

The National Assessment Program-Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) assesses literacy and numeracy skills that students are already learning at school. On its own, NAPLAN is not a test that can be studied for, and students are not expected to do so.

NAPLAN is just one aspect of a school’s assessment and reporting process – it does not replace ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance; however, students and parents may use individual results to discuss progress with teachers.

This is the first year NAPLAN will be held in March, having previously taken place in May. This change was made so school systems would have access to results earlier in the school year, so they can be used to inform teaching and learning plans for the remainder of the year.

Why NAPLAN is conducted online

NAPLAN online provides a better assessment and more precise results.

One of the main benefits of NAPLAN online is that it uses tailored (or adaptive) testing. This means that students receive questions better suited to their abilities, so they can show what they know and can do.

Online testing also allows us to provide a wide range of accessibility options to support students with disability to access NAPLAN.

Feedback from students is that they find the online test more engaging.

Please note that students in Year 3 complete the Writing Test on paper.

Parent information brochures and other resources

Your questions answered on NAPLAN and what it means for your child:
The link will take you to the official National Assessment Program (NAP) website.

Please contact the school if you have any further queries.

Home Reading 2024

This year at Cambridge Primary School our approach to Home Reading will look a little different. In line with the DECYP Reading Priority, there is a statewide shift towards ensuring strong evidence-based practice. This will see a greater focus on decodable books and authentic books.

Decodable books will be sent home that directly support your child’s current Literacy learning and this will be based on phonics code knowledge and skills. These little books allow children to apply what they are learning and build confidence through reading success at each step of the way.

We will also see fiction and non-fiction library books as a valuable part of our Home Reading program. Borrowing from the library regularly, allows children choice and to develop a love of books and reading for a variety of purposes. This is what is meant by authentic texts.

There are many benefits to both types of books and reading, some of which are listed below.

We are extremely grateful to have families who are keen to work collaboratively with us to support all aspects of reading development. Easy tips for supporting beginning readers at home, will be coming soon!

If you would like to read more about changes to Reading in Tasmanian Government Schools please click on the link below.

If you have any questions please contact Narelle Stevens, Quality Teaching Coach.

Easter Raffle and Free Dress Day

It's that time of the year again – the extravaganza known as the CPS Annual Easter Raffle! We're talking about a colossal 10kg block of chocolate as the grand prize!  Mark your calendars because Friday 15th March is about to get a whole lot cooler – it's Free Dress Day! In exchange for rocking your awesome outfits, we're asking you to bring along an easter treat to donate to our school raffle.

This year, we're going digital! Grab your raffle tickets online through the fancy QR code attached or simply click the link.  

But fear not, traditionalists, paper tickets are still in the game and you can snag them from the school office. It's a steal at just $1 per ticket! And guess what? Your contribution doesn't just score you a shot at chocolate heaven; it supports all sorts of awesome school stuff like camps for the adventurous Gr 4 & Gr 5’s, learn to surf program, banging band sessions, and wild bush activities. So, dive in, grab those tickets, and let's make this Easter egg-ceptional! We would like the sales to reach everyone both far and wide so please share this with your family and friends on social media. Tickets on sale now!!!

Thanks for supporting us – the fundraising team.

School Bucket Hats

Our suppliers have advised us that the small size bucket hats will not be available until the middle of April. Sunsafe hats from home can be worn for the rest of this term.

Scholastic Book Club

We have had Scholastic Book Club at Cambridge for many years and at the moment Sophie Allen is our fantastic Book Club organizer. It’s a great way of shopping for books and our school Library benefits greatly from the Reward scheme offered by Scholastic. This year there will be 5 issues in total – one per term and an extra one for Christmas. Click on the link below for more information on Book Club.

School Photos

School photos will be taken on Tuesday 12 March, and Thursday 14 March for Kinder B. Orders must be placed online. See the flyer above.

Parents who want to order individual and/or Family Photos can the use the Access Key QN9PU3SK

Family Photo orders must be done by 4:30pm the night before Photo Day so Leading Image can organise a list of Family Photos that need to be taken. Any Family Photos that have not been ordered before the cut-off will not be taken. Unfortunately, they cannot make any exceptions on the day.

All students will have an individual photo taken on Photo Day whether they are ordering or not. Individual student ordering will stay open after Photo Day.

Assemblies in Term 1

Assemblies are held in the MPR and start at 1.40pm. All are welcome to attend. This term’s Assemblies will be on:

Friday 1 March
Friday 22 March
Friday 5 April

Assembly Certificates

We will be using Schoolzine to notify Parents/Carers when their child will be presented with an Achievement Award in Assembly. The Schoolzine message will be sent out on the Monday before the Assembly on the Friday, and it will be titled Achievement Award. You may need to right click and hold to download the picture and text.

Let’s Celebrate!

Community Notice Board