Macquarie Memo Issue 6 - 2024

News from the Principal

Welcome back for a wonderful term 2!

At the end of term 1, we sent out a survey to ask families for feedback around term overviews. We were seeking your opinions and ideas around how we can best connect families to current learning in our classrooms, allowing families the ability to have ongoing conversations about learning at school and home.

Two consistent threads within the  survey were-

 That term overviews (sent once a term) were seen as too sporadic to be able to have timely learning conversations at home. The desire for written comments to be included in our academic reports.

As a result of this feedback, we have made changes to how we communicate student learning more consistently. Our teachers will create 'Previews of Learning' each week for classes (and at each new learning sequence for our specialists and Pre-School). Specialists will share their 'Previews of Learning' when a new sequence of learning is due to begin. Below are examples of our 'Previews of Learning' these will be communicated through Class Dojo. We are excited to engage with families consistently with learning happening at school to form strong connections between learning at home and school.   

Staffing updates:

We would also like to warmly welcome Michael Smith who joins our executive team as our new School Leader C (SLC). Mike will be starting on Monday at Macquarie. I would also like to warmly welcome Jennifer Heath to our front office, Jennifer comes from Dickson College with a wealth of experience. I’m sure you will join me in welcoming them both to the Macquarie Community.

I would like to congratulate Candice who is taking on a new role as a School Partnerships Advisor with the University of Canberra. We will miss Candice’s leadership at Macquarie, while she is gone, but we wish Candice all the best in her new adventure.

Mirri our wellbeing dog is an integral part of the Macquarie School community. To support Mirri’s costs we are collecting 10 cent cans and bottles to take to the container deposit refund scheme. If you have any empty cans and bottles you can donate for Mirri please bring them to the front office, any donations are greatly appreciated! All funds will go towards, food, grooming, vet bills and ongoing costs for Mirri to be happy and healthy to support our students.  

A big thank you to Alethea, Benita and our P&C for organising this year’s Mother’s Day stall. The Mother’s Day stall will be held on Friday so please ensure your child brings their money in a labelled envelope or zip lock bag.

Thank you for all who attended our P&C meeting on Tuesday. It was wonderful to see some new faces, we are always looking for more families to support our P&C in their events and fundraisers.

Thank you to Sean for organising today’s Cross Country! We apologise for having to postpone the Cross Country due to poor weather conditions. We have re-scheduled it for Monday 13 May.

Have a great week,

Kristy

Parent Portal reminders

Parent Portal is now available. It is a secure online platform used to share student information between you and your child’s teachers.

Some reminders about Parent Portal:

• If you already have a Parent Portal account, use this Parent Portal access link to start using the great features.
• You can’t access Parent Portal directly through the ACT Digital Account website, you need to use the link above.
• When you are logged into Parent Portal, we recommend saving the browser as a favourite or to the homepage on your mobile phone for quick access in the future.
• The website can only be viewed using a web browser on your computer, mobile phone or tablet. An app is not available at this time.
• If you still need to register, you will need an access key and a Parent Portal registration link via email to link your existing account to your child’s records. If you haven’t received this, please contact the school’s front office team for assistance.

Suspension, Transfer or Exclusion of a Student in ACT Public Schools Policy

The Education Directorate has released its updated Suspension, Transfer or Exclusion of a Student in ACT Public Schools Policy.

ACT public schools work hard to support every student to achieve their best and meet their individual  learning needs.

Schools use a range of prevention and early support approaches to manage student behaviours when they may impact on a student’s ability to be positively engaged at school or impacts other students.

We recognise the importance of every child’s right to a quality education. Suspension, transfer or exclusion from school is not a punitive measure and will only be used for the purpose of providing the time necessary to ensure a safe and effective learning environment at school.

When this need arises, our schools work closely with students and their families to support them through this process and to support the continuity of learning for the student.

You can read the full policy on the Education website.  

Notes / Reminders

All notes are available on our school website.

P & C News

Mother’s Day Stall tomorrow

Don’t forget the Mother’s Day stall will be held tomorrow, Friday 10 May, and students can purchase a gift for their mums or other special grown-ups. Items range from $1 to $10. The stall is cash only so students will have to bring money to school tomorrow if they want to purchase a gift.

P&C uniform shop

The P&C Uniform Shop is located in the Tidbinbilla Building. It is run by volunteers and sells new uniforms as close to cost price as possible, and second-hand items for $2 and $5. Opening times are:

Mondays 8:45 - 9:15am, Wednesdays 3:00 - 3:30pm, and Fridays 8:45 - 9:15am.

Cash and card payments are accepted. Orders can also be placed online via the flexischools app - see  www.flexischools.com.au. No need to collect online orders - they will be sent home with students. Any questions can be sent to uniforms.mps@gmail.com.  

Donations of pre-loved uniform items are gratefully accepted during open times, or may be left at the front office.

Contact Details

Community Notices

For 20 plus years, Menslink have provided free counselling to young guys throughout Canberra and the surrounding region.

If your young guy is having a hard time and could really use someone to talk to, get in touch with Menslink. Now conveniently located in Holder (with some sessions also available at Kippax & Lanyon), our wait times are currently low so we’re ready to help when he needs it.

We provide a welcoming and supportive environment for young guys to share their concerns and worries with a male counsellor who will hear them out, work alongside them and provide tips and strategies to get them through those tough times.

Our Counselling sessions are completely confidential and are available to any male aged 10-25. There are no fees or charges or limits to the number of sessions. You don’t need a mental health plan and we are available during school terms and school holidays. The only prerequisite is that he is willing to give it a try.

If you think your young guy will benefit from chatting to one of our counsellors, have a chat with them and head to www.menslink.org.au, hit the ‘Get Help’ button, fill in the form and we’ll get back to you, generally the same or next business day.

If you need more info on how to have that chat with them, just email admin@menslink.org.au or call 6287 2226 and we will send you some information.