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Term 2 Week 4 Newsletter - Monday 19th May 2025

From the Principal

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Term 2 Week 4

The Magic of Giving: Volunteer Week 2025

Next week is National Volunteer Week, a time to shine a light on the everyday legends who give so generously of their time, energy, and talents to enrich our communities.

At JPPS, we’re lucky to be surrounded by a wonderful group of volunteers who support our school in so many ways—whether it’s helping in the canteen, serving on the P&C, running the uniform shop, or leading SRE classes. Your dedication helps create the warm, welcoming and vibrant school community we all cherish.

This year’s theme, ‘Something for Everyone – Connecting Communities’, is a powerful reminder that everyone has something special to offer. By working together, we build stronger, more connected communities—and schools like ours thrive.

If you’ve been thinking about getting involved, now is the perfect time! Come along to our next P&C meeting on Tuesday evening, 20 May. It’s a great way to meet others, learn more about our school, and contribute to something truly meaningful.

To all of our amazing volunteers—thank you. Your kindness, commitment, and community spirit are what make the magic happen.

ANAPHYLAXIS

John Purchase Public School is concerned about the safety and wellbeing of all our students and staff. Many of you will know someone who is affected by anaphylaxis, a life threatening allergic reaction. Our school does its best to be an allergy aware school. Staff have had training in severe allergy management and we have implemented a number of strategies to help keep students at risk of anaphylaxis as safe as we can. We have over 25 students / staff members who live with the risk of anaphylaxis to foods and insect stings. Whilst these children are being taught to care for themselves at an age appropriate level, we ask that you help us educate your child on the importance of not sharing food with others, washing hands after eating and calling out to an adult if they think their friend with allergies is sick. With increased awareness and understanding of anaphylaxis, you will be able to help protect those around you.

A food allergy is an immune system response to a normally harmless food protein that the body believes is harmful. When the individual eats food containing that protein, the immune system releases massive amounts of chemicals, triggering symptoms that can affect a person’s breathing, gastrointestinal tract, skin, and/or heart. Anaphylaxis is the most severe form of allergic reaction and is potentially life- threatening. It must be treated as a medical emergency, requiring immediate treatment and urgent medical attention. It is estimated that up to 400,000 (2%) Australians, including 1 in 20 children suffer from food allergies and some of them will experience a life-threatening (anaphylactic) reaction.

Symptoms of food allergy can include:

Mild to moderate allergic reaction

Tingling of the mouth
Hives, welts or body redness
Swelling of the face, lips, eyes
Vomiting, abdominal pain (note these are signs of a severe allergic reaction if the person has insect allergy)

Severe allergic reaction - ANAPHYLAXIS

Difficult/noisy breathing
Swelling of the tongue
Swelling or tightness in the throat
Difficulty talking or hoarse voice
Wheeze or persistent cough
Persistent dizziness or collapse
Pale and floppy (young children)

Nine foods cause 90% of food allergies. These foods are:

Egg
Sesame
Milk
Soy
Peanut
Fish
Tree nuts (cashew, almond, pistachio etc)
Crustacea (prawns, lobster, crabs etc)
Wheat

Peanuts are the leading cause of severe allergic reactions, followed by tree nuts, shellfish, fish and milk. At our school there are students with allergies to: nuts, eggs, sesame, dairy, seafood, kiwi fruit, oats, garlic, potatoes and wheat. Adrenaline/epinephrine is the first line treatment for severe allergic reactions and can be administered via auto-injector, called the EpiPen®.

To learn more about anaphylaxis and food allergies, go to www.allergyfacts.org.au

and www.allergy.org.au

As the only way to manage a food allergy is avoidance, the school has implemented several strategies to help prevent a severe allergic reaction. We can never totally eliminate the risk of an anaphylaxis but we can all do things that will help lessen the risk. Please consider the child or staff members with food allergy when packing your child’s lunch or breakfast and when sending in food for any special occasion, including birthdays, special events and school excursions.

We understand that dairy products are a component of a healthy diet for children and that children will consume dairy products at school. Foods that ‘May contain traces of various foods’ are fine for the non-allergic students to consume at school as long as they do not share food.

Staff members are trained in identifying an anaphylactic reaction and responding to this potentially life threatening situation. If parents would also like to complete the training, it is available online at no cost. Go to https://www.allergy.org.au/about-ascia/about-ascia-e-training

Striking Gold at the Hills Band Festival

A huge congratulations to our incredible Senior Band, who wowed the audience and judges alike at the Hills Band Festival last Friday, bringing home a Gold Award!

Their outstanding performance featured three pieces — Pirates of the Carribean, Dance the Night, and Breakout — each showcasing their musical talent, teamwork, and dedication.

We are so proud of their achievement and the way they represented our school with pride and passion. Bravo, Senior Band!

NEW OOSH SERVICE - REPEATED

We’re pleased to announce our new Out of School Hours (OOSH) service: TheirCare.
Please refer to the Community section of the newsletter for more information about the service, how to get in touch and the invitation to the Information Session. Enrolment instructions will be sent out from early July.

ATTENDANCE MATTERS (repeated)

To support you in monitoring your child’s attendance, we encourage parents to access the Parent Portal in School Bytes where you can view your child’s attendance levels on a visual map. This map provides a clear view of your child’s attendance rate, calculated on the number of actual and partial days attended as a percentage of the total possible school days for the term. Attendance summaries will also be included in your child’s half-yearly and yearly reports.

Instructions for accessing this information through the Parent Portal are provided below. If you need any assistance setting up or navigating the portal, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our business manager, Mrs Clare Cattell.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR HOW TO SEE ATTENDANCE DATA ON SCHOOL BYTES (repeated)

Once you have set up your Parent Portal account in School Bytes (see below information in 'From the Office' news) you will be able to view your child's attendance data.

In the Parent Portal you will see a tab called 'attendance' on the top bar of the page. This will bring you to your child/ren's attendance information.

2025 Term Dates & Holidays

TRAVEL SHOULD BE TAKEN DURING SCHOOL VACATION PERIODS, RATHER THAN DURING THE SCHOOL TERM

Please note: School development days for staff are included in these term dates and parents and carers should not send their children to school on these days.

Winter school holidays - Monday 7 July to Friday 18 July
Term 3 – Monday 21 July to Friday 26 September. The school development day is on Monday 21 July and all students K- 6 start on Tuesday 22 July.
Spring school holidays – Monday 29 September to Friday 10 October
Term 4 – Monday 13 October to Friday 19 December. The school development day is Monday 13 October. All students K - 6 start on Tuesday 14 October.
Summer school holidays (Eastern) – Monday 22 December to Monday 26 January 2026

From the Deputy Principal

Term 2 Week 4

Monday 19th May 2025

Dear Parents and Carers

Stage 1 students entertained us all, at last week's assembly, with their recitation of Spike Milligan's 'On the Ning Nang Nong'. Year 2 student, Eva L. then performed a traditional Chinese dance, so beautifully. It was called 'The Peacock'.

Good luck to our cross country runners, who are participating at the zone carnival on Thursday and to our Stage 2 and Stage 3 PSSA teams, who commence the winter competition on Friday. Thank you to all coaches, for your extra guidance.

I would like to let you know that I will be on leave for the remainder of this term. I sincerely thank Mrs Robbins for relieving as deputy principal, in my absence. I will be returning from overseas on 21st July.

Have a positive week!

Let's accomplish BIG things with a Have a Go Mindset!

Regards

Adela King
Deputy Principal

Dazzling Assembly Performance

Term 2 Diary Dates

Monday 28 April - Staff Development Day
Tuesday 29 April - Staff Development Day
Wednesday 30 April - Students return to school
Wednesday 30 April - K-6 ANZAC Remembrance Service under the COLA
Monday 5 May - 5/6H Parent-Teacher Interviews scheduled this week in administration block
Monday 5 May - 7pm P & C Meeting via Zoom
Thursday 8 May - P & C Mothers' Day Stall at school
Friday 9 May - 7am P & C Mothers' Day Breakfast at school
Monday 12 May - Stage 2 Zoo Excursion
Wednesday 14 May - 1:35pm K-6 Assembly under COLA - Stage 1 item
Friday 16 May - Walk Safely to School Day
Thursday 22 May - Zone Cross Country Carnival
Friday 23 May - Winter PSSA competition begins for Stage 2 and Stage 3 teams
Monday 26 May - National Sorry Day
Monday 26 May - Gumnut & Wattle Debating Teams to Castle Hill PS
Tuesday 27 May - National Reconciliation Week
Wednesday 28 May - Stage Finals of Spelling Bee
Wednesday 4 June - 1:35pm K-6 Assembly under COLA
Monday 9 June - Public Holiday
Thursday 12 June - JPPS Athletics Carnival at Greenway Oval
Monday 16 June - 7pm P & C Meeting via Zoom
Wednesday 18 June - 1:35pm K-6 Assembly under COLA Stage 2 item
Thursday 19 June - Athletics Carnival Backup date in case of inclement weather
Monday 30 June - Bronze Medallion Morning Tea with executive
Tuesday 1 July - 10:30am Principal's Morning Tea for Bronze Award Recipients in hall with parents
Tuesday 1 July - 5:30pm Their Care (new before/after school provider) Information Session via Zoom
Wednesday 2 July - Year 6 Excursion to Canberra (3 days)
Thursday 3 July - Semester 1 Student Reports published on Impromation Parent Portal
Friday 4 July - Year 6 return from Canberra
Friday 4 July - Last day of Term 2

Our School Expectations

Congratulations to our students who have demonstrated our school expectations of Respect, Responsibility and Aspire.

This week's expectation is:

Respect: Follow the rules of the game

Congratulations Silver Award Recipients

Congratulations Gold Award Recipients

Congratulations Sydney North 11 years Boys Age Champion

Purchase Pride Badges

Purchase Pride awards recognise positive student behaviour on the playground and in the classroom. When students receive ten Purchase Pride award cards, these should be left in the boxes on the ‘award shelf’ inside the school office foyer. Each set of ten awards needs to be bundled together and clearly labelled with the student’s name and current class. The acceptance of awards closes for administration at 9am every Thursday morning.

Purchase Pride cards also have a 'tear-off' strip. This strip may be removed by the recipient and placed in the appropriate stage box in the award shelf, to go in the lucky dip draw, for a canteen voucher. Canteen vouchers are drawn by our SRC representatives, at the end of each term. Students are notified directly, if successful.

Award recipients will be presented with a coloured Purchase Pride badge, the week after their name is published in this newsletter, at the Monday morning assembly, during term time. This badge may be worn on the school uniform. Students are encouraged to hand in their awards regularly and not 'stockpile' them.

Congratulations:

Lachlan (2B), William C (2-O), Abigail G (2B), Shriyan (4D), Ariel C (3ES), Liori M (3N)

Class Awards System

In addition to Purchase Prides, JPPS has an incremental class awards system. When a student has received ten class awards, these should be left in the boxes on the ‘award shelf’ inside the school office. The ten class awards need to be bundled together and clearly labelled with the student’s name, current class and award level reached. A clear, snap lock bag is ideal for this purpose! Students need to be responsible for their own awards, as replacements are not issued. Students are encouraged to hand in their awards, rather than 'stockpiling' them until Term 4, so they don't miss out on special celebrations, such as the Principal's Morning Tea.

10 Class Awards = Bronze 20 = Silver 30 = Gold 40 = Bronze Medallion
50 = Silver Medallion 60 = Gold Medallion 75 = Platinum Medallion and Principal for the Day!

All awards (including Bronze) received by 9am on Thursday mornings, are ‘stamped’ and published in the next school newsletter, which is usually on the following Monday, in term time. At this time, I indicate when these awards will be presented. Silver Awards, Gold Awards and all Medallions, are presented at whole school assemblies. Please note that Bronze Awards are only presented at the end of each term, at the Principal's Morning Tea.

Bronze Award

Bronze Awards will be presented at the Term 2 Principal's Morning Tea, for Bronze Award recipients. This special event will be held at 10:30am on Tuesday 1st July, in the school hall. Parents are cordially invited to attend.

Congratulations:

Hannah L (2B), Hanson G (1/2R), William C (2-O)