Communication

Newsletter
The main form of communication between the school and home is a fortnightly School Newsletter sent home with the youngest member of the family on Tuesdays.  As a general rule all notes go home at the same time as the Newsletter.  Experience has shown that there are school notices most weeks, so it would be advisable to check with your child each Tuesday to ensure that you have all the vital information.  Frequently a notice requires a response from parents.  It would be appreciated if these responses could be made promptly unless a different timeframe is specified.  If you would like the newsletter to be sent to you electronically please contact the front office staff.

Term Overview
Early each term an overview is sent home by class teachers.  This Term Overview outlines the educational program to be covered in your child’s class during the term as well as including details of planned excursions, camps, class routines and calls for parental assistance and involvement.  A term calendar is also sent home with the Newsletter of Week 2 detailing important dates and events for the term.

Term One School Information Evening
In week 2 an information evening will be pesented by all staff to the school community on Tuesday 13th February at 7.30pm.  We encourage all families to come and meet all teaching staff and learn about whole school programs, policies and procedures; and how students, teachers and families can work productively together to make Duffy Primary a great learning environment.  

Meet the Teacher
‘Meet the Teacher’ interviews are short informal sessions which provide you with the opportunity to share relevant information regarding your child with their teacher at the start of each year.  Prior to the meeting parents are invited to complete an information sheet about their child.  This information assists the teacher to meet the individual needs of all class members.

Appointments with Teachers
Staff are aware of the importance of maintaining close contact with families.  Important and useful information is often shared at the beginning and end of the school day.  Please be mindful that staff need to be ready to teach at 9.00am as well as supervising children leaving school in the afternoon.  Staff also have meeting commitments on Monday and Wednesday afternoons commencing at 3.15pm.  We would greatly appreciate appointments being made for discussions, which require more than a few moments. 

Absences
The class roll is a legal document and it is important that it be maintained accurately.  Parents are requested to report all absences from school in writing.  When the absence is to be of one or two days only, a note should be sent when the child returns to school.  If the absence is likely to be more prolonged, a phone call to the school would be appreciated.  A note should still be sent upon return to school.  If a child needs to leave the school between 9:00am and 3:00pm a note should be sent to the child’s teacher.  Parents collecting their child for appointments or private arrangements during the day are required to call at the front office to sign out their child.  Teachers on playground duty are asked to intercept any adult talking to our students for the safety and well being of all children.

Updating Contact Information
To facilitate speedy contact with parents in an emergency, any change in home or work phone numbers, home address, place of employment or name of emergency contact should be notified immediately.  Student information cards are sent home at the start of each year to gather parent contact information for ready reference and should be returned promptly to the Class Teacher. The only exception is for new school enrolments.  Parents of new students are asked to complete their cards at the time of enrolment.

Learning Journey
Our Learning Journey is usually held in Week 8 or 9 of Term 3.  Students share their learning and showcase the wonderful educational experiences they have been involved in at the school with a family member/s..  With support from their teacher each child prepares a portfolio of work and takes their parent/carer, grandparent, neighbour or friend on a ‘Learning Journey’.  Your child is able to share with you or their friend what they have learnt and how their learning took place. 

Grandparents Day
Grandparents and senior members of our community greatly enrich the lives of children.  Each year the school invites grandparents to a morning tea where the children perform to, sing with, and socialize with our senior citizens.  Over the past few years we have held the grandparents morning tea on the same day as Learning Journeys to enable grandparents from interstate to attend both of these special events.