Communication Protocols

Dear KHPS community,

As we work together to create a positive school environment, we want to remind everyone about acceptable behaviour when reaching out to our school. The NSW Department of Education School Community Charter helps guide how we interact respectfully. You can view the full charter here:

Respectful Communication

When you contact our school—whether by phone, email, or in person—please communicate respectfully. This means listening, using polite language, and being mindful of our staff's time. Our teachers and staff are here to support you and your children.

Understanding Roles and Responsibilities

Everyone in our school community has an important role. Parents and guardians should understand the roles of teachers and staff, who are dedicated to student well-being and education. If you have concerns, please contact the school and our administration team will forward your enquiry to the relevant staff member. 

Below is a NSW Department of education guide for ways in which you may communicate with the school. 

We welcome your feedback, which helps improve our school. When sharing your thoughts, please focus on solutions rather than blame. This helps build a strong partnership between home and school.

Unacceptable Behaviour

To maintain a safe environment, certain behaviours will not be tolerated, including:

• Aggressive Language: Being rude, intimidating, or threatening to others.
• Disrespectful Behaviour: Yelling or using offensive gestures and words.
• Harassment: Constantly making aggressive contact or inappropriate comments.
• Disruption: Interfering with school operations, activities or events.
• Inappropriate Communication: Communicating in ways that are excessive and waste time.
• Spreading Rumours: Sharing unverified or harmful information about others.

Positive Behaviour

In contrast, we encourage the following positive behaviours:

• Respectful Language: Use kind and encouraging words in conversations.
• Polite Behaviour: Speak calmly and courteously, using suitable language.
• Respectful Interaction: Keep contact positive and provide helpful feedback.
• Cooperation: Take part in school events with support and respect for others and the school.
• Constructive Communication: Communicate in ways that are relevant and helpful.
• Sharing Accurate Information: Share reliable information that fosters trust and community.

Promoting a Positive Environment

Let’s work together to maintain a positive community. Please avoid negative behaviours like gossiping and focus on supporting each other.

Conclusion

By following the principles in the NSW Department of Education School Community Charter, we can create a respectful environment for everyone. Thank you for your support and cooperation.

Warm regards,

Gillian Tegg

Congratulations to Clara and Guillaume who are the most recent book award winners for their outstanding positive learning behaviour.

This year you should have again heard a lot about PBL - Positive Behaviour for Learning. 

You should already be very familiar with the whole-school expectations and positive reinforcement systems which are 2 essential features of the PBL approach. Such explanations have been communicated via termly Stage Newsletters, our school website, at our Meet the Teacher evenings last week and our general school information presentations. 

There are Seven Essential Features of the school-wide PBL System. These essential features are: 

1. Administration support, participation and leadership
2. Common purpose and approach to discipline
3. Clarifying Expectations 
4. Teaching Expected Behaviours 
5. Encouraging Expected Behaviours 
6. Discouraging Inappropriate Behaviours 
7. Ongoing monitoring 

This week we are highlighting to the parent community our processes for Discouraging Inappropriate Behaviours. We at Killarney have developed the flowchart below which outlines our warning and consequence system. Such processes are followed by all staff, and students are taught about the flowchart in an age-appropriate way. 

Our PBL flowcharts are edited as needed at the beginning of each year as part of reviewing our School Behaviour Support and Management Plan. Please see our most recent updated flowchart for discouraging inappropriate behaviours here:

• the inappropriate choice that was made 

• how the choice affects self and others 

• what our school expectations are and why this behaviour doesn't align

• what could have been done differently 

• what restorative practices are now needed 

All inappropriate behaviours and the applied consequences are carefully considered at length, often by multiple members of staff who are directly involved and have the 'whole picture' available. We therefore appreciate parents supporting our decision/s as the school is best placed to determine outcomes and makes the final decision regarding yellow or red consequences. Conversations with your child at home regarding more positive choices that could be made in the future are always appreciated and are more likely to result in a positive behaviour change.

We like to stress also that, whilst red and yellow consequences are recorded in our school management software system, this record keeping is for the purpose of tracking data, seeing patterns of behaviour, and ensuring consequences and supports implemented are effective. These records are not sent on to other schools or high school and are only for KHPS use to support all students and the community as a whole.

PBL is a very significant piece in our school, and indeed any school. When we get this bit right, all students are supported to be kind, considerate and involved (respectful and responsible!) which allows everyone to feel valued and safe and learning can thrive (successful!). That is always our goal.

John Williams & Anne McIntosh

It was wonderful to meet so many parents at last week’s Meet the Teachers and at Friday’s Sip & Chat welcome event!

This Term at KHPS

Learning

Francophonie Week / Semaine de la Francophonie

This year’s annual KHPS celebration of Francophone language and cultures will be held from Monday 24 – Friday 28 March. Exciting activities for students are being planned to take place during recess and lunch breaks, so stay tuned for more details.

French words used in English – Illustration competition

In partnership with bilingual partner school Camberwell Primary School in Victoria, this competition is open to all students in Stages 2 & 3. Students can choose a French word that’s also used in English from a selected list and then illustrate that word. This year’s theme is “Faux amis”, which are words that appear to be the same or similar in two languages but actually have very different meanings; for example “queue”, meaning “tail” in French.

These illustrations will be done in class. For more information, please see your child’s homework booklet.


Raise your voice! / Lève ta voix ! Reading aloud competition

Introducing this term’s challenge for our Francophone stream students!
“Lève ta voix / Raise your voice!” is a fun reading aloud competition for French-English bilingual primary and secondary schools across Australia, inspired by the “Petits Champions de la lecture”, a competition held in France.

We are delighted to participate in this project established by various schools in the AAFEBS (Australian Association of French-English Bilingual Schools) network.

Participating francophone students will be invited to read aloud a pre-selected book passage for the selection of a finalist in each category. More details are included in your child's homework booklet.

Kindy French Song exchange

This week, all Kindy classes will be learning a song in French, “The farmer and the rabbit”. Meanwhile, students in the Foundation (aka Kindy) classes of Camberwell Public School (CPS) will also be learning a song in French. Our challenge will be to learn each other’s songs, which will be presented during Francophonie Week. What a fun musical exchange!

Programs

L’Etude homework club for Anglophone stream students

L’Etude is a weekly session after school from 3pm - 4pm, supervised by a Teacher of French, where students complete their French homework, followed by some French reading and games.

FANS is taking Expressions of Interest to create a Monday 3:00pm - 4:00pm Etude group for Anglophone stream students from Years 3 to 6. This group is available as a separate enrolment at a cost of $25 per session and are invoiced by term.

Interested? Please write us with your child’s details to admin@fanssydney.org

Invoices

All annual and Term 1 invoices for the bilingual program were emailed last week. Please check your various inboxes and thank you for your prompt payment.

If you would like to discuss payment options, please contact Aurelie at the FANS office for a confidential conversation: 02 9975 5038

Social

Let's go to the cinema en français!

As a proud partner of the Alliance Française French Film Festival (AF FFF), FANS members can benefit from discounted group tickets at $17pp for 6 exciting films showing at nearby Roseville Cinemas. Films are screened in the original French language with English subtitles.

Get your discounted tickets now! Tickets sales close one week prior to each screening. Each session requires a minimum of 10 tickets to benefit from the group ticket pricing. Purchase tickets

Wishing you an excellent week!

Anne Bentley
GM FANS

At KHPS we strive to provide optimal learning environments, where students feel supported and encouraged to achieve excellence in their learning and ensure that all students have the opportunity to achieve their best.  

Our aim for High Potential and Gifted Education (HPGE) is to: 

• encourage the achievement of personal excellence in all students 
• translate high potential in a specific domain (intellectual, creative, social-emotional and physical) into high performance in order to achieve personal excellence 
• narrow the excellence gaps between advantaged and disadvantaged students 
• raise student and parent awareness of the opportunities and challenges facing students with high potential 
• identify students who are gifted or show high potential to ensure that the school caters for their individual needs 
• provide support to teachers to ensure differentiation occurs for all students.
  

KHPS_HPGE_Policy_2021.pdf

Signs of high potential 

High potential and gifted children tend to: 

• be intensely curious
• learn new ideas or skills quickly and easily 
• display a good memory 
• ask complex questions 
• be creative 
• enjoy thinking in complex ways 
• require fewer repetitions when learning new things
• become intensely focused in their area of interest or passion. 

In addition to the differentiated teaching, learning and assessment practices that occur in classrooms and our leadership, band, choir, chess, public speaking and debating opportunities that support the learning potential of all our students, we aim to offer the following HPGE programs. 

Miss Elysha Casey   
HPGE Coordinator 

KHPS Beginner String Workshop - Sunday 23 February

The 2025 Beginner String students were at school yesterday for a two-hour workshop in the Hall. There are 27 students starting their musical journey this year at KHPS on either violin, viola or cello. Beginner String students attend 30-minute lessons with a tutor once a week in a small group for the first year. Students start by learning open string songs in Term 1 and by Term 4 they have the opportunity to perform a number of songs such as Twinkle Twinkle and Jingle Bells as a string ensemble.

The workshop yesterday was a chance for students and parents to work together in groups to learn the basics of their new string instruments. They worked with their tutors over three sessions to cover posture, plucking open strings, rhythm games, beginner bow hold and an introduction to the Strings Family. The students came together in the final ten minutes for a performance of the Ant Song in their first orchestra setting conducted by Suna F.

Thank you to all the parents, carers and students for joining the workshop on Sunday and thanks also to Cara, Suna and Pip for their valuable teaching skills. It was lovely to hear so many string instruments playing together after just two weeks of lessons and we look forward to a wonderful year of music for these young students.

There are a few spots left on a Monday afternoon at 3:40 pm for beginner violin or viola. Please contact khpsband@gmail.com if your child is interested to join this week!

KHPS Band and Strings Committee

P&C Meeting Term 1 – 2025

The first Parents & Citizens (P&C) meeting for 2025 will be held on Wednesday, 26 February at 7:00 PM. You can attend in person in the Teacher’s Office at the school or join us online via Zoom.

Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86343462706?pwd=6LT8DTkS0oaDBCplDfUacpEvHD97k5.1

Password: 835677

P&C meetings are a fantastic way to stay informed and get involved in your child’s education.

By attending, whether in person or online, you’ll be able to:

✅ Stay informed about school initiatives and upcoming changes

✅ Have your voice heard and contribute to discussions

✅ Gain a better understanding of key school decisions and policies

✅ Connect with other parents and the school community

We’d love to see as many parents as possible join in. Whether you’re new to the school or a regular attendee, your participation makes a difference!

If you wish to vote on any matters at the AGM or any P&C meeting throughout 2025, a $2 contribution is required in advance.

Payment Details:

BSB: 032-090

Account: 384963

Reference: Your Name

Email secretary@khps-pc.com.au to confirm your payment.

We look forward to seeing you at the meeting!

P&C Executive Committee