HOME LEARNING

I want to again thank our community for continuing to respect the current health orders and keeping your children at home to engage in the online learning material.

Please remember that the learning tasks and suggested timetables are for families to be flexible for their own home situation. Not everything on the grid needs to be completed. If you are finding the amount of work difficult, please choose from the activities available and do what you can. This is ok, this is how it is designed to be.

Choose family wellbeing over anxiety around workload. If you are at all worried, please email the school and your child's class teacher can get in contact with you.

ZOOM WELLBEING CHECK-INS

As communicated earlier in the week, tomorrow (Thursday) will be our first Zoom Wellbeing check-in for students learning at home. Detailed protocols were sent out earlier in the week and can be accessed via the link below if you need to view them again.

Zoom_Check_in_Protocols.pdf

The purpose of these live check-ins, is to support student wellbeing, by providing students an opportunity to feel connected to their classroom teacher, class mates and the learning from home material. These sessions will not be instructional teaching sessions and are optional for all students. 

Reminders:

• Students must use and access their DoE Zoom profile. Personal Zoom accounts will not be able to access the session. Students sign in at https://nsweducation.zoom.us/
• Session details will be posted to each Google Classroom.
• Specific times set for each grade. Sessions are 20 minutes.
• This is optional and students can only access from home, students on site will not be able to access the session.
• If you have a school loan device, we believe that they may not be able to insert a virtual background when on Zoom. If this is the case, please arrange for a plain or blank wall to have as your child's background for privacy issues.

EDUCATION WEEK

At the end of last week we posted two videos to celebrate Education Week in a different way. If you missed these, or if you would like to watch them again please see the links below.

Video 1:

For every student at Artarmon, know that your teachers care very much about you and your learning journey. We know it is hard, we know it's not the same, but hang in there and we will see you very soon.

Teachers message to all APS students and families

Video 2:

How wonderful to see the images of your children come through the email this week. Watch this video to see the amazing things everyone has been doing at home so far! You are amazing APS, keep it up!

Students celebrating Education Week.

It has been so wonderful to continue to receive photos of students learning at home  being sent in via the school email.

Keep it up everyone, you are all doing such a good job!

FAMILY FRIENDLY ART ACTIVITY

Ms Simms has been at it again and created a family friendly art activity for you to follow along with at home and let your creativity shine.

Don't forget to send in your photos so we can share them in next weeks Newsletter. If you created a Cat Mask last week, we would love to see some pictures.

Enjoy!

The Education Department are streaming every day different activities students can participate in. These will be continuing every week throughout the 'learn from home' restrictions.

You can access them here:

https://education.nsw.gov.au/teaching-and-learning/learning-from-home/learning-at-home

Theses sessions are at 10am everyday, however, are recorded and can be viewed when it suits your family.

Get ready for more #EducationLIVE, 10am AEST daily:

This weeks sessions:

• Monday: A hip-hop dance lesson with award-winning choreographers Libby Montilla and Shaun Parker.
• Tuesday: Learn to cook two delectable dishes with celebrity chefs Manu Feidel, Matt Preston and Gary Mehigan.
• Wednesday: Marvellous maths tricks with Adam Spencer.
• Thursday: A behind-the-scenes look at the Archibald portraits with Leeanne Carr of the Art Gallery of NSW.
• Friday: An acting lesson; holding onto happiness with Sydney Theatre Company’s Anthony Taufa.

There has never been a more important time for our community to support each other through these difficult times. Please remember that WELLBEING trumps everything at the moment.

The following resources are to support everyone:

Department of Education NSW support: 

Mental Health and Wellbeing support for students, families and schools: 

https://education.nsw.gov.au/student-wellbeing/counselling-and-psychology-services

Covid-19 specific resources: 

https://kidshelpline.com.au/coronavirus

https://au.reachout.com/collections/coping-during-coronavirus

https://au.reachout.com/articles/10-ways-to-take-care-of-yourself-during-coronavirus?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9vWDz77h8QIV85JmAh1v2AmgEAMYASAAEgLetfD_BwE

https://raisingchildren.net.au/guides/coronavirus-covid-19-guide

Child friendly websites: 

https://kidshelpline.com.au/ - students can go online and click on their age group, then click on what they are feeling and thinking about and it takes them to helpful videos and information. 

For parents: 

https://parents.au.reachout.com/- heaps of advice and topics for supporting children and their own mental health 

https://raisingchildren.net.au - general advice on mental health, behaviour, support for parenting and medical issues. 

Dear Strings Parents, 

Please note that all music rehearsals, whether it is with the tutor or ensemble rehearsals, these will all continue to be online until further notice.

I hope you and your family are managing school online and the online zoom sessions. It has been great listening in on the ensemble rehearsals and seeing the high attendance of students ready to learn with Mr Mansukhani. Thank you parents and students for persisting.

I’ll be leaving tips each week with sight reading for next few for students to practice.

It is important that students continue to practice their instruments and their sight reading.

Sight reading is a challenging skill to develop and requires time and dedication to develop this musical skill. Here are some tips to help improve this skill so you can be envied by your music peers.

1. Preparation

Practice scales, arpeggios, and exercises in different keys. For instance, you may want to practice all scales, arpeggios and technical exercises in the key of G major.

Update your details

If you are not receiving emails from the Strings Committee, you need to log into your parent portal and update your contact details immediately. A lot of information goes out via email that is not included in Newsflash.

If you have trouble logging into the parent portal, email your group coordinator or the strings address below.

Please let your strings coordinator know if you have not received an email link to attend ensemble rehearsals for Training Strings, Junior Strings, Concert Strings, Senior Strings via Zoom run by Mr Mansukhani. Please check that these invites are not in your spam/junk/promotions folder.

Ensemble rehearsals: Currently on ZOOM         

Informative videos to help with string instruments.

If your instrument is out of tune, do not forget to have a look at these informative videos to help with string instruments. These videos will assist with how to tune and take care of the violin. These have been most helpful to ensure the violin is in tune during practice. Please watch with your child. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOP1ht4mHt0bLr-boSTZ9ig/featured

Volunteers needed.

We still need to fill the following volunteer roles to assist with Strings in 2021/2022:

• STRINGS CO-CONVENOR:  Assists Convenor with insurances, instrument purchases, newsflash writeups, replies to email queries, updates MSM portal, event planning, liaises with Strings committee, uniform shop, school, and Mr Mansukhani. Takes over the reins of Convenor for a minimum 2-year term. Requires work in your own home.  Approximately 2 hours a week.

By volunteering you will be making a valuable contribution to the running of the String program and your child(ren) will love to see you get involved. If you are interested in volunteering for one of these roles or would like more information, please email strings.artarmonpandc@gmail.com

Got a question?

If it is about your hired instrument or instrumental tutorial, please contact your tutor at first instance.

Alternatively contact our instrument coordinator or strings coordinator if required. For anything else please contact your Strings Convenor.

Tutorials:

If you have a question regarding your child’s tutorial, please email your Tutor in the first instance. Alternatively, email Jane at tutorband@artarmonpandc.org.au

THANK YOU!

2021 Strings Committee

BAND NEWS

Dear Band & Orchestra Parents,

We hope you and your families are continuing to stay safe and have adapted to the routine of online learning and (Zoom) Band rehearsals.  

By now you will have received an email with Zoom link details for your child’s Band & Orchestra rehearsal times. If you have not received, please check your junk mail folder. Confirming Zoom links will remain valid until week ending Friday the 3^rd of September.

If your child is having music lessons at school, you will also have been contacted by your tutor regarding online individual/group lessons. If you have a question regarding online music tutorials, please contact your tutor directly.  

It has been great to see a high level of participation from Band & Orchestra students in online rehearsals and music tutorials. Thank you to all the students and parents for their participation and cooperation. Well done everyone!  

For any general enquiries, please email your Band Coordinator or alternatively email band@artarmonpandc.org.au

Band & Orchestra Online (Zoom) Rehearsal Times:

Confirming all band & orchestra rehearsals will continue online (via Zoom) until further notice. All rehearsal Zoom links sent via email on the 18^th of July, will remain valid until the week ending Friday 3^rd of September.

Any future transition back to in-person rehearsals will be in accordance with APS (Artarmon Public School) and the Department of Education COVID-19 guidelines.

Please find following online (Zoom) timetable for all Band and Orchestra ensemble groups:

• Training Band: Fridays 8am to 8:40am
• Junior Concert Band: Tuesdays 4pm to 4:40pm and Thursdays 8am to 8:40am
• Concert Band: Mondays 8am to 8:40am and Wednesdays 4pm to 4:40pm
• Senior Concert Band: Tuesdays 8am to 8:40am and Fridays 4pm to 4:40pm
• Orchestra: Wednesdays from 8am to 8:40am
• Jazz Band: Thursdays from 3pm to 3:40pm

Zoom links for rehearsals were emailed to all Band & Orchestra parents on the 18^th of July. Please check your email and junk mail folder if you have not received. Alternatively email band@artarmonpandc.org.au

If your child is sick and/or unable to attend a rehearsal, please notify your Band Coordinator.

New Music:

During Term 3, Band and Orchestra students will be learning some new and interesting music pieces.

Emails have been sent to Band and Orchestra parents with links to the new music. If you have not received, please check your email/junk mail and listen out for the new music your child(ren) are learning.

Tutorials:

Confirming we have moved to online individual/group tutorials for Band students.

If you have a question regarding your child’s tutorial, please email your Tutor directly in the first instance. Alternatively email Jane at tutorband@artarmonpandc.org.au

Band Committee 2021

A big thank you to all these parents who have volunteered to help with the running of band this year. Your assistance is greatly appreciated!

We still need to fill the following volunteer roles to assist with the running of Band in 2021/2022:

• Band Convenor 2022 (Co-convenor 2021) – WANTED
• Band Secretary 2021

With Serena and Kali finishing their Convenor/Assistant Convenor roles at the end of Term 4 (2021), we are currently looking for a new Band Convenor and Band Co-Convenor for 2022. We would ideally like someone to start in the Convenor/Co-convenor role(s) before the end of Term 3 (2021) to allow time for handover/training and involvement in end of year Band activities. If you are interested in finding out more email  band@artarmonpandc.org.au today.

Many of the band committee roles & responsibilities are very flexible, can be performed from home with a computer and internet connection and fitted in around other work and/or family commitments.  

By volunteering you will be making a valuable contribution to the APS Community and the Band & Orchestra Program. Your child(ren) will love to see you get involved and it’s a great way to help with the local school community and to support the running of the APS Music program!

If you are interested in getting involved in the music program as a parent volunteer or would like more information about volunteer roles available email band@artarmonpandc.org.au

THANK YOU!