Dear Parents and carers.

Happy Friday and welcome to another outstanding year at Artarmon Public School. Yesterday was a very exciting day, as not only did we have our Years 1-6 students return but we also welcomed in our new Kindergarten children and our Yr 5 OC class.

A huge thank you to all our families for being so well prepared and organised for the start of the school year, it is greatly appreciated and makes a significant difference for everyone.

I wanted to send this communication today to provide you with an overview of the current school organisation whilst also adding some reminders for the start of the year.

Our regular fortnightly Newsflash will start on Wednesday next week. 

CLASS FORMATION & STRUCTURE

Currently we have formed 40 classes for the 2025 school year, however, please note that these classes are not yet confirmed due to fluctuations in enrolments numbers. Classes are subject to change based on school priorities and if this happens, clear communication will be sent to all.

Classes will be confirmed by Friday 14^th February.

The current class and grade structure is:

MEET THE TEACHER NIGHTS

Our annual meet the teacher nights are coming up on Monday and Tuesday 24th and 25th February.

Please add the following dates and times in to your family calendar.

Each grade will be a 45 minute session broken up into a 20 minute classroom session in your child’s 2025 classroom and a 20 minute grade session in the hall. There will be 5 minutes in between for parents to move from one venue to the other. 

We understand that parents may have children in multiple grades. We’ve tried to stagger the sessions so that parents can attend multiple but this may not always be possible for every family situation. 

As space is limited in classrooms it is suggested that children stay at home. 

*Note: Kindergarten begin in hall and move to classes 

The teachers are looking forward to welcoming you into their rooms so you can see where your child learns everyday. After a 20min session in the classroom all parents  from the grade will come together in the hall for a grade overview.

AFTER SCHOOL PICK UP

At the end of the school day the following grades can be collected from these specific areas:

Kindergarten – Abbott Rd COLA

Year One – Between the hall and canteen.

Year Two – McMillan Playground

(Classes are lined up ready for collection at 2:55pm. Please ensure you are there on time to collect of an afternoon, or if your child is enrolled in an after school program, please ensure they know where to go or send an email to the school and it will be forwarded onto the classroom teacher.

Years 3-6 – Students in Years 3-6 are dismissed from the classroom and are expected to meet their parents or carer where needed. Please support your child to build their responsibility by being explicit and provide reminders of what they are to do each afternoon.

CONTACTING THE CLASSROOM TEACHER

We understand some parents would like to share information or pass on specific information to their child’s new classroom teacher.

If you have something urgent that you need to pass on in regard to the safety and wellbeing of your child, please email the school at artarmon-p.school@det.nsw.edu with specific details and it will be passed onto the teacher and appropriate action will be followed.

ATTENDANCE MATTERS

I can not stress enough the importance of getting to school on time. Please remember that supervision is available in the playground from 8:25am before the morning bell rings at 8:55am.

As a family, please make sure you plan and ensure your child is at school every day, on time to ensure they are here and ready to learn. The impact of lateness as you can see below is detrimental to your child.

3-6 TWILIGHT SWIMMING CARNIVAL

Our Twilight Swimming Carnival, which will be held on Thursday, 13th February at Lane Cove Aquatic Leisure Centre is coming up fast.

Please note that this is not a compulsory school event and will take place after school hours.

Some questions come every year in regards to why we hold a twilight carnival instead of during school hours. Some of the main reasons are:

• Size of school - Due to over 600 3-6 students, we are unable to finish a competitive carnival in the time frame.
• Cost to families - Bus costs alone would be over $7,000
• Safety of children
• Sun safety - Not all children participate and spend the day just sitting in the sun.
• Water safety - High risk to those who can not swim.
• Parents come and watch! - Over the years we have had great feedback as parents are able to come and watch their child race after school hours.

The carnival is for students in Years 3-6 and any Year 2 students that are turning 8 this year. 

This is a non-compulsory school event and only students who are confident 50m swimmers are to attend. Swimmers should only consider competing if they are aiming to advance to the North Sydney Zone carnival. 

Please fill in the required information in the link to register your child's interest in the events they would be participating in. This is important as it will allow us to allocate numbers and lane space. 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc9pcVzLJHHDm92hwhl9pa27hNg4nmhX6zoJHbaCayUl6BklQ/viewform?usp=sf_link 

TERM ONE KEY DATES 

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND