Head of Preparatory School

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It’s Great to be Back!

A very warm welcome back to the Preparatory School community. To our returning staff and students, great to see you again and to our new friends, I hope that the first few days have been calm and full of fun. Hearing children playing, laughing, and exploring their new classrooms has brought us all a lot of joy this week.  As Dr Seuss suggests, we are all very excited to get going and jump into 2024.

Can I encourage everyone to read the Preparatory School 2024 Welcome Letter. All information regarding new staff, key staff contacts, term dates and key Term 1 events are included. It would be helpful to also familiarise yourself with the Preparatory School Pulse home page as direct links to all cocurricular pages and the school calendar can be found here as well key school policies.

Our Facilities department have been working hard over the holidays to keep our school looking great. The Peter Cornish upgrades continue and are still on track for a mid-term completion. During the holidays, local Council cut down two trees outside Prep Reception, can I please ask families to be aware of the tree stumps that have been left behind when walking in and out of Reception.

I know that starting a new school for children and their parents can at time can overwhelming and the novelty of the ‘new’ can wear off quite quickly as first week tiredness and information overload kicks in. If this sounds familiar, please reach out to me, Ms Pontes at Prep Reception, or your classroom teacher.

Meet the Teacher

Keep in mind that Prep Meet the Teacher Evening (Wed 7 Feb, 5pm-6pm) will be an opportunity for you to ask questions and to hear about what exciting experiences and opportunities are planned for your child this year. Your child’s Meet the Teacher evening will be held in your year group classes. Please note that this is a parent only event, there is no supervision of children during the evening.

As we start the year, I have included some key answers to questions that often come up in the first few days of a new school year in the Preparatory School. I hope you find this helpful.

Playground

• Yes, parents can stay and chat with other parents at drop off, but we do ask that your conversations are taken off campus when the 8.20am bell rings.
• We love to capture key moments at school, but we do ask that no photos or videos are taken in the playground or classrooms of other children please.
• To help build resilience and for staff to establish classroom routines early, please say goodbye in the playground after dropping off. There are many staff around who can lend a hand if needed. Pop a note in the Student Diary if you need to get a message to your teacher.
• A SunSmart bucket hat MUST be worn every day. This year we have no spares, so a child without a hat will be asked to sit and play in the shade until a new hat is bought or the old one found.

Toilets

• Parents are asked not to use or enter student toilets on the Junior Campus under any circumstances. Your child can use the bathrooms by themselves if needed in the mornings. If an adult does need to use the bathroom, please use the ‘all access‘ toilet found on the left as you enter the Prep playground.

Parent Helpers

• Yes, we will be putting the call out for parent helpers later this term for a Term 2 start. However, if you would like to help Mrs Roberts in the Library, please contact her directly.
• Parent class representatives are so very important to us. If you would like to volunteer for this, please talk to Jenny Krallis or Jenny Harris as soon as possible!

Uniform, Bags and Lunches

• Any jewellery or hair accessories that are not part of the Redlands uniform will be removed and sent home in your child’s bag for safe keeping.
• Please choose ONE ITEM that your child can use to identify their bag. For example, a keyring, ribbon etc. Too many keyrings can cause little people to topple over.
• Please be mindful of lunchbox sizes, big lunchboxes are often too heavy and our learners find it hard to put them away!
• For those parents who access Flexischools, please update your child’s class details as soon as possible please.

General

• Please enjoy the journey of early years learning. Every child shines at different times and at Redlands we celebrate the process along the way.
• Our little learners will get tired! Please consider this when scheduling after school activities. Have a chat with your classroom teacher if you are unsure.

How we Celebrate Birthdays in the Prep School

A big thank you to Sonia Haque for making our new birthday capes for the Prep students. We have already celebrated a few birthdays and to see the colourful new capes is so exciting!

We celebrate birthdays in Prep by wearing a birthday cape, choosing a birthday pencil and sticker, it is always a very exciting day and our little friends are very spoilt by everyone. With that said, can I please remind families that cakes, lollies and birthday party invitations are not to be brought into school please. Thank you for your understanding and supporting the Prep staff with this.

From the Lucy Hill Library

A message from Mrs Roberts

Once again, the Lucy Hill Library is open for parent borrowing. Please come and borrow books to supplement your bedtime reading routines. It is always good to have something new to read. You may borrow ten books and one toy at a time. The library will be open for parents three days a week in the mornings and afternoons. 

• Monday 8-8.30am and 3-3.30pm.
• Tuesday 8-8.30am and 2.30-3.30pm.  (This longer afternoon allows Preschool parents to come to the library after pickup.)
• Thursday 8-8.30am and 3-3.30pm

Please note that the Library will not be open or staffed for parents on Wednesday.

Please keep an eye out for our term newsletter that will have further details around events and the 2024 NSW Premiers Reading Challenge information.

Uniform Shop

Term 1 Opening Hours

Monday, Wednesday and Friday 8am – 4pm, Thursdays 8am – 6pm.

New Uniform Fittings

All students must be fitted into the new uniform as sizing is different and there are various options available to purchase.  Parents may bring their children to the shop during our opening hours to have a uniform fitting.  Appointments are not required during term time. 

The new uniform will not available to purchase through Flexischools until mid-2024. 

A few reminders for transitioning into the new Redlands uniform:

• There will be a two year transition period.  All students should be in the new uniform from Term 1, 2026.
• During this transition period, students can to choose wear either the new uniform or the old uniform.  They cannot mix elements of old and new uniforms.  
• The only exception to this is the blazer.  Junior and Secondary School students are permitted to wear the new blazer with their old uniform or their old blazer with the new uniform. 

Redlands SunSmart Hat

The new SunSmart hat is available to purchase online through Flexischools under Accessories in various sizes. 

Redlands Community Prayer Event

Mrs Ainslie Breckenridge
Head of Preparatory School
abreckenridge@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9848