FROM THE PRINCIPAL .....
SSO Appreciation Week
Week 5 (next week) is SSO Appreciation Week. With this week also being Book Week, we will acknowledge and appreciate the invaluable presence of our School Service Officers (SSOs) and the positive impact they have on the lives of students, teachers and families throughout week 6.
We are very grateful at CVPS to have an awesome team of people who work tirelessly for our students and school. Our team of SSOs support students, staff, families, community and the school as a site in so many varied ways. Our school would not be able to operate as effectively without them.
Thank you to Sue, Karen, Jenny, Nicole, Chloe, Vicky, Yvonne, Marieke, Jen, Sam, Christian, Kathryn, Suzie, Jenni, David, Hugo, and Keith – We hope you enjoy the week.
Congratulations Penny
It was great to be able to welcome back and celebrate Penny Blackwell’s remarkable and well-deserved U11 BMX World Championship triumph. At our Monday morning assembly, the Year 6 students formed a guard of honour, waving green and gold streamers, while Penny rode through, before being cheered on and interviewed by our communication leaders on a medal winners’ dais.
Becoming a world champion is never easy and is a very expensive exercise for the families involved. The Blackwell family would never ask, so I will… If there’s any business out there that would like to support a world champion through some form of donation/sponsorship, please feel free to contact the school, and we’ll gladly pass on any necessary details.
The Grateful Garden
Keep an eye out for the August Edition of SA Life magazine featuring our very own Grateful Garden. Kim Syrus visited Coro in June to chat with students and staff about the history of garden, improvements made and what it means to them and the school community. We’re very fortunate to have such a lovely and inviting space providing students a unique learning experience. SA Life Article
Book Week 2025
We are excited to be celebrating Book Week next week from Monday, 18th, through to Friday, 22nd of August, culminating in our much-anticipated Book Week Parade on Friday.
For further details, please see the separate article below.
Progressive Achievement Tests
Later this term, students in years 2-6 will be participating in the annual Progressive Achievement Tests – PAT-Reading and PAT-Maths.
The Progressive Achievement Tests (PAT) are online reading comprehension and maths assessments aligned to the Australian Curriculum. The tests are administered each year and provide teachers with information about the learning strengths and needs of their students.
Year 1 Phonics Screening Check
Again this year all students in Year 1 will participate in a phonics screening check. The Year 1 Phonics Screening Check assesses how students blend sounds together to read a word. The data from these tests will inform our teachers of the teaching of reading for our Early Years students.
What is phonics?
Phonics is the relationship between letters and sounds and is vital in learning to read. Some children struggle with learning to read so it is important that these children are identified quickly so teachers can plan for any specific support they may need
What is the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check?
The Year 1 Phonics Screening Check is a short, quick assessment that tells teachers how your child is progressing in phonics. Your child will sit with the class teacher and will be asked to read 40 words aloud. These words include 20 real words and 20 nonsense words. The test normally takes a few minutes. If your child is struggling the teacher will stop the check. The check is carefully designed not to be stressful for your child.
Teachers then analyse the results and, if necessary, plan for any additional support that students might require.
Why use nonsense words?
The assessment includes pseudo or nonsense words to see if the student is able to use their knowledge of blending to read a word rather than their memory of having seen that word before.
More information
If you have any further questions, please talk to your child’s class teacher.