Dear Parents/Grandparents,

I would like to thank the whole school community including teachers, support staff, administra-tive staff, parents and carers for the wonderful support given to students’ learning during these unprecedented and unpredictable times. I’d also like to thank all the students who worked so well at home, following the timetables given to them, meeting face to face with teachers on “Skype” for direct instruction and recording their learning on the “SeeSaw” app.

It is so lovely to have the students back, they were all eager, full of energy and ready for new learning! We have commenced our Term 2 programs. Our history unit is “The First Fleet”; stu-dents are learning about the British colonisation (invasion) of Australia, the social circumstances and challenges in both Britain and the new Australian colony at the time and also the impact of British colonisation on Aboriginal people. To support this theme, Stage 2 and 3 students are reading and studying the novel Tom Appleby, Convict Boy, by Jackie French and they are com-posing a variety of creative, persuasive and informative texts drawn from the concepts in the novel.

During science, students are investigating light and shadows. Visual Art lessons draw on both the science and history themes; students are creating a range of digital and 2D shadow artworks and also colonial 2D and 3D constructions. During maths lessons in the first 2 weeks of term, stu-dents have been consolidating their skills in whole number and have now moved on to addition, subtraction (K-4) and fractions and decimals (Years 5/6). Students have begun receiving instruc-tion on musical notation this term, including beat and rhythm, a great follow on from learning about fractions! They will also be learning some traditional Australian Colonial songs and hope-fully performing them before the community if assemblies are allowed by the end of the term!

We are ensuring that we are following the guidelines set down by the government and the Department of Education in re-sponse to Covid-19. We are practising social distancing as much as practicable, washing hands regularly and also using hand sanitiser. Cleaners have also been given additional shifts to en-sure that surfaces are kept clean and disinfected.

I look forward to the time when restrictions have been lifted so that students have more scope to their school activities, howev-er, nothing is more important than the health and safety of the children, so we shall continue to keep up to date and adhere to all safety guidelines.

Please keep safe, healthy and happy!

Anita Houldsworth

Urana Public School 62 William St URANA NSW 2645 Ph 0269 208005 Fax 0269 208103

Email: urana-c.school@det.nsw.edu.au Website: www.urana-c.schools.det.nsw.edu.au

Chimney sweep Chimneys meet and twist

around, The bitter taste of soot,

Dragging the big giant brush behind me,

Heels blistered, arms sore.

Soot falls with soft thuds, Something scuttled so close to

me, Drag my back up another inch,

Complex set of chimneys.

Smouldering embers, Left sores on my face and arms, Chimneys clogged up with soot,

Last glimmer of my life disappeared.

Hunter Bell,

Year 6

Chimney Sweep

We had to sleep on rope,

We didn’t use any soap,

I am so sad,

Because I can’t see my

dad.

And the poor young

slaves’

Tummies rumbled like

waves,

I sweep until my lungs

get

Clogged up with smoke.

I wander the chimneys

forever more.

By Declyn Williams,

Year 4

Chimney Sweep

His voice echoed as he got stuck in

the chimney,

Meet rats as big as dogs,

Bitter taste of soot,

Soot falls with a thud.

Suffocate from the soot in our

lungs,

Sores on our hands and feet,

Last glimmer of his life dissolved,

So clogged up with soot.

Die of dehydration,

Old chimneys are where you meet

rats,

Darkness descended over his soul,

Stale smoke laden air.

It is a terrible life chimney sweep-

ing,

We get treated like rats,

We aren’t allowed to get too fat,

Drink brown water.

Reyen Smith.

Year 6

Chimney sweep

My name is tom and I climb

all day,

Weep weep weep until my

flesh was stray,

My back strapped to the bone,

All we ate tasted like wa-ter and stone.

Voices echoed in the dark-ness,

Whilst rats made nests,

Bitter taste of soot,

Rats scuttling over my

foot.

Blackness descended over my soul,

When will I ever get out of this hole,

Chimney sweeps should be

against the law,

Not to wander the chimneys

forevermore.

Melissa Smith

Year 5

New Holland Edition ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------Horrific and confusing land-

ing for first fleet !!!!!!!!

by Hunter Bell at Port Jackson

The first fleet arrived at Botany Bay in 1788 and sat there for three days, then Captain Arthur Phillip realized it was too shallow to land. There wasn’t fresh water. The ground was too dry and infertile to plant crops. It was too shallow for all the ships that would be com-ing from England to land, and he didn’t like the number of Indians they found at Botany bay. So, Captain Arthur Phillip decided to sail to Port Jackson 3 days later.

Captain Arthur Phillip is in total control of the First fleet. He is in charge of 11 ships. Arthur Phillip is on board H.M.S Sirius. The H.M.S

Sirius is holding around 756 convicts.

Arthur Phillip had to make new plans. His plans were to go to Port Jackson. At Port Jackson there are plenty of giant rabbits to eat (kangaroos). The farm land, though, has to be developed because it has tussocks of dry grass and many trees that drop litter. They have to dig up the land to grow crops and food.

The convicts have to do all

the work by hand. There

are few tools and no ma-

chinery to do the work.

James and the Giant Peach – Diary entry by James

Today I was sad because Aunt Spiker and Aunt

Sponge made me chop wood. I was lonely because I

could not go to the beach and play with my friends.

I was in pain and miserable because they smacked

me. I was scared of Aunt Spiker and Aunt Sponge

and unhappy. I was so sore and tired.

Braxton Schroot

Year 2

Scott Smith’s

James and

the Giant

Peach poster.

Tuesdays cooking!

Chicken enchiladas and salad, plus

jelly, fruit and custard for dessert.

Spaghetti and meatballs plus apple

pancakes for dessert.

The student favourite Pizza bread.

In History, we are studying the first fleet, the ships, the convicts and the

problems they had. We are reading the book about ‘Tom Appleby’, and

up to Chapter 33. We read along with the teacher. It is a fantastic book.

It is the story of a boy who lost his father, became a chimney sweep then

learnt to steal to survive. He was transported to Australia.

In Science, we are studying light and shadow. We have learnt about how

light moves, made shadows and today we are checking our sundials

every hour.

With Jono we have been doing our school mosaic and we have almost

completed our Urana P.S mosaic and we’ve started on our secret mosaic.

More news about that later.

By Reyen Smith

WHAT OUR WEEKS LOOKS LIKE

Every morning at 9am except Thursday we do fitness, on Thursday

mornings we do Rock and Water with Jono.

This is followed by modelled reading, writing/grammar, handwriting.

With the first part of the morning completed it is time for recess.

After recess we break into our modelled and guided maths group.

Every Tuesday from 12pm to 12.30pm we have PD (Personal Develop-

ment) –My wellbeing journals with Mrs Graham and Jono and then it is

cooking time.

After lunch we have DEAR which means Drop Everything And Read.

Monday afternoons we have music, Wednesday afternoons we have

History, Thursday afternoons we have Science and Friday afternoons we

have Art.

On Tuesday afternoons we have DrumBeat with Jono, this is really fun.

Every Tuesday and Thursday at 3pm we are lucky enough to have our

After School Program with Jono, and at the moment we are completing

our mosaic Urana Public School Plaque and preparing the start of our

secret mosaic plaque for the hospital resident activity room.