The Smile Squad team from Peninsula Health are coming to our school soon. 

Smile Squad is the Victorian Government free school dental program. 

This means all students can get a free dental check-up, preventive services, and treatment at school. 

 How to access free dental care

We need your consent before we can provide services. Consent is usually provided by a parent or guardian. 

Sign up to Smile Squad at: https://bit.ly/smilesquadvic  

OR use the below QR code:  

Please complete and submit the consent form by Friday April 28. 

Paper copies of the consent form are available. Please contact the school office if you would like to request one. 

The electronic consent form can be translated into more than 100 languages, and the paper form is available in 13 languages. 

 Smile Squad dental packs  

All children deserve a healthy smile, and the Smile Squad free school dental program is working hard to help make sure this happens.  

Your child(ren) will soon receive a free dental pack to bring home. The dental pack contains a toothbrush, full sized toothpaste, and an oral health brochure. Please take the time to read the brochure. It’s full of helpful hints and tips to help your whole family eat well, drink well and clean well – for life. 

Did your dental pack come in a water bottle? 

Smile Squad water bottles are not dishwasher safe and must be handwashed.  

Standard strength toothpaste 

Smile Squad provides standard strength fluoride toothpaste that is generally used by ages six and over, unless recommended by a dental or trained health professional. 

If your child is under six, please talk to a dental or trained health professional to find out if your child might benefit from using this toothpaste. You can also choose to put the toothpaste away until they turn six or give it to someone else in your family to use. 

Do I need to attend my child’s appointment? 

No, you do not need to attend your child’s appointment. You can attend if you would like to, and you can take your child to the community dental clinic if you prefer. 

The Peninsula Health Smile Squad look forward to seeing you soon. '

There is no safe number of days for missing school – each day a student misses puts them behind, and can affect their educational outcomes.

Each missed day is associated with progressively lower achievement in numeracy, writing and reading.

POOR ATTENDANCE CAN MEAN MORE THAN JUST MISSING OUT ON SOME LEARNING

IF YOU ARE NOT AT SCHOOL WHAT DO I MISS OUT ON?

You miss out on all the big stuff – class discussions and all the interaction that happens in a classroom, the chance to get help from teachers and the opportunity to practice skills and gain knowledge.

Being away means you might miss out on a lot of learning or that you need to catch up in your time.

If all of that isn’t enough to convince you to be at school every day, being away also means you also miss out on playing with your friends. Being away from school a lot can be lonely. It has a big impact on relationships and social connections.

Believe it or not, everyone wants you at school and it really is better when you attend.

Top attendance tips for parents

• Schools want to work in partnership with parents – act early if you have any concerns by contacting your child’s school and asking for advice and support
• Remember that every day counts
• There is no safe number of days for missing school – each day a student misses puts them behind, and can affect their educational outcomes and their social connectedness
• Talk positively about school and the importance of attending every day
• Open and prompt communication with your child’s school about all absences is a good idea
• Avoid making routine medical and dental appointments during the school day or planning family holidays during the term
• Seek help from your school if you are concerned about your child’s attendance and wellbeing. Schools want to work in partnership with parents to support student attendance and wellbeing.

Absences relate to decling results

This graph shows the results from studying over 415,000 individual students. As absence rates increase, NAPLAN results dramatically decline. Source: Student Attendance and Educational Outcomes: Every Day Counts; Hancock, Shephard, Lawrence & Zubrick, 2013

The importance of attendance at primary school	School is better when you're here - Primary student information	Student attendance and educational outcomes research paper