Huntingdale Primary School

Principal and Assistant Principal's Page

Principal's Report

Welcome to the 2018 school year! I trust everyone had a fabulous holiday break and enjoyed some of this glorious summer weather!

 

I had a lovely break. I spent almost 2 weeks in Bermagui camping with friends, went to the movies (hot tip- The Greatest Showman was a great film), read books, went several times to the cricket and caught up with lots of family and friends.

 

It was the first holidays with our new Holiday Program from ‘Team Holiday’. From all reports this program was well received by Huntingdale families with many children attending. They will continue to provide Holiday Programs during the school holiday breaks during 2018. If you have any feedback about the program please email the school.

 

It is wonderful to be ‘back on board’. Our staff have come in over the holidays to prepare for the school year and ensure that things have been ready for students on their first day. We spent our first two curriculum days completing professional development on writing, which is one of our key areas to improve in our annual implementation plan. We also spent considerable time on team curriculum planning as well as Department of Education and Training (DET) updates and anaphylaxis and CPR training.

 

I visited each classroom over the last week and students were well settled and happy to be back at school. Thank you to all parents for preparing your child for the new school year and making it a smooth transition for all.

 

2018 Staff

I am very pleased to confirm our staff the school year:

 

Principal - Ruth Biddle

Assistant Principal - Naomi Mori- Hanazono

5/6W - Rebecca Wood & Yukiko Shoya

5/6M - Pete Magart & Yukiko Shoya

5/6K - Nozomi Koyama & Yukiko Shoya

3/4S - Soo Lee Tan & Eiji Nishikubo

3/4N - Nick Tolliday & Eiji Nishikubo

3/4C - Linda Ooi-Chan & Eiji Nishikubo

3/4B - Brett Herskope & Eiji Nishikubo

2W - Alyson Wakely & Tomomi Wakiya

2P - Kim Philpott & Tomomi Wakiya

2M - Maria Mathews & Tomomi Wakiya

1W - Caitlin Webb & Tomoko Smith

1P - Maria Perrella & Tomoko Smith

1M - Annika Matchan & Tomoko Smith

FT - Dan Thomas & Hisae Hattigan

FH - Hisae Hatigan & Dan Thomas

FHE - Keiko Harada & Jo Ewart

5/6 Music, Taiko & Junior PE - Tadashi Hanazono

Arts - Naoko Inuzuka

Teaching Assistants and Support Staff - Honami Ando, Rachel Biddle, Mayumi Cake, Jenny Celle, Wakana Karchnak & Francesca Smith

Business Manager - Dr Rosella Dossi

Office Manager - Mrs Gill Penfold

 

I’d like to welcome Annika Matchan and Tomomi Wakiya to our staff. Annika is first year graduate, who not only studied Japanese herself at school and university, but spent 2 years in Japan teaching English and using her Japanese Language. Tomomi has taught Japanese in the past year in schools over the other side of Melbourne and has recently moved locally to take up this position.

 

We wish all of our staff a wonderful year!

 

Communication and Key Dates 2018

To assist with organisation and information dissemination we use an App called FlexiBuzz.  This tool aids with home school communication particularly for those families who are unable to make drop off or pick up on a regular basis which limits face to face networking opportunities.  A major benefit of FlexiBuzz is that it links directly to our website, so when calendar dates are updated on the website or the newsletter is posted you will receive a push notification.  Please refer to our website or FlexiBuzz for key dates for 2018.  Dates for the whole year will be published shortly as we are in the process of confirming the draft calendar which was created at the end of 2017.  If you are unsure of how to access or use FlexiBuzz please pop into the office and Rosella will be more than happy to help you.

 

We have also update our flow chart of communication between home and school, so you know and understand who to go for different questions.

2018 School Captains

Our 2018 Captains at Huntingdale are:

School Captains - Kai B & Hajin

Multimedia Captains - Haruka, Madeline & Hana

Environment Captains -  Elektra, Shion & Monique

Community Captains - Sayuri & Rei

House Captains:

Honshu - Taro & Mio

Hokkaido - Renji & Lucien

Kyushu - Adele & Jay

Shikoku - Eti & Jabu

They will provide some newsletter updates to keep you informed about what is happening in each of their roles.

 

Watashi Mo

I am excited to say that Watashi Mo is up and running! We the following office bearers:

Co-Presidents- Vi Vu and Yasuko Nishi

Treasurer- Rika Domizu

Secretary- Lisa Gleeson

A survey about Watashi Mo has been created and we would love your input! Please click on the link below:

English version https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/NT7J6FZ

Japanese version https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/NNLKCJF

We look forward to hearing from you and will let you know of our first meeting time.

 

Communication Between Home and school for Parents

Classroom teacher offer parents a range of opportunity to communicate with them (please see attached PDF file). We have placed a copy of this diagram in each child's diary and they are also around the school.

Communication between home and school for Parents.pdf

2018 Curriculum Days

Schools can have 4 Curriculum Days per year, with the first day being set in Term 1. The following dates have been approved by School Council for the 2018 school year:

  • Term 1- 29 & 30 January
  • Term 2- Friday 18 May (Week 5)
  • Term 3- Friday 27th July

OHSC Club have been informed of the dates and will are confident they will be able to provide a service for us on these dates.

 

Notification re: Measles and Chickenpox Reminder

Each term there is a reminder in the newsletter regarding Measles and Chickenpox.  As you may or may not be aware, there are currently children in our school community who are receiving medical treatment.  The children participate in the normal school program without any major limitations when they are well enough to be here.  A major concern, however, is if these students develop measles or chickenpox, they can become seriously ill.  I seek your cooperation in preventing this situation.  If your son/daughter has or may have measles or chickenpox or is unwell, I request that you do not send them to school during this period and notify your class teacher and the office as soon as possible.  Thank you for your support in keeping our school a safe place for all of our children.

 

Anaphylaxis and Allergies

We have a number of children in the school with anaphylaxis and allergies to a range of things.  We ask that all parents to avoid packing nuts or nut related products in their child’s lunch.  This is will assist us all in keeping our environment safe for all of our children.   

 

Medical Plans and Update contact details

At school we often need to contact parents for a variety of reasons. Over the break many families’ telephone numbers, home address and email addresses have changed. If you do change telephone numbers, email, and/or home address or there is an update on personal/medical/family situation, it is most important that you contact Gill in the school office to let us know so we can update the school records. An early reminder that we must have your correct email address as school reports will be emailed this year to parents. We thank you for your cooperation with this.

Working With Children Checks

Just a reminder to all parents that you must have a valid Working With Children Check when working with students in classrooms, on excursions, working bees, camps and sporting events. You can apply for one online at:

http://www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au/

 

You will be required to bring your WWC with you each time you participate in an excursions or activity in the classroom.  When you are signing in at the office you will be asked to put your WWC number in.  Unfortunately if you don’t have your WWC number, you will not be able to sign in or enter the classroom.

 

Student Achievements

Suleman Mahmood (1M) was selected  to represent the Clayton Dist

Assistant Principal's Report

Welcome to the 2018 school year! I trust everyone had a fabulous summer holiday. It has been wonderful hearing about students’ holidays- many have been overseas, taking trips to the beach, watching movies and relaxing!  I had a fantastic holiday. I feel refreshed and am really happy to be back at school.

 

School Uniform & Hats

As Principal Ruth and I visited classrooms it is lovely to see that some students were excited to meet with new friends and teachers, some students were a bit nervous for the first day back.  However at the end of the day I saw many parents outside relieved their children came back with a smile.

 

We are pleased to see so many students are in new uniform. We have allowed a three year window for students to transfer to the new school uniform, which allows families the ability to get proper wear out of their current school uniform and financially plan for purchasing the new items. This is the second year for our transition. Hopefully we can see most students wear the new uniform next year.

 

All students are also required to wear a Huntingdale sun smart hat during Term 1. Hats can be purchased from PSW in Ormond.  Caps and other wide brimmed hats are not acceptable. We ask that parents do not allow their children to bring other hats to school as they are not part of our dress code. If students do not have a hat they will be asked to play in shaded areas.

 

All students are also required to have a Huntingdale school bag too.

 

We are aiming to build school pride with our students. This includes pride in our learning and achievements, but also in the way we present ourselves. As per our School Dress Code Policy we ask that:

  • Students wear appropriate footwear for school activities, e.g. runners for sport, preferably in black. White or navy socks should be worn only.
  • Any accessories such as tights, scarves, beanies, bike shorts be navy blue. Students will be asked to remove any accessories that are not in school colours.
  • During art/craft activities, that children wear protective clothing.
  • Jewellery such as dangling earrings, necklaces are not to be worn due to safety concerns. Studs and sleeper earrings are acceptable.
  • Makeup not be worn, except when part of a school performance or dress up event.
  • Fingernails should be without nail polish, natural and of a practical length.
  • Hair be well groomed, of natural colour, tied back and off the face with accessories in the school colours of teal blue, navy or white.

 

We understand that from time to time keeping up with washing can be difficult. If your child is not in school uniform for a day, please write a note in your child’s diary.

 

Some families may be eligible for assistance in purchasing new uniform. Please see Rosella at the Office if you believe you may qualify.

 

Parents can view the full Student Dress Code Policy on our website.

 

Child Safe Standards

Every six months the school is required to update staff and the school community on the Child Safe Standards. This was completed with staff on our Curriculum Days this year.

 

The Child Safe Standards are a result of the Victorian Government’s response to the recommendations in ‘Betrayal of Trust’ Report, which investigate allegations of child abuse in agencies working with children.

 

The seven standards are:

Standard 1- Strategies to embed an organisational culture of child safety, including thorough effective leadership arrangements

Standard 2- A child safe policy or statement of commitment to child safety

Standard 3- A code of conduct that establishes clear expectations for appropriate behaviour with children

Standard 4- Screening, supervision, training and other human resources practices that reduce the risk of child abuse by new and existing personnel

Standard 5- Processes for responding to and reporting suspected child abuse

Standard 6- Strategies to identify and reduce or remove the risk of abuse

Standard 7- Strategies to promote the participation and empowerment of children

 

The good news is that, overall,l Victorian Government Schools are safe places for children. However, the new standards require Huntingdale Primary School to promote that there is a culture of ‘no tolerance’ for child abuse.

 

At Huntingdale Primary School we firmly believe that it is everyone’s responsibility- School Council, the Principal Class, staff, parents, volunteers, students, visitors, and service providers to ensure children are safe.

 

As part of the implementation of Standard 7, Ruth will be visiting each grade and reading them the book ‘My Underpants Rule!’ This book teaches children that they are the ‘boss’ of their underpants and talks about a range of safety issues. Ruth will also go through the Student Code of Conduct with each class.

 

Parents can view the full Child Safe Standards policy on our website and it is up on the windows of the staffroom for you to view.

 

Creating Our Learning Community (COLC)

For the first four weeks of school all classes are completing our ‘Creating Our Learning Community’ (COLC) unit of work. This unit focuses on creating a positive learning atmosphere in the classroom which will set up learning for the year. During the unit students review our school values which are strongly linked to the ‘Play is the Way’ virtues. A key component of COLC is students working together with both their English and Japanese Teachers in the same session to build common language and learning protocols, which will be mirrored both in English and Japanese sessions throughout the year. Our aim is for the students in each class to build a strong rapport and identity with all of their teachers which will be vital for the success not only this year but in years to come.

 

Student Support Services

A major part of my role as Assistant Principal is to coordinate the student support services at the school. This includes the DET speech pathology, psychology and social worker services, as well as outside agencies. I also facilitate additional programs in the school such as EAL (English as an Additional Language), Literacy, Wellbeing and Mathematics support.

 

If you have any concerns about your child’s education, please see the classroom teacher first. They can then discuss options.

 

It is also important if your child has received outside assistance such as speech pathology, psychology, occupational therapy and so on that you inform the school. The classroom teacher may ask if you have any reports so we can keep them on file at school. This will enable your child’s teachers to implement any recommendations and adjust the teaching program accordingly.

 

If you have any further questions, please come and see me.

 

 Medical Concerns

We would like to ask for your co-operation in an important matter.

 

One of the children in our school community is currently receiving medical treatment which puts them at serious risk if they are exposed to infectious illnesses, in particular: chicken-pox, measles, mumps or shingles.

 

For chicken-pox, shingles and measles a special protective injection is available for this child, however, it is only effective if given within 72 hours of exposure, and only lasts for one month.

 

If your child is suspected of having one of these illnesses it is very important that they do not attend school. It is also important that while your child is unwell they remain at home until they are no longer contagious.

 

If your child has chicken-pox, measles, mumps or shingles or suspected of having an infectious illness please contact the school immediately.

 

As a school community we value your support in relation to the wellbeing of all our students.

 

Please don’t hesitate to contact the school if you have any questions.

 

School Nurse

Alison Barker a visiting primary school nurse from the Department of Education and Training will be attending the school to conduct the Foudation grade health assessments and to see other children as requested by parents or teachers (with parents’ consent).

 

The purpose of the visit is to provide Victorian children with the opportunity to have a health assessment; to link children, families and school communities to services available in the community; and to provide information and advice that promotes health and wellbeing.

 

Have a great fortnight.

Naomi Mori-Hanazono

Meet the school captains

Hi I’m Kai. My favourite sport is soccer and I barrack for Melbourne City. I like eating sushi. My favourite colour is red. I am proud to be school captain because I get to represent our school. My older sister Aila was school captain in 2016 and she inspired and encouraged me to go for school captain. If any new foundation children are having any trouble they can always come to me!

 

Hi I’m Hajin. I like Anime and I like Itachi the best. I play tennis. My favourite colour is red. I was encouraged by a lot of my friends to apply for school captain as they felt I was suitable to the role. I am really excited to be able to represent Huntingdale at different things.