Principals Report

Dear Members of the Glen Waverley Primary School Community,

I trust all is well with you and your family and welcome to this fortnight’s newsletter where so much is shared about our fabulous school.

As per usual, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me on 9802 9938 or via email at frank.catalano@education.vic.gov.au

Novel Coronavirus and Lockdown Update

May I commence this fortnight’s newsletter by once again thanking the entire school community for the manner in which we have embraced and implemented the latest lockdown. I cannot express how proud I am of the children as they continue their learning journey in a very different way, the staff for their continual willingness to do what is best for the children both at home and at school and of course the GWPS parents. As a staff we are always eternally grateful for the manner in which you continue to support us to complete our duties particularly whilst working from home. Thank you everyone! 

As a staff we are very, very conscious of the impact the lockdowns are having on the children, hence we will continue with the whole class wellbeing check-ins each morning and in the afternoon. A reminder that these are intentionally engineered to encourage a greater degree of connectedness amongst the children and their teacher. Once the children return to school, we will hold a variety of other reconnecting and wellbeing tasks. 

I have asked Mr Lewis (Assistant Principal, Wellbeing) and Mrs Baily (Leader of Student Wellbeing) to work with some of our senior staff and the Year 5 and 6 Student Voice Team, to develop this program, we look forward to sharing what is planned as soon as possible.

Some of the students’ response to the lockdown:

Rehmat (Year 1) has written a song – “What Makes Us 1D”  

When we started we weren’t perfect but ......... that didn’t matter.

We all became stronger cause that’s what makes us 1D , Oh, 1D

Days past and we came back to school,

But that changed when lockdown came back again.

We stayed strong, and we did our best-best-best

During breaks, we rested and then we had our meetings.

Community circles re-charged our minds and kept us busy 

That sad feeling zoomed away .... 

Cause that’s what makes 1D, oh, 1D

We are all brave and we know that adventure will never end

Cause that’s what makes 1D, oh, 1D!

Daniel (Year 4) has written the following piece:

Before it was all perfect

Then this happened

It feels like a boat of happiness sinking into the deep ocean of sadness

It feels like everything is broken

Nothing can help except going back to school

It’s all because I heard that lockdown is happening again! 

Please take care everyone and as mentioned in the Compass Posts, if you need any support, please do not hesitate to contact me. 

What’s happening at school during the lockdown?

Students and Staff at school:

• On average there are about 70 children attending school. They are all learning in the main building and have been divided into 3 groups;
• Year Prep,
• Years 1 and 2 and
• Year 3 to 6

Staff:

• There are 2 teachers assisting each group
• Most of the senior staff are at school
• Mrs Milward and Daniel are working from the office
• Nurse Tina and Andy complete maintenance tasks – yes, Nurse Tina has been doing lots of painting! And
• Kathryn is working in the library to make sure it is neat, clean and tidy for when everyone comes back!

• Performing Arts classroom – we have taken the opportunity to replace the carpet in this classroom and if we get enough time, we will do the same in some of the other classrooms too!

Department of Education and Training (DET) School Review 

The first day of the DET review was held last Tuesday and I take the opportunity to share the following with our school community:

The entire Glen Waverley Primary School community should be very proud of:

• The high level of student achievement
• The high-quality teaching and learning approaches implemented across our school
• Our continual focus on school improvement both in the educational and facilities realm and
• The increased student voice opportunities throughout our school.

The next step will involve the reviews viewing teaching and learning in action and then on the final day of the review we will develop the goals, key improvement strategies and targets for our next School Strategic Plan (SSP). I look forward to sharing my news in the coming weeks. 

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FOLLOWING STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED A PRINCIPAL’S AWARD RECENTLY: 

Prep B:

• Nethmi, Vidhi, Sandaru and Senon for making amazing progress with their maths learning
• Yuvein and Hasiru for working so hard in all areas of the curriculum

Prep E:

• Riaan also for working so hard in all areas of the curriculum

1B:

• Nanki for making the most amazing progress with her writing. She recently wrote a narrative that is 4 pages long!

1C:

• Neeraja for making the most amazing progress with her writing. She wrote 4 pages about the production which is featured in the Kids Corner section of this newsletter!
• Tanya for being an amazing friend

1D: 

• Aagash and Oscar for writing the most amazing recount about their production performance

2C: 

• Sheila and May for being very kind, responsible and respectful

2D: 

• Arya for working so hard to improve her maths knowledge

4A:

• Sidarth and Nevon for being really responsible and honest members of our school community

4D:

• Seyansa for being a very supportive and responsible member of our school community

5D:

• Jonathon for making amazing progress with his maths skills

Wishing everyone a safe and happy fortnight, 

Frank Catalano

Principal