Principal's Report
Welcome to the 2021 School Year
The excitement and eagerness displayed by our students and their parents on the first day of the school was an extremely positive start to the 2021 school year.
Students have shown us their resilience, and independence already as they enter both school and their classroom so confidently.
We truly look forward to the safe, gradual and steady return to ‘normality’ with our goal, when possible, to once again having our whole community on the school site before and after school – we miss the “buzz” of our wonderful school community being together and look forward to the time that this can again return.
Welcome to the new students to our school who have settled in very quickly. The Prep students have only had 8 days of school and they have already attended Art, Languages, Library, Music and PE.
Arrival – One of the biggest positives to the changes at the start of the day is the ‘soft’ start in the classroom. Rather than our entire student body congregating outside, students are able to enter classrooms, under the supervision of their teacher, from 8.50am and begin to prepare for their learning day. Children in OSHC will be directed to their classroom at 8.50am and students in the younger year levels will be escorted by the OSHC staff directly to their classrooms.
Students arriving after 9am must be signed in using the kiosk.
We are incredibly proud of the increased levels of independence demonstrated by students across all year levels. This ‘soft start’ arrival will continue until further notice.
Dismissal at the end of the school day: All students will be dismissed at 3.30pm and we ask that all children go directly home. No students should be playing in the yard before or after school.
Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Unfortunately the impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) and the restrictions imposed upon us at very short notice may impact on some of the procedures we have in place at school.
Changes that occur at short notice are beyond our control, as was the case on Thursday 5 February when we were notified at 7.47am on the update: new guidance for face masks. We are adhering to every guideline dictated and recommended by both DET and the Government with the one overarching aim of keeping everyone safe and healthy.
Unfortunately at this time our staff are still not able to meet as one due to COVID-19 restrictions. We do not have a space large enough to accommodate the entire staff so all whole school staff meetings are held online. We meet daily at 8.30am to discuss the daily requirements, policy updates and the occasional celebration like birthdays, promotions and general items of good news. We last met as a staff in March, 2020!
Tutor learning initiative: Information for Parents, carers and families from DET
This information is for parents, carers and guardians about the Tutor Learning Initiative, which will support students in their learning in 2021. The 2020 school year has been an extraordinary and challenging one for every school community. Many Victorian students spent much of Terms 2 and 3 this year learning remotely and Victorian schools and their communities have made an exceptional effort to provide continuity of teaching and learning to our students during this time.
During Term 4, 2020 schools across Victorian focused on supporting students’ mental health and wellbeing, in addition to assisting students to readjust to on-site learning. Teachers also focused on assessing student learning, addressing individual learning gaps and identifying those students who need extra support for their learning, using classroom-based observation and assessments.
We know that the remote learning experience was different for every student. While some students thrived, some students may not have engaged as fully with remote learning. For most of our students, regular high-quality teaching in 2021 will be enough to help them progress to the expected level of learning. Some students will benefit from additional intensive learning support in 2021.
As you may be aware, in response to this, the Victorian Government is investing $250 million in the Tutor Learning Initiative to enable schools across Victoria to engage around 4,100 teachers as tutors in 2021 to support students who need extra assistance with their learning. Schools will determine how this initiative is best implemented for their students and will ensure that students will get this support in a way that minimises disruptions to other learning or school activities.
Data from 2020 assessments as well as initial observations this year, are being used to identify students who may benefit from some targeted tutoring intervention, which includes both catch up and extension as required. The program is designed to be fluid with some students needing a few weeks and others participating for longer. The tutoring will look different at the various year levels and will be tailored to suit the needs of the children to ensure maximum curriculum access and success.
Children who participate in the tutoring program will have an Individual Learning Plan (IEP) identifying goals and strategies. These will be sent home to inform parents/caregivers.
We have allocated a number of teachers to support children with intensive learning and preparation for this delivery in each year level is already underway. This will replace any BEET or Treehouse programs previously operating during Semester 1.
This initiative also allows classroom teachers a greater capacity to ensure that all other students’ achievement, engagement and wellbeing needs are met, so that all students receive the support they need in 2021.
Small group learning in our school will be undertaken by:
Year 1 - Pam Collins
Year 2 - Jenny Vawdrey
Year 3 - Angie Sarros
Year 4 - Grant Rounsley
Year 5 & 6 Meredith Graham & Zac Taylor
SAT – Student Agency Team
We are very excited to announce changes to the structure of Student Voice and Junior Council. For the last three years Beaumaris North Primary students in the senior levels have nominated students in Year 4-6 to be part of the ‘Student Voice’ team. Additionally, the Junior Council team has included Years 3-6. Both of these groups have had a core focus on empowering students and enabling them to contribute their ideas and opinions for the school community.
This year we will be combining these two student groups to create a Student Agency Team that recognises the fundamental importance of empowering students in their learning environments.
Our goals are to:
- ensure the student voices within cohorts are represented
- empower a student action team
- create a sense of ownership in our school environment
Naomi Holt and Angus Ross will be leading this initiative for our school in 2021.
More information will be provided shortly.
Where does Beaumaris North Primary school sit in relation to Victorian Government Schools?
Our school belongs to the Beachside Network which encompasses the Government schools in the City of Port Phillip and the City of Bayside. Within this network is a smaller network called “Southern Stars.”
The Southern stars includes Beaumaris PS, Beaumaris North PS, Black Rock PS, Brighton Beach PS , Hampton PS, Sandringham PS and Sandringham East PS. The Principal Class Officers of these schools meet weekly to ensure that all of the guidelines outlined in the Schools Operation manual are met. We also have several Community of Practices within this group including Numeracy, Sport and Tutoring. All of the meetings are held online and the COP provide an ongoing sharing of best practice, skills and resources.
Schools' privacy policy
The Department of Education and Training (which includes all Victorian government schools, central and regional offices) values the privacy of every person and is committed to protecting information that schools collect.
All staff including contractors, service providers and volunteers of the Department, and this Victorian government school (our school), must comply with Victorian privacy law and this policy.
In Victorian government schools the management of ‘personal information’ and ‘health information’ is governed by the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic) and Health Records Act 2001 (Vic) (collectively, Victorian privacy law).
This policy on our BNPS website explains how our school collects and manages personal and health information, consistent with Victorian privacy law.
Sherril Duffy
Principal