Greetings from Shaun

Remembrance Day

On the 11th of November we stopped to remember those who had given so much in protecting and supporting us all through wars and have afforded us the freedoms we now enjoy. At Northcote Primary School we value and respect the importance of Remembrance Day and at 11am we all stopped for a minutes silence to remember the sacrifice of others. 

At 11 am on  the 11th November 1918 silence filled the air. After four years of continuous war, the gun fire ceased. A peace settlement was secured by the battling armies, and World War I was finally over.

Working Bee

A huge thank you to all who attended the working bee on the 5th of November. The weather was super kind to us, and a power of work was done around the school, which has made a massive difference to the look of the grounds. Hopefully you have had an opportunity to see some of the new garden beds and the beautiful natives that were planted on the day by our amazing team of volunteers. Not as immediately obvious but a HUGE amount of work went in to on the day, our sand pit has been replenished as well as the OSH sand pit bringing a wave of interested new children to the play space. 

Art show and Picnic

On Monday the 5th of December from 5 - 7pm we will be holding our annual art show and picnic. This is a great opportunity for the community to get together and celebrate the wonderful art work that the children have created throughout the year. It's also a great opportunity to get to know other community members who you may not have had an opportunity to meet and to celebrate some of the achievements of the year together. Massive thanks to Edwina for organising the show and for her work in supporting our children's development as artists. Please also see Edwina's call out for parent volunteers further in this newsletter.

Camp

The 3/4 camp in Toolangi last week was a great success with good weather, fun activities and lots of kids having great experiences. A huge thank you to the teachers and our parent volunteers who made the camp a possibility and an absolute success. More information about the camp Toolangi happenings can be found further on in this newsletter. Year 5/6 students will be off to "The Summit Adventure Park" for their camp next Wednesday, and I know that everyone is very much looking forward to that. Thanks in advance to all involved in the planning and supervision of this camp.

Camp planning for 2023 is well underway with the year 1/2 and Year 5/6 camps already booked (the camps are locked in but the dates are still to be finalised) and  the booking for the 2023 3/4 camp should be locked in very soon. As things start to settle in our COVID normal world and we have a bit more certainty, we have been able to spread our camps out across the year. Rather than all in term four as they have been this year! I know that the office staff are very much relieved and I am hoping that this is a relief for parents as we get back to a more normal routine. 

2023 Planning 

In 2023 we will have a few changes ahead. We are currently undertaking our recruitment process for our teaching staffing. Once finalised in the coming weeks, we will confirm our staff list for next year as well as teaching placements. In the interim, I am pleased to welcome three new teaching staff to the school for 2023 Meg, Matt, and Brigitte.  I am very much looking forward to you all meeting them and welcoming them in to our beautiful community here at Northcote. Please stay tuned for future updates.

In the coming weeks, we will also continue to finalise the process of planning our strategic directions for 2023, including our class and teaching arrangements. This is a comprehensive process and many, many factors are taken into account. 

Excursion/Incursions process update

We are currently refining our whole school process and expectations for incursions and excursions for 2023. Of key importance in this work is ensuring that a consistent process for the organisation, planning and communication of excursions takes place to ensure a successful event. This includes the alignment of the excursion to the educational program in the classroom, the interests of the children, and the equitable distribution of excursions across the year. I spoke about the calendar of events in the previous newsletter and we are currently working hard to ensure that our various events like swimming, camps, excursions, incursions and various other events are spread out across the year to ensure that everyone is able to participate fully. More information will be forthcoming regarding this. While I am talking about future planning in regard to incursions, I would also like to confirm that Relationships and Sexual Education sessions are on the agenda and we are hoping to confirm parent and student sessions for next year.

Year 6 Graduation

Year 6 graduation is fast approaching for our 2022 year 6 students. If you have not done so already, please ensure you have included a prep and a year 6 photo of your child into the google drive that Dale sent out by compass late last month. Tickets are also available through compass and the tickets will be distributed by the Year 5/6 teachers. Any issues with ticketing please visit or call the office. A reminder the graduation will be held on the 13th of December at Welcome to Thornbury.

BYOD information Evening

Thank you to the year 2 parents who attended our BYOD session on Wednesday evening. Also big thanks to Dale for his work in developing the BYOD pack and his presentation on the night. A video of the session will be made available shortly. If you have any further questions regarding the BYOD program for 2023 please contact the school.

Summer Holiday Works

There are two important school ground works items that will be completed over the summer holidays that I would like to bring to your attention. Firstly, additional shade sails will be installed in the school over on the block. These will provide additional areas of shade for the children during play time as well as enabling outside learning experiences to take place with added sun safety. The shade sail just outside the prep rooms that was damaged during one of our wild storms will also be reinstalled. Secondly we have engaged an arborist to conduct our annual tree inspection. These important inspections ensure that the trees on the school grounds are in good health, and that any identified issues with trees are attended to in a timely manner to make sure we keep our schools grounds safe. 

Shaun Wells

Principal