It is hard to believe I am writing my final message for the year. As I reflect on 2023, lots of things come to mind – first and foremost I think about the trust you place in us each day and the privileged position we are in to guide, support and teach your children. We do our absolute best to see, hear and care for every student in our school and we feel enormous support from our families which enables us to give our absolute best. The number of smiling faces walking through our school gates each day is a testament to the work we do, we see high engagement in learning and we love that we immerse your children in the ‘extras’– Science, PE, The Arts, Humanities and more. Of course, there are times when things go wrong, but we are always here to work out the best way forward with and for everyone. I personally love coming to school each day and working with our staff, students and you – our families.

We had a lovely time with you all at our Family Night a couple of weeks ago. Huge shout out to all the parent helpers who assisted with setting up, cooking and selling. Our teachers did a wonderful job of providing enjoyable activities for the kids and the absolute highlight of the night were the amazing performances by our very talented parents and students. We loved the high energy amongst the community and seeing parents, children and staff having a dance and sing a long to the great performances. Sue Shaw (parent of Ned) suggested this idea to me last year and we have had some much positive feedback. A special mention goes out to Billy and Allesha Gardner for their relentless support in helping us with this event and to Isaack Doak for co-ordinating and setting up the quality sound system. And of course a huge thanks to all for attending and making it a special night. We raised a total of $2,500 which will go towards our school grounds improvement plan in 2024.

Congratulations to all our students and teachers for a positive transition day earlier this week. We understand how this time can be daunting and cause significant anxiety, yet we are so proud of everyone for working through that and embracing the changes. The reality is, change is a part of all aspects of life, but we always do everything we can to support everyone. I wanted to take the opportunity to outline the diligent process to create grades, to give you all a deeper understanding (9 steps to this process) ;

Week 1, Term 4 – information published in the LINK regarding process for parent considerations for 2024 classes (due by 30th October). Reminders published each fortnight until then.
Week 5, Term 4 - Students given voice and invited to write 3 names of who they would like in their class (1 name can be from a different class), they will likely have 1-2 of their selected peers in their class
Week 5 and 6, Term 4 – teachers take time to complete an evaluation chart on learning, personal and social capabilities, wellbeing and other important information (if required)
Week 6, Term 4 – teachers begin to sort students into class groupings (3 groups), considering all parent requests, considering student voice (teacher de-identified)
Week 7, Term 4 – teachers take time to review class groupings, make relevant changes
Week 8, Term 4 – leadership and specialist teachers review class groupings and note what they notice and wonder, teachers then review class groupings, consider what has been noticed and wondered, then make changes accordingly (if required)
Week 9, Term 4 – teachers are allocated to a class and informed about their year level and class (tweaks are possible in a small number of classes). Handover between 2023 and 2024 teacher occurs.
Week 11, Term 4 - Class information shared with parents and students, followed by Transition Day

We avoid using electronic systems as we feel this diminishes the authenticity to the process and the personal connection to considering your child’s needs. Your teachers know your children and work really hard to connect them to their next learning journey in a new year level.

I have appreciated the number of emails and chats I have had with parents telling me how much they love our school, the high trust they have in us and how happy they are to be a part of the WEPS community. Please also keep letting us know that we are on track, and of course when something has slipped. We are always here to listen and work with you to make the best plan moving forward.

On Tuesday we warmly welcomed our foundation students and their families and we loved hearing about the experiences our year 6s had at their respective secondary schools.

Tomorrow is our final day for formal classes (TheirCare is available next week). Please remember to bring your child to their allocated assessment time. We are looking forward to assembly at 1pm, followed by a BYO picnic on the oval until 2.20pm. If you are taking your child before 3.20, please let your teacher know and sign them out at the office.

Tonight we celebrate our grade 6 student and their parents/carers at their graduation ceremony. We wish them all the best in their next chapter of schooling and congratulate them on a positive end to their primary school years. There will be many emotions in the room tonight, especially for our families leaving us. We thank all our grade 6 families for their support and engagement over the years and look forward to hearing about the students’ future endeavours and achievements.

It is with a heavy heart for me to farewell Ms Ronnie Couch. Ronnie has accepted a position teaching and leading Numeracy at Horsham College. Ronnie has been an outstanding member of staff and connected with so many children and families from our senior and junior school over the past few years. I thank Ronnie for all her hard work and her role in supporting whole school maths implementation. We will miss Ronnie dearly, and wish her all the best in her new role.

We farewell (hopefully for a short time) Ms Christie Locke, who is preparing for the arrival of her first baby in late January. We are looking forward to hearing her lovely news in the new year.

We also farewell Mr Adrian DeLandre. We thank Adrian for his commitment to year 1/2 during term 3 and 4 this year, taking over for Melissa Fisher. Adrian supported a seamless transition and made some lovely connections with students and families.

I hope to catch up with many of you tomorrow (those who can make it). If not, from the bottom of my heart I wish you all are very Merry Christmas and happy and safe New Year. Please take time out with your kids to just ‘be’ and enjoy the festive season together.

Save the dates for 2024

Friday 9th February, 2024 – Lets celebrate the beginning of the year together with our students performing a special dance for our families. 12noon- 12.50 followed by a picnic on the oval.
Thursday 29th February, 2024 – Parents and carers are invited ‘Back to school and back to the classroom’ for an information session for the whole school, followed by time in your child’s classroom with your child’s teacher 6-7.30pm.

BYOD