Pupil Free Day

This Friday, December 13th is a Pupil Free Day.

Children are not to attend school unless they are booked into OSHC.

End of Year

The end of the school year is fast approaching, and the staff have been working very hard getting everything finalised before the school year ends. The reports have been completed and will be sent home next week.

Yesterday our Year 6 students had a transition day at their new secondary schools. It is always an exciting day for them as they have the opportunity to spend time at their new school and meet their teachers and other children. The feedback from the children has been very positive. Our year 6 students are moving on to 15 different secondary schools in 2025.

Transition Day

Yesterday the children spent the morning in their 2025 grade with their 2025 teacher. We have done this for many years, and it has proved to be very successful. It gives the teachers the opportunity to meet the children and for the children to meet their teacher and fellow classmates.

Our teachers spent a great deal of time compiling the 2025 grades. It’s a very complex task as many things need to be considered. We guarantee that every child is placed with one friend, and we need to ensure grades have a balanced mix of gender and ability. This year’s teachers have trialled different grade combinations throughout this term to ensure they have the mix right for all children. While the children are asked to list four friends that they would like to be with in 2025, they are not asked to put them in numerical order, therefore they could be placed with any one of the four friends. Some children might have come home a bit upset because they are not in the same grade as their “best friend”, however it is an opportunity for them to build friendships with other children.

In 2024 our school structure will be:

5 Prep Grades, 5 Grade 1’s, 4 Grade 2’s 4 Grade 3’s,

4 Grade 4’s 4 Grade 5’s 4 Grade 6’s

Staffing For 2025

2025 our teaching team will be:

Janet Paterson - Principal

Dale Adams - Assistant Principal

Grade Prep

Christa Kosmatos, Lefi Doumtsis, Tara Murphy, Aimee Caputo and Chevie Beasley

Grade 1

Sarah Giles, Grace Battista, Hugh McKenzie, Ursula Vanderzee, Maree DeLuca and Lizzy Nixon (Helen Marinos during Term 1)

Grade 2

Bev Taylor, Felicity Carden, Jonathan Batsanis, Lauren Gervasi and Anita Ciccone

Grade 3

Sharee Dobson, Mary Kalogianis, Renee Molinaro and Stav Velanis

Grade 4

Joanna Bright, Lucas Kilmartin ,Alex Bennie and Jennifer Cora

Grade 5

Katia Aloia, Jeremy Murphy Claudia Caputo and Julia Mutis

Grade 6

Craig Smith, Sarina Marchant, Aislinn Farrow, Jane Stepancic and Marnie Bardon

Physical Education

Kris Mihal and Lisa Hayes

Art

Mavra Kotsabouikis and Edwina Atkins

Italian

Angela Perrone and Melinda Langley

Drama

Camilla Bell

Performing Arts

Samantha McCall

Music

Jason Sofra

Wellbeing Team

Joe Greige, Samantha McCall, Jason Sofra, Edwina Atkins and Mavra Kotsabouikis

Tutor Program and Support

Vikki White, Rachael Srblin and Antonia Donis

Curriculum Coordinators

Jeremy Murphy and Bev Taylor will be coordinating the Literacy and Numeracy curriculum throughout the school. Jeremy and Bev will also work with the year level teams to ensure there is a consistent approach to teaching and learning across all year levels.

Shared Grades

In 2025 we will have three shared grades that will have two teachers:

Maree DeLuca and Lizzy Nixon will be grade sharing in Grade 1

Lauren Gervasi and Anita Ciccone will be grade sharing in Grade 2

Marnie Bardon and Jane Stepancic will be grade sharing in Grade 6

In 2025, as is often the case, some staff will not be returning:

Glynis Angell has been traveling from Ballan to Preston for several years and she has made the decision that the travel time is taking too much out of her day. Glynis is going to devote more time to her passion, drama and writing a show to perform.

Sarah Gerostathos is taking up a position at Northern School of Autism. Sarah first started at Preston working in the OSHC as the coordinator while she was studying. She has worked as a teacher for three years.

Helen Marinos will be with us in term, 1 however she has chosen not to take up a fulltime position in 2025 as she hopes to do some traveling.

I wish them all the very best in their endeavours and thank them for the outstanding contributions they have made at Preston Primary.

Gayle Dart has decided to take 12 months leave to do some traveling and further studies. We will welcome her back in 2026.

We are welcoming a new person to our fulltime teaching staff, Jonathan Batsanis. Jonathan has worked in the OSHC program for quite some time and has also done a considerable amount of CRT work.

Returning in 2025:

Antonia Donis is returning from Family Leave at the beginning of the year and Lizzy Nixon and Lisa Evans are returning at the beginning of term 2.

2025 Booklist

Recently we emailed a stationery list and recommend that parents purchase the items through WINC. Parents can choose to purchase these items through any supplier.

If you do choose to order through WINC (or buy from your chosen supplier), once your child’s items arrive, we ask that you please store them securely and not let your child use them before the start of the 2025 school year.

If you do not purchase the items through WINC please ensure that you purchase exercise books with the correct line size specified on your child’s booklist.

On the first day of the 2025 school year children will need to bring their stationery items to school with them. You can send all of the items and they will be stored in the child’s classroom.

The End of 2024 School Year

This will be our last fortnightly newsletter for the year. We will have a special edition next week to celebrate our Year 6 students.

I would like to thank all of our families for their ongoing support throughout the year. Without your support the children would not achieve all that they do.

I hope everyone who celebrates Christmas is able to share a lovely time with their family.

I also wish everyone a safe and happy New Year!

See you in 2025!

Regards

Janet Paterson

Principal

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