From the Principal

Welcome to IPS (PICNIC)

Each year, our PFA (Parents & Friends Association) puts on a Welcome Picnic in the first few weeks of the school term to welcome both new and returning families to Ivanhoe Primary School.

Canteen news 

Hello everyone the canteen will be open at the welcome picnic. I will have an assortment of hot and cold food plus lots of icypoles. See you then!

(Annette and staff)

The Welcome to IPS Picnic is this Friday the 9th (Tomorrow) Bring a rug, bring a picnic, BYO and meet your friends for a welcome to (or a welcome back to) picnic on our oval. There will be one foodtruck (Little Wild Asian) and the Canteen will be selling hamburgers, hotdogs and snacks. 

From 5.30pm to 8pm - please take your rubbish and bottles home with you so it's not there on Monday. The birds love making a mess of our grounds.

Our students are amazing

I received this note from Ms Lamont (1L).

"Ross R (5L) has just completely blown my mind and I think he needs to be celebrated!! He heard me asking Janet yesterday if she had any books on being Sun Smart and she was talking about how there really aren't any recent picture books written on being Sun Smart.

She was saying if I fancied writing a children's book that would be a great topic! 

Ross obviously heard this chat and then I bumped into him later in the day and he asked if I had managed to find a good book on sun safety. 

I told him I hadn't and he said 'I am working on something - I should have it to you by the end of the day".  Today I arrived at school and on my desk is an amazing picture book - written in rhyme - with beautiful illustrations by Ross on Being Sun Smart 🙂

Ross demonstrates all of the school values in such a subtle and awesome way! "

Click through each picture to read the story and heed the advice...

We  thought we would share it with the community. It is very short but really impressive. I love that Ross just left it on my desk.

Information Evenings and Meet the Teacher opportunities.

This week you will receive a welcome letter from your child’s teacher to let you know how you can support your child’s learning and how you can be involved in our school.

A section of the form invites you to indicate where you might be interested or willing to get involved in the school program. This should be filled out and sent to the school office or your child’s teacher.

There will be information regarding the Term 1 Parent Information Evenings (including specialists) along with an invitation to Meet the Teacher. Both events will be held online.

Term 1 Parent Information Evening for your child's Year Level will be in the week beginning 12th of February. You will receive an invitation this week that will include links to the meeting, class information and a dedicated discussion forum.

Meet the Teacher Interviews will be in the week beginning the 19th  February - bookings will open on Thursday 8th of February on COMPASS and will close at 4pm Friday 16th  of February.

Meetings will take place either using Webex or via phone and teachers will be in contact with you to make arrangements after you have made an appointment.

Teachers will be available at various times during the week. You will be able to book your preferred 10-minute timeslot on COMPASS. COMPASS will walk you through the booking process but if you have any questions or issues, please don't hesitate to contact our school administration on 9499 1880.

(Note: bookings will open on Thursday 8th of February)

Should you wish to meet with your child’s teacher (including specialists) in person please send them a message via Class Dojo or email them directly allowing at least a week’s notice.

Should you wish for us to arrange an interpreter to be available for your meeting please contact the school office at least 48 hours before your meeting time.

School Council (Nominations close Friday 9th at 4pm - tomorrow)

We still have two vacancies.

Please consider joining School Council. The notice of election is in this newsletter on the "Join IPS School Council" page which is  dedicated to providing information and nomination materials. There is a fact sheet link on that page. If you require further information please feel free to call me on 9499 1880.

Nomination forms can be downloaded from the Join School Council Page of this newsletter or from reception. Please get your nomination in by 4pm on the 9th of February. Tomorrow. 

Celebrations and sharing food

For reasons relating to food allergies and safety, as well as the significant financial impost brought to bear, families are respectfully requested that under NO circumstances are you to supply birthday cakes, cupcakes, sweets, gifts and toys etc on school grounds – including at the OSHC program. 

I apologise in advance if this seems harsh, but the wellbeing of every student must be our primary concern. Consider celebrating birthdays and other events at a local park or in your own home. 

Be mindful that many of our students are anaphylactic and food allergens pose a very real threat.

Star of the Week

Star of the Week awards will begin next Monday 12th of February for Year 1 to Year 6 after the first complete week of school.  Foundation Stars of the Week will begin later in February, once they have settled into their school routine and understand the concepts behind the acknowledgement.

Monday's  Assembly

At Monday's assembly there will be presentations from our School House Captains who will receive their badges. Junior School Council and Environmental Leaders will also be recognised and presented with their badges. (Semester One only).

(*We are awaiting an oder of Peer Leader Badges)

Second-hand uniform  shop (Re-use Recycle)

The Ivanhoe Primary School Second-hand uniform shop provides an opportunity for families to buy quality second-hand uniform, bags, drink bottles, library bags and smocks for a reasonable cost. The second-hand uniform sales are held throughout the year. Please contact our office staff for any purchases. We accept cash only.

Second hand uniform shop also provides an opportunity for families to donate these things which they no longer require. Please donate clean uniforms, bags, drink bottles, library bags, smocks that you would be happy to buy yourself. 

Prices of items are as follows:

Long Sleeve Polo Fleece Jackets -$5

School Bags - $5 

All other items e.g. school t-shirts and shorts, library bags, drink bottles, art smocks are $3 each.

We rely parent volunteers who help us tidy up the Second hand shop. Please feel free to contact our office staff if you wish to volunteer for the Second hand  shop.

Fishing Rods for Year 5 Students

The Victorian Government is investing $1.5 million from the Recreational Fishing Licence Trust Fund to provide up to 95,000 Little Angler Kits to primary school aged children in Victoria.

The free kits provide a wonderful school holiday activity for children with their families/carers and help ease the cost of living, providing a fun activity close to home.

Grade 5 students at all Victorian schools, including ours, will be offered the opportunity to receive a FREE Little Angler Kit. Grade 5 students have been selected based on the Victorian Curriculum focus, movement and motor development, and safety considerations.

The program is entirely voluntary. Schools were provided with the option to opt out of the program. Our school has opted to stay in the program so that parents can decide whether they want their child(ren) to receive a free fishing kit. Parents/carers of Grade 5 students can advise the school if they do not wish their child(ren) to participate for any reason whatsoever. We support parents in making decisions that align with their family values and beliefs.

Little Angler Kits include a fishing rod, tackle tray, some tackle (including hooks and lead sinkers) and a kids guide to fishing. The kits are approximately 3 foot long. Please note that fishing equipment is not for human consumption. If a child does swallow a hook or lead sinker, seek medical assistance immediately - don’t wait for it to pass. Young children and those with some disabilities including pica disorder are especially vulnerable. See the Victorian Fishing Authority’s Little Angler Kits FAQs for parents for more information.

The kits include information on how to use them to catch a fish. Please note that the tackle tray includes fishing hooks and lead sinkers. The tackle tray will be wrapped in cardboard and placed inside a pocket inside the fishing kit bag, which will be sealed with a cable tie to discourage students from opening their kits until they are with a parent or carer.

Kits will be handed out to students to take home with them as soon as the school receives them. Teachers will tell students not to open the kits until they are safely at home with a parent or carer, however parents can contact the school and request to collect their kit from the school themselves if they prefer.

The Victorian Fisheries Authority created a Little Angler hub on their website. It has useful information, instructional videos and online resources about where and how to fish safely, linking to existing resources from Fishcare and new resources to be produced just for the Little Angler Kits program.

This initiative aims to grow recreational fishing participation in Victoria by actively encouraging primary school aged children to learn how to fish, as well as learning more about marine life and the natural environment.

Finally

Our school collects and uses student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ Privacy Policy and the Schools’ Privacy Collection Notice.

Our Photographing, Filming and Recording Students Policy, click here, describes how we collect and use photographs, video and recordings of students. The policy also explains when parent consent is required and how it can be provided and withdrawn. 

We ask parents to also review the guidance we provide on how we use Microsoft 365 safely at the school and what parents can do to further protect their child’s information. If after reviewing the guidance, you have any questions or concerns regarding your child using [Microsoft 365, please contact the school.

For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ Privacy Policy — information for parents. This information is also available in ten community languages:

• Amharic
• Arabic
• Dari
• Gujarati
• Mandarin
• Somali
• Sudanese
• Turkish
• Urdu
• Vietnamese

Mark Kent

Principal

http://www.ivanhoeps.vic.edu.au/ 

We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Victoria and pay respect to the ongoing living cultures of First Peoples.