Principal's Message
From the Principal
From the Principal – Teachers are your first Check Point
A key focus for our staff in the first six weeks of school has been to get to know each student in their classroom as a person and as a learner. This means that staff have prioritised getting to know your child’s interests, likes and dislikes. They have built an understanding of their friendships, strengths and attributes and how they approach learning. This knowledge has also been supported through handover conversations with their previous teacher, learning assessments completed and by reviewing their learning data. This means your child’s teacher is well placed to support your child in the year ahead in their journey. It also means that your child’s teacher is the person best placed for you to work with when you have concerns or queries about their learning, wellbeing or friendships. They should always be your first port of call.
NAPLAN
This week our Year 3 and Year 5 students commenced their NAPLAN assessments tasks. The lead up work Mr Nolan and the Year 3 – 6 teams completed prior to this week has seen staff and students step calmly into each assessment task. We congratulate our Year 3 and Year 5 students for embracing a learning challenge, doing their best and adapting to a change in routine. We look forward to receiving the results later in the year. Next week students will finish their assessments with their Numeracy Assessment task on either Monday (Year 3) or on Tuesday (Year 5)
Aths Day Feedback
Last week our Annual Aths Day was held across two days with the Track Events first completed at Mitchell Park then the Field events here at school. As my first Aths Day as Principal of Gray Street it was lovely to once again see the school’s positive culture shine through. The day ran smoothly and efficiently thanks to the terrific organisation prior to the day by Mr Watt, Mr Kelson and Leesa. Again the amazing team work of the staff, cooperation of students and their positive mindset, along with encouragement from our families on the sidelines, saw everyone have a great day. The house winners and age champions were announced at Assembly this afternoon. Congratulations to all. We also wish the students who are now progressing onto the Hamilton District Aths next week another great day out.
Division Swimming
Recently the following students competed at Division Swimming in Warrnambool - Georgie Whale, Holly Abrahamson, Henry Brook and Tilly Tosetti. Whilst Tilly and Holly had swum at this level before this was a first time for participating at Division for Henry and Georgie. It is great to see our students embracing opportunities such as this in their area of interest and taking on challenges. All four students did well in their events however, Henry was particularly pleased with cutting a few seconds off his qualifying time, and Georgie was extremely pleased to be progressing onto Regionals next week in Horsham with her breaststroke. We wish her a great day out in the pool.
Easter Raffle and Casual Dress
A reminder that Easter Raffle Books are due back next Friday. We have also aligned the return of the books with a Casual Dress Day. Students are asked to bring an egg to donate rather than a gold coin. These eggs will form our Easter Raffle Hampers which will be drawn the following week.
School Council – Last Meeting and First Meeting
Next Wednesday March 19th will be the last meeting for our current School Council. We thank Cecilia Fitzgerald for her time as a parent member and her contribution to Council discussions. Next week’s meeting will also be the first meeting of the new School Council. We are pleased to share that Anna Roberston and Russell Bennett will continue as parent members, along with Sophie Hannah as the DE Representative. We also welcome Nicole Wilson onto the team as our new parent representative.