Principal's Message
It has been such a wonderful two weeks at ENPS and, like every year, the opportunity to celebrate the diversity of our community and take meaningful action as we acknowledge Cultural Diversity Week, has yet again been something very special to be a part of.
Cultural Diversity Week and Harmony Day
To kick off our celebration of Cultural Diversity Week, the collection of family hearts to create our ENPS Harmony Tree has been absolutely glorious. Our very special assembly today showcased the rich and empowering diversity we have as a school. Next Thursday we culminate our Cultural Diversity Week celebrations with our first international day with the ‘Countries of ENPS’. We are so incredibly proud of our inclusivity and sense of connectedness to school, and to have this upcoming celebration supported by so many parents and carers, coming together to share their cultural backgrounds with our students, will be marvellous.
As a school with over forty different languages spoken in our homes, it was a wonderful celebration of our richness and extraordinary diversity. We would like to take this opportunity to thank our school community for all their contributions throughout our cultural diversity celebrations and acknowledge the leadership of Sharon McWhinney (Intercultural Coordinator), who passionately coordinates these incredible events.
School Council Update
Our 2024 School Council has met for the first time this week, welcoming new members to their roles and electing office bearers for the year. We welcome and congratulate our newly established School Council and thank all the members of our community that attended our public Annual Public Meeting. More School Council updates and information can be found in this week’s newsletter.
National Assessment Program - Literacy & Numeracy (NAPLAN)
Today marks the conclusion of our NAPLAN testing window for 2024. We are so proud of our students in Years Three and Five that have participated throughout the past two-week period. NAPLAN tests assess student knowledge and skills in writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. They are a series of tests from a moment in time and capture an aspect of them as learners. We certainly know that our students demonstrate learning and growth across the whole year and that NAPLAN is just one reflection of their potential. We are so proud of them all for doing their best!
Thank you to our teachers and families for supporting students to feel prepared, supported and confident. A very special mention to Alice Stephens and Darcy Wynd for the enormous amount of work they have done in preparing and supporting the school throughout this process.
2025 Open Day and Enrolments
Planning for our upcoming Open Day is now well and truly underway. We will be hosting our Open Day on Thursday the 18th of April, with tours being conducted at 9am, 12pm, 2pm and 5pm. Due to demand, we have now increased our session and will offer a further session on Friday 19th April at 10am.
We take the opportunity to remind families that we do have a school enrolment policy and accountability regarding taking enrolments from within our school boundary. Enrolments for 2025 Foundation students will open on Monday the 15th of April. Look out for further information coming on Compass.
The process for secondary school (Year Six - Seven) enrolments will also begin next term for government schools. Information regarding this and the statewide timeline will be communicated at the start of Term Two also.
Buildings and Grounds Update
It was wonderful to acknowledge the work and celebrate our connection with the Strathmore Men’s Shed and the Essendon North Rotary Club at our special assembly last Friday. It was also great to see our local member of Parliament, Danny Pearson MP, also join us for the assembly. The Nature Play Space has been a tremendous addition to our outdoor play areas and we are incredibly grateful for the support of the Essendon North Rotary Club and the Strathmore Men’s Shed.
Over the holiday period we anticipate that our student toilets should be completed. We will know closer to start of Term Two and look forward to the opening of our new student toilet facilities as soon as we can next term!
ENPS Cross Country
On Wednesday next week, our Year Three to Six students will participate in our Cross Country event. We look forward to representing our House Teams and we wish everyone all the best.
Walkathon
We are all super excited for our Walkathon on Wednesday 24th April. Just by fundraising, your child will get a prize and help our school. Please check Compass for regular updates, including prize booklets, details for the day and other information. Create your online fundraising account here www.myprofilepage.com.au. All students who create a profile by the end of term next Thursday will go in the draw to win a fabulous Easter Basket!
The week ahead has plenty to look forward to as we finish off a wonderful first term of learning together and celebrate with the Cross Country and Countries of ENPS! I take the opportunity now, as our final newsletter for the term, to wish everyone a happy and safe school holidays, and a very happy Easter for all that celebrate. Thank you all for a fantastic Term One!
Have a great weekend.
Kate Barletta
Principal