Principal's Message

Dear Families,

We cannot believe that we are more than halfway through Term 1. Thank you very much for the positive feedback we are receiving from families about our new continuous reporting. Teachers are still working through the feedback associated with our first assessment tasks which we will be releasing at various times over the next two weeks. We plan to seek feedback from families early next term to find out what is useful and any suggestions families may have for further improvement. We plan to release a further three assessment tasks for each subject  over the course of Term 2 with the idea that these will form a summary of all assessment tasks presented in the Semester report.

School Photos

Our whole school individual and class photos with MSP Photography are scheduled to be taken on Tuesday 12th March 2024. Confirmation will be sent home via your children over the coming weeks. We will be having a catch-up day on Tuesday 19th March for any students who were absent. Please add these dates to your calendar.

Essendon Primary School Scholastic Book Fair

Essendon Primary School are holding their Book Fair in Term 1 again this year. The Book Fair will be displayed in a space in the school during week 8, Tuesday 19th to Friday 22nd March for students to view and create their wish list. Classes will be given an opportunity to visit the Book Fair during class time on the Tuesday and Wednesday to complete a wish list. Book Week and our traditional Book Character Parade will be held during Book Week in Term 3. Further information about the to help with sales and opening times will be sent out closer to the time.

Student Progress Interviews 

Student Progress Interviews will be held in the last week of this term, 4-7pm on Monday 25th March and 4-7pm Tuesday 26th March. We have decided to continue to run these as virtual meetings on Webex. Teachers and parents found that the virtual student progress meetings saved travel and transition time and allowed more flexibility, especially for working parents. Meetings will be held after school and may take a different format in the different Learning Communities. More information about the specific arrangements and booking times will be made available later this week.

Parent Classroom Volunteers

We know and understand that parents are very keen to volunteer and assist the school in a variety of ways, including in the classroom. We have posted an online Parent Volunteer program on Compass for new parent volunteers to access and complete. Please note that all Parent Volunteers who assist in anyway during the school day; in the classroom, incursions, excursions, sporting activities, Parents and Friends activities, camps etc. must have a current ‘Working With Children’s Card’.  You will need to present your ‘Working With Children’s Card’ to the office so we can take a photocopy and keep a register of expiry dates for our records.  Applications for a ‘Working With Children’s Card’ are available at the Post Office. 

All classroom helpers provide support under the careful guidance of our qualified and highly professional classroom teachers. Classroom teachers determine the assistance required as well as provide all classroom helpers with the necessary instructions to complete the task. 

So that together staff and parents can maximise the opportunities for learning and teaching, the following expectations provide clear guidelines for all members of our school community who wish to volunteer their time and assist in the classroom and at the school. 

• Classroom helpers are expected to maintain CONFIDENTIALITY at all times. Any observations about children in relation to their ability, standards of work, behavior and/or personal matters must not be discussed with anyone. 
• The classroom teacher is responsible for all decisions related to classroom management and student behavior. Classroom helpers are expected to support the decisions of the teaching staff. 
• Classroom helpers are expected to act with discretion and courtesy both within and outside the classroom. 
• Classroom helpers are to provide a Working with Children Check and the signed confidentiality agreement to the school office prior to beginning in classrooms. 

2025 Sibling Foundation Enrolments

Last year the Department of Education (DE) released a new state-wide Foundation (Prep) enrolment timeline.  The timeline advises families when and how to enrol their child into Foundation (Prep) at a Victorian government primary school, including Essendon Primary School.

The new timeline applies to all children, including siblings, starting Foundation (Prep) in 2025. Government primary schools will follow the new timeline in 2024 to support Foundation (Prep) enrolments for the 2025 school year.

What happens next:

1. Download the Foundation (Prep) enrolment information pack from Enrolling in Foundation (Prep) which is available from Monday 15 April 2024 and will include an application form. 
2. Friday 26 July 2024 Submit an enrolment application for Foundation (Prep) before this date. Enrolment applications submitted after 26 July 2024 will be processed by our school as they are received, in accordance with the department’s Placement Policy.
3. You will be notified of the outcome of your application between Monday 29 July and Friday 9 August 2024. 
4. Friday 23 August 2024 Those who receive an offer of placement, should contact the office to accept the offer by this date to receive the 2025 enrolment form.
5. Term 4, 2024 Foundation (Prep) orientation and parent information sessions 
6. Thursday 30 January 2025 start for Foundation (Prep).

Maximising Learning Time

Student learning time is a precious commodity, and the structure of our school day generally has a two-hour literacy block, followed by a numeracy session. Parents could assist us with this support by ensuring your child is on time every day and does not come late to school and arranging to catch up with teachers for a chat at the end of the day instead of the start of the school day.

It is also important to note that as part of our Child Safety Strategy ALL SCHOOL GATES ARE LOCKED PROMPTLY AT 9AM to allow yard duty teachers to assist with students entering the school building. The gates on Shaftesbury St (gate C) and Nicholson St (gate D) will be locked during the music, leaving the driveway gate (B) on Raleigh St open until after the 9am bell.  If you arrive once the music has started, it would be best to drop the children off at this gate. We also suggest that parents who are near the front of the school plan to leave the yard via this gate to avoid the disappointment of arriving at a gate that has already been locked. Students who are dropped off after the bell will need to be dropped near the entrance on Nicholson St.  We apologise for any inconvenience these arrangements may cause and very much appreciate your support.

Our large population continues to pose a significant challenge to traffic management at the start and the end of the school day.  Occasionally there has been tension caused by the congestion of traffic around drop off and pick up times and this is compounded by the very limited parking space.  Nicholson and Raleigh streets have all been designated drop off zones by the local council, between 8am and 9am in the morning and 3pm and 4pm in the afternoon. I understand that tension and issues develop when people leave their vehicles unattended, park over residents’ driveways, double park or park on the nature strip.  Could all parents and family members please be patient with each other, follow traffic management rules and parking signs to ensure a steady flow of traffic and particularly, ensure safety to all pedestrians, especially our students.  There has also been a particular concern raised about the safe behaviour of children being dropped off at the Nicholson Street drop off zones at the beginning of the school day.  Could parents please make sure children exit the car from the left-hand side of the vehicle and follow the footpath around to the school gate rather than running across the road in front of cars and traffic?  If you have time, please consider parking a little further away and enjoy the fresh air and a short walk.

We look forward to another year of working together, to ensure our school provides the best opportunities possible for each of our students.

Warm regards,

Christine Nash

Principal