Dear Families,

LONG SERVICE LEAVE

Next week we will welcome back Heather, Nat and Carly from Long Service Leave. Many thanks to Robyn Lipshut who replaced Nat, and Sharon O'Connell who replaced Carly. I will step back into my usual roles after replacing Heather. I have really enjoyed the past eight weeks in the Principal role. It has been a great experience and I'd like to thank everyone for their support during this time.

HARMONY DAY

Tomorrow we are celebrating Harmony Day by wearing a splash of orange. This year's theme is "Everyone Belongs." Some suggestions are orange socks, ribbons, shorts, t-shirt etc. Hotdogs and Zooper Doopers have been organised and will be served at lunchtime. Proceeds from sales will be donated to Caritas - Project Compassion.

INDUSTRIAL STRIKE ACTION

Next Tuesday 24th March, AEU members at our school will stop work for 24 hours to campaign for better pay and work conditions in Victorian Public Schools.

70% of our teaching staff will be taking strike action.

Our school will remain open however, the usual classroom programs will not run on this day.

The AEU is taking action because Victorian Public Schools are the lowest funded schools in Australia and our teachers are the lowest paid.

The demands include:

a 35% pay increase for all public school staff over the life of the agreement
smaller class sizes so every student can have greater individual attention and support
increased Allied Health and classroom support for students
modern and flexible working arrangements
significant improvements to working conditions, including workload reductions and less unnecessary administration requirements.

NAPLAN

Next Monday will be the final day for NAPLAN assessments. This day allows for any catch ups for Maths, Reading or Language Conventions tests for those students who may have been absent during the testing window.

PARENTS & FRIENDS

This Saturday 21st March, the Parents and Friends have booked the Bunnings BBQ site for their fundraiser this term. They are still looking for 1 volunteer to work a short shift between 1pm-3pm. It would be wonderful if you could spare some time to man the BBQ sometime during the day. Many hands make light work. Please message Ash on 0478 823 452 if you can help out.

EASTER RAFFLE - P & F

We are calling for donations towards the annual Easter Raffle. Raffle tickets are available to purchase on the Qkr! app. Please place your donation in the basket in the foyer.

HOT SHOTS TENNIS

Just a reminder regarding children attending Hot Shots Tennis on Tuesday afternoons. We’ve been advised that a number of children are entering the school grounds. As the OHSC program operates until 6:00pm, we ask for parents’ support in ensuring that children either remain off the school grounds or are supervised while on-site. This will help reduce the additional pressure on OHSC staff and support our educators in maintaining a safe environment.

EASTER HAT PARADE

On Tuesday 31st March, the JSC are running an out of uniform day and Easter Hat Parade. It would be wonderful to see some creative Easter hats in our parade. We will be calling for a gold coin donation with all proceeds being donated to the Good Friday Appeal. Coins can be hard to find these days, so donations can be made via Qkr!

SCHOOL PHOTOS

Wednesday 1st April is School Photo Day. We ask that students are wearing their full school uniform on this day. The Grade 6 graduation photo will be taken also.

Have a lovely weekend,

Regards, Filippa

School Photos