Dear Parents, Carers,Staff and Students

Remote and flexible learning is coming to an end for you all. I must congratulate our staff, parents and families for their support, diligence and attention to the things that matter most at this unprecedented time. As a parent, I am sure you have learnt something about your child’s learning style or pattern, and about your ability to support and engender confidence within this situation. As teachers we have learnt much as well about our teaching and supporting students through this virtual medium. The isolation has encouraged us to become a little more self-reliant, perhaps exercise together a little more and demonstrated to your children that although difficult we can manage and come out the other side without too much trouble. Persistence and resilience come to mind.

As the Principal, I have witnessed a growth in children’s learning confidence. The ability to know where passwords are, and be able to logon to a computer and find the timetable are skills for life. I have witnessed that children are now doing FOR themselves. The adults have been doing instruction WITH the child. My comments are made from my observations of the children onsite, but I am sure you will have seen a growth in your child’s independence and ability to read and follow direction.

Returning to School

We are preparing for the return of children to face to face teaching. Details of these arrangements will be circulated this week and will explain the processes necessary to make a successful transition back to school. It is important to get children back to normal school routines as quickly as possible. I know you are waiting patiently. At present the teachers are working on the finer points of the details so that the arrangements can be seamless. We are using the Operational Guidelines from the Department of Education and the Chief Medical Officers Advice to tailor the return to school. We are following the Chief Medical Officers directs in all components. It is important to keep all staff, students and parents safe. The document we are preparing will have details about arrivals, dismissals, recess and lunch times, play routines and the role of parents in maintaining social distancing and contact with the school. The recommendation is NO parents on site for the rest of this term.

This process will provide another opportunity for us to collectively work together to develop synergy across the school community.

Monday Assemblies

Haven’t our Assemblies been terrific over the past 6 weeks? My thanks to all the participants and to Barb Mc Kenzie who has worked over her weekend to pull the Assembly video together. Of course, actual assemblies will not be held for the remainder of the term, as expected. We will work out something in its place. A giant Webex Assembly maybe!

Parent Representative System for 2020

I had a Webex meeting with the Parent Reps last week. It was great to see and hear how classes are working in these tricky times. Some class teachers had already contacted their parents to make contact lists. We will be following this up in the coming days. The Parent Handbook outlines a process to gain consent for your email and or mobile number to be used as a way of forming contact groups. Look out for this COMPASS push either from me or the class teacher to seek permission. This year we have all classes with a Parent Rep which again represents your commitment to our school. The Parent Rep system is a wonderful way for parents to be in contact with the school. Please remember however the Parent Rep is not the solver of your problem, but a ‘sign post’ to where an answer may be found! Get on board to support your child and class regardless of the year level.

MPWPS Website and Facebook

Have you checked out our new look Website? It has a lot of information including how to enrol your child, policies and School Council information. The website and the Facebook page are part of our digital communication platform to serve the community. Both have a new look and are gaining a following. In the next weeks we will be adding a ‘virtual tour’ of Moonee Ponds West PS for any prospective parents. Thankyou to the children, Nick and specially skilled parents who helped with this rather large task. More about this when we launch the Virtual Tour in the coming weeks.

Well that’s about it from me. We will meet in person soon. Until then stay safe and well.

Sincerely

Kerri Simpson

Principal at MPWPS

Self Paced Learning Opportunity

Take a look at the Brisbane Museum site. They have some new giant kangaroo information!

Animals that became extinct because of climate change hundreds of years ago!

Education News

Monday Assembly

Brain Grow