Principal's Report 

We are excited to be back at school and already in the thick of things Week two, Term 3. Some of the amazing activities already planned for this term include:

• Grade 5/6 Soiree
• Problem Solving Maths Day – Coatesville PS
• Year 6 Immigration Excursion
• Year 4 Mayor Visit 
• Year 2 CERES excursion
• Years 3-6 House Athletics
• Year 4 Botanical Gardens Excursion
• Year 1 Incursion
• Korean Visitors
• Year 3 Healesville Excursion
• Year 6 STEAM Incursion
• Foundation Zoo Excursion
• Year 6 Bike Education
• Year 6 Camp 

NAPLAN 2023

Ahead of Year 3 and 5 NAPLAN results for students being released from Monday 17 July 2023 onwards, I would like to inform you of some changes to this year’s reporting. These are changes being introduced nationally by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).

NAPLAN will continue to measure student achievement in numeracy, reading, writing, spelling, and grammar and punctuation but the results will now be presented in 4 proficiency levels. These are:

• exceeding
• strong
• developing
• needs additional support

This change will give schools, parents and carers clearer information that details student achievement against new proficiency levels.

Students’ NAPLAN reports will continue to show how they are tracking against their peers and provide an indication of their skill levels against national averages and where we would expect them to be in order to get the most out of schooling. This provides valuable information to teachers about how we can continue to support your child.

Each set of NAPLAN results is an important milestone but it’s also important that students know that one result does not define them – these results are about making sure every student gets the support they need so they can continue to get the best from their learning.

When we provide you with your results, you will also receive information about what the new proficiency levels mean.

As always, you are welcome to speak with me should you have any questions about these changes.

Stay Well This Winter

In Victoria, Influenza (flu) and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) infection numbers are high among children aged 5 to 11 years, particularly in those in their first few years of school. 

The Victorian Department of Health expects more respiratory infections over Term 3.

Most children with flu or RSV have a mild fever, runny nose or cough. 

Keeping Our School Community Well

We encourage parents, caregivers and students to:

• wash and sanitise their hands regularly
• avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands
• cover their nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing
• stay at home if unwell 

Our school has masks for staff, students and visitors should they wish to wear them.

Staffing

Helen K has returned from leave to work two days in the Art room with Andria A working the other two. This arrangement has already commenced and is working well, as both staff members plan and communicate with each other on a regular basis. Welcome back Helen!

Evacuation Drill

The school will be conducting an evacuation drill this term, which is an opportunity to review emergency management procedures across the school. The evacuation will take place on Friday July 28 at 10:15 am with the entire school moving to the assembly point when the siren sounds. This will be a great opportunity for our Foundation students and new staff to familiarise themselves with the processes.

Curriculum Day

We held a highly successful curriculum day on Monday this week. Our PLC teams kicked off the morning, meeting and discussing student achievement and analysing data. Then we held a whole staff meeting after recess which encouraged feedback and teams participated in an activity that elaborated on the following areas:

• School Climate
• Teaching and Learning
• Instructional Leadership
• Staff Health and Wellbeing
• Gender Equality

The staff elaborated on each heading by providing examples specific to Ormond PS. The information gained helped everyone to more fully understand the changes, accomplishments and work that has already taken place.

Some examples included:

School Climate - A stronger focus on communication with the entire community; building a more collective responsibility for students and strengthening partnerships.

Teaching and Learning – Effective and collaborative planning; additional time for staff to complete tasks which addresses workload issues.

Instructional Leadership – Quality Professional Learning provided to all staff. 

PLC teams working productively across the school, including specialists.

Health and Wellbeing – An understanding of personal situations with approachable leadership that offer support and understanding; bringing staff together to chat and socialise where possible.

Gender Equality – Inclusion and safe schools promoted and revisited through online modules and PD; Respectful Relationships explicitly covered across all year levels – raising awareness, tolerance and trust.

After this workshop, both ES staff and teachers completed the school staff survey. The data from this helps to drive whole school improvement and becomes a significant park of the work outlined in the Strategic Plan, filtering down to the Annual Implementation Plan. The afternoon was assigned to Professional Learning Action Teams (PLATS) to work on our key focus areas of Literacy, Numeracy and Wellbeing. These focus areas are highlighted in our strategic plan with goals and targets to be incrementally met over the next four years.

Kerri McLeod

Principal