Principal report

Welcome to Term 4 and what a week it has been!

We are so excited that our the school is back at full capacity…it really showed us how sad our hallways were with no students.

I have been especially impressed with how well the kids have transitioned back into school for the 3rd time this year. They have adapted to new routines and expectations, and listening to them laugh and play this week has defiantly brought a smile to all of our faces.

I am going to do something a little different for this week’s principal report. I have been getting asked a lot of questions so I am going to write this as a Q and A style.

So here goes…

Q- Should I keep my child down because they have missed so much school?

A- We know some families are worried that their child may have to repeat a year due to the disruptions of coronavirus (COVID-19). There is little evidence to support the benefits of repeating a year to catch up, instead, schools will use teaching strategies that draw on the best evidence available to help students meet their learning needs.

You can be confident that the best option for almost every child is to stay with their peer group, whether that is moving from Grade 6 into Year 7 at Secondary School, or students moving up any year level in between. We pride ourselves on individualized teaching and that will not change.

Q- How will you help my student now they are back at school so they can catch up?

A-We know that the students will come back with some gaps or needing to be extended in areas of their learning. We of course will identify the need of our students and we will use our existing intervention programs (Prelit, LLI and QuickSmart) to catch students up in their learning. We will also run small group instruction within the classroom to target the needs of our students. As we run our lessons through the workshop model there is differentiated teaching, as well as times for individual conferencing, which is at your child’s point of need. We are also focusing on respectful relationships and The Resilience Project to help with social and wellbeing strategies they can use both in the classroom and out in the yard.

Q- What are the COVID safety measures in place for the students at school?

A-There are a number of measures in place to help keep our students safe while they are at school. There are cleaning stations in all classrooms where students can sanitise their hands and teachers can wipe down desks before and after eating times. The students are designated a separate area in the yard creating a cohort ‘bubble’. We also have a cleaner who is here during the day sanitising and maintaining the cleaning of high touch/use areas. Staff are all wearing masks and adhering to social distancing when they are not teaching.

Q- Will we be able to have school photos?

A-At the moment we have rescheduled school photos for Wednesday 11th November. We are hoping that the Operations Guide from the Department will change by this time, allowing the company to come onsite. At the moment this is out of my control, the Department directive is that photos cannot happen. If we have to cancel photos, I have a backup plan to get a class photo to remember 2020. If you already purchased the packages through Compass, MSP photography will be reimbursing the money directly to you.

Q- Will end of year events be able to take place?

A-At the moment end of year events with the WHOLE community will not be able to take place. As we are not allowed to gather in large groups, we will not be able to end the year in the traditional ways. This again will depend on the announcements that get made leading up to the end of the year and we have a number of plans that can be put in place. I will let you know those details as we move closer to the end of the year.

Q- Can I place requests for next year?

A-The process of class placement involves a number of different aspects which include, parent requests, student friendship choices and input from current and past teachers ensuring there is a balance of academic ability and behavioral attributes.

The process that Woori Yallock PS works through to plan each student’s class placement begins months before the end of the school year. We understand that in certain situations, parents and carers may like to request that their child be placed with a particular friend or in a particular class with a specific teacher.

All teachers at Woori Yallock PS are caring and committed educators and we strive to ensure that all students are provided with a high quality education. Whilst we appreciate that you may wish that your child would benefit from being placed in a class with a particular teacher, we are unable to accommodate these requests. Our school’s leadership team will always endeavour to place our students with teachers who are best suited to their needs.

Written parent requests must be based on the educational needs of your child/children and must be address to Oliver or myself. These submissions will be treated with the strictest confidentiality. Parent requests are open now and must be submitted no later than Friday 6th November requests after this date will not be accepted. We will not always be able to accommodate class placement requests, but will endeavour to take your wishes into consideration where possible.

Q- When will I find out my child/ren teacher for next year?

A-Students usually find out their teacher on ‘step up day’. At the moment we are unsure if this day will be able to proceed as it has in the past. Regardless of the format of this day students will find out their teacher on Tuesday 8th December.

Q- Will we receive end of year reports and have parent teacher interviews?

A-Yes we will be providing you with a report for semester 2. This report will look different to the normal school report. It will provide you with progression points for English (reading/writing/speaking & listening) and Mathematics (number/stats & probability/measurement & geometry). There will also be the high expectation and respect ticks as well as an overarching comment.

We will hold parent teacher interviews via zoom or phone call, this will also look different as we usually have the students lead our interviews which may not be able to happen in this format. These interviews will be released and available to book later in the term.

Q- Can my kinder child or grade 6 student attend transitions at their new school?

A-Under the current Operation Guide for Term 4 there will NOT be transition for students starting Prep or Year 7 in 2021. We are currently in the process of organising a google classroom for our enrolled 2021 prep students and we will run zoom sessions so the students can meet the prep teachers. We know that this is not ideal but we will make a plan to adapt with the need and the guidelines as they arise.

For our grade 6 students, we are working with the high schools to try and get some sessions with high school teachers to address what they will expect when entering high school.

Again I will keep you updated as we move forward through the term. If you have any questions regarding your child entering prep or year 7 in 2021 please call the office to speak with me.

Q-What does the announcement of tutors mean?

A- As you may of heard on the news, James Merlino announced that there will be funding for tutors in 2021. As this announcement was only just made we don’t have the finer details as yet. As this initiative rolls out I will make sure that I keep you up to date.

If you need further clarification on any issue please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Again I thank you all for your understanding with the new rules and guidelines. We can’t wait to get this term underway and we are so glad to have the kids back in our classroom.

Thanks,

Flick

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