Principal's Report

I hope you have all had a lovely long weekend and had an opportunity to have some rest after what is again, as always, a busy start to the year. As a staff we have been investing strongly in setting up the protocols and expectations in our classrooms, teaching teams and the broader community for the year that is to follow. We all know it is the hard work we are putting in now that will make for a very fruitful year.

After the Nihongo Sports night on Tuesday evening the staff were extremely grateful for the kind words which were received from the children and parents alike. It is these special celebratory events which bring our whole school community together. The PA and set up definitely made for an evening which ensured anyone who was keen to be part of the action was involved and those onlookers could see from the comfort of the terracing. Thank you to Eiji Nishikubo, the teachers and our band of volunteers who made the night possible. I received a lovely card which I would like to share, after the pace of Term 1 it was truly heart-warming and something I read to staff at staff meeting.

Thank you so much to all the staff and volunteers who made the Sports Evening such a delightful occasion. My children were at Huntingdale PS in the 70s and 80s and we enjoyed it very much, but I do not remember such a relaxed family atmosphere. The organisation and the inclusiveness were wonderful. My grandson is in safe hands. Thank you again.

Thank you for taking the time to notice and acknowledge our efforts, it really does mean a lot to us. We were aiming for a relaxed family atmosphere and we’re glad it was achieved.

Parents as Partners Night

(new look Information Night)

Thank you to all of the families who ventured out for our Parents as Partners night. The blend of formal and informal interactions were balanced to share information about teaching and learning programs for the year, the classroom timetable, norms and other key information. The scavenger hunt was again a hit and it was so lovely to see the families travelling around the school as a collective unit. As a staff we were delighted to be able to make the connection with all of the families who play a vital role in linking each child with school and supporting their formal and informal learning at home. A personal highlight was watching the formal introductions the children gave when linking the teachers and their family.

School Council Representatives

Congratulations and thank you to our 2015-16 School Council members. We look forward to forming our subcommittees at our next meeting on the 24th of March, postponed a week due to camp. Once we have confirmed our subcommittees we will share the various foci for the coming year with you all.

Parent Members

Continuing members: Helen Cadzow, Karl Corkhill, Stuart Macphee, Juliet Peeva, Stephanie Salinis, Brad Shannon & Shane Sinn

New members: Caterina Enters, Chris Leffler & Ildiko Tarjan

DET members

Continuing members: Ruth Biddle, Kate Gray, Maria Mathews & Naomi Mori-Hanazono

New member: Eiji NIshikubo

Parent Representatives

Congratulations and thank you to our 2015 Parent Representatives. We look forward to the support and connections you will help bridge over the coming year.

FM Denise – Jack’s mum

FP Jen – Jamie’s mum

FW Stephanie – Audrey’s mum

1L Caterina – Hugo’s mum

1M Ganga – Turiya’s mum

1T Megan – Gideon’s mum

2A Tomoe – Tamsyn’s mum

2P Edwina – Daisy’s mum

2W Jen – Robbie’s mum

3/4E Ildiko – Lucien’s mum

3/4H Juliet – Gabriel’s mum

3/4M Belinda – Maddie’s mum

5/6T Meeta – Krisha’s mum

5/6V Andrea – Estefan’s mum

Have a lovely fortnight everyone.

Kate Gray

Principal

Assistant Principal's Report

Wow! What a jam packed fortnight it has been! Lots of goings on especially in the sporting arena!

School Working Bee

On Saturday 28th February we had a huge turnout for our first working bee. We had a record number of families come and help out at the school weeding and mulching our veggie patches, pruning trees, mulching the trees behind the hall and in the play areas and building our tunnel playground near the oval. We had a delicious sausage sizzle to end the day. Thank you to all the families who offered their help on the day. You will agree that all your hard work keeps our school looking great! Thank you to our Buildings and Grounds team led by Ildiko Tarjan for organising this event.

Interschool Sport

I had a great morning on Friday 27th February, accompanying our Year 5 & 6’s to interschool sport to play against Mary Magdalene Primary School. I spent significant time watching our basketball and rounders teams who displayed excellent team work, manners and support of one another. They each tried their ‘personal best’ and showed kindness towards their opposition. It was a great morning for us with the rounders, soccer rounders and cricket teams winning their games. The basketball teams were mixed together to form even numbers of boys and girls and they played a great match. Well done ‘Team Huntingdale!’

Regional Swimming Finals

Last week Chiara, avid and Charli swam in the Regional Swimming Finals. Each of these students reported that the competition was really ‘hot’ (many students who make it to the Regional Finals are squad swimmers at various swimming clubs.) Although they didn’t advance to the next level of competition, they had a great day and tried their personal best in their events. Well done to these students for their efforts!

Tennis Competition

Great news for Emma in 5/6V! She competed in the District Tennis Tournament and has made it through to the Divisional Round. Well done Emma! We wish you all the best!

Student Leaders

At last week’s assembly, we presented our Environment, Art and Community Leaders with their badges. A number of our School and House Captains are also taking on support roles in these areas. Congratulations to the following students:

Art- Alyssa, Kaila, Maddy, Hina, Seah, Minami

Environment- Erica, Dyron, David, James

Community- Ezekial, Joyce, Jack, Amy, Evan, Remy, Joann

Meet the New Principal of South Oakleigh Secondary College!

Last week I had a visit from the new Principal of South Oakleigh Secondary College- Helen Koziaris (pictured here with Hanazono sensei, myself and Watanabe sensei, Japanese Teacher at South Oakleigh). Helen is not a new face to South Oakleigh as she was the Assistant Principal there for many years. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Principal role. Personally, I have known Helen for many years as she was my teacher not too many years ago at Lyndale Secondary College in North Dandenong (Helen and I will say she was a graduate teacher when she taught me!) Helen is well known to many of our families who have older siblings attending South Oakleigh SC, including Gill Penfold, whose children Jodie and Aden both went there and are now embarking on University Degrees.

Many of our Year 6 students go on to South Oakleigh Secondary College each year. They have a wide range of programs to offer students including an excellent Japanese Program. South Oakleigh SC and Huntingdale are looking at ways that we can help strengthen our ties in Japanese and the Year 6-7 Transition Program. If you would like any information about South Oakleigh Secondary College, please see their website http://www.sosc.vic.edu.au/ or phone the school at 9579 2322.

Student Attendance

Each month at Huntingdale Primary School we are looking at our student attendance data- that is how many days children are late and how many days students have away from school.

The good news from the Office Staff is that student lateness has decreased from last year….let’s keep up the great work! It is important to arrive at school on time so that your child can prepare for the day and get out the equipment they need for their learning and hear important teacher instructions at the commencement of the day. Congratulations to FW for having the most ‘on time’ arrivals at school each day! Keep up the great work!

Overall our student attendance is very good. We have had several families have holidays at the start of the year, but other than that students have consistently been coming to school each day. Congratulations to 2A for having the highest student attendance for the month of February!

Remember if you are away, you must write a note of explanation and send it to your classroom teacher who will record the notified absence. It is a requirement of the Department of Education and Training that all absences must be recorded.

Have a great fortnight! It’s not long until the Year 3-6 camp to Waratah Bay!

Ruth Biddle

Assistant Principal

Huntingdale Primary School

Issue 4 · 11 Mar 2015

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