From the Principal, 

Diana Ellis

Term 2

A warm welcome back to all students, staff and parents. As the weather gets colder, please ensure your child has the appropriate clothing to stay warm throughout the day. 

Just a warning that many of our surfaces are quite slippery on wet or frosty mornings and our many fallen leaves also make surfaces slippery.

School Photos

This coming Monday we have our school photos. Please support us by having your child/children in uniform and ensure they are here on time. In order to fit in all of the class, family and individual photos there is a very tight time schedule throughout the day. We will not delay photos for children who are late. 

Athletics

At the end of last term our Year 4-6 students competed in our House Athletics up at Kyneton showgrounds. The day was a huge success due to the comprehensive planning from Mrs. Connell, the support from staff and parents and the enthusiasm, participation and sportsmanship of our students.

Easter Hat parade

At the end of term our students had lots of fun working with their buddies to make Easter hats and display them in our Ester Hat Parade. Thanks to the many parents/grandparents who attended for the parade and for those who also wore their Easter attire. 

Open afternoon

Thank you to the many parents/grandparents that attended our open afternoon at the end of last term. It was delightful to see the students sharing their learning with their families and the pride that was demonstrated for our school. I witnessed many families enjoying activities together including writing tasks and maths games. We are certainly planning for open afternoons to become a more regular event.

ANZAC Day

This week many of our families attended Anzac Day ceremonies in the city and across the Macedon Ranges. In Woodend a huge crowd attended the service. Our School Captains Flynn, Ava, Madison and Tahli laid a wreath on behalf of Woodend Primary School.

Around the classes

This week as students have returned to class there has been a focus on Anzac Day. As I visited classes, many of our students were engaged in activities relating to Anzac Day including discussion about the symbolism of Anzac ceremonies, watching video clips about Anzac Day, reciting the Ode and completing art work related to Anzac Day.

Canberra Camp

Our year 5-6 students are very excited about their upcoming Canberra camp. Our students will depart here next week and spend 4 days enjoying a range of activities in Canberra including a visit to Parliament. In the classrooms this week, students were involved in discussions about the senate, house of representatives and laws and bills. 

Teacher learning – Curriculum Day

On our Curriculum Day this week our staff were engaged in more learning about Mathematics and digging deeper to explore the many components of the curriculum. The morning sessions were facilitated by our Maths Learning Specialist Mr. Condon. The presentation was comprehensive and helped to further build staff understanding and capacity about how we teach Maths today. In the afternoon, Mrs. Campbell worked with staff on the Maths curriculum and supported staff with their Maths planning. 

Reports

This term our teachers provide student reports to families. These reports provide information about a child’s academic, social and emotional development and will be followed up with an opportunity for parents to meet with teachers. At our Staff Meeting last night we delivered the reporting requirements and timeline for this reporting period and staff will now begin the arduous and ongoing task of assessing and reporting. Further details will be provided later in the term about the release of the reports and Parent Teacher interviews.

Gardens

We all know that Macedon is well known for its beautiful gardens during Autumn but right now at Woodend and Carlsruhe our school grounds are looking amazing. Our gardens are full of healthy crops, thanks to the many people who tend to the gardens. Our chooks and guinea pigs are looking pretty healthy too! The guinea pigs love a snuggle with our students. 

Macedon Ranges

Living in the Macedon Ranges, we know how blessed we are to be in such a stunning part of the world. On my drive to work each day, I am provided with many opportunities to indulge in my love of the beautiful landscapes and often come across some of our wildlife as well.

Maintenance 

Just like regular and ongoing maintenance at our homes, the same applies at our school. Over the holidays we had a number of tradesmen in attendance. We have had all of the old windows at Woodend and Carlsruhe painstakingly removed, restored and refitted. Now they just need to be painted. We have also had the plumbers in attendance, finally completeling the must needed drainage down at the new playground.  Of course these jobs do not come cheap. The window restoration has cost approx $11k and the drainage has cost us around $22k.

2024 Enrolments for Foundation

Apply now to enrol your child in Foundation (Prep) for 2024

The Department of Education has released a new statewide timeline for enrolling in Foundation (Prep) for the 2024 school year.

If you have a child starting primary school in 2024, it’s time to enrol. Make sure to submit your enrolment application by Friday 28 July 2023.

If you are enrolling the sibling of a student at our school for Foundation in 2024, and both children will be attending our school at the same time, your child is prioritised for a place at our school as per the department’s Placement Policy. 

It is important to follow the statewide timeline to enrol your child in Foundation. Enrolling your child in line with the timelines allows us to plan our classrooms, staffing and transition activities and ensures your child has the best start to school.

For more information, please read about when and how to enrol your child in Foundation at vic.gov.au/enrolling-foundation-prep.

If you are seeking to enrol your child into Foundation next year, please contact our school office on 54272455 to request enrolment form.

Principal

Diana Ellis