From the Acting Principal

WELCOME BACK

 Welcome back to school and into the final term of the year. 

Term 4 is traditionally a very busy one and this term will be no exception.

We are all so excited that next week the staged return to school commences. It is going to be wonderful seeing students back in classrooms and playing together in the yard once again. Naturally there will be strategies in place to ensure a safe return for our staff and students, and parents will be advised of these in a further section in this newsletter.

CURRICULUM DAY 

Our Curriculum Day will be held on Monday 1 November (the day before the Melbourne Cup).

The curriculum day is a ‘pupil free day’ so there will not be any school attendance or lessons online.

The teachers will be working together to moderate judgements against the achievement standards in readiness for end of year reporting. When determining the achievement standard, teachers use a range of information sets, including, but not limited to: participation in lessons, submitted student work and analysis of a range of assessments.

SCHOOL CONCERT

Our whole school concert that was re-scheduled for November has now been cancelled. 

Despite this, we don’t want our students missing out on the ‘Performing Arts’ aspect of the curriculum and so we have decided to put together a smaller version of the concert which will be filmed and shared with school families. Students will learn and rehearse routines and will even wear concert costumes for the filming.

We know it’s not the same as the real thing, but we hope that you enjoy the performances when our concert is shared with you.

YEAR 6 GRADUATION

The year 6 teachers have met with the class reps. and have commenced graduation preparation to ensure that no matter whether the ceremony is online and live streamed, or conducted with parents in attendance at school, our students will have a night to remember.

The Year 6 Graduation will be held on Wednesday 15 December.

 

INCURSIONS AND EXCURSIONS

Teachers organise incursions and excursions to enhance the learning related to the unit of inquiry being explored. 

During remote learning, and while restrictions are in place, incursions have still been enjoyed by our students, even though they’ve been online. While face to face activity is always preferable, teachers have noticed that online incursions have provided students with variety and helped maintain motivation and engagement.

OUTDOOR LEARNING SPACES AND THE DET SHADE GRANT

Recently, the government announced that schools could apply for a grant of up to $25,000 to provide shade in areas where learning can take place outdoors. 

Our Year 5/6 Design Team students (Hayden, Sid, Monako and Alex) have been working with an interior designer to create an outdoor kitchen and open learning space. We have already obtained quotes to erect a freestanding pergola over the merbau decking in the kitchen garden area. This will provide protection from the weather and be able to be used all year round. 

We can’t wait to show you their design plans in a future newsletter, as our goal is to have this area completed in time for the Year 6 graduation.

We have applied for this grant and hope to hear positive news soon.

THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SHADE GRANT

Further to the above grant, we have recently applied for a Department of Health shade grant and were successful in our application. This provides the school with a further

$25,000 which will be used to shade the new playground. We are hopeful to have this erected over the next few weeks.

2022 PREP TRANSITION

Next Tuesday 19 October, parents of our new 2022 prep students are invited to an online information evening. This session will provide information about the school, as well as how transition sessions will be conducted, both online and when we are allowed to have new enrolments at the school.

If you haven’t yet enrolled your child, please phone the office 9568 1300 to make arrangements as soon as possible, as lesson packs are due to be distributed.

TIME TO FIND HATS AND JACKETS

As part of our updated Covid Operations Guide, we will be utilising outdoor spaces for learning and eating in Term 4. 

Please make sure that your child is ready for all possible weather conditions. 

Hats are required as per our SunSmart regulations, however, I do recommend layers and jackets as the cooler weather has been sporadic. All schools will be required to ensure maximum ventilation via open windows and doors, which may also mean some students require more uniform layers and jackets.

WORLD TEACHERS' DAY

Melbourne Celebrates World Teachers' Day on 29 October !

World Teachers' Day is normally celebrated on 5 October, however because that day falls in the school holidays, schools in Victoria will acknowledge their wonderful teachers on 29 October. 

The teamwork between colleagues and the school community, and continued efforts to provide an engaging curricular including incursions, special guests and themed days for variety online, has been well and truly valued by us all. 

To our MPS staff… we thank you.

 

 

 

 

Chellee Plumb