Message from the Principal Team
Principals' Update
Upcoming Learning Events
On Monday, Member for Northern Metropolitan Region at Parliament of Victoria, Ms. Sheena Watt will be visiting CNPS to talk with our Year 5/6 students about Leadership. Our Year 5/6 students have recently commenced work in their Student Action Leadership Teams (SALT-Y) and Ms Watt will be sharing her experience in leadership and answering any questions that they may have.
On Monday, our Year 1/2 students will be participating in ‘Hands on Science’ experiments exploring chemical science, focusing on observing and classifying different materials.
School Council News
Last night we conducted our first meeting for the 2021 School Council. We were thrilled to be able to meet in person and are very excited about the work that we will be doing this year consulting with the CNPS community in preparation for our School Review in Term 1 of 2022.
Within the meeting we elected the School Council Office Bearers. Congratulations to Sarah Bekessy who will be continuing in the role of School Council President for 2021. We would also like to welcome Alice Knowles and Conrad Dudley-Bateman into the roles of Co-Vice Presidents. Alice and Conrad will be supporting Sarah with the leadership of the School Council, and are available as key contacts for our school community. We also welcome Anastasia Mase in her second year in the role of School Council Treasurer. Anastasia works closely with our Business Manager, Trish Harrington, to oversee the school budget.
Our School Council Members are in the process of having their school photos taken and we will publish these in the newsletter so that you are aware of their faces. Please feel free to raise any concerns or queries with any of our School Councillors:
2021 School Council:
President - Sarah Bekessy
Vice Presidents - Alice Knowles
- Conrad Dudley-Bateman
Executive Officer - Rachel Corben (Principal)
Treasurer - Anastasia Mase
Secretary - Maddi Davis
Parent Members - Alison Knott
- Kylie Ohrstrom Hansen
Community Members - Annelise Tiller
- Gaby Shortis
- Marnie Pascoe
School Employee - Ben May
- Erin Brown
- Trish Harrington
School Council would like to continue to extend the invitation for any parents/carers or extended family members that would like to join any of our committees or working groups within the school. If you are keen to contribute to the school community and have an area of expertise or passion for any of the key groups below, please contact Rachel rachel.corben@education.vic.gov.au
Buildings, Grounds and Sustainability - next meeting Monday 4:00pm
Education - next meeting Tuesday 4 May 5:00pm
Fundraising and Community Engagement - next meeting tomorrow morning at 9:00am in the staffroom
Friends of Sport - next meeting Thursday 1 April at 12:00pm
Friends of the Arts - next meeting tomorrow at 2:00pm in the staffroom
Student Wellbeing - next meeting Wednesday 12 May 3:40pm
For all scheduled meetings dates for these committees and groups, please refer to the School Council page of the newsletter.
Curriculum Days 2021
Each year schools conduct curriculum days (student-free days when student instruction does not occur) for professional development, school planning and administration, curriculum development and student assessment and reporting.
All government schools are required to conduct curriculum days at the start of each year to allow for appropriate planning to take place for the arrival of students.
School councils then have the flexibility to schedule 3 curriculum days each year to meet local school needs.
The following curriculum days have been approved by School Council:
Thursday 22 April - staff will work with Literacy Consultant, Lisa Keskinen to continue the work on improving student learning growth in Writing.
Thursday 2 September - Professional learning for staff to be confirmed.
Monday 1 November - Report Writing Day
Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) Meeting - Indigenous Education
Last night the RAP team met for the first time. We are fortunate to have a team with a wide range of knowledge and experience and we are looking forward to sharing the work of the group with the wider community. Last night we commenced developing a Vision for Reconciliation which we will share with elders within the Wurundjeri community for feedback.
Case Study School - Respectful Relationships Evaluation
This year our school was nominated to be a case study school for the Respectful Relationships Evaluation. Our school’s participation in the evaluation will help to inform the Victorian Government’s continuing work in delivering Respectful Relationships education.
Yesterday a number of staff and students participated in focus groups as part of the case study. Out Student Wellbeing Student Action Leadership Team participated in the student focus group. The feedback from the consultants was that they could not believe how articulate and well informed our students are in terms of respectful relationships and consent. Thank you for the following students for representing the collective voice of our students:
Amelie 56O Ava 56O Charlie K. 56CJ Eliza 56CJ
Lucy 56B Luke H. 56B Violet 56O Zoe 56B
We hope that the feedback we receive through this evaluation will inform the next steps for us in becoming an inclusive school community.
Ensemble Music Performance
Congratulations to all of the students who performed as assembly last week. It was fantastic to have a performance of live music at the school. Thank you to all of the Instrumental Music Teachers for coordinating the performance and congratulations once again to Rachel Snedden for her 25 (now nearly 26) years of teaching recorder at CNPS.
Outdoor Learning Space Project
Rain and an unexpected burst pipe has slowed down the development of our outdoor learning space between the two school buildings. We are looking forward to the space being available for use very soon. We are in the process of determining a date early next term to conduct an official opening ceremony, including Acknowledgement of Country and Smoking Ceremony, using the new fire pit. As soon as we have confirmation of a date from the Wurundjeri Tribe Council, we will communicate this with the school community.
Thank you to our generous CNPS families who have contributed to the additional cost of shade sails for this learning space. We are still around $4000 shy of this cost and are working with some of our families to raise these funds within the wider school community.
Teacher Professional Practice Days and Professional Learning
The following staff will be taking Professional Practice Days next week:
Tuesday 30 March - Team Leader Release - Kara and Brendan
Professional Learning - Writing
Last night, classroom teachers revisited the 6+1 Writing Traits which staff were first introduced to in 2019. Teachers worked together in three multi-level teams to delve into one trait per team. They each produced an overview poster defining the trait, looking at how to assess the trait, along with how to teach this trait from Foundation right through to Year 6. Teams will then share their ‘expertise’/poster on this trait at next Wednesday’s meeting before repeating the process with a second trait per team. Posters will be displayed in the staffroom to allow everyone a chance to review them at their leisure.
During this time, the Specialist team created Word Wall displays specific to their curriculum area. These will be displayed in the Specialist Classrooms and Italian word walls will be displayed in each classroom across the school.
Student Wellbeing
We are fortunate to have a Masters of Counselling Student from Monash University, Nanda Wardana, completing her final placement at CNPS. Any families wishing to access counselling support for their child at school with Nanda please contact Jane jane.bilby@education.vic.gov.au
Parking on O'Grady Street
Please be mindful of parking within the allocated street parking when dropping off and picking up your child. We have noticed a number of parents/carers parking in the no stopping zones and double parking on the street. Child Safety and Wellbeing is our biggest priority at CNPS and we do not wish for a child to be injured crossing the roads near our school.
The Principal Team
Rachel Corben, Erin Brown & Jane Bilby