The Bimbadeen Blaze

Principal's Report 

We acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners of the land on which we work, learn and play. We pay respect to Wurundjeri elders past, present and emerging and extend our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and families of Bimbadeen Heights Primary School.

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day is next week!

On Thursday 4 August we will be celebrating National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day. On this day we celebrate one of the oldest living cultures on earth and acknowledge and support the work to strive for equity for all Indigenous children. This day is an opportunity for us to show our support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, as well as learn about the crucial impact that culture, family, and community play in the life of every Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child. To achieve equity, we must approach these challenges through a holistic approach, considering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children’s wellbeing, safety, and development.

On 4 August and during this week, our students will participate in engaging learning tasks about Indigenous culture with a focus on equality and respect for all people. Teachers will be asking students to bring along and share Indigenous cultural connections they may have as well as explore cultural connections through stories, images and songs and reflect on the theme for this year ‘My Dreaming, My Future’.

 

We hope that you can also take time to acknowledge this day and share learning together about indigenous culture in your homes. 

If you would like to find out more please visit: https://www.aboriginalchildrensday.com.au/

Thank you to our wonderful Library Helpers

We would like to say a huge thank you to our parent and carer helpers who have been assisting in the Library on a Thursday afternoon this term. Karin Sansom, our School Librarian, has been coordinating groups of parents and carers to assist with the many tasks that need to be completed to ensure our school library remains up to date with high quality literature for our students to access and enjoy. 

Our helpers have also been supporting the updating of our take home books that are available in each classroom, including covering the $20,000 worth of decodable readers that were purchased this year to support our early literacy programs. Processing, covering, and labelling books takes a considerable amount of time, but as they say, ‘many hands, make light work’. 

If you are interested in assisting with tasks in the library, please contact Karin on          9726-9989.

Parent/Teacher Interviews were a great success!

Parent/Teacher Interviews were held this week, with parents and carers of students across the school, meeting with their child’s teacher/s to discuss their learning and wellbeing growth during the first semester of this year. Parent/Teacher interviews are an important opportunity for parents and carers and teachers to partner to support the learning, wellbeing, and engagement of our students. 

If you have not had the opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher, please get in contact with them to arrange a suitable time.

Think U Know and Victoria Police Cyber Safety Presentation

The internet and the access it provides can be a powerful tool to build connections and gather information. A key part of this access is appropriate use and cyber safety. Cyber safety is an integral skill and strategy that we all need to possess.

 

To complement what we teach around cyber safety, Think U Know will be attending our school next Friday 4 August to provide information and strategies to our Year 6 students to support them in keeping safe online. Think U Know work with Police Victoria and a member of Police Victoria will be educating our students with an aim to support them in preventing and managing safety challenges, as well as guiding them to understand and feel empowered to act.

 

If you would like to know more about Think U Know and access their amazing resources, please visit - https://www.thinkuknow.org.au/resources-tab/parents-and-carers

Face Masks

It is strongly recommended by the Victorian Department of Health that face masks are worn in indoor settings, with face masks mandatory for those aged 8 and over who are household contacts and attending school. This is because the wearing of masks is effective in reducing the transmission of COVID-19. We would appreciate you discussing the importance of mask wearing with your children and ensuring that students aged 8 years or over are sent to school with mask supplies each day. 

An emergency supply of masks is available at the office for any student who forgets to bring a mask with them to school and would like to wear one.

Exemptions for testing and isolation

The period of time when someone is considered a recently confirmed case and therefore exempt from testing and isolation requirements has been reduced from the previous 12 weeks to 4 weeks. This means that staff and children who are household contacts of people with COVID-19 are now required to undertake the testing and isolation requirements from 4 weeks after completing isolation with COVID-19. Previously, this exemption period was 12 weeks.

After the 4-week exemption period, students and staff members who are a household contact of a new COVID-19 case, must follow the rules for household contacts, including reporting this to their school.

As part of this they must take 5 rapid antigen tests (RATs) over 7 days and receive negative test results and wear a face mask (if over 8 years old) in indoor spaces. Families and staff will also have to report being a household contact to their school after this 4-week period.

 

Further supplies of RATs have been sent home with students today. If you need extra supplies due to your child being a household contact, please contact the school.

 

We all play an important part in creating a safe environment for the entire Bimbadeen community, and your support for these important measures is greatly appreciated.

School Council Update

Bimbadeen Heights PS School Council is committed to sharing our work with the Bimbadeen community. To strengthen communication between council and our parents/carers, each newsletter we share information about School Council, including general information about the functions and operations of council and the specific work of our own council at Bimbadeen.

 

This newsletter, we would like to share with you, the work of the Council’s Student Wellbeing Sub-Committee.

 

Student Wellbeing Sub-Committee

 

Purpose:

The Student Wellbeing Sub-Committee is responsible for overseeing school Student Wellbeing, which includes but is not limited to the School Wide Positive Behaviour Framework and the Respectful Relationships Program.

 

When we meet:

The Fundraising Sub-committee meet 8 times per year (or more frequently where required) and report back at the next School Council meeting on each occasion.

 

What we do:

  •  Support the Student Wellbeing programs and activities undertaken at the school that link with our School Wide Positive Behaviour Support (SWPBS) framework.
  •  Make recommendations to School Council based on analysis of data i.e. parent and student surveys, attendance data and behaviour data.
  •  Make recommendations on policy in areas that are related to Student Wellbeing and communicate these to the School Council.
  •  Encourage the participation of the school community in acknowledging special events such as National Reconciliation Week, NAIDOC Week, Cultural Diversity Week, the Day for Daniel and the National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence.
  • Where relevant, ensure parents/guardians are aware of developments and initiatives related to the sub-committee’s role via the newsletter and school website.

How you can help:

  •  Join our team. We would love to hear your opinion or suggestions on how enhance student wellbeing.
  •  If joining a committee is not your thing reach out to our Inclusion Leader, Marty Gill and or our Assistant Principal, Sabrina George to share ideas or inspiration around the ‘What we do’ points.

Events we run and are involved in each year:

  •  School Value Celebrations.
  •  National Celebrations that link to our community and the curriculum.

In 2021 we:

  • Developed and implemented our multi-tiered response to student wellbeing: library lunchtime clubs, Chaplain, Monash Master of Counselling Students, Breakfast Club, Active Club.
  • Updated Policies – Bullying Prevention, Student Wellbeing and Engagement, Inclusion and Diversity.
  • Distributed Community Food Hampers.
  • Respectful Relationships staff professional learning.
  • Developing a SWPBS Action Plan and embedding SWPBS systems, such as tokens and tracking major and minors.
  • Strengthening Indigenous perspectives through lessons that connect to the curriculum, whole school celebrations, beginning work on a Yarning Circle and Indigenous Champions in every year level.

 

Contact:

If you would like to join the Student Wellbeing Committee or contribute in anyway, please contact:

 

The date for our School council Annual Reporting Meeting, where we report on the activities and achievements of School Council for the previous 12 months (2021 School Year) will be held on Wednesday 17 August at 6:30pm, prior to our School Council Meeting. A Webex link and further information will be sent to families via Sentral in coming weeks.

 

If you have any strategic matters that you would like discussed at our next meeting, please reach out to a member of School Council. Our membership includes: 

  •  Executive Officer: Adele Gregson (Principal) Adele.Gregson@education.vic.gov.au
  •  President: Troy Hovey (Until March 2023)
  •  Vice President: Kate Hession (Until March 2024)
  •  Treasurer: Andrew Lanigan (Until March 2024)
  •  Minutes Secretary: Bree King Bree.King@education.vic.gov.au (Until March 2023)
  • General committee members:
  •  Parent Members:

       - Matthew Genever (Until March 2023)

       - Matthew Richardson (Until March 2023)

       - Kate Rogers (Until March 2024)

       -  Simon Sang Hre (Until March 2024)

       - Morgan Gardiner (Until March 2024)

  •  School Employee Members: 

       - Beth Dean (Until March 2024) Elizabeth.Dean@education.vic.gov.au 

       - Sabrina George (Until March 2024) Sabrina.George@education.vic.gov.au 

       - Melinda Ruscitti (Until March 2023) Melinda.Ruscitti@education.vic.gov.au

 

We look forward to continuing our school improvement work with School Council with a focus on improving student learning outcomes.

2023 Foundation Enrolments (reprint)

While our school tours have concluded for prospective families, enrolments are still open for Foundation in 2023. We encourage prospective parents to complete an online tour via the school website where you can learn about our wonderful school and meet our staff and students.

 

Parents/carers of 2023 Foundation students are encouraged to submit their enrolment form as soon as possible but no later than the state-wide Foundation enrolment due date of 12 August 2022. We will be notifying parents/carers of their child’s Foundation placement at Bimbadeen Heights PS by 26 August 2022.

 

Completed enrolment forms can be returned to the school:

  •  directly - by dropping enrolment forms and additional documentation into the school office
  •  via post to Bimbadeen Heights Primary School, 118 Hayrick Lane, Mooroolbark 3138 
  •  via email to bimbadeen.heights.ps@education.vic.gov.au (please scan and send all sides of the enrolment form, including additional documentation.

 

 

We hope you enjoy a lovely weekend.

 

Adele Gregson and Sabrina George