Principals Message

It seems that every time I write to the community, I am using adjectives such as amazing and wonderful. This newsletter will be no different. Three weeks since the last newsletter and so many great events, celebrations and achievements. One of the three key areas we have identified as part of our new School Strategic Plan is the desire and commitment to increase our community’s engagement in learning. School for our families should not be seen as something that happens inside the gate alone. A school / home partnership is vital to creating successful learning. One of our goals as part of this is to provide more engaging information sessions and other experiences for our community and to increase the active participation and interaction by our community members.

Events

Primary School Dance Competition

On Saturday August 19, our wonderful Triple Threats dance team, made up of 28 students from Year 3-6 participated in the first ever Primary School Dance Competition, at Williamstown Town Hall. The theme was freestyle dancing with a Bollywood theme. Over a number of weeks prior to the event, Jenn Stirk prepared the group for the 8 minute choreographed performance that they executed brilliantly on the day of the event. The “buzz” in the green room was electric before the performance and I am very grateful to the families who came along to support their children.  Our students were not only wonderful performers, their manners and respectful interactions with students from other schools are to be commended. Whilst it is always about doing our best when participating in such events, our results were amazing. Our team won the ‘Best Choreography’ category and received the highest score from the three guest judges. The judges’ scores were combined with the audience vote and our team was declared second runner up. So next year, we will be out there in force. All the schools who participated did very well and to see students perform through dance, be immersed in the exploration of a different culture and be so inclusive whilst doing so is exactly what the world needs right now! A very proud principal. Well done to all who participated and supported our team.

STEAM night

Despite the dreadful weather, many families braved the elements and joined us for our second STEAM night on Wednesday August 23rd. Families participated in a number of activities that stretched the imagination, had us all asking lots of questions and had us engaging in great design and thinking across the disciplines of Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics. Parents and students alike played with robots, explored  green screen technology, created music using vegetables and fruit as conductors of energy, and used balloons, spaghetti noodles and marbles to explore all sorts of wonderful possibilities. A huge thank you to Michael Laird and his team of ‘steamers’ for preparing such an engaging evening. Thank you to all the families who attended.

BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS

 Reading every day for a sustained period is so important in supporting learning. It is a great habit for us all as adults to model for our children. Whether it is reading using an electronic device or flipping through the pages of a book, magazine or newspaper, reading enriches our lives. Recently, our students have browsed and made purchases from the Book Fair. Authors Susan Spelic and Cass Patterson visited. Our students and teachers looked amazing as they dressed as their favourite book characters as part of our Book Parade. Many students completed the Premiers’ Reading Challenge for 2017.  Students have brought along many preloved books to “Read and Donate” towards our Carnival in March 2018. Leadership team members have visited communities and read to students as part of Literacy and Numeracy Week.  Deputy Mayor, Councillor Kim McAliney, read to the whole school assembly as part of ‘Read for Australia Day’ on Friday. All great ways to highlight the importance of reading whether it be for gaining access to information of for the sheer pleasure and enjoyment of reading.

Father’s Day Breakfast

Last Thursday we celebrated our dads and other significant male members of our school community with our Dad’s Day breakfast. It was great to see so many fathers, granddads, uncles and stepdads come along and spend an hour with their children enjoying a lovely breakfast. I thank the many staff who worked behind the scenes to prepare and serve the breakfast and it was a pleasure to meet and chat with many of the adults present.

Camps Program

Our 1 / 2 sleepovers are underway. This week Topaz and Garnet I&J have enjoyed the overnight experience and next week it will be the turn of Sapphire and Garnet K&L. These sleepovers prepare students for camps that in Year 3-6 see them all venture to one of a number of camp venues affiliated with the school. These experiences are very well organised and supervised by the teachers who ensure all children are safe and happy during the many activities they experience. These year students have been treated to a disco, jumping castles and a reptile show and as I bid Thursday night’s group farewell they were snuggled up in their pyjamas and sleeping beds ready to watch a movie. I thank all families who do support this wonderful opportunity and all the wonderful staff, led by team leader Kyrstie Smith, who commit to this program and give graciously of their time to ensure the students have a wonderful experience and create happy memories.

Prin for a Day

On Thursday Sept 7 Mark Monahan, from Mt Atkinson, Edmund Rice Services became our Principal for the Day. Principal For A Day, now in its seventeenth year, is an initiative that gives a wide range of community and business leaders from all walks of life a first-hand experience of a normal day in a Victorian government school.  Principal For A Day is delivered by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) in partnership with the Victorian Department of Education and Training through the Bastow Institute of Educational Leadership.

Principal For A Day aims to:

•                increase understanding and awareness between schools, business and the wider community

•                promote the great work that schools do

•                provide business and community leaders with first-hand and current experiences of schools

•                enable school principals to develop on-going relationships with leaders from other spheres, and

•                increase opportunities for schools and the community to work together in mutually beneficial ways.

Mark spent the day attending a Trug Hub Meeting, with many classes, chatting to staff and meeting with Aliya and Chance two of our student leaders. Mark really enjoyed his day with us.

Teaching and Learning

Curriculum day

On Friday August 19, our teaching staff worked with Georgina Pazzi, Director of Edumazing, with a focus on ‘Future Proofing Our Learners’. The day provided teachers with many opportunities to explore the skills and capabilities that students will need as citizens of the 21st Century. Often, employers are quoted as saying that what they need from the employees today and tomorrow are not only the ability to be literate and numerate but also have skills that will  help them solve problems, work collaboratively as part of a team, be creative in their thinking and be empathetic citizens. The day was filled with problem-based scenarios where teachers explored what it means to be a child in today’s classroom and look at new technological supports and models for divergent and creative thinking. I look forward to seeing this new found knowledge and experience translate into learning practice for all our students. Our wonderful ESO team attended First Aid training on the day and I am pleased that we have such a large number of staff who have this training and are able to support Roz, our First Aid Officer in the area of First Aid. An important reminder that our last Curriculum Day for 2017 is Monday November 6 (Melbourne Cup Eve). Our teachers will be working with Dr. Jeni Wilson as they investigate the Inquiry process. Please mark this date in your calendars.

NAPLAN

Our NAPLAN results for our Year 3 and 5 students have been delivered to the school. All families of students who did sit the NAPLAN tests in May should have received a hard copy of the results attained by their children. The leadership team is unpacking the results and the staff will do so in Term 4.  These results support the work we do with our students as they help us identify areas of misconceptions and help us target the teaching and learning that is required. These results give us a snapshot of information about student learning. The greater part of tracking student achievement occurs on a daily basis throughout student learning experiences.

Community Update Notices

Attendance and Extended Leave for Holidays

 I remind all families that all students should be at school every day, unless unwell. On Monday Brianna and I attended a session run by the Education Department focusing on the importance of student attendance at school and state’s goal in reducing the number of days students miss school especially re unauthorized, unexplained and vacation absences. Please read Brianna’s message in this newsletter about this matter. I will continue to remind families that reasons for absences must be provided to the school (email, personal, phone call, and note) and that I need to meet with families who are taking extended leave from school during the active school year. Please contact the office to make an appointment if this is the case for your child.

TrugHub Community Team

The TrugHub community hub made up of TSPS, YMCA and Arndell Park (Wyndham Council) meets every 4 weeks to discuss community issues and how we, as a hub, can provide services, programs and supports for the wider community. We recently established out Terms of Reference and Code of Conduct and we are working towards our first combined event together that will see the official launch of the hub in term 1, 2018. Flying under the mantra ‘Let’s Connect’ we are looking for opportunities to work together and will seek community input shortly. Your voice does matter. I am pleased to announce the winner of the design for the TrugHub logo, Khathab Sheefer, from Coral.

Traffic Management

I wish to acknowledge Rhonda Velkovski’s leadership of the work being undertaken to ease some of our traffic issues especially at peak times before and after school. I am pleased to say the school is working closely with the Wyndham Council, especially with Darren Jones to find some safer options for children coming to and leaving school. I would like to ask families to consider parking a little further away from the school and walking the last 500 metres or so, or consider the Parent led Walking Buses, currently being organised. Sometimes the wait to get to the drop off zone can actually take much longer than a short brisk walk, which also has health and social benefits. We are looking at getting clearer signage to indicate 2-minute drop off zones. Please remember student safety is our first priority. Please model safe travel behaviours whether walking or dropping students by vehicle.  Our Active Walk2School will also recommence in Term 4. Look out for these details.

SunSMART

Term 4 fast approaches and with it comes the warmer weather. We are a SunSmart school and this means ALL students must wear hats when outside in the yard. Please ensure over the coming vacation break, that your child is equipped with a hat for their first day back in Term 4.

Long Service Leave

I wish to inform the community that I will be taking a short break prior to the end of this term. I will be on leave for Week 10 and Michael Laird will take up the acting Prin role for the week. I want to take this opportunity to thank you all for your support, engagement and commitment to your children’s education.

I wish you a safe holiday with your families. See you when school resumes Monday, October 9.

Yours in Education

Linda Danese (Principal)