From the Principal
Mother's Day Stall thank you
I hope all the 'mothers' in our community had a memorable Mother's Day. I would like to acknowledge the work of our incredible helpers who assisted with this year's stall either by ordering and preparing the items for sale, setting up and packing up the stall and giving their time to run the stall on the two days it was open.
Thanks to Crystal & Nicholas (parents of Ivie and Theo), Charles (Scarlett), Emma (Hannah and Patrick), Bastian (Manuel and Sophie), Phoebe (Bev's daughter), Ellen (grandmother and parent of former students), Robyn (office), Alice (Simon), Stephanie (Oliver) and Hieu (William V).
Special thanks to Bunnings Epping for their generous donation of the plants which were available for purchase at the stall.
Running these events takes a lot of work from a lot of people and we are very grateful to those who gave generously of their time to benefit our students and community.
Our next big event will be the Father's Day Stall scheduled for Thursday 3 and Friday 4 September. Put these dates in your diary and watch for notification from the Fundraising Committee requesting your assistance with the stall. Even if you can only give an hour, it makes a difference. Afterall, many hands make light work!
2027 Enrolments
We are currently conducting tours for 2027 enrolments. If you have a child who will turn 5 by 30 April 2027, then they are eligible to enrol for Prep/Foundation for 2027. Forms are available at the office, just ask Robyn, Bev or Suzanne and they will be happy to assist.
At LEPS we prefer to run our tours for individual families rather than conducting larger tours which can sometimes feel impersonal. We feel this provides the opportunity for families to get to know us better, ask the questions they want to in relation to their child and also gives us an opportunity to get to know our 'new' students. We love it when families bring their child as this tour as it is an important first transition step which helps them to prepare for starting school.
Even if you are an existing family, we still encourage you to make a time to book a tour so your child can have the fun and excitement of being a big 'school person' and not just a younger sibling.
New Promotional Photos
We have engaged the services of a photographer to come to school and take new promotional photos of our students, staff and facilities which will be used to promote our school in our newsletter, other notices and billboards. We have loved the photos taken during previous photographic sessions but have used most of our favourite photos many times and feel it is time to refresh them so we can showcase new faces and programs.
The majority of our families have provided consent for us to take photos for promotional purposes when your child was enrolled at LEPS. Students who do not have photographic permission will not be included in the photoshoot.
Behaviour Concerns
We acknowledge the neurodiversity of students and families in our school and community and applaud those parents who are proactive in seeking support for their children to assist them to flourish and grow. Our mission at LEPS is for all students to grow and become 'good people'.
As a school we still have concerns regarding the behaviour of some students and their lack of understanding that school is a place for learning. While they may be able to say 'No!' at home and that is okay, in a class of 24-25 students it is not okay. Saying 'No!' in class and not following basic instructions disrupts the learning of the other 24 students and that is not okay!
We have numerous strategies in place to support students to make positive choices including our redeveloped Behaviour Matrix and our acknowledgement of positive choices with our Focus on the Good Program.
Support from parents always makes our work easier. While we do not like to have to resort to excluding students from class/activities or suspending them, sometimes these consequences are necessary to address the safety and wellbeing of the child being suspended by providing an opportunity to reset and reflect. These moments also ensure the safety and wellbeing of other students and staff who are trying to learn or teach.
On occasions, decisions will be made where students who are regularly dysregulated will not attend external excursions or interschool sport as we believe they will not be able to adhere to the higher expectations regarding behaviour and safety associated with being offsite. Tough decisions like these are challenging for all involved but protect the safety and wellbeing of all involved in these experiences including the community beyond LEPS.
In the end, it all comes down to students showing:
Respect for themselves and others
Kindness towards themselves and others
Responsibility for our own actions and making positive choices.
LINDA RICHARDS
Principal