From Mr Ridgway
Welcome Back
We trust that everyone had a relaxing and enjoyable holiday season, whether you stayed local or ventured abroad. My wife, Rosanne, and I took the opportunity to travel and had some incredible experiences. We started in the US, where we attended a Philadelphia 76ers home game (and they won!) and celebrated New Year's Eve in Nashville. From there, we explored the historical and picturesque sites of Rome and the Amalfi Coast in Italy, before making a brief stop in Hong Kong on our way back home.
The staff and I are excited to have kicked off another great year, continuing our committment to supporting each child's success both in and out of the classroom. Here's to a productive and inspiring 2025 at CEPS!
Whole School Communication
As we dive into a new year, it is timely to revisit our whole school communication processes.
Sentral
Newsfeed posts can be sent to the whole school or particular year-levels. Sentral will be used to communicate the following:
- Important information/reminders
- Promotion of events/excursions/incursions
Please turn Notifications on, so you don't miss anything.
Class Dojo News Feed
Class Dojo will continue to be used as follows:
- 1:1 communication between teachers and families.
- Staff posting pictures to celebrate classroom learning or school events.
Please also be reminded that I encourage the importance of work/life balance with our staff. Staff will send and respond to Dojo communication, between the hours of 8.30am - 5.30pm, and will not respond outside of these hours. Staff will always endeavour to respond to families within 24 hours as the priority of our staff is the face-to-face teaching of their students. The 24-hour response time also applies to email communication. Should messages be of a more urgent/timely nature, please do not hesitate to contact the school office between 8.30am - 4.30pm.
School Promotion - Social Media
We have such an amazing school with wonderful staff, students and families. Facebook and Instagram are used to promote our amazing school to our broader community.
Click on the link below to access our Facebook page.
Mobile Phones
We understand that many of our students, in particular older students, now have their own mobile phones. We also understand the necessity of students who walk/ride to school having the ability to communicate with their parents/carers. Upon entering the classroom, students are required to silence/switch off their phones, and hand them to their teacher for secure storage throughout the day. Teachers will return phones to students at 3.30pm. Please use the school office for all daily communication needs. Thank you in advance.
Communicating concerns/issues
Should you have an academic or well-being concern regarding your child, it is always respectful to first communicate with your child's teacher as your first point of contact. Our school offers an open-door policy, and our teachers are more than happy to meet with (coordinate a meeting) parents/caregivers to best support your child/ren.
Should you feel that a concern or issue is not being addressed or improvement is not evident, then a meeting with either myself and/or Jared can be arranged. We also offer an open-door policy however, to ensure our availability, please contact the office via email or phone to book a meeting. Please note that Mr Chaplin and I don't access any individual messages sent to us via Class Dojo. Our preferred method of contact is via email or phone.
cheltenham.east.ps@education.vic.gov.au
9583 5746
Respectful Communication
This is a friendly reminder to ensure that all communication (written or verbal) demonstrates our school values of Respect and Courtesy. We understand that every parent/caregiver wants the best possible education and school experience for their child. Respectful communication enables the school to work positively with families toward solution-focused outcomes. Disrespectful communication will not be tolerated, nor responded to.
Accessing Your Child/ren's School Progress
(As shared previously on Sentral)
Following last year's School Review and the 2024 Parent Opinion Survey data specifically in reference to 'Teachers communicate with me often enough about my child's progress,' we have decided to improve the frequency and purpose of academic and social/emotional progress to families.
To facilitate this, we have moved the start of Term 1 'Getting to Know You' interviews to a Google Form.
You can access and complete this form here.
This form will allow you to provide important information to your child's teacher, ensuring that we can best support their needs from the very beginning of the school year. At the conclusion of 2024, staff also engaged in a thorough student handover process with the 2025 classroom teachers. If your child has specific medical needs and/or learning difficulties that require an urgent scheduled face-to-face meeting or phone call (not more than 10 minutes), this can be organised with your child's classroom teacher through Class Dojo.
Term 1
- Week 7 - Student Support Group meetings for PSD and DIP-funded students
- Weeks 8 and 9 - Face-to-face meetings to discuss Term 1 progress. Individual Education Plans (IEPs) will be shared and discussed during these meetings
Term 2
- Semester 1 Written Report Provided
Term 3
- Additional Face-to-face Progress Meeting
Term 4
- Semester 2 Written Report Provided
We believe this now provides families with an opportunity once a term to be informed of their child's progress. Please keep in mind that at Cheltenham East PS, all staff offer an open-door policy and are available as required throughout the year. Class Dojo can also be used to communicate regularly with your child's teacher.
We appreciate your cooperation and look forward to working together to support your child's learning journey.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Robert
