Principal's Item 

Dear parents, carers and friends of EEPS,

I hope that everyone is having a great week. Well done to our Year 3-6 students who actively participated in the House Athletics last Thursday at Greensborough. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to attend due to a required meeting for the local Principal Network. 

We had several parents directly contact the school afterwards to express their delight in how well the EEPS students supported each other. This was really kind, and it is fantastic to get this feedback - thank you. 

2027 Prep Enrolments

Just a reminder that the 2027 prep enrolments are filling up. If you have a younger sibling and haven’t enrolled them yet, please do so by the end of term. Similarly, if you have friends who are looking at enrolling then please remind them.

Weekend Damage - Request for Information

Last weekend there was a small amount of vandalism at our school. Whilst this is not altogether unique, it did involve accessing different parts of the school, including under the BER and the Hall. We are investigating CCTV footage but if any of our community members have any information that may assist, then please do get in contact with the school.

Fundraising Policy

Last week, School Council approved a new Fundraising Policy for EEPS. This won’t really impact the JSC infinitives but will help if we have multiple requests for fundraising activities from EEPS community members. It is now accessible on the EEPS website, under ‘Policies’ for your reference. 

ICAS

Please look out for information in this Newsletter and COMPASS newsfeed, regarding the 2026 ICAS testing information. ICAS stands for International Competitions and Assessments for Schools. ICAS is a globally recognized, skill-based academic competition and testing program designed for primary and secondary students (typically Years 2 to 12).

Refugee Week

This week is Refugee Week, an annual celebration to recognise and showcase the contributions of refugees in enriching our communities and culture. This year’s theme is ‘A Million Stories’. In response to the impact of World War II, Australia signed an initial agreement in 1947 to receive 4,000 refugees from Central Europe. Since then, Australia has issued one million permanent humanitarian visas to people from around the world. Refugee Week 2026 is a chance to reflect on this milestone and celebrate the one million stories behind it.

Use of AI in Communicating with the School

We know that the world does change at a rapid rate especially in relation to technological advancements. Whilst generative AI can be a very handy adjunct to human thought and expression it has limitations. As a school we do value authentic communication and I would respectfully ask that parents and carers avoid using AI generated scripts when contacting school staff.

Reports - Next Wednesday 24th June

The Semester 1 student academic learning reports will be distributed via Compass on Wednesday 24 June. These achievement reports provide families with a summary of your child's achievement and growth against the Victorian Curriculum Achievement Standards. At Eltham East Primary School, teachers use multiple sources of evidence to make consistent and informed judgements about student progress, with moderation processes supporting a shared and accurate understanding of curriculum standards across the school.

The reports will continue to provide important information about your child's learning achievement and progress. However, full descriptive comments may not be included as a result of industrial action taken earlier this term by the Australian Education Union. Other aspects have also been streamlined ensuring that teacher time is devoted to accurately providing progression points rather than long written comments that use statements from the curriculum content descriptors. 

If you have any questions about your child's report or learning progress, please contact your child's teacher via Compass to arrange a time to speak with them.

I would like to thank all the EEPS teachers for their enormous and diligent effort that goes into preparing these reports.

Learning and Growing Together

Recently staff at Eltham East presented to other teachers and leaders on two fronts. A fortnight ago, Naomi Brabender, presented to the Regional forum for new Mental Health and Wellbeing Leaders, and last week Melissa Egan and myself presented to the Principal Network around monitoring impact. It is always a great validation of the work that we do as a school to be asked to present at local forums.

Don’t forget that next Friday,26th June, school finishes at 2.30pm for the school holiday break.

Have a great week of Learning and Growing Together.

Kind regards

Warren Lloyd

Principal