Principal's report

Dear Parents/Carers,

With under six weeks remaining before our last school day for the year, we are committed to ensuring the academic rigour continues and high levels of learning for all students remain the focus. 

In Loving Memory of Kalliopi Tsavaris (Mrs. T)

As we continue to remember and honour the incredible contributions of our beloved staff member, Kalliopi Tsavaris, fondly known as Mrs. T, we reflect on the profound impact she made within our community. Kalliopi dedicated herself wholeheartedly to her work, nurturing the growth and well-being of her students and colleagues alike.

Her leadership in the Tutor Learning Program exemplified her passion for education and unwavering commitment to helping each student thrive. Kalliopi’s kindness, enthusiasm, and resilience inspired everyone who had the privilege of knowing her. We are deeply grateful for her contributions and the joy she brought to Elsternwick Primary School.

During this period of remembrance, our thoughts remain with Kalliopi’s family and loved ones. We are committed to providing support and comfort to our school community. Please reach out if you or your child requires any additional support during this time of loss.

Staffing Update

It is with deep gratitude and appreciation that we officially farewell Danielle Moore from Elsternwick Primary School. Danielle joined our school community as Business Manager in March 2018, and from day one, she was instrumental in driving the success and improvement of our school in countless ways.

Danielle's commitment to our school was evident through her willingness to take on significant projects, including the restoration of Brickwood Hall as a volunteer. She approached this project with the same dedication and enthusiasm that she brought to all her roles at EPS. 

Throughout her time with us, Danielle worked tirelessly to enhance the physical appearance and facilities of our school, leading to a remarkable increase in parent/carer satisfaction. This year, to Danielle’s delight, the survey results for physical environment reached their highest levels ever—an acknowledgment of her persistent efforts in maintenance, regeneration, and the overall aesthetic of our school. Her successful applications for numerous grants resulted in critical improvements, including a new oval, solar panels, and water tanks, among many other enhancements.

Earlier this year, Danielle left us to take on the role of Business Manager at Brighton Secondary College. While we miss her presence, she left EPS in a financially sound position, with appealing and well-maintained school grounds & classrooms, and a strong, positive community spirit among students, parents, carers, staff, and School Council members.

I am immensely grateful for Danielle’s unwavering dedication, energy, and commitment throughout her years at EPS. We wish her every success in her new role at BSC and happiness in all aspects of life with her wonderful family. 

Thank you, Danielle, for everything you have done for our school—you will always be remembered fondly by the EPS community.

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Victoria (Tori) De Groot and Victoria (Vic) Abraham to the vacant Education Support Staff roles of Integration Aide at Elsternwick Primary School. Tori and Vic will each be working two days a week, providing essential support within our classrooms. Under the guidance of classroom teachers, they will focus on assisting students with their learning, ensuring that every child has the opportunity to thrive. 

We welcome Matt Gardiner and Tess Mowat, who have been appointed to the Tutor Learning Program for the remainder of the year. In addition to providing targeted support through this program, Matt and Tess will also assist with classroom teacher release across various year levels. We are excited to have them join the Elsternwick Primary School community, and we look forward to the positive impact they will have on our students’ learning and development. Please join me in warmly welcoming Toni, Vic, Matt and Tess to our school!

2025 Specialist Timetable

As outlined in my last newsletter, we are planning some adjustments to our timetable to accommodate projected student numbers for 2025.

We considered several options to address the increased demand on our specialist teaching staff while maintaining the quality of our programs. After careful review, we have decided to implement Option 3 for the 2025 timetable. This approach allows us to sustain the high quality of our specialist program, providing diverse and engaging learning opportunities without compromising the depth of learning experiences.

Additionally, I am pleased to share that Physical Education (PE) and STEAM will continue throughout the entire year for all classes. Our Preps will also benefit from the inclusion of a Perceptual Motor Program, designed to support their physical development and enhance their motor skills in an engaging and fun environment.

We are committed to ensuring that this transition is smooth and that our students continue to benefit from a robust and enriching specialist program.

2024 Annual Implementation Plan (AIP)

As the school year comes to an end, we take the opportunity to reflect and discuss with our staff and the school community how we have managed in 2024. We evaluate what we have learned including measuring student learning growth by comparing a student’s individual progress over time.

Our School Improvement Team (SIT) has lead the process of monitoring our 2024 AIP and regularly reflected on the implementation of AIP activities and key improvement strategies. The team have provided commentary on progress and impact to date, identified enablers and barriers, and considered next steps. This ongoing practice is facilitated by our reflective school culture, regular sharing of teacher practice, and a willingness to learn and adapt practice.

The goals and targets set in our 2024 AIP have established a clear direction for improving student outcomes and have focused on:

• Improving literacy and numeracy outcomes for all students 
• Improving student voice and agency in their learning 
• Improve student engagement and wellbeing

Through this process, a culture of collective responsibility for improving student outcomes has been developed for all staff across the school and multiple sources of evidence has been collected. We have continued our journey of improvement and continued to identify areas of practice that require attention to deliver improved student outcomes despite the changes.​ These included:

• Our re-appointment of being one of only 51 PLC Link School’s in the State that engages in cross school collaboration activities to support the system-wide spreading of effective and impactful PLC practices.
• Implementing a highly regarded Tutor Learning Initiative Program, that supports, extends and enhances the knowledge and skills of students who require enhancement and extension to their learning program which is then supported by the creation of an Individual Education Plans. 
• Activating student voice, leadership, and agency in their own learning, ensuring that students have positive school experiences and can actively contribute as partners in school improvement.
• NAPLAN outcomes that were stronger than any years prior.

Below are some of the targets from our 2024 AIP and how we scored in this year’s results relating to the Attitudes to School Survey, completed by all students in Years 4, 5, and 6:

2025 Student Leadership Opportunities

I would like to extend a sincere thank you to Eliza Solly and the Year 5/6 team for their hard work in coordinating and implementing a fair and robust selection process for our 2025 student leaders at EPS. Their efforts ensure that every candidate has the opportunity to showcase their potential and commitment to leadership. I wish all applicants the very best of luck as we move through this important process, and thank the 2024 captains for assisting in the process to identify next year’s captains and leaders.

I look forward to sharing the names of the successful applicants who will assume leadership roles in 2025 with our school community in the next edition of our newsletter.

School Council

Our final School Council meeting for 2024 will be held at school on Monday, 2nd December. I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the contributions of all members to our school and thank them for their ongoing support.

The council comprises the following parent/carer members: Mitch Tucker (President), Fiona Bull, Meg Hondromatidis, Bec Miller, Neal Naidoo, Jessie Rosengarten, Chris Simmonds (Treasurer), Sarah Wade, and Sophie Williams, as well as school staff: Rachael Feldtmann, Madeline McBurnie, Eliza Solly, Diana Telford, and Leanne Williams.

EPS Big Night Out

A huge thank you to the wonderful parents and carers who organised the Big Night Out on Friday, 18th October, at Elwood Bathers! It was an incredibly fun night filled with laughter, connection, and community spirit, all while raising funds for our school. I am truly grateful for your dedication, hard work, and attention to detail, which ensured the event’s success. I had a fantastic time and thoroughly enjoyed the evening—your enthusiasm was contagious! I’m looking forward to Principal for a Day with the Betts children. I can’t wait to collaborate with them and see what exciting ideas they bring to the table! Thank you once again for your tremendous efforts and unwavering support.

Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Survey

The Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Survey is a confidential survey made available to all Victorian government schools in Term 3 each year. Schools have the option to either invite all parents/caregivers/guardians or select a random sample of approximately 30 percent. At EPS, we invite everyone to participate! The objective of this survey is to gather parent/caregiver/guardian feedback from individual schools, using the data to support future planning and improvement across Victorian schools. Our results should be available in the coming weeks, and I will share them in the next edition of our newsletter. The preliminary summary results are fantastic, with our higher-than-similar school scores from 2023 being sustained. Over 140 parents/carers responded, representing our 280 families.

Network Chair

I was reappointed to the role of Beachside Network Chair for 2025 a few weeks ago. This role involves providing leadership and planning the network’s vision and future direction in collaboration with our Senior Education Improvement Leader. It will be my responsibility to play a key system leadership role, enabling Principals to collaborate and take collective responsibility for all learners within our network. My role at EPS remains completely unchanged.

The Beachside Network includes 30 primary, secondary, and specialist schools, spanning from Port Melbourne down Beach Road to Sandringham.

Year 6/7 Transition

The Year 6’s are preparing for their move to secondary school and will have visits to their new school to explore the unique way secondary timetables work, as well as how to be organised to change classes regularly through-out the day. We will continue to support our Year 6’s and celebrate their years of primary school as the school year comes to a close and look forward to their graduation ceremony in the coming weeks.

The Department of Education has some resources to support primary to secondary school transition available online: https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/primary-secondary-school-transition/resources.

2025 Prep Students

We are halfway through the orientation mornings for our new Prep students and their families. It is very exciting to see our future Preps growing in confidence and becoming familiar with their new school environment. Of course, some siblings are already old hands at coming to school, having been here at drop-off and pick-up for many years while waiting for their turn to attend this great place known as ‘school.’

It has been very pleasing to see parents/carers attending our information sessions as well. Understanding how the school operates and getting to know other parents/carers are all part of being engaged in the school community.

Make sure you stay up to date with all Compass messages, as there is a lot happening.

Have a great weekend, Michael

Michael Portaro

Principal