Wellbeing & Engagement

Wellbeing update

Bullying No Way

The Bullying No Way: National week of action was from Monday 12 August to Friday 16 August 2024 and was a chance to take action to make our school safer and more supportive for students.

This year’s theme was ‘Everyone belongs’. It is based on the idea that when students feel like they are accepted for who they are, bullying struggles to find a place.

On Friday 16th August, our Wellbeing Captains roved the playground during recess and lunch to ask students how they have demonstrated being an upstander.

This work forms part of our commitment to Child Safe Standard 9: Physical and online environments promote safety and wellbeing while minimising the opportunity for children and young people to be harmed.

Safe, Valued and Respected Survey

During Week 5 we administered the Safe, Valued and Respected surveys across all school staff and students once again.

These surveys are an important way for us to gauge how everyone is feeling in relation to our AIP and SSP goals, and to give us guidance on what we can improve. Just a reminder of the various initiatives that were put in place due to feedback from this survey:

playtime menus, quiet play spaces, new yard duty areas, areas for specific grades to play, wellbeing leader games, peer mediators, buddy times and connections days.

I will work with the Wellbeing Captains to review this feedback and create an action plan.

SunSmart policy

Daily sun protection times are forecast by the Bureau of Meteorology for the time-of-day UV levels are predicted to reach 3 or higher, based on location. At these levels, sun protection is recommended for all skin types. In Victoria, UV levels typically reach 3 or higher daily from mid-August to the end of April. 

With the sun starting to peek through it is very likely that we will start experiencing days where the UV levels reach 3 or higher.  Therefore, it is important that the four below measures to help reduce the risk of excessive UV sun exposure are enacted:

• Shade: Seek shade
•  Clothing: Slip on sun protective clothing
•  Hats: Slap on a sun protective hat (remember that broad-brimmed or bucket hats are required)
• Sunscreen: Slop on sunscreen

For further information please refer to the SunSmart and Extreme Heat Policy available on the EPS website.

Policy updates

The following policy has been recently updated and is available on our school website: 

• Photographing, filming and recording students - minor word changes to match the Department of Education policy

 Engagement update

Excursion/Incursions

EPS teaching teams work hard to find interesting and relevant excursions and incursions for all year groups. The events are directly linked to each year levels Big Questions and are only possible due to payment of parent/carer contributions or specific excursion fees. 

Prep - What is it made of and how does it move?

Woodwork 

How can we help the earth?

Year 1 – 

Farmwall incursion

Holly's Bees

Street Science Kit (incursion) 

Year 2 – 

PlantingSeeds and the B&B Highway (Bed and Breakfasts for Birds, Bees and Biodiversity)

Street Science Kit (incursion) 

Holly's Bees

Edendale Farm

Return-it Depot in Moorabbin (Mr. Eddington visited to create an action program for EPS)

Year 3/4 - How does the environment support living things?

VR incursion whereby students were immersed in various animal terrains 

Melbourne Zoo - specific STEAM focused excursion that enabled students to springboard into the rest of the term 

Resource Rescue and Reverse Art Truck (Ms Welton sourced materials as EPS continues to focus on sustainability) 

Year 5/6 - What comes first: profit or the planet?