From the Principal

Welcome to IPS

I am confident that 2024 will be a fabulous year for the students, families and staff of Ivanhoe Primary School. The teachers and staff have been back at school for a while,  excitedly preparing to welcome all of our students.  

Dates

This newsletter has a lot of dates in it so please put the ones that are relevant to you in your diaries. Soon you will receive a letter from your class teacher with additional dates regarding online "Parent Information Evenings" and "Meet the Teacher" dates. 

I popped into the Beehive and was pleased to see our Year 6s confidently enjoying the new year's curriculum. What a great start to their final year of primary school.

Drop off

In the mornings at drop off please refrain from waiting until your child goes into the classroom. I am aware that it is only Day two, but almost all the children are capable of being left to their own devices to line up when the music begins and the bell sounds. 

Large groups of adults staying to wave children into class can be unsettling and intimidating to small children. (With the exception of an initial period of time for Foundation students).  It is lovely to see parents chatting with each other. However, please consider moving well away from the line up area to socialise and leaving before the line up bell. Allowing the children this slightly elevated period of independance and agency makes the transition from outside play to inside learning time infinitely easier for the teacher, and ultimately more productive. 

Staff are there to supervise and support students from 8.45am when the gates are opened.

Anxiety

Despite all best intentions and encouragement a few children may find coming to school causes some initial anxiety. Your child’s behaviour and communication style might seem to change overnight when they start school. Suddenly everything is ‘awesome’, or they’re rolling their eyes at everything you say. Your child is learning all kinds of new things from their friends and teachers, so this is part of developing a unique identity.

If you find your child is experiencing difficulties, while not brushing their feelings aside,   you should accentuate the positive. Phrase questions and commentary in ways that encourage a positive response, and reflection as this practice is good for changing mindsets. 

Conversation starters

Talking about school with children shows you’re interested in their lives and learning.

You can start a conversation about school by picking a good time.

Get children talking by asking simple and positive questions about school.

Simple, positive and specific questions about parts of the day can get your child talking. It’s good to use questions that invite more than a ‘yes’, ‘no’ or ‘OK’ response. For example:

• What’s the news from school today?
• What was enjoyable and, or fun?
• What did you like best at school today?
• What does your classroom look like at the moment?
• What did you do in class after recess?
• Who did you play or work with today?
• What topics are you working on in the classroom?

These tips can help you get a conversation going:

• Make time to talk. This can often be when you’re doing something with your child. For example, your child might like to talk when you’re walking the dog or preparing dinner together.
• Give your child your full attention if they want to talk with you about their day.
• Take seriously whatever your child tells you. For example, you can say things like, ‘That’s really interesting. Then what happened?’ or ‘And how do you feel about that?’
• Use active listening techniques. These can help you pick up on your child’s feelings and work out whether they want to talk.

Talking with your child about the school day shows you’re interested in what’s going on in their life. This interest boosts your child’s mental health, happiness and wellbeing. It can also have a very positive effect on your child’s behaviour and achievement. It shows your child that you value school and education, which encourages them to value it too.

Talking together about school also helps you get to know more about what’s expected of your child at school, how they learn and how they handle challenges. It can help you understand when your child is feeling less interested in school or having problems.

When you’re in touch with your child’s feelings about school, you’re more likely to see problems before they get too big. This way you can work on overcoming challenges together.

Talking about school issues – like school projects or friendship problems – is also a great chance for you to express your family values about things like teamwork, respect for self and others, friendships, relationships, problem-solving and so on.

I borrowed these strategies from https://raisingchildren.net.au/ . Don't let a small issue become a big one. Your child's teacher will happily speak with you and work with you to overcome any issues. We all want the best for every child and will do all we can to get every student off to the best possible start.

Celebrations and sharing food

For reasons relating to food allergies and safety, as well as the significant financial impost brought to bear, families are respectfully requested that under NO circumstances are you to supply birthday cakes, cupcakes, sweets, gifts and toys etc on school grounds – including at the OSHC program. 

I apologise in advance if this seems harsh, but the wellbeing of every student must be our primary concern.  Consider celebrating birthdays and other events at a local park or in your own home. 

Be mindful that many of our students are anaphylactic and food allergens pose a very real threat.

Traffic Safety

Traffic is a big issue for our school particularly at drop off and pick up.

The widening of Ailsa Grove at the bottom of the hill is for turning your cars in. It is not a parking spot. Please be patient and wait your turn to use the circle and resist the temptation to use neighbouring driveways. 

Reversing has an inherent risk and increases the chance of an accident occurring. 

Please leave yourself enough time so you don’t have to rush.

Avoid leaving engines running as there are lungs at work and under no circumstances leave your car in the "kiss 'n' go" drop off zones. These zones aid traffic movement.

SunSmart - BRING YOUR HAT TO SCHOOL

We are a registered SunSmart school and children must wear wide brimmed hats in Term One and Term Four.  Children without hats will be directed to the shade cloth areas at the top of the school near the Waterdale Rd building. Hats are required for Physical Education classes and Sport.  

(Click the sunsmart link)

Welcome to IPS Picnic-9th February. 5.30pm - 8pm

Each year, our PFA (Parents & Friends Association) puts on a Welcome Picnic in the first few weeks of the school term to welcome both new and returning families to Ivanhoe Primary School.

Please feel free to bring a picnic, rug, drinks, chairs etc but do please take your rubbish home so it's not still there for the following Monday's school day. The birds love making a mess of our grounds.

The PFA has arranged for a food truck to trade at the event (not sure what it is yet) which can be helpful for families where parents are rushing from work etc. In addition, the canteen will have some basic snacks for sale too!

Star of the Week

Star of the Week awards will begin Monday 12th of February for Year 1 to Year 6 after the first complete week of school.  Foundation Stars of the Week will begin later in February, once they have settled into their school routine and understand the concepts behind the acknowledgement.

Thank you for your help over the holidays

We are all justifiably proud of school and maintenance is required to keep the school clean, safe and a nice place to come to. Thank you to those families who assisted with the upkeep of the school grounds over the holidays and to the West Ivanhoe Football Club for maintaining our magnificent oval. Several parents took it upon themselves to trim trees, bushes and edges over the break.  Students appreciate and develop a greater sense of pride and ownership when adults model those behaviours and values we want them to acquire. Thank you!

2024 Term 1 Working Bee 24th February 3pm-5pm

Please come along to our next Working Bee. Prior to the date a job sheet will be put up online and you will be able to see what needs to be done and where you can sign on.

2024 Diary Dates for the fridge

2024 Term Dates

Term 1: 27th January 29th January (Year 1- 6 students start 31st January and Foundation students begin 7th February) – 28th March (2:30pm finish)

Term 2: 15th April – 28th June (2:30pm finish)

Term 3: 15th July - 20th September (2:30pm finish)

Term 4: 7th October - 20th December (1:30pm finish)

Coffee and Tea for Foundation Parents - 7th of February (9am Collaboration Space)

2024 Welcome Picnic - 9th February (5pm - 8pm on the oval)

2024  Camps Program dates

Grade 4 - Alexandra Adventure Resort - 30/10  - 1/11/24

Grade 5 - Sovereign Hill 09/09 - 11/09/2024 

Grade 6 - Canberra Tour 07/10 - 11/10/2024

2024  Curriculum Days

Friday 29th January - Curriculum Day (teachers and staff only)

Monday 30th January - Curriculum Day (teachers and staff only)

Friday 26th April - Curriculum Day (teachers and staff only)

Monday 4th November - Curriculum Day (teachers and staff only)

*Teacher Common Professional Practice Day – to be advised. 

2024 Working Bee dates

2024 School Council Meeting dates

* 6.30 pm correspondence tabled for 7pm meeting start.

PFA Events & Community Building Opportunities

Please read the PFA Dates page in this edition of Inside Ivanhoe.

So many great events to look forward to, but we need a new coordinator. However, Andrea the current convenor, is remaining on the committee and happy to induct all newcomers.

School Council

Please consider joining School Council. The notice of election is in this newsletter on the "Join IPS School Council" page which is  dedicated to providing information and nomination materials. There is a fact sheet link on that page. If you require further information please feel free to call me on 9499 1880.

Nomination forms can be downloaded from the Join School Council Page of this news letter or from reception. Please get your nomination in by 4pm on the 9th of February.

Finally

Remember our school values are: Respect, Persistence, Independence, Resilience and Confidence. 

Talk about these and model them for your child. It will help bring these concepts to life and make them more meaningful.

It is incumbent on all of us to bring these values to life and present them in ways that make sense to children. Here are some examples.

Persistence - Not giving up when things become challenging.

Persistence is not giving up, having more than one go at something, trying again when you get something wrong or just practicing to do your best.

Resilience - Being able to recover quickly from setbacks.

Resilient people often feel good about themselves. There is a difference between people who bounce back easily and those who get frustrated. If you can learn to bounce back you’ll do better at everything in life.

Confidence - Believing in yourself and what you can achieve.

Self-confidence is the belief in yourself and in your abilities. That you can do it. When you experience success, you feel good inside and you want to do better.

Independence – Being able to achieve things on your own.

Our aim is to ensure that every student is able to develop into an adult capable of looking after themselves, to thrive on the challenges that life throws at us, to experiment sensibly with risks and develop your own ways of doing things successfully.

Respect - Showing consideration for others.

Respect is thinking and acting in a way that shows others you care about their feelings and their well-being.

Rest assured that behaviours that disrupt learning and teaching will not be tolerated.

Stay safe, look after each other and thank you for supporting our great school.

Mark Kent

Principal

http://www.ivanhoeps.vic.edu.au/ 

We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Victoria and pay respect to the ongoing living cultures of First Peoples.