Dear School Community Members,

Mano Art Show: Wow - our Art Show yesterday afternoon showcased the incredible school we all belong to! I encourage all families to take the time with their children to reflect on the success of the Art Show, the amazing skills of your children and how proud you are of your children – this will assist children placing the experiences of yesterday afternoon in their long-term memory. I also encourage families to reflect on the incredible school we all belong to.

Congratulations to Mrs Hardman and Mrs King for their coordination of our Art Show and the wonderful opportunities they provide to our students on a daily basis. To our families, our appreciation for your attendance and encouragement. We raised $847.35!

Again, thank you to all involved.

Mano is a great place to be!

Under the Big Top: Last Friday was another wonderful example of the creative talents of our students. The dance routines from our Grade 3 and Grade 4 Learning Communities were fabulous and the performances of our Grade 5 and Grade 6 students highlight the fantastic and engaging Performing Arts program we have at Mano. Congratulations to our performers, thank you to our families for your support with costumes, and thank you to our community for raising $548.90 for the Save the Children Foundation. A terrific organisation that supports underprivileged children across Australia. Finally, a shout out to Mrs Grant and Ms Schuster for their coordination of the ‘Under the Big Top’ event!

R U OK? Day: Next Thursday (14th September) is R U OK? Day. Students at Manifold Heights Primary School will participate in activities that:

raise awareness of the support and help available for people who may be struggling
provides strategies to reach out to someone struggling
help students begin a conversation to connect with someone who may be struggling

I encourage families to teach their children the following ‘R U OK?’ conversation:

Step 1: Ask R U OK?

Step 2: Listen attentively (without interjecting)

Step 3: Encourage action (“is there something I can help you with?”)

Step 4: Check in (follow up with the person)

The R U OK? website has a wealth of wonderful information that is worth exploring as a family.

https://www.ruok.org.au/

Victorian State School Spectacular (VSSS): We wish our Victorian State School Spectacular team all the very best for their performances on Saturday. The team, consisting of 16 Senior students, will perform at John Cain Arena in front of 8,000 spectators for two shows. We look forward to celebrating this incredible achievement at Assembly on Monday morning.

Term 3 Social Service Activity:We are pleased to inform you that our Term 3 Social Service Activity has been finalised by our Junior School Council.

Date: Friday 15th September

Charity: Camp Quality

Donation: Gold coin

Students and staff are invited to come to school dressed in their Footy Colours! Once again, congratulations to our Junior School Council for their leadership across our school.

Capital Works – Storm Water upgrade: As communicated late last term, the Victorian Schools Building Authority (VSBA) will embark on a capital works project to upgrade our Storm Water and drainage. We recently met with the VSBA, Power Partners (contractor) and Spaces (project managers) to discuss the project. In this meeting, the VSBA briefed us on the scope of works and we discussed the timeline of when the different aspects of the project will be completed.

Please note:

The works will commence in the September school holidays and plan to be completed in April/May 2024
Almost all outside areas of our site will be impacted during the works, hence the works to be staged
Our oval will be most impacted as a result of a retention system being installed under the surface of the oval – for the high majority of the project, either half or all of the oval will be out-of-bounds
Utilising Peter Lowe Reserve will be considered when the oval is completely out-of-bounds
Some trees will be removed to accommodate the works and a replanting scheme will be enacted
All safety precautions will be enacted throughout the entire project

Please contact us if you have any questions or queries regarding the project.

Uniform - SunSmart Hats: Congratulations to the 98% of students who have their SunSmart Mano Hat for all outside activities, including Recess and Lunch time. As per our Student Dress Code and SunSmart policies, all students are required to wear their SunSmart Mano hat from 1st September, during all outside activities. Students will be required to play in a designated shaded area if they don’t have their SunSmart hat.

Parking at Drop off and Pick Up: The Local Laws officers have recently informed me that some of our parents and guardians are parking illegally at ‘drop off’ and ‘pick up’ times. This includes parking in ‘No Parking’ spaces, vehicles parking in ‘All Accessible’ parking bays without the appropriate permit displayed and double parking. The Local Laws officers have indicated that infringements will be issued for any vehicles illegally parked.

End of Term Arrangements: Next Friday is the last day of Term 3. Please note, students will be dismissed from school at 2:30pm next Friday. After School Care will begin at 2:30pm. Term 4 will commence on Monday 2nd October.

Thank you for supporting our school and have a great week.

Christian Smith

Acknowledgement of Country