Principals' Page

School holiday break

Next week our students will finish first term of 2024. It is hard to comprehend that we are already 25% of our way through the school year. 

On Thursday 28th March we will be holding a brief whole school assembly at 2:20pm followed by dismissal at 2:30pm. We are sure many people have lovely plans for the Easter/ school holiday break and we encourage everyone to stay safe. 

The children will return to school on the 15th April, ready to begin the new term of learning.

Staff learning

Our teachers also return ready to continue their own learning in term 2. At HEPS we have a culture of lifelong learners, inclusive of our staff engaging in professional learning. This year we have a particular focus on Speaking and Listening and in the development of Student Voice and Agency. 

We believe these areas hold the key to deep learning, explicitly teaching students to develop solid understandings of all curriculum areas. We as a staff will be exploring ways to enhance our practice in teaching language skills. Our aim is to see students better able to manipulate language to develop their own thinking, ability to communicate with and listen effectively to others. This will better prepare children to be able to articulate their thought processes, engage collaboratively with others and respond effectively in a variety of situations.

Staff will engage in professional learning with Ryan Gill, educational consultant specialising in the development of thinking cultures. He will be working to support the building of teacher capacity in embedding a culture of thinking within our HEPS classroom. This will challenge students to deepen their understandings of the world around them and to apply curriculum specific skills and strategies to new and varied situations. We will work to help students develop their individual thinking skills, and support them to articulate this and listen and respond to other learners.

The leadership team will also engage in high level professional development in term 2. We will further develop our capacity to lead the school in developing a thinking culture; enabling students to develop the dispositions to enable them to become lifelong learners.

Twilight Sports Evening

Last Friday evening the weather provided the perfect back drop for our Twilight Sports. The children (and many parents) had fun playing games on the school oval. A very big thank you to the Parents Association for organising the multicultural food, the team of teachers who put together the games and all staff who attended.  We are also appreciative of the familes who attended with their children on the night. The evening was a big success and fun for all.

Ride to School Day- Friday 22 March

This Friday 22nd March is National Ride2School Day and HEPS would like to encourage as many students as possible to ride, scoot or skate to school on this day.

National Ride2School Day is a great opportunity to promote healthy habits and the benefits of being active. More information can be found below.

https://bicyclenetwork.com.au/rides-and-events/ride2school/ride2school-day/

Three-Way Learning Conferences

Three-Way Conferences will occur next week from Three-Way Conferences will occur next week on Monday 25th March between 2.00-7.15 PM and Tuesday 26th March from 2.00-3.30 PM. All teachers are looking forward to continuing to build strong connections between students, teachers and parents.

NAPLAN

Well done to our Year 3 and 5 students who participated in NAPLAN tests over the last few weeks. The tests ran smoothly and it was pleasing to see students try their best. Our latest information indicates that results will be available to parents in July.

Tee Ball & Volley Bounce- Congratulations

Congratulations to our boy's Tee-ballers and our mixed volley bounce team who have progressed to the Division level. Well done to all students who participated in the two Sports Gala days over the last few weeks. Students were extremely well-behaved and showed great sportsmanship throughout the two days.

Dry Creek Bed

Over the April school holidays, we plan on building a beautifully designed natural play space that includes a dry creek bed for all our students to enjoy. This will be implemented at the back of the oval in the far back corner. This is part of our landscape master plan which was designed last year. The Parent Association has raised the majority of this money with any future funds raised by the PA will go towards this construction. A dry creek bed can offer several benefits for children, including:

• Exploration and play: Children can use dry creek beds as a natural playground to explore and play in a safe and engaging environment.
• Sensory experience: Walking and jumping in a dry creek bed can provide children with a sensory-rich experience, connecting them to nature through touch, sound, and movement.
• Environmental education: Dry creek beds can serve as outdoor classrooms where children can learn about water conservation, erosion control, and the importance of natural habitats. This would complement our Sustainability and STEAM programs at HEPS
• Creativity and imagination: Children can use dry creek beds as a canvas for creative play, building bridges, and other structures using rocks, sticks, and other natural materials.

We envisage that this area will be initially a popular area for the students at recess and lunchtime and we will increase teacher supervision during those times.